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Public  Library 


4  ' 

■a- 


THE 


GOSPEL   PREACHER: 


A  BOOK  OF 


TWENTY-ONE  SERMONS. 


BY 

BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN. 

Founder  op^  the  American  Christian  Review  ;  Author  of  Gospel 

Preacher,  Vol.  I ;  Sincerity  Seeking  the  way  to  Heaven  ; 

Tracts  for  the  People,  and  Sundry  Other  Works. 


VOL.    II. 
Nineteenth  Edition. 


INDIANAPOLIS,  IND. : 

K.  W.  SOMMER,  Publisher. 
1904. 


THE  NEW  YORK 
PUBLIC  LIBRARY 

A8T0R,  LENOX  AND 
YttDEN  POUNDATIONS- 
1905 

>jt  V  w* ■■ ■■ ■•  *■■' 


COPYRIGHTED  BY 

PC.    W.    SOiVIMER. 

OCTOBER,  1904. 


CONTENTS. 


SERMON  I. 

PAQE. 

<*  Wha^    i'HINK  YE    OF    ChRIST?" 11 

SERMON  II. 
Divine  Authority 33 

SP:RM0N  III. 
A  Kingdom  not  of  this  World 55 

SERMON  IV. 
The  Conversion  of  Saul  of  Tarsus 79 

SERMON  V. 
The  Calling  of  the  Gentiles 103 

SERMON  VI. 
Kemission  of  Sins 127 

SERMON  VII. 
The  Action  of  Baptism 149 

SERMON  VIII. 
Prayer ^^^ 

SERMON  IX. 
Positive  Divine  Law ^^^ 


IV  CONTENTS. 

SERMON  X. 
Matters  OF  Agreement ..^- 219 

SERMON  XI. 
Matters  of  Disagreement 243 

SERMON  XII. 

Why  was  the  Primitive  Church  Persecuted?  Why  were 
the  First  Christians  Persecuted?  Why  is  the  True 
Church  now  Persecuted?  "Why  are  the  Chri&itians 
NOW  Persecuted? 26? 

SERMON  XIII. 

Concessions  Favorable  to  Christ  from  those  not  Christians...  292 

SERMON  XIV. 
Mediation  of  Christ,  and  Man's  Reconciliation  to  God 315 

SERMON  XV. 

What  was  the  Cause  of  Such  Vast  Multitudes  Becoming 
Christians  in  the  Time  of  the  Apostles? 337 

SERMON  XVI. 
The  Soldier  of  the  Cross 361 

SERMON  XVII. 
Dancing 385 

SERMON  XVIII. 
Instrumental  Music  in  Worship 411 

SERMON  XIX. 

The  Progress  of  Religious  Reformation 433 

SERMON  XX. 
Identity  OF  the  Church 465 

SERMON  XXI. 
The  Simplicity  OF  the  Divine  Economy 479 


INTRODUCTION. 


s.^v^ti  "ilght  years  ago  the  first  volume  of  the  Gospel  Preacher  was 
*.k>aed.  It  was  not  styled  "Vol.  I.,"  because  there  was  no  thought  then 
o.f  issuing  a  second  voluaie.  There  was  no  idea  entertained  of  the  favor 
U  would  receive  from  the  public;  but  it  was  supposed  that  it  would  have 
kA  justifying  patronage.  In  this  respect  it  has  exceeded  the  most  sanguine 
expectations  of  its  friends.  In  less  than  eight  years  eleven  editions  have 
been  issued.  Nor  has  it  had  a  short  run,  us  some  works,  and  then  lost  its 
inieresi;  but  it  is  still  selling  and  being  circulated.  For  this  liberal  pa- 
tronage t'lie  author  is  certainly  grateful  to  the  public. 

In  view  oi  the  success  this  volume  has  had,  the  work  it  has  done  in  the 
cause  of  Cbri^t,  encouragement  has  been  found  to  heed  the  request  of 
many,  whose  j "vd^naent  has  been  regarded,  in  preparing  a  second  volume 
of  sermons  and  Oj^ffcring  them  to  the  public.  The  assurance  has  now  been 
given,  in  a  way  thai  can  not  be  misunderstood,  that  the  former  volume 
has  been  abundantly  u?«ful  in  the  great  cause  of  religious  reformation. 
It  has  been  read  extb^asively,  both  in  the  Church  and  out  of  it,  by  the 
people  of  the  world  aDtJ  leligious  people,  who  difi"er  from  us.  It  has 
greatly  strengthened  and  oA.*fied  the  members  of  the  Church ;  afforded 
much  material  for  young  ptScV''.\;ers,  who  were  comparatively  inexperienced 
in  their  work ;  aided  and  assisJed  them  in  qualifying  themselves  for  use- 
fulness. It  has  also  convinced  vfii.>ny  of  those  in  error,  and  caused  them 
to  turn  from  the  error  of  their  wii;yi3--and  among  these  several  preachers. 
It  has,  further,  been  a  great  comfo"<\  and  satisfaction  to  many  brethren 
«ituated  remotely  from  any  congregalx  »n,  and  where  they  could  not  enjoy 
meetings  or  the  public  instruction  in  'vhe  congregations.  In  all  these 
respects,  it  is  hoped,  the  volume  now  iii  \\\  \^  will  be  of  equal  service  and 
interest,  and,  in  many  respects,  be  of  stil.^  ^^;    .,    3)  interest  and  service. 

(V) 


VI  INTRODUCTION. 

Including  six  printed  and  published  debates,  in  which  he  conducted  one 
side,  a  dozen  small  volumes  of  about  one  hundred  pages  each,  with  more 
than  thirty  volumes  of  periodicals,  and  the  two  volumes  of  sermons,  the 
writer  of  the  following  discourses  has  given  the  public  some  fifty  volumes. 
These  have  all  been  pretty  widely  circulated  in  this  country,  and  some 
of  them  in  other  countries.  The  writer  has  also  traveled  into  more  than 
half  these  States,  besides  visiting  Upper  Canada  five  times,  and  Lower 
Canada  once,  and  been  known  as  a  preacher  of  the  gospel  more  than 
forty  years.  He  has  never  been  a  mere  nominal  preacher,  nor  a  Sunday 
preacher;  though  for  a  few  years  stationed  to  preach  in  one  place.  A 
large  portion  of  the  time  he  has  preached  almost  every  day,  and  much  ot 
the  time  day  and  night,  and  in  the  meantime  keeping  up  his  writing, 
which  will  account  for  the  seeming  carelessness  in  a  literary  point  of 
view,  as  also  the  fact  that  he  only  occasionally  had  the  opportunity  to 
read  his  own  proof. 

The  assemblies  that  have  heard  him,  from  time  to  time,  have  generally 
been  large,  and  the  number  that  have  united  with  the  Church  under  his 
personal  appeals  has  been  largely  over  ten  thousand.  It  may  be  that 
one-half  of  these  still  live,  and  many  of  them  will  read  with  great  satis- 
faction and  profit  the  following  discourses,  and  recognize  in  some  of 
them  the  same  line  of  thought,  traced  in  their  hearing,  and  the  same 
arguments,  and  be  greatly  refreshed  in  reading  them.  Thousands  of 
others,  who  attended  the  meetings  where  this  work  has  been  done,  in  the 
Church  and  out  of  it,  will  be  delighted  and  profited  in  tracing  the  trains 
of  thought  they  can  recollect,  when  they  heard  the  extemporaneous 
speaker.  Many  more,  who  have  long  read  after  the  writer  of  these  ser- 
mons, but  never  seen  his  face,  will  take  pleasure  in  reading  them.  Many 
preachers  and  private  members,  from  considerations  like  the  foregoing, 
have  urged  that  these  discourses  should  be  written  out  and  published,  that 
they  may  do  service  when  the  author  shall  have  gone  hence.  To  this  the 
writer  has  yielded,  and  overworked  himself  to  bring  the  work  out.  By  the 
mercy  of  our  Heavenly  Father  he  has  been  spared  to  finish  the  work,  and 
give  it  to  the  world.    For  this  he  is  truly  thankful. 

The  writer  has  never  been  troubled  any  with  literary  claims  and  pre- 
tensions, and,  therefore,  has  nothing  at  stake  in  that  market.  He  is  a 
candidate  for  no  literary  distinction,  honor  or  position.     His  aim  and 


INTRODUCTION.  Vll 

heart's  desire  have  been  the  same  as  when  in  conversation  with  a  friend, 
in  the  private  circle,  or  in  the  audience  in  a  public  discourse — to  convince 
the  people  of  the  truth,  to  turn  them  from  the  world  to  the  Lord,  and 
guide  the  saints  in  the  way  everlasting.  He  has  aimed  to  talk  to  the  reader 
in  the  most  familiar,  plain  and  pointed  manner;  to  address  his  intelli- 
gence, his  understanding,  his  reason ;  to  convince  him  of  the  truth,  to 
impress  it  on  his  mind,  enforce  it,  and  persuade  him  to  accept  it,  in  view 
of  the  salvation  of  his  soul.  He  has  adopted  the  plainest  terms  he  could 
command,  the  easiest  style  to  be  understood,  and  the  most  forcible  lan- 
guage. 

It  appears  hardly  justifiable  to  apologize,  or  ask  any  leniency  in  pre- 
senting a  volume  like  this;  but  it  must,  nevertheless,  be  done.  The  writer 
was  compelled  to  look  every  week  to  the  columns  of  a  weekly  sheet,  where 
he  was  expected  to  fill  from  four  to  six  columns,  examine  and  select  from 
correspondents,  write  numerous  letters,  and  preach  once  or  twice  every 
day.  In  the  midst  of  all  this,  away  from  home,  in  talking  companies  fre- 
quently, beginning  last  July  two  years  ago,  this  volume  has  been  pro- 
duced. If  there  should,  then,  appear  carelessness  in  the  style,  want  of 
attention  to  minor  matters,  the  reader  will  ascribe  it  to  the  causes  men- 
tioned above.    In  this  respect  leniency  is  entreated. 

As  it  respects  doctrine^  no  leniency  is  asked.  If  error  is  found  when 
the  writer,  or  the  preacher,  is  taken  in  the  true  sense,  or,  as  he  intended^ 
let  the  critics  come,  and  let  the  expose  be  most  rigid.  There  can  be  no 
compromise  with  error — false  teaching  must  be  exposed.  Nor  is  there 
any  use  to  be  particular  about  the  spirit — let  error  be  exposed.  True 
good  men,  even  in  exposing  error,  write  in  a  good  spirit ;  but  it  is  prefer- 
able that  error  be  exposed,  though  the  spirit  be  not  of  the  best  kind.  The 
impression  made  by  false  teaching  is  false,  and  should  not  be  permitted  to 
go  on.  If  there  is  an  erroneous  principle  inculcated,  an  argument  at- 
tempted that  is  not  fair  and  scriptural,  in  the  following  discourses,  the 
author  is  not  aware  of  it,  and  would  be  thankful  to  have  it  soon  pointed 
out.  Ko  matter  how  good  the  intentions  of  any  man,  a  false  principle, 
an  unfair  or  an  unscriptural  argument  is  always  damaging.  Truth 
needs  no  such  support. 

Not  one  of  the  following  discourses  was  ever  written  till  prepared  for 
this  volume     .Tot  one  of  them  was  ever  delivered,  word  for  word,  as  here 


.Vm  INTRODUCTION. 

presented — not  one  of  them  was  ever  memorized.  The  author  could  not 
now  repeat  a  single  paragraph  in  the  volume  word  for  word.  For  thirty 
years  he  has  never  prepared  a  note  for  preaching,  and  only  occasionally 
stopped  to  read  from  the  Bible  or  any  book.  His  speaking  has  been 
purely  extemporaneous.  In  the  greater  portion  of  the  following  dis- 
courses, those  accustomed  to  hear  the  author  will  readily  recognize  trains 
of  thought  so  near  like  what  they  have  heard,  that  they  would  not  know, 
from  memory,  that  they  had  not  been  reported  by  a  stenographer.  They 
have  been  written,  as  far  as  possible,  so  as  to  read  as  they  were  delivered 
— to  have  the  same  freshness,  directness  and  force;  the  same  life,  ani- 
mation and  spirit.  This  will  be  more  agreeable  to  those  who  have  heard 
the  author,  and,  at  the  same  time,  give  those  who  never  heard  him  a  bet- 
ter idea  of  his  preaching,  and  certainly  detract  nothing  from  the  merits 
of  the  volume. 

Some  of  these  themes  the  author  has  many  times  traced,  in  oral  dis- 
courses, much  the  same  as  they  are  written;  and  much  of  the  matter, 
indeed,  the  greater  portion  of  the  matter,  in  one  way  or  other,  has  been 
uttered  in  public  discourses.  But  several  of  the  themes  were  never  dis- 
coursed upon  by  him  as  distinct  themes,  and  have  never  appeared  in  any 
form  publicly  before.  True,  the  matters  in  them  have  been  referred  to, 
in  one  way  or  other,  in  public  discourses,  but  not  selected  and  discoursed 
upon  as  distinct  themes.  This  is  true  of  the  discourse  on  dancing^  as  also 
the  discourse  on  instrumental  music  in  worship.  The  same  is  true  of  sev- 
eral other  themes.  Still,  in  one  form  or  other,  in  the  numerous  discourses 
he  has  preached,  in  the  different  parts  of  the  country,  almost  everything 
in  the  discourses  has  come  up  in  some  shape,  and  much  of  it  many  times. 

The  constant  aim  in  these  sermons  has  been  to  make  a  book  for  th6 
people.  The  author  speaks  to  the  people  and  writes  to  the  people;  he 
claims  to  be  one  of  the  people^  and  not  above  them,  but  in  common  toith 
those  of  them  who  learn  of  our  Lord  and  his  inspired  apostles.  He  has 
tried  to  keep  in  view  the  fact  that  it  is  not  great  learning  the  people  need 
to  make  them  Christians,  great  knowledge  in  the  arts  and  sciences  to 
make  them  wise  to  salvation,  a  great  understanding  of  the  civil  aflFairs  of 
the  country — though  the  religion  of  Christ  is  in  the  way  of  none  of  these 
' — but  great  faith.  We,  in  our  day,  are  great  in  almost  everything  except 
faith.     We  are  not  great  in  faith,  but  small  in  faith— mere  pigmifs  in 


INTRODUCTION.  IX 

faith.  What  does  it  amount  to  for  a  man  to  be  great  in  languages,  in 
the  sciences,  history,  politics,  commerce,  finance,  but  little  in  faith  ?  We 
have  many  great  men  in  this  world,  but  little  -rnen  in  faith. 

Whatever  else  the  reader  may  do,  after  reading  the  following  pages,  it 
is  most  devoutly  hoped  that  he  may  not  become  less  in  faith;  it  is  most 
confidently  hoped  that  it  may  be  regarded  as  a  book  of  faith — a  product 
of  faith — thQ  offspring  of  faith.  These  discourses  have  convinced  many, 
or  the  various  arguments  in  them,  as  they  have  been  presented  by  the 
author,  in  one  form  or  other,  in  his  past  labors,  and  strengthened  many 
others.  Many  are  the  assurances  he  has  received  from  those  at  one  time 
without  faith,  of  their  being  fully  settled  in  the  enjoyment,  the  comfort 
and  full  assurance  of  faith.  Many  of  these  have  remained  under  the 
same  gracious  power  of  faith  till  they  bade  adieu  to  this  world,  end  with 
firm  grasp  laid  hold  on  the  world  to  come.  The  hope  is  now  entertained 
that  this  volume  will  go  on  its  mission,  and  continue  to  do  its  work,  of 
extending  the  faith  of  Christ,  long  after  the  pen  that  traces  these  lines 
will  cease  to  move  any  more  forever. 

The  Bible  is  the  book  for  us  all.  It  begins  its  history  "in  the  begin- 
ning," and  ends  it  not  with  this  world,  nor  with  time,  but  with  the  eter- 
nity— in  the  new  heavens  and  the  new  earth.  It  terminates  not  the  hope 
of  man  with  death,  but  opens  a  "house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in 
the  heavens  "  It  stops  not  at  the  cold  grave,  but  lifts  up  the  soul  and 
looks  away  to  the  time  when  the  King  shall  come  with  power  and  great 
glory,  and  God  shall  summon  the  dead  to  arise  and  come  to  judgment; 
and  when  lie  shall  utter  the  gracious  plaudit :  "  Come,  you  blessed  of  my 
Father,  inherit  the  kingdom  prepared  for  you  from  the  founding  of  the 
ages;"  and  invite  them,  as  follows:  "Enter  you  into  tbe  joys  of  your 
Lo^d."  May  we  all  be  prepared  to  stand  before  him  in  that  day! 
March  30,  1877.  BEN  J.  FRANKLIN. 


TSIiS 


GOSPEL  PREACHER. 


SERMON  :N"o.   I.' 

THEME. — "WHAT  THINK  YE  OF  CHRIST?" 

T.^TS  opens  the  way  for  an  inquiry  of  the  highest  ira- 
jjortai^se,  "  What  think  you  of  Christ?"  This  leads  to 
another,  limiting  the  inquiry  to  one  point,  Whose  Son  is 
he?  Of  all  tlie  inquiries  propounded  to  men,  these  are 
the  most  important,  fundamental  and  all-engrossing. 
They  penetrate  down  into  the  very  depths ;  to  the  foun- 
dation of  the  religion  of  Christ;  the  hottom  corner- 
stone of  the  faith  and  hope  of  the  world.  On  these  in- 
quiries, the  matter  contained  in  them,  the  manner  in 
which  we  treat  them,  and  our  actions  in  reference  to 
them,  turn  our  eternal  weal  or  woe.  The  very  first 
matter  of  inquiry  pertaining  to  the  onlj^  true  religion  on 
the  face  of  the  earth,  and  the  only  one  having  one  par- 
ticle of  divine  authority  in  it,  is  brought  up  for  consid- 
eration in  these  inquiries,  "  What  think  you  of  Christ?" 
This  question  reaches  to  the  very  basis.  It  penetrates 
that  which  is  fundamental — vital;  it  is  a  matter  of  in- 
quiry that  can  not  be  let  alone;  it  is  so  related  to  us 
that  we  can  not  be  indifferent  to  it.  Even  the  skeptic, 
who  professes  not  to  believe  on  Christ,  and  assumes,  or 

(11) 


12  WHAT    THINK    YE   OF    CHRIST? 

tries  to  assume,  an  air  of  indiffereuce  in  reference  to  him, 
can  not  let  the  inquiry  alone  about  him.  He  must  be 
talking  about  him.  The  bare  thought  that  he  might  be 
all  he  claims  to  be,  is  exciting,  rousing  and  alarming. 
He  is  not  thus  troubled  about  Mohammed,  agitated  and 
roused  on  hearing  men  talk  of  him ;  nor  about  the 
prophet  of  Mormonism ;  nor  is  he  thus  troubled  about 
the  Pope  of  Rome,  Swedenborg,  or  Ann  Lee!  Why 
not?  There  is  a  reason  for  this.  These  do  not  annoy 
him;  follow  him  in  his  meditations  by  day,  and  in  his 
visions  by  night;  he  is  impressed  with  no  profound  awe 
when  he  thinks  of  these,  nor  is  he  filled  with  any  fear; 
he  is  not  excited  by  these  the  one  way  or  the  other,  nor 
troubled;  he  shows  no  particular  interest  in  them  the 
one  way  or  the  other,  and  has  no  zeal  to  oppose  those 
friendly  to  them.  But  mention  the  name  of  Jesus  of 
iN'azareth  to  him,  and  a  different  feeling  is  roused  at  once. 
A  fierce  spirit  of  opposition  is  awakened  in  him,  and  all 
of  the  same  sort  in  hearing  are  called  up  in  hostility. 
The  calmness,  indifference  and  unconcern  manifested 
before  disappear!     Why  is  this? 

In  the  same  way,  mention  the  Koran,  the  apochryphal 
writings,  the  unwritten  traditions  of  the  Papacy,  or  the 
Book  of  Mormon,  and  no  excitement  is  produced,  no 
concern  is  manifested,  or  fury  awakened  on  the  part  of 
the  skeptic;  no  cry  is  raised  about  imposture,  supersti- 
tion or  tradition  ;  no  cry  is  heard  about  contradictions, 
absurdities  and  inconsistencies;  nor  is  any  fierce  opposi- 
tion called  out.  Why  not?  Is  it  because  skeptics  are 
friendly  to  these  books?  By  no  means.  This  is  not  the 
reason.  These  are  dead  hooJcs  /  he  has  no  fear  of  them. 
They  bear  no  relation  to  him,  nor  to  the  worlds  that  can 
excite  his  fears,  or  rouse  his  opposition.  They  are  null 
and  void.    But  mention  t/ie  Bihle^  and  vou  rouse  all  the 


WHAT    THINK    YE    OF    CHRIST?  13 

skeptics  ill  hearing.  The  cry  is  heard  of  contradictions, 
absurdities  and  incongruities  in  all  directions.  A  spirit 
of  opposition  is  awakened  from  one  side  of  the  country 
to  the  other.  Every  vicious  spirit  spits  forth  its  venom ; 
every  unclean  spirit  sets  up  the  howl  about  the  uncer- 
tainty of  "  old  musty  manuscripts,"  translations,  coun- 
cils, and  the  like  channels  through  which  the  Bible  is 
supposed  to  have  come  down  through  the  ages  to  our 
time.  The  general  rule  is,  that  those  who  know  the 
least  about  these  matters,  talk  the  most,  longest  and 
loudest.  But  why  should  they  be  excited  at  all?  Why 
not  quietly  settle  down,  saying  simply,  if  they  say  any- 
thing, the  Bible  is  all  a  hoax,  and  cease  troubling  about 
it?  There  is  the  difficulty;  they  can  not  do  that;  they 
can  not  tellw^hy;  they  can  not  quiet  down  and  let  it 
alone,  treating  the  whole  wnth  indifference.  They  know 
not  why,  but  they  can  not  be  indifferent;  they  know  not 
the  reason,  but  the  matter  will  not  rest,  will  not  be  quiet, 
will  not  let  them  alone ^  or  he  let  alone.     Why  is  this? 

The  Author  of  the  Bible  knows  all  about  men;  never 
errs  when  he  speaks  of  them,  but  makes  them  sensible 
that  he  understands  them  throughout.  The  Bible  tells 
all  about  men — what  is  in  them.  The  skeptic  can  not 
rest  with  one  book  in  our  midst  that  describes  us  alto- 
g.  titer.  Such  a  book  troubles  him;  he  can  not  rest  to 
have  it  printed,  circulated,  read,  believed  in  private  fam- 
ilies, Sunday-schools,  Bible-classes,  prayer-meetings,  and 
numerous  other  places.  Whether  men  know  it  or  not, 
like  it  or  not,  there  is  one  Being  over  us  who  knows  us 
altogether,  and  takes  account  of  all  our  actions ;  and  we 
have  one  book  in  which  is  revealed  his  mind  about  men ; 
in  which  he  tells  all  about  us;  even  our  thoughts,  our 
desires  and  purposes;  the  very  inmost  thoughts  and  in- 
tents of  our  hearts;  rtveals  what  is  in  us.   We  can  look 


14  WHAT   THINK   YE    OF   CHRIST? 

into  that  book  and  see  ourselves — not  as  we  see  or  rep- 
resent ourselves,  or  as  others  see  and  represent  us,  but  as 
we  are  This  is  not  all.  This  one  Being  not  only  knows 
us,  but  knows  what  is  to  become  of  us;  what  we  are  to 
be,  and  tells  us;  reveals  it  to  us  in  the  one  book — the 
Bible.  This  is  the  dread  part  of  it !  Man  does  not  like 
to  see  Jiimself^  and  that  as  he  is  ;  especially  in  his  sinful 
alienation  from  God.  He  does  not  like  to  read,  and 
have  others  read,  a  revelation  of  himself;  one  that  will 
be  believed,  and  worthy  of  all  credence;  not  only  ad- 
dressed to  himself,  but  to  all  people;  to  be  known  and 
read  of  all  men  ! 

This  one  glorious  Being  connects  the  conduct  of  men 
in  this  world  with  their  fate  in  the  world  to  come,  and 
shows  that  the  conditions  of  men  in  the  world  to  come 
will  depend  on  their  conduct  in  this  world.  In  his  own 
glorious  book  he  reveals  to  man  a  heaven  for  the  right- 
eous, and  a  hell  for  the  devil  and  his  angels,  where  the 
wicked  will  have  their  part,  in  the  world  to  come.  In 
this  one  book,  from  side  to  side,  ho  discriminates  be- 
tween the  righteous  and  the  wicked,  him  that  serves 
God  and  him  that  serves  him  not.  This  is  the  trouble, 
on  the  part  of  some  men,  with  the  one  Being  and  the 
one  book  of  which  we  are  to  speak  in  this  discourse.  By 
this  one  Being,  in  this  book,  we  are  assured  that  "  God  is 
angry  with  the  wicked  every  day;"  that  he  has  ''no 
pleasure  in  the  wicked,"  and  that  "the  wicked  shall  be 
turned  into  hell  with  all  the  nations  that  forget  God." 
This  one  Being  is  the  supreme  and  the  ah^olute  authority 
both  in  heaven  and  on  earth,  and  in  this  one  book  the 
supreme  and  absolute  authority  is  set  forth.  This  one 
book  emanates  from  this  one  Being,  and  without  him  it 
would  be  all  null  and  void.  It  receives  all  its  authority 
from  him;  its  very  life  is  from  him,  and  Z'y  liis  Anointed, 


WHAT   THINK   YE   OF    CHRIST?  15 

the  Lord  Jesus  the  Christ,  by  whom  and  for  whom  all 
things  were  made;  who  was  before  all  things,  and  by 
whom  all  things  consist.  "In  the  beginning  was  the 
Word,  and  the  Word  was  with  God,  and  the  Word  was 
God."  "Without  him  was  not  anything  made  that  was 
made."  "  He  is  the  Alpha  and  the  Omega,  the  begin- 
ning and  the  ending."  He  says,  after  his  resurrection, 
in  most  triumphant  language:  "I  am  he  who  was  dead, 
and  am  alive,  and  behold  I  live  forever  and  ever,  and 
have  the  keys  of  Iladts  and  of  death.  I  can  shut  and 
no  man  can  open ;  I  can  open  and  no  man  can  shut." 
Paul  says,  "He  has,  by  inheritance,  a  greater  and  more 
excellent  name  than  any  of  the  august  messengers  that 
minister  in  the  presence  of  Jehovah."  He  was  God 
manifested  in  the  flesh.  He  said  to  the  Jews,  "  He  who 
sees  me,  sees  the  Father;"  and  again,  "Before  Abraham 
was,  I  AM."  John  says,  "  He  is  the  true  God  and  eternal 
life."  Paul  says,  "  He  is  the  express  image  of  the  invis- 
ible God,  and  the  brightness  of  his  Father's  glory."  He 
further  says,  "In  him  dwells  all  the  fullness  of  the  Deity 
substantially."  "He  is  the  head  over  all  things  to  the 
Church." 

No  other  teacher  ever  came  before  the  world  in  the 
same  manner  as  our  Lord.  He  says,  "  I  am  the  waj^,  the 
truth,  and  the  life;  no  man  comes  to  the  Father  but  by 
me."  He  says,  "  It  has  been  said  by  them  of  old.  An 
eye  for  an  eye,  and  a  tooth  for  a  tooth ;  but  I  say.  Not  so 
now^^  thus  placing  his  teaching  in  bold  and  avowed 
contrast  with  what  had  been  taught  of  old.  He  knew 
what  had  been  said  of  old,  and  regarded  as  law,  and,  in- 
deed, what  was  law^  and  divine  law  at  that,  and  gave 
all  the  privilege  to  understand  that  he  intended  a  revo- 
lution^ a  new  order  of  things,  a  new  dispensation.  He 
places  the  expression,  "  I  say  to  you,"  in  contr^^t  with 


16  WHAT  THIWii    i'B   Of   OHKIST  ^ 

what  had  been  said  of  old,  in  the  law  of  God;  or,  "It 
has  been  said  of  old,  but  not  so  now."  Look,  too,  at 
the  exclusive  language  we  have  quoted  from  him,  "I  am 
the  way."  This  covers  the  whole  ground,  leaving  no 
room  for  anything  else,  or  any  other  way.  But  you 
inquire,  "  The  way  ?/;7iere.^"  The  answer  is,  The  way 
to  the  Father.  He  was  not  preaching  the  modern,  lib- 
eral and  charitable  doctrine;  tliat  you  can  come  any 
way;  that  it  is  no  diflerence  which  way  you  come;  but 
he  was  setting  forth  the  way^  and  the  only  way^  to  the 
Father.  As  if  he  had  said,  "  You  do  not  come  by  Mosei 
now,  nor  by  the  law  of  Moses,  nor  by  the  way,  or  any  waj 
pointed  out  by  pagan  doctors,  or  any  other  teachers,  but 
by  me.  You  can  not  find  the  way  to  the  Father  by  the 
light  of  nature,  by  human  reason,  learning,  the  sciences, 
or  any  other  means,  but  hy  ')ne.  I  am  the  way  to  the 
Father.  Not  an  ofiering  made;  not  a  prayer  uttered; 
nor  an  attempt  to  worship,  except  through  me,  will  ever 
avail  anything  after  the  ushering  in  of  this  new  institu- 
tion that  I  have  come  to  establish.  You  may  not  pray 
as  a  Jew,  a  Deist,  directly  to  the  Father;  nor  need  you 
think  to  come  directly  to  him,  for  '  no  man  conies  to 
the  Father  hut  hy  mey 

He  is,  how^ever,  not  only  "the  way,"  but  "the  truth." 
He  does  not  simply  claim  to  set  forth  sometlting  I'^he  the 
truth,  or  nearly  like  it^  as  simply  truth;  but  more,  the 
truth.  This,  too,  is  most  exclusive.  It  leaves  not  one 
inch  of  ground  outside  of  it;  it  covers  the  entire  ground 
with  the  smallest  possible  number  of  words;  it  is  the 
neatest  little  sentence  ever  uttered ;  as  clear  and  conclu- 
sive as  that  a  straight  line  is  the  shortest  possible  dis 
tance  between  two  given  points.  ISTothing  can  possibly 
be  added  to  it,  or  taken  from  it,  without  marring  it.  If 
the  Lord  is  the  truth,  there  is  an  end  of  all  controvei:sy 


WHAT   THINK   YE    OF   CHRIST?  17 

about  going  to  any  other  person  to  find  the  truth.  The 
matter  is  simply  reduced  to  coming  to  him,  and  being 
taught  by  him.  The  command,  as  it  came  from  the 
Almighty  Father,  on  the  mountain  of  transfiguration,  is  • 
"  Hear  ye  A^?7^."  In  hearing  him  we  also  hear  the  Father 
who  sent  him,  and  in  rejecting  him  we  also  reject  the 
Father  who  sent  him. 

He  is  the  life.  This,  again,  is  exclusive.  We  need 
not  go  to  Moses  for  the  life,  for  the  law  had  no  eternal 
life  in  it ;  nor  to  the  philosophers,  statesmen,  or  pagan 
doctors,  for  they  never  had  eternal  life,  nor  any  power 
to  impart  it.  The  life  is  not  in  them^  but  in  the  Lord 
Jesus  the  Christ.  Here,  too,  is  an  end  of  all  loose 
teaching  about  the  heathen  and  others  who  have  never 
heard  the  gospel,  being  saved  on  the  ground  of  their 
ignorance.  Here  is  the  Lord  Jesus  the  Christ,  the  loay^ 
the  truth,  and  the  life;  the  one  and  only  Mediator  be- 
tween God  and  men,  the  propitiation  for  the  sins  of  the 
whole  world,  and  the  grand  and  awful  statement  from 
him,  that  "  No  man  comes  to  the  Father  but  by  me^-  He 
is  the  only  Savior  of  the  world.  The  inquiry  begins 
about  him,  "What  think  ye  of  Christ?  Whose  Son  is 
is  he?"  Is  he  what  he  claimed  to  be?  If  he  is,  he  is 
what  man  needs.  Man  is  a  poor,  imperfect,  fallible  and 
erring  creature.  He  needs  infallibility  somewhere  to 
which  he  can  come  and  receive  instruction  implicitly. 
A  little  girl  once  heard  two  ladies  talking.  They  did  not 
know  who  she  was.  One  of  them  referred  to  a  state- 
ment made  by  the  mother  of  the  little  girl,  adding,  that 
she  did  not  believe  it.  The  other  also  said  she  did  not 
believe  it.  The  little  girl  manifested  excitement,  and 
inquired,  with  earnestness,  "  Did  ma  say  it  ?  "  They  then 
saw  who  she  was,  but  answered  her  candidly  that  her 
mother  said  it.  She  then  replied,  with  much  assurance, 
2 


18  WHAT   THINK   YE  OF   CHRIST? 

"  If  ma  said  it,  it  is  so^  That  is  fait/i;  it  is  believing 
implicitly.  She  did  not  believe  it  because  she  could 
understand  it,  or  comprehend  it,  or  saw  why  she  should 
believe  it,  except  that  her  mother  said  it  was  so.  We 
all  need  some  one  to  whom  we  can  come,  in  the  same 
way  as  this  little  child,  and  whom  we  can  believe  im- 
plicitly; or  believe  what  he  says  because  he  said  it,  and 
not  because  we  can  understand  it  throughout,  or  see  and 
comprehend  it  fully. 

Archbishop  Purcell  opposed  the  dogma  of  infallibility 
before  he  went  to  the  (Ecumenical  Council,  and  when  in 
the  council  opposed  it;  but  the  dogma  was  passed  over 
his  head,  and  he  was  compelled  to  succumb.  When  he 
returned  home,  and  undertook  to  adjust  himself  to  the 
new  position  before  the  people  of  Cincinnati,  he  said  : 
"The  Pope  is  on  a  higher  eminence  than  any  of  us,  and 
can  see  farther  what  is  for  the  good  of  religion  and  the 
glory  of  God."  The  archbishop  thus  came  down  and 
submitted  to  His  Holiness;  yes,  and  to  His  Infallihility! 
He  could  not  see  this  himself,  nor  believe  it,  till  the 
council  passed  it;  he  then  received  it  implicitly — not 
because  he  could  understand  it,  or  see  the  reason  for  it, 
or  in  it,  but  because  "  the  Pope  is  on  a  higher  eminence 
than  any  of  us,  and  can  see  farther  what  is  for  the  good 
of  religion  and  the  glory  of  God."  But  he  finds,  or  pro- 
fesses to  find,  the  infallibility  too  low  down.  It  is  not 
to  be  found  in  Kome,  nor  in  the  Pope,  nor  anywhere 
else  on  earth.  It  is  in  the  Lord  Jesus  the  Christ.  He 
is  the  Infallihility.  We  may  believe  what  he  says  im- 
plicitly.,  or  because  he  said  it. 

The  first  thing  to  do,  then,  is  to  make  up  the  mind 
about  him.  Examine  the  question  :  "  Whose  Son  is  he?" 
Can  men  look  to  him  as  the  Infallihilityf  Can  they 
look  to  him  as  the  Son  of  God?     Can  they  believe  all 


WHAT    THINK    YE    OF    CHRIST?  19 

he  said  implicitly^  or  simply  because  he  said  it  ?  These 
are  the  matters  to  be  considered  now.  Can  we  look  to 
him  with  the  assurance  that  he  knew  all  things  ?  The 
following  things  are  claimed  for  him : 

1.  That  his  teaching  was  perfect.  It  can  be  said  of 
him,  not  only  that  liis  teaching  was  good,  that  he  taught 
good  things,  or  that  he  taught  better  things  than  any 
other  teacher  ever  taught;  but  his  teaching  w2iQ  verf.  ct. 
He  taught  nothing  that  was  not  good.  Others  had 
taught  good  things,  but  their  teaching  was  not  perfect. 
They  taught  some  things  that  were  not  good.  Among 
all  the  teachers,  of  all  sorts,  from  the  very  beginning  of 
time,  we  find  our  Lord  Jesus  standing  out  as  the  only 
one  whose  teaching  was  perfect — all  good;  nothing  in 
it  not  good.  His  teaching  has  been  put  to  the  test,  tried 
in  every  possible  way — by  philosophers,  statesmen;  by 
Jew,  infidel  and  pagan,  and  stands  to-day  before  the 
world  the  only  teaching  admitted  to  be  without  a  blem- 
ish. This  does  not  simply  include  what  fell  from  his 
own  lips,  but  all  that  rests  upon  him,  whether  coming 
from  prophets  or  apostles.  On  the  ground  of  a  skep- 
tic, or  a  Jew,  that  he  was  nothing  but  a  man,  how  is  it 
to  be  accounted  for  that  he  rose  above  all  the  race,  and 
gave  us  the  only  perfect  teaching  the  world  has  ever 
had — all  good?  No  skeptic  or  Jew  ever  accounted  for 
this,  or  ever  can. 

2.  Jesus  practiced  what  he  taught.  Not  a  man,  among 
all  the  keen-eyed  critics,  or  the  vilest  opposers,  has 
ever  produced  an  instance  of  his  violating,  in  practicp.y 
what  he  taught.  His  teaching  was  perfect,  and  his 
practice  was  perfect.  This  is  not  true  of  any  other 
teacher.  While  philosophers,  statesmen  and  pagan  doc- 
tors taught  many  good  things,  they  all  taught  many 
things   that  were   not   good,  and,  in   many  instancea. 


20  WHAT    THINK    YE    OF   CHRIST? 

did  not  practioe  what  they  taught.  In  tliis  Jesus 
stands  alone;  the  only  teacher  with  a  perfect  practice; 
the  only  teacher  that  practiced  all  he  taught.  Here, 
again,  is  a  matter  for  a  skeptic  or  a  Jew  to  account 
for;  to  tell  us  how  it  was  that  not  another  teacher  ever 
gave  us  a  perfect  example^  2i  perfect  practice  of  what  he 
taught!  How  was  it,  on  the  ground  that  Jesus  was 
simply  a  man.,  that  he  practiced  what  he  taught  without 
a  single  infraction,  and  that  not  another  teacher  ever 
did  this?  How  did  it  come  to  pass  that  one  teacher, 
and  only  one,  since  the  beginning  of  time,  of  the  entire 
race  of  man,  practiced  perfectly  what  he  taught  ?  What 
is  done  by  ordinary  means  one  time  may  be  done  by 
ordinary  means  again.  Ordinary  means  did  not  raise 
up  one  perfect  teacher^  and  one  th.2it  practiced p>erfeGtlg 
what  he  taught,  in  s'ix  thousand  years,  and  hut  one  ! 
This  is  of  itself  a  miracle;  perfectly  extraordinary. 
Ordinary  means  can  not  produce  extraordinary  results. 
Daring  the  years  of  his  minority,  Jesus  lived  an  ob- 
scure and  private  life ;  grew  up  to  the  stature  of  man- 
hood without  education,  or,  as  one  expressed  it,  "without 
ever  having  learned  letters;"  without  association  with 
the  great,  the  learned,  or  popular.  When  about  thirty 
years  of  age  he  entered  his  public  life.  In  a  brief  space 
of  time, he  called  round  him  multitudes  of  people,  who 
were  "  astonished  at  his  teaching ;  for  he  taught  as  one 
having  authority  and  not  as  the  scribes."  The  question 
comes  up.  How  did  a  humble,  uneducated  and  obscure 
[N'azarene  call  these  vast  multitudes  around  him?  View- 
ing him  simply  as  a  man,  how  is  this  to  be  accounted 
for?  He  taught  openly,  and  almost  invariably  in  day- 
light. His  wonderful  works  were  done  openly.  It  is 
easy  to  perform  tricks  in  the  night,  in  the  presence  of  a 
few,  the  performer  having  arranged  the  entire  programme 


WHAT   THINK   YE    OF   CHRIST?  21 

to  salt  himself  and  each  item  in  it.  But  how  a  juggler 
could  feed  five  thousand  people  on  five  loaves  and  a  few 
fishes,  in  open  daylight,  who  had  promiscuously  assem- 
bled, or  make  the  people  believe  he  had  done  it  when 
he  had  not,  or  get  them  to  tell  that  he  had  done  it,  and 
believe  it,  as  he  did,  is  a  matter  for  skeptics,  Jews  and 
pagans  to  explain.  It  is  one  of  the  difficulties  which 
their  philosophy  must  account  for. 

The  teaching  of  our  Lord  was  not  an  insignificant 
affair,  that  was  not  of  sufficient  importance  to  command 
the  attention  of  the  hightest  order  of  talent.  It  was 
not  something  to  be  treated  with  silent  contempt.  He 
commanded  the  attention  of  Jewish  rabbis,  the  doctors 
of  the  law,  men  of  the  greatest  learning  and  talent  of 
his  time;  men  who  had  studied  antiquity,  with  the  prin- 
cipal men  and  events  of  the  world,  from  the  beginning 
of  time  down  to  their  day.  He  frequently  came  in  con- 
tact with  these  men.  If  they  talked  about  Adam,  he 
was  perfectly  at  home,  and  knew  all  about  it  and  joined 
in  the  conversation.  If  they  talked  about  I^oah  and 
the  flood,  they  soon  found  that  he  knew  all  about  these. 
They  soon  found  that  he  kuew  all  about  Abraham,  Job, 
Moses,  David,  and  all  the  prophets;  the  Jews,  Egyp- 
tians, all  nations,  kindreds  and  peoples;  all  the  events  of 
past  time,  and  talked  of  all  these  as  if  he  had  lived  con- 
temporary with  them,  and  been  there  in  person.  If 
they  talked  of  the  Jewish  Scriptures,  he  talked  about 
them ;  opening  and  reading,  if  he  chose,  from  the  Sep- 
tuagint,  or  from  the  Hebrew;  or,  if  he  chose,  he  read 
without  looking  into  the  volume  at  all;  thus  showing 
that,  like  the  eternal  Father,  he  knew  it  all  from  side 
to  side,  every  word  that  was  in  it.  [N'ot  a  man  ever  took 
hiia  on  surprise,  touching  any  event  or  person  of  the 
pat,t,  either  as  recorded   in   the  Scriptures,  or  derived 


22  WHAT    THINK   YE  OF   CHRIST? 

from  some  other  source  of  information.  They  found 
that  he  knew  everything.  All  the  events  of  the  ages 
past  were  open  to  him  and  present  in  his  view.  He 
looked  back  through  the  ages,  as  the  Jehovah  himself 
does;  saw  the  events  and  persons  of  all  past  time,  every- 
thing to  the  very  beginning,  and  knew  it  all.  They 
never  found  in  him  the  slightest  error  in  any  of  these 
matters,  or  the  least  want  of  information. 

How^  all  this  must  have  confounded  them!  They 
could  not  see  how  it  was  that  this  young  man,  without 
education,  in  the  ordinary  way,  and  without  reading, 
looked  back  through  the  ages,  through  the  Scriptures, 
saw,  and  knew  everything;  nor  can  any  man  see  how  it 
was  who  denies  his  Divinity,  "his  eternal  power  and 
Deity."  But  he  did  not  stop  with  looking  at  the  past, 
but  looked  down  through  the  future.  Forty  years  be- 
fore the  destruction  of  the  devoted  city,  he  said  :  "  There 
snail  not  be  left  here  one  stone  upon  another  that  shall 
not  be  thrown  down.''  This  was  fulfilled  to  the  letter. 
He  proceeds:  "And  they  shall  be  led  away  captive 
among  all  nations,  and  Jerusalem  shall  be  trodden  down 
of  the  Gentiles,  till  the  times  of  the  Gentiles  shall  be 
fulfilled."  How  far  does  this  extend?  This  captivity 
of  the  Jewish  people  is  now  before  the  world,  on  the 
records  of  faithful  history,  extending  through  eighteen 
centuries,  and  not  ended  yet.  The  treading  down  of 
Jerusalem  by  the  Gentiles  is  also  before  the  world,  on 
the  pages  of  history,  extending  down  through  the  same 
period,  and  not  ended  yet.  How  much  further  "the 
times  of  the  Gentiles"  shall  extend  before  they  shall  be 
fulfilled,  is  yet  to  be  seen.  But  any  one  can  see,  who 
will  read,  that  the  Lord  looked  down  through  the  future, 
saw  it,  knew  what  it  would  be,  and  foretold  it.  As 
Bome  one  expressed  it,  about  one  hundred  years  ago,  he 


WHAT   THINK   YE   OF   CHRIST?  23 

stood  between  the  two  eternities,  lookhig  back  through 
all  the  past,  and  forward  through  all  the  future — knew 
and  saw  it  all,  as  the  Jehovah  himself  does.  "Who  can 
view  all  this  and  doubt  his  Divinity?  All  who  view 
this  so  as  to  appreciate  it,  must  be  impressed  with  the 
idea  that  the  divine  presence  dwells  in  him. 

No  doubt  many  proud  philosophers,  statesmen,  and 
Jewish  doctors  of  the  law,  thought  the  name  of  Jesus 
would  soon  be  forgotten,  his  life  be  effaced  from  the 
earth,  and  his  work  covered  in  the  depths  of  oblivion. 
Many  skeptics  now  think  that  Jesus  has  not  much  power 
in  the  world,  and,  specially,  that  he  wields  no  power 
over  them.  But  they  would  do  well  to  consider  the 
following: 

1.  What  has  become  of  the  names  of  the  philosophers 
who  lived  contemporary  with  Jesus?  Excepting  a  few, 
from  among  the  great  number  that  then  lived,  they  have 
gone  into  forgetful ness,  to  be  heard  of  no  more  till  God 
shall  unfold  the  records  in  the  last  judgment.  Where 
are  the  systems  of  philosophy  in  which  they  gloried,  as 
the  sum  of  all  perfection  and  all  knowledge?  A  vast 
amount  of  it  has  been  exploded  by  the  advance  of  true 
scitfiGo  and  actual  demons l7' at ion^  and  shown  to  be  false. 
Much  more  has  been  found  to  be  the  most  idle  and  use- 
less speculations  and  vagaries  of  the  history  of  the 
human  race,  and  much  more  has  gone  into  forgetful  ness. 
Only  a  few  traces  of  the  whole  of  it  remain,  and  much 
of  these  traces  is  simply  referred  to  in  the  way  of  con- 
trast with  the  present,  or  out  of  mere  curiosity. 

2.  What  has  become  of  the  names  of  the  proud  states- 
men of  Greece  and  Eome?  Excepting  a  few,  their  very 
names  have  disappeared  from  the  memories  of  men  and 
the  records  of  the  world!  What  has  become  of  their 
great  structures,  in  the  form  of  human  governments,  the 


24  WHAT   THINK  YE  OF   CHRIST  ? 

constitutions  and  laws  to  whicli  they  gave  rise?  Saving 
a  few  dim  traces,  occasionally  found,  they  have  disap- 
peared, and  nowhere  are  they  referred  to  as  precedents 
for  highly  cul^vated  and  civilized  nations.  The  king- 
doms and  empires  they  founded  have  gone  into  for- 
getfulness,  and  are  only  referred  to  now  as  exploded 
failures  in  the  world.  The  very  countries  they  occu- 
pied have  gone  back,  and  hold  no  comparison  with  the 
countries  styled  Christian.  The  very  nationalities  of 
all  the  earth  have  been  scattered  and  mixed,  mingled 
and  commingled,  till  there  is  but  one  distinct  race  on  all 
the  face  of  the  earth.  That  one  race  has  the  pledge  of 
the  oath  of  the  Almighty  for  its  distinct  existence.  It 
is  the  seed  of  Abraham,  Israel  according  to  the  Hesh, 
standing  in  our  midst,  as  the  only  distinct  race^  on  all 
the  face  of  the  earth,  thus,  unintentionally,  fulfilling  one 
of  the  oldest  predictions  of  the  Bible.  All  other  nation- 
alities are  scattered,  mingled  and  commingled,  and  lost. 

3.  What  has  become  of  the  Jewish  doctors  who  lived 
contemporary  with  Jesus  ?  Even  these,  too,  with  a  small 
exception,  are  gone  from  history,  and  their  works  form 
no  conspicuous  part  in  the  great  monuments  of  the 
world.  In  no  sense  have  they  gained  any  great  distinc- 
tion, except  in  their  persistent  stubbornness  in  rejecting 
Him  who  came  to  his  own.  While  they  exist  as  a  dis- 
tinct race,  maintain  a  distinct  nationality,  they  are  scat- 
tered and  peeled,  and  have  become  a  hissing  and  by- 
word among  all  nations. 

But  in  contrast  with  all  this,  the  name  of  Jesus 
abounds  in  the  principal  literature  of  the  world,  from 
the  time  of  his  abode  among  men  down  through  the 
ages  for  more  than  eighteen  hundred  years.  The  amount 
of  early  writings,  in  which  his  name  abounds,  and  in 
which,  in  one  shape  or  another,  he  is  the  chief  subject; 


WHAT   THINK   YE    OF    CHRIST?  25 

the  numerous  quotations  from  his  words,  or  the  words 
of  his  apostles,  and  references  to  him,  in  the  principal 
writings  of  the  first  five  centuries  of  the  Christian  era, 
show  beyond  all  doubt,  that  he  was  not  only  not  being 
forgotten,  but  occupying  a  wider  space  in  the  civilized 
world  each  succeeding  century.  The  further  down  we 
come,  the  more  widely  the  name  of  Jesus  extends.  ]Srow, 
that  eighteen  centuries  have  intervened  between  his  ad- 
vent and  the  present  time,  his  name  abounds  almost 
everywhere — in  the  conversations,  the  letters,  the  busi- 
ness transactions,  the  courts,  halls  of  legislation,  the 
publications  of  all  sorts,  the  orations,  political  speeches, 
the  preaching  and  worshiping  assemblies,  and  almost 
everywhere;  and  his  name  is  rapidly  spreading  wider 
and  wider  every  year.  Almost  every  daily  newspaper  ; 
every  weekly,  or  monthly;  every  magazine  and  book 
that  appears ;  every  book  account,  every  mortgage,  bond, 
deed,  note  of  hand ;  every  license,  or  summons,  has  "  one 

THOUSAND  EIGHT  HUNDRED  AND  SEVENTY-SEVEN"  OU  it !  What 

does  that  mean  ?  It  means  the  year  of  our  Lord^  one 
thousand  eight  hundred  and  seventy-seven.  Why  is  that 
on  everything  written  this  year?  The  advent  of  Jesus 
formed  a  new  era,  which  has  gained  the  recognition  of 
all  the  most  powerful,  highly  cultivated  and  civilized 
nations  and  peoples  of  the  whole  earth,  and  its  influence 
is  extending  and  spreading  wider  and  wider  every  day, 
as  civilization  and  general  enlightenment  *extend.  Did 
the  era  of  the  most  enlightened,  highly  cultivated  and 
civilized  peoples  and  nations,  and  the  most  powerful  in 
all  the  world,  originate  in  a  Jewish  fable  or  a  pagan 
myth?  The  event  that  originated  a  new  era,  and  gained 
for  it  the  recognition  of  all  the  most  powerful  nations 
of  the  earth,  and  that  has  continued  to  maintain  that 
3 


26  WHAT   THINK    YE    OF    CHRIST? 

recognition  for  so  many  centuries,  must  have  been  one 
of  the  principal  events  of  the  history  of  all  nations ! 

But  please  view  the  matter  from  another  point  of  ob- 
servation. Suppose  yourself  to  be  elevated  high  up  in 
the  heavens,  and  your  vision  so  extended  that  you  could 
see  over  all  the  lands  put  down  in  the  geography  as 
Christian,  and  see  all  the  busy  operations  of  all  these 
countries,  and  see  them  open  out  of  a  Monday  morning 
in  all  the  departments;  the  vast  trains,  steamers,  manu- 
factories, mechanical  branches,  merchandising,  agricul- 
tural, professional,  and  all.  You  watch  it  all  through 
Monday,  and,  till  it  closes  down,  late  on  Monday  night ; 
you  keep  an  eye  on  it  daring  Tuesday,  Wednesday, 
Thursday,  Friday  and  Saturday,  till  late  on  Saturday 
night,  and  see  the  great  body  of  it  all  quieted  into  still- 
ness. On  Sunday  morning  you  witness  a  great  change. 
The  great  mass  of  all  this  mighty  whirl  and  hum  re- 
mains quiet — it  is  still!  What  does  this  mean?  What 
hand  has  stopped  these  vast  and  numerous  operations  ? 
The  people  are  quietly  proceeding  to  places  of  worship. 
What  has  caused  this  change?  For  the  first  four  thou- 
sand years  of  the  world's  history  there  was  nothing  of 
this  kind  on  the  first  day  of  the  week,  the  day  now 
called  "  the  Lord's  Day,"  or  Sunday.  Whose  hand  is  it, 
and  whose  name  is  it,  that  stops  all  this  career  of  the 
world;  causes  it  so  generally  to  stand  still  on  this  day? 
What  gave  rise  to  this  ?  This  did  not  commence,  nor 
has  it  been  continued  for  eighteen  hundred  years,  with- 
out an  event  of  importance^  the  weight  of  authority. 
Do  you  say  civil  governments  require  it?  True,  but 
where  did  they  get  it?  They  did  not  originate  it.  Why 
do  they  observe  it?  The  resurrection  of  Jesus  on  the 
first  day  of  the  week  gave  rise  to  all  this.  His  resurre**- 
tion  from  the  dead  is  the  grand  event  that  originated  ai 


WHAT   THINK   YE   OF    CHRIST?  27 

this.  From  the  beginning  of  time,  till  Jesus  rose  from 
the  dead,  this  daij^  the  first  day  of  the  week,  had  no  re- 
ligious significance  of  any  sort,  and  was  not  observed  in 
any  religious  sense  by  any  people  in  the  world.  Jesus 
of  Nazareth,  in  rising  from  the  dead  on  the  first  day  of 
the  week,  gave  this  day  its  religious  significance,  and 
^ave  rise  to  all  the  assembling  for  religious  devotions 
3n  this  day,  and  the  cessation  from  temporal  pursuits. 
What  shall  we  say,  then,  of  his  name  and  power  still 
manifested  in  the  world?  Did  all  this  come  into  the 
world  hy  accident  f  Did  it  originate  in  a  false  fact^  or 
in  assumed  fact^  that  loas  not  a  fact  f  If  it  did — how? 
N"o  man  ever  answered  this,  or  ever  can. 

There  is,  to  the  man  of  Bible  intelligence,  nothing 
clearer  than  that  there  was  one  divine  mind  before  time 
began,  that  looked  down  through  the  ages  and  saw  all 
that  was  coming;  and  developments  are  seen  all  along 
through  the  history  suflicient  to  show  this.  His  own 
inspired  prophets  did  not  comprehend  or  see  his  eternal 
purpose,  nor  did  they  understand  many  of  the  grand 
utterances  w^hich  the  Spirit  of  God  spake  through  them. 
They  were  spoken,  so  that  we  now  can  see  that  they  did 
sot  understand  them — that  God  did  not  intend  them  to 
.understand  them — so  that  we  might  know  that  the 
VhingB  spoken  were  not  their  utterances,  but  utterances 
f/om  Him,  who  spoke  hy  them.  Their  minds  were  run- 
ning in  one  direction  and  the  infinite  mind  in  another, 
'I'hese  things  shall  now^  be  verified  by  a  few  of  the  many 
Scriptures  tbat  might  be  collected  on  this  point.  Let  us 
hear  the  groat  apostle  to  the  Gentiles,  in  his  closing 
^v'ords  in  the  le.tter  to  the  Church  in  Eome : 

*'!N'ow  to  him  that  is  of  power  to  establish  you  ac- 
cording to  my  gospel,  and  the  preaching  of  Jesus  Christ, 
aocv'^rding  to  the  revelation  of  the  mystery,  which  was 


28  WHAT    THINK    YE    OF    CHRIST? 

\ 

kept  secret  since  the  world  began,  but  now  is  made 
manifest,  and  by  the  Scriptures  of  the  prophets,  accord- 
ing to  the  commandment  of  the  everlasting  God,  made 
known  to  all  nations  for  the  obedience  of  faith:  to  God 
only  wise,  be  glory  through  Jesus  Christ  forever.  Amen." 
— Romans  xvi.  25-27. 

Again  he  says :  "  That  by  revelation  he  made  known 
unto  me  the  mystery  (as  I  wrote  afore  in  few  words; 
w^hereby,  when  ye  read,  ye  may  understand  my  know! 
edge  in  the  mystery  of  Christ),  which  in  other  ages  was 
not  made  known  unto  the  sons  of  men,  as  it  is  now  re- 
vealed unto  his  holy  apostles  and  prophets  by  the  Spirit; 
that  the  Gentiles  should  be  fellow-heirs,  and  of  the 
same  body,  and  partakers  of  his  promise  in  Christ  by 
the  gospel :  whereof  I  was  made  a  minister,  according 
to  the  gift  of  the  grace  of  God  given  unto  me  by  the 
effectual  working  of  his  power.  Unto  me,  who  am  less 
than  the  least  of  all  saints,  is  this  grace  given,  that  I 
should  preach  among  the  Gentiles  the  unsearchable 
riches  of  Christ;  and  to  make  all  men  see  what  is  the 
fellowship  of  the  mystery,  which  from  the  beginning  of 
the  world  hath  been  hid  in  God,  who  created  all  things 
by  Jesus  Christ:  to  the  intent  that  now  unto  the  princi- 
palities and  powers  in  heavenly  places  might  be  known 
by  the  Church  the  manifold  wisdom  of  God,  according 
to  the  eternal  purpose  w^iich  he  purposed  in  Christ  Jesus 
our  Lord." — Ephesians  iii.  3-11. 

From  the  Apostle  Peter  we  have  the  following: 
"Eeceiving  the  end  of  your  faith,  even  the  salvation 
of  your  souls.  Of  which  salvation  the  prophets  have 
inquired  and  searched  diligently,  who  prophesied  of  the 
grace  that  should  come  unto  you :  searching  what,  or 
what  manner  of  time  the  Spirit  of  Christ  which  was  in 
them  did  signify,  when  it  testified  beforehand  the  suffer- 


WHAT   THINK   YE   OF   CHRIST?  29 

mgs  of  Christ,  and  the  glory  that  should  follow;  Unto 
whom  it  was  revealed,  that  not  unto  themselves,  but 
unto  us  they  did  minister  the  things,  which  are  now  re- 
ported unto  you  by  them  that  have  preached  the  gospel 
unto  you  with  the  Holy  Ghost  sent  down  from  heaven ; 
which  things  the  angels  desire  to  look  into." — 1  Peter  i. 
9-12. 

These  Scriptures,  and  many  more  of  the  same  sort, 
show  that  the  prophets  did  not  understand  the  things 
they  uttered,  and  that  these  things  were  not  uttered 
for  them^  but  for  us.  We  can  see  now  that  the  Spirit  of 
Christ  that  was  in  them  saw  what  they  did  not  see — that 
he  made  them  instruments  to  utter  these  things,  all  tend- 
ing in  the  same  direction;  carrying  out,  directly  push- 
ing on  to  the  completion  and  fulfillment  of  God's  eter- 
nal purpose. 

In  the  same  way,  any  one  who  will  read  Matthew^ 
Mark,  Luke,  and  John  will  see  that  there  was  no  collu- 
sion between  Christ  and  his  apostles.  They  never  un- 
derstood him  while  he  was  on  earth.  Their  minds  ran 
in  one  direction  and  his  in  another.  While  they  be- 
lieved on  him;  that  the  Father  sent  him,  and  that  the 
kingdom  was  at  hand,  they  thought  that  he  was  to  be 
an  earthly  king,  and  his  kingdom  of  this  world;  and 
they  supposed  the  whole  to  be  fulfilled  in  founding  a 
new  civil  government.  Their  ideas  all  ran  in  this  direc- 
tion all  the  time.  But  he  never  uttered  one  sentence 
lookiDg  in  this  direction.  While  he  recognized  the  civil 
authorities,  and  arranged  to  pay  the  tax,  he  never  inti- 
mated such  a  thing  as  that  he  intended  any  civil  revolu- 
tion. But  it  can  be  seen  that  he  had  his  mind  clearly 
set  on  the  things  that  did  come.  The  erroneous  ideas 
of  the  disciples  were  all  swept  away.  When  he  was 
taken  by  his  enemies,  and  put  to  death,  the  visions  the 


so  WHAT    THINK   YE  OF   CHRIST? 

apostles  had  in  their  minds  were  dispersed.  At  the 
same  time,  what  he  had  clearly  uttered,  and  what  they 
never  understood,  was  fulfilled.  Everything  transpired 
as  he  foretold,  or  according  to  his  mind^  and  nothing 
according  to  their  mind.  Their  expectations  were  all 
disappointed,  while  his  were  all  accomplished. 

Any  one  who  will  carefully  study  the  Scriptures  of 
the  prophets  can  see  the  mind  of  God  in  them,  and 
running  down  through  them  to  Christ,  and  the  same 
mind  in  Christ,  during  his  earthly  mission,  and  the  car- 
rying out  and  fulfilling  of  it  all,  in  the  coming  of  Christ, 
his  mission,  sufiTerings,  death,  resurrection,  ascension, 
coronation,  the  descent  of  the  Spirit,  the  inspiration  of 
the  apostles,  their  preaching,  founding  the  kingdom, 
and  the  reconciling  of  the  Gentiles  and  uniting  them  in 
the  same  body.  He  who  can  not  see  that  God  was  in 
all  this;  that  Jesus  of  E'azareth  is  from  God;  that  he  is 
the  Son  of  God;  that  he  was^,  and  ^6',  with  God,  carry- 
ing out  his  divine  mind,  executing  his  will  and  accom- 
plishing his  eternal  purpose^  must  be  slow  to  learn. 
Well  does  Paul  exclaim:  "0  the  depth  of  the  riches 
both  of  the  wisdom  and  knowledge  of  God!  how  un- 
searchable are  his  judgments,  and  his  ways  past  finding 
out!  For  who  hath  known  the  mind  of  the  Lord?  or 
who  hath  been  his  counselor?  Or  who  hath  first  given 
to  him,  and  it  shall  be  recompensed  unto  him  again? 
For  of  him,  and  through  him,  are  all  things :  to  whom 
be  glory  forever.     Amen." — Romans  xi.  33-36. 

With  what  profound  awe  and  reverence  does  the  man 
of  faith  view  all  this!  How  exalted  are  his  conceptions 
and  emotions  in  view  of  the  wonderful  works  of  God; 
and  how  he  must  adore  and  admire  that  almight}^  hand 
that  has  lifted  him  up  and  made  him  acquainted  with 
the  Father  and  with  his  Son  Jesus  Christ  oar  Lord-  • 


WHJLT   THINK   YE   OF    CHRIST?  31 

xUr  only  hope !  What  a  wonderful  contrast  between  the 
nan  thus  elevated  to  union  with  the  Father  and  with 
ihe  Son,  and  the  pitiable,  bewildered,  confused  and 
doubting  skeptic,  hunting  for  contradictions  in  the 
Bible,  or  absurdities,  or  for  some  excuse  for  refusing 
submission  to  the  only  Savior  of  men — the  Lord  Jesus 
the  Christ!  Let  us  learn  to  reverence,  adore  and  praise 
him  forever  and  ever.  Let  us  join  the  grand  throng 
which  John  saw,  in  his  vision,  in  the  Island  of  Patmos, 
in  ascribing  blessing,  and  glory,  and  honor,  and  thanks- 
giving to  Him  who  sits  on  the  throne,  and  to  the  Lamb, 
forever  and  ever.  If  we  may  not  trust  in  Him,  all  is 
lost.  To  Him,  and  through  Him,  to  the  Almighty 
Father,  let  us  ascribe  all  honor  and  praises  forever  and 
ever. 


SERMON  No.  II. 

THEME — DIVINE    AUTHORITY. 

In  this  discourse  I  propose  inquiring  into  the  question 
of  authority.  Every  government  has  a  head,  and  the 
authority  is  in  the  head.  The  authority  of  an  empire 
is  in  the  emperor;  the  authority  of  a  kingdom  is  in 
the  king;  the  authority  of  a  State  is  in  the  governor; 
the  authority  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  in  the  King. 
He  is  the  Head  of  the  hody — the  Church.  When  about 
to  commission  his  embassadors — his  ministers  plenipo- 
tentiar}' — he  said,  "All  authority  in  heaven  and  on  earth 
is  given  to  me."  In  view  of  this  authority  he  said,  "  Go 
you,  therefore,  and  teach  all  nations."  The  authority 
of  our  Lord  came  directly  from  the  Father  to  him,  and 
he  gave  it  directly  to  the  apostles.  The  Lord  Jesus  is 
the  head  over  all  things  to  the  Church.  He  has,  by  in- 
heritance, obtained  a  more  excellent  name  than  any  of 
the  angels  in  all  the  heavenly  ranks;  a  name  above 
every  name  that  is  named,  that  at  the  name  of  Jesus 
every  knee  should  bow  and  every  tongue  confess  that 
he  is  the  Lord  to  the  glory  of  God.  There  is  no  other 
name  given  under  heaven  or  among  men  by  which  we 
can  be  saved.  He  is  the  supreme — the  absolute  author- 
ity in  the  kingdom  of  God. 

There  is  not  one  particle  of  divine  authority  among 
men  that  did  not  come  from  him,  either  directly  or  in- 
directly, no  matter  whether  claimed  by  individuals  or 

(33) 


34  1>IVINE    AUTHORITY. 

bodies  of  individuals.  It  is  certainly  a  matter  of  no 
little  importance  to  examine  the  grounds  on  [^hich 
authority  is  claimed  from  Christ.  It  is  admitted  on  all 
hands  that  the  apostles  had  authority  directly  from 
Christ.  This  is  not  denied  by  any  religious  body.  But 
how  does  any  man  now  get  authority,  or  on  what  Is  the 
authority  of  any  man  now  grounded?  The  pricita  in 
'Jae  Papacy  claim  that  they  have  a  regular  successron  of 
popes,  back  from  the  present  incumbent  to  the  Apostle 
Peter,  in  Eome,  who  was  the  first  pope.  In  all  their 
arguments  the  admission  runs  through  and  through, 
that  the  entire  authority  of  their  priesthood,  the  valid- 
ity of  every  ordinance,  and  the  Church  itself,  hangs  on 
their  supposed  apostolic  succession.  As  Dr.  Watt? 
[I  think  it  is]  says,  on  another  subject: 

"  Great  God !  on  what  a  slender  thread 
Hang  eternal  things." 

Knock  out  this  one  prop,  apostolic  successio.j,  and 
down  falls  the  Romish  priesthood,  membership,  a  ?d  the 
whole  papal  superstructure,  to  rise  no  more.  Ye^.  not  a 
man  of  them  can  prove  that  Peter  was  ever  in  Kome, 
much  less  that  he  was  pope,  specially  when  Paul  **  with- 
stood him  to  the  face,  for  he  was  to  be  blamed/'  and 
was  not  a  whit  behind  the  chief  apostle,  or  that  h^^^  ever 
performed  any  such  funtions  there  as  the  Poje  now 
does.  Instead  of  a  succession  of  popes  back  fo  the 
apostles,  there  is  not  a  trace  of  a  pope,  cardinal,  or  arch- 
bishop, or  the  Papal  Church  at  all,  in  the  first  three 
centuries,  except  in  some  of  the  prophecies  referring  to 
the  apostasy,  l^o  man  need  talk  of  a  succession  of 
popes  during  a  period  when  there  was  no  pope  on  the 
face  of  the  earth.  This  is  as  ridiculous  as  to  try1;o  trace 
the  succession  when  there  were  rival  popes  in  \«  Jir  with 


DIVINE   AUTHORITY.  ^ 

each  other  for  the  papal  crown,  and  when  it  was  obtain«ed 
by  the  force  of  the  sword. 

According  to  the  admissions  of  the  papal  authorities, 
running  through  all  their  history,  their  debates  among 
themselves  and  with  other  people,  the  entire  validity  of 
their  religion,  its  whole  authority,  and  their  hope  of 
heaven,  hang  on  this  succession !  Yet  there  is  nothing 
more  certain  in  historic  fact  than  that  this  claim  to  suc- 
cession is  as  base  a  fiction  as  a  pagan  myth.  They  have 
no  succession  of  office,  ordinance,  or  Church,  from  the 
apostles. 

The  claim  of  the  Greek  Church  is  that  they  have  a 
regular  succession  back  to  Peter  and  John  in  Greece — 
an  apostolic  succession  from  their  present  ministry  to 
Peter  and  John  They  claim  to  be  Catholic,  too.  They, 
too,  admit  that  their  ministry,  ordinances  and  Church 
rest  on  this  succession,  and  without  it  would  have  no 
validity.  If  there  is  one  link  out  of  their  chain  of  suc- 
cession, all  below  it  is  invalid.  This  claim  has  no  more 
to  rest  on  than  the  papal  succession,  and  there  is  no 
more  in  it.  Yet  their  entire  religion  rests  on  it,  and 
their  hope  of  heaven ! 

The  claim  of  the  Church  of  England  is  that  they 
have  an  unbroken  succession  back  to  Paul  in  England — 
that  Paul  established  the  Church  in  England,  and  they 
have  an  apostolic  succession  to  him.  Yet  not  a  man  in 
that  Church  can  prove  that  Paul  was  ever  in  England, 
to  say  nothing  of  his  establishing  any  Church  there. 
Then  there  are  long  links  out  from  the  time  of  Paul  to 
any  account  of  the  Church  of  England.  That  Church 
can  pretty  easilj'  trace  its  history  back  to  the  Church  of 
Rome,  or  trace  its  succession  back  to  the  Papal  Church, 
but  the  traces  of  it  become  quite  dim  beyond  that  period. 
The  arguments  of  that  Church  also  carry  the  admission 


36  DIVINE    AUTHORITY. 

all  through  that  the  validity  of  its  ministry,  ordinaaces, 
and  the  Church  itself,  hang  upon  the  apostolic  suc- 
cession. Strike  that  one  prop  out,  according  to -their 
own  argument,  and  the  Church  is  null  and  void.  There 
is  no  divine  authority  in  it,  and  no  hope  of  heaven.  Yet 
these  pretensions  to  apostolic  succession  are  perfectly 
groundless. 

Some  Baptists  have  tried  to  sustain  some  kind  of 
unbroken  succession  of  immersionists,  which  they  infer 
were  Baptists,  and  thus  make  a  succession  of  Baptists^ 
ordinances  and  ministers.  But  every  man,  who  ha& 
read  productions  devoted  to  thig  end,  if  a  little  acquainted 
with  history,  has  pitied  the  men  who  have  made  these 
efforts,  for  they,  too,  run  into  the  misty,  dark  and  un- 
certain. Yet  some  of  these  men  would  make  the  valid- 
ity of  immersion  depend  on  this  succession,  and  even 
on  the  administrator,  and  require  a  man  to  be  immersed 
over  again  because  he  was  not  immersed  by  a  regularly- 
ordaiuid  preacher  ! 

These  four  claims  to  succession  affect  a  large  portion 
of  those,  who,  in  some  form  or  other,  profess  the  relig- 
ion of  Christ.  How,  then,  stand  these  claims  ?  There 
is  not  a  Church  in  the  world  that  respects  the  papal 
claim,  aside  from  the  dominion  of  the  Pope,  but  all  re- 
gard it  as  a  groundless  pretense.  Not  a  Church  in  the 
world,  aside  from  the  Greek  Church,  respects  its  claim 
to  apostolic  succession  in  that  body,  confides  in  it  or 
acts  on  it.  All  others  treat  that  claim,  and  act  in  refer- 
ence to  it,  with  perfect  indifference,  as  much  so  as  they 
do  in  reference  to  the  Book  of  Mormon.  In  the  same 
way,  no  Church  on  earth  respects  the  claims  of  the 
Church  of  England  to  apostolic  succession,  aside  from 
that  body,  or  has  any  regard  for  said  claims.  All  others- 
act  with  perfect  indifference  in  reference  to  their  claim,. 


DIVINE   AUTHORITY.  37 

and  regardless  of  it.  The  same  is  true  in  regard  to  the 
claini  of  Baptists  to  a  succession  in  ordinances,,  ministry 
and  churches.  AH  churches,  aside  from  Baptists,  act 
without  any  regard  to  their  claim  to  succession,  and 
treat  it  with  utter  indilierence.  This  is  not  a  certain 
evidence  that  such  claim,  or  claims,  may  not  be  correct, 
but  it  forms  a  reason  for  stopping  and  considering. 
.  They  can  not  all  be  correct,  for  they  repudiate  each 
other;  at  least  they  can  not  be  correct  only  in  part.  It 
is  possible  for  them  all  to  be  correct  in  repudiating  the 
claim  of  each  other,  but  they  can  not  all  be  correct  in 
their  claim  of  succession,  for  the  claim  of  each  one  sets 
aside  the  claim  of  the  others.  The  ministry  of  four 
bodies  of  people  could  not  be  the  successors  of  the  apos- 
tles and  not  fellowship  each  other  and  recognize  the 
claim  of  the  others.  The  apostles  were  all  of  the  same 
body — of  the  same  communion,  and  each  one  recognized 
the  apostolic  authority  of  the  other.  Pope  Pius  IX. 
claims  to  be  the  visible  head  of  the  Church  on  earth — 
the  Vice-gerent  of  Jesus  Christ.  All  who  reject  his 
authority  are  heretics,  and  out  of  the  Church.  There  is 
no  salvation  for  them.  He  repudiates  the  entire  Greek 
Church,  the  Church  of  England,  and  all  the  Baptists, 
and  rejects  them  all  as  heretics.  He  anathematizes  the 
whole  of  them.  They,  in  tarn,  reject  and  repudiate  him 
and  each  other.  They  can  not  all  have  apostolic  author- 
ity, repudiate  and  reject  each  other. 

This,  then,  narrows  us  down  to  one  of  them.  They 
an  not  all  have  apostolic  authority.  Has  any  one  of 
,- hem  apostolic  authority,  and,  if  so,  which  one?  Has 
r,ny  one  of  them  any  claim  ?  JYot  hy  virtue  of  any  sue- 
Atssion  of  ordinancts^  ministers  or  churches.  If  the 
V/orld  can  not  get  something  clearer  than  any  of  these 
<iccessions  to  rest  the  soul  on,  living  and  dying,  for  this 


38  DIVINE    AUTHORITY. 

world  and  that  which  is  to  come,  all  may  expect  to  live 
and  die  in  the  darkness  of  midnight.  Nothing  but  de- 
spair awaits  the  children  of  men.  Kothing  has  done  so 
much  to  blind  the  minds  of  men,  land  them  in  unbelief 
and  despair,  as  this  miserable  farce  of  succession  of  any 
sort.  Men  have  puzzled  their  minds,  and  made  the 
most  patient  explorations  through  antiquity  in  search  of 
successions,  but  found  nothing  satisfactory,  and  in  the 
failure  some  of  them  have  felt  as  if  all  were  lost.  One 
reading  of  the  New  Testament,  with  an  eye  to  that 
matter,  will  satisfy  any  one  that  there  is  nothing  there 
demanding  any  such  successions  as  men  are  trying  to 
find,  and  claiming  that  they  have  found.  There  is  not 
a  thing  there  to  base  anything  of  the  kind  on. 

When  we  open  the  Book  of  God,  we  find  the  clear 
statement  of  our  Lord,  that  ^*  there  shall  be  one  fold  and 
one  Shepherd."  He  is  called  the  "  Chief  Shepherd."  The 
original  word  from  which  "chief"  comes  is  the  word  for 
ai'oh.  The  Lord  is  the  Arch-Shepherd,  or  the  Arch- 
bishop in  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  there  is  no  other 
arch-shepherd  or  archbishop  in  the  kingdom.  Anti- 
Christ  has  many  archbishops.  The  Lord,  the  only 
Archbishop,  has  no  successors.  He  has  no  successor 
now  on  earth.  The  apostles  were  his  embassadors.  He 
specially  called,  qualified  and  sent  them.  He  called 
them  with  his  owm  voice,  literally  commissioned  and 
sent  them.  They  bore  the  signs  of  an  apostle,  and  con- 
firmed their  divine  claims  by  miracles,  and  were  filled 
with  the  Holy  Spirit,  who  guided  them  into  all  truth. 
They  were  chosen  vessels — God's  elect — through  whom 
he  delivered  his  last  Will  and  Testament  to  man.  They 
bad  no  successors.  There  have  been  no  other  apostles, 
in  the  same  sense,  since  them ;  no  other  embassadors  of 
Christ.     There  is  not  the  slightest  intimation  in  Scrip- 


DIVINE   AUTHORITY.  39 

ture  of  any  successors  of  the  apostles,  or  any  need  of 
any.  All  who  claim  to  be  successors  are  either  ignorant 
men,  who  did  not  know  what  it  meant  to  be  a  successor 
of  the  apostles,  or  impostors  pretending  to  what  they 
knew  to  be  false.  'iTot  a  man  of  them  has  the  signs  of 
an  apostle  in  him,  or  can  give  an  evidence  of  his  claim. 
"  We  know  those  who  say  they  are  apostles  and  are  not,'' 
says  the  divine  Spirit.  They  have  been  proved  and 
found  "liars."'  When  we  want  apostolic  authority^  we 
need  not  go  to  any  men  now  on  earth,  but  must  go  back 
to  those  whom  Jesus  called  and  sent — those  whom  he 
demonstrated  to  be  his  ayostles — his  embassadors — his 
ministers  plenipotentiary.  There  are  no  others.  They 
have  the  credentials  from  the  King — "  the  signs  of  an 
apostle." 

Hear  the  Lord,  in  his  address  to  the  Father,  speak  of 
them:  "I  have  manifested  thy  name  unto  the  men 
which  thou  gavest  me  out  of  the  world :  thine  they  were, 
and  thou  gavest  them  me;  and  the}^  have  kept  thy 
word.  ISTow  they  have  known  that  all  things  whatsoever 
thou  hast  given  me  are  of  thee.  For  I  have  given  unto 
them  the  words  which  thou  gavest  me ;  and  the}'  have 
received  them,  and  have  known  surely  that  I  came  out 
from  thee,  and  they  have  believed  that  thou  didst  send 
me." — John  xvii.  6-9.  It  will  be  seen  here  that  the 
words  the  Father  gave  him  he  gave  the  apostles.  Their 
commission  from  him  required  them  to  go  into  all  the 
world  and  preach  that  word  to  every  creature. 

When  the  Apostle  Peter  for  the  first  time  stood  be- 
fore a  Gentile  audience,  it  was  necessary  for  him  to  refer 
to  his  divine  authority  as  an  apostle,  and  he  said :  "  We 
are  witnesses  of  all  things  which  he  did  both  in  the  land 
of  the  Jews  and  in  Jerusalem;  whom  they  slew  and 
hanged  on  a  tree :  him  God  raised  up  the  third  day,  and 


40  DIVINE   AUTHORITY. 

showed  him  openly;  not  to  all  the  people,  but  unto  wit- 
nesses chosen  before  of  God,  even  to  us,  who  did  eat 
and  drink  with  him  after  he  rose  from  the  dead.  And 
he  commanded  us  to  preach  unto  the  people,  and  to  tes- 
tify that  it  is  he  which  was  ordained  of  God  to  be  the 
Judge  of  quick  and  dead." — Acts  x.  39-43.  When  he 
said,  "  We  are  his  witnesses,"  he  meant,  we  apostles  are 
his  witnesses,  as  is  readily  seen  from  his  saying,  "He 
commanded  us  to  preach  to  the  people  and  tcstifyP 
They  preached  the  words  that  the  Father  gave  to  the 
Savio.r,  and  that  he  gave  to  the  apostles,  and  testified  to 
what  they  saw  and  heard. 

Paul,  before  Agrippa,  found  occasion  to  refer  to  his 
call  to  the  apostolic  office,  and  quoted  the  words  follow- 
ing: "I  have  appeared  unto  thee  for  this  purpose,  to 
make  thee  a  minister  and  a  witness  both  of  these  things 
which  thou  hast  seen,  and  of  those  things  in  the  which 
I  will  appear  unto  thee ;  delivering  thee  from  the  people, 
and  from  the  Gentiles,  unto  whom  now  I  send  thee,  to 
open  their  eyes,  and  to  turn  them  from  darkness  to 
light,  and  from  the  power  of  Satan  unto  God,  that  they 
may  receive  forgiveness  of  sins,  and  inheritance  among 
them  which  are  sanctified  by  faith  that  is  in  me." — Acts 
xxvi.  16-19.  This  sets  forth  his  apostolic  authority, 
and  shows  how  he  was  made  a  minister  and  a  witness, 
and  put  the  question  to  those  who  doubted  his  apostolic 
authority,  "Have  I  not  seen  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord?" 
and  called  forth  his  statements:  "I  bear  in  my  body  the 
marks  of  the  Lord  Jesus,"  and  "the  signs  of  an  apos- 
tle." In  the  same  strain  he  makes  the  following  lucid 
statement:  "For  this  cause  I  Paul,  the  prisoner  of  Jesus 
Christ  for  you  Gentiles,  if  ye  have  heard  of  the  dispen- 
sation of  the  grace  of  God  which  is  given  me  toward 
you:  how  that  by  revelation  he  made  known  unto  me 


DIVINE    AUTHORITY.  41 

the  mystery  (as  I  wrote  afore  in  few  words;  whereby, 
when  ye  read,  ye  may  understand  my  knowledge  in  the 
mystery  of  Christ),  which  in  other  ages  was  not  made 
known  unto  the  sons  of  men,  as  it  is  now  revealed  into 
his  holy  apostles  and  prophets  by  the  Spirit;  that  the 
Gentiles  should  be  fellow-heirs,  and  of  the  same  body, 
and  partakers  of  his  promise  in  Christ  by  the  gospel : 
whereof  I  was  made  a  minister,  according  to  the  gift  of 
the  grace  of  God  given  unto  me  by  the  effectual  work- 
ing of  his  power.  Unto  me,  who  am  less  than  the  least 
of  all  saints,  is  this  grace  given,  that  I  should  preach 
among  the  Gentiles  the  unsearcharble  riches  of  Christ; 
and  to  make  all  men  see  what  is  the  fellowship  of  the 
mystery,  which  from  the  beginning  of  the  world  hath 
been  hid  in  God,  who  created  all  things  by  Jesus  Christ : 
to  the  intent  that  now  unto  the  principalities  and  pow- 
ers in  heavenly  places  might  be  known  by  the  Church 
the  manifold  wisdom  of  God,  according  to  the  eternal 
purpose  which  he  purposed  in  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord." — 
Ephesians  iii.  1-11. 

This  language  sets  out  the  apostolic  authority.  When 
the  Apostle  John  concluded  the  Apocalypse  he  closed 
the  sacred  canon.  Nothing  was  to  be  taken  from  what 
had  gone  before,  and  nothing  to  be  added  to  it.  Paul 
says:  "Though  we,  or  an  angel  from  heaven,  preach 
any  other  gospel  unto  you  than  that  which  we  have 
preached  unto  you,  let  him  be  accursed." — See  Galatians 
i.  8.  While,  on  the  one  hand,  he  "  shunned  not  to  declare 
the  whole  counsel  of  God" — "kept  back  nothing" — he, 
on  the  other  hand,  limited  all  preachers  to  the  gospel 
already  preached  by  the  apostles,  and  even  that  must 
not  be  perverted.  This  is  apostolic  authority  to  other 
preachers,  limiting  them  and  instructing  them  how  to 
preach.  These  other  preachers  were  not  to  enforce  what 
4 


42  DIVINE    AUTHORITY. 

they  preached,  much  less  to  prove  it,  by  showing  that 
they  were  in  a  regular  line  of  succession  from  the  apos- 
tles, or  that  they  were  apostles,  or  specially  called  and 
sent  as  the  apostles  were,  but  by  showing  that  they 
had  received  what  they  preached  from  the  apostles.  This 
is  the  rule  to  this  day.  There  is  no  authority  in  any 
man,  or  in  what  he  teaches,  only  as  he  shows  that  it 
comes  from  the  Lord  or  the  apostles.  John  says:  '^  We 
are  of  God:  he  that^  knoweth  God  heareth  us;  he  that 
is  not  of  God  heareth  not  us.  Hereby  know  we  the 
spirit  of  truth,  and  the  spirit  of  error." — 1  John  iv.  6. 
*'Us,"  here,  means  the  apostles.  They  are  the  authority. 
The  authority  is  in  no  set  of  men  now  living,  in  no 
council,  assembly,  conference,  or  convention,  but  in  the 
,apostles  of  the  Lamb.  The  Lord  said  to  them :  "  What- 
ever ye  bind  on  earth  shall  be  bound  in  heaven."  The 
things  the  apostles  wrote  have  the  authority  of  Christ 
and  of  God  in  them.  They  did  not  receive  the  things 
they  wrote  of  man,  nor  of  the  wisdom  of  man,  but  of 
God. 

There  is  no  authority  now  in  what  any  man  on  earth 
says,  only  as  he  can  show  that  it  came  from  the  apos- 
tles. The  apostles  did  not  make  any  other  men  apostles^ 
in  the  same  sense  as  they  were  apostles,  nor  did  any 
other  men  succeed  them  in  the  apostolic  office.  There 
is  no  apostolical  authority  in  any  other  man  or  men. 
The  apostolical  authority  is  now  in  the  record  we  have 
of  what  they  preached  and  wrote ;  but  what  they  did 
not  preach  and  write  has  no  apostolical  authority,  but 
he  who  writes  it  has  an  apostolic  anathema.  The  apos- 
tolic authority  is  with  us  in  the  words  we  have  from 
them.  These  are  the  words  of  God,  Christ,  the  Holy 
Spirit,  and  of  the  apostles,  and  have  the  authority  of 
God,  Christ,  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  the  apostles,  in  them. 


DIVINE   AUTHORITY.  4B 

This  word  is  the  supreme  and  the  absolute  authority. 
If  any  speak  not  according  to  this  word,  it  is  because 
there  is  no  light  in  him. 

We  want  no  men  now  claiming  to  be  apostles,  or  suc- 
cessors of  the  apostles,  or  to  have  apostolic  authority  in 
any  sense;  but  men  who  will  hear  the  apostles,  be  gov- 
erned by  them,  learn  of  them,  and  present  to  the  people 
what  they  have  received  from  the  apostles.  This  ex- 
plains the  liberty  the  apostles  took  in  teaching  unin- 
spired men  how  to  preach.  One  apostle  never  taught 
another  how  to  preach.  They  all  stood  on  an  equal 
footing  in  this  respect,  and  spoke  as  the  Spirit  gave 
them  utterance.  Jesus  forbade  the  apostles  to  meditate 
beforehand  what  they  should  say,  and  promised  them 
that  the  Spirit  should  speak  in  them.  Jesus  never  com- 
manded the  apostles,  and  one  of  them  never  commanded 
the  others,  to  give  themselves  to  reading,  to  meditation, 
or  to  study  to  show  themselves  approved  to  God — work- 
men that  need  not  be  ashamed,  rightly  dividing  the  word 
of  truth;  but  Paul  did  command  Timothy  to  give  at- 
tendance to  reading,  to  exhortation,  to  teaching  (see  1 
Timoth}^  V.  13),  to  meditate  on  these  things;  to  give 
himself  wholly  to  them,  to  take  heed  to  himself  and  to 
the  teaching,  to  continue  in  them;  that  in  so  doing  he 
should  both  save  himself  and  those  who  heard  him. — See 
1  Timothy  v.  15,  16. 

Hear  the  apostolic  charge  to  the  uninspired  preacher : 
*'  I  give  thee  charge  in  the  sight  of  God,  who  quickenetb 
all  things,  and  before  Christ  Jesus,  w^ho  before  Pontius 
Pilate  witnessed  a  good  confession ;  that  thou  keep  this 
commandment  without  spot,  unrebukable,  until  the 
appearing  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ:  which  in  his  times 
he  shall  show,  who  is  the  blessed  and  only  Potentate,  the 
King  of  kings,  and  Lord  of  lords ;  who  only  hath  im- 


44  DIVINE    AUTHORITY. 

mortality,  dwelling  in  the  light  which  no  man  can  ap- 
proach unto;  whom  no  man  hath  seen,  nor  can  see:  to 
whom  be  honor  and  power  everlasting.     Amen." — See 

1  Timothy  vi.  13-17.  Further  on,  in  the  same  chapter, 
he  says:  "0  Timothy,  keep  that  which  is  committed  to 
thy  trust,  avoiding  profane  and  vain  babblings,  and  op- 
positions of  science  falsely  so  called:  which  some  pro- 
fessing have  erred  concerning  the  faith."  In  the  second 
letter  he  says :  "  My  son,  be  strong  in  the  grace  that  is 
in  Christ  Jesus.  And  the  things  that  thou  hast  heard 
of  me  among  many  witnesses,  the  same  commit  thou  to 
faithful  men,  who  shall  be  able  to  teach  others  also." — 

2  Timothy  ii.  1,  2.  Here  are  two  things :  first,  Timothy's 
authority  to  preach.  Paul  authorized  him  to  preach  and 
to  teach.  Second,  what  he  was  authorized  to  preach. 
The  things  he  had  heard  of  Paul,  among  many  wit- 
nesses, he  was  authorized  of  Paul  to  commit  to  faithful 
men,  who  should  be  able  to  teach  others  also. 

The  Almighty  Father  gave  these  things  to  Christ;  he 
gave  them  to  the  apostles ;  they  gave  them  to  such  men 
as  Timothy,  Titus,  Barnabas,  Silas,  Mark,  Luke,  and 
other  evangelists,  and  commanded  them  to  commit  them 
to  other  faithful  men,  that  they  might  be  able  to  teach 
others  also,  and  thus,  by  the  blessing  of  Heaven,  tluse 
things  have  been  transmitted  down  through  the  ages  to 
us.  The  authority  is  in  these  divine  things  which  the 
Father  gave  to  Christ,  he  gave  to  the  apostlfcs,  they  gave 
to  the  first  evangelists,  and  they  have  transEiitted  to  us 
in  the  Sacred  Writings.  Our  inquiries  are  not.  therefore, 
in  reference  to  any  succession  of  men,  offices,  ordinances, 
or  churches,  but  in  reference  to  the  things  that  the 
Father  gave  to  the  Son,  which  he  gave  to  'the  apostles, 
and  they  gave  to  the  first  evangelists,  and  tha-  have 
been  transmitted  to  us  in  the  Sacred  Writings.     We  in- 


DIVINE   AUTHORITY.  45 

quire  after  the  authority  vested  in  no  men  any  time 
since  the  apostles,  in  any  succession  of  men,  but  after 
the  divine  things  uttered  by  the  inspiration  of  the  Spirit 
of  God  in  the  apostles.  The  authority  is  in  these  divine 
tilings^  and  not  in  men  at  all,  of  any  grade  or  of&ce,  nor 
in  the  wisdom  of  men,  but  in  the  w.isdom  of  God. 

Our  inquiries,  therefore,  are  to  ascertain  what  these 
divine  things  are;  to  learn  them,  believe  the  truth  set 
forth  in  them,  obey  the  commandments  found  in  them, 
and  hope  for  the  things  promised  in  them.  The  question 
is  not  now  about  the  authority  of  any  man  to  preach, 
but  about  what  is  preached.  Is  it  what  the  apostles 
preached  ?  Is  it  the  gospel  of  Christ  that  w^as  preached 
by  the  apostles?  If  it  is,  the  preachiug  is  all  right. 
Then  another  question  comes  up,  What  does  he  teach 
the  churches,  or  the  members  of  the  body?  Does  he 
teach  what  the  apostles  taught?  If  he  preaches  any 
other  gospel  than  that  w^hich  was  preached  by  the  apos- 
tles, the  anathema  of  Heaven  falls  on  him.  If  he  teaches 
the  individual  members,  or  the  churches,  anything  else 
than  tbat  which  the  apostles  taught,  he  is  not  to  be  re- 
ceived at  all.  "  If  there  come  any  unto  you,  and  bring 
not  this  doctrine,  receive  him  not  into  your  house, 
neither  bid  him  Godspeed."  The  doctrine  referred  to 
is  simply  the  "doctrine  of  Christ."  See  the  verse  pre- 
ceding the  one  just  quoted:  "Whoever  transgresseth, 
and  abideth  not  in  the  doctrine  of  Christ,  hath  not  God. 
He  that  abideth  in  the  doctrine  of  Christ,  he  hath  both 
the  Father  and  the  Son.  If  there  come  any  unto  you, 
and  bring  not  this  doctrine,  receive  him  not  into  your 
house,  neither  bid  him  Godspeed." — 2  John  9,  10.  Doc- 
trine is  teaching.  Several  of  the  late  translations  give 
us  teaching  instead  of  doctrine. 

The   teaching  of  Christ  is  found  in  the  reports  of 


46  DIVINE    AUTHORITY. 

Matthew,  Mark,  Luke  and  John,  as  recorded  from  his 
own  lips,  and  as  taught  by  the  apostles  in  their  verbal 
instructions  to  the  first  Christians,  portions  of  which  are 
reported  by  Luke,  in  Acts  of  Apostles,  and  as  found  in 
the  letters  of  the  apostles  to  the  first  churches.  Christ 
had  authority  from  God  to  give  this  gospel  and  teach- 
ing to  the  apostles,  and  they  had  authority  from  Christ 
to  commit  the  same  gospel  and  teaching  to  the  first 
-evangelists,  and  charge  them  to  commit  the  same  to 
faithful  men,  who  should  be  able  to  teach  others  also. 
This  gospel  and  teaching  has  the  authority  of  God,  of 
Christ,  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  the  apostles,  in  it.  The 
man  who  turns  away  from  it,  and  refuses  to  hear  it; 
turns  away  from  God,  Christ,  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  the 
apostles,  and  will  not  hear  them,  is  an  abandoned  man. 
This  brings  the  whole  matter  within  our  reach.  The 
first  thing  for  a  man  to  do  is  to  examine  the  reports 
concerning  Christ;  consider  all  the  testimony,  and  make 
up  his  mind  concerning  him.  Is  he  divine?  Is  he  what 
he  claimed  to  be?  Did  he  know  all  things?  Did  the 
fullness  of  the  Deity  dwell  substantially  in  him?  When 
these  matters  are  settled,  and  Christ  is  recognized  as  the 
Son  of  God — the  Infallibility — the  inquiring  person 
turns  his  mind  into  anotlier  channel,  and  endeavors 
to  learn  what  he  authorized.  The  next  lesson  is  to 
learn  the  place  of  the  apostles,  their  mission  and  work, 
their  apostolic  authority  under  the  infallible  guidance 
of  the  Spirit  of  all  wisdom  and  all  revelation.  Here  he 
finds  are  the  men  empowered  to  deliver  the  law  of  the 
Lord,  and  enabled  to  confirm  it.  From  them  he  learns 
the  divine  things  that  have  the  authority  of  God  in 
them,  of  Christ,  of  the  Spirit  and  the  apostles — all  au- 
thority in  heaven  and  on  earth,  l^o  matter  by  whorri 
these  things  are  reported  to  us,  nor  how,  if  we  get  thei  i 


DIVINE    AUTHORITY.  47 

and  are  assured  that  they  are  what  they  purport  to  be — 
from  God;  divine — and  believe  them,  we  have  the  faith, 
the  genuine,  "  the  saving  faith,"  the  faith  that  gives  life 
through  the  name  of  Christ,  without  regard  to  the  man 
that  reported  them  to  us,  even  though  he  should  turn 
out  to  be  a  bad  man,  or  it  should  be  found  that  he  did 
not  believe  them  himself  Truth  can  not  be  turned  into 
a  lie,  even  if  reported  by  a  liar ;  nor  can  divine  things 
be  turned  into  human,  no  matter  by  whom  reported. 
The  belief  of  the  truth  can  not  be  tamed  into  a  vain 
faith ;  even  though  the  truth  believed  be  reported  by  a 
bad  man,  or  an  impostor.  The  truth  of  the  gospel,  no 
matter  by  whom  reported  or  preached,  or  even  if 
preached  through  envy,  or  some  other  bad  design,  is 
still  the  truth — divine  truth,  and  the  belief  of  it  is  dlvme 
faith,  and  the  impression  it  makes  upon  the  human 
lieart  is  a  divine  imjprcssion.  The  repentance  produced 
by  this  truth,  or  the  belief  of  it,  is  the  repentance  the 
Lord  requires — divine  repentance  ;  and  the  confession 
following  this  belief  and  repentance,  that  Jesus  is  the 
Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God,  is  the  confession  that 
the  Lord  requires — the  divine  confession;  and  the  im- 
mersion following  this  belief  of  the  truth,  repentance 
and  confession,  "into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit,"  is  the  immersion  the  Lord 
requires — the  divine  immersion,  that  brings  a  man  to 
the  promise  of  remission  of  sins  and  the  impartation  of 
the  Holy  Spirit. 

The  validity  of  the  faith  does  not  depend  on  the  man 
that  preached  the  truth,  or  any  authority  vested  in  him, 
or  any  succession  he  may  claim  to  be  in,  any  official  re- 
lation to  which  he  may  refer,  or  even  his  character  as  a 
true  man,  but  on  the  truth  preached — the  divine  truth 
preached  and  believed.     If  the  truth  of  the  gospel  is 


48  DIVINE    AUTHORITY. 

believed,  it  is  divine  truth,  and  the  belief  of  divine  truth 
is  divine  faith — the  faith  that  God  requires ;  and  the 
repentance  produced  by  divine  faith  is  divine  repent- 
ance; and  the  confession  of  the  divine  truth  believed — 
that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God — is 
the  divine  confession ;  and  the  immersion  required  by 
the  divine  authority  in  that  divine  truth — the  gospel — 
"into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of 
the  Holy  Spirit" — is  the  one  divine  immersion  that 
brings  the  penitent  to  the  promise  of  remission  of  sins 
and  the  impartation  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  faith  de- 
pends on  the  character  and  authority  of  the  truth  be- 
lieved, and  not  on  the  character  or  the  authority  of  the 
man  that  reported  or  preached  the  truth.  If  the  truth 
believed  has  the  authority  of  God  in  it,  the  faith  is  of 
the  same  character  and  nature  required  by  the  divine  au- 
thority. If  the  truth  believed  is  divine  truth,  the  belief 
of  it  is  divine  belief,  or  faith.  The  repentance  produced, 
or  to  which  a  man  is  led  by  divine  faith,  is  divine  re- 
pentance ;  the  confession  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the 
Son  of  the  living  God,  is  the  divine  confession ;  the  im- 
mersion of  the  penitent  believer,  "into  the  name  of  the 
Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit,"  in  obe- 
dience to  the  divine  authority,  as  set  forth  in  the  com- 
mandment of  God  in  Scripture,  is  divine  obedience,  and 
brings  the  proper  subject  to  the  divine  promise.  The 
man  thus  coming  believes  his  God,  obeys  him,  has  his 
promise,  and,  if  true  to  the  end,  his  God  will  save  him. 
His  mind  first  acts  on  the  truth  of  God.  With  all  the 
heart  he  believes  that  truth.  This  is  his  first  yielding 
to  God.  He  then  respects  and  yields  to  the  divine 
authority  requiring  repentance,  as  found  set  forth  in  the 
command,  "Repent!"  He  further  respects  and  yields 
to  the  divine  command  in  confessing  Christ  before  men. 


DIVINE   AUTHORITY.  49 

He  then  proceeds  and  consummates  the  divine  process  of 
turning  to  God,  in  yielding  obedience  to  the  divine  law 
as  it  came  from  the  lips  of  Him  who  had  the  keys  of 
the  kingdom,  and  as  dictated  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  the 
day  on  which  he  came  from  heaven  to  guide  the  apostles 
into  all  truth,  in  the  words:  "And  be  baptized  every  one 
of  you  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  for  the  remission  of 
sins,"  and  thus  comes  to  the  promise  of  the  Lord,  "  shall 
be  saved." 

The  man  thus  saved  can  not  trace  a  succession  in 
office,  in  the  ministry,  from  the  man  who  brought  the 
truth  to  him ;  nor  need  he  be  very  much  concerned 
about  this  man^  so  far  as  his  own  safety  in  what  he  has 
believed  may  be  concerned,  nor  even  whether  he  was  a 
good  man  or  not.  Nothing,  so  far  as  the  convert  is  con- 
cerned, depends  on  the  man  who  brought  him  the 
truth,  or  the  gospel;  nor  is  it  a  matter  of  any  import- 
ance to  the  convert  whether  there  is  a  succession  of  good 
men  back  from  the  man  that  brought  him  the  truth  to 
the  apostles  or  not.  His  salvation  depends  on  nothing 
of  that  kind.  The  matter  with  him  is  simply  to  know 
that  it  was  the  truth — the  gospel  of  Christ.  When 
assured  that  it  was  the  gospel  of  Christ,  he  sees  beyond 
a  doubt  that  the  belief  of  it  is  the  faith  of  Christ;  the 
obedience  of  it  is  the  obedience  of  Christ;  the  promise 
of  salvation  in  it  is  the  promise  of  Christ.  It  matters 
nothing  to  the  man  who  believes  this  gospel  whether  he 
can  find  a  succession  of  believers  from  himself  back  to 
the  apostles  or  not.  ^o  matter  to  him  whether  a  thou- 
sand links  are  out  of  the  chain  of  believers,  one  link, 
©r  no  link,  between  him  and  the  apostles ;  he  believes 
the  gospel  believed  and  preached  by  the  apostles  as  those 
to  whom  it  was  first  preached  believed  it,  and  that  be- 
lief is  precisely  the  belief  the  first  Christians  had.  He 
5 


60  DIVINE    AUTHORITY. 

yielded  obedience  to  the  gospel  precisely  as  the  first  fol- 
lowers of  Christ  did,  which  is  obedience  to  the  same 
Lord,  and,  therefore,  has  the  same  obedience  they  had. 
He  need  not  trouble  himself  about  a  succession  of  obe- 
dient men  from  himself  back  to  the  apostles.  He  has 
in  the  gospel  before  him  the  authority  of  the  same  Lord 
as  those  who  turned  to  God  in  the  time  of  the  apostles, 
and  in  submitting  to  the  same  authority  in  precisely  the 
same  way  they  did,  or  in  the  same  acts  of  obedience,  he 
comes  to  God  as  they  did,  and  has  the  same  promise 
they  had,  giving  precisely  the  same  assurance  of  accept- 
ance with  God  enjoyed  by  them. 

This  depends  on  no  succession  of  churches,  ministers, 
or  ordinances,  but  on  Christ,  who  had  all  authority  in 
heaven  and  on  earth,  and  commanded  this  gospel  to  be 
preached  to  every  creature.  As  certainly  as  the  Lord 
Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God,  and  all 
the  fullness  of  the  Deity  dwells  in  him  substantially, 
this  is  reliable.  In  this  a  man  may  have  the  full  assur- 
ance of  faith,  living  and  dying,  for  this  world  and  the 
world  to  come. 

But  what  assurance  of  faith  can  any  man  have  who 
depends  on  the  Romish,  the  Greek,  or  the  Episcopal 
claims  to  succession?  It  requires  immense  learning, 
reading  and  study,  even  to  investigate  these  claims  at 
all,  to  say  nothing  of  arriving  at  any  certainty  about 
them,  and  to  make  the  salvation  of  the  multitudes 
depend  on  these  successions,  or  any  one  of  them,  is  to 
envelop  the  whole  hope  of  the  people  in  uncertainty. 
What  would  the  great  masses  of  the  people  do  with 
these  claims  to  succession?  How  can  they  decide  on 
their  merits?  The  very  best  they  could  do  would  be  to 
guess  at  it.  What  could  they  do  with  the  question  of  a 
succession  of  ministers?     They  do  not  know  history, 


DIVINE   AUTHORITY.  51 

and,  if  thej  did,  the  path  of  ministerial  succession  is  a 
dim  path.  The  same  is  true  of  church  succession,  or  a 
succession  of  ordinances.  The  clear  matter  of  fact  is, 
that  no  succession  of  churches,  ministers,  or  ordinances, 
can  be  found  sufficiently  clear  for  any  man  to  risk  his 
salvation  on  it. 

If  a  succession  of  churches  is  necessary  to  the  validity 
of  religion,  any  one  can  see  that  if  there  is  a  single  link 
out  of  the  chain  of  succession  of  churches,  all  below  it 
is  invalid.  In  the  same  way,  if  a  succession  of  minis- 
ters is  necessary  to  the  validity  of  religion,  and  a  single 
link  is  out  of  the  chain  of  the  succession  of  ministers, 
all  below  it  is  invalid.  So,  also,  if  a  succession  of  or- 
dinances is  necessary  to  validity,  and  a  single  link  is  out 
of  the  chain  of  succession  of  ordinances,  all  below  it  is 
invalid.  And  for  this  there  is  no  remedy.  There  can  be 
no  such  thing  as  restoring  succession.  If  there  is  a  link 
out  anywhere  back,  all  below  it  is  invalid,  and  that 
without  remedy. 

We  need  not  theorize  this  or  that,  but  must  accept  the 
facts  of  the  situation.  Let  us  look  at  some  of  these 
facts. 

A  large  portion  of  the  Baptists  of  the  United  States, 
if  they  were  to  trace  a  succession  of  their  baptisms 
back,  in  a  few  generations  would  run  up  to  Roger  Wil- 
liams, who  received  his  baptism  from  the  hands  of  a  man 
who  had  never  been  baptized  at  all.  Here  the  chain 
ends;  there  is  not  a  link  back  of  it,  and  yet  to  extend 
back  to  the  apostles  the  long  end  of  the  chain  would  lie 
back  of  Roger  Williams.  The  short  end  of  the  chain, 
from  Roger  Williams  down  to  the  Baptists  in  this  line 
of  succession,  would  appear  to  great  disadvantage,  with 
more  than  sixteen  hundred  years  of  the  first  end  of  the 


62  DIVINE    AUTHORITY. 

^  I 

chain  missing !     Yet  a  large  portion  of  the  Baptfists  of 

the  United  States  are  in  this  line. 

If  the  Disciples  in  this  country  were  to  trace  up  a 
succession  of  their  immersions,  many  of  them  would 
run  back  to  the  Baptists,  and  back  to  Roger  Williams^ 
and  find  the  succession  hanging  on  the  same  hook. 
Many  more  of  them  would  trace  the  chain  of  immersion 
back  to  the  beginning  of  this  century,  or  near  that  time^ 
to  Barton  W.  Stone,  who  was  immersed  by  David  Perv- 
iance,  who  had  never  been  immersed.  Here  ends  an- 
other line.  This  short  piece  of  chain  lacks  eighteen 
Jiundred  years  off  the  first  end.  This  can  never  be 
supplied. 

If  any  one  desires  to  look  at  a  succession  of  ordinances, 
ministers,  or  churches,  of  any  of  the  other  parties,  they 
can  begin  with  the  Church  of  England,  and,  tracing 
back  through  a  few  generations,  the  line  runs  into  the 
Church  of  Rome.  The  Lutheran  Church  runs  back 
into  the  same  body — the  Church  of  Rome.  The  Pres- 
byterian Church  runs  back  to  the  same  source.  All  the 
branches  of  Methodists  run  back  into  the  "  Episcopal 
Methodists,"  so  called,  to  John  Wesley,  or  Whitfield, 
and  these  into  the  Church  of  England.  This  ends  all 
these  chains  of  churches,  ordinances,  and  ministers,  in 
the  Church  of  Rome.  Then  look  at  the  long,  dark  list 
through  which  any  chain  must  pass  to  make  a  succes- 
sion back  to  the  apostles,  and  the  dark  ages  through 
which  it  must  pass,  and  the  great  mystery  of  iniquity^ 
and  put  the  question  honestly.  What  is  it  worth?  In 
view  of  this,  ought  we  not  to  be  .thankful  that  the  gos- 
pel of  Christ  requires  no  such  succession ;  that  it  say& 
not  one  word  about  it.  We  have  a  more  sure  word  of 
prophecy  to  which  we  should  take  heed  as  to  a  light  that 
yhines  in  a  dark  place.     We  have  the  word  first  spoken 


DIVINE    AUTHORITY.  '  53 

by  the  Lord,  and  then  confiraied  to  them  that  heard 
him,  "  with  signs  and  wonders,  and  with  divers  miracles, 
and  gifts  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  according  to  his  own  will," 
and  should  "give  the  more  earnest  heed  to  the  things 
which  we  have  heard,  lest  at  any  time  we  should  let 
them  slip."  "We  "  are  come  unto  mount  Sion,  and  unto 
the  city  of  the  living  God,  the  heavenly  Jerusalem,  and 
to  an  innumerable  company  of  angels,  to  the  general 
assembly  and  church  of  the  firstborn,  which  are  written 
in  heaven,  and  to  God  the  Judge  of  all,  and  to  the  spir- 
its of  just  men  made  perfect,  and  to  Jesus  the  Mediator 
of  the  new  covenant,  and  to  the  blood  of  sprinkling, 
that  speaketh  better  things  than  that  of  Abel.  See  that 
ye  refuse  not  him  that  speaketh :  for  if  they  escaped  not 
who  refused  him  that  spake  on  earth,  much  more  shall 
not  we  escape,  if  we  turn  away  from  him  that  speaketh 
from  heaven:  whose  voice  then  shook  the  earth:  but 
now  he  hath  promised,  saying.  Yet  once  more  I  shake 
not  the  earth  only,  but  also  heaven."  "  "Wherefore  we 
receiving  a  kingdom  which  can  not  be  moved,  let  us 
have  grace,  whereby  we  may  serve  God  acceptably  with 
reverence  and  godly  fear." 

The  faith  of  the  child  of  God  is  not  in  men,  in  the 
traditions,  doctrines  and  commandments  of  men;  nor 
in  succession  of  men,  ofl3.cers,  churches,  or  ordinances, 
but  in  God,  Christ,  and  the  eternal  Spirit,  as  revealed 
to  us  in  the  Scriptures.  "If  ye  believe  not,"  said  the 
Lord  to  the  Jews,  "  that  I  am  he,  ye  shall  die  in  your 
sins,"  and  "  where  I  am  ye  can  not  come."  Again  he 
says,  "  He  that  believeth  not  the  Son  shall  not  see  life ;  but 
the  wrath  of  God  abideth  on  him."  "  The  words  which 
I  speak  to  you  shall  judge  you  in  the  last  day."  Let  us 
hear  his  sayings  and  do  them,  that  he  may  liken  us  to 
wise  men ;  let  us  keep  his  commandments,  that  we  may 


64  DIVINE   AUTHORITY. 

enter  in  through  the  gate  into  the  city,  and  have  right 
to  the  tree  of  life.  He  says,  "  If  ye  love  me,  keep  my 
commandments."  "Hereby,"  says  the  beloved  John, 
^'  we  know  that  we  know  him,  if  we  keep  his  command- 
ments." Let  us  learn  more  and  more  to  adore  and 
worship  him ;  to  learn  of  him  and  be  led  by  him.  He 
will  lead  us  safely  into  the  everlasting  city,  and  to  the 
fountains  of  living  water,  where  there  are  riches,  and 
treasures,  and  splendors,  and  sublimities,  transcending 
all  human  imagination,  in  the  presence  of  His  Father 
and  our  Father,  where  we  shall  dwell  with  Him  forever 
and  ever.  To  the  Almighty  Father,  through  Him,  h% 
the  honor  and  power  everlasting. 


SEEMON  No.  III. 

THEME. — A  KINGDOM  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD. 
Text. — "  My  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world." — John  xviii.  26. 

Many  of  our  Lord's  sayings  were  dark  to  those  to 
whom  they  were  directly  addressed — purposely  dark  to 
them.  They  were  not  intended  to  be  understood  by 
those  to  whom  they  were  immediately  addressed,  but  to 
be  clearly  understood  at  later  periods,  not  only  by  those 
to  whom  they  were  first  addressed,  but  by  all  intelligent 
people  who  would  study  the  Scriptures  in  the  ages  to 
come.  The  negative  statement,  "My  kingdom  is  not 
of  this  world,"  was  not  only  dark  to  Pilate,  to  whom  it 
was  directly  addressed,  but  equally  so  to  all  our  Lord's 
disciples  at  the  time  he  uttered  it.  They  had  no  idea 
of  a  kingdom  not  of  this  world,  and  understood  not  the 
meaning  of  any  such  language.  John  the  Immerser 
had  been  preaching  that  the  kingdom  was  at  hand.  The 
twelve  had  been  preaching  the  same,  and  seventy  others 
whom  .  Jesus  sent  under  the  first  commission.  The 
Lord  had  taught  them  to  pray,  "Thy  kingdom  come; 
thy  will  be  done  on  earth  as  it  is  in  heaven."  ITo  doubt 
they  prayed  thus  numerous  times ;  but  when  they 
preached  that  the  kingdom  was  at  hand,  and  prayed, 
"Thy  kingdom  come,"  they  had  a  king  and  a  kingdom 
of  this  world  in  their  minds.  They  were  looking  and 
praying  for  a  temporal  king  and  kingdom.     This  was 

(65) 


66  MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD. 

tLe  universal  idea  with  all  who  believed  on  him  during 
the  lifetime  of  our  Lord. 

The  apostles  themselves  retained  this  idea  till  the 
Lord  died.  His  death  disheartened  and  discouraged 
them,  and  they  gave  up  all  as  lost.  Their  idea  of  a 
temporal  king  was  exploded;  their  leader  was  dead; 
their  prospects  and  hopes  were  completely  swept  away. 
But  when  he  arose,  and  they  saw  him,  their  old  hope 
revived,  and  they  said :  "  Lord,  wilt  thou  at  this  time 
restore  again  the  kingdom  to  Israel  ?  "  They  still  had  the 
idea  of  a  temporal  kingdom,  as  in  the  days  of  David  or 
Solomon.  It  is  easy  to  see  that  the  answer  of  the  Lord 
was  purposely  obscure.  The  time  had  not  quite  come 
for  him  to  explain  the  matter. 

Previous  to  the  Lord's  execution  he  endured  two 
trials :  the  one  before  the  Sanhedrim,  the  other  before 
the  Roman  court.  This  was  severely  trying  on  their 
belief  of  an  earthly  and  temporal  king,  to  see  their  king 
submitting  to  these  trials  without  making  any  resistance 
or  even  defense.  It  shook  them  exceedingly.  They 
could  not  see  why  he  did  not  use  his  power  in  some 
kind  of  resistance  or  defense.  The  Sanhedrim  was 
the  highest  and  most  august  religious  court  in  the 
World.  In  his  trial  he  was  charged  with  blasphemy. 
There  was  but  a  single  specification  made  in  the  court. 
It  was  in  the  words,  "  He  said  he  was  the  Son  of  God ; 
thus  making  himself  equal  with  God."  JSTot  regarding 
him  as  the  Son  of  God,  nor  believing  him  to  be  the  Sou 
of  God,  but  only  a  man,  their  conclusion  was  easily 
made  out,  that  his  claim  was  blasphemous.  They  had 
the  matter  all  their  own  way,  made  their  decision,  de- 
clared him  guilty  of  blasphemy,  and  that  he  ought  to 
die. 

But  here   they  encountered  a  difficulty.     The  Jews 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD.  57 

were  ceded  to  the  Roman  government,  and  existed  as  a 
Roman  State,  or  province,  and  were  almost  in  a  state  of 
bondage,  or  at  least  they  so  regarded  it.  While  the 
Roman  government  was  tolerant  toward  them;  per- 
mitted them  to  have  their  laws,  temple,  synagogues, 
altars,  priests,  victims,  ritual,  etc.,  it  deprived  them  of 
the  power  to  inflict  capital  punishment.  The  Sanhe- 
drim could  make  its  decisions,  but  was  not  allowed  to 
inflict  the  death  sentence.  This  feature  in  their  civil 
arrangement  and  situation  came  in  the  way  of  accom- 
plishing their  purpose.  They  could  not  put  the  Lord 
to  death  without  a  decision  from  the  Roman  court.  To 
accomplish  their  purpose  they  brought  the  Lord  before 
Pilate's  bar.  Here  they  encountered  another  diflaculty. 
The  charge,  as  it  is  styled  in  church  courts,  or  the  in- 
dictment, as  it  is  styled  in  the  civil  courts,  they  preferred 
in  the  Sanhedrim  was  not  actionable  in  the  Roman 
court.  The  Jews  knew  this,  and  when  they  came  into 
the  Roman  court  they  said  nothing  about  their  charge 
of  blasphemy,  knowing  that  it  was  not  actionable. 
Here  they  appeared  w^ith  a  new  indictment,  and  one 
that  they  had  said  nothing  about  before  this.  It  was  in 
these  words :  "  This  man  says  he  is  a  king."  They 
appeared  to  have  forgotten  that  it  had  not  been  long 
since  their  people  had  determined  to  take  Jesus  by  force 
and  make  him  a  king;  that  he  had  refused  and  would 
not  be  a  king,  in  their  sense  of  it. 

Pilate  appears  to  have  acted  the  part  of  a  judge  pretty 
well.  He  was  cool,  deliberate  and  considerate;  heard 
all  that  could  be  produced  and  said  against  Jesus.  After 
hearing  the  case  patiently,  and  the  testimony  that  could 
be  produced,  he  came  forth  and  rendered  his  decision 
in  the  words:  "I  find  in  him  no  fault  at  all,"  or,  as  they 
express  it  in  the  courts  now,  "I  find  him  not  guilty." 


58  MY  KINGHX)M  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD. 

This  aggravated  and  enraged  the  Jews,  as  it  frustrated 
and  defeated  their  chief  aim,  and  they  turned  on  Pilate 
and  pressed  him  with  the  charge,  "  Thou  art  not  Caesar's 
friend,"  and  shouted,  "  We  are  Caesar's  friends ! "  It 
was  certainly  a  very  late  thing  with  them,  if  the}^  were 
Caesar's  friends.  Surely  a  more  treacherous  and  false 
pretense  than  this  was  never  made  by  any  set  of  men. 
They  despised  Caesar  as  their  oppressor,  and  hated  him 
from  the  depths  of  their  hearts;  but  they  saw  how  they 
could  pull  a  political  wire,  and  cause  it  to  rest  heavily 
on  Pilate,  by  endangering  his  judgeship. 

During  the  trial  Pilate  put  the  question  to  Jesus : 
"Art  thou  a  king?"  He  answered  affirmatively,  but 
followed  the  answer  with  what  had  been  evident  from 
his  course  and  teaching  all  the  time,  but  what  his  friends 
up  to  this  time,  and  even  later,  never  understood :  "My 
kingdom  is  not  of  this  world."  This  had  in  it  an  ex- 
planation, but  one  not  then  understood,  and  not  intended 
to  be  then  understood,  but  intended  to  be  understood 
afterward,  and  to  show  to  the  ages  to  come  that  he  saw 
what  was  coming,  and  that  everything  was  working  out 
according  to  the  eternal  purpose  of  the  one  divine  mind 
seen  running  through  the  Bible  from  side  to  side.  In 
all  the  vacillating  of  the  disciples  in  the  lifetime  of  our 
Lord,  their  wavering,  errors,  mistakes  and  blunders, 
misunderstandings  and  disappointments,  it  is  clear  that 
there  was  one  mind  there  that  never  erred,  wavered,  or 
was  disappointed.  Any  one  who  will  observe  all  he 
taught  and  did  can  see  that  he  moved  right  on  accord- 
ing to  the  eternal  purpose,  carrying  out  the  designs  of 
the  Almighty  Father,  without  wavering,  changing  or 
disappointment.  He  was  never  taken  on  surprise.  He 
knew  what  was  in  men,  what  they  would  do,  and  in  in- 
stances of  a  most  astonishing  nature  he  told  them  what 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD.  59 

they  would  do ;  yet  they  understood  not,  but  went  on 
blindly,  and  did  the  very  things  he  told  thera  they 
would  do,  not  seeing,  either,  that  they  were  fulfilling  his 
words  or  the  predictions  of  their  own  prophets. 

The  explanation  in  the  Lord's  words,  "  My  kingdom 
18  Lot  of  this  world,"  is  of  immense  value  to  us  now; 
8ho>ving  that  he  intended  no  civil  government,  and  no 
kingdom  that  would  meddle  with  the  civil  affairs  of 
any  country;  that  he  would  be  no  earthly  or  temporal 
king;  no  civil  ruler;  that  he  would  be  no  rival  of  Csesar 
in  any  sense.  There  is  no  better  evidence  that  any 
religion  is  not  from  heaven  than  to  see  it  striving  to 
grasp  civil  power;  tampering  with  civil  officers,  and 
trying  to  control  State  affairs ;  trying  to  grasp  and  con- 
trol the  schools  and  the  like.  Our  Lord  sweeps  all  this 
away  with  one  grand  sentence:  "My  kingdom  is  not 
of  this  world."  As  if  he  had  said,  "  I  am  no  rival  of 
Caesar;  my  kingdom  is  spiritual  and  heavenly;  my  gov- 
ernment is  not  of  this  world.  A  man  may  be  a  loyal 
and  an  obedient  servant  of  Caesar  in  every  particular, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  be  a  true  subject  of  my  kingdom." 
This  is  an  end  to  all  union  of  Church  and  State  mat- 
ters, and  shows  that  they  must  remain  distinct.  True, 
becoming  a  citizen  of  the  kingdom  of  Messiah  does  not 
destroy  a  man's  relation  to  the  State.  He  is  a  citizen 
of  this  world,  and  of  the  State,  after  he  is  in  Christ  as 
much  as  he  was  before,  and  required  to  pay  tax  and 
obey  the  laws  of  the  State  by  the  law  of  God.  But  he 
is,  at  the  same  time,  a  citizen  of  another  kingdom,  a 
kingdom  not  of  this  world.  This  is  the  matter  now  to 
be  considered. 

The  way  is  now  open  for  the  main  proposition  of  this 
discourse.  That  proposition  is,  that  the  divine  proced^ 
ure  in  establishing  the  kingdom  of  God  was  just  about 


60  MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD. 

the  opposite  of  that  which  human  wisdom  would  have 
dictated.  This  may  appear,  at  first  sight,  a  little  para- 
doxical, hut  there  is  not  a  doubt  but  it  is  strictly  true. 
Let  the  matter  now  be  considered. 

When  our  most  gracious  and  merciful  Lord  was  in- 
troduced into  the  world,  what  were  the  surroundings 
and  associations,  chosen  by  the  Almighty  Father  him- 
self, in  the  midst  of  which  he  should  make  his  advent? 
Such  as  the  wisdom  of  this  world  would  have  dictated  ? 
By  no  means.  The  wisdom  of  this  world  would  have 
selected  surroundings  and  associations  different  in  every 
particular.  It  would  have  had  him  appear  at  the  start 
in  the  mansions  of  the  great,  surrounded  by  the  nobil- 
ity, the  lords,  the  men  of  wealth,  of  official  power,  pop- 
ularity and  distinction;  kings,  emperors,  and  potentates 
of  the  earth;  surrounded  by  military  display,  martial 
music,  grand  processions,  festivities,  and  the  like.  How 
different  all  this  from  the  quiet  advent  of  our  Lord,  and 
the  lowly  surroundings  when  first  he  appeared  on  earth ! 
The  great  masses  of  humanity  knew  nothing  of  his 
expected  advent,  save  the  general  expectation  vaguely 
prevailing  widely  that  about  that  time  some  wonderful 
personage  was  expected  to  make  his  appearance;  but 
they  knew  not  who  nor  what  he  was  to  be,  nor  was 
there  anything  very  definite  about  it. 

But  where  did  he  make  his  appearance?  Not  in  some 
great  metropolis;  not  in  any  city,  but  in  the  little  and 
inconsiderable  village  of  Bethlehem.  And  w^here  in 
that  village?  Not  in  a  mansion;  no,  not  in  a  house  at 
all,  but  he  was  born  in  a  stable,  clad,  as  some  suppose, 
with  the  coarse  and  uncomely  cloths  they  had  to  rub 
down  the  beasts,  and  laid  in  a  manger.  There  lay  the 
holy  child  Jesus,  and  nothing  of  greatness  appeared  to 
the  eye  of  man,  nor  any  earthly  attraction.     There  sat 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD.  61 

the  humble  Mary,  the  mother  of  Jesus,  a  woman  prob- 
ably scarcely  known  ten  miles  away.  ISTear  by  sat  the 
humble  carpenter,  Joseph.  The  great  ones  of  the  earth 
knew  nothing  of  what  had  occurred.  Some  were  en- 
listed in  schemes  of  speculation,  pushing  for  money; 
others  were  laying  the  political  wires,  and  planning  to 
get  into  office,  obtain  popularity,  power  and  money; 
some  were  seeking  opportunities  to  avenge  themselves 
on  their  enemies  and  punish  them ;  there,  too,  w^ere  the 
lovers  and  seekers  of  pleasure  and  amusement,  who 
thought  but  little  of  anything,  and,  of  course,  knew 
nothing  of  Jesus.  The  whole  world  was  pushing  on  in 
its  wonderful  career  of  sin  and  ignorance,  and  knew  not 
that  a  Savior  was  born.  How  wonderfully  obscure^ 
lowly  and  humble  the  advent  of  the  Son  of  Mary — 
the  Son  of  God! 

While  this  wonderful  state  of  supineness,  apathy  and 
3tupor  pervaded  this  world  so  largely,  the  upper  world 
was  in  motion.  The  heavenly  hosts  were  visitants  and 
witnesses  of  the  scenes  that  were  transpiring  among 
men,  and  not  appreciated  by  any  human  being.  The 
swift  messengers  of  Jehovah  appear  to  the  shepherds 
and  announce  ''good  tidings  of  great  joy,  which  shall 
be  to  all  people,"  exclaiming:  '-  Unto  you  is  born  this 
day  in  the  city  of  David  a  Savior,  which  is  Christ  the 
Lord."  Here  was  the  announcement  of  intelligence 
that  one  would  have  thought  should  have  gone  like  the 
wings  of  the  wind,  till  it  would  have  reached  the  re- 
motest ends  of  the  earth.  But,  no;  the  human  mind 
was  locked  up  by  Jewish  priests  and  doctors  of  the  law^ 
on  the  one  hand,  and  pagan  philosophers,  on  the  other^ 
till  there  was  no  inlet  to  the  souls  of  men,  through 
which  the  heavenly  intelligence  could  be  speedily  con- 
veyed through  the  world.     The  intelligence  brought  by 


62  ^         MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WOKLD. 

angels  of  God,  that  a  Savior  was  born,  was  but  slowly 
conveyed  from  man  to  man,  till  it  extended  to  every 
creature  under  heaven. 

But  now,  viewing  a  helpless  child  in  this  humble  and 
lowly  condition,  turn  your  attention  and  consider  the 
adverse  surroundings  in  the  midst  of  which  he  was  to 
rise,  and  inquire  about  the  prospect  of  his  ever  rising 
into  power  and  commanding  the  attention  of  the  na 
tions  of  the  earth.  On  the  one  hand,  here  were  his 
own  people,  the  seed  of  Abraham,  his  kindred  accord 
ing  to  the  flesh,  to  whom  he  had  come  and  who  received 
him  not,  with  the  law  of  Moses — the  law  of  God — their 
temple,  built  by  divine  direction,  the  temple  of  God, 
their  synagogues,  their  altars,  victims,  and  priests  ar- 
rayed against  Jesus,  as  they  construed  and  applied  the 
whole.  A  ITational  Church,  that  they  regarded  as  the 
Israel  of  God,  confederated  and  organized  throughout, 
and  set  in  opposition,  with  wealth,  learning  and  popu- 
larity, against  the  Lord's  Anointed!  On  the  other  hand, 
the  nations  of  the  earth,  with  the  popularity,  the  money, 
philosophy,  civil  governments  and  combined  powers  of 
the  world  against  the  holy  child  Jesus ! 

What  think  you  of  the  prospect  of  his  ever  rising 
into  power,  gaining  the  attention  of  the  people,  and  rev- 
olutionizing the  world?  Had  he  been  nothing  more 
than  a  human  being,  his  name  never  would  have  come 
down  through  the  ages  to  our  time;  we  never  would 
have  heard  of  the  name  of  Jesus.  God  purposely 
placed  him  thus  lowly,  in  humility,  and  without  a  single 
worldly  circumstance  in  his  favor;  placed  him  under 
every  possible  disadvantage,  so  far  as  the  influence  of 
the  world  was  concerned;  without  the  influence  ot 
money,  rich  friends,  popularity,  what  the  world  calls 
respectability;  the  aid  of  philosophers,  civil  rulers,  or 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD.  63 

any  worldly  distinction,  and  at  a  time  when  the  glory 
of  his  nation  and  people  were  departed,  that  the  excel- 
lency of  the  power  might  be  seen  to  be  of  God  and  not 
of  man. 

A  few  wonderful  events  stood  connected  with  his 
birth,  and  with  him  up  to  the  time  when  he  was  two 
years  old;  but,  aside  from  these,  nothing  of  importance 
or  of  any  considerable  notoriety  transpired  in  his  life  till 
he  was  about  thirty  years  old.  His  own  sacred  histori- 
ans give  but  little  information  about  his  life  from  two 
years  old  till  thirty.  A  single  incident  is  mentioned  of 
some  note,  when  he  was  at  the  age  of  twelve  years, 
aside  from  which  there  is  but  little  till  he  was  thirty. 
The  reason  probably  is,  that  this  was  private  life,  and 
of  no  importance  to  the  world.  There  may  be  about 
two  important  lessons  gleaned  from  this  part  of  the 
Savior's  life.  First,  his  respect  to  parental  authority. 
He  was  submissive  to  parental  authority,  and  treated  it 
with  the  highest  regard,  and  in  this  gave  an  example  to 
all  young  people,  of  more  value  than  much  gold.  Great 
as  he  was,  he  respected  the  authority  of  his  parents! 
Second,  he  labored  with  his  hands,  and  thus  sanctified 
labor,  and  made  it  right  for  men  and  women  to  labor, 
and  made  it  also  honorable.  !N'o  customs  or  aristocratic 
notions  can  ever  make  it  otherwise  than  right  and  hon- 
orable for  men  and  women  to  follow  habits  of  industry. 

Kow,  that  he  has  reached  the  age  of  about  thirty 
years,  he  leaves  the  parental  roof,  the  carpenter's  shop, 
and  comes  before  the  world,  as  Mcodemus  expressed  it, 
as  "  a  teacher  from  God."  He  has  grown  up  in  obscur- 
ity, in  private  life,  to  the  age  of  thirty  years,  without 
'^ever  having  learned  letters,"  or  without  education,  and 
comes  before  the  world  as  "the  way,  the  truth,  and  the 
life,"  and  openly  declares  that  "  no  man  comes  to  the 


64  MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD. 

Father  but  by  me."  Keep  it  in  view  as  you  see  him,  ia 
youtt'  mind,  enter  on  his  public  mission,  that,  on  the  one 
hand,  all  Judaism  is  against  him,  and,  on  the  other  hand, 
all  Paganism  is  against  him.  He  is  to  rise  against  the 
combined  will  of  all  these,  or  not  rise  at  all.  "What  think 
you  of  the  divine  procedure  in  all  this?  Is  it  not  the 
opposite  of  what  human  wisdom  would  have  dictated? 
But  what  is  the  next  step  in  the  divine  procedure?  It 
is  to  add  weakness  to  weakness.  Where  does  he  find 
his  preachers  that  he  intends  to  set  before  all  nations, 
and  kindreds,  and  tongues,  and  peoples?  Does  he  find 
them  among  the  statesmen,  the  philosophers,  the  rabbis 
of  Israel,  or  the  rich  men  ?  ^o ;  he  passed  by  all  these 
and  "chose  the  weak  things  of  this  world  to  confound 
the  mighty."  He  called  twelve  illiterate  fishermen  of 
Galilee,  saying  to  them:  "Come,  follow  me,  and  I  will 
make  you  fishers  of  men."  Strange  and  unaccountable 
though  it  be,  they  threw  down  their  nets  and  followed 
him!  How  did  he  induce  them  to  do  this?  We  have 
no  explanation  how.  He  did  it  is  all  that  can  be  said 
about  it,  but  we  know  not  how.  Had  the  work  been 
simply  of  man,  the  calling  of  these  poor,  weak  men 
w^ould  have  been  a  most  fatal  step;  would  have  defeated 
and  brought  it  to  shame  and  contempt.  The  w^isdom 
of  man  would  have  said,  Select  three  of  the  greatest  of 
pagan  philosophers,  three  of  the  most  powerful  states- 
men, three  of  the  most  learned  and  powerful  of  the 
rabbis  of  Israel,  and  three  of  the  great  men  of  wealth, 
and  thus  combine  the  infiuence  of  philosophy,  civil  gov- 
ernment, money  and  religion,  and  success  will  be  certain. 
But  if  this  course  had  been  pursued  and  succeeded,  and 
any  one  had  attempted  to  make  an  argument  in  favor 
of  the  divinity  of  Christianity  from  its  rapid  rise  and 
spread  in  the  world,  some  skeptic  would  reply :  "  That 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD.  65 

18  no  evidence;  that  there  was  no  divinity  in  it  that 
caused  it  to  rise  and  spread  as  it  did ;  but  the  cunning 
human  device  of  combining  the  influence  of  money. 
State,  philosophy  and  Judaism;  that  this  was  what 
raised  it  up  and  gave  it  momentum  in  the  world" — and 
^10  man  could  have  set  it  aside. 

But  the  wisdom  of  God  headed  off  all  this  in  the 
divine  procedure.  Take  the  case  as  we  have  it,  with  an 
illiterate  iN'azarene  at  the  head  of  a  dozen  poor,  humble 
and  uneducated  Galileans,  fishermen,  with  a  new  relig- 
ion, hated  by  all  the  world;  a  religion  that  condemns 
all  vice,  pride  and  folly ;  most  stringent  in  its  require- 
ments, and  most  exclusive  in  its  very  nature ;  sweeping 
away  all  Judaism,  on  the  one  hand,  and  Paganism,  on 
the  other;  a  religion  offering  eternal  life  to  those  who 
receive  it,  but  pronouncing  eternal  condemnation  on 
those  who  reject  it.  "With  the  whole  world  against  it, 
cvhat  think  you  of  the  prospect  of  its  rising  and  spread- 
ing through  the  world?  The  moneyed  influence  of  the 
world  is  against  it;  the  civil  governments  of  the  world 
are  against  it;  the  philosophy  of  the  world  is  against 
it;  all  the  religions  of  the  world  are  against  it;  the  lusts 
of  the  flesh,  the  pride  of  life  and  the  follies  of  the  world 
are  all  against  it;  the  learning  of  the  world  is  against 
it.  What  is  there  favorable  to  it?  What  is  there  to 
commend  it,  or  encourage  its  circulation  among  men? 
N'ot  a  single  worldly  or  popular  attraction  to  favor,  or  in 
any  way  aid,  but  every  worldly  consideration  against  it. 

Stop  and  consider  the  situation.  The  number  of  the 
disciples  together,  on  the  day  the  Spirit  descended  from 
heaven  to  inspire  the  apostles,  and  guide  them  into  all 
truth,  was  about  one  hundred  and  twenty.  Viewing 
them  from  the  worldly  side,  and  thinking  of  them  simply 
as  men  and  women,  with  a  human  system^  what  pros- 
6 


66  MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD. 

pect  was  there  of  their  success  ?  True,  they  had  a  com- 
mission from  the  J^azarene,  to  "go  into  all  the  world 
and  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature."  But  then,  if 
we  deny  his  divinity,  and  regard  him  simply  as  a  man^ 
an  illiterate  JS'azarene,  a  carpenter,  and  the  son  of  a 
carpenter,  a  commission  from  him  amounted  to  nothing. 
In  that  view  of  it,  there  was  nothing  in  a  commission 
from  him  to  give  them  any  power  or  influence.  It 
would  have  been  wiser,  on  their  part,  never  to  have 
mentioned  his  name.  They  had  no  talent  of  any  note 
themselves,  no  popularity  among  the  people,  no  influ- 
ence, learning  or  money ;  they  had  not  a  meeting-house 
in  the  world;  not  a  college,  a  school;  not  a  worldly 
prestige  of  any  sort.  What  think  you  of  the  prospect 
of  their  rising? 

Their  leader,  only  a  few  days  before,  had  offended  the 
most  popular  and  influential  Jews,  in  condemning  their 
procedure  in  the  temple,  overthrowing  the  tables  of  the 
money-changers,  and  driving  them  out;  as  also  in  pre 
dieting  the  destruction  of  the  devoted  city,  their  fall  by 
the  sword  and  captivity  among  all  nations,  and  that 
Jerusalem  would  be  trodden  down  by  the  Gentiles,  till 
the  times  of  the  Gentiles  be  fulfilled.  They  had  turned 
away  from  him  in  disgust,  with  such  deep,  malignant 
and  settled  hatred  that  they  never  ceased  to  pursue  his 
destruction  till  they  saw  him  suspended  on  the  cross, 
suffering  and  dying ;  till  he  gave  the  last  struggle  and 
breathed  the  last  breath ;  till  the  heavens  were  clad  in 
darkness,  the  earth  trembled,  the  vail  split  in  two  from 
the  top  to  the  bottom,  and  the  rocks  were  rent.  They 
cried:  "Away  with  him,  away  with  him,  crucify  him." 
Their  leader  had  been  condemned  by  man,  and  thus  put 
to  the  shameful  death  of  the  cross,  and  all  the  disgrace 
heaped  on  him  possible,  only  some  fifty  days   before, 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD.  67 

only  a  short  distance  without  the  gate  of  the  very 
city  where  the  new  religion  is  to  be  preached  in  hia 
name.  On  this  person,  who  had  been  thus  despised  and 
rejected  of  men,  the  new  religion  is  to  be  established. 
In  his  name^  or  by  his  authority^  it  is  to  be  "preached 
in  all  the  world" — "to  every  creature." 

Men  sometimes  reject  things  on  the  ground  that  they 
are  too  marvelous,  and  then  receive  somethin":  even 
more  marvelous.  They  reject  the  idea  that  Jesus  of 
Nazareth  is  divine;  that  he  is  the  Son  of  God;  that  the 
apostles  were  inspired;  that  they  had  the  Spirit  of  God 
to  guide  them  into  all  truth.  What  then  follows?  That 
in  about  fifty  days  after  Jesus  was  crucified,  his  apostles, 
twelve  illiterate  fishermen  of  Galilee,  stand  up  in  the 
city  of  Jerusalem,  in  open  daylight,  and  affirm  that  God 
raised  Jesus  from  the  dead,  and  that  he  had  gone  into 
heaven,  and  shed  forth  what  they  saw  and  heard,  and 
induced  about  three  thousand  people  to  believe  it,  and, 
in  view  of  that  belief,  to  be  immersed  into  his  name, 
abandon  the  Jewish  Church,  and  the  associations  of  all 
their  former  lives,  and  take  their  stand  on  the  new 
ground !  If  they  were  not  inspired ;  simply  the  weak  and 
uninfluential  fishermen,  in  their  own  strength,  how  did 
they  achieve  all  this? 

But  this  is  only  the  beginning  of  wonders.  This 
roused  up  everything.  The  leaders  of  the  people,  al- 
ways behind  in  any  great  movement  like  this,  were 
roused,  and  put  forth  their  influence  in  opposition.  But 
did  they  stop  it?  We  read  of  their  preaching  again, 
and  the  number  oi  five  thousand  is  mentioned.  They 
appear  to  have  no  control  over  it.  They  forbid  the 
apostles  to  speak  any  more  in  this  name,  but  appear  to 
have  no  authority  to  stop  them.  They  go  ahead.  When 
they  were  threatened,  and   forbidden  to  speak  in  the 


68  MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD. 

name  of  Jesus,  "they  lifted  up  their  voice  to  God  with 
one  accord,  and  said,  Lord,  thou  art  God,  which  hast 
made  heaven,  and  earth,  and  the  sea,  and  all  that  in 
them  is;  who  by  the  mouth  of  thy  servant  David  hast 
said,  Why  did  the  heathen  rage,  and  the  people  imagine 
vain  things?  The  kings  of  the  earth  stood  up,  and  the 
rulers  were  gathered  together  against  the  Lord,  and 
against  his  Christ.  For  of  a  truth  against  thy  holy 
child  Jesus,  whom  thou  hast  anointed,  both  Herod,  and 
Pontius  Pilate,  with  the  Gentiles,  and  the  people  of 
Israel,  were  gathered  together,  for  to  do  whatsoever  thy 
hand  and  thy  counsel  determined  before  to  be  done. 
And  now,  Lord,  behold  their  threatenings:  and  grant 
unto  thy  servants,  that  with  all  boldness  they  may 
speak  thy  word,  by  stretching  forth  thine  hand  to  heal; 
and  that  signs  and  wonders  may  be  done  by  the  name 
of  thy  holy  child  Jesus." — Acts  iv.  24-31. 

The  work  did  not  stop  here.  It  was  not  a  mere 
human  impulse,  sensation,  or  emotion,  creating  an  ex- 
citement that  soon  passed  by ;  but  steadily  it  moved  on 
from  city  to  city,  and,  after  a  time,  w^e  read  that  a  great 
number  of  the  priests  became  obedient  to  the  faith. 
When  vast  numbers  of  the  people  were  turning,  and 
when  it  was  becoming  popular,  even  the  priests  could 
see  it!  In  some  eight  or  ten  years  the  way  is  opened 
to  the  Gentiles;  the  partition  wall  is  broken  down  be- 
tween them  and  the  Jews,  and  the  two  are  made  one  in 
Christ.  The  way  being  then  opened,  it  is  no  longer 
looked  on  as  a  Jewish  affair,  but  in  its  mighty  course  it 
sweeps  away  Jewish  altars,  victims  and  priests;  disarms 
the  rabbis  of  their  power  over  the  people,  and  turn«, 
them  to  Christ;  topples  down  pagan  temples,  pagan  al- 
tars and  pagan  gods;  disarms  their  philosophers,  doc 
tors  and  priests  of  their  prestige  and  power  o^^t   ck*. 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD.  69 

people;  brings  them  to  God  and  makes  them  one.  At 
the  close  of  the  first  century,  as  Gibbon  gives  it,  there 
were  six  millions  of  Christians  in  the  Eoman  Empire! 
Did  a  dozen  poor,  weak,  illiterate  fishermen,  in  their 
own  strtngtli^  do  all  this?  If  they  did,  it  is  as  wonder- 
ful as  any  miracle  recorded  in  the  Bible,  and  stands  out 
by  itself  as  the  only  instance  in  the  historj^  of  the  world 
in  which  such  humble,  feeble  and  imperfect  instrumen- 
talities, in  their  oion  strength,  without  any  money,  pop- 
ularity or  influential  friends,  and  against  the  combined 
powers  of  the  world,  ever  produced  such  a  revolution 
among  men!  That  they  did  this;  did  it  in  their  own 
strength^  or  loitlioitt  any  supernatural  power,  is  the 
most  unlikely  thing  to  have  occurred  ever  reported,  and 
the  account  of  it  the  most  unreasonable  and  incredible 
story  ever  told,  and  the  man  who  can  believe  it  ought 
never  to  complain  of  Christians  as  credulous  in  believ- 
ing on  Christ. 

The  report  circulated  by  the  apostles,  and  the  one  at 
the  bottom  of  the  whole  system,  on  which  everything 
depended,  viz :  That  Christ  rose  from  the  dead,  if  not 
true,  was  the  most  incredible  story  ever  told,  and  one 
the  most  unlikely  to  be  believed,  specially  immediately 
there  where  the  people  had  the  fullest  opportunity  of 
determining  wdiether  it  was  so.  For  the  apostles  to 
have  stood  up  there,  in  open  day,  in  the  presence  of  vast 
multitudes,  in  the  city  where  the  thing  should  have 
occurred,  and  stated  that  a  noted  character,  whom  many 
present  had  seen,  and  of  whom  they  had  heard  the  most 
^^  onderful  things  ever  reported,  and  whom  they  knew 
bad  been  crucified  openly  only  some  fifty  days  before, 
had  risen  from  the  dead;  that  they  had  repeatedly  seen 
him,  talked  with  him,  ate  and  drank  with  him,  and 
even  handled  him;  and  induce  three  thousand  of  them 


70  MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WOULD. 

to  believe  their  report;  to  receive  it  as  a  settled  convic- 
tion, and  that,  too,  in  opposition  to  every  worldly  inter- 
est, influence  and  prejudice;  to  turn  square  about, 
change  the  whole  course  of  their  lives  in  view  of  it,  and 
stand  firmly  to  it,  as  many  of  them  did,  to  their  last 
breath,  and  even  laid  down  their  lives  before  they  would 
give  it  up ;  for  the  apostles  to  have  declared  these  things, 
convinced  such  vast  multitudes  that  they  were  so,  and 
revolutionized  their  lives  by  such  preaching,  when  there 
was  no  truth  in  their  preaching,  is  the  most  incredible 
view  of  things  ever  heard.  Such  ideas  are  the  most 
absurd  and  impossible  ever  entertained.  How  did  they 
convince  three  thousand  people  there,  where  Jesus  had 
been  crucified  about  fifty  days  before,  that  he  had  been 
raised  from  the  dead?  It  is  easy  to  imagine  that  a  few 
credulous  people  might  have  been  induced  to  believe 
such  a  report,  though  not  true;  but  that  three  thousand 
should  have  believed  it  in  one  day,  when  there  was  no 
truth  in  it;  changed  their  whole  lives  in  view  of  it,  and 
from  that  time  forward  lived  a  new  life;  maintained  a 
new  conviction  as  their  chief  idea,  as  a  settled  matter, 
till  they  died,  in  defiance  of  all  opposition,  is  the  most 
incredible  thing  possible  to  conceive. 

Then,  it  was  not  a  matter  of  impulse,  sensation,  or  emo- 
tion, that  had  no  reason  in  it  and  could  not  be  accounted 
for;  that  produced  an  ephemeral  excitement  and  then 
passed  by.  But  in  the  midst  of  the  very  people  where 
they  had  all  the  means  of  information  in  reference  to 
the  matter,  where  the  reputed  facts  transpired,  and  after 
there  was  due  time  for  reconsideration,  examination  and 
investigation,  the  conviction  spread  among  the  people 
more  and  more  widely !  How  did  those  weak  and  illit- 
erate men  maintain  their  chief  proposition,  and  that  on 
which  everything  depended,  defend  it  and  continue  to 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD.  71 

induce  the  people  to  believe  it,  when  there  was  no  truth 
'fi  it,  in  the  face  of  all  the  learned  and  talented  rabbis  of 
Israel,  on  the  one  hand,  and  all  the  mighty  philosophers 
and  statesmen  of  Greece  and  Rome,  on  the  other?  Why 
did  not  their  great  men  sliow  that  their  preaching  was 
false;  that  their  foundation  proposition — that  Christ 
rose  from  the  dead — was  false?  Why  did  they  not  ex- 
pose the  delusion?  There  is  a  good  reason  for  their 
not  showing  that  it  was  false.  It  was  true^  and  shown 
to  be  true  by  so  many  testimonies,  of  such  immense 
variety,  and  of  such  an  overwhelming  character,  that 
there  was  no  meeting  it;  no  such  thing  possible  as  re- 
tutino:  or  settino:  it  aside.  The  convictions  of  its  truth 
were  spreading  among  the  people,  deepening  and 
strengthening  all  the  time.  In  every  contest  it  evinced 
this  more  and  more.  A  wise  doctor  said:  "If  this 
thing  is  of  God,  you  can  not  overthrow  it."  If  it  had 
been  of  man,  it  would  have  soon  come  to  nothing;  but, 
as  it  was  of  God,  man  could  not  overthrow  it. 

It  is  well  enough  to  take  men  on  their  own  ground, 
occasionally,  and  push  them  to  the  wall.  Infidels  claim 
that  they  are  in  the  right  and  the  believers  in  the  gospel 
are  in  the  wrong.  They  claim  that  the  gospel  is  a  false- 
hood, and  that  they  have  the  truth.  According  to  this,  the 
apostles  started  out  with  a  falsehood  at  Pentecost.  Their 
opposers  were  in  the  rights  and  they  were  in  the  wrong. 
Twelve  penniless,  illiterate  and  weak  fishermen  start 
out  with  their  wrong — their  falseJiood.  The  learning, 
talent,  money,  civil  governments,  philosophy  and  relig- 
ion of  the  world  are  against  them ;  they  are  in  an  open 
field — the  world.  We  are  ready  for  the  contest  to 
begin ;  the  apostles  with  their  lorong^  their  falsehood-, 
or  their  Zie,  as  the  infidel  phrases  it,  on  the  one  hand, 
and  the  combined  powers  of  earth,  on  the  other.     The 


72  MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD. 

first  battle  is  fought,  and  the  apostles  conquer  three 
thousand  with  their  falseliood-,  and  the  enemy  is  re 
pulsed.  In  a  few  days  another  battle  is  fought,  and  five 
thousand  yield  to  the  falsehood^  and  the  enemy  is  re- 
pulsed. The  infidels,  in  the  rights  are  driven  back !  This . 
speaks  badly  for  them.  In  a  short  space  of  time  a  man, 
w^hose  name  was  Philip,  went  down  to  Samaria  and 
preached  their  falseJiood^  and  the  people,  with  one  ac- 
cord, gave  heed  to  the  things  that  were  spoken,  and 
many  hdieved.  The  falsehood  gained  ground,  and  the 
enemy  was  pushed  back;  the  unbelievers,  with  thei7 
truths  were  defeated.  Is  it  not  marvelous  that  their 
falsehood^  in  the  hands  of  such  feeble  instrumentalities, 
pushed  its  way  through  the  world,  and  against  such 
mighty  odds  as  it  did? 

But  t\\Q  falsehood  stops  not  here.  The  enemies  to 
it,  speaking  of  some  of  its  advocates,  accuse  them  of 
"turning  the  world  upside  down,"  and  filling  the  coun- 
try with  their  doctrine.  Where  were  the  friends  of 
truth  that  they  did  not  stop  the  falsehood?  They  had 
the  learning,  the  talent,  the  money,  civil  rulers,  philos- 
ophy, popularity  and  religion  of  the  w^orld  on  their 
side,  and,  as  the  infidel  claims,  were  in  the  right.  Everj? 
prejudice  of  the  people  was  in  their  favor,  and  yet  they 
did  not,  and  could  not^  stop  the  apostles  with  theii 
falsehood;  but  onward  they  pushed  it  in  defiance  of  alt 
opposition!  The  apostles'  falsehood,  as  they  call  it, 
was  stronger  than  the  unbelievers'  truth,  and  pushed  its 
way  through  it  till  it  becomes  a  matter  of  wonder  to 
the  whole  world. 

Pursuing  the  history,  we  come  in  a  few  years  to  the 
introduction  of  it  to  the  Gentiles,  and  they  find  no 
means  of  refuting  or  resisting  the  falsehood.^  but  by 
thousands  they  yield  to  it,  till  it  spreads  throughout  the 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD.  73 

Roman  Empire.  HYiq falsehood  stops  not  with  the  poor, 
the  unlearned  and  the  humble  masses,  but  spreads  through 
all  ranks  till  it  reaches  the  emperor.  Pagan  gods  and 
Jewish  altars  alike  crumble  down  before  this  most  gigan- 
tic and  stupendous  y^Z^^Aoot/.^  Xor  does  time  ^to^M, 
but  onward,  down  through  the  ages,  it  makes  its  way, 
deepening  its  convictions  in  the  souls  of  men,  and  set- 
tling as  an  established  truth  and  reality  among  whole 
nations  of  the  most  civilized,  enlightened  and  exalted 
people  in  all  the  world!  It  is  certainly  the  most  won- 
derful and  potent  of  all  falsehoods  ever  known!  Nor 
does  learning,  or  science,  or  art  impede  its  march.  Pass- 
ing through  the  mighty  contests  of  the  ages,  fresh  and 
vigorous  as  ever,  it  meets  David  Ilume,  Edward  Gibbon, 
Voltaire,  Yolney,  Paine,  etc.,  defeats  them  and  leaves 
them  a  hissing  and  a  by-word  before  all  people.  At  the 
present  time  it  encounters  another  class,  with  much  less 
learning  and  knowledge,  far  less  idea  of  logic,  evidence 
or  even  principle,  but  repulses  and  hurls  them  aside  like 
<ihaff  before  the  wind,  and  onward  it  moves  in  its  tri- 
umphant march  through  the  world,  and  is  now  inter- 
woven in  and  permeating  the  principal  literature  of  the 
world!  The  apostles'  falseJiood^  as  the  inhdel  styles 
the  truth  which  God,  in  great  mercy,  gave  to  save  his 
poor  soul,  has  thus  sustained  itself,  pushed  its  way 
through  the  world,  and  down  through  the  ages;  settled 
itself  in  the  minds  of  men,  and  made  its  impress  as  the 
deepest  conviction  of  the  soul  so  widely,  and  commended 
itself  to  the  judgment  of  the  wisest  and  best  of  men, 
interwoven  itself  in  the  laws  of  civilized  nations,  and 
iu  the  principal  literature  of  the  w^orld,  to  such  an  ex- 
tent, that  any  one  must  see,  who  will  reflect,  that  it  has 
more  power,  and  more  in  it  for  man,  of  all  that  he  needs 
for  his  happiness  now  and  forever,  than  all  the  truth 
7 


74  MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD. 

skeptics  have  ever  developed.  It  is  certainly  the  most 
wonderful  falsehood  ever  heard  of.  It  is  certainly  not 
of  this  world  nor  like  it. 

There  is  still  more  yet  about  this  falsehood  that  is 
wonderful.  It  condemned  all  vice,  all  sin,  all  evil  of 
every  grade,  and  commended  all  virtue,  all  good,  all 
righteousness.  The  characters  of  the  men  who  first 
preached  it,  the  apostles,  were  pure.  There  was  noth- 
ing false  in  their  practice,  or  in  their  lives.  This  was 
certainly  strange,  if  their  leading  or  foundation  idea 
was  false  /  But  they  reformed  those  who  believed  their 
falsehood/  Whoever  heard  of  falsehood  reforming 
men  before?  It  turned  men  from  their  idolatry,  from 
blasphemy,  licentiousness,  drunkenness,  from  all  cor- 
ruption, and  taught  them  the  most  strict  purity.  The 
falsehood  that  did  all  this  was  not  of  this  world !  Th^ 
falsehoods  of  this  world  never  reform  men.  Skepticism 
never  reformed  men.  There  are  skeptics  who  are  moral 
men;  who  have  good  characters;  but  skepticism  never 
made  a  man  more  moral,  or  gave  him  a  good  charac- 
ter. Whatever  he  had,  or  was,  has,  or  is,  that  is  good, 
in  morals  or  anything,  is  independent  of  skepticism.  It 
can  not  be  traced  to  skepticism  as  its  cause.  If  anything 
occurs  that  a  number  of  men  in  a  community  become 
skeptics  about  the  same  time,  we  hear  of  no  general 
reformation  among  them,  no  perceptible  change  in  their 
lives,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  for  the  better. 

Skepticism  has  not  a  bright  page  in  history,  in  any 
sense.  Not  a  living  man  can  point  to  an  instance  in  the 
history  of  the  human  race  where  skepticism  has  been 
the  cause  of  lifting  up  mankind,  of  educating,  enlight- 
ening, civilizing,  reforming,  purifying  and  ennobling  any 
people  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  It  is  not  the  source  of 
learning,   arts,  sciences,  inventions,   improvements,  or 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WOKLD.  75 

anything  that  tends  to  the  happiness  of  our  race;  it  is 
not  the  souTGe  of  anything  that  is  lovely,  peaceful,  pure 
and  comforting;  it  is  not  the  foundation  of  law  and 
order  in  the  family,  the  school,  or  State ;  it  is  not  the 
source  of  works  of  benevolence,  mercy  and  humanity. 
The  asylums  for  the  unfortunate  did  not  originate  with 
unbelief;  the  peace  of  God,  passing  understanding,  never 
grew  in  the  soil  of  unbelief;  the  calm,  and  firm,  and 
settled  hope  on  which  millions  have  reclined  when  this 
tvorld  was  receding  from  them  did  not  originate  in  un- 
belief.    It  is  anchored  in  something  higher. 

The  heavenly  principle  that  leads  men  to  love  their 
enemies,  to  pray  for  those  who  despitefully  treat  them, 
and  do  good  to  those  who  hate  them,  is  not  of  unbelief 
nor  of  this  world,  but  is  of  faith.  The  purity  that 
teaches  that  "whosoever  looketh  on  a  woman  to  lust 
after  her  hath  committed  adultery  with  her  already  in 
his  heart,"  is  not  of  unbelief,  nor  of  this  world,  but  is 
of  faith ;  of  a  King  and  a  kingdom  not  of  this  world. 

A  kingdom  that  makes  a  square  issue  with  all  the 
lusts  of  the  flesh,  the  pride  of  life ;  with  all  the  sins  of 
the  world;  the  crimes  and  corruptions  of  men,  and 
that  declares  that  they  who  do  such  things  shall  not 
inherit  the  kingdom  of  God;  that  "all  liars  shall  have 
their  part  in  the  lake  which  burneth  with  fire  and 
brimstone,"  "prepared  for  the  devil  and  his  angels," 
and  pronounces,  "Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart:  for 
they  shall  see  God ;  blessed  are  the  peace-makers :  for 
they  shall  be  called  the  children  of  God" — is  not  of  un- 
belief, nor  of  this  world,  but  it  is  of  faith — it  is  of  God. 

A  ^\wgvX2.v  falsehood,  supposing  it  to  be  one;  a  won- 
derful falsehood  was  that  preached  by  the  apostles ;  the 
most  wonderful  ever  told  was  that  one  that  Jesus  rose 
from  the  dead,  in  that  it  condemned  all  vice  and  com- 


76  MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD. 

mended  all  good ;  that  it  reformed  men,  made  them  the 
most  pure,  moral  and  civil  the  world  ever  saw.  It  was 
equally  wonderful  that  the  apostles  should  have  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  telling  such  a  falsehood;  that  the 
idea  ever  should  have  entered  into  their  minds  of  stand- 
ing up  in  the  very  city,  and  among  the  very  people 
where  Jesus  had  been  crucified  only  some  fifty  days  be- 
fore, and  in  open  day,  and  in  the  gaze  of  thousands  of 
the  people  having  the  fullest  opportunity  to  know  all 
about  it  of  any  people  in  the  world,  and  telling  them 
that  he  rose  from  the  dead;  and,  more  wonderful  still, 
that  vast  multitudes  believed  it,  not  as  a  mere  idle  and 
curious  tale,  or  a  mere  speculative  story,  but  as  a  pro- 
found and  awful  reality,  and  in  view  of  it  changed  the 
whole  course  of  their  lives,  and  entered  into  a  new  order 
of  living;  and,  still  more  wonderful,  that  the  learned, 
talented  and  influential  rabbis  of  Israel,  on  the  one 
hand,  and  the  philosophers  and  civil  rulers,  on  the  other 
hand,  could  not  stop  it;  and,  most  wonderful  of  all, 
that  the  powers  of  earth  and  the  unseen  world  could  not 
stop  its  onward  march,  till  it  had  traveled  the  length 
of  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  filled  all  Asia  with  the  apos- 
tles' teaching,  and  revolutionized  the  great  Roman  Em- 
pire from  its  center  to  its  circumference ! 

It  was  manifestly  no  falsehood^  but  the  truth  of  God; 
the  very  truth  intended  to  bless  and  save  the  world.  It 
bad  the  wisdom  and  the  power  of  God  in  it.  It  lived 
and  spread  there,  and  has  continued  to  live  and  press  its 
way  down  through  the  ages,  in  many  instances  having 
the  fiercest  and  hottest  contests;  having  been  deserted 
by  professed  friends;  traduced  by  wicked  and  designing 
men;  corrupted  and  perverted  by  false  teachers;  but 
still  it  lives  and  comforts  the  hearts  of  millions  of  the 
purest  and  best  of  our  sinful  race,  not  simply  in  pros- 


MY  KINGDOM  IS  NOT  OF  THIS  WORLD.  77 

perity,  in  the  full  vigor  of  life,  but  iu  decline  and  death, 
when  this  world  is  receding  and  disappearing.  Surely 
it  is  not  of  this  world.  It  is  of  God,  and  in  it  is  the 
only  light  for  man  that  can  penetrate  beyond  the  grave ; 
the  only  light  that  shines  into  ''  an  house  not  made  with 
hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens;"  the  only  light  that  can 
bring  to  our  view  "  a  kiogdom  that  can  not  be  moved ; " 
the  holy  city,  the  ITew  Jerusalem;  the  new  heavens  and 
the  new  earth  wherein  righteousness  dwells.  How  dark 
and  dreary  is  this  world  without  this  light,  and  what  a 
poor  citizenship  is  that  which  is  only  of  this  world  and 
bounded  by  time,  compared  with  a  citizenship  in  a  king- 
dom that  can  not  be  moved,  not  of  this  world,  not 
bounded  by  time,  nor  by  mortality,  but  extends  beyond 
the  river  of  death.  May  our  hope  ever  be  anchored 
there,  and  may  our  citizenship  ever  be  in  heaven,  whence 
we  look  for  the  Savior,  the  Lord  Jesus  the  Christ,  who 
shall  change  our  vile  bodies,  and  fashion  them  like  to 
his  glorious  body.   Blessed  be  his  name  forever  and  ever. 


SERMON  JSTo.   IV. 

THEME. — THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

In  many  respects,  and  it  may  be  that,  in  the  highest 
sense,  Paul  was  the  most  distinguished  man  that  was 
ever  in  the  Church  of  Christ.  ISTo  man,  at  this  day, 
can  tell  the  difference  there  would  have  been  in  this 
world  if  Paul  had  not  lived  in  it.  He  was  a  young  man 
of  distinction  and  note  before  he  was  in  Christ,  and  this 
is  simply  what  he  was  as  a  man,  without  Christ  and  his 
apostleship.  In  the  first  place,  he  had  a  good  natural 
endowment,  or  understanding;  or,  as  we  express  it  in 
our  westernish  style,  good  common  sense,  which  is  the 
best  sense  in  the  world.  Added  to  this,  he  had  a  first- 
rate  education  for  his  time.  He  was  brought  up  at  the 
feet  of  Gamaliel,  or  was  educated  under  his  tuition,  and 
trained  in  all  the  learning  of  his  time,  specially  in  all 
questions  of  the  law,  or  of  Judaism.  His  good  natural 
endowment  and  fine  education  gave  him  great  note  and 
distinction,  and  gave  him  immense  power  for  good  or 
for  evil,  as  he  might  turn  it  to  this  or  that  use. 

He  was  a  man  of  most  untiring  and  sleepless  vigi- 
lance, not  only  after  he  became  a  Christian  and  an  apos- 
tle, but  before;  he  was  an  embodiment  of  activity  and 
industry;  he  idled  away  no  time;  he  did  not  win  his 
way  to  such  notoriety  and  distinction,  as  he  had  attained 
before  he  turned  to  the  Lord,  without  doing  something. 
He  made  his  mark.     It  is  proper,  then,  to  consider  how 

he  stood  before  his  turn. 

(79) 


80         THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

« 

There  are  some  who  say:  "Whatever  any  man  thinhis 
is  right,  that  is  right  to  him."  What  did  Saul  think  wa& 
right,  or  what  did  he  think  he  ought  to  do  ?  Alluding 
to  what  he  thought  before  he  was  a  Christian,  he  says: 
"  I  verily  thought  with  myself,  that  I  ought  to  do  many 
things  contrary  to  the  name  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth. 
Which  thing  I  also  did  in  Jerusalem."  He  not  only 
thought,  but  verily,  or  most  assuvidly  thought^  he  ought 
to  do  these  things.  What  were  these  things  that  he 
verily  thought  he  ought  to  do?  To  arrest  the  saints, 
and  persecute  them,  and  when  they  were  being  put  to 
death,  to  give  his  voice  against  them;  to  compel  them 
to  blaspheme  the  name  of  Christ;  to  imprison  tbem. 
Did  it  become  right  for  him  to  do  these  things  because 
he  verily  thought  he  ought  to  do  them?  It  was  wrong 
for  him  to  do  these  things,  no  matter  what  he  thought 
about  it.  Men  are  as  liable  to  think  wrong  as  to  do 
anything  else  wrong,  and  are  lield  responsible  for  their 
wrong  thinJcing  as  much  as  for  wrong  acting.  He  did 
it  ignorantly,  in  unbelief.  The  main  sin  was  his  igno- 
rance. He  was  in  reach  of  better  knowledge,  and  he 
did  not  know  what  was  right  because  he  did  not  try  to 
know.  He  did  not  believe  because  he  did  not  examine 
the  evidence ;  did  not  seek  nor  try  to  find  the  evidence. 
He  blindly,  but  persistently,  pushed  on  without  trying 
to  know  the  truth. 

Again,  some  suppose  if  they  will  follow  the  leadings 
of  conscience  they  will  always  go  right.  But  this  is  also 
uncertain.  Saul  lived  "in  all  good  conscience"  when 
he  was  exceedingly  mad  against  the  disciples,  breathing 
out  threatenings  against  them  and  persecuting  them. 
In  all  this  he  did  not  violate  his  conscience.  His  con- 
science approved  him  all  the  time.  The  truth  in  this 
matter  is,  that  conscience  is  no  teacher,  and  no  guide. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS.         81 

It  is  not  a  rule  to  determine  right  and  wrong;  but  it 
simply  approves  us  when  we  do  what  we  think  is  right^ 
and  disapproves  us  when  we  do  what  we  think  is  wrong. 
It  is  a  painful  sensation  that  arises  from  violating  our 
convictions  of  right,  or  a  pleasant  sensation  that  arises 
from  following  our  convictions  of  right.  The  pleasant 
sensation  does  not  teach  what  is  right,  but  arises  from 
doing  what  we  think  is  right.  Nor  does  the  painful 
sensation  teach  what  is  wrong,  but  arises  from  doing 
what  WG  think  is  wrong.  When  Saul  was  pursuing  the 
saints,  binding  and  imprisoning  them,  he  was  doing 
what  he  verily  thought  he  ought  to  do,  and  his  con- 
science approved  him  all  the  time.  The  pleasant  sen- 
sation, arising  from  doing  what  a  man  thinks  is  right, 
rose  up  in  his  breast. 

Again,  persons  insist  that  if  a  man  will  follow  his 
feelings  he  will  do  right.  No  doubt  Saul  followed  his 
feelings  as  implicitly  as  any  man  ever  did  when  perse- 
cuting the  followers  of  Jesus;  but  no  man  thinks  he 
was  doing  right  when  thus  following  his  feelings. 

Here,  then,  we  find  in  Saul  a  man  doing  what  he 
thought  was  right;  what  he  verily  thought  he  ought  to 
do ;  doing  what  conscience  approved,  and  what  he  felt 
like  doing!  What  was  he  when  doing  all  this?  He 
says  himself  he  was  "the  chief  of  sinners."  What  a 
man  thinks  is  right  is  no  guide,  unless  he  thinks  rightly 
— thinks  as  the  oracles  of  God.  Conscience  is  no  guide; 
teaches  nothing,  and  may  approve  a  man  when  doing 
wrong,  if  he  is  only  so  deceived  that  he  thinks  the 
wrong  he  is  doing  is  right.  Nor  is  feeling  any  guide. 
It  does  not  tell  what  is  right,  but  good  feeling  results 
from  doing  what  we  think  is  right.  We  do  not  know 
we  are  right  because  we  feel  well,  but  feel  well  because 
we  think  we  are  right. 


82         THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

Saul  had  much  for  a  Jew  to  build  on  before  he  knew 
the  Lord,  and  much  to  surrender  after  he  knew  the 
Lord.  He  could  boast  in  the  flesh  as  much  as  any  of 
them.  If  any  had  whereof  he  might  glory  in  the  flesh, 
he  had  more.  He  could  boast  that  he  was  circumcised 
the  eighth  day;  that  he  was  of  the  stock  of  Israel;  of 
the  tribe  of  Benjamin;  a  Hebrew  of  the  Hebrews;  as 
touching  the  law  a  Pharisee;  concerning  zeal  he  perse- 
cuted the  Church;  touching  the  righteousness  which  is 
in  the  law,  blameless.  He  had  all  any  man  could  claim 
by  blood,  by  the  law,  and  zeal  in  persecuting  the  Church. 
When  others  of  his  Jewish  brethren  had  been»idle  and 
slumbering,  he  had  been  engaged  w^ith  sleepless  vigi- 
lance in  fighting  the  new  sect,  as  he  regarded  it,  rising 
and  carrying  away  thousands  of  his  brethren.  He 
waited  not  to  investigate  the  grounds  of  the  new  body 
rising,  nor  to  examine  its  claims;  but  regarded  it  as  a 
settled  thing  that  his  religion  was  from  God,  but  that 
the  new  religion  was  not,  and  he  determined  to  rid  the 
country  of  all  that  called  on  the  name  of  Jesus.  N"ot 
content  with  what  he  could  do  in  his  own  immediate 
section  of  country,  he  went  to  the  elders  of  Israel  and 
requested  them  to  grant  him  letters  that  he  might  ex- 
tend his  operations  as  far  as  Damascus;  arrest,  bind  and 
bring  to  Jerusalem  to  be  punished  all  that  called  ohi  the 
name  of  Jesus,  of  both  men  and  women.  Th(  eiders 
thought  he  was  a  noble  young  man;  they  wen  proud 
of  him  and  readily  granted  him  the  letters. 

He  did  not  go  alone,  but  selected  men  to  go  with  him, 
probably  young  men  like  himself.  Imagine  you  see 
these  men  setting  out  from  Jerusalem,  with  the  black- 
ness of  rage  and  fury  pictured  in  their  countenances, 
with  the  determination  to  spare  neither  sex  nor  age; 
and  imagine,  too,  the  poor,  helpless  and  defenseless  dis- 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS.  8S 

ciples  of  the  Lord,  scattered  through  the  country,  in  fear 
and  dismay  at  the  thought  of  these  ruthless  men  com- 
ing and  letting  loose  their  fury  on  their  devoted  heads! 
What  prospect  could  any  man  see  of  the  man  at  the 
head  of  this  becoming  a  Christian  ;  of  his  ever  identify- 
ing himself  with  the  people  he  thus  hated.  Evidently 
on  the  day  he  set  out  from  Jerusalem  on  this  career  of 
desolation  to  the  Churcli,  he  had  no  idea  that  he  would 
ever  be  a  follower  of  the  l!Tazarene.  Most  unquestion- 
ably he  may  not  be  expected  to  give  up  his  position ; 
his  honor  among  his  nation  and  people;  his  associations 
with  the  friends  of  his  life  and  all  the  fortunes  of  his 
Church;  turn  from  the  powerful  persecutor  and  from 
all  the  hatred  of  the  Christians  he  had,  and  go  over  to 
a  people  "everywhere  spoken  against,"  poor  and  penni- 
less, unpopular  and  despised,  and  put  his  fortune  with 
them,  without  a  reason.  Every  worldly  consideration  is 
against  his  making  such  a  turn ;  and  not  a  living  man 
can  think  of  a  worldly  interest  that  could,  by  any  pos- 
sibility, be  favorable  to  such  a  turn. 

He  had  the  intelligence  to  see,  in  some  degree,  the 
persecution  that  awaited  him  in  view  of  his  turning;  he 
could  calculate  what  would  be  lost;  he  was  able  to  ex- 
amine the  evidence  and  decide  on  its  merits;  he  was  in 
the  country  where  the  main  events  interwoven  in  the 
rise  and  founding  of  the  New  Institution  had  occurred; 
it  was  not  long  since  they  had  occurred ;  he  could  see 
thousands  who  saw  Jesus  in  person,  and  thousands  more 
who  could  tell  him  of  the  signs  and  wonders  that  ac- 
companied him.  But  he  had  more  than  this;  he  had, 
as  we  shall  see  presently,  more  than  faith;  he  had  a 
reason  for  turning.  He  would  not  have  turned  without 
a  reason ;  a  reason,  too,  that  left  no  doubt. 

1^0  event  occurred,  apparently,  demanding  the  atten- 


84         THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

tiou  of  the  sacred  historian,  till  the  company  drew  near 
to  Damascus.  jtTor  did  the  main  transaction  take  place 
in  the  night,  in  the  darkness,  nor  in  the  presence  of  the 
friends  of  the  Lord,  but  in  the  open  blaze  of  the  light 
of  noon-day.  Suddenly  the  company  had  their  atten- 
tion arrested  by  such  a  visitation  as  their  eyes  never 
beheld.  There  was  a  great  ^'  light  from  heaven,  above 
the  brightness  of  the  sun,"  that  shone  round  about 
them.  They  all  fell  to  the  ground,  and  a  voiee,  speak- 
ing to  Saul,  in  the  Hebrew  language,  said:  "Saul,  Saul, 
why  persecutest  thou  me?"  Though  fallen  to  the 
ground,  he  was  in  his  senses,  and  appropriately  inquired, 
"Who  art  thou.  Lord?"  He  desired  to  know  who  it 
was  that  addressed  him.  The  Lord  answered :  "  I  am 
Jesus  whom  thou  persecutest?"  He  says,  in  his  letter 
to  the  Church  in  Rome,  "Faith  comes  by  hearing." 
There  is  a  good  reason  for  his  saying  this,  for  it  is  true 
in  itself;  and  then  his  own  faith  came  by  hearing  the 
words:  "I  am  Jesus  whom  thou  persecutest."  When 
he  heard  this  he  helieved  it.  His  faith  came  by  hearing^ 
and  hearing  the  word  of  the  Lord  spoken  to  him. 

How  it  must  have  gone  home  to  his  heart  to  hear  the 
words  of  the  Lord,  "  I  am  Jesus  whom  thou  persecut- 
est." Before  this  he  was  an  unbeliever,  persecuting  and 
wasting  the  Church  of  God;  putting  saints  to  death; 
compelling  them  to  blaspheme,  and  exceedingly  mad 
•against  them.  He  did  not  believe  that  Jesus  had  risen 
from  the  dead,  and  looked  on  the  whole  affair  of  the 
religion  of  Christ  as  a  most  contemptible  and  foolish 
thing.  But  now  he  is  confronted  by  the  appearance 
and  the  voice  of  the  living  Jesus.  As  already  said,  he 
has  more  than  faith  now.  He  saw  the  Lord,  and  was 
enabled  to  say,  as  he  did  many  years  subsequently,  "Have 
I  not  seen  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord?" 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS.         85 

The  Lord  told  him  what  he  appeared  to  him  for  ia 
the  following  words:  "I  have  appeared  unto  thee  for 
this  purpose,  to  make  thee  a  minister  and  a  witness  both, 
of  these  things  which  thou  hast  seen,  and  of  those  things 
in  the  which  I  will  appear  unto  thee ;  delivering  thee 
from  the  people,  and  from  the  Gentiles,  unto  whom  now 
I  send  thee,  to  open  their  eyes,  and  to  turn  them  from 
darkness  to  light,  and  from  the  power  of  Satan  unto 
God,  that  they  may  receive  forgiveness  of  sins,  and  in- 
heritance among  them  which  are  sanctified  by  faith  that 
is  in  me."  What  did  the  Lord  appear  to  him  for?  Or, 
it  might  be  profitable  to  inquire  negatively,  "What  did 
he  not  appear  to  him  for?  He  did  not  appear  to  him  to 
preach  the  gospel  to  him,  tell  him  what  he  must  do, 
pardon  his  sins  or  convert  him;  but  to  make  him  a  min- 
ister and  a  witness^  not  only  of  what  he  had  just  see7i^ 
but  those  things  in  which  he  would  appear  to  him  sub- 
sequently, and  to  show  him  how  great  things  he  should 
suffer  for  the  name  of  the  Lord,  not  for  his  own  good, 
but  for  the  good  of  others. 

I^or  does  the  Lord  stop  at  this,  but  tells  him  to  whom 
he  sends  him  as  a  minister  and  a  loitness^  and  the  pur- 
pose for  which  he  sends  him :  "  To  open  their  eyes,  and 
to  turn  them  from  darkness  to  light,  and  from  the  power 
of  Satan  unto  God,  that  they  may  receive  forgiveness 
of  sins,  and  inheritance  among  them  which  are  sancti- 
fied by  faith  that  is  in  me."  The  Lord  intended  him  for 
a  certain  work,  and  appeared  to  him  in  person  to  make 
him  a  minister  and  a  witness,  and  send  him  to  that 
work.  He  was,  then,  specially  called  and  sent  to  that 
work. 

When  he  heard  who  it  was  that  had  appeared  to  him; 
that  it  was  Jesus  of  llTazareth  whom  he  persecuted,  it 
<'oused  him  to  think  of  his  own  condition  personally, 


86         THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

and  of  his  own  safety,  and  he  cried  out:  "What  shall  1 
do,  Lord?"  This  is  new  language  from  him.  It  is  the 
language  of  a  subdued  heart,  an  humble  spirit,  and  one 
willing  to  receive  instruction ;  it  is  the  language  of  a 
convicted  man  before  his  superior.  The  Lord  did  not 
condescend  to  tell  him  directly  what  to  do,  but  told  him 
to  arise  and  go  to  Damascus,  and  there  it  should  be  told 
him  what  he  must  do.  InTo  doubt  this  gave  some  relief 
to  his  mind,  and  kindled  some  hope  that  he  might  ob- 
tain mercy.  He  did  not  say  he  could  not  go  to  Damas- 
cus, nor  call  for  the  Lord  to  send  ^o-^w  jpower  to  enable 
him  to  go,  but  arose  and  went  into  Damascus,  as  di- 
rected.    Here  he  waited  for  further  orders. 

The  Lord  then  appeared  to  "  one  Ananias,  a  devout 
man  according  to  the  law,  having  a  good  report  of  all 
the  Jews  which  dwelt  there,"  and  commanded  him  to 
go  to  Saul,  explaining  where  he  would  find  him.  Ana- 
nias answered:  "Lord,  I  have  heard  by  many  of  this 
man,  how  much  evil  he  hath  done  to  thy  saints  at  Jeru- 
salem: and  here  he  hath  authority  from  the  chief 
priests  to  bind  all  that  call  on  thy  name.  But  the  Lord 
said  unto  him.  Go  thy  way :  for  he  is  a  chosen  vessel 
unto  me,  to  bear  my  name  before  the  Gentiles,  and 
kings,  and  the  children  of  Israel :  for  I  will  show  him 
how  great  things  he  must  sufi*er  for  my  name's  sake." 
He  explained  further,  "  Behold,  he  prayeth."  This  falls 
short  of  the  full  explanation ;  for  there  was  nothing  new 
merely  in  the  words,  "He  prayeth;"  but,  as  some  trans- 
late it,  there  is:  "He  prayeth  to  m<?."  lN"o  doubt  he 
prayed  many  times  before,  as  a  Jew  and  a  Pharisee — it 
may  be  standing  on  the  corners  of  the  streets,  to  be 
eeen  of  men;  but  he  never  prayed  to  Jesus  before. 
When  Ananias  heard  this  explanation;  that  he  was  a 
chosen  vessel ;  that  the  Lord  had  appeared  to  him,  and 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS.         87 

that  he  was  praying  to  Jesus-^  his  fears  were  disarmed ; 
and  he  went  to  the  place  where  the  Lord  said  he  should 
find  him,  ''and  entered  into  the  house;  and  putting  his 
hands  on  him  said,  Brother  Saul,  the  Lord,  even  Jesus, 
that  appeared  unto  thee  in  the  way  as  thou  earnest,  hath 
sent  me,  that  thou  mightest  receive  thy  sight,  and  be 
filled  with  the  Holy  Spirit." 

He  styled  him  "brother,"  no  doubt,  in  view  of  their 
relation  as  Jews,  and  not  as  a  Christian.  How  beauti- 
ful the  kindness  shown  in  the  manner  of  Ananias !  He 
did  not  address  him  in  harsh  and  reproachful  terms, 
nor  refer  to  his  previous  violence  and  cruelty  toward 
the  friends  of  Jesus,  but  in  the  kindest  and  gentlest 
terms.  In  love  and  affection  he  calls  him  "Brother 
Saul."  And  then,  added  to  these  words  of  kindness 
and  affection,  how  it  relieved  him  to  hear  the  words 
that  followed:  "The  Lord,  even  Jesus,  that  appeared 
unto  thee  in  the  way  as  thou  camest,  hath  sent  me,  that 
thou  mightest  receive  thy  sight,  and  be  filled  with  the 
Holy  Spirit."  His  sight  was  gone,  and,  for  anything 
he  knew  to  the  contrary,  gone  permanently.  It  must, 
then,  have  been  most  w^elcome  intelligence  to  learn  that 
the  object,  at  least  in  part,  of  the  visit  of  Ananias  was 
that  he  might  receive  his  sight  and  be  filled  with  the 
Holy  Spirit.  Still,  this  did  not  cover  the  whole  ground. 
When  the  Lord  appeared  to  him  he  promised  him  that 
it  should  be  told  him  what  he  must  do.  As  yet  he  has 
heard  nothing  on  this — nothing  as  to  what  he  must  do. 

This  brings  us  to  an  important  item — that  is,  to  learn 
what  the  chief  of  sinners  must  do  to  come  to  the  Lord 
and  be  accepted  of  him.  Let  us  follow  the  clear  lan- 
guage of  Scripture.  Ananias  proceeds :  "And  now  why 
tarriest  thou?  arise,  and  be  baptized,  and  wash  away 
thy  sins,  calling  on  the  name  of  the  Lord."    Does  some 


88         THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

one  say,  "  Hold !  hold !  You  are  proceeding  too  fast  with 
that  man?  that  he  has  been  a  vile  and  bitter  persecutor, 
and  that  his  hands  are  crimsoned  with  the  blood  of 
saints?  that  he  should  be  put  on  trial  for  six  months, 
till  we  see  how  he  will  behave  himself?  whether  he  will 
cease  his  persecuting?"  That  sounds  plausible,  and,  at 
first  view,  reasonable;  but  there  are  several  things 
clearly  against  it.  In  the  first  place,  the  procedure  we 
are  following  is  divine.  "We  can  not  improve  on  it;  we 
must  accept  it  as  the  wisdom  of  God,  and  follow  it  im- 
plicitly. This  is  sufficient  with  those  who  follow  the 
precepts  and  examples  of  Scripture.  But,  if  you  must 
reason  on  it,  do  men  repent  gradually  f  Or  does  not  a 
man  repent  at  once  f  Repentance  is  a  change  of  mind, 
of  will,  or  purpose.  Is  that  change  gradual  ?  Is  it  a 
slow  process,  or  something  that  takes  place  at  once  ?  On 
Pentecost  it  went  before  baptism,  and  the  baptism  took 
place  the  same  day.  This  shows  that  they  repented  in 
very  little  time.  It  not  only  went  before  baptism  on 
Pentecost,  but  is  before  baptism  in  every  case,  in  the 
divine  arrangement  or  order.  It  never  occurred  before 
faith,  or  after  immersion,  in  the  divine  order.  There  is 
no  case  recorded  where  the  hearing  of  the  ,word  for  the 
first  time  and  the  immersion  were  further  apart  than  in 
the  case  of  Saul,  thus  showing  that  tlie  repentance  was 
always  a  short  process,  or  that  it  occurred  in  a  very  lit- 
tle time. 

Even  the  amendment  of  life,  or  reformation,  that  in- 
variably follows  repentance,  and  is  really  the  fruit  or 
result  of  it,  is  not  a  gradual  work.  The  drunkard  does 
not  drink  a  little  less,  and  a  little  less,  each  day,  till  he 
quits  drinking  entirely,  but  he  quits  at  once^  if  he  quits 
at  all.  The  swearer  does  not  swear  less  and  less  each 
day,  till  he  swears  none  at  all,  but  he  ceases  at  once. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS.  89 

Saul  did  not  persecute  less  and  less,  till  he  ceased  per- 
secuting altogether,  but  he  ceased  at  once.  The  enmity 
and  hatred  in  his  heart,  that  caused  him  to  persecute, 
were  destroyed  by  the  faith  of  Christ,  and  he  at  once 
resolved  to  cease  his  persecuting;  changed  his  mind, 
and  determined  to  persecute  no  more.  This  ended  his 
persecuting,  and  determined  him  to  break  off  all  his 
sins  by  righteousness ;  to  "  cease  to  do  evil  and  learn  to 
do  well." 

But  some  man  is  ready  to  say  that  he  would  like  to 
have  propounded  a 'few  questions  to  him,  ascertaining 
something  of  the  state  of  his  heart  before  baptizing 
him ;  that  he  would  not  have  been  willing  to  see  him 
hurried  into  baptism,  as  the  language  of  Ananias 
seemed  to  indicate.  That  might  do  for  human  wisdom, 
if  we  had  no  Bible,  but  Ananias  was  guided  by  the 
wisdom  of  God.  That  is  authority — absolute  authority. 
To  it  we  must  reverently  bow  in  submission.  We  can 
not  improve  on  the  wisdom  of  God.  Let  the  language 
of  Ananias  stand,  then,  as  authority;  and  if  our  views 
are  not  in  harmony  with  the  wisdom  of  God,  we  must 
change  them^  and  not  change  the  divine  law.  "Why 
tarriest  thou?  arise,  and  be  baptized,  and  wash  away 
thy  sins,  calling  on  the  name  of  the  Lord."  To  this 
divine  instruction  he  yielded  himself,  and  thus  entered 
into  covenant  with  God. 

Some  man  says,  "I  am  glad  he  said,  ^Arise^  and  be 
baptized,' "  and  infers  from  that  that  he  was  baptized 
standing  iip^  and,  therefore,  must  have  had  water 
poured  or  sprinkled  on  him.  It  will  be  difficult  to  see 
the  force  in  that  inference.  Ko  matter  whether  he  was 
lying  down  or  sitting  when  Ananias  put  his  hands  on 
him  and  said,  "Arise,  and  be  baptized,"  there  was  no 
need  for  his  rising  to  have  water  poured  or  sprinkled 
8 


90         THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

on  him.  Water  could  have  been  sprinkled  or  poured 
on  him  lying  or  sitting  as  conveniently  as  in  any  other 
position  he  could  have  assumed.  But,  as  Ananias  did 
not  intend  to  sprinkle  or  pour  water  on  him,  but  to 
immerse  Jiiin  in  water^  and  as  he  could  not  do  this  with- 
out his  arising^  he  commanded  him  to  arise  and  be  bap- 
tized, or  be  immersed,  and  wash  away  his  sins,  calling 
on  the  name  of  the  Lord. 

But  you  say,  you  do  not  believe  water  can  take  away 
sins.  Surely  it  can  not.  The  language  does  not  say  it 
can;  nor  can  baptism  take  away  sins;  nor  can  prayer 
take  away  sins;  nor  anything  man  can  do.  Man  can 
not  take  away  sins;  not  even  faith  can  take  away  sins. 
God  can  cleanse  from  sin  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb. 
The  saints  will  ascribe  the  praises  to  Him  who  has 
washed  us  from  our  sins,  in  his  own  hlood^  forever  and 
ever.  How,  then,  comes  it  to  stand  here  so  closely 
connected  with  baptism?  Because  we  are  baptized 
"into  his  death" — the  death  of  Christ.  In  his  death 
his  blood  flowed  to  cleanse  us  from  sins;  and  wlien  w^e 
are  baptized  into  his  death  we  come  to  his  blood  tbat 
cleanses  from  all  sin.  ITot  only  so,  but  we  are  "  bap- 
tized into  one  body,"  and  the  Spirit  is  in  the  body.  The 
life  is  in  the  body,  and  when  we  are  baptized  "  into  his 
death,"  w^e  come  to  the  blood  of  sprinkling,  and  it 
cleanses  us  forever  from  sin;  and,  coming  into  the  body, 
we  come  to  the  Spirit  and  the  life.  This  brings  us  to 
the  remission  of  sins,  or  salvation  from  sins,  to  the 
Spirit  and  the  life  of  Christ. 

Why  did  the  Lord  select  one  learned  man  and  make 
him  an  apostle?  Some  have  thought  it  was  that  he 
might  meet  the  philosophers  of  Greece  and  Rome.  But 
this  is  not  satisfactory.  It  required  as  much  learning 
to  meet  the  Jewish  doctors  of  the  law  as  the  Paguu 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS.         91 

philosophers.  Then  we  have  the  clear  statement  that 
God  chose  the  weak  things  of  this  world  to  confound 
the  mighty.  He  could  make  the  illiterate  fishermcQ 
wise  and  strong  enough  to  meet  anybody,  and  he  did 
this.  In  selecting  these  weak  and  illiterate  men,  that 
all  men  knew  had  no  talent,  learning  or  power  in  them- 
selves to  do  what  they  did,  and  then  clothing  them  with 
power  that  the  world  could  not  withstand,  and  their 
doing  a  work  that  could  not  have  been  done  without 
this  great  power,  proved  that  the  power  was  from  God, 
But  in  selecting  one  man,  possessed  of  a  large  share  of 
the  wisdom  and  learning  of  the  world,  and  overwhelm- 
ing him  with  the  glories  of  the  Lord,  showed  that  the 
new  religion  had  lengths  and  breadths,  heights  and 
depths,  sufficiently  to  fill  the  soul  and  engage  the  whole 
being  of  one  of  the  greatest  men  of  earth,  and  cause 
him  to  say:  "What  things  were  gain  to  me,  those  I 
counted  loss  for  Christ.  Yea  doubtless,  and  I  count  all 
things  but  loss  for  the  excellency  of  the  knowledge  of 
Christ  Jesus  my  Lord :  for  whom  I  have  sufiered  the 
loss  of  all  things,  and  do  count  them  but  dung,  that  I 
may  win  Christ,  and  be  found  in  him,  not  having  mine 
own  righteousness,  which  is  of  the  law,  but  that  which 
is  through  the  faith  of  Chi'ist,  the  righteousness  which 
is  of  God  by  faith:  that  I  may  know  him,  and  the 
power  of  his  resurrection,  and  th^  fellowship  of  his  suf- 
ferings, being  made  conformable  unto  his  death ;  if  by 
any  means  I  might  attain  unto  the  resurrection  of  the 
dead." 

And  then  again,  overwhelmed,  he  breaks  forth  in  the 
following:  "0  the  depth  of  the  riches  both  of  the  wis- 
dom and  knowledge  of  God !  how  unsearchable  are  his 
judgments,  and  his  ways  past  finding  out!  For  wha 
hath  known  the  mind  of  the  Lord?  or  who  hath  beeii 


92         THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

his  counselor?  or  who  hath  first  given  to  him,  and  it 
shall  be  recompensed  unto  him  again?  For  of  him, 
and  through  him,  and  to  him,  are  all  things :  to  whom 
bo  glory  forever.  Amen."  In  the  person  of  Saul  the 
Lord  demonstrated  that  there  is  enough  in  Christ,  and 
what  he  has  given  to  man,  to  engage  the  attention,  fill 
the  mind  and  the  entire  capacity  of  the  greatest  of 
human  beings;  and  then,  when  they  have  known  all 
they  can  know,  comprehended  all  they  can,  and  their 
capacity  has  been  filled,  they  simply  know  and  com- 
prehend enough  to  satisfy  them  that  there  is  yet  back 
of  all  vast  unexplored  heights  and  depths,  lengths  and 
breadths  of  wisdom  and  knowledge,  and  they  find 
themselves  standing  in  amazement  and  awe  in  the  midst 
of  the  immensity  and  variety  of  the  work  of  the  great 
Creator  in  the  redemption  of  man. 

"While  the  Lord  Jesus  has  come  down  to  the  hum- 
blest capacities  of  man,  in  the  gospel  of  his  grace,  and 
adapted  himself  to  the  lowly,  he  has  also  risen  to  the 
loftiest  heights  that  human  intelligence  ever  conceived, 
above  and  beyond  all  they  can  grasp,  and  thus  in  the 
^anriG  gospel  filled  the  souls  of  the  most  lowly  and  hum- 
ble that  ever  came  to  him,  and  made  them  immeasur- 
ably happy;  and  also  met  and  filled  the  capacities  of 
the  tallest  intellects  among  the  sons  of  men  and  made 
them  feel  the  littleness  and  emptiness  of  all  they  know 
or  can  know,  in  view  of  the  wonderful  things  he  has 
prepared  for  them  that  love  him.  Here  is  room  for 
everlasting  gratitude  in  view  of  the  redemption  that  is 
in  Christ. 

In  the  cases  of  Saul  of  Tarsus  and  Cornelius  the 
Centurion  we  have  the  two  extremes;  on  the  one  hand, 
the  chief  of  sinners,  and,  on  the  other,  one  of  the  htst 
of  men  out  of  Christ;  and  we  find,  on  the  one  hand, 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS.         93 

salvation  in  the  gospel  for  the  chief  of  sinners,  and,  on 
the  other  hand,  that  the  gospel  was  needed  to  save  the 
best  man  not  in  Christ.  This  covers  the  whole  ground, 
showing,  on  the  one  side,  that  the  chief  of  sinners  can 
be  saved  bj  the  gospel,  and,  on  the  other  side,  that  the 
best  man  out  of  Christ  must  obey  the  gospel  to  he  saved. 
There  are  none,  then,  who  have  never  been  converted 
such  great  sinners  that  they  can  not  be  saved  by  the 
gospel,  and  none  so  good  as  to  be  saved  without  the 
gospel,  or  so  good  as  not  to  need  it.  It  is  able  to  save 
any  one,  and  no  one  can  be  saved  without  it. 

Could  a  person  be  soundly  converted  in  such  a  short 
time,  and  by  such  simple  process,  as  we  have  now  found 
in  the  case  of  Saul?  Only  a  short  space  elapsed  from 
the  time  the  Lord  appeared  to  him  and  said,  "I  am  Jesus 
of  Kazareth,  w^hom  thou  persecutest,''  and  the  time  of 
his  immersion.  Four  days  at  the  outside  covered  the 
entire  space.  Was  he  soundly  converted  in  that  short 
space  of  time?     Let  us  consider. 

1.  His  persecuting  at  once  and  forever  ceased.  This 
was  a  tremendous  change.  This  was  "  an  outward  sign 
of  an  inward  grace"  of  great  significance.  His  mad 
and  infuriated  career  of  making  havoc  of  the  followers 
of  Jesus  had  ended.  What  a  relief  to  the  disciples  of 
the  Lord,  and  how  they  must  have  praised  God  in  view 
of  what  had  been  done ! 

2.  He  leaves  the  old  persecuting  Church ;  he  is  seen 
no  more  in  it.  Some  think  the  old  and  the  new  Church 
all  one — the  same ;  but  they  did  not  think  so  at  the  time 
of  Saul's  conversion.  He  left  the  Church  of  his  father 
and  mother,  though  he  had  a  good  birthright  member- 
ship in  it;  he  counted  that  all  nothing  and  laid  it  all 
down  at  the  feet  of  Jesus,  for  the  kingdom  of  God  and 
the  name  of  Jesus  Christ. 


S4         THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

3.  He  left  the  company  of  persecutors  and  deliber- 
ately took  his  stand  and  fortune  with  the  persecuted. 
He  did  not  make  this  change  without  a  reason.  He 
must  have  had  his  mind  on  something  beyond  this 
world,  or  something  invisible  to  this  world.  !N"or  did 
he  take  his  stand  here  ttmj^orarily^  but  permanently. 
He  put  his  fortune  here,  not  for  a  little  time,  to  experi- 
ment, try  it  and  see  how  he  would  like  it,  but  perma- 
nently — in  prosperity  and  adversity,  living  and  dying. 
To  this  he  stands  till  he  breathes  the  last  breath.  This 
appears  like  sound  conversion ! 

4.  The  next  thing  you  hear  of  him,  he  is  preaching 
boldly,  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  the  faith  which  oncf 
he  destroyed.  Do  you  object  to  his  preaching  so  soon" 
Hear  him  defend  himself  in  this:  "Whereupon,  0  kin|. 
Agrippa,  I  was  not  disobedient  unto  the  heavenly  vif 
ion:  but  showed  first  unto  them  of  Damascus,  and  8v 
Jerusalem,  and  throughout  all  the  coasts  of  Judea,  an  I 
then  to  the  Gentiles,  that  they  should  repent  and  turn 
to  God,  and  do  works  meet  for  repentance." — See  Acts 
xxvi.  19,  20.  Further  on  he  says:  "Having  therefore 
obtained  help  of  God,  I  continue  unto  this  day,  witness- 
ing both  to  small  and  great,  saying  none  other  things 
than  those  which  the  prophets  and  Moses  did  say 
should  come:  that  Christ  should  suffer,  and  that  he 
should  be  the  first  that  should  rise  from  the  dead,  and 
should  show  light  unto  the  people,  and  to  the  Gentiles." 
This  language  does  not  appear  much  like  giving  up.  It 
is  a  settled  thing  with  him  that  he  is  going  to  preach. 
This  is  another  clear  evidence  of  sound  conversion.  He 
can  not  be  turned  from  his  purpose.     He  will  preach  ! 

5.  But  further  on  he  gives  stronger  evidence  of  sound 
conversion.  He  falls  into  the  hands  of  enemies;  they 
demand  of  him  to  recant — to  renounce  the  whole  aftair 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS.         95 

and  curse  Christ,  or  they  will  lash  his  body — lay  thirty- 
nine  lashes  on  his  bare  flesh.  This  would  try  a  man's 
soundness,  or  at  least  it  would  test  his  sincerity.  Had 
he  been  a  Ilniversalist,  he  evidently  would  have  given 
up  preaching.  He  could  easily  have  justified  himself  in 
doing  so.  He  could  have  reasoned  with  himself,  saying, 
^'All  will  be  saved  whether  I  preach  or  not,  and  if  they 
will  be  saved  without  my  preaching  as  certainly  as  with 
it,  why  need  I  suffer  in  this  way  for  the  privilege  of 
telling  them  that  they  all  will  be  saved  ?  I  will  simply 
deny  Christ,  avoid  this  suffering,  and  we  will  all  be 
saved  at  last.''  But  he  was  not  a  Universalist.  He  be- 
lieved the  Lord:  "Whosoever  shall  deny  me  before 
men,  him  will  I  also  deny  before  my  Father  which  is  in 
heaven."  "He  who  loveth  his  own  life  more  than  me, 
can  not  be  my  disciple."  "  He  that  findeth  his  life"  (by 
denying  me)  "shall  lose  it:  and  he  that  loseth  his  life 
for  my  sake  "  (by  confessing  me)  "  shall  find  it."  He  con- 
fessed the  Lord  Jesus,  and  in  wrath  and  most  awful 
cruelty  they  laid  the  terrible  stripes  on  his  flesh !  How 
wonderful  the  faith  that  sustained  this  wonderful  man 
of  God  in  this  great  trial !  But  even  this  did  not  stop 
him.  The  next  thing  they  hear  of  him  he  is  preaching 
again.  They  tried  him  in  this  way  five  times  over  and 
he  would  not  stop;  they  beat  him  with  rods  three 
times;  he  was  shipwrecked  and  was  a  day  and  a  night 
in  the  deep;  he  was  stoned  in  one  instance  till  they 
thought  he  was  dead ;  he  was  in  perils  among  robbers, 
and  among  false  brethren.  All  this  did  not  stop  him, 
turn  him  against  the  Lord,  his  cause  or  people. 

They  charged  him  of  "turning  the  world  upside  down," 
80  wonderful  was  the  revolution  he  carried  out  among 
men.  What  patience  and  endurance  it  required  to  thus 
continue  from  thirty-five  to  forty  years,  and  who  can 


96         THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

doubt  the  soundfiess  of  the  conversion  of  this  man? 
No  man  ever  gave  greater  evidence  of  sincerity  and 
honesty  than  he.  He  had  settled  convictions,  established 
principles,  and  conld  not  be  turned  aside  from  them  by 
any  earthly  power. 

After  passing  through  all  these  wonderful  trials  and 
tests  of  his  faith  and  integrity  to  the  Lord  Jesus,  what 
kind  of  a  letter  would  he  be  expected  to  write  to  a 
young  preacher?  Let  us  consider  a  few  words  from 
him  to  a  young  preacher.  To  Timothy  he  says:  "Thou 
hast  fully  known  my  doctrine,  manner  of  life,  purpose, 
faith,  long-suffering,  charity,  patience,  persecutions,  afflic- 
tions, which  came  unto  me  at  Antioch,  at  Iconium,  at 
Lystra ;  what  persecutions  I  endured :  but  out  of  them 
all  the  Lord  delivered  me.  Yea,  and  all  that  will  live 
godly  in  Christ  Jesus  shall  suffer  persecution.  But  evil 
men  and  seducers  shall  wax  worse  and  worse,  deceiving, 
and  being  deceived.  But  continue  thou  in  the  things 
which  thou  hast  learned  and  hast  been  assured  of,  know- 
ing of  whom  thou  hast  learned  them ;  and  that  from  a 
child  thou  hast  known  the  Holy  Scriptures,  which  are 
able  to  make  thee  wise  unto  salvation  through  faith 
which  is  in  Christ  Jesus." — 2  Timothy  iii.  10-16.  There 
is  no  discouragement  in  all  this,  but  the  same  full  assur- 
ance of  faith  we  see  all  the  way  along  through  his  won- 
derful life.  There  is-no  giving  up  nor  misgivings  in 
this  language;  he  is  looking  ahead  and  going  ahead. 
Let  us  hear  him  again — a  few  words : 

"I  charge  thee  therefore  before  God,  and  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  who  shall  judge  the  quick  and  the  dead 
at  his  appearing  and  his  kingdom;  preach  the  word; 
be  instant  in  season,  out  of  season;  reprove,  rebuke, 
exhort  with  all  long-suffering  and  doctrine.  For  the  time 
will  come  when  they  will  not  endure  sound  doctrine; 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS.         97 

but  after  their  own  lusts  shall  they  heap  to  themselves 
teachers,  having  itching  ears ;  and  they  shall  turn  away 
their  ears  from  the  truth,  and  shall  be  turned  into  fables. 
But  watch  thou  in  all  things,  endure  afflictions,  do  the 
work  of  an  evangelist,  make  full  proof  of  thy  ministry." 
— 2  Timothy  iv.  1-6.  In  his  first  letter  he  has  a  most 
fearful  and  awful  charge  to  the  same  man,  and  through 
him  to  all  evangelists.  After  speaking  of  "perverse 
disputings,"  the  "love  of  money,"  and  other  evils,  he 
says :  *'  But  thou,  0  man  of  God,  flee  these  things ;  and 
follow  after  righteousness,  godliness,  faith,  love,  patience, 
meekness.  Fight  the  good  fight  of  faith,  lay  hold  on 
eternal  life,  whereunto  thou  art  also  called,  and  hast 
professed  a  good  profession  before  many  witnesses.  I 
give  thee  charge  in  the  sight  of  God,  who  quickeneth 
all  things,  and  before  Christ  Jesus,  who  before  Pontius 
Pilate  witnessed  a  good  confession;  that  thou  keep  this 
commandment  without  spot,  unrebukable,  until  the  ap- 
pearing of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ." — 1  Timothy  vi.  11-14. 
IRow  hear  him  in  an  allusion  to  the  past,  the  present, 
and  the  future.  What  does  he  see  in  the  past  from 
which  to  draw  any  comfort?  He  has  three  great  items. 
1.  "I  have  fought  a  good  fight."  What  a  satisfaction, 
when  his  warfare  was  about  over,  that  he  could  look 
over  it  and  pronounce  it  a  good  fight.  He  had  strug- 
gled long  and  hard,  through  prosperity  and  adversity, 
and  could  see  that  it  was  a  good  figM.  2.  "I  have  fin- 
ished my  course."  How  glorious  to  get  to  the  end  of 
the  course  and  see  it  finished!  3.  "I  have  kept  the 
faith."  What  an  item  this,  in  view  of  the  trials  he  had 
gone  through !  With  all  the  menacing  of  enemies,  the 
threatening,  stripes  and  imprisonments  they  had^  in- 
flicted, thus  trying  him,  to  induce  him  to  give  up  the 
faith,  they  utterly  failed,  he  had  kept  the  faith.  Thanks 
9 


98         THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

to  God  who  gave  him  the  victory.     So  much  in  refer- 
ence to  the  past. 

ITow  hear  him  in  reference  to  the  present.  He  is 
brief  on  this.  "  I  am  now  ready  to  be  offered,  and  the 
time  of  my  departure  is  at  hand."  All  his  previous 
labor  in  the  kingdom  had  been  in  order  to  reach  this 
point.  He  had  now  obtained  it.  "  I  am  now  ready." 
How  glorious  the  venerable  hero !  He  was  not  in  the 
least  shaken ;  these  things  did  not  move  him. 

!N'ow  hear  him  in  reference  to  the  future.  "  Hence- 
forth there  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown  of  righteousness, 
which  the  Lord,  the  righteous  Judge,  shall  give  me  at 
that  day:  and  not  to  me  only,  but  unto  all  them  also 
that  love  his  appearing."  Here  is'the  secret.  He  had, 
by  faith,  been  looking  to  this  crown  of  righteousness  all 
the  time,  and  aiming  at  it;  he  had  now  got  near  to  it; 
he  could  almost  reach  it.  He  had  accumulated  nothing 
in'this  world;  he  had  nothing  to  bind  him  here;  noth- 
ing but  bonds  and  imprisonments  aw^aited  him ;  he  could 
easily  give  up  all  there  w^as  here.  It  was  far  better  to 
be  absent  from  the  body,  and  forever  be  with  the  Lord. 
For  the  event  of  the  change  he  was  ready. 

Among  his  last  trials,  that  master  of  cruelty  and  dis- 
grace to  his  race,  lN"ero,  had  him  apprehended  in  Eph- 
«sus,  and  confined  long  months  in  a  loathsome  prison. 
Tradition  has  it  that  he  was  here  thrown  to  wild  beasts, 
and  that  it  was  to  this  he  alluded  when  he  says:  "I 
have  fought  with  wild  beasts  in  Ephesus,"  and  when  he 
again  says,  "God  delivered  me  from  the  jaws  of  the 
lion."  Whether  this  is  all  literally  true  or  not,  it  is 
certain  that  he  was  imprisoned  and  suffered  "great 
things,"  as  the  Lord  said  he  should  when  he  called  him 
to  the  ministry.  Through  it  all  he  held  on  to  the  faith 
and  never  wavered. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TAJISUS.  99 

Finally  he  visited  Rome,  the  seat  of  cruelty  and 
blood;  since  designated  the  Seven  Hilled  City,  and 
styled  by  the  Papacy  the  "  Eternal  City."  The  edicts 
that  have  issued  from  there  have  caused  the  blood  of 
fifty  millions  of  the  best  people  of  their  time  to  flow. 
It  was  fitting  that  the  blood  of  Paul,  the  apostle  to  the 
Gentiles,  should  consecrate  the  ground  of  this  wonder- 
ful seat  of  cruelty  and  slaughter-ground  of  the  saints 
of  the  Most  High.  Fero  had  Paul  apprehended  again, 
and  for  the  last  time,  and  imprisoned.  Long  months 
the  noble  man  of  God,  the  great  sufierer  for  the  name 
of  Jesus,  lies  in  a  loathsome  prison,  as  if  he  had  been 
a  felon.  As  the  appointed  time  drew  near,  he  evidently 
looked  to  the  time  of  his  deliverance  with  joyful  emo- 
tion. The  day  for  his  execution  arrived  ;  the  great  as- 
sembly came  together,  and  the  officer  brings  out  of  the 
prison  the  victim  of  their  vengeance.  The  people 
thirsted  for  his  blood.  It  is  said  that  he  was  a  small 
man,  uncomely  in  his  personal  appearance,  not  ^ve  feet 
in  height.  He  is  not  now  young  Saul^  but  Paul  the 
aged;  his  hair,  it  may  be,  is  white;  his  body  bent  under 
the  pressui-e  of  years  and  his  wonderful  labors  and  suf- 
ferings; he  stands  before  the  people  for  the  last  time; 
before  him  is  a  huge  block,  and  an  ax  that  will  cut  off 
a  man's  head  instantly  of  its  own  weight;  he  is  called 
on  to  recant,  to  deny  Christ  and  curse  him.  Ko!  he 
can  not  do  this;  he  can  die,  but  he  can  not  deny  his 
Lord  and  Redeemer.  He  once  said,  "  Have  I  not  seen 
Jesus  Christ  our  Lord?"  and  he  could  say,  "Bear  in  my 
body  the  marks  of  the  Lord  Jesus;  "  and  again,  ''  I  have 
received  abundance  of  revelations  from  him." 

His  neck  is  deliberately  laid  on  the  block ;  the  great 
ax  is  raised  over  it;  all  stand  in  breathless  silence;  in- 
stantly the  ax   falls;  the  head  of  Paul  is  cut  ofl'.      It 


100        THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS. 

falls  over  on  one  side  of  the  block  and  his  body  on  the 
other  side.  His  warm  heart's  blood  runs  down  on  the 
ground,  and  the  smoky  vapor  rises  as  a  sweet  incense 
toward  heaven.  Men  walk  away  from  that  ^cene,  in- 
quiring, "What  has  that  man  done?  Why  was  he  be- 
headed?" Others  talk  viciously,  exclaiming,  "Away 
with  him!  He  ought  to  die!"  Thus  ended  the  trans- 
action. But  what  was  left?  A  life  and  a  name  that 
martyrdom  could  not  blot  out.  Through  the  ravages 
of  eighteen  centuries  the  name  and  life  of  Paul  have 
come  down,  and  to-day  they  are  known  to  more  people 
and  shine  brighter  than  at  any  former  period.  They  fill 
a  broader  space  in  the  history  of  the  past,  and  are  more 
interwoven  in  the  literature  of  the  civilized  world,  than 
any  other  name  this  side  of  the  name  that  is  above  every 
name  that  is  named,  in  heaven  or  on  earth;  the  name 
for  which  Paul  suffered  the  loss  of  all  things ;  the  name 
he  loved  and  for  which  he  laid  down  his  life — the  name 
of  the  Lord  Jesus,  Emmanuel,  or  God  with  us. 

He  enjoyed  the  learning  of  his  time,  and  the  honors 
and  preferments  of  the  world  were  open  before  him; 
but  when  he  was  brought  to  know  his  Lord  and  Re- 
deemer, and  the  power  of  his  resurrection  and  the  fel- 
lowship of  his  sufferings,  it  lifted  his  soul  far  above  all 
earthly  learning,  all  human  sciences  and  philosophies,  to 
the  spiritual  and  divine,  the  enduring  and  imperishable; 
"  an  house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens; " 
"a  rest  remaining  for  the  people  of  God;"  "glory^ 
honor,  immortality  and  eternal  life;"  his  "crown  of  re- 
joicing in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus." 

What  are  the  prospects  of  the  men  of  wealth  com- 
pared with  the  prospects  of  such  a  man  as  Paul?  At 
death  the  fine  things  of  wealth  take  their  flight;  the 
title  to  them  holds  them  no   longer;   they  seek  new 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL  OF  TARSUS.        101 

owners,  take  wings  and  fly  away.  The  former  owner, 
if  not  in  Christ,  is  miserable,  poor,  blind  and  naked! 
Alongside  of  this  man,  what  can  be  said  of  the  man  that 
was  too  great  a  coward  to  confess  the  name  of  Jesus 
before  men?  or  what  of  the  man  who  never  became 
sufficiently  interested  in  the  matter  to  come  to  Christ  at 
all  ?  or  the  poor,  timid  creatures  that  did  not  have  moral 
fortitude  enough  to  come  out  on  the  Lord's  side  at  all? 
Can  such  an  one  expect  to  walk  the  streets  of  the  ever- 
lasting city  with  such  a  man  as  Paul,  or  to  hear  the 
welcome  plaudit  that  will  evidently  greet  Paul,  "  Well 
done,  good  and  faithful  servant?"  Surely  not.  Such 
timid  creatures  could  not  hold  up  their  heads  in  the 
presence  of  such  a  man. 

What  a  beautiful  matter  for  contemplation,  that  now 
that  Paul  is  about  eighteen  hundred  years  from  the  ter- 
mination of  his  trials,  he  is  no  nearer  to  any  termination 
of  his  reward  than  on  the  first  day  after  he  entered  it! 
The  "  eternal  weight  of  glory,"  held  in  contrast  to  what 
be  styled  "these  light  afflictions,  which  are  but  for  a 
moment,"  is  still  looming  up  in  the  future  without  limit, 
transcending  all  that  human  intelligence  can  conceive, 
or  even  the  most  vivid  imagination  picture  to  the  mind. 

The  turning  of  this  wonderful  man  to  the  Lord,  and 
his  whole  life  after  his  turning,  form  one  continuous 
and  unanswerable  argument  in  favor  of  the  divinity  of 
Christ  and  his  religion.  There  is  no  accounting  for 
such  a  conversion  and  life  without  the  divinity  of  Chris- 
tianity. 


SERMON  ITo.  V. 

THEME — THE  CALLINQ  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

To  any  one  in  our  time,  with  a  little  acquaintance  with 
the  Scriptures,  it  is  a  matter  of  profound  astonishment 
that  from  the  time  of  the  calling  of  Abraham  till  the 
transaction  recorded  in  the  tenth  chapter  of  Acts,  not  a 
living  man  ever  understood  that  the  promise  to  Abra- 
ham, or,  rather,  that  the  benefits  and  blessings  contained 
in  that  promise  were  intended  to  be  extended  beyond  the 
seed  of  Abraham.  All  daring  this  entire  period  believed 
that  "the  good  things  to  come,"  the  blessings  contained 
in  that  promise,  were  limited  by  j^^^A  and  Mood;  in- 
tended for  one  nation  or  people  exclusively — the  family 
of  Abraham  alone.  But  there  was  one  divine  mind 
that  penetrated  down  through  the  ages,  that  had  deter- 
mined the  matter  in  his  eternal  and  immutable  purpose, 
that  did  not  limit  these  benefits  to  the  family  of  Abra- 
ham, but  intended  them  for  all  the  families  of  the  earth. 
While  the  minds  of  men,  the  greatest  and  best  of  men, 
were  limiting  them  and  confining  them  to  the  one  nation 
or  family,  and  never  saw  beyond  that,  the  Infinite  One 
frequently  uttered  expressions  showing  that  he  intended 
them  for  all  nations. 

The  promise  itself  says :  "  In  thee  shall  all  nations  be 
blessed."  This  unquestionably  looked  to  the  Gentiles, 
or  to  the  nations.)  which  means  the  same.  Paul  says: 
•*  The  gospel  was  preached  to  Abraham,  saying.  In  thee 
fihall  aU  nations  be  blessed."      This  shows   beyond  a 

(103) 


104  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

doubt  that  that  promise  contained  the  gospel,  or  that 
the  gospel  was  in  it.  It  contained  precisely  the  same 
that  was  in  "the  eternal  purpose."  It  was  the  promise 
of  the  Messiah,  and,  in  him,  the  gospel  and  all  heavenly 
blessings  in  Christ.  It  was  tlie  gospel  in  promise.  Be- 
fore this  it  was  the  gospd  in  purpose^  but  now  it  was 
embodied  in  a  promise,  or  the  gospel  in  promise,  l^ow 
the  astonishing  part  of  it  is  that  no  one  saw  that  it  ex- 
tended beyond  the  family  of  Abraham !  How  did  they 
interpret  a  promise  to  all  nations  ;  all  the  families  of 
the  earthy  so  as  to  mean  only  one  family^  or  07ie  nation? 
One  would  have  thought  that  the  first  thing  in  it  that 
would  have  caught  their  attention  would  have  been,  '^  all 
the  families  of  the  earth."  Still,  not  a  man  of  them 
understood  this ! 

The  prophet  I&aiah,  seven  hundred  and  fifty  years  be- 
fore the  Lord  came,  said,  concerning  him :  "  He  shall  be 
set  for  salvation  to  the  ends  of  the  earth."  This  was  a 
prominent  Scripture  among  the  Jews,  read  in  their 
synagogues  and  quoted  thousands  of  times  by  their 
rabbis,  but  never  understood.  "  Set  for  salvation  to  the 
ends  of  the  earth,"  with  them,  extended  no  further  than 
the  seed  of  Abraham.  Their  ideas  were  all  limited  in 
that  narrow  circle,  and  never  reached  beyond  it.  They 
were  God's  elect,  and  to  them  the  oracles  of  God  were 
committed,  and  the  whole  matter  was  to  begin  and  end 
with  them.  Even  the  clear  expression  of  the  prophet, 
"  In  him  shall  the  Gentiles  trust,"  was  overlooked,  or 
not  at  all  understood. 

That  grand  expression  of  the  prophet  Joel,  that  we 
have  all  quoted  ever  since  we  knew  the  Scriptures,  was 
never  understood  by  them:  "It  shall  come  to  pass  in 
the  last  days,  says  the  Lord,  that  I  will  pour  out  of  my 
Spirit  upon  all  flesh."     How  did  they  limit  the  expres- 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  105 

8ion,  "all  flesh,"  so  as  to  mean  the  seed  of  Abraham? 
This  appears  almost  incomprehensible  to  us.  We  think 
we  should  have  seen  all  nations  in  that,  and  that  the 
blessings  of  the  promise,  or  the  gospel,  were  for  all  na- 
tions and  peoples  of  the  earth;  but  we  should  have  been 
as  they  were — we  should  not  have  seen  all  this. 

Look  also  at  the  language  of  the  angel  when  the 
Lord  was  born :  "  I  bring  you  good  tidings  of  great  joy, 
which  shall  be  to  all  people.  For  unto  you  is  born  this 
day  in  the  city  of  David  a  Savior,  which  is  Christ  the 
Lord."  How  did  they  limit  the  words,  "to  all  people," 
so  as  only  to  mean  the  Jewish  jpeoplc-,  the  seed  of  Abra- 
ham according  to  the  flesh?  Still  they  did  this,  and  did 
it  most  persistently,  and  saw  not  beyond  this  narrow 
view.  This  was  not  simply  the  case  with  a  few  of  the 
more  unenlightened,  but  the  masses,  and  those  of  the 
most  enlightened  classes  and  the  best.  The  first  fol- 
lowers of  Jesus,  and  the  disciples  of  John  the  Im- 
merser,  were  not  exceptions.  They  all  entertained  the 
same  view.  They  believed  the  promise  to  Abraham, 
believed  on  Christ,  and  were  looking  for  the  hope  of 
Israel,  the  good  things  to  come,  but  supposed  they  were 
intended  only  for  the  seed  of  Abraham  according  to  the 
flesh. 

But,  more  wonderful  still,  they  limited  and  applied 
the  last  commission  in  the  same  way.  They  never  un- 
derstood its  clear  language — to  "teach  all  nations,"  to 
"  go  into  all  the  world,"  to  "  preach  the  gospel  to  every 
creature,"  but  limited  all  these  expressions  to  the  Jews 
— to  the  family  of  Abraham.  !N'ot  only  is  this  true  of  the 
masses  of  the  people — the  Jewish  people — or  the  first 
followers  of  Christ,  but  it  is  true  of  the  apostles  them- 
selves. True,  the  Apostle  Peter  said,  on  Pentecost,  or 
the  Spirit  said  it  by  him,  that  "  the  promise  is  to  you," 


106  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

the  Jews,  ''and  to  your  children,"  or  your  descendants, 
*'and  to  all  them  that  are  afar  off^  "All  them  that 
are  afar  off,"  heyond  a  doubt,  meant  the  nations,  the 
Gentiles,  the  families  of  the  earth,  and  we  see  not  how 
they  failed  to  understand  it;  but  not  one  of  the  apos- 
tles understood  it,  and  it  required  a  miracle  some  eight 
years  after  to  open  the  eyes  of  Peter  and  make  him  see 
it  and  exclaim  that  "  God  has  shown  me  that  I  should 
call  no  man  common."  This  grand  secret,  or  mystery, 
was  hid  in  God — "in  other  ages  was  not  made  known 
unto  the  sons  of  men,  as  it  is  now  revealed  unto  hie 
holy  apostles  and  prophets  by  the  Spirit;  that  the  Gen- 
tiles should  be  fellow-heirs,  and  of  the  same  body,  and 
partakers  of  his  promise  in  Christ  by  the  gospel."  This 
tells  what  the  mystery,  or  the  secret,  is — that  ^'■the  Gen- 
tiles should  he  fellow-heirs^  and  of  the  same  hody^  and 
partakers  of  his  promise  in  Christ  hy  the  gospel^ 

We  have  a  very  summary  w^ay  of  explaining  this. 
We  say,  "They  were  blinded."  That  will  do  when  we 
are  talking  about  Jews;  but  how  are  we  to  explain 
some  things  in  our  time  ?  Are  there  any  things  in  our 
time  hid  from  our  eyes,  or  from  the  eyes  of  the  teachers 
of  religion  in  our  day,  that  are  as  clearly  revealed  in 
Scripture  as  the  great  truth  was  that  God  intended  the 
Gentiles  to  be  of  the  same  body  with  the  Jews?  And, 
if  there  are,  how  shall  we  explain  it?  It  won't  do  to 
say  of  our  enlightened  people,  in  this  refined  and  cul- 
tivated age,  so  advanced  by  the  spirit  of  the  times,  that 
they  are  blinded !  We  may  talk  thus  about  Jews  and 
Pagans,  but  not  of  the  people  of  a  Christian  nation ! 
To  thus  talk  would  be  an  insult. 

Please,  then,  consider  a  few  items.  There  is  nothing 
lying  more  directly  in  the  path,  in  a  practical  matter,  of 
every  soul  that  turns  to  the  Lord  and  becomes  a  Chris- 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  107 

tiau,  than  the  answer  to  the  question,  "What  must  I  da 
to  be  saved?"  and  there  is  nothing  clearer  in  the  reve- 
lation from  God  to  man  than  the  answer  to  that  ques- 
tion. This  matter  is  so  clear  that  children  a  dozen  years 
old;  or  "little  children,"  as  John  the  apostle  styles 
them;  or  "little  ones  that  believe  on  me,"  as  the  Lord 
describes  them,  not  only  can,  but  do  understand  it^  com- 
ply with  the  answer,  and  obtain  the  salvation  of  their 
souls.  The  preachers  everywhere  come  to  this  question, 
in  their  efforts  to  turn  sinners  to  the  Lord.  Thousands 
of  times  they  refer  to  it,  and  the  occasions  on  which  it 
came  from  the  lips  of  inquiring  souls.  They  see  the 
question,  understand  its  import,  and  have  the  right  as- 
sociations in  their  mind  in  reference  to  the  persons  seek- 
ing salvation.  At  no  period,  in  the  whole  existence  of 
a  human  being,  is  it  of  more  importance  to  have  proper 
instruction  than  when  the  sinner  is  coming  to  the  Savior. 
"When  he  inquires,  "What  must  I  do  to  be  saved?"  it  is 
of  the  highest  importance  that  he  shall  have  an  answer 
from  the  Lord. 

In  the  word  of  God,  where  this  question  is  found  in 
several  different  forms,  the  answer  follows  in  the  con- 
nection so  clear  that  one  would  think  that  a  child  could 
not  miss  it.  There  is  nothing  wanting  only  to  humbly 
follow  the  clear  record,  and  give  the  answer  as  found 
in  the  record.  But  notice  that  great  revivalist  when 
he  comes  to  that  point!  Does  he  follow  the  record? 
Does  he  give  the  answer  of  the  Lord?  Xo;  he  has  an- 
other practice,  with  another  set  of  ideas — a  different 
course  of  procedure  from  anything  found  in  the  record. 
You  press  him  to  tell  you  why  he  does  not  give  the 
answer  given  by  the  holy  teachers,  whose  practice  and 
teaching  are  laid  before  us  for  our  guide.  When  sin- 
ners cry  out:  "What  shall  we  do?''   why  not  answer 


108  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

them  as  the  apostles  did?  Who  can  tell  why?  No  liv- 
ing man.  .  The  answer  is  there  as  clear  as  the  question ! 
Why  do  not  the  preachers  find  it?  It  will  not  do  to 
say,  "  They  are  blinded,"  as  we  do  of  Jews  and  Pagans. 
They  are  educated  men,  of  culture  and  refinement,  in 
an  advanced  and  an  enlightened  age,  and  certainly  not 
blinded!  Why  can  they  not  see  that  which  a  child  can 
see?  Why  can  they  not  see  that  which  is  printed  and 
placed  before  their  eyes? 

Take  another  example :  The  Lord  says,  "  There  shall 
be  one  fold  and  one  Shepherd."  "  Fold "  here  stands 
for  hody^  or  Church.  There  shall  be  one  body,  kingdom, 
or  Church.  But  now  we  have  many  hodies^  acting  in- 
dependently, with  different  creeds,  names  and  rules,  not 
in  any  fellowship  with  each  other,  and  we  have  the 
preachers  shouting:  "It  is  a  wise  providence  of  God;" 
that  is,  "  there  are  varieties  in  nature,  and  the  Lord  has 
raised  many  bodies  so  that  all  the  people  can  be  suited;" 
that  "  we  can  not  all  see  alike,"  etc.  The  Lord  prayed 
that  we  all  may  be  one,  as  he  and  his  Father  are  one, 
that  the  world  may  believe  that  the  Father  sent  him. 
Does  the  modern  preacher  see  this  Scripture?  Does  he 
see  tliis  prayer  of  the  Lord?  Does  his  soul  enter  into 
union  with  the  Lord  in  this  prayer?  Does  he  pray 
*'that  they  all  may  be  one,"  as  Jesus  and  his  Father 
are  one?  Not  one  word  of  it;  but  he  says,  "We  can 
not  be  one" — that  we  can  not  see  alike,  and  talks 
of  a  wise  providence  of  God ;  that  we  are  divided ;  that 
we  have  so  many  ways^  etc. 

Paul  says,  "Are  you  not  carnal,  and  walk  as  men  ? " 
On  what  does  he  ground  the  question,  "Are  you  not 
carnal?"  He  had  heard  that .  there  were  divisions 
among  them,  and  he  partly  believed  it.  Some  were 
shouting,  "  I  am  of  Paul ;"  others,  "  I  am  of  ApoUos." 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  109 

This  he  took  as  an  evidence  of  carr.ality.  The  follow- 
ing is  his  remedy  for  all  this:  "ISTow  I  beseech  you, 
brethren,  by  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that  ye 
all  speak  the  same  thing,  and  that  there  be  no  divisions 
among  you;  but  that  ye  be  perfectly  joined  together  in 
the  same  mind  and  in  the  same  judgment.'*  The  mod- 
ern preacher,  with  this  right  before  his  eyes,  exclaims : 
"We  can  not  be  of  the  same  mind  and  of  the  same 
judgment;"  "it  is  a  wise  providence  of  God  that  we 
have  so  many  churches."  Paul  says,  "  We  are  all  bap- 
tized into  one  body,"  but  a  modern  preacher  will  have 
it  that  we  are  baptized  into  mamj  hodi  s^  and  so  he 
practices. 

We  read  in  the  clearest  language  in  Holy  Writ  that 
there  is  "one  foundation,"  one  building  of  God,  one  body, 
one  faith,  one  immersion,  one  kingdom  of  God,  and  that 
God  broke  down  the  middle  wall  of  partition  between 
the  Jews  and  Gentiles,  and  took  it  out  of  the  way,  and 
of  the  tioo^  the  Jews  and  Gentiles,  he  made  07ie  mw 
man^  or  07ie  neio  hody.  How  does  any  man,  with  this 
before  him,  fail  to  see  that  the  Lord  intended  his  people 
all  to  be  united  in  one  body?  Yet  the  modern  preacher 
can  not  or  will  not  see  it,  but  thinks  there  is  something 
wise  in  our  being  divided  and  having  so  many  parties! 

The  chief  men  in  the  matters  now  coming  before  us 
are  the  Apostle  Peter,  on  the  one  side,  and  Cornelius, 
on  the  other.  Nothing  need  be  said  about  the  Apostle 
Peter.  All  who  know  anything  of  the  Scriptures  know 
who  he  was.  The  name  of  Cornelius  is  not  so  familiar. 
He  was  a  captain  and  had  command  of  a  hundred  sol- 
diers in  the  Roman  army,  and  belonged  to  the  Italian 
Band  in  that  army.  His  position  was  among  the  Jews, 
and  a  principal  matter  in  his  department  was  to  prevent 
any  disorders  or  insurrectionary  movements  among  the 


110  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

Jews,  who  then  existed  as  a  Roman  province,  and  under 
a  state  of  military  rule.  He  was  a  proselyte  to  Juda- 
ism, and  permitted  to  occupy  the  court  of  the  Gentiles 
in  the  Jewish  worship.  As  a  proselyte  to  Judaism,  he 
believed  in  the  God  of  Abraham,  or  the  God  of  the 
Jews,  as  the  other  nations  phrased  it,  and  received  the 
law  of  Moses.  As  such  he  was  a  good  man,  but  not  a 
Christian.  It  is  said  of  him  that  "  he  was  a  devout  man," 
but  devout  only  as  a  proselyte,  or  a  Jew,  and  not  a 
Christian.  "  He  gave  much  alms  to  the  people."  He 
was  a  liberal  man,  and  his  hand  was  open  to  the  cry  of 
the  poor.  Such  a  man,  simply  as  a  man^  to  say  nothing 
of  Jew  or  Christian,  stands  far  above  the  narrow-minded, 
the  parsimonious,  the  hard-hearted  and  stingy.  He  had 
a  great  and  noble  heart,  that  could  be  moved  by  the 
appeals  of  the  suffering.  It  is  also  said  of  him  that  he 
^'  prayed  to  God  always."  This  would  put  many  Chris- 
tians to  shame.  How  wonderful  that  a  mere  proselyte 
to  Judaism  should  be  more  devout  than  those  who  have 
received  the  Christ — the  "better  covenant,"  with  the 
*' better  promises!"  It  is  still  further  said  of  Cornelius 
that  "he  was  of  good  report  throughout  all  the  nation 
of  the  Jews."  So  noble  was  his  deportment,  and  hon- 
orable was  his  bearing,  that  though  his  position  was  an 
unthankful  one  among  the  Jews,  "  he  was  of  good  re- 
port among  all  the  nation  of  the  Jews." 

Cornelius  appears  not  to  have  been  contented.  He 
was  evidently  in  an  unsettled  state  of  mind.  It  may 
not  be  possible  for  us,  at  this  great  distance  from  the 
scene,  to  see  what  gave  rise  to  his  unsettled  state  of 
mind.  It  may  be  that  he  thought  of  the  vast  number 
of  the  Jews  that  were  daily  going  over  to  Christ,  and 
the  fact  that  their  nationality  was  comparatively  gone; 
that  their  glory  had  departed.   He  could  not  have  failed 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  Ill 

to  see,  to  some  extent,  the  calamity  that  was  coming  on 
them  and  the  prospect  that  their  temple  and  worship 
would  soon  he  huried  in  ruins.  Their  worship  was  the 
only  worship  that  he  had  any  connection  with,  and  the 
prospect  was  that  it  would  soon  be  overthrown.  It  is  not 
safe  to  conclude  that  he  certainly  saw  all  this,  and  that 
he  was  disturbed  by  it.  But  he  may  have  seen  some- 
thing of  it,  and  it  may  have  had  something  to  do  in 
producing  the  discontent  seen  in  his  mind.  At  all 
events,  he  certainly  acted  very  wisely  for  an  uninspired 
man,  and  a  man  without  any  gospel  light.  "He  fasted 
and  prayed  in  his  house."  He  evidently  only  prayed  as 
a  Jew,  or  as  a  proselyte  to  Judaism,  and  not  through 
Christ,  as  he  did  not  know  that  he  had  any  interest  in 
Christ,  and,  it  may  be,  had  no  confidence  in  him. 

What  wonderful  things  have  transpired  in  all  ages 
with  devout  men,  men  that  feared  God,  though  much  in 
the  dark!  This  man  "fasted  and  prayed  in  his  house," 
about  the  ninth  hour,  or  about  three  o'clock  in  the  af- 
ternoon, as  we  count  time,  the  hour  the  Jews  were  ac- 
customed to  go  up  to  the  temple  for  prayer,  and  as  he 
fasted  and  prayed  he  saw  an  angel  coming  in  to  him, 
who  said:  "  Cornelius,  thy  prayers  and  thine  alms  are 
come  up  for  a  memorial  before  God."  You  say  he  must 
have  been  a  Christian,  as  his  prayers  and  alms  had  come 
up  for  a  memorial  before  God.  He  certainly  was  not, 
but  was  in  a  fair  way  to  become  one.  Hear  the  angel, 
as  he  proceeds  to  instruct  him.  The  angel  did  not  ap- 
pear to  him  to  convert  him,  to  preach  the  gospel  to  him, 
change  his  heart  or  pardon  his  sins.  If  we  would  learn 
what  the  angel  appeared  to  him  for,  we  must  give  heed 
to  what  he  did.  Listen  to  his  words:  "Send  men  to 
Joppa,  and  call  for  one  Simon,  whose  surname  is  Peter: 


112  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

he  lodgeth  with  one  Simon  a  tanner,  whose  house  is  by 
the  seaside." 

In  former  years  men  taught  that  the  Scriptures  were 
a  mystery  and  could  not  be  understood.  That  can  not 
he  true  of  what  this  angel  said.  He  certainly  intended 
his  language  to  be  understood.  Hear  him :  "  Send  men 
to  Joppa."  There  was  but  one  Joppa,  and  there  was 
no  danger  of  going  to  the  wrong  city.  But  who  shall 
we  call  for?  "One  Simon."  There  might  be  more  than 
one  Simon  in  Joppa,  and  how  shall  we  know  which  one? 
Send  forgone  Simon,  whose  surname  is  PeterP  But 
there  might  be  more  than  one  Simon  whose  surname  is 
Peter.  The  Simon  you  are  to  call  for  "lodgeth  with 
one  Simon."  There  possibly  might  be  more  than  one 
Simon,  whose  surname  is  Peter,  lodging  with  one 
Simon.  But  this  Simon  with  whom  he  lodges  is  a  tan- 
ner, and,  to  put  the  matter  beyond  mistake,  he  lives 
down  by  the  seaside.  These  directions  werfe  intended 
to  be  understood,  were  understood  and  carried  out. 

What  was  this  man  Simon  to  do  when  he  came?  The 
angel  said:  "He  shall  tell  thee  what  thou  oughtest  to 
do;"  or,  as  it  is  in  another  place:  "Words  whereby  thou 
and  all  thy  house  shall  be  saved."  You  can  see  that 
he  was  not  a  Christian,  or  he  would  not  have  needed  to 
hear  words  whereby  he  should  be  saved,  or  whereby  he 
should  be  converted  to  Christ,. or  really  hecome  a  Chris- 
tian. What  simplicity  of  manner  we  see  on  the  part 
of  this  man,  and  what  child-like  willingness  to  be  led 
in  the  way  of  the  Lord!  We  find  not  an  evasion,  not 
a  cavil.  He  does  not  inquire,  "Can  I  not  be  saved  with- 
out words?"  ]N"or  does  he  begin  to  get  up  difficulties 
in  the  way  of  doing  as  commanded.  He  does  not  in- 
quire, "  Might  I  not  die  while  men  are  going  to  Joppa, 
some  forty  miles  distant  from  Cesarea?"  or,  "Can  I  not 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  113 

be  saved  some  other  way?"  Kor  does  he  set  up  a 
theory  of  self  righteousness,  insisting  that  his  prayers 
and  alms  had  come  up  in  remembrance  before  God,  and 
that  was  sufficient  for  him.  Not  a  word  of  it.  He 
must  have  the  man  of  whom  the  angel  told  him,  and 
hear  words  from  him. 

He  called  two  household  servants  and  a  devout  sol- 
dier, laid  the  matter  before  them,  and  sent  them  to 
Joppa.  What  anxiety  of  mind  and  suspense  he  must 
have  experienced  while  the  messengers  went  for  Peter! 
What  conjectures  he  must  have  had  as  to  the  words 
whereby  he  should  be  saved — what  these  words  would 
be,  what  he  would  be  required  to  do,  etc.  But  he 
waited  for  Peter. 

As  the  men  he  had  sent  journeyed  on  their  way,  and 
came  near  the  city,  Peter,  knowing  nothing  of  the  mat- 
ter so  far,  went  up  on  the  housetop  to  pray,  about 
twelve  o'clock  the  next  day.  It  is  said  that  many  of 
the  ancients  constructed  their  houses  with  flat  roofs  and 
little  battlements  in  the  center,  where  devout  persons 
could  retire  from  public  view  to  engage  in  private  devo- 
tions. These  ancient  preachers  prayed  in  secret;  but 
then  it  was  hi  scci^et^  where  none  but  God  could  see 
them,  and  not  on  the  steps  of  a  pulpit  hefore  an  aud- 
ience. While  Peter  was  engaged  in  these  devotions,  "  he 
became  very  hungry,  and  would  have  eaten:  but  while 
they  made  ready,  he  fell  into  a  trance,  and  saw  heaven 
opened,  and  a  certain  vessel  descending  unto  him,  as  it 
had  been  a  great  sheet  knit  at  the  four  corners,  and  let 
down  to  the  earth:  wherein  were  all  manner  of  four- 
footed  beasts  of  the  earth,  and  wild  beasts,  and  creep- 
ing things,  and  fowls  of  the  air.  And  there  came  a 
voice  to  him.  Rise,  Peter;  kill  and  eat."  This  was  new 
to  Peter.  Here,  in  this  mass,  are  unclean  beasts.  Peter 
10 


114  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

looks  on  and  deliberately  replies,  "  ISTot  so,  Lord."  Why 
do  you  object,  sir,  when  the  Lord  commands?  He  re- 
plies, "  For  I  have  never  eaten  anything  that  is  common 
or  unclean."  Is  that  a  good  reason  for  declining  to  do 
what  God  commands?  What  is  the  substance  of  that 
reason  ?  It  is  simply — I  can  not  do  as  commanded  be- 
cause I  never  have  done  so!  He  might  have  added: 
"  My  father  was  a  good  man,  and  he  never  did  so."  What 
is  the  answer  of  God?  "What  God  hath  cleansed,  that 
<jall  not  thou  common."  This  occurred  three  times,  and 
the  vessel  was  received  up  again  into  heaven.  Peter 
doubted  in  himself  what  all  this  meant,  and  the  men 
from  Cesarea  appeared  at  the  gate  and  inquired  for 
Peter.  While  Peter  was  thinking  of  the  matter,  the 
Spirit  came  to  do  his  part  of  the  work.  Many  in  our 
time  would  hardly  recognize  what  he  did  as  the  work 
of  the  Spirit  at  all;  it  was  so  different  from  the  work 
they  ascribe  to  him.  The  Spirit  did  not  go  to  the  man 
to  be  converted,  but  to  thQj[>reaGher;  and  not  to  operate 
on  him  in  some  mysterious  way  that  he  could  tell  noth- 
ing about,  but  in  a  very  clear  and  intelligible  way.  Luke 
records  it  in  the  following  words :  '^  The  Spirit  said  unto 
him.  Behold,  three  men  seek  thee.  Arise  therefore,  and 
get  thee  down,  and  go  with  them,  doubting  nothing: 
for  I  have  sent  them."  He  could  understand  this  oper- 
ation of  the  Spirit,  did  understand  it,  and  did  what  the 
Spirit  commanded. 

When  Peter  went  down,  he  explained  that  he  was 
the  man  they  were  seeking,  and  inquired  of  the  men 
the  purpose  of  their  coming.  They  explained  to  him 
that  Cornelius,  the  centurion,  a  just  man,  and  one  that 
feared  God,  and  of  good  report  among  all  the  nation  of 
the  Jews,  was  warned  from  God  by  a  holy  angel  to  send 
for  him  that  he  might  hear  words  of  him.     Peter  heard 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  115 

their  account  of  the  matter,  called  them  in  and  lodged 
them.  This  was  new  ground  for  the  apostle,  and  he  did 
not  rush  into  it  unadvisedly.  He  determined  to  leave 
no  room  for  his  character  to  be  injured,  without  anybody 
to  testify  what  was  done,  and  took  with  him  six  Jewish 
brethren  from  Joppa,  that  they  might  see  and  hear  all 
that  was  said  and  done.  The  next  day  the  Apostle 
Peter,  the  three  messengers  and  six  brethren,  a  company 
of  ten  in  all,  journeyed  on  their  way  till  they  arrive  in 
Cesarea. 

Cornelius  had  not  been  idle  all  this  time,  while  he  had 
waited  for  their  arrival,  but  had  called  together  his 
kinsmen  and  near  friends.  As  he  was  coming  in  Cor- 
nelius met  him,  and  fell  down  at  his  feet  and  worshiped 
him.  If  Peter  had  been  pope,  as  the  Papists  think  he 
was,  he  would  have  considered  Cornelius  a  iirst-rate 
subject  for  his  holiness  when  he  saw  him  fall  and  worship 
him.  But  the  ancient  Peter,  here  spoken  of,  had  never 
heard  of  a  pope  and  had  no  popish  ideas  in  his  head. 
He  took  Cornelius  up  and  bid  him,  "  Stand  up;  I  myself 
also  am  a  man."  He  had  not  come  to  receive  divine 
homage,  and  was  not  an  object  of  worship.  "And  as  he 
talked  with  him,  he  went  in,  and  found  many  that  were 
come  together.  And  he  said  unto  them.  Ye  know  how 
that  it  is  an  unlawful  thing  for  a  man  that  is  a  Jew  to 
keep  company,  or  come  unto  one  of  another  nation  ;  but 
God  hath  showed  me  that  I  should  not  call  any  man 
common  or  unclean."  He  added:  "Therefore  came  I 
unto  you  without  gainsaying,  as  soon  as  I  was  sent  for: 
I  ask  therefore  ff^r  what  intent  ye  have  sent  for  me?" 
Cornelius  replied,  by  referring  to  the  angel  that  visited 
him  and  commanded  him  to  send  for  him,  and  that  he 
had  accordingly  sent,  and  closed  by  saying:  "Thou  hast 
well  done  that  thou  art  come.     Kow  therefore  are  we 


116  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

all  here  present  before  God,  to  hear  all  things  that  are 
commanded  thee  of  God." 

No  man  could  desire  a  better  audience  than  that;  one 
ready  to  hear  all  things  commanded  of  God.  This 
opened  the  way  for  Peter;  but  it  brought  him  into  a  new 
position  and  brought  some  new  light  to  his  eyes.  He 
could  not  say,  as  men  do  sometimes,  that  he  had  not 
changed  a  whit,  but  stood  precisely  where  he  did  twenty 
years  before.  On  the  other  hand,  he  had  to  admit  that 
he  perceived  of  a  truth  what  he  never  saw  before.  Up 
to  this  time  he  had  been  a  kind  of  predestinarian.  He 
had  regarded  the  Jews  as  God's  elect,  the  favorites  of 
heaven,  and  supposed  all  other  nations  were  passed  by 
and  left  without  Christ,  to  die  in  their  sins.  But  he 
had  now  learned  that  ^'  God  is  no  respecter  of  persons." 
Do  you  say  he  will  then  save  us  all?  E"o;  that  was  not 
the  deduction  made  by  the  apostle.  His  deduction  is 
that  "in  every  nation  he  that  feareth  Him,  and  worketh 
righteousness,  is  accepted  with  Him."  He  never  saw 
that  his  commission  extended  to  every  nation  before. 
He  did  not  know  that  God  intended  to  have  mercy  upon 
all  nations,  but  supposed  that  his  commission  was  lim- 
ited to  the  seed  of  Abraham.  It  required  a  miracle  t(? 
break  off  the  spell  from  his  eyes,  and  show  him  that  he 
should  call  no  man  common  or  unclean.  This  he  no\r 
sees  and  understands,  that  not  only  among  the  Jews, 
but  among  all  nations^  "he  that  feareth  Him,  and  work- 
eth righteousness,  is  accepted  with  Him."  This  he  lays 
before  Cornelius  by  way  of  explanation  and  introduction. 

He  is  now  ready  to  commence  preaching  the  gospel 
to  his  Gentile  audience.  He  was  to  tell  Cornelius  words 
whereby  he  and  his  house  should  be  saved.  "We  may 
expect  him  to  commence  with  the  word.  He  begins: 
"The  word  which  God  sent  unto  the  children  of  Israel, 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  117 

preaching  peac«  by  Jesus  Christ  (he  is  Lord  of  all): 
that  word,  I  say,  ye  know,  which  was  published  through- 
out all  Judea,  and  began  from  Galilee,  after  the  baptism 
which  John  preached."  Notice,  it  is  not  the  word  that 
John  preached,  nor  the  baptism  of  John,  but  the  word 
that  began  from  Galilee  after  the  baptism  wdiich  John 
preached.  What  was  that  word?  ^'How  God  anointed 
Jesus  of  ITazareth  with  the  Holy  Ghost  and  with  power: 
who  went  about  doing  good,  and  healing  all  that  were 
oppressed  of  the  devil;  for  God  was  with  him."  This 
is  entering  into  the  subject  at  once,  and  brings  the  Lord 
before  his  new  audience  as  the  Person  on  whom  they 
were  to  believe. 

Here  he  introduces  another  important  item:  "We 
are  witnesses  of  all  things  which  he  did  both  in  the  land 
of  the  Jews,  and  in  Jerusalem;  whom  they  slew  and 
handed  on  a  tree."  He  did  not  mean  that  all  Christians 
are  his  witnesses,  or  that  any  in  our  day  are,  but  him- 
slf  and  the  other  apostles.  This  is  clear  from  what  fol- 
lows: "Him  God  raised  up  the  third  day,  and  showed 
him  openly ;  not  to  all  the  people,  but  unto  witnesses 
chosen  before  of  God,  even  to  us,  who  did  eat  and  drink 
with  him  after  he  rose  from  the  dead."  These  were  his 
witnesses  "  of  all  things  which  he  did  in  the  land  of  the 
Jews;"  those  to  whom  God  "showed  him  openly,"  not 
those  to  whom  he  did  not  show  him  openly;  to  those 
"who  did  eat  and  drink  with  him,"  and  not  those  who 
did  not  eat  and  drink  with  him  after  he  rose  from  the 
dead.  What  did  he  command  these  witnesses  to  do? 
He  proceeds:  "He  commanded  us  to  preach  unto  the 
people,  and  to  testify^  This  is  certainly  the  business 
of  a  witness  to  testify^  and  to  testify  what  he  has  seen 
and  heard.     But  what  did  he  command  them  to  preach 


118  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

and  testify?  That  he  "was  ordained  of  God  to  be  the 
Judge  of  quick  and  dead." 

This  brings  the  word  before  them,  and  the  Lord  by 
whom  it  was  first  spoken,  and  the  apostles  as  his  wit- 
nesses. But  the  apostle  proceeds  to  bring  another  im- 
portant class  of  witnesses  into  view.  He  says:  "To 
him  give  all  the  prophets  witness,  that  through  his 
name  whosoever  believeth  in  him  shall  receive  remission 
of  sins."  We  have  now  the  following:  1.  The  word 
first  spoken  by  the  Lord;  2.  The  Lord  himself,  the  Judge 
of  quick  and  dead;  3.  The  apostles  his  witnesses  of  all 
things  that  he  did  in  the  land  of  the  Jews  and  in  Jeru- 
salem ;  4.  The  testimony  of  the  prophets,  that  through 
his  name  whoever  believes  on  him  shall  receive  remis- 
sion of  sins. 

Some  one  exclaims :  "  I  want  the  testimony  of  the 
Spirit!  "  All  right;  that  is  the  next  thing  as  we  pro- 
ceed in  the  history.  "While  Peter  yet  spake  these 
words,  the  Holy  Spirit  fell  on  all  them  which  heard  the 
word."  What  did  that  mean?  "They  of  the  circum- 
cision which  believed  were  astonished,  as  many  as  came 
with  Peter,  because  that  on  the  Gentiles  also  was  poured 
out  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit."  They  did  not  guess 
at  this,  but  "heard  them  speak  with  tongues,  and  mag- 
nify God."  What  was  the  purpose  of  this  outpouring 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  on  the  Gentiles?  We  have  seen  the 
effect  it  had  on  the  Jewish  brethren  who  came  with 
Peter.  They  were  astonished,  not  simply  at  the  out- 
pouring  of  the  ISpirit^  but  that  it  should  be  on  the  Gen- 
tiles the  same  as  on  the  Jews.  This  gives  us  something" 
of  a  clew  to  the  object — that  it  was  intended  to  operate 
on  the  minds  of  Peter  and  his  Jewish  brethren  who  came 
with  him.  This  is  more  fully  seen  in  Peter's  vindica- 
tion of  what  he  had  done  in  receiving  the  Gentiles,  after 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  119 

his  return.  He  said  to  the  Jewish  brethren:  "As  I  be- 
gan to  speak"  (to  the  Gentiles),  "the  Holy  Spirit  fell 
on  them  as  on  us  at  the  beginning."  What  does  he 
make  of  that?  Hear  him  further  on  :  "Forasmuch  then 
as  God  gave  them"  (the  Gentiles)  "the  like  gift  as  he 
did  unto  us"  (the  Jews),  "who  believed  on  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  what  was  I,  that  I  could  withstand  God?" 
Any  one  can  see  from  this  that  he  is  giving  his  reasons 
for  receiving  the  Gentiles,  and  that  when  he  sees  that 
the  Holy  Spirit  was  poured  out  on  them  as  it  was  on 
the  Jews,  that  he  must  receive  them  or  withstand  God. 
He  understood,  then,  that  this  outpouring  of  the  Spirit 
on  the  Gentiles  was  intended  to  convince  him  and  his 
brethren  that  God  was  willing  to  receive  them,  and  he 
must  receive  them  or  withstand  God. 

This  perfectly  agrees  with  what  follows.  Peter  says, 
evidently  intended  for  his  Jewish  brethren :  "  Can  any 
man  forbid  water,  that  these  should  not  be  baptized, 
which  have  received  the  Holy  Spirit  as  well  as  we?" 
This  completed  the  matter.  Peter  had  seen  the  vision 
on  the  housetop,  in  which  God  showed  him  that  he 
must  call  no  man  common  or  unclean,  no  matter  of  what 
nation,  or  without  regard  to  blood,  and  that  "in  every 
nation  he  that  feareth  Him,  and  worketh  righteousness, 
is  accepted  with  Him;"  and  that  God  has  given  the 
same  evidence  of  his  willingness  to  receive  the  Gentiles 
as  the  Jews,  and  he  now  puts  the  matter  to  his  Jewish 
brethren :  "  Can  any  man  forbid  water,  that  these  should 
not  be  baptized,  which  have  received  the  Holy  Spirit  as 
well  as  we?"  "Water"  is  put  here  as  a  metonymy,  a 
part  for  the  whole.  As  all  were  received  in  baptism, 
the  water  here  comprehends  the  whole.  They  came  not 
without  the  faith,  nor  without  the  repentance,  nor  with- 
out everything  else;  but  those  who  come  in  faith,  in 


120  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

penitence,  and  the  very  best  state  of  heart,  are  received 
in  the  water  of  baptism,  or  when  immersed  into  Christ; 
the  water  includes  the  whole  idea  of  receiving  them. 
Can  any  man  object  to  receiving  these  Gentiles,  the  same 
as  Jews,  when  they  have  the  same  evidence  of  Grod's 
willingness  to  receive  them  as  we  Jews — "the  like  gift" 
as  that  imparted  to  us? 

The  Jewish  brethren  were  silent;  they  could  not  ob- 
ject. The  history  proceeds:  "And  he  commanded  them 
to  be  baptized  in  the  name  of  the  Lord."  "He  did  not 
say  ^  for  the  remission  of  sins,' "  shouts  some  man.  What 
if  he  did  not?  He  did  say  that  precisely  once  :  "Repent, 
and  be  baptized  every  one  of  you  in  the  name  of  Jesus 
Christ  for  the  remission  of  sins^  and  ye  shall  receive 
the  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit."  If  you  can  get  round  this 
one  place,  where  he  did  say,  "Be  baptized  every  one  of 
you  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  ybr  the  remission  of 
sins,"  you  can  get  round  another  place,  or  fifty  other 
places,  just  as  well.  When  the  Lord  tells  you  in  one 
place  what  haptism  is  for,  it  does  not  set  that  one  place 
aside  if  you  find  baptism  mentioned  in  fifty  places  where 
you  are  not  told  what  it  is  for.  The  one  place  tells 
what  it  is  for  in  every  vlace^  or  simply  what  it  is  for 
any  place  and  all  the  time.  When  the  Lord  tells  us 
what  faith  is  for  in  one  place,  he  tells  what  it  is  for  in 
every  place,  or  in  any  place,  and  all  the  time.  When  he 
tells  us  once  what  anything  is  for,  ^ve  should  remember 
that  wherever  we  find  it,  and  never  forget  what  it  is  for. 
It  is  not  to  be  imagined,  therefore,  because  he  com- 
manded them  to  be  baptized,  and  did  not  tell  them  what 
for^  that  the  baptism  in  that  instance  had  some  other 
design,  or  was  for  something  else.  If  any  one  does  im- 
agine this, -i/^/t^?;  is  that  something  else  that  it  is  for? 
There  is  the  trouble— when  we  depart  from  the  divine 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  121 

appointment,  and  get  something  else  in  view,  we  are 
out  at  sea,  and  no  man  can  tell  what  that  something 
else  is. 

There  are  some  things  quite  evident  and  satisfactory 
about  this  matter.  A  few  of  these  may  be  instanced 
here  as  sufficient. 

1.  The  Lord  says,  in  the  commission:  "He  that  be- 
lieveth  and  is  baptized,  shall  be  saved."  Any  one  can 
see  that  believing  and  being  baptized,  in  this  passage, 
are  in  view  of,  or  look  to  the  same  thing — bring  saved- 
Saved,  here,  is  deliverance  from  sin,  or  pardon.  Two 
things  are  to  be  done  in  view  of,  or  in  order  to  the 
same  end — salvation.  The  words  of  Peter  on  Pentecost 
are  simply  carrying  out  the  same  thing;  the  only  dif- 
ference being  that  the  persons  addressed  already  be- 
lieved, and  were  still  commanded  to  do  two  other  things 
in  view  of,  or  in  order  to  the  same  thing.  These  two 
things  were  to  "  repent  and  be  baptized.''  They  were  to 
be  done  in  view  of  the  same  thing — remission,  or  salva- 
tion from  sins.     This    is   what   they   were    in  order  to. 

2.  Baptism  was  not  to  make  them  members  of  some 
denominatinn  of  Christians^  but  members  of  Christ ; 
not  to  make  them  members  of  some  hranch  of  the 
Church,  but  Iranches  of  GJirist—''  I  am  the  vine,  ye  are 
the  Iranches'' — not  to  make  them  members  of  some 
branch  of  the  body  of  Christ,  but  members  of  the  body 
itself;  not  to  induct  them  into  a  branch  of  the  body, 
but  into  the  body  itself;  not  to  induct  them  into  a  sec- 
tarian name,  but  "into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of 
the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit;"  not  to  induct  them 
into  man,  or  some  institution  of  man,  but  "into 
Christ"  —  the  institution  of  Christ;  not  to  induct 
them  into  a  party  of  the  kingdom,  but  into  the 
kingdom  of  God  itself.     Hence  there  is  not  an  inti- 

11 


122  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

mation  that  any  one  was  in  Christ,  in  the  one  body,  ia 
the  kingdom,  or  in  the  Church,  who  had  not  been  bap- 
tized. Hence,  too,  we  read  of  "  baptizing  them  into  the 
name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,"  being  "baptized  into  Christ,"  "baptized  into 
one  body."  Hence,  too,  the  Lord  says,  "  Except  a  man 
be  born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit,  he  can  not  enter 
into  the  kingdom  of  God." 

3.  It  can  not  be  that  baptism  is  not  for  the  remission 
of  sins;  for  then  it  would  read,  "Repent,  and  be  bap- 
tized every  one  of  you  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  not 
for  the  remission  of  sins."  We  dare  not  interpolate  this 
little  word  "  not."  It  was  tried  once  and  had  death  in 
it.  It  was  interpolated  in  the  words,  "  God  knows  you 
shall  not  surely  die."  It  is  a  dangerous  interpolation, 
and  should  be  avoided  by  all  good  people. 

4.  Baptism  is  not  the  efficacious  power  that  makes 
Christians,  and,  in  itself^  it  may  be  that  it  has  no 
power;  but  it  is  the  visible  line  between  the  kingdom 
of  this  world  and  the  kingdom  of  God,  those  out  of 
Christ  and  those  in  Christ,  the  world  and  the  body  of 
Christ.  All  must  cross  that  line  to  enter  into  Christ, 
into  the  body  or  kingdom,  into  the  name  of  the  Father, 
and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

God  made  no  difference  between  the  Jews  and  the 
Gentiles,  but  purified  their  hearts  by  the  faith  of  Christ 
and  made  them  one.  The  Gentiles  obeyed  the  com- 
mandment, and  were  baptized  in  the  name  of  the  Lord; 
brought  into  one  body ;  united  with  Christ  and  all  that 
are  in  Christ.  The  great  congregation  in  Autioch  was 
raised  up,  as  we  are  informed,  at  one  time,  to  the  enor- 
mous number  of  one  hundred  thouaand^  about  half 
Jews  and  half  Gentiles,  but  now  neither  Jews  nor  Gen» 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  12S 

tiles ;  all  one  in  Christ — all  Christians.     "  Old  things  are 
passed  away;  behold,  all  things  are  become  new." 

Several  important  lessons  are  now  before  us  of  im- 
mense practical  value,  if  rightly  considered  and  used : 

1.  The  division  wall  between  the  Jews  and  Gentiles 
was  placed  there  by  divine  wisdom — God  himself  made 
it.  Circumcision  was  the  mark  designating  those  on 
this  side  and  those  on  that.  They  were  designated  the 
circumcision  and  the  uncircumcision.  This  gave  a  force 
and  significance  to  this  division  that  never  existed  be- 
tween any  other,  except  that  between  the  Church  and 
the  world.  It  could  always  be  argued  in  its  favor  that 
God  made  it. 

2.  It  was  of  the  longest  standing  of  any  other.  From 
the  calling  of  Abraham,  down  through  the  ages,  till  the 
transactions  commented  on  here  occurred,  that  clear 
line,  drawn  by  the  finger  of  God  between  the  seed  of 
Abraham,  or  the  cirumcision — the  Jews,  and  all  other 
nations,  or  the  uncircumcision,  stood  as  an  impassable 
wall — God  himself  forbidding  that  any  man  should 
cross  it. 

3.  It  was  supported  by  as  deep-rooted  and  as  com- 
pletely settled  prejudices  as  any  other  that  ever  existed, 
both  political,  fleshly  and  religious. 

What  a  wonder-working  power  was  that  which  could 
melt  down  such  mountains  of  prejudice,  wipe  it  out, 
revoke,  set  aside  and  do  away  forever  a  division  which 
God  had  made;  which  had  stood  and  been  strictly  ob- 
served for  nearly  two  thousand  years,  and  make  the 
same  people  thus  divided  one;  set  them  down  together 
at  the  feet  of  Jesus  to  be  instructed  by  him,  to  love, 
adore  and  honor  him;  to  talk  of  his  last  words  and 
commemorate  his  last  sufferings;  to  "do  this"  as  he 
commanded  "in  memory  o^me" — "till  I  come!"     The 


124  THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

party  feeling  died  away;  the  enmity  ceased;  the  preju- 
dice disappeared;  the  faith  of  Christ  possessed  their 
hearts;  they  were  filled  with  the  love  of  Christ;  they 
lost  sight  of  flesh  and  blood,  and  were  filled  by  the 
Spirit  of  God.  The  old  temple,  the  altars,  victims, 
priests  and  synagogues,  vanished  away  out  of  the  view 
of  the  Jew;  the  Pagan  god,  the  idol  of  the  G-entile,  the 
images,  temples,  shrines,  with  all  the  ceremony  and  show 
accompanying  them,  vanished  from  the  view  of  the 
Gentile  and  sank  away  into  nothing,  compared  with  the 
religion  of  Christ — the  mighty  power  that  creates  men 
and  women  anew;  makes  them  alive  to  God;  unites 
them  with  God;  puts  the  life  of  God  and  the  Spirit  of 
God  into  them,  and  turns  them  away  from  the  world, 
and  sin,  and  folly,  to  the  true  and  living  God.  This 
mighty  power  they  found  displayed  in  themselves — it 
was  no  idle  dream.  Every  man  knew  in  himself  that 
the  old  man  with  his  deeds  was  put  off,  and  that  the 
new  man  was  put  on;  that  the  love  and  attachment  for 
the  former  things  were  done  away,  and  that  the  affec- 
tions had  been  changed;  set  on  things  above,  where 
Christ  sits  at  the  right  hand  of  God;  that  his  delight  in 
the  former  things  had  passed  away,  and  that  his  soul 
was  enraptured  with  the  new  and  better  way — the  bet- 
ter covenant,  with  better  promises. 

What  may  not  be  done  in  our  day  if  the  hearts  of  the 
people  shall  be  lifted  up  to  that  one  religion  of  Christ, 
and  make  it  the  supreme  and  the  absolute  religion ;  let 
it  fill  the  whole  land,  and  let  everything  else  melt  away 
like  snow  before  the  summer's  sun,  and  let  the  people 
be  one  in  Christ?  That  is  what  is  now  wanting.  We 
have  one  religion  from  God,  and  but  one — we  are  all 
agreed  about  that.  It  is  simply  what  is  set  forth  in 
Scripture;  nothing  else  is  of  divine  authority;  here  is 


THE  CALLING  OF  THE  GENTILES.  125 

the  ground  for  union.  It  is  union  in  Christ,  with  the 
Father  and  with  the  Son,  with  the  whole  family  in  heaven 
and  on  earth.  We  need  go  no  further,  then,  to  find  it, 
but  accept  the  ground  of  union  on  which  the  Jews  and 
Gentiles  united;  unite  on  it  and  be  made  one,  and  then 
turn  round  and  spread  this  union  from  the  rivers  to  the 
ends  of  the  earth,  till  the  nations  under  the  whole 
heaven  shall  come  and  give  the  blessing,  and  the  glory, 
and  the  honor,  to  our  God  and  to  the  Lord  forever  and 
ever.  Can  any  good  man  fail  to  give  it  his  support? 
May  the  spirit  of  union  that  has  gone  forth  go  on,  and 
may  the  desire  for  it  become  deeper  and  deeper,  till 
every  partisan  in  the  world  shall  be  so  changed  that  he 
will  be  willing  to  surrender  everything  not  from  God, 
and  accept  everything  that  is  from  God,  for  the  sake  of 
the  union  of  the  true  Israel  of  God ! 


SERMOE-  ]^o.  YI. 

THEME. — REMISSION  OF  SINS. 

The  Lord  has  determined  that  all,  in  an  unregener- 
ated  state,  are  under  sin,  that  he  might  have  mercy  upon 
all.  He  has  concluded  that  all,  who  have  never  been 
brought  to  Christ,  are  in  unbelief.  The  prophet  of  the 
Lord  says:  "They  have  all  gone  out  of  the  way;"  that 
*' there  are  none  that  do  good:  no  not  one."  The  whole 
world,  without  Christ,  lies  under  the  power  of  the 
wicked  one — they  are  all  lost,  under  guilt,  condemned. 
The  Lord  came  to  save  that  which  was  lost.  He  came 
into  the  world  *'  not  to  condemn,"  or,  rather,  not  to 
judge  "the  w^orld;  but  that  the  world  through  him 
might  be  saved."  He  did  not  come  to  save  anybody 
irresistibly,  "but  that  the  world  through  him  7night  he 
saved^''  or  to  give  all  the  privilege  of  being  saved.  This 
was  in  view  when  the  infinite  breast  was  first  moved 
with  compassion  for  man — when  he  pitied  the  world,  or 
loved  it.  "For  God  so  loved  the  world,  that  he  gave 
his  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  in  him 
should  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting  life." 

The  infinite  goodness  suggested  the  grand  scheme  of 
redemption  for  man;  the  infinite  will  resolved  it;  the 
infinite  wisdom  devised  it;  the  infinite  power  executed 
it.  We  may  regard  every  step  in  the  divine  procedure, 
from  the  eternal  purpose  of  God  down  through  the  ages 
till  sinners  are  redeemed  by  the  blood  of  Jesus,  as  a  link 
in  the  chain  of  events  tending  directly  on  to  mark  out 

(127) 


128  REMISSION  OF  SINS. 

that  which  the  infinite  goodness  suggested,  the  infinite 
will  resolved,  the  infinite  wisdom  devised,  and  the  infin- 
ite power  carried  into  execution.  The  promise  to  Abra- 
ham :  "In  thee  shall  all  nations  be  blessed,"  was  an  im- 
portant item  in  the  great  work,  and  the  time  when  it 
w^as  made  a  distinct  period.  Then  the  lucid  predictions 
of  holy  men  form  grand  items,  or  distinct  links,  in  the 
chain  of  the  divine  procedure,  extending  down  through 
the  ages,  working  out  his  eternal  purpose.  In  fulfillment 
of  the  last  words  of  the  last  prophet  of  the  Old  Testament, 
John  the  Immerser  and  harbinger  of  the  Lord  came; 
the  forerunner  of  the  Messiah,  to  prepare  a  people  for 
him,  than  whom  a  greater  than  he  had  not  been  born 
of  woman.  He  announced  the  near  approach  of  the 
reign  of  heaven,  and,  in  view  of  it,  called  on  the  people 
to  repent.  He  immersed  with  the  immersion  of  repent- 
ance for  the  remission  of  sins,  teaching  the  people  that 
he  was  not  the  Messiah,  but  that  they  must  believe  on 
him  who  was  to  come  after  him — that  is,  on  Christ  Jesus. 
A  few  months  later  the  Lord  entered  his  public  min- 
istry ;  also  teaching  that  the  kingdom  of  God  was  at 
hand,  and  teaching  the  people  to  pray :  "  Thy  kingdom 
come.  Thy  will  be  done  in  earth,  as  it  is  in  heaven."  He 
also  called  twelve  men  and  sent  them  out  to  announce 
the  approaching  reign,  commanding  them  to  go  to  the 
lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel,  but  to  go  not  in  the 
way  of  the  Gentiles.  He  also  subsequently  strengthened 
this  corps  by  adding  seventy  others — all  calling  upon 
the  people  to  repent,  for  the  kingdom  of  God  is  at 
hand.  In  calling,  sending  and  supporting  all  these 
preachers,  there  is  not  as  much  said  about  raising 
money  as  there  is  in  a  district  co-operation  in  sending 
out  one  evangelist.  These  were  important  items  in  the 
divine  procedure ;  but  all  preliminary,  preparatory  and 


REMISSION  OF  SINS.  129 

incipient  in  view  of  opening  up  the  new  institution. 
The  crucifixion  of  the  Lord  ended  all  this  work.  While 
the  apostles,  and  all  these  other  men  whom  he  employed, 
believed  on  him  and  preached  what  he  told  them  to 
preach;  they  supposed  he  would  be  a  temporal  king, 
and  his  kingdom  a  mere  temporal  kingdom.  Having 
this  view,  when  he  died  their  prospects  were  all  blighted, 
their  hopes  all  blasted,  and  they  gave  up  all  as  lost.  The 
Shepherd  was  smitten  and  the  sheep  were  scattered. 
They  gave  up  all  as  lost,  and  returned  to  their  former 
avocation — to  their  fisheries.  A  more  completely  dis- 
appointed, defeated,  disheartened  and  discouraged  set 
of  men  were  never  seen.  They  supposed  the  whole 
matter  was  at  an  end,  and  that  they  were  to  be  regarded 
as  a  poor  and  despised  set  of  dupes.  Not  a  man  of 
them  ever  thought  of  reviving  the  matter  in  any  form; 
not  a  man  of  them  ever  expected  to  see  Jesus  again, 
but  each  of  them  supposed  he  had  not  only  deceived 
them,  but  been  deceived  himself,  had  been  defeated  by 
being  put  to  death,  and  that  the  whole  afiliir  was  ended. 
So  completely  had  this  become  a  settled  conviction 
with  them,  that  when  good  friends  and  true  came  and 
told  that  "the  Lord  is  risen,"  they  did  not  believe  it. 
"It  seemed  to  them  as  idle  tales."  But  when  the  Lord 
appeared  to  them,  Thomas,  the  most  unbelieving  of 
them,  exclaimed:  "My  Lord  and  my  God!"  He  re- 
mained with  them  about  forty  days,  talking  over  thftir 
previous  travels,  work,  conversations,  and  explaining  the 
Scriptures  to  them;  showing  that  all  things  written  by 
Moses,  in  the  prophets  and  in  the  Psalms,  concerning 
him,  had  been  fulfilled;  giving  them  a  full  opportunity 
to  see  him  repeatedly  in  daylight,  to  hear  him,  handle 
him,  eat  with  him  and  drink  with  him,  thus  enabling 


130  REMISSION  OF  SINS. 

them  to  identify  him  and  make  themselves  most  com- 
petent witnesses  of  his  resurrection. 

When  all  things  were  ready,  in  his  last  interview  with 
them,  he  said :  "All  authority  in  heaven  and  on  earth  is 
given  to  me."  This  placed  him  at  the  head — "Head 
over  all  things  to  the  Church;"  "In  him  all  fullness 
dwells;"  he  is  the  Infallibility,  and  from  him  all  author- 
ity must  henceforth  come.  He  proceeds  to  commission 
his  apostles:  "Go  ye  therefore,  and  teach  all  nations, 
immersing  them  into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit:  teaching  them  to  observe 
all  things  whatsoever  I  have  commanded  you:  and,  lo, 
I  am  with  you  ahvay,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world." 
— Matthew  xxviii.  19,  20. 

"Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to 
every  creature.  He  that  believeth  and  is  immersed  shall 
be  saved;  but  he  that  believeth  not  shall  be  damned. 
And  these  signs  shall  follow  them  that  believe;  In  my 
name  shall  they  cast  out  devils;  they  shall  speak  with 
new  tongues;  they  shall  take  up  serpents;  and  if  they 
drink  any  deadly  thing,  it  shall  not  hurt  them;  they 
shall  lay  hands  on  the  sick,  and  they  shall  recover." — 
Mark  xvi.  15-18. 

"Thus  it  is  written,  and  thus  it  behooved  Christ  to 
eufler,  and  to  rise  from  the  dead  the  third  day:  and  that 
repentance  and  remission  of  sins  should  be  preached  in 
bis  name  among  all  nations,  beginning  at  Jerusalem." — 
Luke  xxiv.  46,  47. 

Thus  the  commission  may  be  gathered  as  given  by 
our  Lord  to  the  tw^elve  apostles  from  Matthew,  Mark 
and  Luke.    Paul's  commission  is  in  the  following  w^ords : 

"I  have  appeared  unto  thee  for  this  purpose,  to  make 
thee  a  minister  and  a  witness  both  of  these  thinge  which 
thou  hast  seen,  and  of  those  things  in  the  which  I  will 


REMISSION  OF  SINS.  131 

appear  unto  thee;  delivering  thee  from  the  people,  and 
from  the  Gentiles,  unto  whom  now  I  send  thee,  to  open 
their  eyes,  and  to  turn  them  from  darkness  to  light,  and 
from  th.e  power  of  Satan  unto  God,  that  they  may 
receive  forgiveness  of  sins,  and  inheritance  among  them 
which  are  sanctified  by  faith  that  is  in  me." — Acts  xxvi. 
16-18. 

These  extracts  are  not  different  commissions,  but 
items  of  the  same  commission,  though  that  to  Paul  was 
given  at  a  different  time,  and  to  a  different  person.  It 
was,  nevertheless,  the  commission  to  preach  the  same 
gospel,  for  no  man  was  or  is  allowed  to  preach  any  other 
gospel.  To  get  the  full  commission,  as  it  stands  con- 
nected with  remission  of  sins,  or  man's  salvation  from 
sin,  we  must  gather  it  from  these  items,  as  found 
in  the  several  extracts  now  made  from  different  parts 
of  the  sacred  record.  They  are  items  of  the  same  com- 
mission, to  be  gathered  and  put  together,  and  not  iso- 
lated and  distorted,  into  different  commissions.  What 
do  we  find,  then,  in  this  commission? 

1.  We  find  where  they  were  to  go — into  all  the  world. 

2.  We  learn  to  whom  they  were  to  go — to  all  nations; 
to  every  creature. 

3.  That  they  were  to  preach. 

4.  What  they  were  to  preach — that  they  were  to 
preach  the  gospel. 

5.  That  men  and  women  were  to  htar  the  gospel. 

6.  That  they  were  required  to  lelieve  the  gospel. 

7.  That  they  were  required  to  repent. 

8.  That  they  were  required  to  be  immersed. 

9.  That  all  this  looks  to  salvation  or  remission  of  sina 
as  its  object. 

The  love  of  God  for  man  looks  to  man's  salvation. 
The  sufferings  and  death  of  our  Lord  had  in  view  the 


132  REMISSION  OF  SINS. 

deliverance  of  man  from  sin.  The  commission  the  Lord 
gave  the  apostles  had  in  view  remission  of  sins;  the 
turning  man  from  darkness  to  light,  and  from  the  power 
of  Satan  to  God — saving  him.  The  preaching  of  the 
gospel — the  power  of  God  to  salvation  to  every  one  that 
believes — the  preaching  of  the  cross,  the  wisdom  of  God 
and  the  power  of  God,  has  in  view  man's  salvation.  The 
faith  in  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  is  in  order  to  salvation — 
that  he  who  believes  on  him  may  not  perish,  but  have 
eternal  life.  The  repentance  is  in  view  of  salvation — 
that  men  may  not  perish — "Except  ye  repent,  ye  shall 
likewise  perish."  The  immersion  is  in  view  of  salva- 
tion— "He  that  believeth  and  is  immersed  shall  be  saved^ 
The  whole  procedure,  from  the  eternal  purpose  of  God 
down  to  man's  immersion  into  Christ,  is  in  view  of  man's 
deliverance  from  sin  and  reconciliation  to  God;  and  the 
whole  procedure,  from  his  immersion  into  Christ  through 
his  life,  is  in  view  of  his  eternal  salvation,  or  his  final 
entrance  by  the  strait  gate  into  the  everlasting  city. 
Who  can  deny  thje  design  of  the  commission,  author- 
izing the  apostles  to  preach  repentance  and  remission^ 
to  be  man's  recovery  from  sin?  The  very  object  it  has 
in  view  is  man's  pardon — his  recovery  from  sin,  or  re- 
mission of  sins.  Who  can  deny  that  the  object  of  the 
apostles,  in  preaching  repentance  and  remission  of  sinSy 
under  that  commission,  was  man's  pardon  or  salvation 
from  sin?  E'o  man  of  intelligence  can  fail  to  see  this. 
Who  can  fail  to  see  that  the  belief  of  the  gospel  when 
preached  is  in  view  of  salvation,  or  man  coming  to  God, 
as  he  who  comes  to  him  must  believe?  Can  any  man 
fail  to  see  that  the  repentance  is  in  view  of  the  same 
thing — salvation  or  pardon?  How,  then,  can  any  man 
fail  to  see  that  the  immersion,  connected  with  the  faith^ 
in  the  same  sentence — "He  that  believeth  and   is  im- 


REMISSION  OF  SINS.  133 

mersed  shall  be  saved" — is  in  view  of,  or  in  order  to  the 
same  thing?  JSTothing  short  of  the  most  thick  dark- 
ness could  hide  anything  as  clear  as  this  from  the  eyes 
of  intelligent  people. 

All  admit  that  the  object  of  the  great  commission  is 
man's  recovery  from  sin.  The  object  of  the  apostles  in 
preaching  "repentance  and  remission  of  sins  in  his 
name,"  is  the  salvation  of  man  from  sin.  Their  whole 
life  and  labor  were  in  view  of  that  one  object — man's 
deliverance  from  sin.  Their  preaching  was  all  in  view 
of  that  one  end  or  object;  it  centered  in  that  one  de- 
sign. Hearing  the  gospel  had  in  view  the  same  object, 
and  was  in  order  to  the  same  purpose.  The  belief  of 
the  gospel  had  in  view  the  same  thing — man's  pardon 
or  remission  of  sins — that  man  "might  not  perish,  but 
have  everlasting  life."  Repentance  was  in  view  of  the 
same  thing.  Hence  they  "preached  repentance  and 
remission  of  sins" — taught  "all  men  everywhere  to 
repent,"  in  view  of  the  fact  that  "God  will  judge  the 
world  in  righteousness,  by  that  man  whom  he  has  or- 
dained." The  confession  of  Christ  is  in  view  of  salva- 
tion. "If  thou  shalt  confess  with  thy  mouth  the  Lord 
Jesus,  and  shalt  believe  in  thine  heart  that  God  hath 
raised'him  from  the  dead,  thou  shalt  be  saved.  For  with 
the  heart  man  believeth  unto  righteousness;  and  with 
the  mouth  confession  is  made  unto  salvation."  "  Who- 
soever therefore  shall  confess  me  before  men,  him  will 
I  confess  also  before  my  Father  which  is  in  heaven." 
The  immersion  into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  is  an  item  of  the  commis- 
sion, and  in  view  of,  or  in  order  to  the  same  thing. 
<'He  that  believeth  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved,"  says 
the  Lord. 

What  a  strange  and  blind  infatuation  it  is  that  has 


134  REMISSION  OF  SINS. 

entered  into  the  minds  of  some  men,  that,  after  admit- 
ting that  the  love  of  God  to  man  was  in  view  of  his  sal- 
vation ;  that  the  grace  of  God  was  in  view  of  the  same 
thing,  and  the  gift  of  Christ;  his  wonderful  sufferings 
and  death;  his  shedding  his  blood;  his  entrance  into  the 
true  holy  place,  into  heaven  itself;  with  his  own  blood 
to  appear  in  the  presence  of  God  for  us,  was  all  in  view 
of  man's  salvation — and,  after  admitting  that  the  preach- 
ing of  the  gospel,  and  the  very  commission  authorizing 
it  to  be  preached,  are  in  view  of  the  same  thing;  that 
the  belief  of  the  gospel,  the  repentance  and  confession, 
are  in  view  of  the  same  thing,  and  then  turns  round 
and  denies  that  the  immersion,  an  item  in  the  same  con- 
nection, a  link  in  the  same  chain,  is  not  in  view  of  man's 
salvation ;  not  in  order  to  the  remission  of  sin,  and  has 
not  the  same  object  in  view  as  all  that  has  gone  before 
— is  not  in  order  to  the  same  end!  Among  all  the  un- 
reasonable things  of  our  time,  there  is  nothing  more 
ridiculous,  nothing  more  absurd  and  preposterous. 
Strange,  indeed,  that  in  the  divine  procedure  there 
should  be  such  a  long  chain,  and  every  link  in  it;  such 
a  train  of  items,  and  every  one  in  view  of  the  same 
thing — man's  salvation  from  sin — till  we  come  to  im- 
mersion, into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son, 
and  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  that  one  not  in  view  of 
man's  salvation  at  all,  not  in  order  to  the  same  thing  at 
all,  not  in  view  of  salvation  from  sin  at  all ! 

Come  up  and  let  us  look  the  matter  square  in  the 
face.  The  Lord  connects  faith  and  immersion  together 
in  the  same  sentence,  in  the  commission,  in  view  of  the 
same  object.  That  object  is  salvation  from  sin,  or  re- 
mission of  sin,  in  the  words,  "  He  that  believeth  and  is 
immersed  shall  be  saved."  Strike  out  the  words,  "  and 
is  immersed,"  and  read,  "He  that   believeth  shall   be 


REMISSION  OF  SINS.  135 

saved" — and  ask  any  one  what  the  belief  is  for,  or  what 
it  has  for  its  object,  or  is  in  order  to,  and  the  answer 
will  be — salvation.  Not  a  man  in  a  thousand  would 
miss  it.  Well,  the  same  words  precisely  here  that  tell 
us  what  faith  is  for,  or  what  object  it  has  in  view,  tell 
us  what  the  immersion  is  for,  or  what  object  it  has  in 
view,  when  the  words,  "  and  is  immersed,"  are  left  in 
the  sentence  where  the  Lord  inserted  them.  The  same 
words,  in  the  same  sentence,  in  the  commission,  tell  us 
what  both  the  faith  and  immersion  have  in  view — and 
that  is  salvation.  "He  that  believeth  and  is  immersed" 
— two  things  for  the  creature  to  do — and  what  is  the 
promise  of  the  Lord?  "Shall  be  saved."  That  is  the 
object  in  view  in  both  believing  and  being  immersed. 
There  is  not  a  reason  for  any  man  refusing  to  do  both, 
in  view  of  the  same  object — salvation  or  pardon. 

The  Divine  Spirit,  Acts  ii.  38,  connected  both  repent- 
ance and  immersion  in  the  same  sentence,  iu  view  of 
the  same  thing — remission  of  sins.  He  commanded 
believers  to  "Repent,  and  be  immersed  every  one  of  you 
in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  for  the  remission  of  sins." 
The  same  words  here  that  tell  us  what  the  repentance  is 
for,  or  in  order  to,  or  what  men  are  to  have  in  view  of 
repenting,  tell  us  also  what  they  are  to  have  in  vie;stV  of 
being  immersed.  Kot  only  the  same  words,  but  in  the 
scrme  se7itence^  tell  us  what  is  in  view  in  both  repenting 
and  being  immersed.  They  are  both  in  view  of  the 
same  thing — remission  of  sins.  The  object  the  sinner 
has,  the  seeker,  or  subject,  is  remission  of  sins.  He 
repents  and  is  immersed  in  view  of  this  object.  Strike 
the  words,  "and  is  immersed,"  out,  and  inquire  what  the 
repentance  has  in  view,  or  is  in  order  to,  and  it  is  plain. 
It  will  then  read,  "Repent,  every  one  of  you  in  the 
name  of  Jesus  Christ  for  the  remission  of  sins."    Every 


136  REMISSION  OF  SINS. 

one  will  see  the  object  repentance  has  in  view  at  once, 
or  what  it  is  in  order  to.  i^ot  a  man  will  say,  *'  It  is 
'bt'caics<3  of  par  don  P  Eepentance  is  not  hecausc  we  are 
pardoned^  but  in  view  of  being  pardoned,  or  in  order 
to  pardon.  It  is  an  item  to  be  done  in  the  road  to 
pardon,  and  not  something  to  be  done  after  pardon,  and 
because  we  are  pardoned.  This  no  one  can  fail  to  see 
who  will  consult  the  words  as  we  have  quoted  them. 
Well,  the  precise  same  words,  in  the  same  sentence,  in 
the  Scripture,  tell  us  the  design  of  immersion,  or  the 
object  in  view  in  being  inimersed.  The  two  things, 
*' repent,  and  be  immersed,"  in  the  same  sentence,  are 
joined  together  by  the  conjunction  "and,"  in  view  of 
the  same  end  or  object.  That  end  or  object  is  remission 
of  sins.  No  one  can  fail  to  see  this  who  will  view  the 
matter  with  a  simple  desire  to  know  the  truth. 

In  the  commission  the  Lord  puts  faith  and  immersion 
in  the  same  sentence,  in  order  to,  or  in  view  of  the  same 
object — salvation.  The  apostle,  in  the  first  discourse 
under  that  commission,  connected  repentance  and  im- 
mersion together,  in  the  same  sentence,  in  order  to  the 
same  end,  or  in  view  of  the  same  object — salvation,  or 
remission  of  sins.  This  connects  the  faith,  repentance 
and  immersion  together;  all  in  view  of  the  same  thing 
— remission  of  sins.  Paul  connects  the  confession  with 
the  same  thing,  or  puts  it  in  view  of  the  same  object. 
"If  thou  shalt  confess  with  thy  mouth  the  Lord  Jesus, 
and  shalt  believe  in  thine  heart  that  God  hath  raised 
Mm  from  the  dead,  thou  shalt  be  saved.  For  w^ith  the 
heart  man  believeth  unto  righteousness ;  and  with  the 
mouth  confession  is  made  unto  salvation."  This  puta 
the  faith,  repentance  and  confession  all  together,  in 
order  to  the  same  end.  The  immersion  is  the  complet- 
ing item  in  the  list,  or  the  last  item  before  coming  to 


REMISSION  OF  SINS.  137 

the  promise,  the  last  step  in  the  process  of  turning  to 
the  Lord,  and  the  one  in  which  man  is  received. 

TVhen  Peter  had  spoken  to  the  Gentiles,  and  the  Lord 
had  extended  the  "like  gift"  to  them  as  he  did  to  the 
Jews,  and  thus  given  them  the  same  evidence  of  his  will- 
ingness to  receive  them  the  same  as  the  Jews,  Peter  put 
the  question,  "  Can  any  man  forhid  water,  that  these 
should  not  be  immersed,  which  have  received  the  Holy 
Spirit  as  well  as  we?"  They  now  had  the  gospel,  had 
heard  it  preached,  believed  it,  had  the  privilege  of  re- 
pentance granted  to  them,  and  God  had  sjiown  them 
that  he  was  ready  to  receive  them,  and,  as  this  was  done 
in  immersion,  he  inquired:  "Can  any  man  forbid  water, 
that  these  should  not  be  immersed,  which  have  received 
the  Holy  Spirit  as  well  as  we?" 

This  is  wiiere  we  find  immersion  placed  in  the  com- 
mission. It  is  for  the  penitent  believer,  who  desires  to 
come  to  Christ  and  be  accepted  of  him.  He  is  the 
proper  subject  to  be  immersed  into  the  name  of  the 
Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  It  is 
the  time  he  comes  into  the  name,  or  takes  the  name  on 
him,  that  he  is  accepted  of  the  Lord,  or  received  into 
covenant  with  him.  The  entire  process  is  in  view  of 
this  consummation ;  his  having  this  sacred  name  on  him  ; 
being  accepted  of  God,  and  adopted  into  the  heavenly 
family.  The  immersion  is  but  the  completion  of  the 
process.  This  gives  a  reason  for  its  occupying  the  con- 
spicuous place  it  does  in  so  many  Scriptures,  now  to  be 
introduced  and  commented  on. 

That  it  is  not  the  insignificant  Ciremony  some  make 
it,  is  clear  from  several  considerations : 

1.  Its  place  in  the  great  commission,  connected  with 
the  entrance,  "into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit,"  and  salvation,  as  has 
12 


138  REMISSION  OF  SINS. 

abundantly  appeared  from  the  foregoing  reasonings  and 
Scriptures.  It  is  the  very  act  in  whieh  the  penitent  be- 
liever enters  into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  faith,  the  repentance, 
the  confession ;  all  the  change  in  heart,  feeling  and  life, 
are  in  tlie  man^  and  preparatory  to  the  transfer  into 
the  new  state,  or  "into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of 
the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit."  This  transfer  into 
this  name,  brings  a  man  to  pardon,  or  acceptance  with 
God. 

2.  The  Lord  says:  *' Except  a  man  be  born  again,  he 
can  not  see  the  kingdom  of  God."  The  ''teacher  in 
Israel,"  and  "ruler  among  the  Jews,"  could  not  under- 
stand how  a  man  could  be  "born  again,"  or  "born  when 
he  is  old."  The  Lord  proceeded  to  express  a  little  more, 
or  the  same  thing  a  little  fuller.  "  Yerily,  verily,  I  say 
unto  thee,  Except  a  man  be  born  of  water  and  of  the 
Spirit,  he  can  not  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God."  But 
now,  does  the  Lord,  by  being  "born  of  water,"  mean 
haptism,  or,  which  is  the  same,  immersion  f  That  he 
means  baptism  has  the  unanimous  sanction  of  the  first 
church;  it  has  the  unanimous  sanction  of  the  fathers, 
so-called;  the  Greek  Church  gives  it  the  same  significa- 
tion; the  Homish  Church  does  the  same;  the  Church 
of  England  quotes  these  words  and  applies  them  to  bap- 
tism in  her  ritual ;  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  copies 
the  same  from  the  Church  of  England,  and  indorses  it  in 
her  ritual;  the  Presbyterian  Church,  in  her  Confession 
of  Faith,  quotes  the  words,  "born  of  water,"  John  iii. 
5,  and  applies  them  to  baptism— in  one  word,  the  main 
standard  works  in  all  the  churches  of  any  note;  the 
criticisms,  the  commentaries,  etc.,  have  adopted  the 
same  application.  From  this  there  has  been  no  dissent 
of  any  consequence  among  the  distinguished  reformers. 


REMISSION  OF  SINS.  139 

critics,  commentators,  annotators,  translators  and  his- 
torians. Scarcely  anything  has  been  more  universally 
assented  to  than  that  our  Lord  meant  baptism  by  the 
figurative  expression,  "born  of  water,"  till  the  special 
pleading  of  the  nineteenth  century  was  introduced.  But 
special  pleading  has  no  respect  to  facts,  to  authorit}^ 
or  testimon}^,  or  anything  except  to  make  a  case.  It 
never  examines  any  Scripture  with  a  view  simply  to 
ascertaining  the  meaning  of  it. 

What  does  our  Lord  mean  by  being  "born  again ?'^ 
This  evidently  includes  the  entire  process  of  turning  ta 
God,  or,  which  is  the  same,  conversion.  It  includes  the 
entire  matter  of  induction  into  the  kingdom  of  God. 
The  phrase,  "born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit,"  includes 
the  «arae,  but  is  a  little  fuller  statement  of  the  same 
thing.  One  thing,  however,  is  clear,  and  that  is,  that 
whatever  is  included  in  the  words,  "born  of  water  and 
of  the  Spirit,"  must  go  before  entering  into  the  king- 
dom of  God.  The  kingdom  of  God,  here,  is  the  body 
of  Christ,  or  the  Church  of  God.  Entering  into  it  is 
not  the  same  thing  as  remission  of  sins;  yet  none  enter 
into  the  kingdom  of  God  who  are  not  pardoned,  or  who 
do  not  obtain  remission  of  sins.  When  we  learn  how 
a  man  gets  into  the  kingdom  of  God,  we  learn  how 
he  obtains  remission  of  sins;  for  the  same  process  brings 
a  man  into  the  kingdom  and  to  the  remission  of  sins^ 
and  none  enter  into  the  kingdom  that  do  not  obtain 
remission  of  sins.  When  the  Lord  says,  "  Except  a  man 
be  born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit,  he  can  not  enter  inta 
the  kingdom  of  God,"  he  virtually  says,  "  Except  a  man 
be  born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit,  he  can  not"  ohtain 
remission  of  sins;  for  he  can  not  obtain  remission  of 
sins  without  entering  into  the  kingdom  of  God. 

Whatever  may  be  argued  beside,  when  Peter  says: 


140  REMISSION  OF  SINS. 

^'Repent  ye  therefore,  and  be  converted,  that  your  sins 
may  be  blotted  out,"  that  which  is  included  in  the 
words,  "Repent  ye  therefore,  and  be  converted,"  goes 
before  the  blotting  out  of  sins,  and  is  in  view  of  it,  or 
in  order  to  it.  "Blotting  out  sins"  is  pardon,  or  remis- 
sion. The  persons  to  whom  the  apostle  addressed  this 
language  already  believed.  This  is  clear  from  the  lan- 
guage he  had  just  uttered,  and  the  word,  "therefore," 
embracing  w^hat  had  gone  before.  It  is  to  this  effect: 
Inasmuch  as  what  I  have  said  to  you  is  so,  "Repent 
ye  therefore,  and  be  converted,  that  your  sins  may  be 
blotted  out."  As  they  already  believed,  what  he  com- 
manded them  to  do  completed  the  entire  process  of 
what  was  to  be  done  in  order  to  remission,  or  the  blot- 
ting out  sins.  It  included  all  that  comes  after  faith 
in  the  process  of  turning  to  God,  or  in  coming  to  re- 
mission of  sins;  and  there  is  not  a  promise  that  any 
man  can  come  to  remission  of  sins  short  of  this;  nor 
can  any  man  give  a  reason  for  not  encouraging  the  sin- 
ner to  come  to  the  Lord  by  faith,  by  repenting  and  turn- 
ing, as  here  enjoined,  that  his  sins  may  he  hlotted  out. 
They  are  not  blotted  out,  or  forgiven,  as  soon  as  he  be- 
lieves, nor  as  soon  as  he  believes  and  repents,  nor  till 
he  does  what  is  embraced  in  the  words,  "  and  be  con- 
verted," or  in  the  word  turn.  This  shows  that  they 
were  not  converted.,  or  turned,  by  believing  alone,  or 
repenting  alone,  or  by  believing  and  repenting  both  to- 
gether; for  he  adds,  "and  be  converted,"  or  turn.  As 
they  already  believed,  and  as  he  commanded  them  to 
"repent,"  and  then  followed  with  the  clause,  "and  be 
converted,"  any  one  can  see  that  they  were  not  con- 
verted by  faith  alone,  or  faith  and  repentance  alone. 
What,  then,  was  added  to  this  in  which  they  turned  to 
the  Lord?     The  faith  prepared  them  in  heart  to  turn, 


RKMISSIOX  OF  SINS.  141 

or  really  turn  d  them  in  heart,  and  the  repentance  pre- 
pared them  in  life  to  turn,  or  really  turned  them  in  life; 
no-thing  remained  but  the  visible  act  in  which  a  man 
gives  himself  to  God,  or  turns  to  God,  The  visible  act 
in  which  the  penitent  believer  turns  to  God,  gives  him- 
self, or  vows  allegiance  to  God,  is  immersion  into  the 
name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.  This  is  the  closing  act,  the  completing  point, 
the  conclusion  of  the  process,  the  birth  of  the  child  that 
brino:s  it  into  the  new  state,  into  the  new  kin2:dom  and 
into  the  heavenly  family.  This  process  is  in  order  to 
the  remission  of  sins,  or  salvation  from  sins.  It  is  the 
turning-point.  From  this  time  forward  he  is  held  re- 
sponsible as  a  member  of  the  body,  a  child  of  God  and 
a  citizen  of  the  kingdom.  The  baptism  is  the  dividing 
line  between  the  old  and  new  life,  between  the  Church 
and  the  world,  between  the  converted  and  unconverted 
state.  The  life  before  his  immersion  is  all  passed  by, 
and  left  out  of  view ;  and  if  the  life  from  his  immersion 
forward  is  all  right,  all  is  well  so  far  as  character  or  life 
is  concerned.     This  is  clear  from  many  Scriptures. 

The  immersion  is  referred  to  as  the  turning-point.  It 
is  at  the  time  of  the  immersion  the  relation  is  changed. 
The  chiildren  of  Israel  were  "all  immersed  into  Moses 
in  the  cloud  and  in  the  sea."  They  did  not  come  into 
Moses  first,  and  then  be  immersed  in  Moses,  but  they 
were  all  immersed  into  Moses.  The  immersion  was  not 
an  institution  in  Moses,  for  the  observance  of  the  dis- 
ciples of  Moses,  but  the  appointment  of  God  by  which 
they  were  brought  into  Moses.  There  was  but  one  im- 
mersion into  Moses,  as  they  entered  into  Moses  but 
once.  "So  many  of  us  as  have  been  immersed  into 
Jesus  Christ,  have  put  on  Christ."  We  do  not  come 
into  Christ  first,  and  then  be  immersed  in  Christ,  as  an 


142  REMISSION  OF  SINS. 

item  of  CTiristian  practice  in  Christ.  No  one  who  \.  as 
in  Christ  was  immersed,  but  those  not  in  Christ  were 
immersed  into  Christ.  It  was  then  that  thej  put  Jiim 
on^  or  took  him  to  be  their  Leader,  or  Head.  Here,  too, 
they  came  to  pardon,  or  remission  of  sins,  when  they 
-came  into  Christ,  or  were  immersed  into  Christ.  All  in 
Christ  are  pardoned,  or  have  received  remission  of  sins. 

We  are  all  immersed  into  one  body.  We  do  not  come 
into  the  body  first,  and  then  be  immersed  in  the  body. 
There  is  no  account  of  any  in  the  body  being  immersed, 
or  any  one  being  immersed  in  the  lody.  There  is  no 
such  an  institution  as  immersion  in  the  body.  Those  in 
the  body  had  been  immersed  into  it,  but  none  were  ever 
immersed  after  they  were  in  the  body.  When  they 
were  immersed  into  one  hody^  they  were  done  with  im- 
mersion, and  had  no  more  to  do  with  it  forever.  It  is 
not  a  "  Church  ordinance,"  but  the  initiatory  rite,  or  the 
act  in  which  we  are  transferred  into  one  body,  and  con- 
sequently to  the  remission  of  sins.  It  is  not  the  act  of 
a  member  of  the  body,  but  the  act  of  one  hecoming  a- 
member  of  the  body.  This  is  the  reason  we  are  never 
immersed  but  once;  we  never  enter  into  Christ,  into  the 
body,  or  hecome  a  member  of  the  body  but  once.  This 
is  too  clear  to  need  further  argument. 

Paul  commands:  "Husbands,  love  your  wives,  even 
as  Christ  also  loved  the  Church,  and  gave  himself  for 
it;  that  he  might  sanctify  and  cleanse  it  with  the  wash- 
ing of  water  by  the  word."  The  "washing  of  water" 
here  is  baptism,  as  all  the  authorities  of  any  note  admit, 
and  "cleanse"  is  undoubtedly  remission  of  sins.  It  is 
"by  the  word."  What  does  this  mean?  The  Vv^ord  is 
from  the  Spirit;  the  Spirit  is  from  Christ;  Christ  is 
from  God.  The  w^hole,  then,  is  from  God,  who  gave 
Christ,  and  from  Christ,  who  loved  the  Church  and  gave 


REMISSION  OF  SINS.  143 

himself  for  it,  and  from  the  Spirit,  who,  through  the 
apostles,  spoke  the  word,  and  thus  directed  them  to  the 
water,  or  to  immersion,  that  they  might  be  sanctified  or 
set  apart  to  the  service  of  God,  and  cleansed  by  the 
blood  of  Jesus,  and  thus  introduced  into  the  heavenly 
family.  They  were  not  sanctified  and  cleansed  first, 
and  then  washed  in  water,  but  sanctified  and  cleansed 
with  the  washing  of  water  by  the  word.  Here,  again, 
the  "washing  with  water"  stands  connected  with  sanc- 
tifying and  cleansing,  or  the  remission  of  sins,  and  there 
is  no  escape  from  it,  nor  any  reason  that  :any  man  who 
intends  that  the  Lord  shall  guide  him  should  try  to 
evade  it.  But  some  one  fears  that,  according  to  this, 
our  salvation  is  of  uiorks  !  ISTo  one  need  fear  this,  for 
Paul  says:  "]!^ot  by  works  of  righteousness  which  we 
have  done,  but  according  to  his  mercy  he  saved  us,  by 
the  washing  of  regeneration,  and  renewing  of  the  Holy 
Spirit." — See  Titus  iii.  5.  Several  items  of  great  im- 
portance may  be  gathered  from  this. 

1.  That  it  is  God  that  saves  lis. 

2.  That  it  is  not  hy  works  of  righteousness  which  we 
have  done. 

3.  That  it  is  according  to  his  mercy. 

4.  That  it  is  being  justified  hy  his  grace. 

5.  That  it  is  by  the  washing  of  regeneration. 

That  the  "  washing  of  regeneration,"  here,  is  baptism, 
is  the  almost  unanimous  sense  of  all  the  authorities 
worth  consulting.  When  God  then  saves  us,  pardons 
or  justifies  us,  by  his  grace,  according  to  his  mercy,  and 
*^not  by  works  of  righteousness  which  we  have  done," 
it  is  by  baptism,  immersion,  or  the  washing  of  regener- 
ation. The  baptism  is  not  in  the  way  of  his  grace,  his 
mercy,  or  of  saving  us  without  works.  But,  according 
to  this  Scripture,  when  God  saves  us,  according  to  his 


144  REMISSION  OF  SINS. 

mercy ^  justifies  us  hy  grace^  and  not  hy  worhs^  he  does  it 
"by  the  washing  of  regeneration^  and  renewing  of  the 
Holy  Spirit''^  This  Scripture  teaches  us  how  this  renew- 
ing can  be  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  according  to  his  mercy, 
all  of  God,  justification  by  grace,  and  not  of  works,  and 
yet  "%  the  washing  of  regeneration^^''  or  baptism. 

Whole  bottles  of  ink  have  been  written  up,  and  tons 
of  paper  used,  in  showing  that  justification  is  by  grace, 
and  not  of  works,  with  no  higher  or  more  worthy  object 
in  view  than  trying  to  hoodwink  the  people  and  deceive 
them  with  the  idea  that  if  God  saves  a  man,  does  it  ac- 
cording to  his  mercy,  justifies  him  by  grace,  and  not  by 
works,  it  is  not  by  baptism ;  yet  here  is  the  very  con- 
nection in  which  we  are  informed  that  God  saves  us 
according  to  his  mercy,  justifies  us  by  grace,  and  with- 
out works — we  are  informed  that  it  is  "by  the  washing 
of  regeneration,"  or,  which  is  the  same,  hy  haptism.  In 
whatever  sense  a  man  may  take  that  Scripture,  he  can 
not  take  it  that  "saves  us,  hy  the  washing  of  regenera- 
tion,'' or  by  baptism,  means  saves  us,  without  the  wash- 
ing of  regeneration,  or  baptism.  Yet  such  is  precisely 
the  meaning  of  much  of  the  sophistry  we  have  on  this 
subject. 

It  is  not  a  question  making  much  of  baptism,  or  little 
of  it,  but  about  submitting  to  it  in  its  proper  place,  or 
setting  it  aside  entirely.  Which  shall  be  done?  Shall 
it  be  maintained  as  a  positive  divine  institution,  the  ini- 
tiatory rite  into  the  body  of  Christ,  the  consummating 
act  in  coming  to  God,  or  an  unmeaning  ceremony  to  be 
practiced  by  Christians?  It  is  certainly  not  an  item  in 
the  practice  of  one  in  Christ,  or  in  the  body,  or  a 
member  of  the  body.  We  find  no  account  of  any  one 
who  was  already  in  Christ  being  baptized,  or  any  one 
being  baptized  after  such  an  one  was  in  Christ.     It  was 


REMISSION  OF  SINS.  145 

<iot  a  thing  done  after  persons  were  in  the  body,  but  on 
coniing  into  the  body.  Hence  we  find  the  following  ex- 
pressions: ^'Lest  any  should  say  I  had  immersed  into 
my  own  name;"  "Into  what  then  were  you  immersed?" 
"  They  were  immersed  into  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus;" 
"Immersed  into  one,  body;"  "Immersed  into  Christ;" 
"Immersing  them  into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of 
the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit." 

It  is  connected  with  salvation,  justification  or  pardon. 
"He  that  believeth  and  is  immersed  shall  be  saved." 
"  Repent,  and  be  immersed  every  one  of  you  in  the  name 
of  Jesns  Christ  for  the  remission  of  sins,  and  ye  shall 
receive  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit."  He  "sanctified 
and  cleansed  it  with  the  washing  of  water  by  the  word." 
He  "saved  us,  by  the  washing  of  regeneration,  and  re- 
newing of  the  Holy  Spirit."  "The  like  figure  where- 
unto  even  baptism  doth  also  now  save  us  (not  the  put- 
ting away  of  the  filth  of  the  flesh,  but  the  answer  of  a 
good  conscience  toward  God),  by  the  resurrection  of 
Jesus  Christ." 

We  find  immersion  always  connected  with  turning  to 
God.  On  Pentecost,  as  many  as  gladly  received  the 
word  were  immersed,  and  the  same  day  there  were 
about  three  thousand  souls  added  to  them.  In  Samaria 
the  believers  were  immersed.  When  the  gospel  came 
to  the  Gentiles,  as  many  as  turned  to  the  Lord  were 
immersed.  When  the  Ethiopian  officer  received  the 
gospel,  he  was  immersed.  When  Saul  of  Tarsus  be- 
lieved on  Christ,  he  was  immersed.  When  Lydia  and 
the  Philippian  jailer  received  the  word,  they  were  im- 
mersed. Xot  one  came  into  the  Church  without  im- 
mersion in  the  apostolic  age.  It  was  not  an  item  in  the 
worship,  or  the  practice  in  the  Church,  but  an  item  in 
coming  into  the  Church. 
13 


146  REMISSION  OF  Sli^S. 

"Was  it  connected  with  faith  ?  It  certainly  was ;  for 
*^he  who  comes  to  God  7nust  helieve:^''  "Without  faith 
it  is  impossible  to  please  Him;"  "Whatever  is  not  of 
faith  is  sin;"  "He  that  believeth  and  is  immersed  shall 
be  saved ; "  "  If  thou  believest  with  all  thine  heart,  thou 
mayest,"  said  Philip — that  is,  you  may  he  immersed; 
""  Simon  himself  also  believed  and  was  immersed."  Thus 
we  see  it  is  connected  with  faith,  and  not  for  any  human 
beings  without  faith^  no  matter  whether  infants  or 
adults.  Disconnected  with  faith,  or  without  faith,  it  is 
the  empty  ceremony  some  would  represent  it  to  be. 
ISTor  is  it  for  the  impenitent.  The  commandment  is: 
'-'-Repent^  and  be  immersed,"  and  the  immersion  without 
the  repentance  would  be  perfectly  empty  and  idle.  The 
probability,  however,  is  that  but  few  impenitent  persons 
come  to  immersion.  Such  persons  are  much  more  liable 
to  stand  off  and  sneer  at  it.  If  they  are  present  when 
it  is  administered,  they  may  be  seen  generally  pretty 
well  back  in  the  assembly,  or  on  some  eminence,  and  if 
not  sneering  and  ridiculing,  looking  on  with  contempt. 
They  look  on  it  as  a  simple  thing.  Indeed,  it  must  so 
appear  to  all  persons  without  faith.  It  is  perfectly 
meaningless  to  a  man  without  faith. 

In  the  nature  of  the  case,  there  must  be  some  way  by 
which  man  can  come  and  have  assurance  of  his  accept- 
ance with  Grod.  That  assurance  must  come  from  God 
in  some  shape.  It  must  be  a  revelation — it  must,  in 
some  way,  reveal  to  us  that  we  are  accepted  or  pardoned ; 
it  must  be  an  old  revelation,  or  a  n<:%o  one ;  it  must  be  a 
revelation  in  the  Bihle^  or  one  not  in  it.  Does  God 
make  any  revelations  now.,  or  does  he  make  any  new 
revelations?  Mormons  claim  that  he  does;  Papists 
claim  that  he  does;  all  Protestants  deny  this.  Does 
Ood  now  make  any  revelations  of  an}^  sort?     Are  there 


REMISSION  OF  SINS.  147 

any  new  revelations  from  God  ?  If  there  are,  what  are 
they?  How  is  it  proved  that  they  are  from  God?  What 
confidence  have  we,  or  can  we  have,  that  anything  neiv, 
claiming  to  be  a  revelation  from  God,  is  from  God  at 
all  f  Prof.  Stowe,  in  his  great  work,  "  The  History  of  the 
Books  of  the  Bible,"  gives  samples  from  the  apocryphal 
writings,  that  we  may  lay  them  along  side  of  the  genuine 
books  of  the  Bible,  and  thus  judge  whether  they  ema- 
nated from  the  same  mind,  came  from  the  same  hand,  or 
bear  the  same  impress.  We  have  subjected  some  of  the 
pretended  revelations  of  modern  Spiritists  to  the  same 
test.  They  appear  at  a  terrible  disadvantage  when  tried 
in  this  way.  In  the  same  way,  these  new  revelations 
of  acceptance  with  God,  or  that  bring,  or  profess  to 
bring,  the  assurance  that  God  has  pardoned  sinners, 
appear  at  a  wonderful  disadvantage  w^hen  compared 
with  the  evidence  they  had  in  the  time  of  the  apostles. 
The  evidence  they  had  is  in  the  Bible;  in  the  promise 
of  God,  confirmed  by  the  oath  of  God,  that  we  might 
have  strong  consolation.  Do  you  inquire  where  that 
promise  is?  It  is  in  the  commission:  "He  that  believeth 
and  is  immersed  shall  he  sav  d.^^  This  is  no  new  reve- 
lation, but  the  revelation  by  Christ  and  the  apostles. 
The  evidence  of  acceptance  is  in  three  words,  "  shall  be 
saved.''  To  w4iom  do  these  w^ords  apply?  To  him  ivJio 
believes  and  is  immersed.  On  Pentecost,  when  persons 
inquired,  "Men  and  brethren,  what  shall  we  do?"  the 
apostle  replied:  "Repent,  and  be  immersed  every  one 
of  you  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  for  the  remission  of 
sins,  and  you  shall  receive  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit." 
These  persons  already  believed.  They  heard  what  had 
been  said  and  believed,  and  consequently  were  jpierced 
in  their  hearts.  This  is  the  reason  they  were  not  com- 
manded to  believe;  but  the  apostle  commenced  at  the 


148  REMISSION  0^  SINS. 

next  thing  lying  before  them  and  commanded  them  to 
"  iiepent,  and  be  immersed  every  one  of  you  in  the  name 
of  Jesus  Christ  for  the  remission  of  sins,  and  you  shall 
receive  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit."  Where  is  the 
evidence  of  acceptance  here?  In  the  promise  of  God — 
in  the  words,  "  and  you  shall  receive  the  gift  of  the  Holy 
ISjpivitP  To  wnom  does  that  promise  apply?  To  he- 
lievers,  who  are  pierced  in  their  hearts,  repent  and  are 
im/inersed.  Put  this  and  the  words  in  the  comm^ission, 
"  shall  be  saved,"  together,  and  you  have  evidence  from 
God  of  acceptance,  not  from  a  pretented  new  revelation, 
or  some  impulse  immediately  from  God,  but  the  reliable 
aod  tiual  revelation  from  God,  made  and  confirmed 
eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  not  one  promise  of  which 
ever  failed.  Put  this  immutable  promise,  confirmed  by 
the  oath  of  God,  along  side  of  an  impression,  a  sensa- 
tion, an  emotion,  a  sound,  sight,  or  dream,  such  as  thou- 
sands in  our  day  are  taking  for  evidence  of  pardon,  or 
acceptance  with  God,  and  you  have  the  contrast. 

Is  it  possible  to  call  men  back  to  the  revelation  from 
God,  to  the  religion  of  Christ  itself,  to  the  gospel  of 
the  grace  of  God?  Or  are  the  people  of  our  day  aban- 
doned of  God  and  given  over  to  delusion?  Is  it  possi- 
ble that  the  people  would  rather  be  under  the  influence 
of  the  visionary,  doubtful  and  uncertain,  than  the  clear, 
authoritative  and  immutable  revelation  from  God  and 
his  unfailing  promise?  Those  who  come  to  their  reason, 
and  hear  the  Lord,  will  live,  and  those  who  turn  away 
from  him  will  be  lost. 


SEEMON  :n"o.  yii. 

THEME. — THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

It  should  be  distinctly  understood  that  the  subject 
here  introduced  is  of  no  importance,  only  connected 
with  the  gospel  in  man's  salvation,  and  with  a  proper 
subject.  To  a  man  without  faith  it  is  a  matter  of  no 
consequence.  To  him  there  is  not  a  more  empty  and 
unmeaning  thing  in  the  world  than  baptism,  and,  with 
him,  it  matters  not  one  particle  what  the  action  is, 
whether  it  be  the  action  of  a  few  drops  falling  on  the 
forehead,  or  the  action  a  larger  quantity  poured  on  the 
head,  or  the  action  of  immersing  a  man  in  water — for 
he  does  not  believe  there  is  any  divine  authority  in  any 
of  it.  But  to  a  man  who  believes  that  Jesus  of  Naza- 
reth is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God;  that  he 
is  divine;  that  all  the  fullness  of  the  Deity  dwells  sub- 
stantially in  him;  that  all  authority  in  heaven  and  on 
earth  is  given  to  him;  and  that  he  gave  the  last  com- 
mission :  "  Go  ye  therefore,  and  teach  all  nations,  bap- 
tizing them  into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit:  teaching  them  to  observe 
all  things  whatsoever  I  have  commanded  you'" — it  is 
important  to  know  what  he  meant  when  he  said,  "  bap- 
tizing them."  What  he  here  commanded  the  apostles 
to  do,  could  not  have  been  done  without  knowing  what 
he  meant  by  these  words. 

This  is  to  be  the  matter  of  inquiry  in  this  discourse. 
When  the  Lord  says,  "He  that  believeth  and  is  baptized 

(149) 


150  ,        THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

shall  be  saved,"  all  who  want  the  salvation  promised, 
desire  to  know  what  it  is  to  helieve  and  be  haptized. 
When  Peter  "commanded  them  to  be  baptized  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord,"  at  the  house  of  Cornelius,  all  who 
are  disposed  to  obey  the  command,  need  to  know  pre- 
cisely what  they  did  to  obey.  ITo  man  can  know  that  he 
has  obeyed  that  command,  that  does  not  know  precisely 
what  was  commanded.  Mr.  "Wesley  says :  "  The  mode 
is  not  revealed."  Others  have  said  the  same.  Mode 
means  manner,  form,  or  way;  and  the  man  who  says, 
*'The  mode  is  not  revealed,"  says  the  manner,  form,  or 
way  to  obey  the  command  is  not  revealed.  But  this  is 
only  kicking  up  dust  to  obscure,  and  not  affording  light 
by  which  to  see.  It  is  assuming  that  a  command  is 
given  without  telling  what  is  commanded.  A  command 
in  the  nature  of  the  case  requires  something  to  he  done^ 
and  must  tell  what  is  to  he  done.  This  the  Lord  did 
when  he  commanded  persons  to  be  baptized.  They 
knew  what  he  commanded  them  to  do,  arose  and  did  it, 
and  there  was  not  the  least  inquiry  about  how  it  was  to 
be  done,  different  modes  of  doing  what  was  commanded, 
or  the  most  remote  intimation  that  they  did  not  all  do 
the  same  thing. 

We  never  read  of  a  mode  of  haptism  in  the  Bible. 
What  can  be  the  reason  of  this?  The  reason  is  that  the 
word  baptize  tells  precisely  what  is  to  be  done,  as  dis- 
tinctly as  the  word  immerse.  We  never  speak  of  the 
mode^  or  a  mode.,  of  immersing.  Immersing  is  simply 
one  specific  act.  The  same  is  true  of  sprinkling  or 
pouring.  We  never  speak  of  a  mode  of  sprinkling,  or 
a  mode  of  pouring.  The  reason  is  that  sprinkling  o\ 
pouring  is  a  specific  act,  and  there  is  but  one  way  to  do 
it.  Sprinkling  is  a  distinct  thing,  and  any  one  knows 
-when  it  is  done.    You  never  sprinkle  by  pouring  or  im- 


THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM.  151 

mersing;  you  never  pour  by  sprinkling  or  immersing; 
80  you  never  immerse  by  sprinkling  or  pouring.  "When 
you  immerse  you  do  not  sprinkle  or  pour  at  all;  when 
you  sprinkle  you  do  not  immerse  or  pour  at  all;  when 
you  pour  you  do  not  immerse  or  sprinkle  at  all.  If  the 
word  baptize  means  immerse,  it  does  not  mean  sprinkle 
or  pour  at  all,  for  any  one  knows  that  immerse  does  not 
mean  sprinkle  or  pour.  If  the  word  baptize  means 
sprinkle,  it  does  not  mean  immerse  at  all,  because  im- 
merse does  not  mean  sprinkle  or  pour.  These  are  mat- 
ters that  any  one  can  see  without  studying  Greek  or 
Latin.     They  are  matters  of  common  sense. 

It  is  maintained  that  the  word  baptize  has  different 
meanings  or  definitions.  Whatever  may  be  said  about 
different  meanings^  one  thing  is  certain,  and  that  is,  that 
neither  baptize,  nor  any  other  word,  is  ever  used  in  dif- 
ferent senses,  or  with  different  meanings,  when  applied 
to  the  same  thing.  When  Jesus  used  the  word  baptize 
in  the  commission,  he  did  not  use  it  in  three  or  any  other 
number  of  different  senses.  He  used  it  in  one  sense,  and 
only  one,  in  that  commission.  If  it  is  ever  used  in  any 
other  sense,  it  must  be  when  used  in  reference  to  some- 
thing else.  In  the  words,  '^Be  baptized,"  one  thing  is 
commanded  to  be  done,  and  but  one.  The  word  baptize 
does  not  mean  sprinkle,  pour  and  immerse.  If  it  does, 
the  command  is  to  be  sprinkled,  poured  and  immersed. 
Nobody  believes  that.  It  does  not  mean  be  sprinkled, 
poured  or  immersed.  There  is  no  authority  in  the  world 
that  says  it  means  that.  In  the  command  to  "Be  bap- 
tized," it  means  simply  one  thing;  it  means,  "Be  im- 
mersed." There  is  nothing  about  sprinkle  or  pour  in 
it.  Sprinkling  or  pouring,  or  sprinkling  and  pouring, 
have  nothing  to  do  with  it.  This  much  by  way  of  in- 
troduction ;  now  for  the  argument. 


152  THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

In  the  new  institution  we  have  the  command,  "  Be 
baptized,"  given  to  thousands  of  persons  at  one  time. 
They  went  ahead  and  did  what  was  commanded.  There 
is  not  an  intimation  about  doing  what  was  commanded 
in  differ rnt  ways^  or  there  being  different  modes  of  doing 
it.  There  is  not  room  for  a  doubt  about  their  all  doing 
the  same  thing.  Had  some  been  immersed,  some  sprink- 
led upon,  and  some  poured  upon,  the  historian  could  not 
well  have  avoided  some  kind  of  allusion  to  it,  or  men- 
tion of  it;  but  there  is  not  a  mention  of  but  one  way. 
Jt^othing  is  said  about  any  choice  of  ways,  or  preference 
of  one  way  over  another,  inquiry  about  ways,  or  dispute 
of  any  sort  on  the  subject.  It  is  manifestly  evident  that 
they  had  but  one  way.  All  knew  what  that  one  way 
was,  and  there  is  not  one  word  in  the  Book  of  God 
about  a  single  man  or  woman  who  wanted  to  be  bap- 
tized having  the  least  trouble  in  finding  out  Tiow  it  was 
to  be  done.  All  knew  how  to  be  baptized  who  desired 
baptism,  and  there  is  not  an  account  of  one  having  to 
inquire  how  it  loas  to  he  done.  The  inspired  apostles 
were  there  and  knew  what  Jesus  commanded,  and  made 
it  known  to  the  people,  and  they  did  what  was  com- 
manded. 

There  is  not  in  the  Bible  an  account  of  but  on-  way.^ 
and  that  was  to  be  hurled  with  the.  Lord  in  haptism. 
There  is  not  an  intimation  of  any  sprinkling  or  pour- 
ing for  baptism  in  the  book.  The  word  sprinkle  is 
there,  but  not  for  baptism.  Where  we  find  sprinkle 
there  is  no  baptism,  and  where  we  find  baptism  there  is 
no  sprinkle.  No  two  words  are  used  more  distinctly 
from  each  other  than  baptize  and  sprinkle.  The  same 
is  true  of  baptize  and  pour.  The  two  words  are  never 
used  in  the  same  sense.  Where  you  find  the  pouring 
there  is  no  baptism,  and  where  you  find  the  baptisra 


THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM.  153 

there  is  no  pouring.  There  is  not  an  account  of  any 
siorinkling  or  pouring  for  baptism  in  the  Bible.  This 
ought  to  settle  the  matter  forever.  Whatever  has  no 
authority  in  the  Bible  has  no  divine  authority  anywhere. 

There  is  not  an  account  of  any  sprinkling  or  pour- 
ing for  baptism  in  anything  written  in  the  first  two  cen- 
turies of  the  Christian  era,  in  the  Bible  or  out  of  it,  no 
matter  by  whom  written.  The  simple  reason  is  that 
nothing  of  the  kind  existed  at  that  time.  It  could  not 
get  into  the  history  before  it  existed.  This  must  face 
every  man  that  sprinkles  or  pours  for  baptism — that  he 
not  only  has  not  a  precept  or  example  in  Scripture  for 
it,  but  not  an  allusion  to  its  existence  in  the  Bible,  or 
anything  else  written  in  the  first  two  centuries.  This  is 
more  than  enouo-h  to  set  it  aside  forever  with  those  who 
regard  divine  authority. 

In  the  Greek  lexicons  used  in  the  schools,  colleges, 
and  by  the  scholars  of  the  country,  there  is  not  one  that 
gives  sprinkle  or  pour  as  a  definition  of  haptlzo  at  all. 
There  was  one  edition  of  Liddell  &  Scott  published,  that 
had  sprinkle  as  a  secondary  meaning,  but  the  learning 
of  the  world  was  against  it,  and  it  has  not  appeared  in 
subsequent  editions.  If  sprinkle  or  pour  is  not  in  the 
lexicons  at  all,  as  definitions  of  laptizo,  then  neither 
sprinkle  nor  pour  has  any  place  in  the  matter  in  hand. 
These  words  are  left  entirely  out  of  the  controversy, 
and  have  nothing  to  do  with  it. 

It  is  insisted  that  laptizo  has  (iiffer<jnt  meanings.  True, 
several  meanings  are  given  in  the  lexicons;  but  sprinkle 
or  pour  is  not  given  as  a  meaning  at  all.  Why,  then, 
should  these  words  be  lugged  into  the  controversy? 
They  have  no  part  in  it,  either  as  primary  or  secondary 
meanings,  tropical  or  any  other.  What  is  the  use  of 
pleading  for  different  meanings  f   Immersion  is  a  mean- 


154  THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

ing ;  and  more,  it  is  tlie  meaning  of  the  word.  This  is 
practiced  in  obeying  the  command  to  "Be  baptized." 
What  other  meaning  is  practiced  at  all  ?  It  is  contended 
that  the  word  meaJis,  to  stain^  to  tinge^  to  colo7\  to  wash. 
But  who  practices  or  contends  for  any  one  of  these 
words  as  the  mode?  Who  practices  or  contends  for  the 
staining  mode?  Who  practices  or  contends  for  the 
tinging  mode?  Who  practices  or  contends  for  the 
coloring  mode,  or  the  washing  mode?  One  man  said 
that  the  word  means  to  pop^  but  who  contends  for  that 
as  a  mode,  or  practices  it  ? 

There  is  one  class  who  say  the  word  means  imvierse^ 
And  they  practice  immersion.  These  find  no  trouble, 
for  they  find  that  the  first,  or  what  is  called  the  primary 
meaning  of  the  word,  is  immerse.  They  have  not  simply 
a  meaning  of  the  word  in  their  favor,  but  the  primary 
meaning.  Those  who  sprinkle  or  pour  for  baptism, 
not  only  have  not  the  primary  meaning  of  the  word  in 
their  favor,  but  they  have  no  meaning  of  the  word  bap- 
tize at  all  in  their  favor.  That  which  they  practice  is 
not  named  among  the  definitions  at  all,  but  is  left  en- 
tirely out,  and  has  nothing  to  do  with  it! 

But  now  for  a  few  words  on  tropical  or  secondary 
meanings  of  the  word  baptize.  How  came  these  second- 
ary meanings?     They  came  in  the  following  manner: 

Things  are  moistened  by  dipping  or  baptizing  them. 
As  the  object,  in  some  instances  of  baptizing,  was  to 
moisten,  they  took  the  result  for  the  meaning  of  the 
word.  The  result  of  baptizing  was  moistening,  and 
they  gave  that  as  a  secondary  meaning.  But  any  one 
can  see  that  there  is  no  moist<  n  in  the  word  baptize,  or 
you  could  not  baptize  without  moistening.  But  the 
moistening  depends  on  the  substance  in  which  you  bap- 
tize.   If  you  baptize  your  hand  in  wat<r^  it  is  moistened ; 


THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM.  155 

bat  the  moistening  is  only  the  result  of  the  baptizing^ 
and  not  the  baptizing  itself.  Baptize  your  hand  mflouVy 
and  it  is  not  moistened.  You  do  not  get  the  idea  of 
moisten  from  the  word  baptize,  for  it  has  no  such  idea 
in  it.  Baptize  your  hand  in  water  and  it  is  moistened; 
but  you  do  not  get  the  idea  of  moisten  from  the  word 
baptize  at  all,  but  from  the  word  water.  Baptize  a  man 
in  in'k,,  and  you  have  the  idea  that  he  is  stained;  not 
because  the  idea  of  stain  is  in  the  word  baptize.  It  has 
no  such  idea  in  it;  you  get  the  idea  of  stain  from  the 
word  inh.  Baptize  a  man  in  water^  and  you  have  the 
idea  that  his  body  is  washed;  but  you  do  not  get  that 
Idea  from  the  word  baptize,  for  it  has  no  such  idea  as 
wash  in  it.  You  get  the  idea  of  wash  from  the  word 
water.  Baptize  a  man  in  jire.^  and  you  receive  the  idea 
that  he  is  hurned;  but  not  from  the  word  iDaptize,  for 
it  has  no  such  idea  as  turn  in  it,  but  from  the  word  fire. 
Baptize  a  man  in  Spirit,  and  you  receive  no  idea  of  hurny 
stain  or  moisten.,  because  there  is  no  such  idea  in  that 
word.  Baptize  a  man  in  filth.,  and  you  receive  the  idea 
that  he  is  defiled ;  but  not  from  the  word  baptize,  for  it 
has  no  such  idea  as  filth  in  it,  but  from  the  word 
filtli.  But  the  one  idea  of  dijp  is  present  wherever  you 
find  the  word  baptize  at  all;  whether  it  is  in  water,  suf- 
ferings, Spirit,  or  fire.  The  word  baptize,  as  used  in  the 
time  of  the  apostles,  is  never  used  where  the  idea  of 
di;p  is  not  present.  Dijp  is  no  tropical  meaning,  no 
secondary  meaning,  nor  result  of  baptizing,  nor  mode; 
but  it  is  baptize  precisely — no  more,  no  less.  Baptize 
is  dip.,  and  dip  is  baptize. 

We  read  of  no  such  thing  in  the  Bible  as  baptizing 
hy  immersion.  That  is  the  same  as  immersing  by  im- 
mersion, or  sprinkling  by  sprinkling,  or  pouring  by 
pouring.     There  is  simply  no  sense  in  baptizing  by  im- 


156  THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

mersion.  If  a  man  is  immersed  he  is  baptized ;  if  he  is 
baptized  he  is  immersed.  There  is  simply,  in  and  of 
itself,  disconnected  with  all  other  words  and  associa- 
tions, nothing  but  the  idea  of  immerse  or  di/p  in  the 
word  baptize.  It  has  no  such  idea  as  ordinance,  or 
purify,  or  cleanse  in  it;  no  such  idea  as  wash,  stain, 
tinge,  color  or  moisten  in  it.  All  such  ideas  must  come 
from  other  words,  or  things  associated  with  it,  and  not 
from  the  word  haptize.  They  are  not  in  it.  There  i» 
nothing  sacred  in  the  word.  It  must  be  associated  with 
the  name  of  the  Lord,  the  faith  of  Christ  and  the  salva- 
tion of  man,  to  give  it  any  religious  significance;  it 
must  have  the  sanction  of  the  supreme  and  the  absolute 
authority,  to  give  it  the  solemnity  of  an  ordinance  in 
religion.  It  is  not  for  the  body,  not  for  the  flesh,  not  to 
cleanse  literally  at  all;  but  for  the  mind,  the  conscience 
— a  test  of  man's  allegiance  to  the  great  King.  Man 
can  not  see  that  it  can  do  any  good  to  immerse  a  man  in 
water;  or,  rather,  so  far  as  cleansing  him  from  sin,  or 
saving  his  soul  is  concerned,  he  can  see  that  it  can  not 
do  any  good ;  that  it  can  not  take  away  sin ;  that  water 
can  not  cleanse  the  heart.  He  can  see  no  reason  for  it, 
only  that  the  wisdom  of  God  requires  it.  Whoever 
goes  into  it  has  to  do  so  purely  hy  faith,  l^o  human 
eye  can  see  any  reason  for  it,  only  that  the  supreme  and 
absolute  authority  commands  it.  Separate  it  from  this 
authority  and  it  is  all  nothing.  Without  this  authority 
it  is  as  empty  and  meaningless  as  the  counting  of  beads 
for  prayers,  or  Papal  incense. 

We  have  the  word  sprinlcle  several  times  in  the  New 
Testament,  but  the  original  is  not  laptizo^  but  rantizo. 
But  the  word  sprinhle  is  never  applied  to  the  rite  or 
ordinance  at  all.  Where  we  find  the  word  sprinkle  we 
find  no  baptism,  and  where  we  find  baptism  w^e  find  no 


THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM.  157 

sprinkling.  This  is  invariable  in  the  New  Testament 
We  read  in  the  IRew  Testament  nothing  about  laptism 
hy  sprinhling.  There  is  no  such  style  as  that  there. 
We  read  of  the  lieart  being  sprinkled,  of  the  sprinkling 
of  the  blood  of  Jesus  Christ;  but  this  is  not  baptism, 
Moses  sprinkled  the  books  and  the  people;  but  this  is 
not  baptism.  There  is  nothing  about  baptism  in  it,  or 
it  has  no  connection  with  baptism.  The  words  haptizo 
and  rantizo  are  two  distinct  words,  never  used  the  one 
for  the  other.  If  any  man  thinks  this  is  incorrect,  let 
hini  try  it  and  see  what  kind  of  sense  it  will  make. 
Insert  baptism  for  sprinkling.  "Elect  according  to  the 
foreknowledge  of  God  the  Father,  through  sanctifica- 
tion  of  the  Spirit,  unto  obedience  and  hnptism  of  the 
blood  of  Jesus  Christ.'" — 1  Peter  i.  2.  This  would  be 
a  new  kind  of  baptism.  Take  another  example:  "Let 
us  draw  near  with  a  true  heart  in  full  assurance  of  faith, 
having  our  hearts  Ijaptized  from  an  evil  conscience,  and 
our  bodies  washed  with  pure  water." — Hebrews  x.  22. 
IN'o  man  would  plead  for  this.  The  bodies  being  washed 
would  be  a  result  of  baptizing  the  hody-,  but  not  of  bap- 
tizing the  heart.  Take  another  example:  "Through 
faith  he  kept  the  passover,  and  the  haptism  of  bloody 
lest  he  that  destroyed  the  firstborn  should  touch  them." 
— Hebrews  xi.  28.  Any  one  can  see  that  it  will  not 
make  sense  to  insert  baptize  for  sprinkle  here.  See  one 
more  example :  "And  to  Jesus  the  Mediator  of  the  new 
covenant,  and  to  the  blood  of  hapthing^  that  speaketh 
better  things  than  that  of  Abel." — Hebrews  xii.  24. 

Eidic.ulous  as  this  is,  it  is  no  worse  than  in  substitu- 
ting the  word  sprinkle  for  baptize.  Let  us  now  have  a 
few  examples  of  this  sort.  "One  Lord,  one  faith,  one 
sprinkling'^ — Ephesians  iv.  5.  "All  our  fathers  were 
under  the  cloud,  and  all  passed  through  the  sea;  and 


158  THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

were  all  sprinkled  into  Moses  in  the  cloud  and  in  the 
sea." — 1  Corinthians  x.  1,  2.  "  Then  went  out  to  him 
Jerusalem,  and  all  Judea,  and  all  the  region  round 
about  Jordan,  and  were  sprinkled  of  him  in  Jordan." 
— Matthew  iii.  5,  6.  See  one  more  example:  "Know 
ye  not,  that  so  many  of  us  as  were  sprinkled  into  Jesus 
Ohrist,  were  sprinkled  into  his  death?  Therefore  we 
are  buried  with  him  by  sprinkling  into  death  :  that  like 
as  Christ  was  raised  up  from  the  dead  by  the  glory  of 
the  Father,  even  so  we  also  should  w^alk  in  newness  of 
life." — Romans  vi.  3,  4.  This  is  sufficient.  The  two 
words,  rantizo  and  haptizo^  are  never  used  in  the  same 
sense,  any  more  than  the  two  English  words,  sprinkle 
and  iminers(\ 

The  same  is  true  of  the  word  pour.  It  occurs  several 
times  in  the  JSTew  Testament,  but  is  never  used  in  the 
fiame  sense  as  baptize.  This  can  be  shown  by  quoting 
a  few  passages,  inserting  haptize  for  pour.  Take  an 
example:  "On  my  servants  and  on  my  handmaidens  I 
will  haptize  out  in  those  days  of  my  Spirit;  and  they 
shall  prophesy." — Acts  ii.  18.  The  Spirit  was  not  hap- 
iized^  but  the  Spirit  was  poicrtd;  the  people  were  lap- 
tized.)  but  not  poured  out.  How  will  it  read  to  insert 
pour  for  haptize?  It  will  make  sense  if  baptize  means 
pour.  Take  an  example:  "Then  went  out  to  him  Jeru- 
salem, and  all  Judea,  and  all  the  region  round  about 
Jordan,  and  were  poured  oihim  in  Jordan." — Matthew 
iii.  5,  6.  Look  at  the  following:  "I  indeed  pour  you 
with  water  into  repentance:  but  he  that  cometh  after 
me  is  mightier  than  I,  whose  shoes  I  am  not  worthy  to 
bear:  he  shall  pour  you  with  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  with 
fire." — Matthew  iii.  11.  Again:  "Then  cometh  Jesus 
from  Galilee  to  Jordan  unto  John,  to  \)Q poured  of  him. 
^ut  John  forbade  him,  saying,  I  have  need  to  be  poured 


THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM.  159 

of  thee,  and  comest  thou  to  me?  And  Jesus  answer- 
ing said  unto  him,  Suffer  it  to  be  so  now:  for  thus  it 
becometh  us. to  faltill  all  ris^hteousness.  Then  he  suf- 
fered  him.  And  Jesus,  when  he  was  poured^  went  up 
straightway  out  of  the  water." — Matthew  iii.  13-16. 
Any  one  can  see  from  these  examples,  and  numerous 
others  that  can  easily  be  produced,  that  haptize  and 
pour  do  not  mean  the  same.  Baptizo  and  clieo^  in  the 
original,  are  as  distinct  in  meaning  as  immerse  and  i:>o\ir 
in  the  English,  and  are  never  used  interchangeably. 

The  construction  of  all  the  passages  where  these 
words  occur  shows  this.  Ko  matter  what  the  baptism 
is  in,  or  with^  to  stick  to  the  King  James'  style,  the  ele- 
ment is  not  baptized.  Water  is  not  haptized  on  persons, 
any  more  than  water  is  immersed  on  persons.  It  is  not 
the  water  that  is  baptized,  b.ut  the  persons.  TVe  pour 
wattr^  but  never  pour  prrsons.  In  the  baptism  of  the 
Spirit,  the  persons  were  baptized,  and  not  the  Spirit; 
but  before  the  baptizing,  and  in  order  to  it,  the  Spirit 
Yf2i^  poured  out.  The  pouring  was  not  the  baptizing, 
for  it  was  the  Spirit  that  was  poured^  and  the  baptizing 
followed.  The  people  were  baptized.  Jesus  was  bap- 
tized in  the  river  of  Jordan.  He  surely  was  not  poured 
in  the  river  of  Jordan,  and  John  did  not  pour  the  river 
of  Jordan  on  him.  Jesus  was  baptized  in  sufierings; 
the  sufferings  were  not  baptized  on  him^  wov  were  the 
sufferings  baptized  at  all — the  Lord  was  laptized. 

ISTow  for  a  few  facts : 

1.  All  the  Greek  lexicons  used  in  the  schools  and  col- 
leges of  the  country  define  haptizo^  immerse,  or  some- 
thing equivalent,  as  plunge,  dip,  or  overwhelm. 

2.  They  all  give  immerse,  or  its  equivalent,  as  the 
primary  meaning  of  haptizo. 


160  THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

3.  ISTot  one  of  them  gives  sprinkle  or  pour  as  a  mean- 
ing at  all. 

4.  JSTo  translator  of  the  ISTew  Testament  has  translated 
laptizo^  sprinkle  or  pour,  or  claims  that  it  should  be  so 
translated. 

5.  1^0  critic,  or  commentator,  claims  that  haptizo 
should  be  translated  sprinkle  or  pour. 

6.  Luther  maintained  that  taptizo  means  immerse, 
and  that  immersion  was  the  original  practice. 

7.  John  Calvin  sajs  that  the  word  baptize  means  im- 
merse, and  that  immersion  was  the  practice  in  the  first 
church. 

8.  The  great  Pedobaptist  historians,  Wall,  Mosheim 
and  ISTeander,  testify  that  immersion  was  the  practice 
for  the  first  two  hundred  years — the  invariable  practice. 

9.  The  entire  Greek  Ch«rch  testifies  that  immersion 
was  the  original  practice,  and  it  has  practiced  immersion 
all  the  time. 

10.  The  Romish  Church  admits  that  immersion  was 
the  original  practice. 

11.  The  Church  of  England  admits  that  immersion 
was  the  original  practice. 

The  question  will  naturally  rise  in  the  mind.  On  what 
ground  did  so  many  of  these  fall  into  the  practice  of 
sprinkling,  admitting,  as  they  did,  that  immersion  was 
the  original  practice?  The  Papacy  set  the  example  in 
claiming  the  right  to  change  forms  and  ceremonies^  so 
that  they  retained  the  substance.  They  admitted  the 
change  in  the  form^  as  they  phrased  it,  but  maintained 
that  they  retained  the  substance.  In  one  word,  they 
admit  that  they  have  given  up  the  very  thing  that  the 
Lord  commanded,  immersion.^  and  that  they  have  sub- 
stituted another  thing  in  its  place,  which  is  sprinlcling., 
but  retained  the  substance.     They  do  not  do  the  thing 


THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM.  161 

that  the  Lord  commanded,  and  that  was  practiced  by 
the  apostles,  but  another  thing — but  they  have  retained 
t)ie  snhstance.  How  they  did  this  is  a  great  mystery! 
This  is  one  step,  and  a  long  one,  in  the  wrong  direction. 

12.  The  Methodist  Church  indorses  immersion,  and 
has  done  so  all  the  time.  In  her  ritual  she  says:  "If 
the  candidate  desires  it,  he"  (the  administrator)  "shall 
immerse  him  in  water,  saying,  I  baptize  thee  in  the 
name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy 
Ghost."  This  comes  w^ith  the  authority  of  Conference. 
If  the  candidate  desires  it,  the  administrator  shall  im- 
merse him^  saying,  I  baptize  thee.  Thus  this  Church 
has  for  more  than  one  hundred  years  been  indorsing 
immersion,  by  calling  it  haptism^  and  doing  this  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord.  There  is  no  dispute  about  immer- 
sion; it  has  never  been  in  doubt.  The  doubting,  dis- 
puting and  debating  have  all  been  about  the  substitutes^ 
and  not  about  immersion. 

But  now,  will  this  not  itnchristianize  and  leave  a 
great  majority  unhaptizedt  This  has  nothing  to  do 
with  ascertaining  the  truth.  We  want  to  know^  the 
truth  on  this  and  on  all  other  matters;  we  want  to  know 
precisely  the  will  of  the  Lord,  or  what  he  requires,  not 
to  Christianize,  or  unchristianize  the  dead,  or  to  eflect 
them  in  any  way,  but  to  Christianize  and  save  the  liv- 
ing. We  can  do  nothing  in  this  matter  that  will  in  any 
w^ay  benefit  or  injure  the  dead,  but  we  n\ay  do  some- 
thing that  wall  benefit  or  injure  us.  This  is  the  matter 
for  us  to  consider.  Talking  about  the  dead  may  preju- 
dice ignorant  people,  but  we  desire  to  enlighten  well- 
disposed  and  honest  people,  for  their  own  good,  and 
with  a  view  to  their  future  life  and  tht^  good  of  the 
world-  Let  us,  then,  look  at  a  few  points  intended  to 
prejudice  the  public  mind  against  immersion. 
14 


162  THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

1.  It  has  been  maintained  that  an  overwhelming  num- 
ber of  all  that  have  ever  been  in  the  Church  have  been 
sprinkled  for  baptism — that  an  immense  majority  of  all 
that  have  been  in  the  Church  have  been  sprinkled  for 
baptism,  and  only  a  mere  handful,  comparatively,  have 
been  immersed!  According  to  this,  a  great  majority 
have  never  T)een  hajAized!  It  will  certainly  not  be  out 
of  place  here  to  give  this  some  attention. 

1.  If  baptism  is  the  unimportant  affair  some  people 
make  of  it,  there  is  nothing  in  all  this  taking  any  view 
of  it.  They  are  simply  raising  a  noise  about  a  thing 
for  which  they  care  nothing,  to  prejudice  other  people. 

2.  But  now  is  it  a  fact  that  the  great  majority  have 
been  sprinkled  upon  for  baptism?  The  Greek  Church 
now  is  put  down  in  the  CyolopcBcUa  Aine7'ira7ia  at 
66,000,000.  All  that  have  ever  been  in  this  Church  have 
been  immersed.  This  would  make  an  overwhelming 
number.  For  the  first  thirteen  hundred  years  immer- 
eion  was  invariably  practiced  by  all  Christians  through- 
out the  world,  except  after  the  introduction  of  sprink- 
ling, in  case  of  clinics^  or  cases  of  weakness,  or  sickness, 
where  immersion  was  thought  to  be  impracticable.  Dr. 
Wall,  in  his  great  history  of  infant  baptism,  says  that 
no  fact  is  more  clearly  sustained  by  all  history  than  this; 
and,  furthermore,  that  these  clinics,  who  had  received 
something  short  of  an  immersion  for  baptism,  were  not 
-considered  regularly  baptized^  and  not  permitted  to  hold 
any  ofiice  in  the  Church.  He  further  states  that  France 
was  the  first  country  in  the  world  that  practiced  sprink- 
ling generally^  and  that  not  till  in  the  thirteenth  cen- 
tury. Even  up  till  the  time  of  John  Wesley,  in  case  of 
an  infant,  the  rule  in  the  Church  of  England  was  im- 
mersion, unless  a  plea  was  put  in  of  weakness.  A  case 
occurs  in  Wesley's  journal  showing  this.     The  cases  of 


THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM.  163 

sprinkling  or  pouring  for  baptism  did  not  exist  at  all 
on  any  account  in  the  first  and  second  centuries,  and 
then  only  in  cases  of  weakness,  for  thirteen  centuries, 
and  in  the  Greek  Church  not  at  all  at  any  time,  and 
after  the  thirteenth  century  not  at  all  general-,  nor  even 
in  a  mojority  of  all  professedly  haptized^  and  during 
the  past  one  hundred  and  fifty  years,  including  the 
Greek  and  Romish  Churches,  with  all  the  balance,  there 
have  not  been  more  than  three  sprinkled  ujDon  for  one 
immersed.     It  may  be  safely  summed  up  as  follows: 

1.  During  the  first  two  centuries  no  sprinkling  at  all 
— all  were  immersed. 

2.  After  the  second  century,  and  down  to  the  thir- 
teenth, almost  all  were  immersed  among  all  Christians 
throughout  the  world. 

3.  The  Greek  Church  immersed  all  from  the  begin- 
ning. 

4.  From  the  thirteenth  century  till  one  hundred  and 
fifty  years  ago,  a  majority  of  all  professedly  baptized 
were  immersed  in  all  the  world. 

5.  During  the  past  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  about 
three  have  received  sprinkling  where  one  has  received 
immersion. 

Foot  this  up  and  you  can  see  where  the  great  majority 
of  the  sprinkled  are.  They  are  immensely  in  the  minor- 
ity, not  making  one  for  t  7i  in  all  probability.  No  sym- 
pathy can  be  roused  from  this  source,  therefore. 

But  the  fact  that  a  great  number  have  received  sprink- 
ling for  baptism  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  question 
whether  we  can  obe}^  the  command  of  the  Lord  by  hav- 
ing wa,t(r  sprinMed  on  us.  It  is  simply  a  matter  of  fact, 
to  be  inquired  into  as  other  matters  of  fact  are. 
Whether  many  or  few  have  been  immersed  is  not  the 
question.     Did  they  do  what  the  Lord  commanded  in 


164  THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

being  immersed?  On  the  other  hand,  did  those  who 
received  sprinkhng  for  baptism  do  what  the  Lord  com- 
manded ? 

We  can  learn  something  in  reference  to  the  matter 
by  considering  the  places  and  circumstances  where 
persons  were  baptized.  Multitudes  came  to  John  the 
Baptist  and  were  baptized  by  him  in  the  river  of  Jordan. 
If  sprinkling  had  been  the  practice,  no  one  would  have 
found  such  a  description  as  this  of  what  was  done.  It 
never  would  have  been  said  they  came  to  John  and  were 
sprhiided  by  Idni  in  tlia  river  of  Jordan.  We  hnd  no 
such  language  as  this  in  the  history  of  sprinkling.  The 
accounts  of  sprinkling  are  not  written  in  this  style. 

We  have  two  statements  about  the  baptism  of  our 
Lord  that  we  never  should  have  had  if  he  had  received 
sprinkling,  viz:  That  "he  was  baptized  of  John  in 
Jordan,''  and  that  he  "  went  up  straightway  out  of  the 
water.''  lie  was  certainly  not  sprinkled  of  John  in 
Jordan^  and  would  not  have  gone  f(p  out  (f  the  water 
from  receiving  sprinkling.  Sprinkling  would  not  have 
taken  him  into  the  water^  and  he  could  not  have  gone 
vjy  ont  of  it  without  being  in  if.  Sprinkling  does  not 
account  for  going  up  out  of  the  water.  If  sprinkling 
for  baptism  had  been  the  order,  we  never  sJiould  have 
read  of  John  "baptizing  in  Enon,  near  Salem,  because 
there  was  much  water  thero!'^  Much  water  is  not 
needed  for  sprinkling.  The  subterfuge  that  they  needed 
much  water  for  their  beasts;  for  cooking  and  washing 
purposes,  is  not  admissible;  for  it  does  not  say  John 
resorted  there  because  there  was  much  water  there,  but 
that  he  was  haptizing  in  Enon,  near  Salem,  because 
there  was  much  water  there. 

We  never  would  have  had  the  history  in  its  present 
form  of  the  baptism  of  the  Ethiopian  officer,  if  sprink- 


THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM.  165 

ling  had  been  practiced.  The  history  says:  "They 
came  to  a  certain  water."  Where  did  that  place  them? 
On  the  brink  of  the  water.  The  officer  said:  "  See,  here 
is  water;  what  doth  hinder  me  to  be  baptized?"  The 
evano:elist  says,  "  If  thou  believest  with  all  thine  heart, 
thou  mayest."  He  replied,  "I  believe  that  Jesus  Christ 
is  the  Son  of  God."  The  historj^  proceeds:  "They 
went  down  both  into  the  water."  This  does  not  describe 
the  way  to  sprinkling,  but  the  way  to  immersion.  But 
the  objector  says  the  preposition  els  there,  translated 
into^  only  means  at.  n<'(iT  hy.  on  tJie  hrink^  and  not  into. 
This  can  not  be,  for  they  had  already  come  to  a  Girtain 
water.  That  was  to  the  edge  of  it,  or  on  the  brink  of 
it;  near  by,  or  at  it.  After  they  were  on  the  brink, 
near  by,  or  at  the  water,  they  both  went  dovm  into  the 
loater.  They  were  on  the  way  to  immersion,  not  to 
sprinkling.  They  went  down;  that  is,  after  they  were 
on  the  brink  of  the  water.  Went  down  where?  Into 
the  water.  Who  were  they?  Both  Philip  and  the 
eunuch.  There  is  no  misunderstanding  who  they  were. 
And  he  baptized  him.  They  went  down  into  the  water 
to  do  this.  The  road  they  have  come  is  the  road  to  im- 
mersion and  not  the  road  to  sprinkling.  Now  is  the 
road  away  from  it  the  road  from  immersion,  or  from 
sprinkling?  Let  us  read:  "And  when  they  were  come 
icp  out  of  the  loater.^''  This  does  not  describe  coming 
away  from  sprinkling,  but  from  immersion.  When  they 
come  away  from  sprinkling,  they  do  not  come  up  out 
of  the  water.  They  have  not  been  in  the  water,  and 
can  not  come  up  out  of  it  without  having  been  in  it. 

We  read  of  having  the  body  washed  "^nth.  pure  water. 
This  is  a  result  from  immersing  the  body  in  water,  but 
not  from  sprinkling  water  on  the  head.  There  is  no 
idea  of  washing  the  'body  in  spHnMing  water  on  the 


166  THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

faoe^  or  forehead.  This  language  has  no  connection 
with  sprinkling,  and  is  in  no  sense  an  allusion  to  it. 
We  are  said  to  be  planted  together  with  Christ,  in  allu- 
sion to  baptism,  but  this  bears  no  similitude  to  sprink- 
ling. There  is  nothing  in  sprinkling  or  pouring  water 
on  a  person  that  could  possibly  remind  any  one  of 
planting  a  person.  Water  is  sprinkled  or  poured,  but 
nothing  \^  planted^  in  any  sense.  We  read  also  of  being 
hurled  in  baptism.  Persons  are  buried  in  immersion, 
but  never  in  sprinkling.  That  hurled  in  haptism  is  an 
allusion  to  immersion  is  admitted  by  nearly  all  the  crit- 
ics and  commentators.  It  is  here  that  we  are  in  the 
likeness  of  his  death,  and  from  this  we  are  said  to  be 
risen  with  him  to  a  new  life.  Immersion  accounts  for 
all  these  figurative  allusions,  but  nothing  else  does.  J^ot 
one  of  them  points  to  sprinkling  or  pouring.  There  is 
nothing  more  clear  than  that  sprinkling  or  pouring 
neither  has  any  connection  with  the  appointment  of  the 
Lord  in  which  we  are  initiated  into  Christ. 

Ohjection  1.  The  great  numbers  baptized  on  such 
occasions  as  the  Pentecost  could  not  have  heen  immersed. 
A  little  reflection  will  obviate  this  difliculty  very  much. 
The  Jews  were  accustomed  to  sundry  washings  and 
bathings,  and  their  manner  of  life  was  very  dififerent  from 
ours.  They  generally  wore  coarse  and  strong  raiment, 
and  slept  in  a  tent  on  a*  simple  couch  that  they  could 
roll  up  and  pack  on  the  back,  and  frequently  slept  in 
the  same  garments  they  wore  through  the  day.  They 
were  hardy,  and  accustomed  to  much  of  an  out-door 
life.  The  masses  of  them  would  have  thought  nothing 
of  being  immersed,  and  wearing  their  wet  garments  till 
they  would  dry  on  them.  The  country  abounds  with 
hardy  people  now,  who  would  think  nothing  of  b^ing 
immersed  and  wearing  their  garments  till  they  would 


THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM.  167 

dry.  It  would  require  but  little  time  to  immerse  these 
without  any  hurry.  Men  have  noticed  the  time  occupied 
in  immersing  in  our  time,  and  found  that  one  in  a  min- 
ute, on  an  average,  can  be  immersed  in  good  order,  and 
no  hurry.  At  this  rate  the  twelve  apostles  alone  would 
have  immersed  the  three  thousand  in  less  than  half  a 
day.  But,  with  the  little  preparation  they  would  make 
in  that  day,  and  in  numerous  instances  none,  each  man 
would  have  averaged  more  than  two  per  minute,  and 
thus  immersed  all  of  them  in  some  two  hours.  In  ad- 
dition to  this,  it  should  be  recollected  that  there  were 
seventy  others  whom  the  Lord  sent  out  under  the  first 
commission.  There  must  have  been  many  of  these 
among  the  one  hundred  and  twenty  brethren,  and  it 
may  be  the  greater  portion  of  them;  in  which  case  the 
immersion  of  the  three  thousand  would  have  been  so 
easy  a  matter,  that  the  historian  could  mention  their 
baptism  without  any  intimation  of  their  being  anything 
difficult  about  it. 

Ohjecllon  2.  There  was  no  water  about  Jerusalem 
to  immerse,  to  which  they  could  have  had  access.  This 
is  plainly  set  aside  by  Bible  accounts,  and  the  plainest 
statements  in  the  I^ew  Testament,  referring  to  brooks 
and  pools,  some  of  which  were  prepared  with  much 
expense,  and  always  abounded  with  water,  l^o  such 
city  as  Jerusalem  ever  existed  without  abundant  water 
for  inmiersing.  Water  is  a  commodity  that  everybody 
must  have.  It  is  of  daily  use  both  for  man  and  beast, 
and  an  indispensable  at  that.  It  is  not  simply  an  article 
that  they  have  where  it  is  co^wenient^  but  an  article  that 
nuL^it  he  had  in  all  cities.  Where  there  is  water  for  com- 
mon uses,  there  is  no. trouble  in  finding  plenty  for  im- 
mersing persons.  Travelers  are  visiting  Jerusalem 
every  year,  and  their  journals  all  testify  the  same — that 


168  THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

is,  that  there  is  abundant  water  for  immersing.  Kone 
but  the  weakest  and  most  reckless  of  men  would  deny 
that  there  was  water  in  Jordan  to  immerse.  The  ob- 
jectors disagree  among  themselves  about  the  river  of 
Jordan.  Some  of  them  think  there  was  not  water  suf- 
ficient to  immerse,  and  others  think  the  water  too  deep 
and  swift,  and  the  banks  too  precipitous  to  admit  immers- 
ing in  Jordan.  But  this  is  all  special  pleading,  and  can 
have  no  influence  on  the  minds  of  people  sufficiently 
candid  to  become  Christians.  It  is,  however,  maintained 
that  there  certainly  was  no  water  sufficient  for  immers- 
ing in  "the  way  leading  from  Jerusalem  to  Gaza,  which 
is  desert.'-  This  is  in  direct  disrespect  for  the  authority 
of  Scripture  and  the  accounts  we  have  of  that  country. 
The  Scripture  says:  " They  came  to  a  certain  water." 
They  certainly  did  not  "come  to  a  certain  water"  where 
there  was  no  water;  nor  did  they  both  go  "down  into 
the  water"  where  there  was  no  water.  This  is  beyond 
dispute.  Not  only  so,  but  the  maps  used  in  all  the 
schools  in  the  country  show  a  water  winding  through 
that  very  country,  in  its  course  to  the  Mediterranean  Sea. 
The  jailer  was  baptized  in  his  house,  and  therefore 
could  not  have  been  immersed.  We  have  immersed 
several  persons  in  houses,  and  one  of  these  in  an  upper 
room^  or  a  room  on  the  second  floor.  If  it  could  be 
shown  that  the  jailer  in  Philippi  was  baptized  in  his 
house,  it  would  not  prove  that  he  was  not  immersed. 
But  he  was  not  baptized  in  his  house.  Look  at  the  nar- 
rative: "And  they"  (Paul  and  Silas)  "spake  unto  him 
the  word  of  the  Lord,  and  to  all  that  were  in  his  house. 
And  he  took  them  the  same  hour  of  the  night,  and 
washed  their  stripes;  and  was  baptized,  he  and  all  his, 
straightway.  And  when  he  had  brought  them  into  his 
house,  he  set  meat  before  them,  and  rejoiced,  believing 


THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM.  169 

in  God  with  all  his  house."  To  whom  did  Paul  and 
Silas  speak  the  word  of  the  Lord?  To  the  jailer  and 
all  that  were  in  Ms  house.  They  were  in  his  house 
when  they  spoke  to  them.  What  follows?  He  took 
them.  Where  did  he  take  them?  The  history  does 
aot  say,  but  informs  us  that  he  washed  their  stripes; 
And  was  baptized,  he  and  all  his,  straightway.  What 
followed  this?  "And  when  he  had  brought  them  into 
his  house,  he  set  meat  before  them,"  etc.  When  he 
took  them  they  were  in  his  house.  He  must  have  taken 
them  out  of  his  house,  or  he  could  not  have  brought 
them  into  his  house.  The  w^ashing  of  their  stripes  and 
the  baptizing  took  place  while  they  were  out  of  the 
house,  for  they  were  in  the  house  before  he  took  them, 
and  brought  i^ito  the  house  after  he  was  baptized.  He 
then  took  them  out^  and  they  were  out  when  the  baptiz- 
ing was  done. 

But  there  is  nothing  but  inference  in  all  these  cases. 
It  is  simpl}^  inferred  from  circumstances  that  they  could 
not  have  been  immersed,  and  tlien  inferred  that  they 
must  have  been  sprinkled  or  poured  upon.  But  this  is 
simply  inferring  something  never  hinted  at  or  alluded 
to  in  the  Bible.  Sprinkling  or  pouring  for  baptism  is 
something  to  which  there  is  not  an  allusion  in  Scripture, 
and  a  thing  for  which  there  is  not  a  shadow  of  proof  in 
anything  written  in  the  first  two  centuries. 

"It  is  not  essential  any  way!"  Is  it  not?  Yet  it  is 
a  fact  that  we  have  not  an  intimation  of  a  single  person 
in  the  Church,  in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  without  it! 
What  of  this?  Nor  is  there  a  Church  now  in  the 
world,  of  any  note,  that  will  receive  members  without 
what  that  Church  calls  baptism !  How  is  this,  if  it  is 
not  essential  any  w^ay?  But  this  is  not  all.  The  Lord 
says :  "  Except  a  man  be  born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit, 
15 


170  THE  ACTION  OF  BAPTISM. 

he  can  not  ente-r  the  kingdom  of  God."  All  the  author- 
ities of  an}^  note  understand  "born  of  water"  to  be 
baptism.  This  being  so,  a  man  can  not  enter  into  the 
kingdom  of  God,  the  body  of  Christ,  or  the  Church, 
without  it.  The  Lord  himself  came  to  John  tlie  Bap- 
tist to  be  baptized  of  him,  and  when  John,  in  humility, 
excused  himself,  on  account  of  his  inferiority  to  the 
Lord,  the  Lord  replied:  "Thus  it  becometh  us  to  fulfill 
all  righteousness."  If  it  became  our  Lord  to  submit  ta 
baptism  to  fulfill  all  righteousness^  how  can  m.Qn  ful- 
fill all  rig/tteoasn<  ss  in  our  time  and  refuse  to  be  bap- 
tized? If  we  are  all  "baptized  into  one  body,"  "bap- 
tized into  Christ,"  "baptized  into  his  death,"  "baptized 
into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of 
the  Holy  Spirit;"  and  if,  as  the  Lord  says,  "Except  a 
man  be  born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit,  he  can  not 
enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God" — how  can  any  man 
prove  that  he  is  in  the  one  body,  in  Christ,  in  his  death, 
in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  or  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  unless  he  has 
been  "born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit,"  or  baptized? 
If  those  who  refused  to  be  baptized  by  John  the  Bap- 
tist, "rejected  the  counsel  of  God  against  themselves, 
not  being  baptized  hy  John^'^  as  the  Lord  said  they  did, 
what  does  he  do  who  refuses  to  submit  to  the  baptism 
required  by  our  Lord?  He  refuses  to  submit  to  the  ini- 
tiatory rite  of  the  new  institution,  and  thus  refuses  ini- 
tiation into  that  institution,  or,  which  is  the  same,  into 
the  kingdom  of  God.  Be  not  deceived  in  this  momen- 
tous matter,  only  once  required  for  all  time  and  foi 
eternity.  In  it  you  have  the  promise :  "  He  that  believ- 
eth  and  is  immersed,  shall  he  saved.''^  Come  in  full  as 
surance  of  faith  and  live! 


SERMON  :n"o.  VIII. 

THEME. — PRAYEH. 

There  is  probably  no  better  test  of  faith  than  prayer. 
Men  that  have  no  faith  do  not  pray.  There  can  be  no 
reason  in  praying  without  faith.  To  a  man  utterly 
without  faith  there  can  be  no  more  empty  and  unmean- 
ing thing  practiced  by  human  beings  than  prayer.  To 
such  a  man  the  suppliant  appears  to  be  simply  speaking 
into  the  open  air,  or  to  nobody.  It  is  to  him,  as  nearly 
as  we  can  imagine,  like  a  man  talking  to  himself.  He 
can  see  nothing  in  it.  But  to  the  man  of  faith,  who 
has  the  Almighty  Father  of  heaven  and  earth  before 
him,  it  is  the  highest  order  of  address  possible  to  a 
human  beins^ — an  address  to  the  Infinite  One!  What 
an  exalted  honor,  that  a  fellow-creature,  who  had  for- 
feited everything,  and  been  alienated  from  his  God  by 
wicked  works,  but  who  had  been  redeemed  by  the  blood 
of  Jesus,  and  brought  back  to  God,  should  not  only  be 
permitted  to  address  his  glorious  Creator,  but  encour- 
aged to  come  boldly  to  a  throne  of  grace;  that  the 
poor,  helpless  creature,  formed  out  of  the  dust  of  the 
ground,  should  be  permitted  to  address  the  great  Crea- 
tor who  thus  formed  him  ;  that  the  weak  and  imperfect 
worm  of  the  dust,  whose  breath  is  in  his  nostrils,  should 
have  the  wonderful  privilege  to  address  the  Almighty 
and  the  Perfect  One;  that  the  ignorant,  wayward  and 
erring,  the  polluted  and  sinful,  should  address  Him  who 
knows  all  things — who  is  absolutely  holy  and  pure!  that 

(171) 


172  PRAYER. 

the  helpless  should  be  permitted  to  address  Him  who  is 
mighty  and  able  to  save  to  the  utttermost  all  who  corae 
to  him — to  do  for  them  abundantly  above  all  that  we 
ask  or  think!  What  wonderful  compassion!  What  a 
gracious  condescension  ! 

Some  call  it  a  duty  to  pray,  and  urge  men  to  pray  as 
a  duty!  But  this  is  a  very  low  view  of  it.  It  rise? 
far  above  the  mere  idea  of  duty,  into  the  exalted  rank 
of  privilege,  mercy  and  favor.  Instead  of  our  being 
exhorted  to  pray,  and  urged  to  do  it  because  it  is  coni 
manded,  or  because  it  is  an  obligation ;  because  it  is  re 
quired  in  the  law  of  God,  we  should  desire  to  come-- 
press  forward  to  the  enjoyment  of  the  exalted  privilege. 
the  merciful  grace — the  right  of  petition;  the  favoi 
conferred  on  us  by  our  heavenly  Father,  as  his  depend- 
ent creatures,  to  come  boldly  to  the  throne  of  grace;  to 
ask  for  the  things  we  need;  to  ask,  too,  believing  thai 
he  will  hear  us,  and  that  he  will  withhold  from  us  no 
good  thing.  This  is  more  than  mere  duty^  rises  far 
above  it,  and  is  transcendently  more  exalted  than  the 
mere  idea  of  duty ;  it  is  a  most  gracious  privilege, 
a  wonderful  mercy  and  sublime  favor  of  our  God.  In 
view  of  it  we  ought  to  praise  him  forever  and  ever. 

Who,  that  has  the  love  of  Christ  in  him,  will  permit 
such  an  exalted  privilege  to  pass  unenjoyed?  Who 
will  permit  such  favor  to  be  extended  to  him  and  not 
implore  the  blessing  of  our  God?  Who  can  know  that 
we  can  come  as  children  to  a  kind  and  an  affectionate 
parent,  and  ask  for  help  in  every  time  of  need,  and  not 
come  to  the  blessed  Father  of  our  spirits,  realizing  our 
continued  wants  and  absolute  dependence?  Shall  we 
wait  for  the  judgments  of  God  to  come  and  impra^s  us 
with  a  sense  of  our  helplessness  and  continued  dejiC^id- 
ence?     If  we  do,  and  only  pray  then,  we  show  no  luore 


PRAYER.  173 

taith  than  the  people  of  the  world;  for  they,  too,  pray 
when  calamity  comes,  and  implore  the  pious  to  pray  for 
them.  The  hardened  and  wayward  Jews  desired  the 
prayers  of  Moses,  and  entreated  him  to  pray  for  them 
when  tlie  liery  serpents  were  sent  on  them.  So  wicked 
people  in  our  day  desire  prayer,  and  pray  themselves 
when  the  sword  or  pestilence  comes;  but  as  soon  as  the 
calamity  is  removed  they  are  like  Pharaoh  of  old — their 
penitence  is  gone;  they  want  no  more  prayer. 

This  is  but  a  feeble  and  low  conception  of  prayer, 
and  does  not  at  all  rise  up  into  the  true  conception  of 
it,  or  the  life  of  a  man  who  lives  and  walks  with  God;> 
whose  life  is  one  of  daily  communion  with  God;  who 
daily  comes  to  God  in  prayer,  as  a  privilege,  a  delight, 
and  who  enjoys  it  as  a  favor  from  the  Lord;  one  who 
receives  strength  and  help  from  God  daily  in  calling  on 
him.  How  delightful  the  state  of  soul  on  the  part  of 
the  disciples  of  the  Lord  when  they  came  to  him  and 
said  :  '-John  taught  his  disciples  to  pray,"  and  added, 
"  Lord,  teach  us  how  to  pray."  They  were  certainly  in 
a  good  condition  to  be  taught  to  pray,  and  how  to  pray, 
or  anything  else  he  pleased  to  teach  them.  They  were 
in  a  most  teachable  condition.  The  Lord  says:  "Men 
ought  always  to  pray,  and  not  to  faint." 

It  is  a  settled  matter  that  faith  and  prayer  go  to- 
gether. Where  there  is  much  faith  there  is  also  much 
prayer;  where  there  is  little  faith  there  is  little  prayer; 
and  when  there  is  no  faith  there  is  no  prayer.  There 
is  one  thing  remarkable  about  faith — it  is  strongest  in 
the  most  trying  circumstances,  or  when  we  most  need 
it.  It  never  forsakes  us  in  the  hour  of  trial.  If  it  is 
with  us,  supporting,  sustaining  and  encouraging  us  in 
health,  in  prosperity,  and  in  our  greatest  strength,  it 
vill  still   be  with  us   in  adversity,  in   sickness  and  in 


174  PRAYER. 

weakness.  As  our  hold  on  this  world  becomes  less  and 
less  firm,  and  our  prospects  become  more  and  still  more 
dim,  and  we  find  ourselves  cutting  loose  from  this  world, 
our  faith  becomes  stronger  and  stronger.  It  is  perhaps 
not  known  that  any  person  who  believed  on  Christ  in 
health,  and  prosperity,  and  through  life,  ever  abandoned 
the  faith  of  Christ  on  the  approach  of  death,  or  that 
the  faith  ever  became  weaker  at  the  approach  of  death. 
Faith  never  fails  in  the  hour  of  trial,  in  tlie  midst  of 
danger,  or  at  the  approach  of  death,  if  it  existed  before. 
On  the  contrary,  it  becomes  stronger,  bolder,  and  more 
invincible,  as  it  nears  the  other  world.  It  was  never 
known  to  fail  in  the  breast  of  the  dying  man,  in  whom 
it  resided  befoi^e,  and  up  till  the  approach  of  death. 
Firmly  it  holds  its  grasp  till  the  last  breath.  He  who 
believes  in  life  and  health  does  not  give  up  faith  in  sick- 
ness and  death.  Faith  is  a  settled  conviction  in  the 
honest  soul  that  remains  and  grows  stronger  and 
stronger  till  the  last. 

Unbelief  is  of  a  different  nature.  It  is  precisely  the 
opposite  of  faith  in  itself,  and  in  all  its  effects  on  human 
beings.  Instead  of  its  holding  its  grasp  firm  in  the 
hour  of  trial,  and  bearing  up  the  spirit  of  the  unbe- 
liever, it  frequently  fails  in  the  hour  of  danger,  the 
time  of  trial,  or  on  the  approach  of  death;  and  he  who 
had  avowed  it  before  disavows  it  in  death.  What  can 
be  the  reason  of  this?  Why  should  not  he  who  was  a 
skeptic  in  his  life,  his  health  and  strength,  and  up  till 
the  approach  of  death,  remain  one  then?  The  truth  is, 
he  never  was  settled.  He  never  had  settled  convictions 
nor  established  principles;  but  was  simply  involved  in 
doubts,  uncertainty  and  confusion.  There  is  nothing  in 
donbta.  uncertainty  and  confusion  on  which  for  a  dying 
man  to  rest  nis  soul.     When  a  man  comes  to  the  close 


PRAYER.  175 

of  life,  and  finds  himself  catting  loose  from  the  world, 
he  wants  something  more  than  a  string  of  doubts,  un- 
certainties and  difficulties  over  which  to  stumble  and 
fall;  he  wants  something  better  than  confusion,  dark- 
ness and  niglit  into  which  to  leap  at  death;  and,  in  nine 
cases  out  of  ten,  he  repudiates  the  unbelief  of  his  past 
life,  recants  it  all  and  turns  from  it  with  loathing.  He 
turns  his  eye  to  the  rock  of  oftense;  the  sure  rock;  the 
tried  stone;  the  one  rejected  by  the  Jewish  builders, 
but  chosen  of  God,  elect  and  precious;  and  to  the  fact 
that  "  He  who  shall  not  believe  on  Him  shall  be  con- 
founded," and  discovers,  when  it  is  too  late,  except  to 
warn  others,  the  rock  on  which  he  has  grounded. 

What  is  the  first  thing  faith  extorts  from  his  lips? 
To  whom  does  he  now  go?  Does  he  send  for  unbeliev- 
ers to  come  now  and  comfort  him?  Not  a  word  of  it! 
Does  he  call  for  his  old  infidel  books?  Ko;  he  does  not 
w^ant  to  see  them.  Does  he  now  talk  of  difliculties  in 
the  Bible,  of  contradictions  and  incongruities?  Xot  a 
word  of  it!  These  have  all  been  dispersed.  Does  he 
now  tell  that  he  has  no  credulity,  and  that  he  can  not 
believe?  ITo;  not  a  word  of  it!  All  sophistry  is  out 
of  his  mind;  he  now  believes  with  the  simplicity  of  a 
child.  The  solemnities  and  reality  of  an  approaching 
dissolution  and  eternity  have  swept  away  all  doubts  and 
confusion,  all  sophistry  and  evasion,  all  caviling  and 
quibbling,  and  the  faith  of  Christ  is  impressed  on  his 
inmost  soul.  Awful,  grand  and  sublime  reality  has 
now  come  up  into  view,  and  overspread  the  whole  can- 
opy above  him ;  his  unbelief  has  vanished  forever ;  he 
knows  not  what  has  become  of  it.  It  is  to  him  like  a 
dream,  a  nightmare,  a  myth  of  the  past.  In  former 
years  he  caviled  about  prayer,  and  could  see  no  reason 
in   it;    but  now   his  inmost   soul  is   impressed  with  a 


176  PRAYER. 

reason  for  it,  or,  rather,  a  necessity  for  it,  and  the  im- 
portance of  it.  lie  wonders  now  that  he  ever  had  any 
doubt  about  it ;  that  he  ever  failed  to  feel  the  import- 
ance of  it,  and  the  necessity  for  it.  His  impression  now 
is  that  prayer  ought  to  rise  up  from  the  lips  of  every 
errhig  creature  in  human  form. 

It  is  recorded  in  some  of  the  prints  that  a  skeptic 
was  in  the  habit  of  puzzling  religious  people  over  the 
idea  of  prayer — that  he  would  inquire  whether  they 
thought  that  their  poor,  feeble  words,  put  forth  from 
the  lips  of  a  finite  mortal,  could  change  the  mind  of 
the  Inlinite  One,  and  induce  him  to  do  what  he  would 
not  otherwise  do !  I^o  doubt  he  thus  stumbled  many  of 
but  little  faith.  After  he  had  gone  on  for  years  in  this 
way,  he  made  a  short  trip  at  sea.  During  this  trip  the 
ship  was  overtaken  in  a  storm,  and  the  danger  became 
very  threatening.  Many  religious  persons  on  board 
fell  down  and  called  on  Him  who  made  sea  and  land, 
and  all  things,  to  save  them.  Our  sturdy  skeptic  looked 
on.  The  danger  became  more  and  still  more  fearful. 
It  was  not  now  a  mere  question  of  theory.,  nor  a  mere 
puzzle  for  Christians,  but  a  solemn  and  awful  puzzle 
for  a  sk  ptic.  His  skepticism  fell  from  under  him  and 
left  him  in  the  midst  of  the  most  terrible  consternation  I 
Presently  he,  too,  bowed  himself  and  poured  forth  his 
supplications  with  the  balance,  no  doubt  in  good  earnest. 

After  a  time  the  danger  passed  away  and  all  were 
safe.  A  believer,  who  knew  the  character  of  the  skep- 
tic, approached  him  and  said:  "I  thought  you  did  not 
pra}^ — that  you  could  not  see  how  prayer  could  change 
the  mind  of  the  Deity,  and  induce  him  to  do  what  he 
would  not  otherwise  do?"  The  skeptic  replied:  "I 
understand  you,  sir;  I  see  the  point.  That  doctrine 
will  do  on  dry  land.,  but  it  will  not  do  on  a  sinhing 


PRAYER.  177 

shipP  There  is  precisely  the  case.  We  are  all  ou  a 
sinking  ship,  and  though  the  danger  is  not  so  visible 
all  the  time  as  it  appeared  to  him  on  the  ship,  it  is  pres- 
ent all  the  time,  and  the  ship  is  sinking,  whether  we  see 
it  or  not,  and  will  soon  go  down.  Of  this  we  should  be 
sensible  all  the  time,  and  call  on  the  Lord,  whether  we 
see  danger  or  not.  "Every  good  gift  and  every  perfect 
gift  is  from  above,  and  cometh  down  from  the  Father 
of  lights,  with  whom  is  no  variableness,  neither  shadow 
of  turning."  Our  very  lives  are  in  his  hands,  and  he 
may  suspend  them  any  moment.  All  we  enjoy  is  from 
him,  and  we  may  be  in  the  deepest  distress  any  hour. 
How  important,  then,  that  we  continually  call  on  him! 
.  But,  in  this  age  of  unbelief,  every  imaginable  diffi- 
culty that  can  cause  an  erring  creature  to  stumble  is 
thrown  in  the  way.  A  man  wants  to  know  whether 
God  did  not,  "from  all  eternity,"  foreknow  all  things 
that  can  ever  come  to  pass!  This  is  certainly  going  far 
back,  and  it  will  not  be  expected  that  any  man  would 
know  all  about  it.  But,  for  the  present,  and  for  the 
sake  of  reasoning,  it  is  granted  that  God,  as  they  ex- 
press it,  from  all  eternity,  foreknew  all  things  that 
would  ever  come  to  pass.  "What  then?  Then  God 
foreknew  who  would  be  saved  and  who  would  be  lost! 
Yery  well;  what  of  it?  If  God  knew  a  man  will  be 
lost,  he  will  be  lost!  Certainly;  if  God  knew  that  a 
man  will  be  lost,  he  will  he  lost.  If  God  knew  that  a 
man  will  be  saved,  he  will  be  saved  !  Certainly ;  if  God 
knew  that  a  man  will  be  saved,  he  will  be  saved.  That 
is  as  certain  as  certainty  itself.  "What  is  the  use,  then," 
says  a  man,  "for  me  to  trouble  myself  about  it?  If 
God  knew  I  will  be  saved,  I  will  be  saved;  and  if  he 
knew  I  will  be  lost,  I  will  be  lost!" 

That  reasoning  is  very  pretty,  and  can  be  used  in  ref- 


178  PRAYER. 

erence  to  many  other  things.  When  you  get  sick,  God 
knows  whether  you  will  get  well  or  die.  If  he  knows 
you  will  get  well,  you  will  get  well;  if  he  knows  that 
you  will  die,  you  will  die !  What  is  the  use  to  send  for 
the  doctor,  to  take  medicine,  etc.?  Do  you  say,  "We 
must  use  the  means?"  Yes;  and  God  has  provided 
means  to  save  you,  and  you  must  use  the  means  or  be 
lost.  God  has  made  you  free^  and  you  can  use  the 
means  and  live,  or  reject  the  means  and  die;  and  it  will 
not  mitigate  your  sufferings  any  in  a  lost  state  to  think, 
to  know,  or  to  tell,  that  God  knew  before  time  began 
that  you  would  not  believe  the  gospel;  or  that,  believ- 
ing it,  you  would  reject  it;  or,  if  you  did  not  reject  it, 
that  you  would  not  obey  it,  and  that  you  would  be  lost. 

Man  may  be  entirely  free^  and  act  freely^  and  the 
Lord  may  see  before  what  he  will  do,  and  foretell  it. 
This  foreseeing,  or  foretelling,  what  a  man  will  do  is  not 
the  cause  of  his  doing  it;  he  would  do  just  as  he  does, 
if  the  Lord  had  not  foretold,  or  foreseen,  what  he  would 
do  at  all.  The  Lord  foreseeing,  or  foretelling,  what  a 
man  will  do  is  not  the  cause  of  his  doing  it,  and  has  no 
control  over  his  doing  it.  He  would  do  just  as  he  does 
if  the  Lord  had  not  foreseen,  or  foretold,  anything  about 
it.  What,  if  the  Lord  did  foresee,  before  time  began, 
that  a  man  would  refuse  to  control  himself — give  way 
to  intoxication,  and  rage,  and  commit  a  murder — is  that 
foreseeing  it  the  cause  of  it,  or  has  it  any  control  over 
it?  Surely  not!  It  would  all  have  occurred  just  as  it 
did  if  there  had  been  no  foresight  about  it.  All  such 
talk  is  nothing  but  sophistry  employed  by  men  to  de- 
ceive their  own  hearts,  and  excuse  themselves  in  their 
sins. 

It  matters  not  if  the  Lord,  before  the  beginning  of 
time,  looked  down  through  the  ages,  and  saw  the  first 


PRAYER.        ^  179 

time  a  man  would  evade  prayer,  make  an  excuse  and 
omit  it,  and  every  other  step  he  would  take  in  his  retro- 
grade movement,  till  his  linal  apostasy — the  looking 
down  and  foreseeing  it  would,  in  no  sense,  be  the  cause 
of  it,  nor  have  any  controlling  influence  in  bringing  it 
about.  But  false  reasoning,  such  as  here  alluded  to, 
would  have  some  influence  in  bringing  it  about;  and 
the  more  it  would  be  employed,  tbe  more  influence  it 
would  have,  till  it  would  finally  overthrow  the  faith  and 
ruin  him  who  employed  it.  This  is  the  ground  for  all 
the  apostolic  warnings  uttered  to  the  ancient  disciples 
to  take  heed;  to  watch  and  be  faithful.  "How  shall 
we  escape,  if  we  neglect  so  great  salvation?"  "Take 
heed  unto  thyself,  and  unto  the  teaching;"  said  Paul 
to  the  preacher,  "continue  in  them:  for  in  doiug  this 
thou  shalt  both  save  thyself,  and  them  that  hear  thee." 
"Follow  peace  with  all  men,  and  holiness,  without 
which  no  man  shall  see  the  Lord."  "He  that  overcom- 
eih,  the  same  shall  be  clothed  in  white  raiment;  and  I 
will  not  blot  out  his  name  out  of  the  book  of  life,  but 
I  will  confess  his  name  before  my  Father  and  before  his 
angels."  "  Strive  to  enter  in  at  the  strait  gate;"  says 
the  Lord,  "  for  many  shall  seek  to  enter  in  and  shall 
not  be  able." 

These  Scriptures,  and  numerous  others  with  which 
the  word  of  God  abounds,  show  that  the  followers  of 
Christ,  in  this  wilderness  of  sin  through  which  they 
are  passing,  need  every  encouragement  and  support 
they  can  have;  indeed,  that  they  are  in  a  dangerous 
land,  making  a  perilous  pilgrimage,  and  need  help.  How 
precious  it  comes  to  them  to  know  that  our  heavenly 
Father  cares  for  them,  and  even  numbers  the  hairs  of 
their  heads ;  that  he  is  ever  mindful  of  them ;  that  he 
has  promised  that  he  will  never  leave  them  nor  forsake 


180  PRAYER. 

them,  but  grant  them  grace  and  glory,  and  withhold 
from  them  no  good  thing.  He  encourages  them  to 
come  boldly  to  a  throne  of  grace;  to  ask,  believing  that 
he  will  hear  them,  and  grant  the  petitions  asked,  ac- 
cording to  his  will.  What  they  have  to  do,  then,  is  to 
ask  in  faith ;  to  come  to  our  most  gracious  and  blessed 
Father,  helieving^  and  not  as  a  skeptic,  douhting;  to 
come  in  full  assurance  of  faith,  in  child-like  confidence 
in  Him  who  is  able  to  do  for  us  abundantly,  above  all 
that  we  ask  or  think.  He  is  the  un wasting  and  inex- 
haustible source  of  life  and  light,  of  eternal  glory  and 
blessedness. 

"But  the  age  of  miracles  has  passed  away,  and  I  do 
not  see  how  God  can  answer  prayer  now.  Not  only  so, 
but  I  do  not  believe  in  the  immediate  operation  of  the 
Spirit;  nor  in  any  special  providence,  and  do  not  think 
that  God  answers  prayer  now!"  This  reasoning  is  too 
elaborate.  The  whole  might  be  comprehended  in  fewer 
words.  Why  not  say,  "I  have  no  faith.,  and  therefore 
see  nothing  in  prayer?"  This  is  all  there  is  of  it.  Why 
talk  about  miracles,  immediate  operations  of  the  Spirit^ 
or  special  providence?  This  is  all  talk!  Do  you  regard 
the  account  of  the  miracles  recorded  in  Scripture?  Do 
you  regard  the  account  there  of  the  special  and  miracu- 
lous work  of  the  Spirit  of  God?  Do  you  regard  any 
providence  at  all — special,  particular,  general,  or  any 
other?  Does  God,  in  your  view  of  it,  do  anything  at 
all?  or  has  he  made  the  universe,  put  the  whole  of  it 
in  motion,  under  immutable  laws,  folded  his  hands  and 
seated  himself  to  observe  it  run  its  course?  Does  he 
hear  no  prayers,  answer  no  petitions,  exercise  no  provi- 
dence, protect  no  one,  and  confer  benefits  on  no  one? 
Does  he  now  forgive  no  sins,  preserve  nobody,  give  no 
good   things  to  them  that  ask  him?     Does  he   mean 


'  PRAYER.  181 

nothiiig  when  he  says,  "I  will  never  leave  you,  nor  for- 
sake you?"  Does  he  mean  nothing  when  he  says,  "I 
am  able  to  keep  you  from  falling?" 

What  does  he  mean  when  he  saj^s,  "If  ye,  being  evil, 
know  how  to  give  good  things  unto  your  children,  how 
much  more  shall  your  heavenly  Father  give  good  gifts 
to  them  that  ask  him?"  What  does  he  mean  when  he 
says,  "If  any  man  draw  back,  my  soul  shall  have  no 
pleas.are  in  him?"  Is  this  religion?  Is  it  faith  or  un- 
belief? It  is  certainly  not  faith.  Shall  we  doubt  and 
distrust?  The  very  laws,  in  both  nature  and  grace,  are 
in  his  Almighty  hands.  The  entire  universe  is  all  in 
his  hands,  and  he  can  do  as  seems  good  in  his  own  eyes. 
The  fearful  elements  are  all  waiting  for  his  fiat.  He 
holds  the  terrible  lightnings,  the  fearful  thunders,  the 
winds,  rains,  hails,  in  his  hands;  he  controls  the  pesti- 
lence, and  all  the  fearful  destroyers  of  the  human  race; 
he  holds  the  heavenly  bodies  in  his  hands,  metes  out 
their  course,  and  controls  them  all.  It  is  nothing  but 
blind  unbelief  that  sees  not  his  Almighty  hand  in  all 
these  things,  and  that  realizes  not  the  importance  of 
coming  to  him  and  calling  on  him. 

"But  I  can  not  understand  how  God  can  answer 
prayer  without  a  miracle."  True,  you  can  not  under- 
stand how  God  can  answer  prayer  without  a  miracle! 
Can  you  understand  how  he  would  answer  prayer  with 
a  miracle?  You  can  no  more  understand  how  God 
could  answer  prayer  with,  or  by,  a  miracle,  than  how 
he  would  do  it  without  a  miracle.  The  disciples  prayed 
for  Peter  and  John  when  they  were  in  prison ;  the  Lord 
heard  them,  answered  their  prayer,  and  released  the 
apostles  from  prison  by  miracle.  Do  you  understand 
how  he  did  it?  "He  did  it  by  an  angel."  True;  but 
how?     How  did  the  angel   do  it?     How  did  he   take 


182  PRAYER. 

their  bonds  off?  How  did  he  open  the  prison  door? 
How  did  he  open  the  great  iron  gate?  There  you  stand 
confounded!  You  can  not  tell  how.  Though  it  was 
done  by  miracle,  and  by  an  angel,  you  have  to  admit 
that  yon  can  not  tell  how.  It  explains  nothing  about 
how  it  was  done  to  inform  us  that  it  was  done  by  mir- 
acle and  by  an  angel. 

Admit  that  there  is  an  immediate  influence  of  the 
Spirit,  and  that  the  Lord  answers  prayer  by  this  imme- 
diate influence;  and  that  explains  nothing  about  how 
he  answers.  No  man  can  understand  any  more  how 
the  Lord  can  answer  prayer  by  an  immediate  influence 
of  the  Spirit,  than  he  can  how  he  can  answer  prayer 
without  an  immediate  influence  of  the  Spirit.  It  ex- 
plains nothing  to  any  intelligent  man  to  tell  him  that 
God  answers  prayer  by  an  immediate  influence  of  the 
Spirit,  except  the  fact  that  he  does  it  through  that  im- 
mediate influence.  How  he  does  it  through  that  imme- 
diate influence  can  no  more  be  understood  than  how  he 
does  it  without  that  immediate  influence.  It  is  not 
prayer  to  prescribe  to  the  Lord  how  he  must  do  this  or 
that,  or  to  dictate  to  the  Lord  how  he  shall  bless  us; 
nor  is  it  faith  to  understand  how  he  will  bless  us.  But 
it  is  faith  that  looks  up  to  him  and  assures  us  that  he 
can  and  will  bless  us,  though  we  understand  not  how 
he  will  do  it;  and  it  is  prayer  that  implores  him  to  do 
it.  We  have  the  faith ;  the  full  assurance  of  faith  that 
the  Lord  can  and  will  answer  the  prayers  of  the  saints, 
who  ask  according  to  his  will,  without  their  understand- 
ing how  he  will  do  it.  This  is  faith,  and  nothing  short 
of  this  is  faith;  and  it  is  prayer  that  thus  comes  to  him 
and  calls  upon  him,  without  seeing  how  he  will  answer. 

This  rationalism,  that  goes  no  further  than  we  can 
see,  is  not  faith  at  all,  but  sight.     "  We  walk  by  faith, 


PRAYEE.  183 

not  by  sight."  This  rationalism,  that  asks  the  Lord  to 
do  nothing  till  it  can  understand  how  he  will  answer,  is 
not  prayer  at  all.  It  is  nothing  but  dnll  and  dry  phi- 
losophy, dictating  to  the  Lord  what  to  do  and  how  to 
do  it.  This  enters  not  into  the  soul  of  spiritual  enjoy- 
ment at  all;  it  rises  not  up  into  precious  union  and 
communion  with  God.  But  the  saints  rise  by  faith  to 
Him  who  is  invisible,  and  ask  for  relief  when  they  can 
see  no  way  of  relief;  when  they  see  not  how  he  will 
bring  relief;  with  all  confidence  that  he  can  and  will 
bring  the  desired  relief.  They  come  in  the  assurance 
that  he  can  see  how  to  bring  the  relief,  and  that  Tie  will 
do  it,  though  they  see  not  how.  They  come  to  him  be- 
cause it  is  dark  and  cloudy,  and  their  weak  vision  can 
not  penetrate  beyond  the  storm.  They  see  not  the 
relief,  nor  how  it  will  come;  but  they  have  a  Father 
that  can  see  the  relief,  and  can  bring  it,  they  know  not 
how ;  but  they  have  the  full  assurance  of  faith  that  he 
can  and  will  bring  it,  and  they  implore  him  to  bring  it. 
This  is  prayer — not  philosophy.  It  is  coming  to  God 
by  faith — walking  by  faith,  and  not  by  sight. 

We  see  no  reason  for  any  saint  not  thus  coming.  "We 
are  taught  to  pray,  ^'  Give  us  day  by  day  our  daily  food." 
Do  the  saints  see,  as  they  pray  thus  from  year  to  year, 
how  the  Lord  will  answer?  Do  they  see,  or  can  they 
tell,  how  the  Lord  will  answer?  Can  they  understand 
how  he  will  do  this?  Do  they  pray  for  him  to  give 
them  daily  bread  by  miracle,  or  by  an  immediate  in- 
fluence of  the  Spirit?  They  do  not  pray  for  him  to 
give  the  food  in  this  way  or  that.  Certainly  not.  They 
know  not  how  he  will  do  it.  But  their  Heavenly  Father 
is  rich;  has  the  resources,  the  wisdom  and  the  good- 
ness, and  can  give  the  daily  bread,  and  will  cio  it.  They 
come  to  him,  then,  in  full   assurance  of  faith,  and  ask 


184  PRATER. 

him  to  give,  not  knowing  how  he  will  give,  or  dicta- 
ting to  him  how  to  give,  but  leave  it  with  him  to  give 
in  any  way  that  may  please  him. 

There  is  no  reason  for  any  doubts  in  the  matter.  Look 
at  that  aged  saint,  who  for  sixty  years  has  been  praying 
for  his  bread,  and  never  failed  to  receive  it !  May  he 
not  continue  to  ask  in  faith  ?  Look  at  that  man  that 
has  been  walking  with  God  for  sixty  years,  and  has  the 
promise  of  God  before  him  all  the  time :  "  I  will  never 
leave  you,  nor  forsake  you ;  but  will  grant  you  grace  and 
glory,  and  withhold  from  you  no  good  thing."  He  has 
had  this  promise  verified  to  him  all  the  time,  and  the 
Lord  is  still  with  him.  What  ground  has  he  to  doubt,  or 
those  that  know  him?  Can  he  tell  how  God  has  given 
him  his  food  and  raiment  all  the  time ;  how  he  has  shield- 
ed him  from  the  arrows  of  destruction  that  have  been  fly- 
ing thick  all  around  him  during  this  long  journey; 
how  the  Lord  has  preserved  him  from  temptations; 
from  the  general  whirlpool  that  has  swallowed  so  many 
millions  of  his  race  and  swept  them  down  forever?  E"o, 
he  can  not  tell  how  all  this  has  been  done;  but  he  knows 
the  fact,  that  it  has  heen  done.  He  did  not  understand 
how  the  Lord  would  do  all  this,  but  he  believed  on  him, 
trusted  in  him,  called  on  him;  and  the  Lord  has  done 
it.  ^or  can  he  now  tell  how  it  has  been  done;  but  he 
has  the  fact  that  it  has  been  done,  and  is  transported 
with  the  thought  that  the  Lord  could  do  and  has  done 
all  this,  though  he  knew  not  how  he  would,  and  even 
now  knows  not  how  he  did  it. 

"But  I  can  not  understand  how  the  Lord  can  raise 
up  the  sick,  in  answer  to  prayer,  without  a  miracle,  or 
an  immediate  operation  of  the  Spirit."  Certainly  you 
can  not.  Nor  can  you  understand  how  the  Lord  can 
raise  up  a  sick  man,  in  answer  to  prayer,  by  miracle, 


PRAYER.  185 

or  an  immediate  influence  of  the  Spirit,  any  more  than 
you  can  how  he  can  do  it  without  miracle,  or  an  imme- 
diate influence  of  the  Spirit.  You  can  not  understand 
how  he  can  do  it  at  all;  but  you  can  hioio  the  fact  that 
he  can  raise  up  the  sick,  and  that  he  does^  whether  you 
can  understand  how  he  does  it  or  not..  He  does  this, 
too,  without  miracle.  Then,  if  he  can  and  does  raise 
up  the  sick  without  miracle,  why  may  he  not  do  this  in 
answer  to  prayer?  The  truth  is,  prayer  is  a  trial  of 
faith,  and  intended  to  be  a  test  of  faith.  We  can  not 
pray  without  faith — that  is,  in  true  intent  and  spirit  of 
it.  To  come  to  the  Lord  in  faith,  over  the  sick,  and 
pray  for  the  sick,  not  simply  in  view  of  their  being 
raised  up,  or  recovered,  but  to  invoke  the  divine  bless- 
ing on  them,  in  full  assurance  that  the  Lord  will  hear, 
answer  and  bless  them — it  may  be,  not  precisely  as  we 
meant  it,  or  looked  for  it,  but  in  a  better,  way — is  the 
exercise  of  living  faith.  But  to  start  up  doubts  and 
subtleties  about  how  the  Lord  will  answer  prayer,  is  the 
work  of  skepticism  and  not  of  faith. 

A  man,  who  had  been  a  wicked  man  all  his  life,  con- 
fessed Christ  and  obeyed  the  gospel  when  he  was  sev- 
enty years  old.  His  aged  companion  said  to  a  friend  :  "  I 
have  prayed  for  that  for  forty  years!"  Think  of  that, 
*'0  ye  of  little  faith" — a  good  woman  praying  for  the 
conversion  of  her  husband  forty  years,  and  not  a  vis- 
ible prospect  to  any  mortal  eye  that  her  prayer  would 
ever  be  answered!  Still  she  prayed  on  till  forty  years 
had  fled,  and  till  she  was  bending  under  the  weight  of 
years,  and  lived  to  know  that  the  prayer  was  answered! 
That  was  the  prayer  of  faith.  The  Lord  heard  and 
answered  it.  Little  did  she  understand  how  the  Lord 
would  answer.  She  puzzled  her  mind  over  no  ques- 
tions about  miracles,  immediate  operations  of  the  Spirit, 
16 


]  86  PRAYER. 

or  any  other  vain  theories  or  philosophies  of  men  who 
have  no  faith;  but  she  prayed  in  faith;  asked,  believ- 
ing that  the  Lord  would  hear  and  answer.  "  The  ef- 
fectual fervent  prayer  of  a  righteous  man  availeth  much.''" 
The  prayer  just  mentioned  was  "the  effectual  fervent 
prayer"  that  availeth  much. 

The  Lord  taught  the  first  disciples  to  pray,  "  Thy 
kingdom  come."  They  evidently  thus  prayed.  He 
also  taught  them  to  preach,  saying,  "The  kingdom  is  at 
hand."  They  thus  preached,  and  the  preaching  was 
true;  but  they  did  not  themselves  understand  anything 
but  the  fact  that  it  was  at  hand.  They  had  in  their 
minds  all  the  time  a  temporal  kingdom.  Every  time 
they  prayed,  "  Thy  kingdom  come,"  they  had  this  tem- 
poral kingdom  in  their  minds,  and  prayed  that  it  might 
come.  The  Lord  answered  their  prayer,  not  in  the 
sense  they  had  in  their  minds,  but  in  a  better  sense — in 
giving  them  a  kingdom  7iot  of  this  world.  They  did 
not  see  how  the  Lord  would  answer  when  they  prayed ; 
but  he  answered,  and  that,  too,  in  a  better  way  than 
they  had  in  view.  Instead  of  a  kingdom  of  this  loorld., 
as  they  meant  it,  he  gave  them  a  kingdom  not  of  this 
world.  In  the  same  way  the  prophets  spoke  of  good 
things  to  come,  and  prayed  for  them;  but  they  did  not 
themselves  understand  the  things  they  uttered,  nor  how 
their  prayers  would  be  answered.  But  the  good  things 
came  as  the  Lord  intended,  and  their  prayers  were  an- 
swered, in  his  way,  as  he  intended,  and  not  as  they  in- 
tended. We  must  remember  to  pray  according  to  his 
will.     "ISTot  as  I  will,  but  as  thou  wilt,"  said  the  Lord. 

The  Lord  does  for  us,  not  simply  as  we  ask  him,  or 
as  we  intend  it,  but  better;  he  does  for  us  "abundantly 
above  all  that  we  ask  or  think."  This  show^s  the  folly 
of  the  dictatorial  \^v2^jqy,  prescrihing  minutely  all  about 


PRAYER.  187 

what  and  liow  men  want  the  Lord  to  bless  them.  A 
chaplain,  in  Congress,  once  prayed  in  this  dictatorial 
style,  minutely  describing  what  he  desired  the  Lord  to 
do  for  the  President,  the  Cabinet,  Senate,  Congress  and 
Judiciary;  the  army  and  navy,  with  the  matters  of  the 
nation  generally.  When  he  w^as  through,  a  Congress- 
man leaned  over  to  another  one  and  observed :  "  I  am 
sorry  our  chaplain  did  not  leave  the  Lord  a  little  more 
margin  to  worlc  on^  The  same  regret  may  exist  in  ref- 
erence to  many  prayers.  They  are  more  like  lectures 
to  the  Lord,  instructing  him  how  we  want  things  done, 
than  humble  petitions,  entreating  and  beseeching  him 
to  do  for  us  that  which  is  suited  for  our  good,  and  which 
is  pleasing  to  him.  In  one  word,  we  should  permit  no 
theories  to  come  in  our  way,  wo  philosophies;  but  come 
to  our  most  gracious  and  blessed  Father  with  the  full 
assurance  that  he  can  and  will  care  for  us — if  not  in 
some  way  that  we  can  see,  in  some  better  way. 

"But  I  can  not  think  that  prayer  can  change  the 
mind  of  the  Deity,  and  induce  him  to  do  what  he  other- 
wise would  not  do."  The  mind  of  the  Lord  is  not 
changed  when  he  answers  prayer,  but  simply  carried  out 
as  he  intended  and  promised.  There  is  no  change  in 
his  mind  at  all.  It  was  his  mind  all  the  time;  his  pur- 
pose, to  answer  the  prayers  of  his  saints;  and  when  he 
answers  them,  he  simply  does  what  he  purposed  to  do ; 
what  was  in  his  mind  to  do  all  the  time.  When  the 
sinner  comes  to  the  Lord  in  his  appointed  way,  and  the 
Lord  pardons  him,  he  does  not  change  his  mind  to  do 
so,  but  does  precisely  what  was  in  his  mind  to  do  all 
the  time,  and  what  he  had  promised  to  do.  The  same 
is  true  when  the  Lord  hears  and  answers  the  prayers  of 
the  saints.  He  does  what  he  designed  to  do  all  the  time 
and  what  he  promised  to  do. 


188  PRAYER. 

"  I  hold  that  the  Lord  does  not  answer  prayer  at  all ; 
bat  I  think  it  right  to  pray  because  it  is  commanded; 
and  then  it  has  a  good  influence  on  our  own  hearts ;  and 
if  we  pray  for  certain  things  we  will  labor  for  them, 
and  in  this  way  do  more  good,  and  thus  carry  out  the 
work  of  the  Lord.  If  we  pray  for  the  conversion  of 
the  world,  we  will  labor  for  it,  and  more  will  be  brought 
to  God."  With  that  view  of  it,  an  atheist  could  pray 
as  well  as  any  of  us.  He  has  no  Go'd  to  answer  his 
prayer,  but  his  prayer  will  have  all  this  good  effect 
on  his  own  heart.  This  is  but  little  better  than  the 
prayer  of  the  intidel,  who  became  alarmed,  and  thought 
he  must  pray,  and  prayed:  "0  God,  if  there  be  any, 
save  my  soul,  if  I  have  any,  from  hell,  if  there  be 
any,"  It  is  the  coldest  and  gloomiest  rationalism, 
or,  plainly,  unbelief.  We  come  to  God  believing  that 
he  is,  and  that  he  is  a  rewardcr  of  them  that  diligently 
seek  him;  that  he  will  hear  us  and  answer  us;  that 
he  will  be  with  us  in  trouble;  that  he  cares  for  us; 
that  he  is  our  everlasting  trust.  We  live  in  the  con- 
tinual divine  assurance  that  the  Lord  is  ever  present 
with  us;  that  he  is  on  the  right  hand,  that  we  should 
not  be  moved.  We  have  the  Lord  God  sanctified  in 
our  heart,  or  set  apart  in  our  heart,  and  ever  before 
us;  and  make  it  a  matter  of  continual  anxiety  to  do 
those  things  that  are  pleasing  in  his  sight. 

The  service  must  be  a  willing  and  a  delightful  one; 
not  actuated  by  a  slavish  fear  of  punishment,  but  by 
love  to  him,  and  a  continual  desire  to  please  him 
because  we  love  him.  It  is  easy  to  serve  him  whom 
we  love,  and  try  to  please  him;  thus  keeping  in  view 
his  continued  good  will  and  approval.  How  easy  the 
service  actuated  by  love!  How  easy  for  a  good  hus- 
band to  serve  the  wife  he  loves  in  affliction;   to  min- 


PRAYER.  189 

ister  to  her  wants  and  do  everything  possible  for  her 
comfort  or  relief!  How  easy  for  the  kind  mother  to 
serve  the  child  of  her  bosom,  that  she  loves  as  her 
life;  to  minister  to  its  wants  by  day  and  by  night  I 
She  says,  "It  is  my  child,  and  I  must  give  attention 
to  its  wants."  How  easy  and  delightful  to  serve  the 
Lord  whom  we  love;  to  try  to  do  those  things  that 
are  pleasing  in  his  sight!  How  precious  to  come  to 
him  in  prayer  and  supplication  and  pour  out  the 
desire  of  our  hearts  to  him;  lay  before  him  all  our 
wants!  When  we  are  in  trouble  we  love  to  find  a 
true  friend  to  whom  we  can  unbosom  the  soul,  and 
open  our  hearts.  How  unspeakably  happy  ought  we 
to  be,  then,  that  we  have  a  kind  Father  to  whom  we 
can  come,  who  will  hear  us,  to  whom  we  can  open 
the  inmost  recesses  of  our  hearts,  spread  out  all  our 
trials,  our  sorrows,  our  sufferings  and  griefs;  and  who 
will  enter  into  our  necessities,  redress  iiU  our  griev- 
ances, and  bear  us  up  in  the  midst  of  all  our  trials. 
When  the  burden  upon  our  soul  is  so  heavy  that 
it  appears  insupportable,  and  when  no  mortal  arm 
can  remove  it;  when  no  one  on  earth  can  fully  compre- 
hend our  distress,  our  Father  will  hear  us  and  can 
comprehend  it  all,  soothe  all  our  sorrows  and  bring 
relief;  and  he  assures  us  that  he  will  do  this.  I^eed 
we  then  have  some  one  to  exhort  us  to  come  to 
him,  to  urge  us  to  call  on  him,  to  pray  without 
ceasing?  We  certainly  need  not;  but  will  come  cheer- 
fully, joyfully,  and  realize  it  as  a  wonderful  privilege  to 
come  to  our  kind  and  merciful  Father  and  to  call  on 
him,  with  the  assurance  that  he  will  hear  us  and 
give  us  all  things  richly  to  enjoy.  Who  can  enter 
into  all  our  wants,  our  distresses,  our  woes;  who  can 
know  the   depression  of  our  spirits,  the  load  on  our 


190  PRAYER. 

hearts,  the  anguish,  the  trouble  of  spirit,  and  the  grief 
we  may  be  enduring,  as  our  kind  and  blessed  Father 
does?  Whose  Almighty  Arm  can  bring  relief,  can 
comfort  the  heart,  support  the  sinking  spirit,  lift  up 
those  bowed  down,  and  comfort  the  afflicted  heart,  as 
His  who  made  heaven  and  earth  and  all  things?  To 
whom  can  we  come  under  all  circumstances,  in  all 
our  trials,  and  at  all  times;  and  who  can  bring  relief, 
give  the  comfort,  the  peace  of  mind,  the  tranquillity, 
or  whatever  is  needed  on  the  part  of  a  poor,  erring 
and  helpless  creature,  but  our  kind  and  most  gracious 
Heavenly  Father?  ITone  can  give  as  he  can.  He  is 
immeasurably  rich ;  his  resources  are  inexhaustible ;  his 
liberal  hand  is  ever  open  to  supply  all  our  wants;  his 
ears  are  ever  attentive  to  our  prayers,  and  his  watch- 
ful eyes  are  ever  over  us,  and  his  love  is  unfailing. 
How  wonderful  then,  that  there  should  be  a  child  of 
his  in  the  whole  kingdom  so  unmindful  of  his  love 
as  to  fail  to  call  on  him;  to  put  forth  his  supplica- 
tions and  entreaties  for  his  continued  care  and  prov- 
idence, and  offer  up  thanksgiving  and  gratitude  for 
all  he  enjoys. 

Shall  any  one  doubt  the  resources  of  our  Heavenly 
Father  to  bless  and  comfort  his  creatures?  Are  not 
all  the  elements  of  nature  his;  under  his  control  and 
ready  to  be  subservient  to  his  mandate?  Are  nut  the 
cattle  upon  a  thousand  hills  and  the  gold  of  the  four 
quarters  of  the  earth  his,  and  ready  for  his  use? 
Is  not  the  landed  patrimony  of  earth  in  his  hands? 
Are  not  all  the  goods  and  chattels  of  the  w^orld  at 
his  will?  Are  not  all  the  heavenly  bodies  at  his 
feet  to  do  his  bidding?  Are  not  all  the  heavenly 
messengers  ministering  spirits,  sent  forth  to  minister 
for   them   who   shall  be   heirs    of  salvation?      In    one 


PRAYER.  191 

word,  are  not  all  the  vast  resources  of  the  universe 
at  his  disposal?  Is  not  even  the  creative  power  in 
him  ?  He  is  infinite  in  power,  and  infinite  in  good- 
ness. ]S"ot  a  promise  that  he  ever  made  has  failed. 
For  six  thousand  years  he  has  been  the  same;  the 
immutable,  the  holy,  just  and  good.  How  wicked 
then,  that  we  should  doubt  or  distrust  his  promise. 
He  is  the  same  yesterday,  to-day  and  forever;  the  in- 
flexible, the  immutable,  and  the  Infinite  One.  Holy 
and  revered  is  his  name;  worthy  to  be  admired,  to 
be  held  in  everlasting  remembrance,  and  adored  by 
all  his  intelligent  creatures.  The  angels  fall  before 
him,  and  worship  Him  who  sits  on  the  throne,  and 
adore  the  Lamb  !  We  ought  to  be  unspeakably  happy, 
that  provision  is  made  for  us  through  the  mediation 
of  our  Lord  the  Christ,  to  come  to  the  Father.  But 
we  must  remember  that  we  can  not  come  in  our  own 
name,  nor  in  any  other  name,  than  the  name  of  our 
Lord  the  Anointed.  "No  man,"  says  he,  "comes  to 
the  Father,  but  by  me."  Let  us  not  forget  this;  but 
come  through  Him  whom  God  has  lifted  up  to  draw 
all  men  to  him.  There  is  no  other  name  than  his  by 
which  any  human  being  can  be  saved.  Let  us  come 
then,  in  his  name,  and  through  him,  to  the  Father, 
and  live  forever  and  ever. 

Prayer  should  be  studied  carefully,  most  profoundly 
considered,  and  our  address  to  the  Father  well  ordered. 
We  greatly  need  to  be  taught  Tiow  to  pray.  It  is 
astonishing  that  any  matter  of  so  much  importance 
should  receive  so  little  attention  as  this  very  subject 
does.  There  is  nothing  among  us  more  unaccountable 
than  the  prayers  and  thanksgiving,  evincing  that 
there  has  been  no  preparation  of  mind  or  heart  for 
the  solemn  performance,  and  that  so  little  is  well  or- 


192  PRAYER. 

dered.  A  brotner  is  called  upon  to  pray,  it  may  be 
in  the  public  assembly  and  on  the  Lord's  day.  He 
commences  giving  thanks  for  existence,  preservation, 
food,  raiment,  friends,  brethren,  peace,  a  land  of  liberty, 
prosperity,  etc.,  etc.;  and  one  begins  to  think  there 
will  not  be  a  petition  in  it;  but,  it  may  be,  that 
toward  the  close  some  favor  may  be  asked.  A  brother 
is  called  on  to  give  thanks  for  the  loaf  at  the  Lord's 
table.  He  commences  praying^  and  continues  praying, 
till  he  has  made  quite  a  long  prayer,  and  closes  with- 
out giving  thanhs  for  the  loaf  at  all.  Now,  why  should 
a  brother  called  on  for  prayer  make  it  nearly  all 
thanksgiving;  and,  when  called  on  for  thanksgiving, 
make  it  nearly  all  prayer?  What  reason  can  there  be 
for  this?     Certainly,  it  has  no  foundation  in  reason. 

Then,  we  should  be  careful  about  running  into  cir- 
cumlocutory phrases  and  sentences,  instead  of  the  di- 
rectness an^.  simplicity  of  Jesus.  It  is  certainly  more 
direct  to  say,  "We  thank  thee,"  than  to  say,  "We 
desire  to  thank  thee."  It  is  surely  more  direct  and 
fitting  to  say,  "  We  thank  thee  for  this  loaf,"  than  to 
say,  "  We  desire  to  thank  thee  that  we  are  permitted 
to  come  round  the  Lord^s  tableP  A  few  words  of 
thanksgiving  in  the  beginning  of  a  prayer  are  quite 
proper.  But  in  a  short  space  of  time,  the  words  of 
prayer  should  express  our  dependence,  our  wants  and 
necessities,  and  the  divine  assistance  should  be  en- 
treated. At  the  close  of  thanksgiving  at  the  Lord's 
table,  or  when  about  to  partake  of  a  common  meal, 
a  short  petition  or  two  invoking  divine  aid  is  in  place. 
But  the  main  matter  is  thanksgiving,  and  that  should 
be  the  burden. 

Let  us  live,  then,  under  the  continual  impression  that 
"men  ought  always  to  pray  and  not  to  faint;"  that  it 


PRATER.  193 

is  the  Divine  Will  that  men  "pray  everywhere;"  that 
we  should  "pray  without  ceasing,  rejoice  evermore," 
and  '*in  everything  give  thanks."  "The  effectual 
fervent  prayer  of  a  righteous  man  avail eth  much.** 
Come  then,  in  childlike  confidence,  to  our  blessed 
and  glorious  Father;  not  as  a  formality^  nor  merely 
as  a  duty,  but  because  you  need  his  Almighty  Arm 
to  protect  and  sustain  you,  to  guard  and  shield  you 
in  the  midst  of  the  evils  of  the  world,  and  finally  to 
save  you.  Our  glorious  Father  can  see  dangers  that 
we  can  not  see,  and  avert  calamities  that  we  have  no 
power  to  stay.  He  is  our  everlasting  trust,  our  strong 
hold,  the  rock  of  our  defense.  In  the  name  then  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  the  Christ,  our  only  Savior,  let  us 
come  to  our  Father,  who  always  hears  us  and  who  is 
faithful  to  keep  that  which  is  committed  to  his  hands; 
who  will  be  with  us  in  every  trial,  in  all  our  sufferings, 
and  in  crossing  the  cold  river,  where  he  will  receive 
us  to  himself  to  be  with  him  forever  and  ever.  Let 
us  join  with  all  the  ransomed  of  our  God  and  the 
heavenly  hosts  in  ascribing  the  blessing,  the  glory 
and  the  honor  to  him,  through  our  Lord  Jesus  the 
Christ,  forever  and  ever. 
17 


SERMOI^   :^o.  IX. 

THEME. — POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW. 

We  have  what  has  been  designated  positive  divine 
law.  On  the  other  hand,  we  have  what  is  called  moral 
law.  We  have  also  positive  divine  institutions,  positive 
appointments  and  positive  commandments.  We  have 
also  moral  institutions,  moral  appointments  and  moral 
commandments.  In  positive  law  there  are  positive  in- 
stitutions, positive  requirements  or  commaudments. 
Moral  law  relates  to  that  which  is  right  in  itself,  always 
was  right,  and  requires  things  to  be  done  because  tJicy 
are  right.  The  things  it  requires  can  be  seen  to  be  right 
in  the  reason  and  fitness  of  things,  and  will  be  readily 
admitted  to  be  right — not  because  any  authority  re- 
quires them,  but  because  they  can  be  seen  to  be  right 
in  the  nature  of  things.  It  always  was  right  to  speak 
the  truth,  and  wrong  to  speak  a  lie  ;  and  moral  law  re- 
quires the  former,  because  it  is  right,  and  forbids  the 
latter,  because  it  is  wrong.  The  same  is  true  of  all 
moral  requirements.  They  are  all  required  because  they 
are  right. 

But  positive  divine  law  is  of  a  higher  order  than  this. 
It  has  the  force  to  make  that  right  which  is  not  right 
in  itself,  and  is  the  highest  test  of  respect  for  divine 
authority  known  to  man.  It  is  also  the  greatest  trial 
of  faith  ever  applied  to  man.  It  is  intended  to  pene- 
trate down  into  the  heart,  and  try  the  heart,  the  piety, 
the  devotion  to  God.     The   very  acts  that   some  men 

(195) 


196  POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW. 

have  irreverently  styled,  "mere  outward  acts,"  "mere 
external  performances,"  are  the  Lord's  tests  of  the  state 
of  the  heart,  intended  to  penetrate  deep  down  into  the 
inmost  depths  of  the  soul,  try  the  heart,  the  piety,  the 
devotion  to  God.  They  try  the  faith.  The  man  that 
will  obey  a  commandment,  when  he  can  not  see  that 
the  thing  commanded  can  do  any  good,  or,  it  may  be, 
that  he  can  see  pretty  clearly  that  it  can  not  do  any 
good  in  itself,  does  it  solely  through  respect  to  divine 
authority;  does  it  solely  to  please  God;  does  it  solely 
because  God  commands  it.  This  has  no  reference  to 
popularity,  pleasing  men,  or  to  the  will  of  man,  but  it 
is  purely  in  reference  to  the  will  of  God.  This  is 
of  faith;  it  is  piety,  devotion  to  God.  It  rises  above 
mere  morality,  philosophy,  or  the  pleasure  of  man,  into 
the  pure  region  of  faith,  confidence  in  the  wisdom 
of  God,  and  in  submission  to  the  supreme  authority — 
yields  to  it  reverently  when  no  other  reason  can  be  seen 
for  it  only  that  the  divine  will  requires  it.  The  man  in 
his  heart  says,  "It  must  be  done,  because  the  absolute 
authority  requires  it." 

There  are  three  degrees  in  this  before  it  can  reach 
the  highest  test,  the  greatest  trial  of  faith.  1.  To  obey 
when  we  can  not  see  that  the  thing  commanded  can  do 
any  good  in  itself.  2.  To  obey  when  we  can  see  pretty 
clearly  that  the  thing  commanded  can  not  do  any  good 
in  itself.  3.  To  obey  when  we  can  see  that  the  thing 
commanded  is  clearly  wrong  in  itself.  It  tries  the  state 
of  heart,  the  faith,  the  devotion  to  Him  who  commanded, 
to  obey  a  command  when  we  can  not  see  that  the  thing 
commanded  can  do  any  good  in  itself.  The  test  is 
greater,  and  the  trial  more  severe,  when  we  can  see 
clearly  that  the  thing  commanded  can  not  do  any  good 
in   itself.     The  test  is  greatest,  and  the    trial  of  faith 


POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW.  197 

most  severe,  when  we  can  see  that  the  thing  commanded 
is  clearly  wrong  in  itself,  but  only  made  right  by  the 
arbitrary  force  of  the  absolute  authority.  This  will  all 
appear  presently. 

The  first  Scripture  adduced  is  found  in  Exodus  xii. 
1-13,  and  is  intended  as  an  illustration  of  the  principle 
involved  in  the  theme  of  the  present  discourse.  A  lamb 
w^as  required  to  be  slain,  and  the  blood  sprinkled  on  the 
door-posts  of  all  the  houses  in  wdiich  the  Israelites  were 
dwelling  while  they  were  yet  in  Egypt.  The  promise 
was,  that  when  the  Lord  should  pass  through,  destroy- 
ing the  first-born,  he  w^  ould  pass  over  every  house  wdiere 
the  blood  was  sprinkled  on  the  door-post,  and  leave  the 
first-born  alive.  But  in  every  house  where  the  blood 
was  not  sprinkled  on  the  door-posts,  the  first-born  should 
be  destroyed.  No  man  could  see  any  philosophical  con- 
nection between  tlic  thing  commanded  to  be  done  aG'l 
the  end  had  in  view.  What  an  opening  there  w^as  here 
for  a  modern  doctor,  who  talks  of  essentials,  and  non-es- 
sentials, outward  ceremonies,  external  rites,  etc.,  to  have 
puzzled  Moses!  How  many  pert  questions  he  could 
have  propounded !  lie  could  have  inquired  of  Moses, 
*'Do  you  think  there  is  any  saving  eflicacy  in  the  blood 
of  a  lamb  to  save  the  life  of  the  first-born  ?  Why  apply 
the  blood  to  the  door-post?  Could  not  the  Lord  see 
which  houses  the  Israelites  were  in  without  the  blood 
on  the  door-post?  Why  must  it  be  a  lamb  without 
blemish?  Could  not  the  Lord  save  the  first-born  in 
Israel  without  this  outward  ceremony  f^ 

Unbelieving  and  hard-hearted,  as  many  of  the  Jews 
were,  it  does  not  appear  from  the  history  that  there  was 
a  man  among  them  sufficiently  skeptical  to  come  before 
Moses  with  any  such  rebellious  talk  as  this.  Moses 
and  Aaron  were  not  men  of  this  type.    They  gave  heed 


198  POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW. 

to  no  such  irreverent  and  unworthy  talk.  They  believed 
God,  regarded  his  wisdom,  and  did  what  he  commanded, 
without  inquiring  what  good  it  would  do,  or  anything 
about  the  efficacy  of  the  blood  of  a  lamb,  or  what  power 
it  could  have,  sprinkled  on  the  door-post,  to  save  the 
first-born  in  the  house.  They  believed  God,  and  had 
all  confidence  in  his  wisdom  and  goodness — that  he  was 
wise  enough  to  know  what  to  command,  and  good 
enough  to  command  that  which  ought  to  be  done.  They 
never  inquired,  when  he  commanded  this,  why  he  com- 
manded it,  or  why  he  did  not  require  something  else ; 
but  took  it  for  granted  that  the  very  circumstance  that 
he  commanded  it  was  sufficient  for  them;  and  they 
obeyed  because  he  commanded  it,  and  not  because  they 
could  see  why  he  commanded  it.  How  did  it  turn  out 
in  the  end?  It  turned  out  that  in  one  hour,  the  hour 
of  midnight,  the  first-born  in  every  house  where  the 
blood  was  not  sprinkled  on  the  door-posts  was  dead! 
The  first-born  in  every  house  where  the  blood  was 
sprinkled  on  the  door-posta  was  saved  alive  I  Precisely 
as  far  as  obedience  went  life  was  preserved,  or  salvation 
was  enjoyed;  precisely  as  far  as  disobedience  prevailed, 
death  spread — there  was  no  salvation.  This  is  an  awful 
warning  to  all  who  inquire,  "What  good  will  it  do?'' 
when  God  commands.  Men  talk  of  "  the  spirit  of  obe- 
dience ! "  This  is  precisely  the  thing  wanting.  "  The 
spirit  of  obedience"  will  do  what  the  Lord  commands, 
because  he  covimands  it;  but  the  spirit  of  disobedience 
will  cavil  at  the  Lord's  commandments,  and  inquire, 
"  What  good  will  it  do?"     This  comes  of  unbelief. 

There  is  a  statute  in  the  law  of  Moses  that  forbids 
that  any  man,  except  a  Levite,  shall  touch  the  ark 
of  the  covenant.  The  penalty  for  the  violation  of  this 
law  is  death.     Ko  man  could  see  that  it  was  any  harm. 


POSITIVE   DIVINE   LAW.  199 

in  itself,  for  any  man  to  touch  the  ark  any  more  than 
for  a  Levite  to  do  it.  Merely  touching  it  would  cer- 
tainly not  injure  it.  No  man  could  see  why  it  should 
not  be  touched,  in  anything,  only  that  the  Lord  forbid 
it,  and  declared  that  he  who  did  it  should  die.  Here 
again  is  a  test  of  respect  for  divine  authority,  a  trial 
of  faith.  It  can  not  be  seen  to  be  wrong  to  touch  the 
ark,  in- itself.  Why  may  none  but  a  priest  touch  it? 
E"o  man  can  tell  why,  only  that  the  Lord  says  he  shall 
not.  The  commandment  of  God  forbids  it.  This  is 
enough  for  the  man  of  faith.  Faith  requires  this  to  be 
observed;  unbelief  inquires,  ^' What  harm  is  it  to  touch 
it?"  Will  not  "the  spirit  of  obedience"  do,  without 
the  outward  act  f  To  touch  the  ark  is  a  mere  external 
jperformance.)  and  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  heart? 
If  a  man  is  sincere,  will  he  not  be  accepted  of  the  Lord 
without  doing  the  precise  thing  commanded?  See  2 
Samuel  vi.  7;  1  Chronicles  xiii.  11,  and  see  how  it  turned 
out.  What  does  the  result  show?  A  man,  who  appears 
to  have  been  friendly  to  the  ark,  as  it  was  borne  along 
on  the  new  cart,  saw  it  shaking,  and  in  danger  of  fall- 
ing, and,  though  not  a  priest,  put  his  hand  against  the 
ark  to  keep  it  from  falling,  and  the  moment  he  touched 
it  he  fell  dead!  What  a  warning  in  reference  to  good 
intentions^  in  doing  what  God  forbids  !  It  availed  noth- 
ing that  he  was  friendly  to  the  ark;  that  he  was  honest ; 
that  he  meant  it  all  well;  that  he  aimed  to  save  the  ark 
from  falling!  He  was  taking  charge  of  the  ark,  caring 
for  it,  but  not  minding  the  commandment  of  the  Lord. 
His  good  intentions^  in  doing  what  God  forbid^  led 
him  to  ruin  and  made  him  an  example  to  warn  all  oth- 
ers to  let  their  good  inte7itions  lead  them  to  do  what  the 
Lord  has  commanded.  He  followed  his  own  wisdom, 
not  the  wisdom  of  God. 


200  POSITIVE    DIVINE   LAW. 

The  first  commandment  God  ever  gave  to  a  human 
being  was  of  the  kind  here  introduced.  It  was  in  these 
words  :  "Of  every  tree  of  the  garden  thou  mayest  freely 
eat :  but  of  the  tree  of  the  knowledge  of  good  and  evil, 
thou  shalt  not  eat  of  it :  for  in  the  day  that  thou  eatest 
thereof  thou  shalt  surely  die." — Genesis  ii.  16,  17.  No 
man  can  see  any  reason  for  interdicting  that  tree  any 
more  than  any  other  tree  in  the  garden.  This  case 
staggers  unbelief.  Paine,  in  his  "Age  of  Eeason," 
falsely  so-called,  inquired,  "What  harm  was  there  in 
eating  an  apple?"  In  itself,  no  man  can  see  that  there 
was  any  harm  in  it.  I^o  one  can  see  any  reason  for  re- 
fraining from  eating  it,  in  the  fruit  itself,  no  matter 
whether  an  apple  or  some  other  fruit;  nor  in  anything 
connected  with  it,  except  that  the  Lord  said:  "Thou 
shalt  not  eat  of  it."  The  reason,  and  the  only  reason, 
for  refusing  to  eat  was  that  the  supreme  authority  for- 
hid  it.  It  is  not  human  reason,  nor  human  wisdom,  nor 
philosophy,  nor  science,  that  forbids  it,  but  the  absolute 
authority.  Here  comes  a  test.  Will  man  obey  when 
he  can  see  no  reason  for  doing  so,  only  to  please  God? 
His  appetite  is  against  obedience.  The  trial  is  now  to 
be  made;  the  matter  is  to  be  tested.  There  is  but  one 
thing  in  favor  of  obedience — that  is,  the  positive  divine 
commandment.  Will  that  prevail,  or  will  it  be  set 
aside? 

The  first  preacher  that  makes  his  appearance  after 
the  law  was  given  was  2i false  one.  He  was  no  legalist ; 
he  was  not  particular  on  the  letter  of  the  law.  He  ob- 
tained the  most  sacred  audience  on  earth.  Eve  heard 
him.  We  have  no  fall  report  of  his  sermon.  He  had 
some  method,  and  was  a  little  of  the  modern  Universal- 
ian  type.     His    leading   position  was    in    these  words; 


POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW.  201 

*'God  knows  that  you  sball  not  surelj'  die."    This  point 
he  undertook  to  carry  by  three  appeals,  as  fo]h)\vs: 

1.  To  the  human  appetite.  "  That  tree  in  the  midst 
of  the  garden  is  good  for  food."  ISTo  doubt  he  discoursed 
upon  it  beautifully,  sweetly  and  lovely,  and  made  his 
appeal  to  the  appetite  in  a  most  telling  manner.  Before 
we  become  harsh  in  our  judgment  in  regard  to  Eve  sin- 
ning, we  ought  to  stop  and  consider  how  far  we  with- 
stand appeals  to  the  appetite.  Please  consider  a  case  or 
two,  and  see  how  far  the  appetite  prevails,  and  how  far 
the  judgment  governs  us.  Go  to  that  young  friend, 
whom  you  love  dearly,  but  who  is  falling  into  the  habit 
of  intoxication,  and  reason  the  case  with  him.  Inquire 
of  him,  ^'Do  you  not  know  that  this  besetment  will  ruin 
you  as  a  business  man?"  He  w^ill  likely  respond:  "I 
do;  I  have  already  felt  the  sting  of  it."  "Are  you  not 
aware  that  it  will  destroy  your  standing  in  society,  and 
that  moral,  civil  and  pure  people  will  shun  your  society  ?" 
He  will  answer  you  candidly:  "I  am  aware  of  this  also, 
and  have  already  suffered  from  it."  "Are  you  not  sen- 
sible that  it  will  destroy  your  constitution  and  ruin  your, 
health?"  "I  am,"  he  cheerfully  responds.  "Do  you  not 
see  that  it  will  destroy  your  estate?"  "I  do;  I  have 
lost  heavily  by  it  already."  "And  do  you  not  see  that 
it  will  destroy  your  family  ? "  He  replies,  "  I  do ;  I  have 
thought  of  all  this."  After  he  concedes  all  this,  you 
make  your  appeal  to  him :  "  My  dear  sir,  why  do  you 
not  quit  it?"  Fow  comes  the  answer:  "I  have  acquired 
an  appetite  almost  insatiable  and  irresistible,  and  lind 
no  power  to  resist  it!"  Or,  take  a  case  more  common, 
and  one  in  which  more  men  have  had  experience.  Go 
to  a  man  some  forty  live  years  of  age,  and  inquire 
of  him,  "What  do  you  think  of  this  popular  habit 
of  chewing,  smoking  and  snuffing  tobacco?"     He  caD- 


202  POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW. 

didly  replies,  "I  think  it  is  a  filthy  habit.  I  contracted 
it  when  I  was  a  boy,  and  thought  I  could  not  be  a  man 
till  I  could  chew  tobacco ;  but  I  am  sorry  I  ever  con- 
tracted the  habit."  When  he  makes  such  a  candid  con- 
cession, you  appeal  to  him:  "Why,  then,  my  dear  sir, 
do  you  not  quit  it?"  "Quit  it!"  he  replies.  "I  have 
acquired  the  appetite,  and  it  demands  it,  and  I  find  no 
power  to  resist  it."  Yet  you  talk  about  Eve  partaking 
of  the  forbidden  fruit! 

2.  The  appeal  to  the  appetite  did  not  succeed  with 
Eve,  and  the  preacher  proceeded  to  his  second  head, 
which  consisted  of  an  appeal  to  the  lust  of  the  eye. 
That  tree  is  pleasant  to  the  eye.  We  all  know  some- 
thing of  the  lust  of  the  eye,  or  ought  to,  when  about 
one-third  of  all  our  hard  earnings  go  for  no  purpose 
only  for  the  gratification  of  the  lust  of  the  eye,  and  that, 
too,  not  our  own  eyes,  but  the  eyes  of  other  people. 
But  this  appeal  to  the  lust  of  the  eye  did  not  succeed 
with  Eve. 

3.  The  preacher  proceeded  to  his  third  head,  and 
made  his  final  appeal  to  the  wicked  desire  of  the  human 
heart  for  unlawful  knowledge.  That  tree  in  the  midst 
of  the  garden  is  the  tree  of  knowledge  of  good  and 
evil.  It  is  good  to  make  one  wise.  Eat  of  that  and 
you  shall  be  as  gods,  knowing  good  and  evil.  But  you 
say  you  did  not  know  there  was  any  unlawful  knowl- 
edgel  Moses  says,  "Secret  things  belong  to  God,  but 
revealed  things  to  us  and  to  our  children  forever."  Man 
has  an  orbit  as  certainly  as  the  earth,  or  any  of  the 
heavenly  bodies.  Inside  of  that  orbit  all  is  free  to  him ; 
outside  of  it  he  may  not  go.  One  of  the  most  sensible 
books  that  has  appeared  in  the  past  twenty  years  is 
styled,  "Limitations  of  Human  Thought."  It  main- 
tains rightly  that  God  has  set  limits  to  human  thought. 


POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW.  203 

as  certainly  as  he  has  to  the  waters  of  the  ocean.  Be- 
yond these  we  can  not  in  safety  go.  What  mean  all 
those  poor  degraded  creatures,  styled  "fortune  tellers?" 
They  mean  that  they  can  unfold  the  futura,  and  reveal 
to  you  your  fortune  in  time  to  come.  What  mean  those 
poor  deluded  creatures,  styled  "spirit  rappers,"  "spirit 
mediums,"  "table  tippers?"  They  profess  to  give  in- 
telligence from  the  dead!  What  mean  all  those  idle 
people  who  go  to  and  consult  these?  They  want  the 
vail  pulled  aside,  that  they  may  see  the  future,  and  see 
what  is  coming  to  them,  or  to  receive  intelligence  from 
the  dead.  Suppose  the  Lord  would  remove  the  vail, 
and  let  them  see  all  that  lies  before  them  for  the  next 
ten  or  twenty  years !  Would  it  add  anything  to  their 
happiness?     Surely  not! 

But  this  final  appeal  to  the  desire  for  unlawful  knowl- 
edge did  not  succeed  with  Eve.  What  was  the  resort 
then?  The  preacher  then  assumed  all  the  arrogance 
and  importance  possible,  and  made  a  most  impudent 
and  defiant  assertion :  "  God  knows  you  shall  hot  surely 
die."  This  assertion  did  what  all  his  appeals  had  failed 
to  do.  It  dcGeived  Eve.  Woman  should  be  thankful 
for  the  relief  aftbrded  in  this  matter  by  a  brief  state- 
ment made  by  Paul,  1  Timothy  ii. :  "The  woman  being 
deceived  was  in  the  transgression."  She  did  not  sin 
k)iOwingly.  But  in  the  same  sentence  Paul  says,  "Adam 
was  not  deceived."  It  may  be,  though  it  certainly  can 
not  be  proved,  that  when  Adam  saw  what  was  done — 
that  Eve  had  sinned  and  was  separated  from  God— that 
he  looked  to  her,  as  she  stood  by  his  side,  and  reflected 
that  she  was  the  dearest  object  to  him  on  earth,  made 
for  an  helpmeet  for  him,  "bone  of  his  bone,  and  flesh 
of  his  flesh,"  and  decided  that  if  he  stood  with  God  he 
would  be  separated  from  her,  and  that  he  deliberately 


204  P  ^SITIVE    DIVINE    LAW. 

decided  to  go  with  her  in  the  transgression,  and  be  'with 
her  in  suffering  the  penalty,  and  lay  side  b}^  side  in  the 
grave.  Be  this  as  it  may,  Adam  was  not  deceived.  He 
sinned  with  his  eyes  wide  open. 

But  now  for  the  consequences.  What  followed  the 
^* outward  act,"  the  "external  performance?"  God  had 
said:  "Thou  shalt  not  eat  of  it."  "Thou  shalt  sarelj/ 
die."  Here  was  the  point  in  dispute.  The  temptei 
said,  "You  shall  not  surely  die."  The  trial  comes.  "By 
sin  came  death."  "  Death  entered  into  the  world."  For 
six  thousand  years  the  results  have  been  spreading,  in 
mourning,  grief,  suffering  and  death;  and  man  will  noi 
learn  obedience. 

But  now  for  a  hard  question.  What  w^ould  you  do 
if  you  should  come  to  a  positive  commandment  that 
would  come  in  direct  collision  with  moral  law?  Do  you 
say  such  a  thing  can  never  occur?  But  such  a  thing 
did  occur.  The  question  is  not  whether  it  occurred,  or 
can  occur,  but  what  would  you  do  in  a  case  of  that 
kind?  Do  you  say  that  you  would  obey  the  moral  law, 
and  let  the  positive  go?  But  you  say,  "Where  did  a 
case  of  that  kind  occur?"  It  occurred  when  God  com- 
manded Abraham  to  offer  Isaac.  It  was  wrong  to  kill, 
and  worse  to  kill  a  child,  and  worst  to  kill  an  only 
child.  The  Lord  called  "Abraham!"  The  venerable 
patriarch  and  servant  of  God,  never  ashamed,  but  always 
ready,  responded,  "Here  am  I."  The  Lord  proceeded, 
"  Take  thy  son,"  and,  as  if  to  give  it  force  and  penetrate 
into  the  depths  of  his  soul,  he  added :  "  Thine  only  son 
Isaac,  whom  thou  lovest,  and  get  thee  into  the  land 
of  Moriah;  and  offer  him  there  for  a  burnt-offering 
upon  one  of  the  mountains  which  I  will  tell  thee  of." 

Remember,  this  man  was  no  hardened  Pagan,  trained 
to  human  sacrifices;  but  a  man  whose  whole  training 


POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW.  205 

was  averse  to  anything  of  this  kind.  What  does  he  do 
(11  the  premises?  What  an  opening  was  here  for  talk 
about  essentials  and  non-essentials  !  for  talk  about  "the 
spirit  of  obedience,"  without  obedience  itself!  What  a 
plausible  speech  might  have  been  made,  excusing  him- 
self from  doing  what  w^as  commanded!  He  might  have 
argued  that  to  execute  this  commandment  will  frustrate 
the  promi'^e  of  God,  that  in  his  seed  all  nations  shall  be 
blessed.  Then,  it  is  contrary  to  the  moral  law\  It  is 
wrong  to  kill.  IN'ot  only  so,  but  the  sentiments  of  filial 
affection,  which  God  has  emplanted  in  his  own  breast, 
forbids  that  this  thing  shall  be  done ;  and  even  the 
common  sentiments  of  humanity  forbid  it.  Did  Abra- 
ham iusUtute  any  such  reasoning?  Is'ot  a  word  of  it! 
No  such  unbelieving  talk  falls  from  his  lips.  God  has 
spoken  !  The  Jehovah  has  commanded !  The  Supreme 
Majesty  of  heaven  and  earth  has  commanded!  There 
is  but  one  way  of  it.  That  which  has  been  commanded 
must  he  done. 

We  have  no  account  of  his  consulting  his  wife,  to  as- 
certain what  she  thought  of  it.  He  listens  to  but  one 
thing-  that  is,  the  voice  of  God.  There  is  no  equivo- 
cation, no  inquiring  whether  some  other  way  will  not 
do  ay.  well.  He  calls  Isaac  to  his  side.  No  doubt  Isaac 
appeared  dearer  to  him  than  ever;  but  he  falters  not. 
He  calls  the  servants,  and  bids  them  to  prepare  the  wood 
for  an  offering  and  bring  the  beasts.  All  things  are 
ready;  the  procession  moves  off.  As  they  pass  on,  pro- 
found meditation  is  in  the  mind  of  the  patriarch;  his 
fiye  many  times  rests  upon  his  child;  the  solemn  scene 
of  offering  his  son  comes  before  him;  the  tears  trace 
down  his  furrowed  face.  Silently  he  moves  on  till  the 
evening  of  the  first  day.  They  stop  and  worship  God. 
They  rise  and  worship  on  the  morning  of  the  second 


206  POSITIVE    DIVINE   LAW. 

day,  and  pursue  their  journey.  Oh,  you  of  little  faith, 
look  at  this  man  and  you  have  before  you  an  example 
of  faith;  not  that  caviling,  carping  and  evasive  thing 
that  some  style  faith,  that  will  not  ohty  Ood ;  but  the 
living,  active  and  glorious  faith  that  moves  right  on  as 
the  Lord  commands. 

On  the  evening  of  the  second  day  the  venerable  man 
of  God  worships  again.  On  the  morning  of  the  third 
day,  the  day  the  great  trial  is  to  come,  he  worships 
again.  This  day  is  to  be  one  of  trial;  a  trial  of  faith, 
of  loyalty  to  God,  of  integrity,  that  is  to  go  before  all 
nations.  "God  tried  Abraham!"  The  solemn  little 
company  proceed  on  till  about  noon,  when,  at  a  distance, 
they  see  the  Mount  Moriah.  The  patriarch  turns  to 
the  servants,  and  bids  them  to  remain  there  while  he 
and  the  lad  would  ^'go  yonder  and  worship."  He  and 
Isaac  proceed  up  the  mount  till  they  reach  the  appointed 
place.  An  altar  is  prepared.  When  all  was  ready, 
Isaac,  in  the  simplicity  and  innocence  of  a  child,  said: 
*'  My  father,  behold  the  fire  and  the  wood :  but  where  is 
the  lamb  for  a  burnt-offering?"  He  had  seen  his  father 
worship,  no  doubt,  many  a  time,  and  knew  what  was 
necessary,  but  saw  no  lamb  as  usual.  How  his  question 
must  have  pierced  the  heart  of  Abraham!  He  an- 
swered, "  My  son,  God  will  provide  himself  a  lamb  for 
a  burnt-offering."  This  he  no  doubt  uttered  by  inspi- 
ration, but  did  not  himself  know  how  it  would  be  ful- 
filled. 

He  now  probably  explained  to  Isaac  what  was  to  be 
done.  He  had  never  told  him  anything  that  was  not 
true;  never  deceived  him  in  anything;  and  Isaac  be- 
lieved that  God  had  commanded  it,  and  voluntarily 
yielded  to  it.  This  is  most  probably  so  from  two  con- 
siderations.     1.    Abraham  was  from  one  hundred  and 


POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW.  207 

twenty  to  one  haudred  and  twenty-five  years  old,  and 
Isaac  from  twenty  to  twenty -five  years  old,  and  th  it 
aged  man  could  not  have  bound  that  strong  young 
man,  contrary  to  his  will.  2.  It  adumbrated  the  offer- 
ing of  Christ,  and  he  voluntarily  offered  himself  when 
he  had  power  to  call  twelve  legions  of  angels  to  his 
assistance.  The  most  reliable  conclusion,  therefore,  is 
that  when  Isaac  heard  that  God  had  commanded  his 
father  to  offer  him,  he  submissively  yielded  to  it  and 
volantaril}^  gave  himself  up  to  be  ofiered.  His  father 
bound  him  and  laid  him  on  the  altar,  and,  standing 
over  him,  lifted  his  hand  with  the  deadly  knife,  and 
was  calling  up  his  energies  to  execute  the  command- 
ment of  God,  and  just  before  the  fatal  blow  would  have 
fallen  God  called  out,  "Abraham  ! "  He  promptly  an- 
swered, "Here  am  I."  God  said,  "  Stay  thy  hand."  He 
had  gone  so  far  that  he  had  received  Isaac  from  the 
dead  in  a  figure.  He  had,  in  his  mind,  seen  him  strug 
giing  in  death;  his  blood  running  down  upon  the  altar, 
&iid  the  flames  devouring  his  flesh!  But  the  scene  is 
changed;  Isaac  is  alive;  and  the  words  he  had  just 
uttered,  probably  without  understanding  their  meaning, 
are  literally  fulfilled.  God  had  "provided  himself  a 
lamb  for  a  burnt-offering."  He  looked  behind  him  and 
saw  a  lamb  caught  In  a  thicket;  released  Isaac;  took 
that  lamb  and  offered  it.  How  he  and  Isaac  must  have 
praised  God,  as  they  stood  and  saw  the  smoke  of  that 
offering  ascend  to  heave  n  as  a  sw^eet  incense ! 

That  lamb  pointed  to  the  Lamb  of  God  that  takes 
away  the  sin  of  the  world;  and  that  transaction  hon- 
ored God,  and  Abraham  was  styled  "  the  friend  of  God," 
and  "the  father  of  the  children  of  God  by  faith."  The 
Lord  Jesus  honored  Abraham;  the  apostles  honored 
him,  and  his  name  has  gone  down  through  the  ages  in 


208  POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW. 

honor,  and  will  continue  to  do  so.  in  view  of  that  trans- 
action, till  the  end  of  time ;  nor  will  time  end  the 
honor  God  has  conferred  on  him,  in  view  of  his  won- 
derful devotion  to  God,  in  withholding  not  his  only 
son.  Men  talk  of  "Abraham's  faith,"  who  never  walk 
171  the  steps  of  our  father  Abraham.  "When  God  com- 
manded, his  faith  did  not  inquire,  "What  good  will  it 
do?"  He  has  this  put  down  to  his  credit — that  he 
ohey(d  God.  So  much  for  this  "  outward  performance;  " 
this  "  external  rite ! " 

In  2  Kings,  chapter  v.,  there  is  a  case  that  sets  forth 
the  principle  involved  in  this  discourse.  There  was  a 
captain,  or  more  than  is  meant  by  a  captain  in  our  day 
— a  chieftain — a  man  in  great  power  and  wealth,  whose 
worldly  surroundings  were  favorable;  but  he  was  a 
leper.  This  was  a  drawback  to  all  his  fine  worldly 
prospects.  He  had  in  his  family  a  little  captive  maid, 
and  she  told  her  mistress  that  there  was  a  prophet  in 
Israel  that  could  heal  Naaman,  her  master,  i^aaman's 
wife  informed  him  of  this,  and  the  captain  determined 
to  find  this  prophet.  He  went  to  the  King  of  Syria 
and  obtained  a  letter  to  the  King  of  Israel,  that  ho 
might  find  the  prophet.  He  went  to  the  King  of  Israel 
and  presented  the  letter.  When  the  King  of  Israel 
read  the  letter  he  was  excited,  rent  his  clothes;  think- 
ing that  he  was  required  to  heal  the  leper,  and  said: 
"Am  I  God,  to  kill  aqd  to  make  alive,  that  this  man 
doth  send  unto  me  to  recover  a  man  of  his  leprosy  ?  " 
He  thought  that  he  was  seeking  a  quarrel  with  him, 
and  aimed  to  involve  him  in  war.  "When  Elisha  the 
man  of  God  had  heard  that  the  King  of  Israel  had  rent 
his  clothes,  he  sent  to  the  king,  saying.  Wherefore  hast 
thou  rent  thy  clothes?  let  him  come  now  to  me,  and 
he  shall  know  that  there  is  a  prophet  in  Israel."     Ac- 


POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW.  209 

cordingly  ITaaman  was  sent  and  stood  before  the  door 
of  the  prophet  in  Israel.  The  prophet  never  went  out. 
He  was  a  different  style  of  prophet  from  many  in  our 
day,  or  he  would  have  gone  out,  and  been  seen  bowing 
and  scraping  before  the  captain,  and  planning  to  get  a 
big  pile  of  his  money.  He  sent  a  messenger  out  and 
told  him  to  "  Go  and  wash  in  Jordan  seven  times,  and 
thy  flesh  shall  come  again  to  thee,  and  thou  shalt  be 
clean." 

The  captain  was  insulted  at  this!  "ISTaaman  was 
wroth,  and  went  away,  and  said.  Behold,  I  thought,  He 
will  surely  come  out  to  me,  and  stand,  and  call  on  the 
name  of  the  Lord  his  God,  and  strike  his  hand  over  the 
place,  and  recover  the  leper."  He  was  indignant  at 
such  treatment,  and  said,  "Are  not  Abana  and  Phar- 
par,  rivers  of  Damascus,  better  than  all  the  waters 
of  Israel  ?  "  He  had  not  been  brought  up  in  that  way. 
It  was  not  according  to  his  way  of  thinking.  He  "went 
away  in  a  rage."  His  servants  saw  the  madness  and  folly 
of  the  captain,  and  preached  to  him  a  short  but  excel- 
lent sermon,  as  follows:  "My  father,  if  the  prophet 
had  bid  thee  do  some  great  thing,  wouldest  thou  not 
have  done  it?  how  much  rather  then,  when  he  saith  to 
thee.  Wash,  and  be  clean?"  This  simple-hearted  rea- 
soning overcame  him.  He  yielded  the  point,  went 
down  and  dipped  himself  seven  times  in  Jordan,  and 
was  made  whole. 

JSTever  did  any  commandment  have  the  appearance 
of  a  non-essential  more  than  this.  ITo  man  could  see 
how  dipping  in  Jordan  could  heal  leprosy,  nor  why  he 
must  dip  seven  times.  He  was  not  to  be  healed  when^ 
he  dipped  once,  nor  twice,  but  seven  times.  When  the 
Lord  requires  certain  steps  to  be  taken  to  obtain  an 
object,  the  object,  or  end,  is  never  obtained  till  the  last 
18 


210  POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW. 

step  is  taken,  or  the  last  item  in  the  programme  is  ]/6r- 
formed.  The  prophet  of  God  had  something  in  view 
more  than  simply  to  heal  a  leper.  He  intended  that 
!N"aaman  should  "know  that  there  was  a  prophet  in 
Israel."  This  he  made  him  know;  for  after  he  had 
healed  him,  N'aaman  said :  "  Now  I  know  that  there  is 
no  God  in  all  the  earth,  but  in  Israel."  He  did  not,  by 
this  transaction,  show  him  that  there  was  great  efficacy 
in  the  water  of  Jordan,  or  in  dipping  in  Jordan,  but 
that  there  was  a  great  God  in  Israel — above  all  gods — 
a  God  that  could  heal  leprosy;  and  thus  glorified  the 
God  of  Israel.  IlTaaman  carried  the  name  of  the  God 
of  Israel  home  with  him,  and  honored  that  name  among 
his  people. 

While  the  Israelites  were  in  the  wilderness,  they 
spake  against  God  and  against  Moses,  inquiring, 
"  Wherefore  have  ye  brought  us  up  out  of  Egypt  to  die 
in  the  wilderness?  for  there  is  no  bread,  neither  is  there 
any  water;  and  our  soul  loatheth  this  light  bread.  And 
the  Lord  sent  fiery  serpents  among  the  people,  and  they 
bit  the  people;  and  much  people  of  Israel  died."  The 
people  came  to  Moses,  making  confession.  They  said: 
*'  We  have  sinned,  for  we  have  spoken  against  the  Lord, 
and  against  thee;  pray  unto  the  Lord,  that  he  take 
away  the  serpents  from  us."  The  wickedest  and  liard- 
est-hearted  people  will  repent  when  a  calamity  comes, 
war,  or  pestilence,  and  desire  prayers.  Moses  listened 
to  them  and  prayed  for  them.  See  jSTumbers  xxi.  7. 
^'And  the  Lord  said  unto  Moses,  Make  thee  a  fiery  ser- 
pent, and  set  it  upon  a  pole:  and  it  shall  come  to  pass, 
that  every  one  that  is  bitten,  when  he  looketh  upon  it, 
shall  live." 

Moses  made  the  serpent  of  brass  and  put  it  upon  a 
pole.     What  think  you  of  this  for  an  "outward  per- 


POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW.  211 

formance,''  an  "external  rite?"  etc.  What  think  you 
man}^  preachers  in  our  day  would  have  said  of  this  pole 
and  serpent?  They  would  want  to  know  whether  there 
was  virtue  in  the  pole,  in  the  brass,  in  looking,  etc.,  etc., 
and  whether  they  could  not  be  saved  some  other  toay . 
Could  not  God  save  a  man  without  looking?  What 
good  could  it  do  to  look  at  the  brazen  serpent?  The 
wisdom  of  God  was  in  this  appointment.  He  intended 
that  all  men  should  know  that  there  was  nothin":  in  the 
pole,  the  serpent,  or  looking,  in  itself,  to  save  them.  He 
intended  that  all  men  should  see  that  it  was  not  what 
they  did  that  saved  them,  but  that  God  savd  tlum. 
Yet  he  did  not  please  to  save  them  without  the  pole, 
the  serpent  and  the  looking.  He  required  them  to  sub- 
mit to  this  appointment,  as  a  test  of  their  faith,  a  trial 
of  their  loyalty,  in  an  act  of  submission  that  had  noth- 
ing in  it  hut  suhmission  to  him.  When  they  suhmittedy 
he  demonstrated  his  approval  by  healing  them. 

Suppose  Moses  had  prepared  a  liniment,  and  it  would 
have  healed  every  bitten  Israelite,  what  would  have 
been  the  result?  Would  it  have  given  God  the  glory? 
iTot  at  all !  They  would  not  have  looked  beyond  the 
liniment,  and  nothing  would  have  been  heard  of  but 
the  liniment.^  the  liniment — the  grand  panacea  !  But 
no  man  thought  the  serpent  healed  any  one,  but  that 
God  healed  them,  and  they  gave  the  glory  to  God. 

Joshua  ii.  1-30  we  have  more  positive  divine  law. 
Joshua  appears,  connected  with  an  arm}^,  in  a  siege 
against  Jericho — though  it  is  not  now  recollected  that 
he  is  anywhere  styled  General  Joshua.  Jericho  was 
like  some  places  we  have  read  about  within  the  past 
fifteen  years — it  was  not  easy  to  tahe  !  They  had^tried 
their  battering  rams,  and  all  the  other  engines  they  had 
for  breaking  down  strong  walls,  and  had  utterly  failed. 


212  POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW. 

Joshua  went  to  the  Lord  for  a  war  progTamme,  and 
the  Lord  commanded  him  to  march  the  army  round  the 
city  once  every  day,  for  seven  days,  and  on  the  seventh 
day  to  march  round  seven  times;  then  to  blow  the 
trumpet  and  tell  the  men  to  shout.  "What  a  set  of  "  out- 
ward performances*'  there  was  in  this!  What  an 
amount  of  "external  ceremony!"  What  an  array 
of  non-essentials !  We  have  heard  much  of  pious  Gen- 
erals, praying  Generals,  and  the  like,  within  the  past 
few  years;  but  how  many  of  them  had  faith  enough  to 
have  carried  out  this  programme?  Ma<ny  of  them, 
doubtless,  would  have  preferred  trusting  to  shells  and 
solid  shot.  Modern  chaplains,  many  of  them,  would 
have  argued  that  marching  round  the  walls  was  not 
essential;  that  blowing  trumpets  could  avail  nothing, 
and  the  shout  of  men  could  not  break  down  the  formid- 
able walls  of  Jericho. 

But  Joshua  was  a  man  of  faith.  He  did  not  expect 
the  marching  round  the  walls  to  throw  them  down,  nor 
the  blowing  of  the  trumpet,  nor  the  shout  of  the  men  ; 
but  he  believed  the  Lord  would  throw  down  the  walls 
and  give  them  the  victory;  and  what  they  had  to  do 
was  to  ohey  him.  All  men  can  see  that  what  they  were 
commanded  to  do  could  not,  in  itself,  accomplish  the 
object,  or  have  any  tendency  to  do  it.  God  could  have 
thrown  down  the  walls  without  their  doing  anything, 
just  as  well  as  with  it,  so  far  as  we  can  see.  Why, 
then,  did  he  command  the  marching  round,  the  blow- 
ing of  the  trumpet,  and  the  shout  of  the  men?  Be- 
cause so  it  pleased  Mm  to  do.  They  had  no  reason  for 
doing  what  he  commanded,  only  that  it  was  commanded. 
They  could  not  see  that  it  could  do  any  good.  On  the 
first  day  they  marched  round  once.  In  the  evening 
there  stood  the  wall,  apparently  as  invulnerable  as  ever! 


POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW.  213 

On  the  second  day  they  went  round  again — no  sign 
of  the  wall  giving  way.  Thus  they  continued  to  go 
round  day  after  day,  till  they  had  gone  round  seven 
times.  There  stood  the  wall,  as  formidable  as  ever. 
On  the  seventh  day  they  started  and  completed  the 
seven  rounds.  Kot  a  break  in  the  wall  yet!  All  they 
had  done  did  not  appear  to  do  any  good.  This  was 
trying  faith!  Two  items  in  the  programme  are  lack- 
ing, and  they  certainly  appear  as  much  like  non-essen- 
tials as  anything  the  Lord  ever  commanded.  Yet, 
if  they  are  left  off,  all  that  has  been  done  will  be  lost. 
No  matter  if  they  have  marched  round  many  times, 
and  done  it  all  right,  if  they  stop  now  they  will  not 
receive  the  promised  benefit. 

The  command  is  given  to  blow  the  trumpet.  The 
trumpet  is  blown;  but  the  wall  moves  not.  Only  one 
item  remains  in  all  the  items  commanded,  and  that  was 
for  the  men  to  shout.  All  eyes  are  turned  to  the  wall, 
not  believing  that  the  shouts  would  bring  it  down,  but 
that  God  would  Iring  it  down.  The  men  shouted;  the 
wall  fell,  and  Jericho  was  made  an  easy  prey.  No  man 
gave  the  glory  to  the  marching  round  the  wall,  to  the 
blast  of  the  trumpet,  or  the  shout  of  the  men;  for  all 
knew  that  these  did  not  overthrow  those  strong  walls — 
but  the  glory  was  given  to  the  God  of  Israel,  who  is 
mighty  in  battle,  and  whose  strong  arm  gave  them  the 
victory. 

In  all  these  transactions  there  is  reason  for  following 
the  instruction  of  the  God  of  Israel,  in  full  confidence 
that  whatever  he  promises  he  will  most  certainly  per- 
form. One  more  positive  institution  will  be  sufficient, 
and  will  end  the  present  discourse.  To  find  one  with- 
out delay,  and  in  the  shortest  possible  time,  turn  to 
Mark  xvi.  16:  "He  that  believeth,  and   is   immersed, 


214  POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW. 

shall  be  saved."  "Saved,"  here,  is  saved  from  sins,  or 
pardoned.  But  no  man  can  see  any  tendency  in  im- 
mersing a  man  in  water  to  save  his  soul  from  sins.  Im- 
mersing the  body  in  water  certainly  can  not  cleanse  the 
soul  from  sin.  There  is  no  efficacy  in  water  to  take 
away  sin;  no  virtue,  or  power,  of  any  sort  in  it  to 
cleanse  from  sin,  either  soul  or  body.  All  men  can  see 
satisfactorily  that  immersing  a  man  in  water  can  not 
take  away  sin.  It  is  not  going  too  far  to  say  that  the 
Lord  designed  that  all  men  should  be  able  to  see  that 
there  is  no  virtue  in  the  things  commanded,  either  the 
faith  or  the  baptism,  to  take  away  sins.  It  is  as  certain 
that  believing  can  not  take  away  sin,  as  that  immersion 
can  not,  and  it  is  equally  as  certain  that  the  two  together 
can  not  take  away  sins,  as  that  ejther  one  alone  can  not. 
Why,  then,  must  a  man  Relieve  and  be  immersed? 
Man  may  see  why  he  must  believe^  as  the  belief  changes 
the  heart,  and  prepares  him  in  heart  for  pardon.  But 
then,  the  belief  can  not  take  away  sin,  any  more  than 
the  immersion.  But  who  can  see  why  any  man  should 
be  immersed?  ]^o  man  can  see  that  it  can  do  any  man 
good,  in  a  religious,  or  a  spiritual  sense,  to  immerse 
Mm.  What,  then,  is  there  to  impel  a  man  to  be  im- 
mersed? Nothing  in  rationalism.  He  can  see  nothing 
in  it,  in  itself,  to  lead  him  to  be  immersed.  Indeed,  he 
can  see  pretty  clearly  that  there  is  nothing  in  it,  in 
itself,  for  soul  or  body;  that,  in  itself,  it  can  have  no 
tendency  to  produce  or  bring  what  the  sinner  is  seeking 
— the  salvation  of  his  soul,  or  the  remission  of  sins. 
Yet  there  stand  the  words  of  the  Great  Teacher:  ''He 
that  believeth,  and  is  immersed,  shall  be  saved."  There 
is  the  promise,  the  other  side  of  baptism — "  Shall  be 
saved."  Does  the  sinner  desire  what  is  promised?  If  he 
does,  there  lies  before  him  the  commandment,  "  Be  bap- 


POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW.  215 

tized."  Why  must  the  sinner  be  imnaersed?  ITot  be- 
cause he  can  see  any  virtue  in  water,  immersing  a  man 
in  water,  or  in  all  of  it  together;  but  because  the  su- 
preme and  the  absolute  authority  has  appointed  it  as 
the  initiatory  rite  of  the  new  institution ;  has  ordained 
that  men  and  women  shall  be  "immersed  into  the  name 
of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit;" 
that  they  shall  "believe  and  be  immersed,"  in  order  to 
come  to  the  promise,  "  shall  be  saved ; "  that  they  shall 
"repent,  and  be  immersed,  every  one  of  them,  in  the 
name  of  Jesus  Christ,  for  the  remission  of  sins;"  that 
"  so  many  of  us  as  have  been  immersed  into  Jesus 
Christ  have  put  on  Christ;"  that  all  shall  be  "immersed 
into  one  body;"  that,  "except  a  man  be  born  of  water 
and  of  the  Spirit,  he  can  not  enter  into  the  kingdom 
of  God." 

There  is  but  one  institution  in  the  law  of  God  that 
has  "the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the 
Holy  Spirit"  connected  with  it.  That  is  the  one  im- 
mersion "into  the  one  body."  In  this  institution,  in 
one  formal  and  voluntary  act,  the  believing  penitent 
accepts  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  the  Son,  and  the 
Holy  Spirit;  accepts  and  enters  the  new  institution;  the 
new  and  better  covenant,  upon  better  promises;  formally 
and  voluntarily  yields  himself  to  Christ  as  his  new  Sov- 
ereign. Baptism  is  the  test  of  his  belief  on  Christ — 
the  trial  of  his  loyalty  to  the  King.  Here,  at  the  en- 
trance of  the  kingdom,  the  question  comes  before  him 
of  obedience  in  a  matter  of  the  most  trying  nature — 
obedience  to  a  commandment,  where  he  can  see  no  rea- 
son for  the  obedience^  only  that  the  King  requires  it. 
If  he  stops  at  this  first  formal  act  required  of  him,  and 
refuses  to  obey^  what  may  we  expect  of  him  at  any  sub- 
sequent  time?      If  the  very  appointment  intended  to 


216  POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW. 

test  his  loyalty,  try  his  faith,  and  develop  the  spint 
of  obedience  in  him,  shall  be  set  aside  by  him,  what 
ground  have  we  for  expecting  obedience  of  him  in  the 
future  ? 

In  this  view  of  it,  any  one  can  see  the  wisdom  of  God 
in  placing  such  an  appointment  as  immersion  at  the 
entrance  into  the  new  covenant.  In  the  first  place,  he 
€an  not  see  that  the  thing  commanded,  in  itself,  can  do 
any  good  to  soul  or  body.  In  the  second  place,  he  can 
see  pretty  clearly  that  the  thing  commanded  can  not, 
in  itself,  do  any  good,  in  any  philosophical  way,  to  soul 
or  body.  In  the  third  place,  it  appears  as  if  it  might 
do  the  body  injury.  Then,  it  is  humiliating  to  the  last 
degree.  Still  further,  as  any  one  can  see,  the  Lord 
could  save  a  sinner  without  it  as  well  as  with  it.  "Why, 
then,  must  it  be  done?  The  wisdom  and  goodness 
of  the  Supreme  Majesty  of  heaven  and  earth  require  it. 
The  absolute  authority  commands  it.  Shall  this  au- 
thority control?  or  shall  poor  mortal  man  decide  that 
it  is  not  essential? 

Here  is  the  issue,  between  the  supreme  authority 
which  commands  it  and  the  human  will.  Either  the 
supreme  authority  must  be  set  aside^  or  the  human  will 
must  suhmit.  The  issue  has  the  salvation  of  the  sin- 
ner in  it.  God  has  sent  Christ  crucified  to  the  sinner, 
with  salvation  for  him;  he  has  graciously  sent  him  the 
gospel  of  salvation,  proposing  repentance  and  remission 
of  sins  in  the  name  of  Christ;  he  has  ordained  one 
positive  institution,  in  which  he  oft'ers  the  sinner  Christ, 
his  blood,  his  grace,  remission  of  sins,  the  impartation 
of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  the  hope  of  everlasting  life. 
Will  the  sinner  come  to  this  institution,  in  faith,  peni- 
tence and  love,  and  receive  all  this  in  suhmit  ling  to  the 
appointment  of  God;  in  oheying  this  commandment? 


POSITIVE    DIVINE    LAW.  217 

If  he  will,  he  can  t\ms  yield  himself  to  become  a  serv- 
ant of  God,  and  have  the  assurance  of  the  promise 
of  God,  confirmed  by  an  oath,  of  acceptance  with  God. 
As  he  yields  he  can  in  heart  say,  '^Here,  Lord,  I  give 
myself  away;  'tis  all  that  I  can  do."  He  may  then 
sing  such  words  as :  "  Through  floods  and  flames, 
if  Jesus  lead,  I'll  follow  where  he  goes."  Rising  from 
this  obedience,  he  can  sing,  "  How  happy  are  they  who 
their  Savior  ohey?'' 

How  noble  it  is  to  thus  acquiesce  in  the  divine  will; 
to  let  our  will  be  swallowed  up  in  the  will  of  God! 
Then,  when  the  soul  is  in  the  "spirit  of  obedience,"  and 
in  a  condition  to  inquire  in  the  word  of  the  Lord,  for 
instruction,  it  is  easy  to  find  the  right  way  and  walk  in 
it.  May  we,  in  humility,  love,  and  submission  to  our 
Heavenly  King,  find  and  walk  in  the  right  way  of  the 
Lord,  and  finally  be  brought  to  the  enjoyment  of  his 
everlasting  kingdom ! 
19 


SERMON  :^o.   X. 

THEME. — MATTERS  OF  AGREEMENT 

Many  sermons  have  been  written,  and  many  more 
have  been  preached,  on  matters  of  difference.  Many 
more  are  still  being  written,  and  spoken,  of  the  same 
sort.  It  may  have  a  good  tendency  to  turn  and  look 
at  the  other  side  of  the  picture— the  matters  of  agree- 
ment. Differences  have  been  preached  and  written  on 
so  much  that  some  may  be  led  almost  to  conclude  that 
there  is  but  little  in  the  form  of  religious  teaching  in 
the  world  but  differences.  The  time  has  come  to  bring 
out  the  great  matters  of  agreement,  show  how  largely 
there  is  an  agreement,  and  push  these  great  matters 
of  agreement  through  the  world,  and  gain  the  attention 
of  a  thinking  public  to  them,  that  the  people  may,  for 
a  time,  lose  sight  of  the  matters  of  disagreement. 

Are  there,  then,  any  considerable  number  of  items 
of  importance  on  which  there  is  quite  a  general  agree- 
ment, in  what  is  usually  styled  Protestant  Christendom, 
to  which  the  attention  of  the  people  may  be  directed ; 
matters  in  w^hich  they  are  already  one,  and  in  which 
there  is  no  dispute  of  consequence?  There  certainly 
are,  and  the  purpose  of  this  discourse  will  be  to  bring 
some  of  the  more  prominent  of  them  to  view. 

1.  The  prime  article  of  the  Jews'  religion,  that  "the 
Lord  thy  God  is  one  God,"  is  true,  and  there  is  an 
almost  universal  assent  to  it.  Or,  to  state  it  a  little 
more  fully,  that    there    is    one  God,  the    Jehovah,  the 

(219) 


220  MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT. 

I  AM,  the  Infinite  One,  the  Self-existeut  and  Unorig- 
inated  One,  who  inhabits  eternity,  the  Creator  and  Up- 
holder of  all  things,  visible  and  invisible,  may  be 
declared  almost  anywhere,  without  scarcely  a  dissenting 
voice.  Men  have  speculated  about  his  nature  and 
attributes^  and  may  speculate  again ;  may  differ  and 
dispute  about  things  they  can  not  understand;  but  that 
there  is  one  God — the  Jehovah — there  is  scarcely  a 
dissenting  voice.  This  one  foundation  truth  of  all  rev- 
elation; this  one  great  central  idea,  that  pervades  all 
faith,  all  piety,  all  worship,  and  all  religious  instruction, 
is  almost  universally  received  by  all  Protestants.  In  it 
they  are  nearly  all  one — all  agreed.  What  a  wonderful 
matter  it  is,  in  this  age  of  confusion,  that  there  is  this 
almost  universal  agreement  in  this  great  and  funda- 
mental matter.  Here  we  are  on  solid  rock,  undisputed 
and  indisputable  ground.  In  this  general  agreement 
there  is  great  power  to  lead  to  oneness — to  unity! 
Wherever  we  are,  whoever  we  are,  whatever  we  may 
be,  or  however  we  may  have  been  misled,  when  we 
think  of  worship,  the  Lord  our  God  comes  up  into  our 
view.  As  the  Athenian  Pagan  poets  sang,  without 
knowing  the  amount  of  it,  "We  are  his  offspring;"  and 
ly  creation^  if  in  no  higher  sense,  we  are  his  children. 
But  if  we  are  his  children  by  adoption,  we  are  hdrs 
of  God.  Here,  then,  we  start  on  the  great  article 
of  agreement;  not  merely  a  matter  in  which  we  can^ 
but  one  in  which  we  do  agree — that  "  there  is  one  God 
and  Father  of  all,  whd  is  above  all,  through  all  and  in 
all." 

2.  There  is  one  Lord  Jesus,  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the 
living  God.  The  agreement  treated  in  this  discourse  is 
that  among  those  who  believe  the  Bible,  and  not  among 
men  who  do  not  believe  the  clear  language  of  Scripture 


MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT.  221 

— not  among  skeptics  of  any  grade.  These  believe  that 
there  is  one  Lord  Jesus  the  Christ;  that  he  was  before 
all  things;  before  Abraham  was;  that  he  is  "the  true 
God  and  eternal  life;"  that  in  him  dwells  all  the  full- 
ness of  the  Deity  substantially;  that  he  is  the  only 
Mediator  between  God  and  men — the  only  Savior;  that 
no  man  comes  to  the  Father  but  by  him;  that  God 
has  lifted  him  up  to  draw  all  men  to  him,  and  com- 
manded all  men  to  "hear  him,"  there  is  simply  an 
almost  unanimous  agreement.  This  grand  central  idea 
of  the  new  institution;  this  fundamental  idea  on  which 
the  whole  institution  rests,  is  generally  received,  and  all 
are  one  in  it  throughout  the  world.  They  may  have 
speculations  about  it  on  which  they  differ,  but  in  the 
foundation  truth,  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the 
living  God,  they  are  a  unit.  The  plain  matter  to  do  is 
to  receive  this  great  truth  and  unite  on  it,  and  leave  the 
vain  speculations  of  men  about  the  truth,  and  be  no 
more  perplexed  with  them. 

The  belief  of  the  truth,  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the 
Son  of  the  living  God,  will  save  the  sinner,  if  followed 
out  in  its  legitimate  requirements;  but  the  belief  of  the 
speculations  of  men  about  that  truth  will  never  save 
anybody.  Here,  then,  we  have  an  agreement  in  the 
great  central  idea  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  the  Lord 
Jesus  the  Christ,  the  very  foundation  of  all  faith,  piety 
and  hope.  What  a  power  there  is  in  the  agreement  in 
this  one  item,  to  bring  believers  to  oneness — to  "the 
unity  of  the  Spirit  in  the  bond  of  peace!" 

3.  But  the  agreement  extends.  There  is  one  Holy 
Spirit,  the  Comforter,  "the  eternal  Spirit,"  who  inspired 
all  the  prophets  and  the  apostles — the  Spirit  of  all  truth 
and  all  revelation !  'No  man  talks  of  two  Holy  Spirits^ 
or  any  other  number  but  one.     There  is  simply  but  one 


990 


MATTERS   OF   AGREEMENT. 


Holy  Spirit.  In  this  there  is  no  difference.  Men  may 
disagree  about  the  nature  of  the  Spirit;  his  work,  in- 
fluence, or  something  of  that  kind;  but  about  the  ex- 
istence of  the  one  eternal  Spirit,  the  Spirit  of  all  truth 
and  all  revelation,  there  is  a  general  agreement.  Men 
maybe  under  the  influence  of  other  spirits,  and  possibly 
not  know  it,  but  they  certainly  do  not  advocate  the  idea 
of  otlier  spirits.  But  the  things  taught  in  the  Bible  all 
agree  are  of  the  Holy  Spirit — the  Spirit  of  God.  This 
is  a  great  item  of  agreement,  and,  if  properly  consid- 
ered, will  have  a  great  power  in  bringing  about  and 
maintaining  unity. 

4.  There  is  one  Bible,  and  but  one.  The  word  Bible 
means  hook.  There  is  but  one  that  is  the  Bible,  or  the 
book.  We  have  one  volume,  styled  the  Bible,  that  is 
from  God.  It  is  the  Bible,  the  volume,  the  book.  It 
contains  the  whole  will  of  God  to  man — the  complete 
revelation  from  heaven.  It  is  not  simply  a  good  book, 
or  a  book  containing  good  things,  that  teaches  good 
morals,  or  was  a  good  book  in  its  day,  but  it  is  the  hooh 
of  God.  It  is  the  only  divine  book ;  the  only  complete, 
final  and  absolute  authority;  the  only  book  for  all  na- 
tions, kindreds,  tribes,  tongues  and  peoples  of  the  earth. 
It  is  not  a  national  book ;  not  American,  English,  French, 
or  German,  but  one  book  of  God  for  all  the  world;  and 
not  merely  one  book,  but  the  hook.,  for  all  the  world.  It 
is  the  only  book  that  was  made  perfect  when  it  first 
came  from  the  hand  of  its  Author;  the  only  one  that 
can  never  be  improved,  amended,  or  corrected.  It  is  a 
stereotyped  book,  made  correct  at  the  start,  for  all 
countries,  all  time' and  all  people.  It  is  the  only  ortho- 
dox hook.  It  is  in  all  the  churches;  all  read  from  it, 
pronounce  it  divine,  pray  over  it,  preach  from  it,  thank 


MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT.  223 

the  Lord  for  it,  eulogize  it,  sing  of  it,  and  style  it  "the 
book  of  God." 

This  wonderfal  book  has  nothing  local  about  it.  It 
is  neither  eastern  nor  western,  northern  nor  southern. 
It  knows  nothing  of  State  lines,  nor  national  lines,  but 
is  for  all  countries.  It  is  the  book  sent  out  by  all  the 
Bible  Societies,  the  Tract  Societies,  and  commended  by 
all  as  divine.  We  have,  then,  one  book  on  which  we 
are  all  agreed ;  that  we  all  receive  and  commend — the 
final  and  the  absolute  authority.  What  an  item  this  is 
for  unity!  What  excuse  can  be  offered  for  not  taking 
this  one  book  and  uniting  on  it?  Surely  there  can  be 
none. 

5.  There  is  one  religion  from  God,  and  but  one.  In 
this  there  is  almost  a  unanimous  agreement.  ISTo  man 
says  the  religions  of  God,  or  the  religions  of  Christ. 
There  is  precisely  one  religion  in  the  world  from  God, 
intended  for  all  peoples,  all  the  world,  and  for  all  time 
after  it  was  given.  That  one  religion  is  from  our  Lord, 
the  Anointed.  !N"o  man  says,  the  religions  of  our  Lord, 
but  the  religion  of  our  Lord.  We  have  no  doubt  about 
which  it  is.  It  is  not  the  Mormon,  Papal,  Shaker, 
Quaker,  Mohammedan,  nor  any  other  not  named  in  the 
Bible,  but  the  one  religion  given  by  our  Lord,  the 
Christ.  It  comes  with  authority — the  final,  the  abso- 
lute authority.  It  is  from  God,  for  all  countries  and 
peoples  on  all  the  face  of  the  earth.  In  this  there  is  an 
almost  universal  agreement. 

6.  There  is  but  one  gospel,  ^o  man  of  any  intelli- 
gence says,  the  gospels  of  Christ,  or  the  gospels  of  the 
grace  of  God.  It  is  simply  the  gospel^  the  gospel 
of  Christ,  or  the  gospel  of  the  grace  of  God.  We  all 
speak  of  the  gospel  as  a  definite  thing,  and  every  man 
that   preaches   speaks  of  preaching  the   gospel,  of  its 


224  MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT. 

being  his  mission  to  preach  the  gospel.  If  a  man 
preaches  something  else,  he  does  it  under  a  pretense 
of  preaching  the  gospel.  Galatians  i.  6-12,  Paul  pro- 
nounces a  curse  on  man  or  angel  who  preaches  any 
other  gospel,  or  even  perverts  this  gospel.  At  the  close 
of  the  holy  volume,  the  malediction  of  Heaven  is  threat- 
ened against  any  man  who  shall  add  anything  to  it,  or 
take  anything  from  it.  One  begins  to  inquire  how  we 
can  disagree,  if  we  all  admit  that  there  is  but  one  gos- 
pel of  God.  We  all  admit  this,  whether  we  can  see 
how  we  can  admit  it,  and  then  differ  or  not.  It  is  cer- 
tainly a  grand  item  toward  unity,  at  all  events. 

7.  There  is  but  one  body  of  Christ.  No  man,  no 
matter  how  badly  he  is  perverted,  says  bodies  of  Christ, 
or  kingdoms  of  Christ.  All  say,  the  body,  the  kingdom. 
There  is  but  one  body  of  Christ,  or  one  kingdom  of  God. 
The  Lord  is  the  King,  and  the  children  of  God  are  the 
subjects.  The  Lord  says,  "There  shall  be  one  fold  and 
one  Shepherd."  One  fold,  or  one  flock,  is  literally  one 
body,  one  Church.  This  is  clear,  intelligible  and  defi- 
nite matter,  in  w^hich  there  is  a  general  agreement. 
That  kingdom,  or  body,  is  the  Church,  in  its  most  ex- 
tended sense — the  one  fold  including  all  the  saints — the 
true  Israel  of  God. 

8.  There  is  one  foundation,  and  but  one.  "According 
to  the  grace  of  God  which  is  given  unto  me,  as  a  wise 
master-builder,  I  have  laid  the  foundation,  and  another 
buildeth  thereon.  But  let  every  man  take  heed  how  he 
buildeth  thereupon.  For  other  foundation  can  no  man 
lay  than  that  is  laid,  which  is  Jesus  Christ." — 1  Corin- 
thians iii.  10,  11.  This  is  clear  enough.  ISTo  man  that 
knows  what  he  is  saying,  and  who  has  any  regard  for 
what  he  says,  talks  of  /ou7idations,  but  of  ^^  the  found- 
ation which  is  laid,  which  is  Jesus  the  Christ."     The 


MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT.  225 

Lord  says,  Matthew  xvi.  18:  "On  this  rock  I  will  build 
my  Church."  This  is  a  matter  of  very  general  agree- 
ment, and  certainly  one  of  much  importance  to  unity. 
As  the  Lord  intended  but  one  building,  he  laid  but  one 
foundation,  and  declared  that  no  man  can  lay  any  other. 
He  also  solemnly  charged  men  to  take  heed  how  they 
huild  thereon. 

These  unities  run  through  the  holy  teaching.  1  Co- 
rinthians iii.  9,  the  apostle  says,  "Ye  are  God's  hus- 
bandry"— not  husbandries^  but  husbandry.  A  little 
further  on  he  says,  "Ye  are  God's  building."  It  is  not 
buildings.  Still  further,  "Ye  are  the  temple  of  God." 
It  is  not  temples  of  God.  God  dwells  in  this  building ., 
this  temple.,  and  the  Holy  Spirit  dwells  in  it.  This  all 
points  to  what  is  almost  universally  agreed  on  and 
admitted. 

9.  There  is  but  one  holy  city,  I^ew  Jerusalem,  in  the 
new  heaven  and  the  new  earth.  There  is  but  one  hope 
of  heaven,  of  immortality  and  eternaUlife  for  all  na- 
tions of  men  that  dwell  on  all  the  face  of  the  earth.  To 
this  there  is  almost  a  universal  agreement. 

10.  There  is  but  one  "everlasting  punishment"  for 
those  who  die  in  their  sins.     See  Matthew  xxv.  46. 

11.  There  is  but  one  communion;  one  divinely  ap- 
pointed institution  celebrating  the  Lord's  death.  In 
this  there  is  an  almost  unanimous  agreement.  We 
could  not  expect  more  perfect  oneness  in  this  than  there 
is,  in  view  of  the  disordered  and  distracted  state  of  the 
public  mind  on  religion. 

12.  There  is  a  church-membership  about  which  there 
is  no  doubt  or  dispute — about  a  membership  consisting 
of  believers.,  who  have  given  themselves  to  God  accord- 
ing to  the  Scriptures,  and  who  are  carrying  out  their 
faith  ill  practice.,  in  the  acts  of  obedience  prescribed  by 


226  MATTERS    0^    AGREEMENT. 

the  Lord,  there  is  no  controversy.  That  the  man  who 
comes  to  the  Lord  by  faith;  begins  at  the  first  thing 
the  Lord  commands  him  to  do,  and,  in  acts  of  obe- 
dience, continues  on,  item  after  item,  in  the  "  ordinances 
and  commandments  of  the  Lord  blameless,"  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Church  of  God,  there  is  a  general  agree- 
ment. Those  who  have  come  to  the  Lor4,  believing  on 
Christ,  and  been  introduced  into  the  heavenly  family, 
according  to  the  preaching  of  the  apostles  under  the 
last  commission,  and  are  continuing  in  the  apostles* 
doctrine,  are  undeniably  members  of  the  body  of  Christ. 
These  are  all  children  of  God  hy  faith  in  Christ.  About 
a  membership  of  converted  or  regenerated  men  and 
women  there  is  no  doubt.  Whether  persons  can  be 
made  members  without  any  faith,  repentance,  confes- 
sion, or  change  of  heart,  or  not,  there  is  no  doubt  about 
a  membership  consisting  of  regenerated  persons.  This 
is  an  unquestionable  membership.  In  this  all  agree. 
Here  is  ground  of  unity.  Who  is  to  blame  for  divis- 
ion— those  who  stick  to  the  membership  about  which 
there  is  no  dispute,  or  those  who  contend  for  and  main- 
tain a  membership  composed,  at  least  in  part,  of  per- 
sons without  faith  or  regeneration?  Let  those  solve 
this  question  who  are  resting  on  a  membership  given 
them  before  they  had  any  faith,  or  knew  there  was  any 
God  or  Savior.  The  clear  statement  of  the  apostle  is, 
that  "  we  are  all  the  children  of  God  by  faith  in  Christ 
Jesus."  None  are  children  of  God  without  faith  in 
Christ  Jesus,  and  none  are  members  of  the  body,  the 
Church,  without  faith.  In  the  new  covenant,  or  in  the 
body  of  Christ,  for  all  in  the  body  are  in  the  covenant, 
all  know  the  Lord,  from  the  least  to  the  greatest.  Here 
is  a  membership  about  which  there  is  no  doubt;  i  mem- 
bership that  "all  know  the  Lord,  from  the  leas<  co  the 


.MATTERS  OF  AGREEMENT.  227 

greatest,"'  that  "are  all  the  children  of  God  by  faith  in 
Christ  Jesus." 

13.  There  is  a  rule  of  faith  in  which  all  are  agreed. 
It  is  alluded  to  in  sundry  forms.  In  the  preface  to 
''Wesley's  ISTotes,"  he  says,  "Would  to  God  that  all 
sectarian  names  were  forgotten,  and  that  we,  as  humble, 
loving  disciples,  might  sit  down  together  at  the  Master's 
feet,  read  his  holy  word,  imbibe  his  Holy  Spirit,  and 
transcribe  his  life  in  our  own."  Speaking  of  the  Gen- 
eral Rules  in  the  Discipline,  Mr.  Wesley  says,  "All 
of  which  we  are  taught  of  God  to  observe  even  in  his 
written  word,  which  is  the  only  rule,  and  the  sufficient 
rule,  both  for  our  faith  and  practice."  In  the  Prayer- 
Book  of  the  Church  of  England,  in  the  Presbj^teriaa 
Confession  of  Faith,  and  in  the  Methodist  Discipline, 
the  following  substantially  is  found:  "The  Holy  Scrip- 
tures contain  all  things  necessary  to  salvation ;  so  that 
whatsoever  is  not  read  therein,  or  may  not  be  proved 
thereby,  is  not  to  be  required  of  any  man,  that  it  should 
be  believed  as  an  article  of  faith,  or  thought  requisite 
or  necessary  to  salvation."  The  words  of  Chilling  worth 
have  been  quoted  in  all  Christendom  for  many  years 
past:  "The  Bible,  and  the  Bible  alone,  is  the  religion 
of  Protestants."  In  harmony  with  this,  Paul  says:  "All 
Scripture  is  given  by  inspiration  of  God,  and  is  profit- 
able for  doctrine,  for  reproof,  for  correction,  for  instruc- 
tion in  righteousness:  that  the  man  of  God  may  be 
perfect,  thoroughly  furnished  unto  all  good  works." — 
2  Timothy  iii.  16,  17. 

Here,  then,  is  a  rule  of  faith  in  which  there  is  a  gen- 
eral agreement;  all-sufficient  and  capable  to  thoroughly 
furnish  the  man  of  God  for  all  good  works.  This  is 
the  rule  of  faith  for  the  one  body,  or  for  all  the  saints. 

14.  "The  apostles'  doctrine."     Here  is  the  doctrine 


228  JilATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT. 

of  the  one  bod}^  "They  continued  in  the  apostles' 
doctrine,"  or  in  the  apostles'  teaching.  The  word  "doc- 
trine," in  the  Scriptures,  means  teachivg.  When  it  is, 
"the  doctrine  of  the  Lord,"  or  "the  apostles'  doctrine," 
it  is  always  singular — doctrine — not  doctrines;  but 
when  it  is  doctrines  of  men,  or  demons,  it  is  always 
plural — doctrines — not  doctrine.  This  is  very  signifi- 
cant. The  doctrine,  or  teaching  from  God,  is  *a  xinit^ 
always  one^  and  its  tendency  is  unity — oneness.  The 
doctrines  of  men,  and  of  demons,  are  always  pluraly 
always  doctrines.,  and  their  tendency  is  to  division. 
Touching  the  apostles'  doctrine,  all  are  agreed.  [Niobbdy 
objects  to  it.  About  it  there  is  no  doubt.  We  have  it 
all  printed  in  our  mother  tongue,  in  a  convenient  vol- 
ume, and  all  have  it.  Whether  we  have  read  it  all,  and 
understand  it  all;  whether  we  practice  it  or  not.,  we 
have  the  book  that  contains  it,  and  know  which  book  it 
is — know  precisely  where. to  find  it.  We  are  all  agreed 
about  the  book, that  contains  it,  and  the  part  of  the 
book  of  which  it  consists.  Here  is  agreement  of  the 
highest  importance  to  the  saints.  There  is  no  excuse 
for  us  if  we  take  not  this  doctrine  and  walk  not  by  it» 
Do  you  say,  "We  can  not  see  it  alike?"  How,  then, 
can  you  see  alike  when  you  listen  to  men  who  teach  so 
differently?  Nothing  but  endless  confusion  arises  among 
all  men  who  turn  away  from  the  apostles'  doctrine.,  or 
teaching. 

15.  Justification  by  faith.  That  men  are  justified  by 
faith  is  a  matter  in  which  there  is  an  almost  unanimous 
agreement.  This  has  been  almost  unanimously  declared. 
In  this  there  is  great  unanimity.  But  when  one  word 
is  added  to  this,  making  it  justification  by  faith  alone,  up 
comes  dissension.  Unity  is  lost — oneness  is  gone — and 
that,  too,  by  the  addition  of  one  word  to  the  clear  Ian- 


MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT.  229 

^  lage  of  Scripture.  This  shows  the  importance  of  ad- 
hering to  the  precise  teaching  of  the  word  of  God. 
If  the  addition  means  nothing  more,  or  adds  nothing  to 
the  meaning  of  the  clear  statement  of  Scripture,  it  is 
useless.  If  it  adds  anything  to  it,  or  means  anything 
more,  it  ought  to  be  rejected.  It  is  redundant  if  it 
adds  nothing  to  it,  and  mischievous  if  it  adds  anything 
to  it,  and  in  either  case  ought  to  be  rejected.  There  is 
an  agreement  almost  or  quite  universal  that  we  are  jus- 
tified hy  faith.  But  there  are  two  things  not  embraced 
in  that:  1.  That  we  are  not  justified  without  faitli.  2. 
That  we  are  not  justified  Jy  faith  alone.  "He  that 
believeth  not  the  Son  shall  not  see  life,"  says  the  Lord; 
and  again,  "He  that  believeth  not  shall  be  damned." 
"  He  that  comes  to  God  must  believe  that  he  is,  and  that 
he  is  a  rewarder  of  them  that  diligently  seek  him." 
"  Without  faith  it  is  impossible  to  please  him."  Here 
is  ground  for  unity,  but  there  must  be  nothing  more 
nor  less.  There  must  be  nothing  added  nor  taken 
away.  It  is  equally  as  true  that  "we  are  justified  by 
his  blood,"  as  that  we  are  "justified  by  faith;"  and 
if  the  word  alone  is  added  to  justified  by  faith,  it  ex- 
cludes the  blood  of  Christ,  and  all  know  that  was  not 
intended.  It  is  equally  true  that  we  are  justified  by 
grace^  but  it  is  not  grace  alone,  blood  alone,  nor  faith 
alone ^  but  by  each,  the  grace,  the  faith,  and  the  blood, 
in  its  place,  doing  its  own  part  in  the  one  justification. 
The  agreement  is  not  in  justification  by  faith  alon.\  nor 
grace  alone,  nor  the  blood  of  Christ  alone,  but  that  jus- 
tification is  by  faith,  the  blood  of  Christ,  and  the  grace 
of  God. 

Specially  is  this  correct  when  it  is  kept  in  view  that 
by  faith  means  not  by  the  law  of  Moses— that  it  is  by 
belief  on   Christ,   and   not   by  the   deeds   of  the    law 


230  MATTERS    OF   AGREEMENT. 

of  Moses,  which  had  no  eternal  life  in  it.  The  same  is 
true  of  justification  hy  grace.  It  is  justification  by  the 
fav^or  of  God,  in  the  New  Institution,  and  not  by  the 
hiw  of  Moses,  in  the  Old  Institution.  There  is,  then,  a 
unanimous  agreement  in  justification  by  faith.  This  is 
a  grand  item  toward  unity.  The  minds  of  the  people 
do  not  have  to  be  revolutionized  on  this.  They  are 
now  07ie. 

16.  There  is  a  general  agreement  that  a  penitent  he- 
liever  is  a  proper  subject  for  baptism.  Whatever  men 
hold  besides  this,  they  very  generally  agree  in  this.  This 
is  clear.  About  it  there  is  no  controversy.  It  is  settled. 
'Eo  one  of  any  note  denies  that  a  penitent  heliever  is  a 
proper  subject  for  baptism.  If  none  but  penitent  be- 
lievers had  ever  been  introduced  as  proper  subjects  for 
baptism,  there  would  never  have  been  any  controversy 
about  the  subjects  for  baptism,  for  on  this  there  has 
never  been  any  dispute.  But  when  candidates  for  bap- 
tism were  presented  that  had  no  faith,  repentance,  or 
change  of  heart,  or  even  the  knowledge  of  the  exist- 
ence of  God,  disputes  arose,  contentions  and  strife;  not 
about  helievers^  but  those  who  were  not  helievers.  Those 
for  the  baptism  of  persons  not  only  not  believers.,  but 
known  not  to  he  helievers^  maintained  that  it  was  not 
forhidden;  that  those  opposed  to  it  must  produce  Scrip- 
ture excluding  tliem^  or,  in  default  to  do  this,  they  must 
hold  their  peace.  No  matter  if  the  baptism  of  persons 
who  have  no  faith  is  without  precept  or  example  in 
Scripture;  no  matter  if  there  is  not  a  mention  of  such 
a  thing  in  the  Bible,  in  any  form  or  shape,  it  is  notfor^ 
hidden^  and  there  is  no  Scripture  excluding  them  !  They 
appear  to  be  ignorant  of  the  fact  that  there  can  not  ex- 
ist a  positive  divine  appointment,  without  positive  divine 
authority — that  where  there  is  no  positive  divine  author- 


MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT.  231 

it  J  there  is  no  positive  divine  appointment,  a.nd  where 
there  is  no  positive  divine  appointment,  there  can  be  no 
divine  obligation;  or  where  there  is  no  divine  authority, 
there  is  no  divine  law. 

Such  a  thing  as  baptizing  a  person  known  to  have  no 
faith^  not  only  has  no  precedent,  no  precept  or  exam- 
ple, nor  even  a  mention  of  any  sort  in  the  entire  reve- 
lation from  God  to  man,  but  is  not  mentioned  in  any- 
thing written  in  the  first  two  centuries!  There  was 
never  anything  practiced  in  the  name  of  religion  more 
completely  without  divine  authority,  from  the  time 
of  the  introduction  of  the  first  corruption  of  the  pure 
religion  of  Christ  till  the  present  time,  than  tlie  prac- 
tice of  baptizing  persons  hnown  to  have  no  faith.  This 
bone  of  contention  was  introduced  in  the  third  century, 
and  has  been  followed  by  strife  down  to  our  time;  and 
some  men  now,  as  if  determined  to  demonstrate  that 
they  can  bring  something  out  of  nothing,  that  they  can 
prove  something  without  testimony,  or  perform  some 
other  unaccountable  feat,  are  peregrinating  the  country 
and  defending  the  practice  of  baptizing  human  beings 
known  to  have  no  faith,  repentance,  or  change  of  heart, 
or  even  knowledge  of  the  existence  of  God !  Their 
ground  is  the  bone  of  contention;  their  work  is  the 
work  of  strife,  and  the  fruit  of  the  work  is  corruption — 
filling  the  Church  with  the  unconverted,  unregenerated. 
But  the  baptism  of  penitent  believers  has  clear  precept 
and  example  in  Scripture,  and  the  approval  of  all  be- 
lievers in  divine  revelation.  In  it  there  is  agreement 
almost  universal.  On  this  there  is  unanimity,  and 
about  it  there  is  no  dissension. 

17.  There  is  an  almost  unanimous  agreement  on  im- 
mersion. There  has  never  been  any  considerable  doubt 
or  controvers}^  about  immersion.     There  is  a  uniform 


232  MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT. 

agreement  that  the  word  baptize,  in  the  time  of  the 
apostfes,  meant  immerse;  that  the  apostles  did  immerse., 
and  there  is  not  a  trace  of  anything  short  of  immersion 
in  any  work  written  in  the  first  two  centuries.  The 
lexicons  define  the  original  word  haptizo^  immerse. 
This  shows  that  the  original  practice  was  immersion. 
There  is  not  a  better  attested  fact  than  this  in  all  his- 
tory bearing  on  the  subject.  The  distinguished  Re- 
formers, Luther,  Calvin,  and  Wesley,  agree  on  this.  The 
critics,  commentators  and  cyclopaedias  agree  on  it.  The 
translators  agree  on  it.  In  one  word,  the  learning 
of  the  world,  from  the  apostles  down,  agree  on  this. 
That  a  believer,  immersed  on  confession  that  Jesus  is 
the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God,  into  the  name 
of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
is  haptised  according  to  the  Scriptures,  has  never  been 
in  dispute  or  doubt.  On  this  there  is  a  unanimous 
agreement.  This  has  never  been  a  bone  of  contention 
and  strife.  The  whole  Romish  Church  admits  that  im- 
mersion was  the  original  practice.  The  Greek  Church, 
with  one  consent,  admits  it;  the  Church  of  England 
admits  it;  the  standard  works  and  creeds  nearly  all,  in 
one  form  or  other,  admit  it;  the  histories,  cyclopaedias, 
critics,  translators,  commentators,  and  reformers,  agree 
to  it.  There  is  nothing  but  the  lowest  order  of  cavil- 
ing, sophistry  and  evasion  against  it. 

You  inquire,  then,  what  the  controversy  has  been 
about.  It  has  not  been  about  immersion  at  all,  but 
shoMi  substitittes  for  it!  Beginning  about  the  middle 
of  the  third  century,  substitutes  have  been  introduced 
and  practiced.  The  Papacy  now  practices  sprinkling^ 
not  as  what  was  originally  practiced,  but  a  substitute^ 
sanctioned  by  the  Church,  and  she  maintains  that  it  will 
do  as  well  as    the  original.     The  Church  of  England 


MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT.  233 

does  the  same  thing.  She  practices  what  she  admits  to 
be  a  substitute  and  not  the  originaL  The  disputing  and 
doubts,  the  debates  and  strifes,  have  all  been  about  suh- 
stitutes^  and  not  about  the  original — immersion.  About 
that,  among  men  of  genuine  learning,  there  have  been 
no  disputes  nor  doubts.  They  have  been  and  are  one. 
There  is  general  agreement. 

18.  Baptized  persons  are  in  the  Church  ;  those  not 
baptized  are  not  in  the  Church.  There  is  a  unanimous 
agreement  among  all  churches  that  baptized  persons  are 
to  be  received,  all  other  matters  being  right;  and  that 
none,  not  baptized  persons,  can  be  members  of  any 
Church.  IN'othing  is  here  said  about  what  haptism  is, 
but  it  is  spoken  of  as  a  rite^  and  no  Church,  worth  men- 
tioning, receives  persons  without  what  it  calls  haptism. 
This  is  a  matter  in  which  all  churches,  of  any  note, 
agree.  iSTo  matter  how  much  they  talk  of  baptism 
being  a  ^lon-esscntial^  there  it  stands  at  the  entrance, 
and  to  it  every  one  must  submit,  or  not  get  in.  No 
matter  whether  Baptist  or  Pedobaptist,  nor  whether  he 
calls  immersion  or  sprinkling  baptism,  there  what  he 
calls  baptism  stands,  and  you  can  not  get  into  the  Church 
without  it.  Essential,  or  non-essential,  to  please  the 
Lord,  in  the  estimation  of  the  preacher  and  his  breth- 
ren, or  to  being  saved  in  heaven,  it  is  essential  to  ad- 
mittance into  the  Church!  There  is  one  holy  place, 
whether  "the  true  holy  place"  or  not,  into  which  you 
can  not  enter  without  baptism!  Charitable,  or  unchar- 
itable, there  stand  the  shepherds  at  the  entrance  of  the 
Church,  refusing  to  admit  you  into  the  Church  till  you 
are  baptized,  in  their  meaning  of  it. 

Do  you  say  that  they  charitahly  admit  that  you  can 
gQt  \\\io  \\Q2,YQn  without  haptism?  Who  thanks  thera 
for  that  charity?  They  do  not  keep  the  entrance  into 
20 


234  MATTERS    OF    AQREEMENT. 

heaven,  and  we  do  not  have  to  consult  them  whether 
we  may  go  in  there  or  not.  The  Chief  Shepherd  will 
decide  that  question,  without  any  regard  to  their  charity 
or  grace.  But  where  they  can.  they  stand  and  bar  you 
out  unless  you  have  been  baptized  !  What,  then,  is  all 
their  talk  of  liberality  worth?  It  amounts  to  nothing. 
Whether  they  require  you  to  obey  God  or  not,  you 
must  ohey  them;  whether  you  submit  to  the  law  of  God 
or  not,  you  must  submit  to  their  law;  whether  it  is  es- 
sential to  be  baptized  in  order  to  enter  into  the  king- 
dom of  God  or  not,  it  is  essential  to  be  baptized  in  or- 
der to  enter  into  their  kingdom. 

But  the  Lord  has  settled  the  matter — that^w^e  are 
all  baptized  into  one  body."  In  this  all  agree.  No 
baptism.,  no  memhership.  What  a  farce,  then,  all  this 
disputing  about  baptism  being  essential  !  It  is  essen- 
tial to  admittance  into  the  one  body.  "  Except  a  man 
be  born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit,  he  can  not  enter 
into  the  kingdom  of  God."  Here  there  is  agreement, 
and  where  there  is  agreement  let  us  agree,  and  have  no 
more  strife.  ITo  baptism,  no  membership,  is  the  rule  in 
all  Christendom. 

19.  There  is  a  universal  agreement  that  there  is  a 
power  or  influence  of  the  Spirit  of  God  exercised  on 
men  to  save  them.  There  is  a  farther  agreement  that 
is  almost  universal,  and  that  is,  that  the  Spirit  of  God 
spoke  through  the  prophets  and  the  apostles,  and  Jesus 
says  that  the  apostles  spoke  not,  but  the  Spirit  spoke  in 
them.  The  words  which  the  apostles  taught  were  not 
their  words,  but  the  words  which  the  Holy  Spirit 
teaches,  comparing  spiritual  things  with  spiritual.  There 
is  a  command  from  the  Lord  to  "hear  what  the  Spirit 
says  to  the  churches."  There  is  a  unanimous  agree- 
ment that  the  man  who  hears  the  language  of  the  Spirit 


MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT.  235 

of  God,  as  put  forth  through  the  prophets  iuid  apostles, 
as  now  found  in  Scripture,  believes  it  with  all  his  heart, 
and  is  led  hy  it  to  do  the  will  of  God,  is  thus  led,  in- 
fluenced, or  moved,  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  It  is  the 
power,  or  influence  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  that  moves 
and  leads  him.  From  this  there  is  no  dissent.  To  this 
all  agree.  This  influence  of  the  Spirit  is  a  reality,  as 
certainly  as  the  existence  of  the  Spirit,  or  of  the  Lord 
Jesus.  The  concurrence  in  it  is  as  broad  as  the  concur- 
rence in  divine  revelation. 

But  how  about  the  influence  of  the  Spirit  aside  from 
thisf  Where  is  the  concurrence  there?  Is  it  the  in- 
fluence of  the  Spirit  that  leads  Friends,  or  Quakers,  to 
hold  silent  meetings,  sit  with  their  hats  on,  and  dismiss 
by  shaking  hands;  that  leads  Shakers  to  dance,  forbids 
them  to  marry,  requires  them  to  form  themselves  into 
communities,  and  become  curiosities  to  the  rest  of  man- 
kind; that  leads  Mormons  into  polygamy,  and  into  con- 
tinued antagonism  with  the  civil  authorities?  Does 
the  Spirit  lead  people  to  sliout,  clap  their  hands,  scream, 
jump  and  fall,  in  some  churches,  to  be  quiet  and  serene 
in  others?  etc.  This  is  where  the  doubts  arise.  You 
question  this  being  the  work  of  the  Spirit  at  all.  There 
is,  at  least,  nothing  unanimously  agreed  to  be  the  work 
of  the  Spirit,  only  that  which  proceeds  from  hearing 
the  language  of  the  Spirit,  as  put  forth  through  proph- 
ets and  apostles,  believing  that  language,  and  being  led 
by  it  to  do  the  will  of  God  as  set  forth  in  Scripture. 
About  those  who  hear  what  the  Holy  Spirit  says,  sol- 
emnly believe  it,  and  are  influenced  by  it,  or  moved  by 
it,  to  do  the  will  of  God,  there  is  no  doubt.  Kor  is 
there  any  doubt  about  the  work  performed  in  them 
being  the  work  of  th"  Spirit.  It  is  the  Spirit  that  leads 
them  as  certainly  as  if  he  stood  before  them  and  com- 


236  MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT. 

manded  them  to  do  the  same  things  with  an  audible 
voice.  Turning  the  attention  away  from  this,  about 
which  there  is  a  unanimous  agreement,  to  anything 
else,  we  only  come  to  where  there  is  no  agreement. 

But  this  is  not  all.  The  impartation  of  the  Spirit, 
in  any  form  that  it  may  be  given  and  enjoyed,  is  from 
God.  Man  can  not,  no  matter  what  view  he  may  have 
of  it,  impart  the  Holy  Spirit  to  himself  or  any  one  else. 
If,  then,  he  believes  the  truth  honestly,  with  all  the 
heart,  obeys  it  with  the  best  of  his  ability,  with  a  view 
to  obtaining  all  the  benefits  God  intends  to  bestow  on 
the  pure  in  heart;  or  if  he  does  this  without  even  claim- 
ing to  know  all  about  what  the  Lord  will  do  for  him, 
but  with  the  full  assurance  that  all  will  be  done  for  him 
that  he  needs;  that  God  will  do  abundantly  above  all 
that  he  asks  or  thinks,  but  without  claiming  to  know 
how  he  will  do  it,  w^ill  not  the  Lord  do  all  things  well 
for  him?  For  instance,  he  has  the  clear  statement  to 
the  Corinthians,  that  "ye  are  the  temple  of  God,  and 
the  Spirit  of  God  dwelleth  in  you;"  but  he  may  not 
know  how  the  Spirit  dwells  in  him.  Then  he  reads 
that  God  dwells  in  this  temple,  but  he  can  not  see  pre- 
cisely Tiow  God  dwells  in  men,  or  Tiow  Christ  dwells  in 
them.  Will  God,  Christ,  or  the  Spirit,  refuse  to  dwell 
in  a  man  who  believes  all  these  statements,  but  does  not 
understand  Jiow  God,  Christ,  or  the  Spirit,  dwells  in 
him?  If  the  man  receives  the  truth,  understands  it, 
believes  it,  and  does  what  it  requires,  with  a  full  and 
sincere  purpose  of  heart,  will  not  the  Lord  accept  him 
and  do  for  him  all  that  he  needs — as  Paul  says,  "  Ex- 
ceeding abundantly  above  all  we  ask  or  think?"  If  the 
Lord  will  not  do  this,  what  more  can  man  do  ?  How 
can  man  make  his  calling  and  election  sure? 

The  adversary  is  very  shrewd  in  turning  man's  at 


MATTERS    OF    AGREEMENT.  237 

teiition  away  from  what  the  Lord  requires  man  to  doy 
or  Jiow  he  requires  it  to  be  done,  and  declaring  it  not 
essential ;  by  puzzling  his  brain  over  the  question  how 
the  Lord  does  certain  things,  and  trying  to  make  it  ap- 
pear that  he  does  it  in  this  way  or  that,  and  that  you 
must  believe  this  theory  or  that,  or  the  Lord  will  not 
do  what  he  has  promised  at  all!  But  the  Lord  does 
not  promise  the  Holy  Spirit  to  those  who  believe  this 
theory  or  that,  of  direct  or  immediate  influence,  or 
power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  but  to  *' those  that  obey  him/* 
Peter  says,  "  We  are  his  witnesses  of  these  things  " — 
that  God  has  exalted  .Tesus  to  his  right  hand,  a  Prince 
and  a  Savior,  to  give  repentance  to  Israel,  and  remis- 
sion of  sins — "  and  so  is  also  the  Holy  Spirit,  whom 
God  hath  given  to  them  that  ohey  him.^^ — Acts  v.  31, 
32.  Christ  is  "  the  Author  of  eternal  salvation  to  all 
them  that  ohey  hiynP — Hebrews  v.  9. 

The  main  trouble,  after  all,  is  uiibelief.  Men  are 
turning  philosophers,  and  trying  to  tell  how  things  are 
done,  and  their  theories  leave  them  as  much  in  the 
dark  as  ever.  They  want  to  know  how  a  sinner,  dead 
ill  trespasses  and  sins,  can  be  quickened  without  an  im- 
mediate or  a  direct  operation  of  the  Spirit.  But  will 
they  be  so  good  as  to  tell  us  how  sinners  are  quickened 
by  an  immediate  or  a  direct  operation  of  the  Spirit? 
No,  sir,  they  can  not  tell  hoxo.  To  say  it  is  by  an  im- 
mediate operation  of  the  Spirit  explains  nothing.  It 
escapes  from  the  truth  in  the  Bible,  and  gets  off  into 
the  dark,  but  explains  nothing,  and  leaves  you  where 
you  are  compelled  to  say,  '^I  do  not  see  how?''  But 
if  the  gospel  is  preached,  with  the  Holy  Spirit  sent 
down  from  heaven,  and  men  believe  it,  we  can  see  that 
they  believe  the  Spirit  and  are  moved  by  the  Spirit; 
and  if  the  gospel  is  the  power  of  God  to  salvation  to 


1238  mattehs  of  agreement. 

every  one  that  believes,  we  can  see  how  it  comes  from 
the  Spirit,  and  how  its  supreme  authority  moves  the 
heart  and  turns  the  sinner.  To  say  it  is  done  by  an 
immediate  operation  of  the  Spirit,  is  simply  to  say  that 
we  know  nothing  about  liow  it  is  done;  for  no  man  can 
tell  anything  about  how  anything  is  done  by  an  imme- 
diate operation  of  the  Spirit,  or  how  anything  is  done 
by  the  Spirit  at  all,  if  it  is  not  done  through  the  truth. 
That  we  are  begotten  by  the  word  of  truth,  by  the  gos- 
pel, and  sanctified  through  the  truth,  is  plainly  taught 
in  Scripture;  and  that  whatever  is  done  by  the  word 
of  truth,  is  done  by  the  Spirit  who  uttered  the  truth, 
no  one  can  doubt.  What  is  done  by  the  truth  is  done 
by  the  Spirit  who  spoke  the  truth.  This  is  his  vwrh^ 
and  in  this  all  of  any  note  are  agreed.  The  Holy  Spirit 
was  sent  down  from  heaven  to  inspire  the  apostles  and 
preach  the  gospel  through  them;  and  this  gospel, 
preached  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  sent  down  from  heaven, 
which  things  the  angels  desired  to  look  into,  is  the 
power  of  God  to  salvation  to  every  one  that  believes. 
It  is  also  the  power  of  Christ,  and  the  power  of  the 
Spirit,  and  those  converted  by  it  are  converted  by  the 
power  of  God,  Christ,  and  the  Spirit.  Those  who  try 
to  turn  men  away  from  this  converting  power,  ure  try- 
ing to  turn  them  away  from  the  power  of  God,  Christ, 
and  the  Spirit.  This  can  but  land  in  ruin.  All  agree 
that  the  gospel  is  the  power  of  God  to  salvation  to  all 
that  believe,  and  that  it  is  the  power  of  Christ  and 
of  the  Spirit,  and  those  turned  to  God  by  the  preaching 
of  the  gospel  are  turned  by  the  power  of  God,  and 
those  sanctified  through  the  truth  are  sanctified  by  the 
Spirit.  Here  is  ground  of  unity ;  but  there  can  be  no 
unity  in  that  which  no  man  can  understand,  or  some- 
thing clear  outside  of  the  record. 


MATTERS    OF    AGEEEMENT.  239 

20.  There  is  gi-ouiul  of  agreeaient  on  what  the  Church 
and  the  people  of  God  shall  be  called.  ISTo  matter  how 
many  names  they  may  have,  nor  how  highly  they  may 
think  of  them,  at  heart  they  esteem  the  designations 
found  in  Scripture  above  all.  The}^  are  vital.  You 
may  tell  a  man  that  he  is  no  Episcopalian,  and  though 
he  claims  to  be  one,  he  is  not  hurt;  but  tell  him  that 
he  is  not  a  Chrtstian,  and  he  is  hurt  at  once.  The 
sacred  matter,  after  all,  is  Christian.  Tell  a  man  that 
he  is  no  Baptist,  and  though  he  claims  to  be  one,  he  is 
not  hurt;  but  tell  him  that  he  is  not  a  disciple  of  Christ, 
and  he  is  hurt  at  once.  It  is  not  offensive  to  any  of  us 
to  be  called  Christians,  disciples  of  Christ,  saints,  holy 
brethren,  children  of  God,  etc.  To  be  designated  as 
the  people  of  God  are  in  Scripture  is  not  offensive  to 
any  of  us.  "Why  not,  then,  in  view  of  the  person  after 
whom  we  are  named,  be  called  GJiristians ;  or,  in  view 
of  our  being  pupils,  or  learners,  in  the  school  of  Christ, 
and  of  him  being  our  Teacher,  be  willing  to  be  called 
his  students,  scholars,  learners,  or  disciples.  This  is  no 
proper  name,  nor  is  student  a  proper  name  for  the  young 
man  in  college;  but  he  is  a  studrnt^  and  we  so  desig- 
nate him.  Disciple  is  no  proper  name,  any  more  than 
student,  but  the  designation  is  used  in  the  same  sense. 
All  who  follow  Christ  are  students,  or  learners  of  Christ. 
They  are  pupils  in  his  school.  There  is  nothing  offen- 
sive in  this  for  any  servant  of  God.  If  he  has  accepted 
Christ  as  his  Teacher,  he  is  his  disciple^  or  scholar; 
if  we  have  God  in  view  as  our  Father,  we  are  his  chil- 
d,r-en;  if  we  have  the  kingdom  of  God  in  view,  we  are 
citizens;  if  Christ  is  in  view  as  our  Master,  we  are  his 
servants.  This  is  the  way  so  much  variety  is  found  in 
Scripture  in  designation.  We  are  all  willing  to  be 
called  the  people  of  God,  the  servants  of  God,  the  fol- 


240  MATTERS  OF  agree:^[ent. 

lowers  of  Christ,  disciples  of  Christ,  saints,  holy  breth 
ren;  and  if  we  are  what  the  first  adherents  to  Christ 
WtTe^  and  nothing  else^  these  designations  will  be  just 
as  sufficient  now  as  they  were  then — but  if  we  are  some- 
thing less,  something  more,  or  something  different  from 
what  they  were  then,  we  shall  need  some  other  designa- 
tions to  embrace  that  something  less,  something  more, 
or  something  different.  Let  us,  then,  determine  to  be 
the  sa7ne  they  were^  and  the  same  designations  they  had 
will  be  all  we  shall  need.  We  can,  then,  all  agree  to 
be  designated  Christians^  disciples  of  Christy  etc.,  as 
they  were,  and  thus  all  be  one. 

21.  We  can  agree  on  the  designation  of  the  general 
body.  Is^obody  objects  to  styling  it,  "  the  body  of  Christ,'* 
"the  kingdom  of  God,"  '«the  family  of  God,"  "the 
Church  of  God."  These  are  phrases  we  all  use,  and 
there  is  nothing  offensive  in  any  of  them.  These  are 
used  here  in  the  broad  sense.  They  embrace  the  whole 
of  the  "  true  Israel  of  God  " — all  that  properly  belong 
to  God.  This  entire  body  is  07ie.  It  is  the  "  one  body." 
— Ephesians  iv.  4.  It  is  what  Paul  alludes  to  when  he 
says,  "  We  are  all  immersed  into  one  body."  Baptism 
is  not  the  initiator}^  rite  into  any  sectarian  party,  but 
into  the  body  of  Christ.  It  is  the  naturalization  on 
coming  into  the  kingdom  of  God.  It  is  not  the  door 
into  the  Church — Christ  is  the  door — but  baptism  is  the 
act  of  coming  in  hy  the  door^  or  hy  Christ.  "  By  me," 
says  the  Lord,  "if  any  man  enter,  he  shall  go  in  and 
out,  and  shall  find  pasture,  and  find  it  more  abundantly." 
"I  am  the  door  of  the  sheep,"  says  he;  "all  that  came 
before  me  were  thieves  and  robbers."  All  agree  thai 
we  should  belong  to  the  "body  of  Christ,"  "the  Church 
of  God,"  "the  family  of  God;"  that  we  should  be  cit- 
izens of  "the  kingdom  of  God."     We  are  all  agreed 


MATTERS   OF   AGREEMENT.  241 

About  these  designations,  or  the  body  thus  described. 
That,  then,  is  the  body  of  which  to  be  a  member,  and 
there  is  no  propriety  in  stopping  to  look  after  any  other. 
There  can  be  no  other  except  in  rebellion  against  King 
Jesus.  He  is  the  absolute  Monarch,  and  can  admit  no 
rival.  He  is  to  reign  till  he  shall  have  put  down  all 
rule,  and  all  authority  and  power;  for  he  must  reign  till 
he  has  put  all  enemies  under  his  feet. 

The  kingdom  of  God,  the  Church  of  God,  or  the 
body  of  Christ,  are  different  designations  for  the  same 
body.  We  all  agree,  then,  what  to  call  it,  how  to  des- 
ignate it,  and  we  agree,  after  all,  that  the  main  matter  is 
to  be  a  member  of  the  body  of  Christ;  that  if  a  man  is 
not  a  member  of  that  body;  that  if  he  is  not  a  citizen 
of  the  kingdom  of  God;  is  not  in  the  Church  of  God — 
he  is  without,  an  alien,  a  foreigner,  stranger,  without 
God  and  without  hope  in  the  world.  Can  a  man  con- 
sent to  live  in  this  condition ;  this  state  of  despondency ; 
without  hope;  can  he  thus  meet  death,  and  go  into  vast 
eternity,  into  the  presence  of  his  God  and  Judge ;  and 
can  he  stand  before  Him  who  loved  him,  and  the  Lord 
who  died  for  him ;  who  poured  out  his  most  precious 
blood  to  cleanse  him  from  sin,  and  give  an  account 
of  his  ingratitude,  in  despising  his  grace,  love  and  com- 
passion, and  refusing  his  gracious  invitations  to  the  last? 
^'Turn,  turn,"  says  the  prophet;  "why  will  ye  die?" 
21 


SERMON  No.  XI. 

THEME. — MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT. 

The  theme  selected  for  the  present  discourse  is  by  no 
means  a  pleasant  one.  Happy  would  it  have  been  for 
js  if  there  had  been,  and  were  now,  no  matters  of  dis- 
agreement on  which  to  discourse.  But  such  is  not  the 
(State  of  Ine  case — far  otherwise.  The  world  has  been 
full  of  adverse  teaching,  and  will  be,  no  doubt,  for  much 
time  to  come.  We  must  take  the  case  as  it  is^  and  not 
as  we  would  have  it;  as  we  find  it,  and  not  as  we  de- 
sire to  leave  it.  These  differences  are  in  the  world,  and 
we  must  deal  w^ith  them  as  matters  of  fact.,  and  not 
oi  fancy;  matters  of  reality,  and  not  of  fiction. 

The  first  teaching  of  which  we  have  an  account,  after 
the  Lord  gave  his  law  to  man,  was  adverse  to  the  law 
of  God,  and  certainly  most  perverse.  It  started  a  dis- 
pute about  the  divine  penalty  threatened  in  case  of  a 
violation  of  the  divine  law.  It  certainly  was  not  that 
the  law  was  not  clear  enough,  setting  forth  tke  divine 
penalty,  nor  does  there  appear  to  have  been  any  misun- 
derstanding of  the  law.  The  case  was  not  more  flagrant 
than  has  existed  in  numerous  instances  since,  but  it 
was  perverse  indeed.  The  law  said :  "Thou  shalt  surely 
die."  The  new  and  opposing  teacher  faced  this,  and 
preached  it:  "God  knows  that  you  shall  not  surely 
die."  He  started  out  with  a  disagreement  at  once.  The 
issue  was  between  the  words,  "shall  surely  die,"  and 
"shall  not  surely  die."     The  Lord  ended  this  dispute  in 

(243) 


244  MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT. 

a  summary  way.  He  inflicted  the  peiialt}^  in  accord- 
ance with  the  law,  and  sent  a  curse  on  the  preacher  that 
undertook  to  set  aside  the  divine  penalty.  This  ought 
to  have  been  a  warning  to  all  in  after  ages,  who  under- 
took to  set  aside  the  divine  penalty.  But  there  have 
been  plenty  of  teachers  since  who  promise  the  wicked 
life,  or  we  should  not  have  the  following  language  from 
the  prophet:  "With  lies  ye  have  made  the  heart  of  the 
righteous  sad,  whom  I  have  not  made  sad;  and  strength- 
ened the  hands  of  the  wicked,  that  he  should  not  return 
from  his  wicked  ways,  by  promising  him  life." — See 
Ezekiel  xiii.  22.  The  Lord  adds  this  to  these  lying 
prophets,  who  deceive  the  people:  "Therefore  ye  shall 
see  no  more  vanity,  nor  divine  divinations:  for  I  will 
deliver  my  people  out  of  your  hand:  and  ye  shall  know 
that  I  am  the  Lord." — Ezekiel  xiii.  23.  This  is  cer- 
tainly warning  enough  for  men  who  promise  the  wicked 
life,  or  try  to  show  that  we  can  obtain  the  divine  bless- 
ing without  complying  with  the  divine  law;  the  men 
who  call  evil  good,  and  good  evil,  "slay  the  souls  that 
should  not  die,"  and  "  save  the  souls  alive  that  should 
not  live." — See  Ezekiel  xiii.  19. 

But  the  intention  of  this  discourse  is  to  consider  the 
matters  of  disagreement  that  have  distracted  the  body 
of  Christ.  These  will  have  to  be  considered  briefly  to 
grasp,  in  the  narrow  space  to  be  occupied  here,  the  mat- 
ters really  necessary  to  accomplish  the  object  in  view. 
Only  a  few  of  the  more  importan.t  matters  can  be  con- 
sidered at  all. 

1.  The  doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  so-called,  was  among 
the  early  questions  of  difference;  one  over  which  there 
were  as  heated  controversies,  as  much  strife  and  aliena- 
tion, as  much  discord  and  confusion,  as  ever  existed 
over  any  question  ever  agitated,  and  even  the  most  bit- 


MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT.  245 

ter  persecution.  Men  speculated  about  the  rnode  and 
nature  of  the  Divine  Existence,  spun  out  the  most  sub- 
tile, recondite  and  speculative  theories;  preached  them 
and  wrote  them  over  and  over  again,  and  required  the 
people  to  believe  them;  received  those  who  believed 
them,  and  anathematized  those  who  did  not.  The  the- 
ories not  only  related  to  the  Almighty  Father,  but  to 
the  Savior,  and  to  the  Spirit.  In  a  short  time  after  this 
discussion  was  fully  under  way,  there  was  but  little  said 
about  the  belief  of  the  divine  testimony  concerning  the 
Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Spirit;  but  the  question 
was  about  the  belief  of  what  rutn  were  saying  about  the 
Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  theories 
of  uninspired  men  were  written  out,  systematized,  and 
embodied  in  writing,  and  men  could  not  be  received  on 
the  belief  of  what  God  had  said  of  himself,  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  the  Christ,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit;  but  were  re- 
ceived on  the  belief  of  the  theories  thus  written  out  by 
uninspired  men.  If  they  said  they  believed  those  the- 
ories, they  received  them ;  if  they  did  not  believe  those 
theories,  they  did  not  receive  them ;  and  if  they  opposed 
those  theories,  they  anathematized  and  persecuted  them. 
It  mattered  not  if  a  man  believed  every  word  that 
proceeds  out  of  the  mouth  of  God ;  every  word  in  the 
revelation  from  God,  concerning  the  Father,  and  the 
Son,  and  the  Holy  Spirit,  if  he  did  not  believe  their  the- 
ories about  it — that  their  theories  contained  the  mean- 
ing of  what  God  had  said,  he  was  anathema.  The  tes- 
timony of  God  was  not  the  foundation  of  the  faith,  or 
not  the  matter  to  be  believed,  but  the  theories  of  unin- 
spired men  on  it,  which  must  be  regarded  as  the  mean- 
ing  of  it.  They  went  on  the  principle  that  the  wisdom 
of  God  either  could  not,  or  could,  but  did  not,  state  the 
meaning  as  clearly  as  they  could  state  it.     They  wrote, 


246  MATTERS   OF    DISAGREEMENT. 

as  thoy  claimed,  the  meaning  of  what  God  had  said, 
and  required  men  to  believe  their  meaning  of  what  God 
had  said,  instead  of  what  he  had  said  itself.  Their  op- 
ponents continually  plead  that  they  could  not  under- 
stand their  theories.  They  admitted  it,  but  claimed 
that  the  subject  was  too  deep  and  profound,  and  that 
finite  creatures  must  not  think  to  understand  it.  The 
question,  then,  kept  recurring.  How  did  you  understand 
it  so  as  to  write  out  your  theories?  We  can  see  how 
men  can  believe  God,  though  we  may  not  be  able  to 
understand  it.  We  can  receive  it  implicitly  from  God, 
or  believe  it  because  he  said  it.     He  can  not  err. 

But  this  is  not  the  case  with  the  men  who  wrote  out 
theories  about  the  Trinity.  They  wrote  about  a  matter 
which  they  confessed  they  could  not  understand,  ex- 
plained a  matter  which  they  confessed  could  not  be  ex- 
plained, and  yet  required  men  to  believe  their  theories. 
on  pain  of  damnation!  Had  these  men  been  content 
with  the  clear  testimony  of  God^  concerning  himself 
his  Son  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  enforced 
that  testimony  on  the  people,  they  would  have  found 
but  little  trouble  in  prevailing  on  men  to  believe  it.  But 
their  effort  was  not  to  lead  men  to  believe  God,  but  to 
believe  th^m.  The  untold  evils  resulting  from  this  spec- 
ulative dispute  will  never  be  computed.  They  did  not 
dispute  about  what  was  in  the  Bible,  but  what  was  not 
in  it;  not  about  what  was  revealed,  but  what  was  not 
not  revealed. 

2.  Theories  about  the  fall  of  man,  or  original  sin,  as 
they  sometimes  phrased  it,  became  bones  of  contention, 
grounds  of  strife,  and  led  to  almost  endless  speculations. 
Questions  arose  as  to  whether  the  depravity  of  man  was 
total,  whether  it  was  hereditary;  what  the  death  w^as 
that  man  died;  whether  it  was  temporal,  ppiritual.  or 


MATTERS   OF   DISAGREEMENT.  247 

eternal.  Large  numbers  maintained  that  depravity  was 
total,  hereditary;  and  that  it  involved  man  in  death, 
temporal,  spiritual,  and  eternal.  This,  again,  led  to  as 
many  more  speculations  about  regeneration.  To  meet 
this  total  depravity  of  man^s  nature,  they  invented  a 
theory  of  irresistible  grace,  or  irresistible  converting 
power.  Then,  this  theory  of  hereditary  depravity  in- 
volved infants,  not  only  in  sin,  but  hereditary  sin;  and, 
as  they  maintained,  guilt,  and  "  liable  to  eternal  damna- 
tion!" They  were  liable  to  death,  temporal,  spiritual, 
and  eternal.  This  laid  the  foundation  for  infant  reoren- 
eration,  infant  baptism,  and  infant  membership.  IvTo 
set  of  human  theories  and  speculations  has  ever  led  to 
such  untold  evils  as  those  now  alluded  to. 

To  show  that  infants  should  be  baptized,  it  was  argued 
at  great  length  that  they  were  sinners;  that  they  were 
under  the  guilt  and  condemnation  of  original  sin,  and 
unless  they  were  regenerated  they  would  be  lost;  and 
that  "this  original  stain,  that  cleaves  to  every  soul 
of  man,"  "can  not  be  washed  away  except  by  baptism." 
This  made  it  of  the  highest  importance  that  infants  all 
should  be  baptized,  as  they  held  that  they  could  not  be 
saved  without  baptism.  This  began  in  the  third  cen- 
turj^  It  was  a  bone  of  strife,  and  opened  the  way  for 
contention  down  to  the  present  time.  How  much  fur- 
ther it  shall  go  none  but  the  Omniscient  One  can  tell. 
The  iirst  mention  we  find  of  it  in  history  is  in  conten- 
tion. The  mention  of  it  by  Tertullian  is  the  oldest  that 
has  been  produced,  and  that  mention  of  it  is  in  contro- 
versy. Tertullian  is  opposing  it  as  an  innovation^  a  new 
thing  hut  recently  introduced.  Some  say,  "It  will  do 
no  harm."  True,  when  we  look  at  the  sprinkling  a  few 
drops  of  water  on  the  face,  in  itself,  the  first  impression 
is  that  it  can  do  no  barm.    But  there  is  another  chapter 


248  MATTERS   OF   DISAGREEMENT. 

to  be  read.     Let  us  look  oa  the  other  side  of  the  leaf. 

What  followed  when  infant  baptism  became  general? 
The  making  members  of  the  Church  without  any  faith, 
repentance,  change  of  heart,  or  even  knowledge  of  the 
existence  of  God,  became  just  as  general.  In  the  same 
proportion,  also,  the  baptism  of  believers  became  less 
and  less  frequent.  In  other  words,  the  making  of 
churches  of  converted  or  regenerated  persons  ceased, 
and  the  Church  was  filled  with  the  unconverted,  the 
unregenerated.  They  were  deceived;  made  to  believe 
they  were  regenerated  when  they  were  infants,  when, 
in  fact,  they  had  never  been  regenerated  at  all.  In  this 
way  the  line  between  the  Church  and  the  world  was 
blotted  out.  There  was  no  difference  between  the 
Church  and  the  world.  Indeed,  in  a  short  space,  Church 
and  State  were  united;  all  personal  piety  was  crushed 
out.  In  every  Church  in  the  world,  where  infant  mem- 
bership has  gained  the  ascendency,  regeneration  has 
been  done  away.  Look  at  the  Papacy,  claiming  its  two 
hundred  millions  to-day,  and  inquire.  Where  is  regen- 
eration? It  is  not  known  in  that  body.  Look  at  the 
Greek  Church,  with  its  sixty-six  millions,  and  inquire 
for  the  regeneration.  There  is  no  regeneration  there. 
Look  at  all  made  members  in  the  Church  of  England, 
the  Presbyterian,  and  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
in  infancy,  and  inquire  for  the  regeneration.  Take  out 
of  these  bodies  all  that  were  made  members  without 
faith,  repentance,  any  change  of  heart,  a  single  spiritual 
impression  or  impulse,  and  what  have  you  taken  out? 
You  have  taken  out  a  mass  of  unconverted  or  unregen- 
erated humanity. 

Here  is  a  matter  of  difference,  not  merely  in  theory^ 
but  one  in  practice^  that  is  of  vital  importance — one  that 
ca>n  not  he  ignored.     There  must  be  a  warfare  so  long 


MATTERS   OF    jDlbAGREExMENT.  249 

as  an  element  like  this,  insidious,  underniin"'»."«g  all  faith, 
regeneration,  and  even  volition,  in  making  members 
of  the  Church,  is  being  thrust  into  the  Church.  The 
battle  must  be  fought  through,  and  this  element  must 
be  put  out,  or  it  will  waste  away  and  ruin  the  Church 
of  God.  In  the  ]S"ew  Institution  the  basis  of  member- 
ghip  is  not  Hesh  and  blood;  fleshly  relation  to  a  father 
or  mother,  to  Abraham,  or  anybody  else,  but  faith  in 
Christ.  "We  are  all  the  children  of  God  by  faith  in 
Christ."  "Circumcision  avails  nothing,  and  uncircum- 
cision  avails  nothing,  but  a  7icw  creature.''^  "A  new 
creature,"  or  "  a  new  creation,"  is  a  regenerated  person 
• — one  "born  again."  Without  this  no  one  is  in  Christ, 
or  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  no  matter  how  many  forms 
or  ceremonies,  of  infant  baptism,  dedication,  consecra- 
tion, christening,  or  giving  it  to  the  Lord,  there  may 
have  been.  These  are  all  unauthorized,  and  perfectly 
powerless.  They  can  never  put  one  spiritual  stone  into 
the  spiritual  temple. 

But  some  one  inquires,  "Is  there  no  salvation  for  in- 
fants?" "Are  infants  all  to  be  lost?"  What  do  you 
want  to  save  infants  from?  Do  you  believe  they^are  in 
danger  of  being  lost?'  Are  they  in  danger  of  hell? 
You  exclaim,  ISTo,  not  while  they  are  in  infancy.  What, 
then,  do  you  want  to  save  them  from?  "From  Adam's 
"ein."  They  are  not  under  the  guilt  of  Adam's  sin.  So, 
then,  it  is  not  the  guilt  of  the  Adamic  sin  you  want  to 
save  them  from.  What,  then,  is  it  you  want  to  save 
them  from?  "The  consequences  of  Adam's  sin."  We 
are  not  saved  from  the  consequences  of  Adam's  sin  our- 
selves. The  consequences  of  Adam's  sin  have  descended 
on  us,  and  we  must  suffer  them.  The  earthly  inherit- 
ance is  from  Adam — sickness,  sorrow,  pain  and  death; 
the  curse  on  the  ground,  inflicted  on  account  of  Adam's 


'2^0  MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT. 

siD,  have  descended  on  us.  From  these  consequences 
our  religion  does  not  save  us.  They  are  upon  us 
all  alike.  We  must  suffer  them.  From  them  there 
is  no  pardon.  Infants  and  all  are  under  these,  and  must 
suffer  them.  Infants  have  no  actual  sin.  They  never 
sinned  themselves,  and  therefore  have  no  guilt.  They 
need  no  pardon.  They  need  nothing,  only  what  all  the 
saints  need,  a  resurrection  from  the  dead,  to  be  changed 
and  glorified.     This  is  all  secured  for  them  in  Christ. 

But  you  imply  that  we  have  no  salvation  for  infants. 
Let  us  consider.  What  do  the  believers  in  infant  bap- 
tism give  them  more  than  we?  Do  they  give  them  any 
gospel?  l^o.  Do  they  give  them  any  faith?  Ko.  Do 
they  give  them  any  repentance?  ^o.  Do  their  infants 
pray?  ITo.  Do  they  give  thanks?  'No.  Do  they  give 
them  any  communion?  No.  What,  then,  do  they  give 
them  more  than  we?  I^othing  but  a  fgw  drojjs  of  water 
i)i  the  face.  They  have  salvation  for  them,  and  we  have 
not!  It  is,  then,  water  salvation^  and  precious  little 
water  at  that ! 

The  true  ground  is,  that  the  gospel  is  for  those  who 
can  hear  it,  understand  and  believe  it.  It  is  for  those 
who  are  gospel  subjects;  who  can  hear  it,  understand 
it,  believe  it  and  obey  it.  An  infant  can  not  hear  the 
gospel,  understand  it,  believe  it,  or  obey  it.  It  is  sim- 
ply not  a  gospel  subject.  Then,  it  has  no  personal  sin^ 
no  guilt,  and  needs  no  pardon.  It  is  under  no  condem- 
nation, and  needs  no  justification.  It  is  under  the  con- 
sequences of  Adam's  sin,  and  liable  to  death,  and  will 
need  the  resurrection,  to  be  changed,  glorified,  precisely 
the  same  as  all  the  saints,  and  no  more.  While  it  is  an 
infant  it  has  no  need  of  the  gospel,  and  is  not  a  gospel 
subject.  The  gospel  is  not  preached  to  it,  nor  is  it  re- 
quired to  believe  or  obey  it.     It  needs  no  gospel,  and 


MATTERS   OF    DISAGREEMENT.  251 

can  receive  none.  So  far  as  infants  are  concerned,  the 
question  is  not  merely  about  their  baptism,  or  their  mem- 
bership,  but  about  the  gospel  heiiig  for  thtm  at  all. 
Look  over  it  and  consider.  HhQ  faith  is  not  for  infants. 
If  it  is,  then  "he  who  believes  not  shall  be  damned." 
Does  this  apply  to  infants?  Certainly  not!  Tlie  com- 
mission has  nothing  to  do  with  infants;  but  it  has  to  da 
with  men  and  women  who  can  hear  the  gospel,  under- 
stand, believe  and  obey  it.  To  these,  and  not  to  infants, 
the  Lord  says  :  "He  who  believes  not  shall  be  damned;" 
but  to  him  "who  believes  and  is  baptized,"  he  "shall  be 
saved.'"  These  are  subjects  of  the  kingdom  of  God. 
''They  all  know  the  Lord,  from  the  least  to  the  great- 
'jst;"  "are  all  the  children  of  God  by  faith  in  Christ 
Jesus;"  have  been  "born  again;"  "born  of  water  and 
of  the  Spirit;"  are  "new  creatures,"  and  have  all  been 
regenerated.  Here  is  a  membership  of  regenerated  per- 
sons— "lively  stones,"  "builded  together  for  an  habita- 
tion of  God,  through  the  Spirit,"  a  holy  temple  to  offer 
spiritual  sacrifices  to  God,  through  Jesus  Christ.  This 
is  a  membership  about  which  there  is  no  dispute. 

3.  The  substitute  for  immersion  was  also  introduced 
In  the  third  century.  This  was  not  done  with  any  claim 
to  divine  authority.  The  Emperor  iTovatian  had  de- 
ferred his  baptism  till  a  late  period  in  life,  with  the  er- 
roneous view  that  if  he  sinned  after  baptism  he  could 
not  obtain  pardon.  He  was  seized  with  a  violent  dis- 
temper, and  thought  he  would  die.  He  believed  that 
if  he  died  without  baptism  he  would  be  lost.  With 
this  view,  in  his  extremity,  he  sent  for  the  bishops.  It 
is  to  be  kept  in  mind  also,  that  hisliops  by  this  time 
were  a  very  different  class  of  men  from  the  humble  over- 
seers in  the  first  century.  The  bishops  came  together 
and  held  a  council  over  him.      They  decided  that  he 


252        '  MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT. 

could  ijot  "be  immersed.  What  was  then  to  be  done? 
The  bishops  decided  that  if  they  poured  water  profusely 
over  him,  as  he  lay  in  his  bed,  it  would  be  accepted  in 
his  case,  but  that  it  would  not  be  regular  baptism.  This 
was  done.  We  have  read  many  of  the  debates  that 
have  been  held  in  the  past  forty  years,  and  seen  others 
that  we  have  not  read,  and  think  this  is  the  first  case 
mentioned  in  history  of  anything  short  of  an  absolute 
immersion.  It  is  almost  unanimously  received  as  such. 
This  case  became  a  precedent.  Others  considered  too 
weak  to  bear  immersion  were  treated  in  like  manner, 
and  styled  clinics^  but  their  baptism  was  not  considered 
regular,  nor  were  any  of  this  description  permitted  to 
hold  office  in  the  Church.  Cases  of  the  kind  became 
frequent,  and  less  and  less  water  was  applied,  till  7noist- 
ened  fingers  laid  on  the  forehead  answered  for  bap- 
tism. But  Dr.  Wall  says,  "That  France  was  the  first 
country  in  the  world  that  practiced  afiTusion  generally 
for  baptism." 

The  introduction  of  this  innovation,  about  the  middle 
of  the  third  century,  has  furnished  a  bone  of  conten- 
tion, a  cause  of  strife  and  division  from  then  till  now." 
It  is  a  matter  of  diflference,  a  matter  that  can  not  be 
compromised ;  a  wedge  that  has  split  the  friends  of  the 
Lord,  and  is  now  one  of  the  greatest  causes  of  division 
in  the  world.  It  came  not,  at  the  start,  claiming  any 
Scripture  authority,  or  any  authoritj^  except  the  author- 
ity of  the  bishops;  nor  did  any  who  practiced  it  in  early 
times  claim  any  authority  from  Scripture  for  it.  The 
Romish  Church  claims  no  Scripture  authority  for  it  to 
this  day.  The  same  is  true  of  the  Church  of  England. 
She  admits  that  the  first  Church  immersed ;  that  the 
word  haptizo  means  immerse i  but  claims  that  the  suh- 
istiiute    is  valid.     These  matters  are  a&  well  autbenti- 


MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT.  253 

eatea  in  history  as  any  others  that  could  be  mentioned 
of  the  same  antiquity.  J^ow  we  have  a  country  swarm- 
ing with  preachers  claiming  that  they  can  find  plenty 
of  authority  in  Scripture  for  the  substitute  for  baptism, 
and  they  are  practicing  the  substitute  all  the  time,  and 
the  original  never.  They  like  the  substitute  better 
than  the  original.  They  are  like  one  of  the  opponents 
of  Wicklift*,  who  maintained  that  the  Latin  Vulgate 
was  better  than  the  original.  With  such  men,  it  is  no 
matter  if  the  command  was  to  immerse;  nor  if  the 
apostles,  in  obeying  the  Q,om.xn2i\\(\^  immersed;  nor  if  all 
were  immersed  during  the  first  two  centuries  ;  nor  if  all 
history  does  testify  that  anything  short  of  immersion  is 
only  a  substitute  for  what  the  Lord  commanded,  and 
not  what  he  commanded  at  all;  they  can  talk  on  as  fast 
und  as  loud  as  ever.  With  them  the  substitute  is  better 
than  the  original ! 

There  is  but  one  step  necessary  to  agreement,  and  that 
"s,  to  abandon  the  substitute,  and  practice  the  original; 
ibandon  what  the  Lord  did  not  command,  and  practice 
what  he  did  command.  The  disagreement  is  not  about 
what  is  commanded,  but  what  is  not  commanded. 

4.  No  one  source  of  disagreement  is  greater  than  the 
introduction  and  maintenance  of  uninspired  standards 
of  religious  faith  and  practice,  in  the  form  of  hura^n 
creeds,  confessions  of  faith,  disciplines,  formulas,  etc. 
It  is  simply  a  matter  oi  fact,  not  disputed  by  any  one 
worth  notice,  that  there  were  no  human  creeds  during 
the  first  two  centuries— no  creeds  written  by  uninspired 
men.  This  is  simply  a  settled  thing,  a  matter  about 
which  there  is  no  dispute.  In  the  age  when  the  relig- 
ion of  Christ  was  spreading  throughout  the  Roman 
Empire,  making  its  grandest  triumphs,  and  subduing 
the  souls  of  men  to  God  by  the  thousand,  the  Scriptures 


254  MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT. 

of  the  prophets,  from  the  lips  of  the  Lord,  and  from 
the  pens  of  the  apostles,  were  the  supreme — the  abi^o- 
lute  authority.  This  was  the  authority  that  conquered 
the  vast  numbers  then,  and  this  is  the  authority  to  turn 
the  world  to  God  now.  This  authority  must  be  urged 
on  all  men  everywhere. 

In  this  authority— the  authority  of  the  Scriptures — 
we  find  the  terms  on  which  the  Lord  receives  men.  On 
these  terms  the  Lord  received  all  who  came  to  him  in 
the  apostolic  age.  But  men  soon  lost  sight  of  the  terms 
on  which  the  Lord  received  those  who  came  to  him, 
and  began  to  stipulate  terms  on  which  tliey  would  re- 
ceive men.  It  was  not  enough,  with  them,  to  know 
the  terms  on  which  the  Lord  would  receive  men,  but 
the  people  must  know  the  terms  on  which  the  clergy 
would  receive  them.  They  set  their  terms  forth  in  a 
creed,  an  autJioritative  human,  or  uninspired  document. 
In  this  they  laid  down  what  they  styled  '^articles  of 
faith,"  "articles  of  religion."  In  the  place  of  these 
being  articles  of  religion,  or  articles  of  faith,  they  were 
simply  articles  of  the  opinions  and  deductions  of  unin- 
spired men,  to  which  men  were  compelled  to  subscribe 
before  they  could  be  received.  They  did  not  inquire 
of  men  whether  they  believed  what  God  had  set  forth 
to  be  believed ;  whether  they  believed  the  testimony 
of  God;  believed  on  God,  Christ,  or  the  Holy  Spirit; 
but  the  question  was.  Do  you  believe  what  we  have  set 
forth  in  the  creed?  We  inquire  not  whether  you  be- 
lieve every  word  that  proceeds  out  of  the  mouth  of  God, 
but  whether  you  believe  v^hat  we  say. 

In  this  way  the  testimony  of  God  was  set  aside,  and 
not  made  prominent  in  the  eyes  of  the  people,  and  the 
speculations  of  men  substituted  instead  of  the  dlMue 
testimony.     If  Moses  sinned  when  he  said,  "  Must  we 


MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT.  255 

bring  water  from  tliis  rock,"  iind  "sanctified  not  God 
in  the  eyes  of  the  people,"  what  have  these  men  done 
that  have  made  the  acceptance  of  man  to  depend  on 
believing  their  articles  of  opinions,  in  the  place  of  he- 
lieving  God?  We  have  not  now  "the  unwritten  word," 
as  Rome  styles  a  long  string  of  traditions  of  men  which 
she  has  handed  down  through  her  infallible  guardian- 
ship, but  written  traditions  in  the  form  of  creeds,  con- 
fessions, disciplines,  etc.,  etc.,  on  which  men  and  women 
are  united.  These  creeds  are  supposed  to  contain  the 
meaning  of  the  Bible.  The  Prayer-Book  of  the  Church 
of  England  contains  what  they  understand  the  Bible 
to  mean;  the  Discipline  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  contains  what  they  understand  the  Bible  to 
mean;  the  Philadelphia  Confession  contains  what  one 
branch  of  Baptists  understands  the  Bible  to  mean ;  the 
Presbyterian  Confession  of  Faith  contains  what  the 
Presbyterian  Church  understands  the  Bible  to  mean. 
Now,  take  these  several  meanings,  and  put  them  to- 
gether, and  see  what  you  have !  Dees  the  Bible  mean 
all  that?  Every  man  can  see  that  the  Bible  does  not 
mean  all  that.  Tlien,  what  part  of  it  does  the  Bible 
mean  ?  You  see  at  once  that  you  must  go  to  work  and 
sift  these  to  separate  the  chaff  from  the  wheat.  Instead 
of  these  books  being  lielps^  they  are  sources  of  confu- 
sion. You  have  to  determine  what  is  right  independent 
of  them  after  all. 

Do  you  say  you  try  your  creed  by  the  Bible  ?  Then 
the  creed  is  no  use.  You  have  to  know  the  meaning 
of  the  Bible,  independent  of  the  creed,  at  last.  But 
what  is  the  difference  between  these  creeds  after  all? 
Is  it  a  difference  about  the  meaning  of  Scripture?  Cer- 
tainly not!  The  differences  are  about  things  mainly 
QOt  in  the  Scriptures.     It  is  not  anything  in  the  Bible 


1256  MATTERS   OF   DISAGREEMENT. 

that  makes  tbe  Prayer-Book  Episcopalian.  What,  then, 
is  it?  It  is  that  peculiar  to  Episcopalians,  or  what  they 
hold  not  held  by  other  people.  It  is  not  anything  in 
the  Bible  that  makes  the  Methodist  Discipline  Metho- 
distic.  What  then?  It  is  that  which  is  peculiar  to 
Methodists.  It  is  not  anything  in  the  Bible  that  makes 
the  Confession  of  Faith  Presbyterian.  What  then?  It 
is  that  which  is  peculiar  to  Presbyterians.  The  same 
is  true  all  round  with  all  the  creeds.  It  is,  then,  that 
which  is  peculiar  to  the  party  that  makes  it  a  partyy 
and  those  who  go  into  it  do  so  for  the  sake  of  that  pe- 
culiarity. That  peculiarity  is  what  "  we  hold."  If  you 
receive  that  we  will  receive  you.  The  idea  is  to  receive 
people  on  what  we  hold^  and  not  on  what  the  Lord  has 
said. 

These  human  productions,  uninspired  systems,  em- 
bodied in  creeds,  have  been  most  successful  sources 
of  discord,  strife  and  division.  There  is  but  one  sure 
remedy  for  the  evil,  and  that  is  to  treat  the  whole 
of  them  as  each  of  you  do  all  but  your  own;  that  is, 
turn  away  from  them  all,  and  treat  the  Bible  as  you  do 
your  own;  that  is,  receive  it  with  all  your  heart.  Let 
your  faith  stand  in  the  wisdom  of  God,  and  not  in  the 
wisdom  of  men.  Believe  the  testimony  of  God;  believe 
all  God  has  said  on  every  subject.  This  is  the  broadest 
faith  man  can  have.  Receive  that  man  that  believes 
God,  and  Christ,  and  the  eternal  Spirit;  receive  him 
because  God  receives  him,  Christ  receives  him,  and  the 
Holy  Spirit  receives  him. 

5.  Ecclesiastical  confederations  of  churches  into  a 
general  body  have  been  sources  of  more  disagreement 
than  almost  any  other.  The  simple  form  in  which  we 
find  the  followers  of  the  Lord  existing  in  the  time 
of  the  apostles,  does  not  suit  the  pride  of  men,  their 


MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT.  257 

ambition  for  power,  pre-eminence  and  rule.  Thej  are 
not  willing  to  wait  till  they  can  earn  influence,  gain  the 
confidence  of  the  friends  of  the  Lord,  and  the  regard 
of  good  people,  by  persevering  in  well-doing,  in  works 
of  faith  and  labors  of  love;  by  lives  of  faithfulness  and 
devotion  to  the  Lord ;  but  they  want  a  system  of  things 
by  which  men  can  spring  into  power,  notoriety  and  re- 
gard, by  a  turn  of  an  ecclesiastical  wheel  that  brings 
them  to  the  top  at  once;  where  a  single  promotion  can 
place  a  man  in  front,  in  a  position  that  he  has  never 
earned,  and  of  which  he  was  never  worthy.  The  Lord 
has  made  no  provision  of  this  kind.  His  divine  arrange- 
ment is  not  only  the  simplest,  but  the  wisest  that  can 
be  made.  He  has  made  no  opening  for  ecclesiastics, 
clerical  dignitaries,  lords  over  his  heritage ;  but  has  es- 
tablished the  most  simple  order  of  things  ever  known, 
and  the  most  wise  and  efficient. 

The  saints  brought  together  in  a  community,  in  any 
one  place,  who  meet  and  worship  according  to  the  Scrip- 
tures, are  the  Church,  or  congregation  of  the  Lord 
there.  They  need  no  organizing,  nor  any  other  pro- 
cedure, only  to  be  brought  together,  to  meet  and  wor- 
ship according  to  the  Scriptures,  to  constitute  them  a 
congregation  of  God.  To  set  them  in  order  fully,  they 
should  each  have  overseers  and  deacons,  who  take  the 
oversight  and  manage  the  temporal  affairs  of  the  Church. 
A  congregation  thus  formed  and  set  in  order  is  author- 
ized of  the  Lord,  and  has  full  authority  to  administer 
the  aifairs  of  the  kingdom  in  every  particular.  The 
way  is  open  for  her  members  to  grow  in  grace ;  to  at- 
tain to  the  highest  degree  in  knowledge,  in  piety,  in  ah 
that  pertains  to  the  good  of  man  or  the  glory  of  God. 
But  men  have  not  been  contented  with  this.  They  have 
Bought  many  inventions.  Among  these  no  one  has 
22 


•:258  MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT. 

been  more  successful  in  bringing  mischief  into  the 
Church  than  the  attempt^^  to  confederate  the  churches 
of  the  Lord  into  an  organized  body,  as  in  the  Koniish 
Church,  and  all  those  following  her  modeL 

In  the  simple  arrangement  the  Lord  has  made  there 
is  no  great  position,  high  office,  ecclesiastical  function,  to 
which  men  can  aspire.  True,  if  a  man  has  been  faithful 
many  years,  performed  valuable  services,  imparted  im- 
portant instructions,  that  have  greatly  aided  others,  all 
this  may  result  in  giving  him  great  intluence  or  power; 
but  this  is  not  ecclesiastical  power  at  all,  but  individual 
power,  or  ^^rs6>7^<zZ  influence,  that  a  man  has  acquired 
himself,  and  it  is  the  safest  power  ever  wielded  by  men. 

Any  man  of  intelligence,  who  will  read  the  N'ew  Test- 
ament once  through,  with  an  eye  to  this  matter,  can 
see  that  there  is  no  such  thing  as  a  general  confedera- 
tion, or  organization  of  congregations  into  one  body 
in  the  kingdom  of  God.  The  kingdom  of  God  is  not 
an  organized  body.  This  is  simply  a  matter  oi  fact;  it 
is  the  state  of  the  case.  The  reason  is  that  the  Lord 
did  not  want  an  organized  body — he  had  no  use  for 
one.  The  entire  work  of  the  kingdom  can  be  done 
without  one.  Men  have  taken  two  positions  in  refer- 
ence to  this.  The  one  is,  that  the  Lord  made  such  an 
organization,  and  we  must  learn  from  the  Scriptures 
what  it  is,  and  have  the  same  now;  the  other  is,  that 
the  Lord  made  no  such  an  organization,  and  therefore 
man  is  left  free  to  make  one.  The  first  one  of  these 
positions  is  without  a  semblance  of  evidence.  There  is 
simply  not  a  trace  of  any  such  thing  in  the  first  two 
centuries.  All  the  attempts  to  find  any  such  system 
of  organization  have  been  of  the  most  vague  and  un- 
satisfactory kind.  There  is  nothing  here  worth  look 
ing  after  for  a  single  moment. 


MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT.  259 

The  other  starts  out  with  matter  of  fact.  It  is  un- 
questionably a  matter  of  fact  that  no  such  organization 
existed  in  the  time  of  the  apostles.  There  is  not  a 
trace  of  anything  of  the  kind  in  the  revelation  from 
Ood  to  man.  The  Lord  never  gave  anything  of  the 
kind.  "Why  not?  Was  it  because  he  left  it  to  the  wis- 
dom of  man  to  make  such  an  organization  ?  It  was  not 
because  infinite  wisdom  could  not  do  it.  Is  it  ti'ue  that 
infinite  wisdom  could^  but  would  not  do  it?  Infinite 
wisdom  could  have  made  such  an  organization,  but  did 
not.  Why  not?  Because  infinite  wisdom  Jiad  no  use 
for  such  an  organization.  Infinite  wisdom  has  fur- 
nished all  things  necessary  to  life  and  godliness,  but 
furnished  no  general  organization.  There  is  not  an 
exigency  in  the  kingdom  of  God  that  is  not  provided 
for  in  the  law  of  God,  and  there  is  not  a  more  arrogant 
and  impudent  assumption  practiced  in  religion,  than 
the  one  that  the  kingdom  of  God  is  left  incomplete  and 
deficient,  and  that  the  wisdom  of  uninspired  men  can 
supply  the  deficiency.  These  are  the  two  assumptions 
on  which  the  kingdom  of  the  clergy  is  built:  1.  That 
infinite  wisdom  left  the  organization  of  the  kingdom 
incomplete.  2.  That  the  wisdom  of  man  can  complete 
what  infinite  wisdom  left  incomplete !  The  man  of  sin 
himself  does  not  stand  on  a  more  baseless  foundation 
than  this. 

6.  The  difference  between  Calvinism  and  Arminian- 
ism  has  furnished  ground  of  contention  for  the  past 
two  centuries.  Many  have  been  the  heated  controver- 
sies and  bitter  strifes  over  these  points  of  difi:*erence. 
Many  sensible  people  have  listened  nearly  a  lifetime 
and  could  not  see  what  the  difierence  was.  Calvinism 
has  it  that  a  definite  number  of  men  and  angels  were 
elected  to  eternal  glory  before  man  was  created,  and 


260  MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT. 

that  the  number  thus  elected  and  predestinated  is  so 
definite  that  it  can  neither  be  increased  nor  diminished. 
Arminians  repudiate  this,  and  John  Wesley  says  it  dis- 
honors God,  and  makes  him  worse  than  the  devil.  But 
then  he  turns  round  and  asserts  that  salvation  is  condi- 
tional— that  man  is  saved  on  the  condition  of  faith. 
But  then  he  immediately  follows  this  up  by  the  state- 
ment that  man  can  not  believe  till  the  irresistible  power 
comes  and  makes  him  a  believer,  and  then  he  is  saved 
on  the  condition  of  faith.  But  suppose  the  irresistible 
power  does  not  come!  Who  is  to  blame?  The  sinner, 
according  to  the  Arminian  theory,  can  not  believe  with- 
out the  irresistible  power,  and  can  not  avoid  believing 
with  it.  If  the  irresistible  power  comes  to  the  sinner, 
he  is  made  a  believer;  if  it  does  not  come,  he  is  not 
made  a  believer.  Who  is  to  blame,  if  he  is  not  made  a 
believer?  Who  is  to  be  praised,  if  he  is  made  a  be- 
liever? If  he  is  made  a  believer,  he  could  not  have 
avoided  it;  if  he  is  not  made  a  believer,  he  could  not 
have  helped  it.  In  this  view,  how  can  a  man  be  damned 
for  unbelief?  He  never  had  any  power  to  believe?  Can 
he  be  justly  condemned  for  not  doing  what  he  never 
had  the  power  to  do?  There  is  something  in  the  human 
breast  that  will  forever  rise  up  and  assert  that  no  man 
can  justly  be  condemned  for  not  doing  that  which  he 
never  had  the  power  to  do.  If  he  never  had  the  power 
to  believe,  he  can  not  be  justly  condemned  for  not  be- 
lieving. Thus  the  Arminian  is  involved  in  as  great 
absurdity  as  the  Calvinist,  for  both  consign  the  sinner 
to  eternal  punishment  for  sins  which  he  never  had  the 
power  to  forsake. 

The  Bible  has  neither  the  one  nor  the  other  of  these 
theories  in  it.  It  condemns  no  man  for  not  doing 
what  he  never  had  the  power  to  do.     It  says  of  all  men 


MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT.  261 

that  "be"  (God)  "is  not  willing  that  any  should  per- 
ish, but  that  all  should  come  to  repentance."  "  He  has 
made  of  one  blood  all  nations  of  men  to  dwell  on  all  the 
face  of  the  earth,  and  determined  before  the  times  ap 
pointed  and  the  bounds  of  their  habitation;  that  they 
should  seek  the  Lord,  if  haply  they  might  feel  after 
him  and  find  him,  though  he  be  not  far  from  every  one 
of  us.  For  in  the  times  of  this  ignorance  God  winked 
at,  but  now  he  commands  all  men  everywhere  to  repent, 
for  he  has  appointed  a  day  in  the  which  he  w^ill  judge 
the  world  in  righteousness  by  that  man  whom  he  has 
ordained,  whereof  he  has  given  assurance  to  all  men,  in 
that  he  has  raised  him  from  the  dead."  Here  we  have 
a  commandment  from  God  to  all  men  everywhere  to 
repent.  This  proceeds  on  the  ground  that  all  men 
everywhere  can  repent.  The  reason  of  the  command- 
ment is,  that  he  will  judge  the  world  in  righteousness. 
This  is  backed  by  the  assurance  God  has  given  to  all 
men,  in  that  he  has  raised  Jesus  from  the  dead.  The 
argument  runs  thus:  God  has  raised  Jesus  from  the 
dead,  and  thus  demonstrated  him  to  be  divine,  and  all 
he  said  to  be  true.  We  may  rest  assured,  then,  that  he 
will  judge  the  world  in  righteousness  by  that  man 
whom  he  has  ordained.  He,  therefore,  commands  all 
men  everywhere  to  repent.  The  very  circumstance 
that  God  commands  all  men  everywhere  to  repent, 
proves  that  all  men  everywhere  can  repent.  The  Lord 
would  not  command  all  men  everywhere  to  repent,  un- 
less he  knew  that  all  men  everywhere  could  repent;  nor 
would  he  condemn  men  for  not  repenting,  if  he  knew 
they  could  not  repent. 

The  Lord  could  not  say  that  "  he  came  into  the  world 
that  the  world  through  him  might  le  sav^-d,''''  unless  he 
had  opened  the  way  to  the  world  to  he  saved — given  to 


2G2  MATTERS   OF   DISAGREEMENT. 

the  world  the  privilege  to  he  saved.  He  could  not  say, 
*' You  would  not  come  to  me  that  you  might  have  life," 
if  he  knew  they  could  not  come  to  him.  He  could  not 
say,  "All  the  day  long  have  I  stretched  forth  my  hand 
to  a  gainsaying  and  a  disobedient  people,"  if  he  knew 
they  could  not  come  to  him.  He  does  not  tantalize  his 
creatures  by  stretching  forth  his  hands  to  them  and 
calling  to  them  to  "come  to  me,  all  you  ends  of  the 
earth,  and  be  saved,"  when  he  knows  that  millions 
of  them  never  had  the  power  to  come.  There  is  noth- 
ing clearer  than  that  all  to  whom  the  apostles  preached 
were  addressed  as  having  the  ability  to  come  and  be 
saved.  "He  came  to  his  own  and  his  own  received  him 
not;  but  to  as  many  as  received  him,  to  them  gave  he 
power  to  become  sons  of  God,  even  to  them  that  be- 
lieved on  his  name."*  In  this  it  is  manifest  that  they 
all  had  the  po\ver  to  receive  him,  and  to  believe  on  his 
name ;  and  that  to  those  who  exercised  this  power  he 
gave  the  additional  power,  or  privilege,  to  become  the 
sous  of  God. 

This  old  difierence  on  the  two  theories,  of  Calvinism 
and  Arminianism,  has  been  debated  for  centuries  be- 
tween the  two  parties,  seeming  to  be  wide  apart,  but 
both  uniting  in  the  absurd  theory  that  the  sinner  can 
do  nothing;  that  some  kind  of  immutable  disability  is 
on  him;  that  he  can  not  believe,  repent,  or  do  anything 
acceptable  to  God;  and  has  tied  the  hands  of  thousands 
of  as  good  people  naturally  as  ever  lived,  and  prevented 
them  from  ever  turning  to  the  Lord.  In  numerous  in- 
stances where  they  are  not  aware  of  it,  to  this  day, 
many  are  waiting  for  some  kind  of  irresistible  power  to 
come,  like  that  which  raised  Lazarus  from  the  dead,  to 
give  new  life,  and  make  him  a  believer.  But  w^hen  the 
gospel  of  Christ  came,  announcing  that  God  loved  the 


MATTERS   OF    DISAGREEMENT.  263 

world ;  that  Jesus  came  into  the  world,  not  to  condemn 
the  world,  but  that  the  w^orld  through  him  might  be 
saved;  that  he  died  for  all;  that  he  tasted  death  for 
every  man,  to  make  reconciliation  for  the  sins  of  the 
whole  world;  that  he  is  the  propitiation  for  the  sins 
of  the  whole  world;  that  he  commanded  the  gospel  to 
be  preached  to  every  creature;  repentance  and  remission 
of  sins  to  be  preached  in  his  name  to  all  nations ;  that 
the  object  of  the  preaching  is  that  all  may  hear  and 
believe;  that  he  now  commands  all  men  everywhere  to 
lepent;  that  he  is  not  willing  that  any  should  perish, 
but  that  all  should  come  to  repentance;  that  he  invites 
all  meu,  ".Come  to  me,  you  ends  of  the  earth,  and  be 
saved;"  that  "whoever  wdll  may  come;"  that  "now  is 
the  accepted  time  and  now  is  the  day  of  salvation,"  the 
w^ay  has  been  opened  and  multitudes  have  been  liberated 
from  the  manacles  of  these  contradictory  and  absurd 
theories,  and  brought  into  the  light  and  liberties  of  the 
children  of  God.  The  way  is  clear,  and  the  gospel  once 
more,  in  its  own  native  power,  is  being  urged  on  the  at- 
tentiou  of  men;  and  it  is  now  being  shown  that  it  is 
God's  last  appeal  to  man,  his  last  invitation  and  warn- 
ing to  turn  him  away  from  his  sins  and  save  him. 

7.  The  last  instance  that  can  be  noticed  about  differ- 
ences in  the  present  discourse,  is  that  about  names* 
There  has  been  no  settled  conviction  with  many  people 
about  names,  "Bible  names  for  Bible  things,"  has  no 
significance  with  them.  We  have  fallen  on  shocking 
times.  With  vast  numbers  Bible  things,  or  Bible  names, 
amount  to  but  little.  A  man  assumes  a  doctrine,  and 
away  he  goes  to  the  Bible  for  proof  of  his  doctrine.  It 
matters  not  to  him  whether  the  name  or  the  thing  is  in 
the  Bible.  For  example,  we  have  a  doctrine,  a  theory^ 
or  whatever  you  please  to  style  it,  called  Univtraalism, 


264  MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT. 

The  man  who  receives  it  we  call  a  Universalist.  It 
matters  not  with  this  man  that  you  find  no  account 
of  Universalism  in  the  Bible,  or  of  a  Universalist;  he 
believes  it,  quotes  Scripture  to  prove  it.  It  never  oc- 
curs to  him  to  stop  and  inquire  honestly  whether  our 
Lord  was  a  Universalist;  whether  he  suffered  all  he 
did,  and  died  for  telling  the  people  that  they  would  be 
finally  made  holy  and  happy  in  heaven ;  for  telling  them 
that  there  is  no  devil,  no  hell,  no  lake  of  fire,  second 
death ;  no  everlasting  punishment,  no  eternal  torment, 
no  fire  that  shall  never  be  quenched,  nor  worm  that 
never  dies!  It  never  occurs  to  him  to  inquire  whether 
the  apostles  of  our  Lord  were  Universalist  preachers ; 
suffered  all  the  privations  and  persecutions  that  fell  on 
them  for  preaching  to  the  people  that  they  would  all 
be  finally  saved;  that  the  Jew,  in  rejecting  Christ  and 
continuing  in  Judaism,  with  his  victims,  altar  and 
priest;  and  the  Pagan,  with  his  idol,  his  altar  and  tem- 
ple, though  he  know  not  God,  nor  Christ,  was  on  his 
way  to  heaven  as  certainly  as  Peter,  James,  John,  or 
Paul.  It  never  occurs  to  him  that  if  our  Lord  had  in- 
tended his  ministers  to  preach  Universalism,  he  could 
have  inserted  it  in  the  last  commission,  that  all  men 
shall  he  finally  holy  and  Jiappy^  as  clearly  as  he  has 
that  "he  that  believeth  not  shall  be  damned."  It  never 
occurs  to  him  that  if  the  Holy  Spirit  had  come  from 
heaven,  and  inspired  the  apostles  to  preach  Universal- 
ism, they  could  have  preached  it  clear  enough,  so  that 
there  would  have  been  no  dispute  about  it. 

Nothing  in  all  literature  is  clearer  than  that  our  Lord 
and  the  apostles  were  not  Universalists,  and  preached  no 
Universalism.  ]^or  is  there  a  trace  of  any  no-future-pun- 
ishment Universalism  in  anything  written  in  the  early 
ages  of  the  Church,  or,  indeed,  that  we  are  aware  of  till 


MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT.  265 

the  time  of  Hosea  Ballon.  Before  that  time  not  a  trace 
of  it  is  to  be  found.  Still  there  are  men  who  believe 
it,  and  are  trying  to  prove  it  by  Scripture !  This  is  a 
good  illustration  of  the  perversity  and  folly  of  men, 
if  nothing  more. 

But  we  must  not  stop  with  a  single  example.  We 
have  a  large  body  of  people  in  this  country  styled  Bap- 
tists !  It  matters  not  with  the  man  bearing  this  name 
that  you  find  no  account  of  any  religious  body,  or  order 
of  people,  styled  Baptists  in  the  Bible ;  any  account 
of  any  Baptist  doctrine,  or  Baptist  Church;  he  persists 
in  talking  of  Baptists,  Baptist  doctrine,  and  the  Bap- 
tist Church,  as  if  the  Bible  were  full  of  accounts 
of  Baptists,  Baptist  churches,  and  Baptist  doctrine.  It 
matters  not  with  him  that  the  apostles  were  not  Bap- 
tists, that  the  first  follow^ers  of  Christ  were  not  Baptists, 
that  there  is  no  account  of  any  Baptist  preacher.  Baptist 
Church,  or  Baptist  doctrine,  in  the  Bible,  or  in  any 
%ther  w^'iting  of  the  first  thousand  years  of  the  Church, 
he  talks  on  as  if  the  Bible  abounded  with  these  matters ! 
True,  some  Baptists  talk  of  John  the  Bajptist;  but 
he  established  no  Baptist  Church,  and  his  baptism  was 
no  door  into  the  Baptist  Church,  for  his  baptism  was 
"into  repentance  for  the  remission  of  sins;"  and,  then, 
some  of  his  disciples  said :  "  "We  have  not  heard  whether 
there  be  any  Holy  Spirit." — See  Acts  xix.  1-6.  Peter 
said,  at  the  house  of  Cornelius,  "That  word  you  know 
which  was  published  throughout  all  Judea,  and  began 
from  Galilee,  after  the  laptism  which  John  preached.'''' 
The  word  that  Peter  preached,  and  that  authorized  in 
the  last  commission,  was  after  the  baptism  of  John. 
Then,  John  had  no  "close  communion,"  for  the  com- 
munion was  not  given  till  John  was  beheaded.  The 
word  Baptist  means  laptizer^  or,  in  English,  hnmerstr, 
23 


266  MATTERS   OF    DISAGREEMENT. 

and  in  this  instance  we  have  a  whole  body  of  people, 
taking  as  a  religious  designation  the  name  of  an  .ordi- 
nance of  Christ,  or  the  initiatory  rite  of  the  Kew  Insti- 
tution, for  a  religious  designation.  The  whole  people, 
instead  of  being  named  after  Him,  "of  whom  the  whole 
family  in  heaven  and  on  earth  is  named"  (See  Ephe- 
eians  iii.  15),  are  named  after  the  Baptist,  or  the  im- 
merser  I  This  is  making  little  of  the  Lord,  and  much 
of  baptism — specially  for  a  people  that  say  that  baptism 
is  not  essential! 

But  here  comes  another  name  claiming  a  share  of  at- 
tention. It  is  called  Methodism;  the  people  are  called 
MetJiodists.  One  would  think,  from  the  air  of  confi- 
dence assumed,  that  the  Bible  abounded  with  such 
words  as  Methodism,  Methodist  doctrine,  Methodist 
Church,  and  Methodist  preachers.  It  never  occurs  to 
the  Methodist  that  the  apostles  were  not  all  Methodists ; 
that  the  evangelists  and  early  ministers  of  Christ  were 
not  Methodists;  that  such  a  religious  designation  as^' 
Methodist,  or  Methodist  Church,  never  existed  before 
John  Wesley;  that  there  were  simply  no  Methodists,  or 
Methodist  churches,  before  his  time.  It  never  occurs 
to  him  that  there  is  nothing  religious  in  it — nothing 
spiritual.  It  simply  comes  from  the  word  method.  But, 
then,  there  are  good  methods  and  Ictd  methods.,  and 
there  are  methods  of  doing  good  things  and  lad  things; 
80  that  the  name  has  nothing  religious  or  spiritual  in 
it.  Then,  other  people  have  just  as  many  methods 
of  doing  things  as  the  people  called  Methodists. 

Then  we  have  our  stanch  old  Presbyterian  friends, 
named  after  an  assembly  of  old  men^  or  se7iiors,  as  the 
original  Greek  word  preshutiros  means.  Any  one  can 
see  how  absurd  it  is  to  take  the  name  of  a  body  of  seniors 
for  the  whole  con2:ret?atiou — men,  women  and  children. 


MATTERS    OF    DISAGREEMENT.     .  267 

It  never  occurs  to  the  Presbyterians  that  the  apostles 
were  not  Presbyterians^  nor  any  one  else  before  the 
time  of  John  Calvin.  Any  man  can  see  that  the  first 
followers  of  Christ  were  not  baptized  into  any  of  these 
names,  but  "into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit" — Matthew  xxviii.  19 — or, 
"into  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus." — Acts  xix.  6.  Even 
the  great  Apostle  to  the  Gentiles  would  not  permit  the 
followers  of  Christ  to  say,  "I  am  of  Paul."  To  the 
Corinthians  he  said,  "  I  thank  God  that  I  baptized  none 
of  you,  but  Crispus  and  Gains ;  lest  any  should  say  that 
I  had  baptized  into  my  own  name.'''' — 1  Corinthians  i. 
14,  15. 

The  whole  family  are  immersed  into  one  name,  into 
one  body,  into  Christ,  into  the  kingdom  of  God,  into 
the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the 
Holy  Spirit.  They  are  all  one,  and  look  up  to  Him 
"of  whom  the  whole  family  in  heaven  and  on  earth  is 
named."  Without  any  regard  to  the  differences  intro- 
duced in  this  discourse,  men  hear  the  gospel,  receive  it 
into  good  and  honest  hearts,  understand  it  and  believe 
it;  they  turn  to  the  Lord  with  full  purpose  of  heart, 
and  bring  forth  much  fruit  to  the  honor  and  glory 
of  God.  They  are  then  one,  and  can  wear  no  human 
name.  May  the  great  Shepherd  of  the  sheep  keep  us 
from  falling,  and  present  us  faultless  before  the  pres- 
e-c^ce  of  His  glory  with  exceeding  joy. 


SERMOl.,    No.  XII. 

THEME. — WHY   WAS    THE    Pfll^ITIVE    CHURCH    PERSECUTED? 

WHY  WERE  THE  FIRST  CHRISTIANS  PERSECUTED?    WHY 

IS  THE  TRUE  CHURCH  NOW  PERSECUTED?     WHY 

ARE  THE  CHRISTIANS  NOW  PERSECUTED  ? 

The  Head  of  the  Church  and  the  Leader  of  the  first 
Christians  "was  despised  and  rejected  by  men.''  His 
enemies  pursued  him,  pushed  their  malicious  designs, 
and  carried  out  their  malignant  purposes,  and  were  never 
fully  satisfied  till  they  saw  him  breathe  the  last  breath 
and  expire  on  the  cross.  They  hated  him  with  a  most 
cruel  and  vindictive  hatred.  Their  hatred  rose  to  mad- 
ness and  perfectly  infuriated  them.  It  blinded  them  to 
all  reason,  hardened  them  till  they  were  past  all  feeling, 
and  rendered  them  literally  monstrous.  Nor  did  their 
hatred  cease  when  he  died ;  it  followed  his  innocent, 
inoffensive  and  humble  adherents  with  the  most  viru- 
lent, vindictive  and  desperate  madness,  and,  with  the 
most  obstinate,  infuriated  and  determined  purpose,  com- 
pelled all  where  it  was  possible  to  recant,  and  put  to 
death  those  who  would  not  recant.  No  innocence, 
meekness,  or  loveliness;  no  goodness,  benevolence,  or 
gentleness  to  all  men ;  no  virtue,  moral  excellence,  or 
attainments;  no  piety,  purity,  or  holiness,  on  the  part 
of  the  first  Christians,  could  command  any  respect  from 
their  merciless  and  remorseless  persecutors,  or  make  any 
impression  on  them.  Nothing  would  satisfy  them  but 
the  most  unreserved  recantation.    The  requirement  was 


270  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

simply  to  turn  away  from  Christ,  renounce  and  curse 
him,  without  any  mental  reservation,  or  die. 

This  was  continued  to  such  an  unreasonable  extent, 
in  many  instances,  that  accusations  against  the  Chris- 
tians, without  even  the  names  of  their  accusers,  were 
received  by  the  authorities,  and  they  were  required  to 
prove  themselves  clear  of  the  charge,  deny  and  blas- 
pheme Christ,  or  be  put  to  death.  Thousands  died  in 
this  way,  without  ever  knowing  who  their  accusers 
were.  What  a  terrible  state  of  society  it  was  when  in- 
nocent people  were  hunted  down,  pursued  and  put  to 
death,  and  that,  too,  when  charged  with  no  crime,  only 
leing  a  Christian!  What  a  state  of  civil  rule,  too, 
when  a  charge,  involving  the  lives  of  people,  would  be 
entertained  by  the  rulers,  without  even  the  name  of  the 
accuser,  and  they  called  to  answer  to  the  charge,  and 
prove  themselves  clear,  or  be  put  to  death !  It  appears 
almost  incredible  that  such  a  state  of  things  ever  could 
have  obtained  among  intelligent  beings ! 

Why  was  this  hatred?  There  were  several  sects 
among  the  Jews,  and,  though  they  were  far  from  loving 
each  other,  or  even  hated  each  other,  their  hatred  toward 
each  other  never  rose  so  high  as  their  hatred  toward 
the  first  Christians  did.  There  were  also  numerous 
sects  among  philosophers,  statesmen  and  idolatrous 
worshipers,  but  their  hatred  toward  each  other  in  no 
instance  was  so  intense,  or  extended  so  generally,  as  the 
hatred  of  all  of  them  toward  the  first  Christians.  They 
had  their  differences,  controversies  and  strifes  among  the 
sects  of  philosophers,  statesmen  and  religionists;  but 
none  of  these  rose  so  high,  were  so  intense,  or  general, 
as  the  hatred  toward  the  "only  Potentate,  the  King 
of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords,"  and  those  who  followed 
him.     When  the  question  was  in  regard  to  the  Xaza- 


CUURCII    PERSECUTIONS.  271 

rene,  and  those  who  adhered  to  him,  their  differences 
all  fell  to  the  ground,  and  vanished  out  of  sight.  They 
were  all  forgotten!  Thej  were  all  one  in  their  opposi- 
tion to  the  Christians!  They  were  all  united  in  perse- 
cuting the  followers  of  Jesus! 

Why  was  this  persecution?  Why  were  these  people 
^'everywhere  spoken  against?"  This  is  now  to  be  con- 
sidered. It  is  accepted  as  a  fact  that  they  were  "every- 
where spoken  against ;"  that  they  w^ere  persecuted,  and 
no  argument  is  here  offered  to  prove  it.  It  is  accepted 
as  a  fact^  and  one  of  much  importance  and  value.  It 
caused  the  ground  to  be  carefully  considered  and  can- 
vassed from  side  to  side,  and  tried  the  integrity  of  the 
people  thus  persecuted.  But  now  the  question  comes 
up,  and  the  main  one  for  this  discourse,  Why  did  their 
enemies  persecute  them?  Why  did  they  so  hate  them? 
Why  did  they  hate  them  more  than  their  ordinary  op- 
ponents around  them;  sects  in  religion,  philosophy  and 
civil  affairs?  Why  all  unite  against  the  Christians? 
Here  is  room  for  reflection.  To  us,  who  have  a  toler- 
able view  of  the  real  person  and  character  of  our  Lord, 
their  hatred,  malignity  and  opposition  appear  strange 
indeed.  But  it  should  be  remembered  that  this  hatred, 
in  his  lifetime,  or  at  least  till  near  the  close  of  his  life, 
was  by  no  means  general.  There  were  but  few  that 
participated  in  it.  The  masses  of  the  people  did  not 
hate  him.  They  followed  him,  listened  to  him,  and  ad- 
mired him;  but  not  with  a  true  view,  or  in  the  true 
sense,  but  with  the  idea  that  he  was  a  great  prophet 
like  David,  and  hoped  that  he  would  redeem  Israel,  ac- 
cording to  the  flesh;  restore  the  nationality  of  the 
Jews;  free  them  from  their  bondage  to  the  Eoman 
Government;  ascend  the  throne  of  David,  and  be  their 
king,  in  a  temporal  sense,  as  David  or  Solomon  was, 


ZtZ  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

and  give  them  a  victory  over  all  their  enemies.  With 
this  view  of  things,  the  masses  not  only  did  not  hate 
him,  but  loved  him,  followed  him,  and  listened  to  him. 

But  there  was  another  class,  much  smaller  in  number, 
but  greater  in  power  and  influence,  that  did  not  partic- 
ipate in  this  view.  He  did  not  meet  their  expectations, 
did  not  glory  in  the  things  in  which  they  gloried ;  he 
did  not  move  in  the  circle  to  their  taste,  nor  appear  in 
the  style  to  their  liking;  he  wore  no  robes,  with  broad 
tufts  to  their  mantles,  with  scraps  of  the  law  tacked  on 
to  them,  thus  making  a  show  of  devotion  to  the  law, 
though  he  strictly  observed  the  law;  he  uttered  no 
words  of  flattery  to  the  priests,  the  rabbis,  the  scribes, 
or  the  Pharisees;  he  patronized  none  of  their  preten- 
sions, of  disfiguring  the  face,  making  long  prayers  on 
the  streets,  to  be  seen  of  men ;  he  did  not  identify  him- 
self with  the  priests,  the  doctors  of  the  law,  the  scribes, 
or  Pharisees,  but  stood  aloof  from  them  all,  and  rebuked 
them  all  alike.  Had  he  been  an  impostor,  he  would 
have  bowed  to  these  influential  classes,  and  courted 
their  favor;  but  instead  of  anything  of  this  kind,  he 
gave  them  the  most  withering  rebukes.  Let  us  hear 
him: 

"Then  spake  Jesus  to  the  multitude,  and  to  his  dis- 
ciples, saying.  The  scribes  and  the  Pharisees  sit  in 
Moses'  seat :  all,  therefore,  whatever  they  bid  you  ob- 
serve, that  observe  and  do :  but  do  not  you  after  their 
works:  for  they  say,  and  do  not.  For  they  bind  heavy 
burdens  and  grievous  to  be  borne,  and  lay  them  on 
men's  shoulders;  but  they  themselves  will  not  move 
them  with  one  of  their  fingers.  But  all  their  works 
they  do  to  be  seen  of  men:  they  make  broad  their  phy- 
lacteries, and  enlarge  the  borders  of  their  garments,  and 
love  the  uppermost  rooms  at  feasts,  and  the  chief  seats  in 


CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS.  27^ 

the  synagogues,  and  greetings  in  the  markets,  and  to  be 
called  of  men.  Rabbi,  Rabbi.  Be  not  you  called  Rabbi : 
for  one  is  your  Master,  even  the  Christ;  and  all  you  are 
brethren.  And  call  no  man  your  father  on  the  earth  i 
for  one  is  your  Father,  who  is  in  heaven.  Neither  be  you 
called  masters :  for  one  is  your  Master,  even  the  Christ. 
But  he  that  is  greatest  among  you  shall  be  your  serv- 
ant. And  whoever  shall  exalt  himself  shall  be  abased;, 
and  whoever  shall  humble  himself  shall  be  exalted." 

This  kind  of  teaching  did  not  suit  the  taste  of  scribes 
and  Pharisees;  those  gentlemen  who  bound  heavy  bur- 
dens on  the  people,  but  would  not  move  one  of  them 
with  their  fingers;  who  loved  to  be  called,  Rabbi,  Rabbi; 
and  who  loved  the  preferable  seats  at  feasts  and  in  the 
synagogues,  and  whose  works  were  all  done  to  be  seen 
of  men.  With  these  his  teaching  was  not  orthodox. 
But  we  must  hear  him  again : 

"  Woe  to  you,  scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites !  for 
you  shut  up  the  kingdom  of  heaven  against  men :  for 
you  neither  go  in  yourselves,  neither  suffer  3^ou  them 
that  are  entering  to  go  in.  Woe  to  you,  scribes  and 
Pharisees,  hypocrites !  for  you  devour  widows'  houses,. 
and  for  a  pretense  make  long  prayer:  therefore  you 
shall  receive  the  greater  damnation.  Woe  to  you, 
scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites!  for  you  compass  sea 
and  land  to  make  one  proselyte;  and  when  he  is  made,, 
you  make  him  twofold  more  the  child  of  hell  than  your- 
selves."— See  Matthew  xxiii.  1-15. 

Here  we  find  the  trouble.  These  were  the  men  that 
did  not  believe  on  him.  They  were  the  men  that  said 
he  ate  with  unwashed  hands,  and  ate  with  publicans 
and  sinners,  and  did  not  observe  the  traditions  of  the 
elders.  They  would  not  enter  the  kingdom  of  God 
themselves,  nor  permit  those  who  would  to  enter.    They 


274  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

were  the  men  that  hated  the  Lord  of  g)ory!     But  let 
us  hear  him  further,  to  the  same  men : 

"Woe  to  you,  blind  guides,  who  say,  Whoever  shall 
swear  by  the  temple,  it  is  nothing ;  but  whoever  shall 
swear  by  the  gold  of  the  temple,  he  is  a  debtor!  You 
fools  and  blind:  for  whether  is  greater,  the  gold,  or  the 
temple  that  sanctifies  the  gold?  And  whoever  ?hall 
swear  by  the  altar,  it  is  nothing;  but  whoever  swear?" 
by  the  gift  that  is  upon  it,  he  is  guilty.  You  fools  and 
blind:  for  whether  is  greater,  the  gift,  or  the  altar  that 
sanctifies  the  gift  ?  Whoever  therefore  shall  swear  by 
the  altar,  swears  by  it,  and  by  all  things  thereon.  And 
whoever  shall  swear  by  the  temple,  swears  by  it,  and  by 
Him  that  dwells  therein.  And  he  who  shall  swear  by 
heaven,  swears  by  the  throne  of  God,  and  by  Him  who 
sits  on  the  throne.  Woe  to  you,  scribes  and  Pharisees, 
hypocrites!  for  you  pay  tithe  of  mint  and  anise  and 
cummin,  and  have  omitted  the  weightier  matters  of  the 
law,  judgment,  mercy  and  faith:  these  you  ought  to 
have  done,  and  not  to  leave  the  other  undone.  You 
blind  guides,  who  strain  out  a  gnat,  and  swallow  a 
camel.  Woe  to  you,  scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites! 
for  you  make  clean  the  outside  of  the  cup  and  of  the 
platter,  but  within  they  are  full  of  extortion  and  excf  ss." 

Here  we  can  see  the  ground  of  their  hatred.  1  hey 
would  not. repent  and  turn  from  their  wickedness,  and 
hated  him  whom  the  Father  had  sent  to  warn  t)  em. 
But  we  must  still  hear  him  further,  for  here  is  the 
foundation  of  the  settled  hatred  that  culminated  ic  the 
crucifixion : 

"  Woe  to  you,  scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites '  for 
you  are  like  whited  sepulchers,  which  indeed  ap,  jear 
beautiful  outward,  but  are  within  full  of  dead  n  en's 
bones,  and  of  all  uncleanness.     Even  so  you  alsc    out- 


CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS.  275 

wardly  appear  righteous  to  men,  but  within  you  are  full 
of  hypocrisy  and  iniquity.  Woe  to  you,  scribes  and 
Pharisees,  hj'pocrites!  because  you  build  the  tombs 
of  the  prophets,  and  garnish  the  sepulchers  of  the 
righteous,  and  say,  If  we  had  been  in  the  days  of  our 
fathers,  we  would  not  have  been  partakers  w^ith  them 
in  the  blood  of  the  prophets.  Wherefore  you  are  wit- 
nesses to  yourselves,  tliat  you  are  the  children  of  them 
who  killed  the  prophets.  You  fill  up  the  measure 
of  your  fathers.  You  serpents,  you  generation  of  vipers, 
how^  can  you  escape  the  damnation  of  hell? 

"  Wherefore,  behold,  I  send  you  prophets,  and  wise 
meu,  and  scribes:  and  some  of  them  you  shall  kill  and 
crucify;  and  some  of  them  shall  you  scourge  in  your 
synagogues,  and  persecute  them  from  city  to  city :  that 
upon  you  may  come  all  the  righteous  blood  shed  upon 
the  earth,  from  the  blood  of  righteous  Abel  to  the  blood 
of  Zacharias,  son  of  Barachias,  whom  3^ou  slew  between 
the  temple  and  the  altar." — See  Matthew  xxiii.  15-35. 

This  was  the  kind  of  teaching  that  insulted  their 
dignity,  offended  them,  and  filled  them  with  hatred. 
They  never  forgot  these  things,  never  repented  or  im- 
proved by  them,  but  cherished  a  settled  hatred.  He 
charged,  that,  for  a  pretense,  they  made  long  prayers, 
and  devoured  widows'  houses,  and  said,  "These  sball 
receive  greater  damnation."  See  Mark  xii.  40.  He 
even  criticised  their  prayers,  and  gave  an  example 
of  the  prayer  of  the  self-righteous  Pharisee,  and  con- 
trasted it  w^ith  a  poor  publican's,  and  said  that  the  pub- 
lican was  justified  rather  than  the  Pharisee.  This  was 
terribly  offensive  to  the  Pharisees. 

But  this  was  not  all.  He  not  only  offended  the  doc- 
tors of  the  law,  the  rabbis,  the  priests,  the  scribes  and 
Pharisees,  the  most  popular  people,  but  he  offended  the 


276  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

rich  people.  "And  he  sat  over  opposite  the  treasury, 
and  saw  the  people  throw  money  into  the  treasury: 
and  many  who  were  rich  threw  in  much.  And  there 
came  a  certain  poor  widow,  and  she  threw  in  two  mites, 
which  make  a  farthing.  And  he  called  to  him  his  dis- 
ciples, and  said  to  them.  This  poor  widow  has  thrown 
more  in  than  all  they  who  have  thrown  into  the  treas- 
ury: for  all  they  threw  in  of  their  abundance;  but  she 
of  her  want  did  cast  in  all  she  had,  even  all  her  living." 
This  was  unpopular  teaching.  He  did  not  extol  or 
flatter  the  rich,  and  overlook  the  poor  widow.  See  Mark 
xii.  41-44.  See  also  the  case  of  the  rich  man  and  Laz- 
arus, Luke  xvi.  19-21,  and  you  find  anything  else  than 
flatteries  of  the  rich.  In  the  roundest  terms  he  said, 
*'  You  can  not  serve  God  and  mammon." — Luke  xvi.  13. 
Let  us  hear  him  again:  "How  hardly  shall  a  rich 
man  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God!  And  his  disciples 
were  astonished  at  his  words."  But  Jesus  answers 
again,  and  says  to  them,  "  Children,  how  hard  it  is  for 
them  that  trust  in  riches  to  enter  into  the  kingdom 
of  God!  It  is  easier  for  a  camel  to  go  througli  the  eye 
of  a  needle  than  for  a  rich  man  to  enter  into  the  king- 
dom of  God."  This  was  by  no  means  flattering  to  the 
rich!  He  thus  lost  their  good  will.  This  procedure 
would  have  been  considered  very  unwise  by  man}^  of  our 
great  men  now.  It  lost  the  sympathy  of  the  rich;  cer- 
tainly did  not  draw  out  their  money,  but  turned  them 
away  from  him.  But  this  did  not  turn  away  the  multi- 
tude. They  still  followed  him;  and  when  he  rode  into 
Jerusalem  they  cut  down  branches  of  the  trees,  and 
spread  down  their  garments,  that  he  might  ride  over 
them,  and  shouted  as  he  passed  along,  "Hosanna  to 
the  son  of  David :  Blessed  is  he  who  comes  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord :  Hosanna  in  the  highest."    The  mul- 


CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS.  277 

titude  said:  "This  is  Jesus,  the  prophet  of  Nazareth." 
All  appeared  to  be  popular  so  far.  But  now  we  are  at 
the  turning-point. 

"He  went  into  the  temple  of  God,  and  cast  out  them 
that  sold  and  bought  in  the  temple,  and  overthrew  the 
tables  of  the  money-changers,  an^  the  seats  of  them 
that  sold  doves,  and  said  to  them.  It  is  written,  My 
house  shall  be  called  the  house  of  prayer;  but  you  have 
made  it  a  den  of  thieves." — See  Matthew  xxi.  8-12. 
This  offended  them.  It  touched  their  schemes  of  mak- 
ing money,  and  condemned  the  whole  affair.  They  had 
turned  the  house  of  God  into  a  "  den  of  thieves,"  and 
were  in  traffic  instead  of  being  there  to  worship.  The 
priests  now  only  wanted  a  pretext,  and  soon  found  one 
for  carrying  out  their  malicious  designs.  "The  lame 
and  the  blind  came  to  him  and  he  healed  them.  And 
when  the  chief  priests  and  scribes  saw  the  wonderful 
things  that  he  did,  and  the  children  crying  in  the  tem- 
ple, and  saying,  Hosanna  to  the  son  of  David;  they 
were  sore  displeased,  and  said  to  him,  Hearest  thou 
w4iat  these  say?  And  Jesus  said  to  them.  Yea;  have 
you  never  read.  Out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  and  suck- 
lings thou  hast  perfected  praise?" 

The  way  was  now  opened  for  the  people  to  turn 
away  from  him.  He  had  condemned  their  popular  pro- 
cedure in  the  temple;  he  had  predicted  the  overthrow 
of  their  city  and  people,  and  their  captivity  among  all 
nations,  and  that  Jerusalem  should  be  trodden  down 
of  the  Gentiles  till  the  times  of  the  Gentiles  be  ful- 
filled. This  was  enough — the  people  turned  away  and 
left  him,  with  only  a  few  disciples.  He  inquired  of 
them,  affectionately,  "Will  you  also  leave  me?"  They 
responded,  "To  whom  shall  we  go?  for  thou  alone  hast 
the  words  of  eternal  life."     This  was  enough.     These 


278  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

men  that  had  been  in  the  rear  all  the  time,  and  charg- 
ing that  "he  had  an  unclean  spirit,"  and  the  like,  had 
nothing  in  their  way  now,  as  the  people  had  forsaken 
him.  They  never  ceased  their  malignant  purposes  till 
they  saw  him  expire  on  the  cross. 

We  have  now  seen  what  it  was,  to  some  extent,  that 
called  forth  the  hatred  of  the  leaders  toward  the  Lord 
himself,  that  culminated  in  his  crucifixion.  What  was 
it  that  called  forth  the  hatred  of  the  people  toward  the 
apostles  and  first  Christians?  Why  were  the  people  so 
enraged  and  infuriated? 

About  the  time  our  Lord  appeared,  some  before  and 
Bome  after,  there  arose  some  twenty  four  impostors,  at- 
tempting to  impose  on  the  credulity  of  the  people,  in 
view  of  the  gene/al  expectation  that  prevailed  through- 
out the  principal  portions  of  the  world,  that  some  great 
personage  was  to  appear  about  that  time.  Among  the 
Jews  the  expectation  was  general  that  their  Messiah 
would  soon  appear.  Among  the  other  nations  the  expec- 
tation was  quite  general  that  some  great  personage  was 
about  to  appear,  but  their  idea  was  much  less  definite 
in  regard  to  it  than  among  the  Jews.  The  impostors 
that  arose  took  advantage  of  this  general  expectation 
among  the  Jews,  and  each  one  claimed  to  be  the  Messiah. 
The  Jews  ferreted  out  and  exposed  every  one  of  these 
that  appeared  before  Christ,  and  overthrew  his  preten- 
sions. This  led  them  to  look  out  for  impostors.  When 
Jesus  made  his  appearance,  their  wise  men  were  on  the 
lookout,  made  every  efifbrt  to  expose  him  and  set  aside 
his  claims.  When  they  crucified  him,  they  thought 
they  had  accomplished  their  work.  Still,  it  occurred 
to  them  that  he  said  he  would  rise  again,  and  that  some- 
thing might  come  out  of  it  after  he  was  dead,  and  said, 
"We  remember  that  this  deceiver,  when  he  was  alive, 


CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS.  279 

eaid  he  wouid  rise  again  the  third  day,"  and  made  ar- 
rangements to  prevent  his  disciples  from  stealing  his 
dead  hody,  and  raising  a  report  that  he  had  risen.  This 
precautionary  arrangement  was  of  great  value  to  the 
truth ;  for  if  nothing  of  the  kind  had  been  done,  the 
way  would  have  been  open  for  almost  any  kind  of  idle 
reports.  But,  as  it  was,  there  was  no  ground  for  the 
report  that  the  disciples  stole  the  body  of  Jesus. 

But  now,  some  fifty  days  after  his  death,  a  new  and 
powerful  element  appears  among  the  people ;  an  element 
that  no  outside  influence  could  oppose  successfully.  It 
is  all  founded  on  the  report  that  the  Lord  had  risen 
from  the  dead.  The  report  is  not  about  something  that 
had  occurred  at  a  distance,  or  among  other  people,  but 
an  occurrence  in  their  own  country  and  among  their 
own  people;  an  occurrence  that  did  not  take  place  in  a 
corner,  nor  in  private,  but  openly.  The  men  at  the  head 
of  this  wonderful  aiFair  are  without  learning,  money,  or 
any  important  natural  gifts,  and  without  popularity  or 
influence.  They  take  their  stand  on  the  resurreGtion 
of  Christ  from  the  dead^  and  announce  that  he  had 
gone  into  heaven  and  been  crowned  Lord  of  all.  The 
first  day  this  proclamation  was  clearly  and  fully  made 
openly,  three  thousand  people  received  it  and  banded 
themselves  together  in  a  new  and  distinct  body. 

ISTow  we  come  to  inquire  why  this  body  was  hated, 
di'spised  and  persecuted. 

It  was  a  formidable  element,  that  could  not  be  con- 
trolled, turned  aside  from  its  native  coarse,  nor  stopped 
in  its  onward  march.  We  hardly  can  conceive  of  a 
power  that  would  turn  three  thousand  sturdy  Jews,  in 
oiie  day,  from  their  former  course  of  life,  religion,  stand- 
ing and  associations,  and  band  them  together  in  a  new 
and    formidable  association  so  firmly  that  they  would 


280  CHURCH   PERSECUTIONS. 

die  before  they  would  give  up  the  new  position !  This, 
in  itself,  would  rouse  the  people.  In  a  few  days  we 
read  of  five  thousand.  The  very  circumstance  of  its 
being  such  a  powerful  element  would  rouse  the  people. 
This  demanded  attention.  It  could  not  be  regarded  as 
^n  insignificant  affair ;  it  could  not  be  treated  as  unworthy 
of  notice;  it  demanded  attention;  it  stood  upon  a  level 
with  no  sect  among  the  Jews,  or  any  party  that  had 
arisen.  The  very  things  that  had  been  done  to  destroy 
it  only  turned  out  to  its  furtherance.  They  feared  it, 
as  a  powerful  and  uncontrollable  element. 

It  was  carrying  away  Jews  by  the  thousand  from 
the  established  religion  of  their  fathers — turning  them 
over  from  the  old  Church  to  the  7iew.  This  roused  the 
leaders.  They  had  done  all  they  could  to  prevent  its 
rise  and  had  failed.  It  had  succeeded  in  spite  of  their 
precautionary  movements,  and  established  itself,  and 
now  was  carrying  away  their  members  by  thousands. 
This  was  a  cause  of  offense,  and  called  out  their  most 
vindictive  feelings.  Had  it  been  only  an  insignificant 
sect,  with  but  little  power,  the  feeling  in  opposition 
would  not  have  risen  so  high.  But,  instead  of  this,  it 
appeared  as  if  it  would  carry  everything  before  it.  This 
was  a  great  cause  of  opposition. 

It  did  not  make  its  appearance  as  another  rival  sect 
among  Jewish  sects;  but  it  came  as  an  alsolvte  author- 
ity. Its  Head  claimed  to  be  "  the  Way,  the  Truth,  and 
the  Life,"  and  said,  "No  man  comes  to  the  Father  but 
by  me."  Peter  said  to  the  Jews,  concerning  Christ: 
*'Thi3  is  the  stone  which  w^as  set  at  naught  by  you 
builders,  which  is  become  the  head  of  the  corner. 
iN'either  is  there  salvation  in  any  other:  for  there  is  none 
other  name  under  heaven  given  among  men,  whereby 
we  must  be  saved."— Acts  iv.  11, 12.   This  was  exclusive 


CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS.  281 

in  the  extreme.  It  narrows  the  whole  matter  of  salva- 
tion down  to  the  one  name — the  name  of  Jesus.  Paul 
eajs,  "Who  in  his  times  shall  show  who  is  the  hlessed 
and  only  Potentate,  the  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of 
lords."—!  Timothy  vi.  15,  16.  "He  is  the  Alpha  and 
the  Omega,  the  Beginning  and  the  Ending,  the  First 
and  the  Last."  He  says,  "  There  shall  he  one  fold  and 
one  Shepherd." — John  x.  16.  After  his  resurrection, 
the  Lord  said  to  the  apostles,  "All  authority  in  heaven 
and  on  earth  is  given  to  me."  This  covers  the  w4iole 
ground,  and  claims  for  the  religion  of  Christ,  "all  au- 
thority in  heaven  and  on  earth." 

But  this  was  all  affirmative.  Was  there  anything 
legative?  Where  did  it  put  the  Jews'  religion?  It 
ieclared  that  Christ  was  "the  end  of  the  law;"  that  he 
'took  the  handwriting  of  its  ordinances  out  of  the  way, 
.■aailing  it  to  his  cross;"  that  the  law  was  abolished; 
that  "by  the  deeds  of  the  law  no  flesh  could  be  justi- 
:fi.ed;"  that  "by  works  of  law  no  one  could  be  saved;" 
that  it  contained  a  "  better  covenant  on  better  prom- 
ises." In  one  word,  the  religion  of  Christ  set  aside  all 
Ihe  priests,  altars,  and  victims;  the  temple  w^orship,  the 
^yna^^ogues;  the  entire  s^^stem  of  Judaism  as  abolished 
a,Tid  done  away.  It  declared  that  Christ  had  come  in 
t'ne  end  of  the  ages,  and  made  the  one  oifering  for  sin 
—  ofi'eied  himself,  without  spot,  to  God,  and  that  there 
is  no  more  sin-offering.  He  made  an  end  of  sin-offer- 
in\^.     Th3s  was  exclusive  in  the  extreme. 

The  re)J.gion  of  Christ,  then,  turned  on  the  Pagan 
religions,  and  pronounced  their  gods,  idols — no  gods; 
and  declared  their  temples,  altars,  victims  and  priests 
all  i;othii\^^— null  and  void — that  there  was  no  salvation 
in  t\.eim.  T'^ey  carried  this  so  triumphantly  that  it 
desoUt^d  \\.\  Psv;c»;an  tsr^-ples,  brought  their  gods  into 


282  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

disrepute,  and  in  many  places  cleared  the  country 
of  Pagan  worship.  This  roused  the  devout  Pagans, 
and  called  forth  their  indignation.  In  one  word,  it  set 
itself  up  as  the  only  true  religion ;  the  only  religion 
from  God,  or  that  could  save  man.  It  claimed  to  be 
the  supreme  and  the  absolute  authority,  and  required 
the  homage  of  the  whole  race  of  man,  and  pronounced 
all  the  other  religions  of  the  world  null  and  void.  This 
naturally  brought  all  other  religions  into  antagonism 
with  it. 

It  was  utterly  uncompromising,  exclusive  and  dis- 
tinct. There  is  not  the  least  intimation  of  its  offering 
the  slightest  fraternity  with  any  religion  on  the  face 
of  the  earth.  J^ot  an  account  is  found  of  any  church 
ever  inviting  a  Jewish  rabbi  or  Pagan  doctor  to  officiate^ 
participate,  or  take  any  part  in  the  worship,  or  that 
any  one  ever  did.  Such  a  thing  was  utterly  unknown 
and  unheard  of.  The  first  followers  of  Christ  had  the 
law  of  their  King,  their  absolute  authority,  and  that 
was  their  rule  of  actio7i.  They  never  professed  to  be 
more  liheral  than  their  Master,  the  Lord  himself.  They 
held  up  their  King  to  all  the  world,  and  their  religion ; 
the  whole  kingdom  of  God  and  all  that  was  in  it,  and 
offered  the  whole  to  all  men,  on  the  same  terms  as  they 
had  themselves  received  it — without  money  and  without 
price — and  pressed  all  men  to  come  and  receive  it.  The 
entire  system  of  grace  was  offered  to  all  the  world  on 
the  same  terms  and  free  to  all.  It  was  offered  to  all,  given 
to  all,  and  accepted  by  all  who  came  to  the  Lord  pre- 
cisely alike.  But  all  who  receive  it  have  to  receive  the 
Head  of  the  Institution,  the  Institution  itself,  and  all 
that  is  in  it.  None  can  come  to  the  Lord,  and  be  ac- 
cepted by  him,,  on  receiving  some  part  of  the  Institu- 
tion, and  not  receive  the  w/iolc  of  it.    The  vjhole  person 


CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS.  283 

must  come,  body,  soul  and  spirit,  and  be  given  up  to 
God;  and  the  whole  system  of  grace^  the  entire  New 
Institution^  must  be  accepted,  in  order  to  acceptance 
with  the  Lord.     There  must  be  no  half-waj'  work. 

It  was  entirely  uncompromising  with  all  sin  and  folly 
of  every  description,  and  demanded  a  full  and  complete 
surrender  to  the  Lord,  and  turning  away  from  all  eviL 
It  did  not  compromise  with  the  world,  nor  worldliness, 
but  required  those  who  came  to  Christ  to  come  out  from 
the  world;  to  forsake  the  world,  and  be  not  conformed 
to  the  worlds  but  to  be  transformed  by  the  renewing 
of  the  mind.     This  caused  the  world  to  hate  it. 

This  is  summary  enough  for  our  present  purpose. 
The  matter  may  be  summed  up  in  a  few  words.  It  was 
a  most  powerful  and  wonderful  element,  taking  vast 
masses  of  the  people,  from  Judaism  and  Paganism,  and 
literally  revolutionizing  the  country,  striking  down  and 
setting  aside  the  popular  religions  of  the  world,  and 
condemning  them  as  all  wrong.  It  had  yet  another 
characteristic  that  made  it  unpopular.  It  condemned 
all  the  world,  and  pronounced  all  under  sin^  in  unhe- 
lief  lost^  and  made  the  mercy  and  grace  of  God  neces- 
sary to  all  to  save  them.  The  people  soon  lost  sight 
of  their  little  diflerences  among  themselves,  when  a  new 
system  came,  claiming  absolute  authority^  that  set  aside 
all  the  religions  in  the  world,  and  pronounced  the  peo- 
ple all  sinners^  and  required  an  unreserved  surrender 
of  all  to  its  authority  in  order  to  be  saved!  I^or  were 
they  ready  to  admit  generally  that  its  claims  were  to 
be  regarded.  Thousands  never  waited  to  examine  its 
claims,  to  reason  on  the  matter  at  all,  but  rose  against 
it,  and  in  defense  of  their  accustomed  religion  and  life. 

But  now,  it  is  a  fact  that  the  same  religion  is  as  un- 
popular now  as  it  was  then.     There  is  nothing  a  man 


1284  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

can  preach  now  so  unpopular  as  the  gospel  itself; 
simply  the  gospel  of  Christy  as  found  on  the  pages 
of  Scripture.  A  man  now  may  travel  from  one  side 
of  this  continent  to  the  other,  and  preach  Unitarianism, 
Universalism,  Spiritualism,  Materialism,  Infidelity,  or 
even  Free  Love,  and  not  excite  the  people  particularly. 
The  people  will  not  unite  against  him.  A  man  may 
preach  Shakerism,  Quakerism,  or  Swedenborgianism, 
and  nobody  is  excited,  and  the  people  never  think 
of  uniting  against  him.  But  let  him  walk  out  and 
declare  the  gospel  of  Christ  itself,  the  power  of  God  to 
salvation  to  every  one  that  believes,  and  enforce  its  re- 
quirements, and  the  old  parties  around  will  soon  begin 
to  make  friends.  They  will  soon  come  up  side  by  side, 
and  stand  shoulder  to  shoulder  against  the  common 
enemy.  ITo  matter  if  they  have  said  a  thousand  times, 
that  "  whatever  a  man  thinks  is  right,  that  is  right  to 
him,"  they  do  not  say  it  now  of  the  man  who  thinks 
tJie  gospel  of  Christ  is  right.  They  do  not  admit  th^it 
the  gospel  of  Christ  is  right,  even  if  a  man  does  thinh 
it  is  right!  They  do  not  say  the  religion  of  Christ  is 
right,  even  if  a  man  does  thinh  it  is  right! 

Why  do  the  people  of  this  generation  oppose  the 
gospel  of  Christ,  or  the  religion  of  Christ  itself?  Why 
are  they  not  willing  that  men  shall  return  to  the  Lord 
and  to  the  apostles,  and  learn  precisely  what  they 
preached,  preach  the  same  now;  let  the  people  hear 
and  believe  the  same  now  that  those  did  who  heard  the 
apostles,  and  do  the  same  now  as  those  who  turned  to 
the  Lord  did  under  the  preaching  of  the  apostles  ?  Why 
are  men  not  willing  that  the  Bible  shall  be  advocated 
now  as  the  only  rule  of  faith  and  practice  ?  The  people 
generally  profess  to  believe  it,  and  regard  it  as  divine 
— from  God.     Why  are  they  not  all  willing  that  thi& 


CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS.  285 

glorious  volume  shall  be  urged  on  all  the  world,  as  the 
only  perfect  system  among  men?  This  must  now  be 
inquired  into. 

The  religion  of  Christ  is  exclusive  in  its  character. 
It  claims  not  to  be  2^  form  of  Christianity^  as  good  as 
any  other  forin^  or  even  better;  but  it  claims  to  be 
Christianity  itself.  It  claims  not  to  be  a  system  of 
Christianity,  as  good  as  any  other,  or  even  better; 
or  a  system  of  religion,  as  good  as  any  other,  or  even 
better;  but  to  be  the  very  Christianity  itself;  the  very 
religion  itstlf  ordained  by  the  Lord.  It  comes  not, 
claiming  to  be  as  near  the  truth  as  any  other,  or  even 
nearer,  but  to  he  the  truth  itself;  not  to  be  as  near  the 
right  way  as  any  other,  or  even  nearer,  but  to  be  the 
right  way  of  the  Lord.  It  comes  not,  claiming  to  have 
as  much  authority  as  any  other  religion,  or  even  more, 
but  to  have  the  supreme  and  absolute  authority.  Its. 
Divine  Author  says,  "All  authority  in  heaven  and  on 
earth  is  given  to  me."  Again  he  says,  "I  am  the  Way, 
and  the  Truth,  and  the  Life:  no  man  cometh  to  the 
Father  but  by  me."  The  command  of  the  Almighty 
Father  is,  "Hear  you  him."  We  are  not  to  see  who 
can  come  the  nearest  hearing  him;  but  to  "hear  him." 
We  must  be  led  by  him. 

All  parties  talk  about  "the  religion  of  Christ;"  of 
being  nearly  like  it,  or  being  far  from  it,  or  not  like  it. 
How  can  we  tell  what  is  like  it,  or  not  like  it,  unlesa 
we  know  what  it  is?  If  we  know  what  it  is,  why  not 
accept  it^  and  not  something  like  it?  All  talk  of  the 
truth,  and  that  which  is  nearest  the  truth ;  but  how  do 
we  know  anything  about  which  is  the  nearest  the  truth, 
unless  we  know  what  the  truth  itself  is?  If  we  know 
what  the  truth  itself  is,  why  not  accept  it,  and  not 
something  like  it,  or  a  mere  imitation  ?     All  talk  about 


286  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

the  right  way,  and  that  which  is  nearest  the  right  way; 
but  how  can  we  know  which  is  the  nearest  the  right 
way,  unless  we  know  the  right  way  itself?  If  we  know 
the  right  way  itself,  why  not  accept  it  and  walk  in  it? 
There  is  no  reason  in  not  walking  in  the  right  way,  or 
in  walking  in  a  way  Wke  it^  and  not  in  it,  if  we  know 
the  right  way  itself. 

The  religion  of  Christ  itself  is  right,  and  no  other 
religion  is  right.  No  matter  what  any  set  of  people  are, 
or  whether  they  live  up  to  it  or  not — the  religion  itself 
is  right.  If  those  who  profess  it  come  short,  they  are 
not  right;  but  the  religion  itself  is  right.  It  will  stand, 
but  they  will  fall.  This  religion  is  exclusive;  it  recog- 
nizes no  other,  and  asks  recognition  of  no  other;  it 
covers  the  whole  ground,  and  leaves  no  room  for  any 
other  religion;  it  has  "all  authority  in  heaven  and  on 
earth"  in  its  favor.  No  other  religion  has  any  author- 
ity from  heaven;  or  any  but  human  authority.  God  is 
in  this  religion;  Christ  is  in  it;  the  Eternal  Spirit  is  in 
it — why  may  it  not  fill  the  earth? 

This  relisrion  is  exclusive  in  its  creed.  It  has  but  one 
book — the  Bible  is  its  book.  The  Bible  itself  is  an  ex- 
clusive look.  It  admits  no  rival.  "All  Scripture  given 
by  inspiration  of  God  is  profitable  for  doctrine."  Here 
is  the  doctrine;  not  something  like  it;  not  an  imita- 
tion^ but  the  doctrine;  not  simply  good  doctrine,  better 
doctrine  than  any  other,  or  nearer  the  true  doctrine,  but 
the  doctrine  itself;  the  true  doctrine,  and  the  only  true 
doctrine.  This  is  one  of  the  grounds  of  offense.  This 
book — the  Bible — claims  to  be  the  supreme  and  the 
absolute  authority.  It  admits  of  no  rival,  no  compari- 
son, and  comes  on  no  common  ground  with  any  other, 
but  claims  the  whole  ground.  It  comes  to  all  countries 
and  all  peoples  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  and  is  for  all 


CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS.  287 

time.  It  is  not  a  national  book,  but  the  one  book 
of  God.  It  requires  all  men  to  accept  it  and  walk  by 
it;  to  it  all  are  required  to  come;  all  others  sink  into 
the  dust  before  it.  It  comes  not,  claiming  to  be  as  near 
right  as  any  other  book,  or  even  nearer  right,  but  to  be 
right.  In  every  sense,  those  books  that  differ  from  it, 
and  in  every  item  wherein  they  differ  from  it,  they  are 
wrong.  If  they  contain  more  tlian  it,  they  contain  too 
much,  and  are  therein  wrong.  If  they  contain  less  than 
it,  they  contain  too  little,  and  are  therein  wrong.  If 
they  <;liffer  from  it,  in  every  particular  wherein  they 
differ  from  it,  they  are  wrong.  If  they  are  precisely 
like  it;  differ  from  it  in  nothing;  they  are  useless — for 
then  we  can  find  all  in  the  Bible  that  is  in  them.  So, 
that  taking  any  possible  view  of  it,  they  are  all  set  aside 
by  it.     This  is  another  item  of  its  offensiveness. 

There  is  no  excuse  for  a  living  man  for  not  receiving 
the  Bible  and  following  its  instructions,  if  it  is  what  it 
claims  to  be.  If  it  is  true;  from  God;  the  absolute 
authority,  receive  it  and  walk  by  it.  If  it  is  not  true, 
reject  it  at  once,  and  no  mincing  of  the  matter.  There 
is  no  half-way  ground.  Either  be  for  the  Bible  or 
against  it.  "He  that  is  not  for  us  is  against  us,"  says 
the  great  King.  We  want  none  of  this  half-way  work; 
something  like  the  Bible,  or  nearer  like  it  than  some- 
thing else;  but  we  want  the  Bible  itself;  not  merely  in 
our  houses,  but  in  our  hearts,  on  our  lips,  and  in  our 
lives. 

It  is  exclusive  for  a  church  to  refuse  to  bear  any  name 
except  what  may  be  found  in  Scripture.  If  it  would 
adopt  some  human  name,  like  others,  and  come  on  a 
level  with  them,  the  off'ense  would  cease  largely,  and  it 
would  be  a  tolerable  body.  But  for  one  body  of  people 
to  exist  among  us  that  will  wear  no  unscriptural  name, 


288  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

but  refer  to  itself  as  "the  Church,"  "the  body,"  "the 
body  of  Christ,"  the  "Church  of  God,"  "the  kingdom 
of  God,"  and  refer  to  the  individual  members  as  "Chris- 
tians," "members  of  his  body,"  "saints,"  "disciplea 
of  Christ,"  "  disciples  of  the  Lord,"  etc.,  is  offensive  to 
sectarian  ears.  Such  language  is  exclusive,  and  not 
like  "our  church"  and  "your  church,"  "our  doctrine" 
and  "your  doctrine."  Many  in  our  day  can  not,  or, 
if  they  can,  they  will  not  see  that  the  Lord  gave  this 
one  book  for  them  as  much  as  for  us;  and  this  one 
Church,  and  that  we  are  trying  all  the  time  to  get  them 
to  receive  it.  It  is  their  privilege  to  have  it  as  much  as 
it  is  ours.  We  are  pleading  them  to  enjoy  this  privi- 
lege. He  gave  the  Bible  to  them  for  doctrine  as  much 
as  he  did  to  us,  and  if  they  will  not  take  and  walk  by 
it,  the  fault  is  not  ours,  for  we  are  continually  laboring 
with  them  to  get  them  to  accept  it.  The  designations 
given  in  the  Bible  to  the  body  of  Christ,  and  the  people 
of  God,  are  for  them  as  much  as  for  us,  if  they  will  be 
members  of  his  body  and  be  his  people.  If  they  w^ill 
not  be  members  of  his  body,  or  will  not  be  his  people, 
the  fault  is  not  ours,  for  we  are  persuading  them  to  do 
this  with  all  our  power.  They  can  not,  of  course,  have 
what  they  will  not  have. 

The  Bible  teaching  of  unity  is  offensive  to  those 
determined  on  maintaining  party  ism.  For  all  to  he  one^ 
as  our  Lord  and  his  Father  are  one,  as  he  prayed,  John 
xvii.  21,  would  sweep  away  the  present  parties  from  the 
face  of  the  earth,  and  leave  nothing  but  the  body 
of  Christ.  The  command  of  Paul,  that  "there  be  no 
divisions  among  you,"  would  reduce  all  to  simply  the 
body  of  Christ,  if  carried  out  practically.  The  state- 
ment of  Paul,  that  "there  is  one  lod])^'^  shows  that  the 
Lord  has  but  one  body.     The  statement  of  Paul,  that 


CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS.  28^ 

"we  are  all  baptized  iuto  one  hody^'^  sweeps  away  all 
these  parties.  The  prophetic  statement  of  the  Lord, 
"  There  shall  be  one  fold  and  one  Shepherd,"  leaves  n^o 
room  for  parties  or  sects.  These,  and  many  other  Scrip- 
tures, are  at  war  with  all  these  parties,  and  the  war 
must  go  on  till  these  parties  or  the  Bible  are  put  down» 
These  parties  have  one  common  cause — that  cause  is 
partyism.  When  that  cause  is  assailed,  they  all  be- 
come one  in  resisting  the  assailant.  The  time  has  come 
for  men  to  show  which  side  they  are  on.  Will  they 
join  in  defense  of  partyism  against  the  Bible,  or  in  de- 
fense of  the  Bible  against  partyism  ? 

The  Bible  has  a  clear  plan  of  salvation^  not  held  nor 
set  forth  by  any  sectarian  party  in  the  world.  The  sec- 
tarian parties,  or  the  iin evangelical  alliance^  are  united, 
combined  and  determined,  to  keep  the  way  of  salvation^ 
as  set  forth  by  the  apostles  and  first  evangelists,  from 
the  people.  Here  is  a  clear  issue,  between  the  Bible 
and  the  principal  parties  in  this  country,  in  a  practical 
matter,  and  there  is  no  avoiding  it.  Shall  the  way  of 
salvation,  as  set  forth  in  the  New  Testament,  be  main- 
tained, or  shall  it  be  ignored,  kept  out  of  view,  and  put 
down  by  these  popular  parties?  We  shall  see.  The 
Lord  has  some  friends  yet,  and  they  do  not  intend  to 
let  the  matter  slumber,  nor  permit  the  way  of  salvation, 
as  set  forth  in  the  New  Testament,  to  be  ignored, 
blurred  over,  kept  out  of  view,  nor  put  down.  They 
are  determined  that  the  apostles  shall  be  heard,  that 
their  words  shall  be  regarded  and  brought  before  the 
people.  This  is  a  grand  point  of  offense.  Their  way 
of  salvation,  or,  rather,  their  want  of  any  way  of  sal- 
vation, is  one  thing,  and  the  clear  way  pointed  out  by 
the  apostles  is  another,  as  different  as  day  and  night. 

The  sectarian  parties  generally,  and  we  may  sa7 
25 


290  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

unitedly,  ignore  or  mutilate  the  last  commission.  Some- 
times they  ignore  it  entirely — do  not  give  it  any  place 
at  all — and,  in  hearing  them,  one  would  scarcely  learn 
that  there  was  any  such  commission.  At  other  times 
they  refer  to  it,  quote  part  of  it,  garble  and  mutilate  it, 
so  as  to  make  it  quite  another  thing.  They  scarcely 
ever  ring  out  the  words,  "He  that  believeth  and  is  bap- 
tized shall  be  saved;  but  he  that  believeth  not  shall  be 
damned."  They  never  follow  up  the  apostles  under  this 
^commission;  and  when  inquirers  are  before  them,  in- 
quiring, "What  shall  we  do?"  proceed  directly  forward 
to  give  the  divine  answer,  "  Repent,  and  be  baptized, 
every  one  of  you,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  for  the 
remission  of  sins,  and  yon  shall  receive  the  gift  of  the 
Holy  Spirit."  l^or  do  they  ever,  when  they  find  a  man 
like  Saul,  who  already  believes  and  has  repented,  or,  in 
other  words,  one  who  is  a  penitent  believer,  give  him 
the  direct  answer  of  Scripture,  given  by  Ananias  to 
Saul,  "Arise,  and  be  baptized,  and  wash  away  thy  sins, 
calling  on  the  name  of  the  Lord."  This  is  all  an  offense 
to  them.  It  is  not  their  way^  but  another  way — the 
Lord's  way  of  salvation.  They  are  unitedly  against 
this,  bound  not  in  an  "evangelical  alliance,"  but  in  an 
'-'-  unevangelical  alliance."  Here  is  a  practical  issue  that 
comes  up  in  all  our  operations,  and  there  is  no  evading 
it.  This  unevangelical  alliance  must  be  overthrown, 
or  the  way  of  salvation  set  forth  in  the  Scriptures  must 
be  set  aside.  The  war  must  go  on.  The  men  for  the 
Lord's  way  of  salvation  will  not  give  up.  We  see  no 
sign  of  the  unevang elioal  alliance  giving  up.  The  issue 
remains  as  formidable  as  ever.  Let  the  war  then  go  on 
till  the  power  of  darkness  is  overthrown,  and  let  the 
men  of  the  kingdom  stand  together  and  maintain  the 
way  of  salvation  set  forth  in  the  Scriptures.     The  light 


CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS.  291 

from  heaven  will  prevail,  and  the  men  who  walk  in  it 
will  stand  forever  and  ever.  The  Lord's  way  will  stand 
forever  and  ever — the  ways  of  men  will  all  come  to 
nothing. 

The  Church  of  the  living  God  does  not  stand  on  a 
succession  of  popes,  clergy,  ordinances,  officers,  or 
churches,  but  on  having  the  same  God  of  Abraham, 
Isaac  and  Jacob;  the  God  of  the  prophets;  the  God 
and  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  above  all,  through 
all  and  in  all;  one  Lord  Jesus  the  Christ,  in  whom 
dwells  all  the  fullness  of  the  Deit}"  substantially;  the 
resurrection  and  the  life;  Head  over  all  things  to  the 
Church,  and  blessed  forever  and  ever;  one  Eternal 
Spirit,  the  Spirit  of  all  truth* and  all  revelation;  one 
book,  the  Bible;  one  gospel,  the  gospel  of  Christ  and 
the  teaching  of  Christ  and  the  apostles — in  one  word, 
on  having  everything  the  first  Church  had,  being  every- 
thing it  was,  and  hoping  for  all  that  was  promised  to 
it.  If  it  believes  the  same  the  first  Church  did,  prac- 
tices the  same,  and  hopes  for  the  same,  it  is  the  same. 
If  it  has  the  same  word  of  truth,  and  believes  it;  has 
the  same  commands,  and  obeys  them;  has  the  same 
promises,  and  hopes  for  them,  it  has  the  same  faith, 
obedience  and  hope;  if  it  has  precisely  the  same  book, 
and  follows  it,  unquestionably  it  is  the  same  Church. 

This  Church  covers  the  whole  ground,  and  is  the 
Church  of  the  living  God.  Churches  not  named  in  the 
book  of  God  at  all,  not  named  in  history  at  all  till  the 
Church  of  God  has  been  in  existence  more  than  a  thou- 
sand years,  and  whose  own  historians  give  them  a  mod- 
ern date,  with  another  name,  another  creed,  and  sepa- 
rated from  thousands  whom  it  admits  to  be  saints,  has 
no  claim  to  being  the  Church  of  God  at  all.  It  is  a 
modern  invention,  and  whatever  it  has  in  common  with 


292  CHURCH    PERSECUTIONS. 

Bible  people  is  not  peculiar  to  it,  and  did  not  originate 
with  it;  and  whatever  it  has  not  in  common  with  Bible 
people,  and  that  did  originate  with  it,  but  peculiar  to 
it,  is  human  and  ought  to  be  rejected.  This  must  all 
be  thrown  aside.  This  will  do  away  all  its  peculiarities, 
and  it  will  be  no  longer  a  sect.  This  must  all  be  abolished 
and  cleared  away,  and  the  kingdom  of  God  must  have 
the  whole  territory.     This,  again,  is  offensive. 

To  restore  the  gospel  to  the  people  of  this  country, 
in  the  true  sense,  and  not  merely  nominally;  to  restore 
the  Church  and  the  original  order,  in  faith  and  practice, 
in  worship  and  everything,  is  a  revolutionary  work. 
The  existing  bodies  are  not  willing  to  have  this.  They 
love  their  parties  and  hold  on  to  them.  They  will  resist 
all  revolutionary  movements  while  they  have  strength. 
But  their  strength  is  already  broken,  and  the  columns 
for  the  restoration  of  the  ancient  order  in  all  things,  as 
they  were  in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  are  filling  up,  ex- 
tending, and  becoming  stronger  and  stronger.  Men  are 
becoming  convinced  that  the  truth  is  the  Lord's,  and 
that  it  will  stand  forever;  that  the  truth  and  the  true 
ground  can  be  maintained;  that  the  right  way  of  the 
Lord  can  be  defended  against  all  odds.  In  the  name, 
then,  of  the  God  of  Israel,  and  with  the  faith  of  the 
true  Israel  of  God,  let  those  who  trust  not  in  horses, 
nor  men,  nor  in  money,  but  in  the  Lord  of  hosts,  in  the 
right  against  might,  in  the  truth  against  error,  the  doc- 
trine of  the  Lord  against  the  doctrines  of  men,  stand 
together  and  push  on  their  work;  and  when  the  Chief- 
Shepherd  shall  appear  he  will  take  them  fo  himself  to 
dwell  with  him  forever  and  ever. 


seiimo:n'  ito.  XIII. 

THEME. — CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST  FROM  THOSE 
NOT  CHRISTIANS. 

It  has  been  urged  b}^  infidels  that  the  testimony  relied 
on  by  those  who  believe  on  Christ,  and  believe  the 
Bible,  is  all  on  one  side — all  from  Christians.  In  the 
nature  of  the  case,  the  enemies  would  not  be  expected 
to  preserve  the  testimony,  or  even  any  testimony,  favor- 
able to  the  Lord,  and  against  themselves.  If  they  had 
preserved  any  testimony,  and  could  have  found  any  such 
to  preserve,  it  would  have  been  unfavorable  to  Christ 
and  the  Bible.  But  now,  why  do  we  go  to  the  friends 
of  Jesus  for  testimony?  We  do  not  do  this  wholly,  or 
invariably,  but  in  some  instances  refer  to  other  wit- 
nesses, as  we  intend  to  do  in  this  discourse.  But  there 
is  a  good  reason  for  not  going  to  infidels  for  testimony 
concerning  Christ.  They  have  no  records,  reaching 
back  into  antiquity,  covering  the  times  and  events,  and 
containing  any  testimony,  jpvo  or  con.,  about  it,  except 
what  is  merely  incidental,  and  even  is  favorable  to  the 
Bible.  They  have  no  history  of  the  events  connected 
with  the  establishment  of  the  religion  of  Christ,  or  con- 
nected with  Christ,  giving  the  circumstances  and  trans- 
actions of  his  life.  We  could  not  go  to  them,  then, 
because  they  have  no  testimony  about  it.  They  simply 
want  us  to  reject  the  testimony  we  have,  and  accept  no 
testimony,  aa  they  have  it!     We  can  not  afford  to  do 

that. 

(29?) 


294  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST 

We  might  inquire  what  unbelievers  want,  what  they 
propose,  what  they  have.  They  talk  about  their  ideas, 
their  views,  their  belief,  what  they  hold!  What  are 
their  ideas?  All  negative  ideas^  or  really  no  ideas. 
What  are  their  views  ?  All  negative  views,  or  really  no 
viiws.  What  is  their  belief?  All  negative^  or  really 
no  heliif.  What  do  they  hold?  It  is  all  negative,  or 
really  nothing — what  they  do  not  hold.  Their  creed 
is  all  negative;  it  runs  backward,  and  consists  in  what 
they  do  not  helieve^  or  really  consists  in  nothing.  The 
skeptic  does  not  believe  there  is  a  God;  he  does  not 
believe  on  Christ;  he  does  not  believe  Moses  or  the 
prophets,  Jesus  or  the  apostles ;  he  does  not  believe  the 
Bible;  he  does  not  believe  the  Mosaic  account  of  the 
origin  of  the  human  race,  the  fall  of  man,  and  the  flood; 
he  does  not  believe  the  gospel,  or  in  churches  or  preach- 
ers. This  is  all  negative — what  he  does  not  helieve. 
What  is  there  in  all  this  to  enlighten  the  world?  Strike 
out  all  this  and  you  leave  an  immense  blank !  Is  that 
still  to  remain  a  blank  ?  Strike  out  the  Mosaic  history, 
and  the  whole  Bible,  with  all  there  is  in  all  other  writ- 
ings, and  in  the  memories  of  men,  that  come  out  of  it, 
and  could  be  gathered  from  no  other  source,  and  see 
what  kind  of  a  blank  you  would  have !  With  what  do 
infidels  propose  to  fill  this  blank?  Nothing  !  There  is 
the  whole  of  it,  when  all  summed  up.  It  is  one  stupen- 
dous nothing  ! 

Do  they  talk  of  sciences  f  We  have  all  the  sciences 
they  know  anything  about.  Do  they  talk  of  the  book 
of  nature?  We  have  that  book,  and  all  they  know 
anything  about  in  it.  Do  they  talk  about  reason?  We 
have  that  book,  and  can  read  it  quite  as  well  as  they  can. 
What  have  they  that  is  riglit.,  that  we  have  not?  ]N'ot 
a  living  man  of  them  can  tell  us  of  anything  they  have, 


FROM  THOSE  NOT  CHRISTIANS.  295 

that  is  lawful  and  right,  or  anything  for  the  good  of 
man,  that  we  have  not.  They  tell  us  of  nothing  we 
lack,  that  they  have,  to  elevate,  ennoble,  purify,  or  hap- 
pify,  and  prepare  us  for  the  highest  honor  and  distinc- 
tion of  which  our  being  is  capable.  They  tell  us  of  no 
danger  to  which  we  are  exposed,  nor  any  loss  we  shall 
suffer  in  refusing  to  hear  them.  What  inducement 
have  they  to  offer  us  to  lead  us  to  give  up  our  faith  in 
God,  Christ  and  the  Bible?  Simply  iiothing— no  in- 
ducement.    It  is  all  a  blank. 

Imagine  yourself  an  unbeliever  and  meditating  on 
the  unbeliever's  creed.  You  could  ruminate  as  follows: 
"I  am  happy  now;  I  do  not  believe  there  is  any  God; 
I  do  not  believe  there  is  any  Christ;  I  do  not  believe 
there  is  any  Eternal  Spirit;  I  do  not  believe  the  Bible; 
I  do  not  believe  the  Mosaic  account  of  the  origin  of 
man;  nor  of  the  fall;  the  introduction  of  sin;  the  way 
death  came  into  the  world;  the  account  of  ^oah,  the 
ark  and  the  flood;  the  account  of  Abraham,  Job,  the 
Egyptians,  the  Israelites ;  their  bondage  and  liberation ; 
the  giving  of  the  law ;  nor  the  story  about  Jesus,  his 
resurrection,  ascension  and  coronation ;  I  do  not  believe 
the  apostles,  nor  any  other  preachers,  nor  in  churches; 
I  do  not  believe  the  gospel;  that  there  is  a  heaven  or 
hell;  that  there  will  be  any  resurrection  or  judgment; 
that  man  has  a  soul,  or  will  have  an  existence  after 
death.  I  have  all  this  now  erased  from  my  mind,  and 
am  in  the  perfection  of  unbelief. 

"If  any  man  inquires  of  me  about  God,  I  tell  him  I 
do  not  believe  there  is  any  God;  that  I  know  nothing 
about  God,  and  believe  nothing  about  him.  If  any  man 
inquires  of  me  about  Christ,  I  will  tell  him  that  I  know 
nothing  about  him;  that  I  do  not  believe  there  is  any 
Christ.     If  any  man  inquires  about  the  Eternal  Spirit, 


296  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST 

I  will  tell  him  I  do  not  know  anything  about  the  Eter- 
nal Spirit;  I  do  not  believe  there  is  any  Eternal  Spirit. 
If  any  man  inquires  of  me  about  the  Bible,  I  will  tell 
him  I  do  not  believe  it.  If  any  man  inquires  of  me 
about  the  origin  of  man,  I  will  tell  him  I  do  not  know 
anything  about  it;  that  I  do  not  believe  the  account 
given  by  Moses.  If  any  man  inquires  how  sin  came 
into  the  world,  I  have  my  creed  ready,  and  will  tell 
him  that  I  do  not  know  anything  about  it.  If  any  man 
talks  to  me  about  heaven  or  hell,  I  will  tell  him  that  I 
do  not  believe  there  is  any  heaven  or  hell;  that  I  know 
nothing  about  heaven  or  hell!" 

Any  one  can  see  that  all  that  is  no  belief;  that  there 
is  nothing  in  all  that  that  any  man  holds,  but  simply 
what  an  unbeliever  does  not  hold,  or  what  he  does  not 
know.  Can  he  enlighten  the  world  in  preaching  what 
he  does  not  believe,  does  not  know,  or  does  not  under- 
stand? Any  man  can  see  that  there  is  nothing  in  this 
negative  creed;  this  catalogue  of  things  that  he  does 
not  know  to  enlighten,  ennoble,  or  in  any  way  elevate 
and  benefit  mankind.  Whatever  else  may  be  true,  it  is 
clear,  beyond  doubt,  that  no  man  can  largely  benefit 
this  world,  or  enlighten  it,  in  telling  us  what  he  does 
not  helieve,  understand^  or  know. 

The  Lord  did  not  always  reason  with  men,  and  ex- 
plain things  to  them,  but  he  took  them  as  they  were, 
and  answered  them  as  they  deserved.  We  have  exam- 
ples that  are  of  great  value,  one  or  two  of  which  we 
recite.  In  view  of  his  mighty  works,  done  in  open  day, 
and  in  the  presence  of  large  audiences,  where  they  could 
not  deny  what  was  done,  they  inquired,  "  By  what  au- 
thority do  you  do  these  things?"  They  intended  to 
claim  Moses  for  what  they  did,  and  thought  they  were 
invulnerable.      The  Lord  saw    the   captious    character 


FROM  THOSE  NOT  CHRISTIANS.  297 

of  their  question;  that  they  were  seeking  no  light;  not 
desiring  to  find  the  truth,  but  aiming  to  ensnare  him, 
and  he  did  not  answer  them  directly,  but  said,  "Answer 
me  one  question,  and  I  will  tell  you  by  what  authority 
I  do  these  things :  The  immersion  of  John,  was  it  from 
heaven,  or  of  men?"  That  was  no  difficult  question, 
nor  one  that  needed  one  moment's  reflection,  if  they 
had  simply  desired  to  tell  the  truth.  Bat  that  was  not 
in  their  minds,  as  the  Lord  well  knew.  They  were  not 
studying  for  a  true  answer,  but  for  an  answer  that 
would  not  involve  them  in  an  absurd  position.  "  They 
reasoned  among  themselves."  What  were  they  reason- 
ing about?  No  rtasoning  was  needed.  All  that  was 
needed  was  an  honest  answer,  in  truth.  But  that  was 
the  very  thing  they  were  not  prepared  to  give.  Look 
at  the  sum  of  their  reasoning:  "If  we  say  the  immer- 
sion of  John  was  from  heaven,  he  will  reply.  Why  did 
you  not  receive  it?"  We  shall  be  caught;  it  will  not 
do  to  say  that.  "If  we  say  the  immersion  of  John  was 
of  men,  the  people  will  stone  us,  for  they  all  regarded 
John  as  a  prophet."  It  will  not  do  to  say  that!  What 
did  their  reasoning  lead  them  to?  What  did  it  result 
in  ?  Simply  in  their  coming  out  and  telling  what  they 
knew  to  be  false.  "  We  can  not  tell  whence  it  is."  This 
was  feigned  ignorance  to  avoid  a  dilemma!  Men  thus 
dishonest  do  not  find  the  truth.  They  are  not  seeking, 
but  evading  it.  Such  men  will  be  given  over  "  because 
they  received  not  the  love  of  the  truth  that  they  might 
be  saved."  The  trouble  is  not  simply  that  they  received 
not  the  truth,  but,  back  of  that,  they  received  not  the 
love  of  the  truth  that  they  might  be  saved.  If  they 
had  received  the  love  of  the  truth,  they  would  have 
found  the  truth  itself. 

We  will  recite  another  example.     Certain  scribes  that 


298  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST 

came  down    from  Jerusalem  learned   from    the  people 
that  the  Lord  had  cast  out  demons;  that  he  had  abso- 
lute control  over  demons.     This  was  a  thing  open  to 
the  eyes  of  the    multitude.     They  did    not   receive   it 
second-handed;  but  instances  occurred  openly,  in  day- 
light, and  in  the  presence  of  promiscuous  assemblies, 
without  any  previous  arrangement,  or  anybody  know- 
ing what   the  Lord    was  about  to  do.     There  was  no 
chance  to  deny  the  facts  with  any  plausibility.     They 
saw  at  once  that  they  must  admit  the  facts  about  his 
miracles   in   casting    out   demons.      Accordingly   they 
said,  "He  cast  out  demons."     So  far  all  right;  but  they 
did  not  stop  at  this.     This  would   have  been  fatal  to 
their  unbelief,  as  they  very  well  knew,  and  the  people 
would  have  believed  on  him.     Their  malicious  hearts 
would  not  permit  this,  and  they  determined  to  defeat 
the  work.     To  accomplish  this  they  followed  up  with 
the  explanation,  that "  he  cast  out  demons  by  Beelzebub, 
the  prince  of  the  demons."     This  act,  of  charging  that 
what  he  had  done  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  in  confirmation 
of  his  divine  mission,  was  done  by  Beelzebub,  the  prince 
of  the  demons,  of  whom  he  was  possessed,  was  a  more 
serious  matter  than  they  were  apprised  of.     It  was  as- 
cribing the  work  he  had  done,  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  in 
confirmation  of  his  mission,  to  the  devil.     Thi?i  he  ex- 
plains to  be  the  sin  against  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  ',he  man 
guilty  of  this  sin  shall  never  be  forgiven,  but  if>  in  dan- 
ger of  eternal  damnation.     See  Mark  iii.  29. 

These  men  were  enemies  of  Jesus,  and  their  testimony 
is  what  we  want.  What  do  they  testify  as  matter  of 
fact?  That  "Jesus  cast  out  demons."  No  matter 
about  their  comments  on  it,  or  their  explanation  of  it. 
Wo  take  not  their  comment,  but  their  testimony  t.*  mat- 
ter oifact,     "He  cast  out  demons."     This  is  tt  /  te-sti 


FROM  THOSE  NOT  CHRISTIANS.  299 

mony  of  enemies  and  opposers,  in  their  own  language 
of  opposition.  Jesus  had  absolute  power  over  demons, 
or  unclean  spirits;  at  his  command  they  were  cast  out, 
and  the  persons  possessed  of  them  were  restored  to 
their  right  mind.  Take  this,  as  matter  of  fact,  and  it 
is  strong  evidence  in  favor  of  the  divinity  of  Christ. 

The  next  person  to  be  summoned  to  testify  was  not  a 
Christian,  yet  not  to  be  put  down  as  an  enemy.  He  was 
a  man  of  moderation,  and  very  considerable  distinction  \ 
a  man  of  mature  years,  learning  and  position;  a  rabbi 
and  ruler  among  the  Jews,  by  name  Mcodemus.  He 
came  to  Jesus  by  nigbt.  Some  have  thought  that  his 
coming  by  night  was  that  he  might  have  a  quiet  and 
uninterrupted  interview  with  Jesus.  But  this  is  doubt- 
ful. It  is  more  probable  that  he  did  not  desire  to  go 
openly,  as  it  was  by  no  means  popular  for  the  rulers  to 
be  having  interviews  with  him;  and  that  he  did  not 
prefer  to  go  openly,  and  to  have  the  matter  become  one 
of  public  notoriety.  But  I  stop  not  to  speculate  on  the 
circumstance  that  he  came  by  night,  but  simply  mentioQ 
it  as  matter  of  fact.  He  put  on  the  best  address  he 
could  command,  and  approached  the  Savior  in  the  most 
respectful  manner  he  could  command.  He  addressed 
him,  "Rabbi."  He  evidently  intended  this  to  be  most 
respectful.  This  was  the  most  respectful  style  or  man- 
ner of  addressing  the  doctors  of  the  law.  They  loved 
to  hear  this,  as  well  as  some  weak  men  in  our  day  love 
to  hear  that  precious  title.  Reverend.  Really  great  men 
have  no  use  for  it,  and  it  does  not  belong  to  any  man, 
much  less  some  weak  man  that  expects  to  derive  great- 
ness from  a  title. 

Mcodemus  thought  the  Lord  would  be  pleased  to  be 
called  rabbi,  and  thus  addressed  him,  intending  the 
highest  respect.     But  he  follows  this  with  the  import- 


300  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST 

ant  statement  that  bears  on  the  matter  in  hand:  "  W"t 
know  that  thou  art  a  teacher  from  God." — See  John  iii. 
1-5.  This  is  strong  and  clear.  But  he  does  not  stop 
at  this;  he  proceeds  to  tell  how  lie  knows  this.  "For 
no  man  can  do  these  miracles  that  thou  doest  except 
God  be  with  him."  When  he  sa^^s,  "We  know,"  he 
does  not  use  the  word  "  we "  simply  for  himself,  but 
including  other  rabbis.  What  does  he  say,  "We  know  ?" 
That  "thou  art  a  teacher  from  God."  How  do  you  and 
other  rulers  in  Israel  know  this?  "For  no  man  can 
do  these  miracles  that  thou  doest  except  God  be  with 
him."  This  comes  from  a  doctor  of  the  law,  who  lived 
contemporary  with  Jesus,  in  the  same  country  with  him, 
and  in  a  conversation  with  him.  Here  is  a  concession 
that  Jesus  was  a  teacher  from  God,  and  the  evidence 
of  it:  that  no  man  could  do  the  miracles  Jesus  did,  ex- 
cept God  be  with  him.  The  main  evidence  we,  note 
here  is  the  concession  that  Jesus  did  miracles — the  mir- 
acles ascribed  to  him  in  the  Scriptures. 

This  evidence  that  Jesus  did  these  miracles  is  of  a 
very  important  character.  The  doing  of  these  miracles 
proves  more  than  Nicodemus  inferred.  It  proves  more 
than  simply  that  he  was  "a  teacher  from  God."  It 
proves  what  he  claimed — that  he  was  tlie  Son  of  God. 
The  miracles  that  the  Lord  did  not  only  established  the 
proposition  that  he  w^as  "a  teacher  from  God,"  but  all 
that  he  claimed  to  be — "A  teacher  from  God,"  and 
much  more;  above  all  the  teachers  from  God;  "greater 
than  Moses,"  and  above  all  the  angels  of  God ;  the  only 
begotten  of  the  Father,  full  of  grace  and  truth;  the 
AnointecJ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God.  It  establishes  the 
very  foundation  truth  of  the  kingdom  of  God.  We 
need  want  no  better  testimony  than  this. 

Let  us  call  another  witness  into  court.     We  will  call 


FROM  THOSE  NOT  CHRISTIANS.  301 

an  enemy  this  time;  one  who  once  was,  or  professed  to 
be,  a  friend,  and  who  turned  away  and  became  an  enemy. 
Surely  he  must  have  found  out  something  bad,  some- 
thing that  satisfied  him  that  all  was  not  right,  or  he 
would  not  have  forsaken  him.  He  had  been  in  all  the 
private  counsels;  knew  all  the  plans,  plots  and  secrets 
of  Jesus  and  his  whole  company.  This  man  turned 
enemy,  and  betrayed  Jesus  for  thirty  pieces  of  silver, 
or  about  fifteen  dollars  of  our  coin.  Let  us  now  hear 
this  man — get  some  evidence  from  him.  He  went  to 
the  priests !  That  is  one  case  of  going  to  the  priests ! 
Certainly  it  is!  And  he  went  with  moiuy I  That  is 
not  all — he  went  to  confess  I  Let  us  notice  particularly 
what  he  does  and  says.  He  threw  the  money  he  had 
received  for  betraying  Jesus  down  at  their  feet.  Let  us 
hear  him:  "I  have  sinned!''  That  is  a  singular  begin- 
ning to  testify  against  Jesus!  Why,  what  have  you 
done,  Judas?  ''I  have  betrayed  innocent  blood!  "  This 
poor  creature  regretted  what  he  had  done,  in  betraying 
''  innocent  blood,"  so  terribly  and  bitterly  that  he  could 
endure  his  life  no  longer,  and  sought  relief  in  death,  at 
his  own  hand. 

The  only  thing  we  have  to  do  with  Judas,  at  present, 
is  to  obtain  his  evidence,  as  it  bears  on  the  claims 
of  Christ.  He  had  been  with  Jesus  about  three  and  a 
half  years;  knew  all  his  private  counsels,  plans  and 
plots,  and  now,  that  he  has  turned  enemy,  would  cer- 
tainly like  to  have  some  excuse  for  what  he  had  done^ 
but  makes  no  excuse  for  it,  but  confesses  for  it  right 
out:  "I  have  sinned  in  that  I  have  betrayed  innocent 
blood."  That  is  the  last  sentence  of  Judas  concerning 
Jesus — he  pronounces  his  blood  innootnt ! 

We  can  not  turn  away  from  this  case  without  notic- 
ing  these  heartless   priests.     Does  it  touch  their  con- 


S02  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST 

sciences,  or  hearts,  when  they  witness  the  regret  of 
Judas,  or  his  anguish?  I^ot  in  the  least.  They,  in  the 
rnost  cool  and  heartless  manner,  turn  away,  saying, 
^'What  is  that  to  us?  See  thou  to  that!"  This  is  a 
sample  of  hardened  and  apostate  priests.  They  have 
no  more  heart  than  a  rock.  They  are  as  cool  as  an  ice- 
berg. As  to  conscience,  they  know  the  meaning  of  no 
euch  word.  Judas  is  a  sample  of  what  men  will  come 
to;  and  the  treatment  he  received  is  a  sample  of  what 
any  others  may  expect,  who  will  allow  themselves  to  bt 
made  tools  for  hardened  and  abandoned  teachers  in  re- 
ligion, whom  God  has  forsaken  and  given  over  to  per- 
dition. They  grow  worse  and  worse,  deceiving  and 
being  deceived. 

We  will  now  call  into  court,  and  hear  no  less  a  dis- 
tinguished witness  than  Judge  Pilate,  who  occupied  the 
judgment-seat  w^hen  Jesus  was  tried  for  his  life  in  the 
Roman  court.  In  this  instance  Pilate  certainly  acted 
the  judge  with  coolness  and  calmness.  He  gave  the 
case  a  full  and  fair  hearing,  permitting  all  the  evidence 
to  be  produced;  and  when  he  had  heard  it  all,  he  came 
out  in  open  court  ^vith  his  decision:  "I  find  no  fault  at 
all  in  him,"  or,  as  they  would  word  it  now,  "I  find  him 
not  guilty."  This  created  excitement  and  dissatisfac- 
tion among  the  Jews.  They  had  one  string  to  pull 
that  they  knew  would  tell.  They  cried  out,  "You  are 
no  friend  to  Csesar:  we  are  Caesar's  friends."  This  was 
pulling  a  political  string,  and  Pilate  saw  that  it  would 
endanger  his  judgeship.  He  undertook  to  pacify  them. 
*^  You  have  a  custom  that  I  release  one  to  you  at  the 
passover;  let  me  release  to  you  the  King  of  the  Jews." 
They  cried,  "Kot  this  man,  but  Barabbas."  Barab- 
bas  was  a  robber.  In  this  we  see  what  man  will  come 
to  if  left  to  himself     He  will  let  the  guilty  go  free  and 


FROM  THOSE  NOT  CHRISTIANS.  303 

put  the  innocent  to  death !  Pilate  then  delivered  him 
up  to  them;  but,  in  accordance  with  a  custom  they  had, 
he  obtained  a  basin  of  water  and  washed  his  hands, 
saying,  "  I  have  cleansed  my  hands  of  the  guilt  of  this 
innocent  person."  The  Jews  then  lifted  their  voices, 
and  uttered  the  last  prayer  that  ever  came  from  their 
lips,  that  has  been  answered  to  the  letter :  "  Let  his 
blood  be  upon  us  and  (Kir  children."  What  a  condition 
of  things  was  here !  What  a  state  of  mind !  A  robber 
and  a  murderer  is  set  loose  among  the  people,  and  the 
Son  of  God  condemned  to  die. 

What  is  the  sum  of  the  testimony  of  Judge  Pilate? 
After  hearing  all  they  could  say  against  Jesus,  he  says, 
*' I  find  no  fault  at  all  in  him;"  "I  have  cleansed  my 
hands  of  the  guilt  of  this  innocent  person."  The 
amount  of  it  is,  I  find  no  fault  in  Jdm^  and  his  Hood  is 
innocent. 

We  must  now  hear  Pilate's  wife.  She  came  out  into 
the  court,  and  warned  her  husband:  "Have  nothing  to 
do  with  this  innocent  person:  I  have  been  much  trou- 
bled in  a  dream  this  day  in  regard  to  this  matter." 
What  is  the  amount  of  her  testimony?  That  the  blood 
of  Jesus  is  "innocent  blood."  How  free  and  open  his 
bearing  in  the  whole  transaction !  He  in  no  way  inter- 
rupted their  proceedings.  He  objected  to  no  unfairness, 
made  no  defense,  nor  any  effort  in  any  w^ay  to  clear  him- 
self. He  made  no  effort  in  any  way  to  avoid  the  exe- 
cution, but  met  it  as  a  matter  of  course;  suffered  it; 
endured  the  cross;  suffered  the  just  for  the  unjust,  that 
he  might  bring  us  to  God.  When  he  died,  those  in 
authority,  in  the  highest  places,  pronounced  that  he  was 
innocent!  The  history  of  the  world  furnishes  no  other 
such  case  as  this.  It  stands  out  alone,  as  the  wonder 
of   the  world !      His  own  most  intimate  friends  made 


304  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST 

QO  eifort  to  save  him,  nor  defend  liim,  except  one  stroke 
of  the  sword  by  Peter,  that  took  off  a  man's  ear,  and 
the  Lord  healed  the  injury  done  in  that  case,  and  com- 
manded him  to  put  up  the  sword,  and  declared  that 
"  they  who  take  the  sword  shall  perish  by  the  sword.'* 
On  his  trial  he  explained :  "  My  kingdom  is  not  of  this 
world,  else  my  servants  would  fight  that  I  should  not 
be  delivered  to  the  Jews."  Nothing  is  clearer  than  that 
Jesus  saw  the  whole  programme  that  was  before  him, 
and  went  right  on  through  it  just  as  he  had  intended 
to  do. 

There  was  one  divine  mind  that  looked  down  through 
the  ages  and  saw  the  end  from  the  beginning,  and  in 
the  whole  life  of  Jesus — his  trial,  death,  resurrection 
and  ascension — he  was  simply  carrying  out  the  eternal 
purpose;  doing  what  had  been  before  determined  to  be 
done,  or  what  had  been  before  written  by  the  prophets. 
The  prophets  whom  God  employed  did  not  understand 
the  utterances  of  the  Divine  Spirit  made  through  them; 
but  we  can  see  now  that  he  wno  guided  their  pens  in 
making  these  utterances  understood  the  matter,  and 
that  he  saw  down  through  the  ages  and  foretold  what 
should  come  to  pass.  We  can  see  clearly  that  the  apos- 
tles in  the  lifetime  of  Jesus  did  not  understand  him, 
but  it  is  equally  clear,  now  that  the  whole  matter  is  in 
history,  that  he  saw  through  to  the  end,  and  went 
through  the*  programme  with  a  most  undeviating  pur- 
pose. 

But  we  now  call  into  court  certain  Jews,  enemies  and 
opposers  of  the  religion  of  Christ.  They  are  met  to 
deliberate  on  what  is  to  be  done  with  Peter  and  John. 
The  man  who  opens  the  case  begins  like  a  man  in  ear- 
nest, and  with  something  on  his  mind.  He  enters  at 
once  into  the  matter.     *'  What  shall  we  do  with  these 


FROM  THOSE  NOT  CHRISTIANS.  305 

men?"  he  inquires.  Peter  and  John  are  the  men  he  is- 
inquiring  about.  Why,  sir,  what  is  the  trouble  with 
these  men?  He  proceeds:  "For  that  a  notable  miracle 
has  been  done  by  them  is  known  to  all  them  that  dwell 
in  Jerusalem,  and  we  can  not  deny  it." — See  Acts  iv. 
16.  IN'otice,  this  was  in  an  opposition  meeting,  and  the 
statement  is  from  opposers :  "Annas,  the  high  priest, 
and  Caiaphas,  and  John,  and  Alexander,  and  as  many 
as  were  of  the  kindred  of  the  high  priest."  What  do 
they  testify?  That  a  miracle  was  done!  Yes,  more, 
"a  notable  miracle;"  yes,  and  more  yet,  that  it  was 
"  known  to  all  who  dwell  in  Jerusalem  ;"  yes,  more  yet, 
that  they  could  not  deny  it!  "What  shall  we  do  with 
these  men?"     It  was  certainly  a  pretty  serious  case. 

We  must  comment  a  little  on  the  surroundings  and 
this  miracle.  It  occurred  as  Peter  and  John  were 
about  to  pass  the  Beautiful  gate,  as  they  were  going  to 
the  temple.  It  was  at  the  ninth  hour,  or  three  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon,  as  we  reckon  time;  it  was  in  the  open 
daylight;  it  was  in  a  promiscuous  assembly,  not  called 
together  by  the  apostles,  nor  had  they  any  hand  in  ar- 
ranging any  programme.  The  apostles  did  not  them- 
selves know  before  what  would  be  done.  They  did  not 
know  tthe  man  with  withered  limbs  would  be  there,  or 
that  they  would  heal  him.  The  matter  all  came  up  in- 
cidentally on  the  human  side.  The  appeal  of  the  poor 
man  for  money  was  the  first  that  arrested  the  attention 
of  the  apostles.  Peter  openly  confessed:  "Silver  and 
gold  I  have  none,  but  such  as  I  have  give  I  thee:  In 
the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  of  ITazareth  arise."  The  man 
immediately  received  strength  in  his  feet  and  ankle- 
bones,  and  entered  the  temple,  leaping  and  praising  God. 
This  was  an  open  transaction,  known  to  all  who  dwelt 
in  Jerusalem.  The  enemies  themselves  could  not  deny 
26 


306'  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST 

it.  The  apostles  did  not  have  to  go  out  and  preach  that 
they  had  done  a  miracle.  The  miracle  was  done  openly, 
and  spoke  for  itself. 

The  assertion  has  been  made  many  times,  and  we 
have  seen  no  refutation  of  it,  and  think  there  can  be 
none :  that  the  miracles  of  Christ  and  the  apostles  were 
never  denied  for  at  least  six  hundred  j^ears  after  the 
birth  of  Christ.  That  they  were  done  was  admitted  on 
all  hands.  They  were  of  such  a  nature,  number  and 
variety,  that  there  was  no  possibility  of  denying  their 
existence,  at  the  time  and  in  the  country  where  they 
transpired;  and,  at  the  same  time,  of  such  a  nature, 
number  and  variety,  that  they  could  not  have  been  sim- 
ply false  reports,  or  results  of  idle  rumor.  'No  gossip 
could  get  up  and  put  into  circulation  the  report  that  five 
thousand  people  had  been  fed  by  a  miracle,  and  induce 
the  people  to  believe  it,  in  the  country  where  it  was  re- 
ported to  have  occurred,  if  it  actually  did  not  occur. 
Much  less  could  the  people  be  made  to  believe  that  such 
a  transaction  had  occurred  on  two  different  occasions, 
and  that,  too,  in  open  daylight. 

Some  one  might  report,  at  a  subsequent  time,  and  in 
another  country,  that  such  a  thing  had  occurred,  and 
find  dupes  to  believe  it;  but  to  induce  the  people  in 
mass  to  believe  that  such  a  thing  occurred  in  their  own 
midst,  in  open  day,  when  it  did  not  occur  at  all,  would 
be  a  wonder  greater  than  any  one  recorded  in  Scripture. 
No  mere  rumor  that  any  man  could  have  started  could 
have  made  the  people  of  Palestine  generally  believe 
that  there  was  a  great  earthquake  when  Jesus  died; 
that  darkness  extended  over  the  whole  land  from  the 
sixth  to  the  ninth  hour;  that  the  rocks  were  rent,  or 
that  the  vail  was  split  in  two  from  the  top  to  the  bot- 
tom, when  these  things  did  not  occur  at  all.     If  they 


FROM  THOSE  NOT  CHRISTIANS.  307 

ocoarred,  the  people  kiuw  it.     It  was  not  faith  to  them 
at    all,  but   personal    observation    and  knowledge.     If 
these    things  did  not  occur,  the  people   knew  it.     l!To 
rumor  could  have  made  them  believe  it.    If  these  things 
were  not  so,  the  reports  about  them  were  the  most  im- 
pudent lies  ever  told,  and  would  only  have  passed  for 
the  most  foolish  and  idle  tales  ever  uttered.     But  these 
things  occurred,  and  the  great  body  of  the  people  knew 
it  hy  personal  ohservation.     There  was  simply  nobody 
that  doubted  or  denied  that  they  actually  occurred.   ISTo 
man  thought  of  denying  it.     It  was  matter  of  personal 
knowledge  with  the  multitude,  and  a  man  would  have 
been  regarded  as  a  simpleton  that  would  have  denied  it. 
It  will  be  noticed,  too,  that  the  miracles  of  the  Bible 
were  not  of  an  insignificant  nature,  of  no  consequence, 
and   demanding  no  attention.     The  transaction  at  the 
Red  Sea,  that  liberated  between  two  and  three  millions 
of  slaves,  and  that  had  brought  out  a  vast  army  to  re- 
sist it,  was  no  insignificant  affair,  but  one  of  the  most 
stupendous  movements  that  ever  took  place  on  the  face 
of  the  earth.     The  opening  in  the  Red  Sea,  Dr.  Adam 
Clarke  maintains,  must  have  been  from  six  to  ten  miles 
wide  to  have  afforded  space  for  this  vast  body  of  people 
to  have  passed  over  in  the  given  time.     This  was  prob- 
ably the  largest  body  of  people  that  ever  moved  in  one 
column  on  the  face  of  the  earth.    All  this  vast  body  were 
witnesses  of  the  wonderful  occurrence.    Equally  as  many 
others  were  also  witnesses,  and  the  whole  aftair  stands 
uncontradicted  in  all  the  histories  that  know  anything 
about   it.      A  matter  of  such  vast  importance  as  this 
lived  in  the  memories  and  traditions  of  the  people,  being 
talked  in  every  house  till  Moses  wrote  the  history  of  it, 
while  vast  numbers  were  still  living  who  were  eye-wit- 
nesses.    He  wrote   in   the    country   where   the    events 


308  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST 

transpired,  in  the  time  of  many  of  the  people  who 
knew  all  about  it  from  personal  observation,  and  who 
were  still  living.  Had  the  account  been  false  it  never 
would  have  gained  any  credence. 

There  was  a  meteoric  shower  some  forty-five  years 
ago,  when  many  people  supposed  the  stars  were  falling. 
There  are  many  people  still  living  that  saw  this.  The 
man  that  would  deny  that  this  occurred  would  be  re- 
garded as  a  simpleton.  Yet  the  evidence  is  not  as 
various  and  great,  proving  that  this  event  occurred,  as 
the  evidence  was  that  lie  who  destroyed  the  first  born 
in  Egypt  passed  over  all  the  houses  with  blood  sprinkled 
on  the  door-posts,  and  that  the  wonderful  event  of  cross- 
ing over  the  Red  Sea  occurred.  Should  any  man  deny 
that  any  such  a  shower  of  meteors  occurred,  he  would 
be  confronted  by  the  publications  containing  the  account 
of  it,  issued  at  the  time,  and  to  living  witnesses  who 
saw  it.  In  the  same  way,  had  any  man  denied  the 
account  written  by  Moses,  he  would  have  been  con- 
fronted by  the  tradition  that  had  come  down  and  been 
talked  in  every  family,  and  by  living  witnesses  who  saw 
the  events.  These  matters  were  of  such  a  nature  that 
they  could  not  have  been  fabricated.  The  time  of  their 
occurrence  was  not  remote,  but  within  the  memory 
of  some  living.  The  country  in  which  they  transpired 
was  not  remote,  but  the  country  where  they  had  been. 
The  events  were  not  of  a  trivial  nature,  that  would  soon 
be  forgotten,  but  of  such  momentous  importance  that 
they  could  never  be  forgotten.  A  nation  of  two  and  a 
half  millions  of  people  being  at  once  freed  from  the 
most  abject  bondage,  was  an  event  not  to  be  forgotten 
in  the  annals  of  the  human  race,  and  the  miraculous 
displays  of  divine  power,  connected  with  this  event, 
could  not  be  forgotten. 


FROM  THOSE  NOT  CHRISTIANS.  309 

The  miracles  of  the  Kew  Testament  were  not  limited 
to  the  friends  of  the  Lord;  some  of  them  occurred  when 
there  were  no  friends  present,  and  when  no  human 
being  expected  anything  of  the  kind.  Had  any  one  seen 
young  Saul,  and  his  persecuting  company,  about  noon, 
as  they  approached  the  city  of  Damascus,  heard  their 
talk,  and  considered  their  plans,  he  would  have  thought 
of  no  miracle  occurring  xthere,  nor  anything  else  favor- 
able to  the  gospel.  Nor  was  what  occurred  more  un- 
expected to  any  one  than  to  Saul  himself.  Hear  his 
own  description  of  what  transpired:  "I  went  to  Damas- 
cus, with  authority  and  commission  from  the  chief 
priests.  At  midday,  0  king,  I  saw  in  the  way  a  light 
from  heaven,  above  the  brightness  of  the  sun,  shining 
round  about  me  and  them  that  journeyed  with  me. 
And  when  we  were  all  fallen  to  the  earth,  I  heard  a 
voice  speaking  to  me,  and  saying,  in  the  Hebrew  tongue, 
Saul,  Saul,  why  persecutest  thou  me?  It  is  hard  for 
thee  to  kick  against  the  goads." — See  Acts  xxvi.  12-14. 

This  wonderful  event  occurred  openly,  at  midday, 
among  enemies,  and  not  a  soul  expecting  anything  of  the 
kind.  Saul  was  going  ahead  to  carry  out  his  commission, 
but  here  he  received  a  new  commission,  and  he  turned  his 
course  entirely  for  the  balance  of  his  life.  The  Lord  said 
to  him,  "  I  have  appeared  to  you  for  this  purpose  to  make 
you  a  minister  and  a  witness  both  of  these  things  which 
you  have  seen,  and  those  things  in  the  which  I  will 
appear  to  you:  delivering  you  from  the  people,  and 
from  the  Gentiles,  to  whom  I  now  send  you,  to  open 
their  eyes,  and  to  turn  them  from  darkness  to  light,  and 
from  the  power  of  Satan  to  God,  that  they  may  receive 
forgiveness  of  sins,  and  an  inheritance  among  them  who 
are  sanctified  by  faith  that  is  in  me."— Acts  xxvi.  16-18. 
This  transaction  was  not  simply  a  wonder,  a  speculative 


310  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST 

and  marvelous  thing,  that  he  went  about  telling;  but  il 
was  a  transaction  of  practical  import,  that  revolution- 
ized his  whole  life.  It  turned  him  right  about,  settled 
and  sent  him  in  a  new  course  of  life,  precisely  the  op- 
posite of  his  former  life,  which  he  pursued  till  he  was 
beheaded  for  the  word  of  God,  and  for  the  testimony 
of  Jesus  Christ. 

The  turning  of  Saul  of  Tarsus  was,  in  itself,  a  strong 
evidence,  for  several  reasons.  In  the  first  place,  he  gave 
up  weighty  considerations,  all  against  his  temporal  in- 
terest. Then,  he  was  a  most  decided  and  determined 
enemy.  Further,  he  positively  knew  all  about  the 
matter.  The  nature  of  the  case  was  such  that  he  could 
not  have  mistaken.  He  knew  whether  he  saw  Jesus, 
whether  he  heard  his  voice,  whether  he  received  abun- 
dance of  revelations  from  him,  whether  he  did  miracles. 
These  matters  were  all  jpersoiial  knowledge  with  him. 
He  did  not  have  to  trust  any  human  being  for  any  of 
these  things — he  knew  them  himself.  As  certain,  then, 
as  he  was  a  sincere  man,  or  an  honest  man,  they  were 
true.  That  he  was  an  honest  man,  he  gave  the  fullest 
assurance  in  the  power  of  man  to  give.  When  he 
turned,  he  took  his  stand,  preached  the  faith  which 
once  he  destroyed,  maintained  it  at  all  times,  in  pros- 
perity and  adversity,  in  perils  among  false  brethren  and 
among  robbers,  in  the  greatest  persecutions,  and  in 
death.  From  the  first  time  he  preached,  till  the  last, 
he  stood  firm  and  maintained  the  same.  iTo  man  ever 
did,  or  ever  can,  give  any  greater  evidence  of  honesty 
than  he  did. 

Do  you  say  he  turned,  and  became  a  friend,  and  there- 
fore his  testimony  is  not  from  without?  He  was  an 
enemy  till  the  testimony  came  that  turned  him;  and 
if  he  had  not  turned,  the  world  would  have  thought  he 


FROM  THOSE  NOT  CHRISTIANS.  311 

did  not  helieve  it  himself.  The  circumstance  that  he 
turned,  remained  turned,  and  was  true  to  his  new  posi- 
tion till  he  died;  adhered  to  it  under  all  circumstances, 
and  did  that  at  a  sacrifice  of  all  things  of  a  temporal 
character,  only  strengthens  his  testimony. 

But   now  for  'a  few  practical  considerations.      It   is 
true  that  some  infidels  turn  to  Christ  and  become  Chris- 
tians, and  some  Christians  turn  away  from  Christ  and 
become  infidels.     We  make  no  argument  from  this,  but 
leave  it  with  simply  stating  it.    It  is  true,  we  think,  and 
leaves  no  doubt,  that  a  large  proportion  of  all'the  skep- 
tics in  this  country  renounce  their  skepticism   before 
they  die.     It  is  not  true  that  a  large  proportion  of  all 
the  Christians  renounce  the  faith  of  Christ  before  they 
die.     Here  there   is  a  wide  difference.     This  demands 
the  attention  of  every  skeptic.     But  there  is  one  more 
difference.     Some  infidels  renounce  their  unbelief  when 
they  think  they  are  near  to  death,     '^o  Christian  ever 
renounces  his  faith  when  he  approaches  death.     What 
is  the  cause  of  this?     Why  does  unbelief  glide  away  at 
the    approach    of  death    so  frequently;    but   the   faith 
of  Christ  never  glides  away  at  that  solemn  and  import- 
ant  moment?      There  is  something  suspicious  in  that 
which  so  frequently  fails  in  the  hour  of  death.     It  is  a 
terrible  state  of  things  for  us  to  repudiate  in  death;  in 
the  most  trying  period  of  this  world;  and  the  one  when 
we  are  honest,  if  we  ever  are,  what  has  been  upon  our 
lips  all  along  through  life.     To  say  the  least  of  it,  there 
is  somethinof  in  the  faith  of  Christ  that  will  not  forsake 
us  in  death.     We  may  confess,  in  death,  that  we  have 
been  traitors  to  the  Lord,  hypocrites,  or  transgressors 
of  any  kind;  but  for  a  Christian,  no  matter  how  weak, 
cold  and  careless,  to  turn  round  and  renounce  the  faith 
of  Christ  at  the  approach  of  death,  is  out  of  the  ques- 


812  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST 

tion.  Sucli  a  thing,  we  think,  never  occurs!  Why  is 
this?  This  is  a  hard  lesson  for  unbelievers.  We  want 
something  that  will  stand  by  and  support  us  in  death. 

But  there  is  nothing  in  unbelief  to  support  any  one 
in  death,  if  it  would  not  forsake  us.  It  promises  Cloth- 
ing; it  has  nothing  to  promise.  It  puts  us  in  mind 
of  some  Universalists,  talking  about  all  men  being  saved. 
But  how  do  they  prove  it?  They  begin  by  telling  ua 
that  there  is  no  devil!  But  there  is  no  salvation  for  all 
men  in  that,  nor  for  anybody.  They  proceed :  "  There 
is  no  hell."  There  is  no  salvation  in  that!  "But 
there  is  no  lake  of  fire."  There  is  no  salvation  for  any- 
body in  that;  much  less  the  salvation  of  all  men. 
**  There  is  no  eternal  punishment."  There  is  no  salva- 
tion in  that.  "  There  is  no  such  thing  as  soul  and  bodj? 
being  destroyed  in  hell."  There  is  no  salvation  in  that. 
"There  will  be  no  sin  in  the  world  to  come."  Well, 
then,  there  will  be  nothing  to  be  saved  from,  and,  con- 
sequently, in  the  place  of  the  salvation  of  all  men,  they 
have  no  salvation  of  anyhody^  from  anything. 

Unbelief  promises  nothing,  as  we  said  before,  and  hae 
nothing  to  promise.  It  is  nothing  but  one  stupendous 
denial  of  God,  Christ,  the  Eternal  Spirit,  Moses,  the 
prophets,  the  apostles  and  the  martyrs ;  in  one  word,  the 
Bible  and  all  it  contains!  WTiat  is  there  in  one  perpet- 
ual string  of  negations,  denials?  There  is  nothing  ii? 
that  to  benefit  a  soul  of  our  race.  No  wonder  men  re- 
pudiate it  in  death.  It  is  utterly  empty — there  is  noth- 
ing in  it  for  a  dying  man  ! 

But  this  is  not  all;  there  is  nothing  in  it  for  a  living 
man  any  more  than  a  dying  man.  Infidels  have  no 
law.  They  are  taught  no  particular  manner  of  life; 
they  never  call  their  brethren  to  account  for  anything 
they  do;  they  never  call  one  of  their  brethren  to  ac 
count  for  telling  a  lie,  swearing  or  cheating.     No  one 


FROM  THOSE  NOT  CHRISTIANS.  313 

ever  accuses  them  of  not  living  up  to  their  pr^ofe^sion  ! 
Why  not?  Because  they  profess  nothing.  They  believe 
nothing  and  are  nothing — they  have  no  position.  They 
involve  no  responsibility,  no  particular  character  or 
manner  of  life.  Their  creed  is  all  summed  up  in  the 
brief  sentence,  that  every  man  may  do  just  as  he 
pleases.  They  have  no  doctrine,  no  law  or  gospel,  faith 
or  practice.  Their  work  is  simply  to  pull  down  what 
others  build,  to  deny  what  others  believe.  To  hear 
them  talk  at  one  time,  they  would  have  you  think  that 
they  have  no  credulity,  and  therefore  can  not  believe 
like  other  men.  At  another  time  you  will  find  them 
believing  the  most  incredible  things  ever  heard  of.  We 
know  not  where  to  find  such  a  bundle  of  absurdity  and 
inconsistency  as  in  a  modern  skeptic.  At  one  time  he 
can  not  believe  the  Scriptures  because  the  old  manu- 
scripts are  too  uncertain ;  then,  again,  we  find  him  be- 
lieving a  few  scraps,  purporting  to  have  been  gathered 
up  from  different  sources,  written  hundreds  of  years 
before  Christ,  and  containing  all  the  good  things  he 
ever  taught!  He  finds  no  difliculty  about  how  these 
fugitive  scraps  came  down  through  manuscripts,  and 
were  translated,  though  their  history  is  almost  blank, 
compared  with  the  history  of  the  books  of  the  Bible. 
In  one  word,  when  a  skeptic  is  summed  up  you  have 
a  man  that  has  no  trouble  in  believing  without  evidence, 
but  one  that  can  not  believe  witTi  evidence!  In  other 
words,  he  can  believe  almost  anything  against  the  Bible, 
but  nothing  in  favor  of  it.  We  have  noticed  skeptics, 
and  thought  of  the  miserable  silly  legends  of  Spiritual- 
jsts.they  will  swallow  down,  as  if  they  were  revelations 
from  heaven,  and  then  turn  round  and  spurn  at  the 
wonderful  works  of  God  set  forth  in  the  Bible.  But 
we  can  not  pursue  this  train  of  thought. 
27 


314  CONCESSIONS  FAVORABLE  TO  CHRIST. 

Skepticism  is  the  absence  of  faith,  as  darkness  is  t-  e 
absence  of  light,  or  ignorance  is  the  absence  of  knov^l- 
edge.  A  large  share  of  all  we  know  and  act  on^  in 
both  temporal  and  divine  things,  is  by  faith.  We  act 
upon  faith  in  men,  money,  newspapers,  market  prices, 
notes,  book  accounts,  and  promises  of  men.  We  oan 
believe  in  all  these  matters,  where  vast  amounts  aw  in- 
volved; believe  the  testimony  of  men,  though  7Qen 
have  in  so  many  instances  testified  falsely;  but  skat)tics 
can  not  believe  the  ever  blessed  God,  who  has  *iever 
deceived  us !  Why  will  men  be  deluded  and  led  away 
from  the  clear  and  reliable,  and  give  heed,  not  o^  ly  to 
the  doubtful,  but  to  the  most  stupid  legends  ever  told, 
and  thus  risk  the  loss  of  everything,  without  th«  pos- 
sibility of  gaining  anything? 

We  have  a  kingdom  that  can  not  be  moved.  The 
time  will  come  when  everything  that  can  be  s'baken 
will  be  shaken,  and  that  which  can  not  be  shaken  shall 
remain.  The  faith  of  the  people  of  God  shall  remain; 
the  foundation  that  God  has  laid  is  sure.  Those  who 
stand  upon  it  shall  not  be  confounded.  "  He  who  shall 
believe  on  me,"  says  the  Lord,  "shall  never  die;  but 
from  him  shall  flow  rivers  of  living  water."  "The 
Lord  knows  them  that  are  his,"  and  "  is  able  to  keep 
them  from  falling."  The  Everlasting  Arm  is  under- 
neath them;  and  "they  shall  be  kept  by  the  power 
of  God,  through  faith  to  salvation,  ready  to  be  revealed 
in  the  last  time."  May  we  love  him,  adore  and  honor 
him;  and  may  he  never  leave  us  nor  forsake  us,  but  be 
with  us,  and  grant  us  grace  and  glory,  and  withhold 
from  us  no  good  thing.  And  to  his  glorious  name^ 
through  our  Lord  Jesus  the  Christ,  be  the  praise  of  our 
redemption,  forever  and  ever. 


SERMON   ITo.  XIY. 

THEME. — MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST,  AND    MAN'S    RECONCILIATION 

TO   GOD. 

At  the  time  our  Lord  made  his  advent  into  this 
world,  there  were  three  theories  among  men  in  regard 
to  the  Deity.  The  first  in  the  order  in  which  they  shall 
be  introduced  here  is  the  aiheistic  theory.  It  is  very 
short.  It  is  simply  the  theory  that  there  is  no  God  in 
the  universe.  No  doubt  many  have  felt  that  the  lan- 
guage of  David  is  harsh,  where  he  says,  ''  The  fool  has 
said  in  his  heart,  There  is  no  God."  But,  on  a  little 
reflection,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  language  is  justifiable. 
In  the  nature  of  the  case,  no  man  can  know  this.  No 
man  could  know  this,  or  prove  it,  if  it  were  so ;  because 
this  universe  is  large,  and  a  man  can  know  but  little 
about  it.  Then  the  assumption  sweeps  away  all  the 
information  we  have  in  the  Bible,  and  a  large  amount 
not  immediately  in  it.  Sweep  this  away,  and  what  does 
a  man,  any  man,  or  all  men,  know  about  God?  A  man 
might  assert  that  he  does  not  know  that  there  is  any 
God,  or  that  he  does  not  know  of  any  God.  But  that 
proves  nothing.  Any  man  must  admit  that  there  is  a 
vast  amount  in  the  universe  that  he  does  not  know.  In 
this  vast  amount  that  he  does  not  know,  there  may  be 
a  God. 

There  is  a  vast  difference  between  the  proposition 
that  "  there  is  no  God,"  and  that  a  man  "  does  not  know 
that  there    is    a  God."     The  former  assumes  to  know 

(315) 


316  MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST,  AND 

what  no  man  can  know,  in  the  nature  of  the  case.  The 
other  only  states  what  a  man  says  lie  dots  not  know. 
The  latter  statement  may  be  entirely  correct,  and  the 
man's  ignorance  may  account  for  it  all.  There  may  be 
a  God,  and  him  not  hnow  it^  as  there  are  thousands 
of  other  things  that  he  does  not  know.  There  may  be 
a  God,  and  a  man  not  know  it,  just  as  there  may  be  a 
thousand  other  things  that  he  does  not  know.  But  the 
proposition,  that  there  is  no  God^  assumes  to  know.  On 
this  point  not  a  man  ever  has,  or  ever  can,  offer  a  rational 
argument.  The  proposition  that  "there  is  no  God," 
can  never  be  proved,  even  if  true.  It  is  simply  impos- 
sible to  know  or  prove  it. 

But  there  are  but  few  atheists,  and  we  need  not  con- 
sume time  in  talking  about  that  which  has  been  repu- 
diated by  the  great  masses  of  mankind,  of  all  grades 
of  intellect.  There  is  too  much  of  design  written  on 
everything  that  comes  within  our  reach,  not  to  have  any 
Designer. 

The  next  theory,  in  the  order  in  which  we  shall  men- 
tion them,  is  the  pagan  theory,  and  about  all  man  is 
capable  of  without  divine  revelation — that  of  a  plurality 
of  gods.  "Lords  many  and  gods  many."  We  do  not  re- 
ceive the  school-boy  declaration,  of  "reasoning  up  through 
nature  to  nature's  God."  It  reads  smooth,  and  sounds 
euphonious ;  but  it  is  not  true.  There  is  no  such  thing  as 
reasoning  up  through  nature  to  nature's  God.  We  stand 
square  on  the  statement  of  Paul,  that  "  when  in  the  wis- 
dom of  God,  the  world  by  wnsdom,  knew  not  God,  it 
pleased  God  by  the  foolishness  of  preaching  to  save  thera 
that  believe."  There  is  not  a  chapter  in  nature  that  re- 
veals God,  or  makes  him  known  to  a  man  without  revela- 
tion. itTor  is  there  a  chapter  in  all  the  sciences  that  re- 
veals God  to  a  man  without  revelation.     Nor  did  human 


man's  reconciliation  to  god.  317 

reason  ever  revtal  God  to  a  living  man  without  reve- 
lation. 

We  are  not  rushing  into  new  and  unexplored  terri- 
tory here — we  have  examined  this  ground.  Man  never 
could  have  received  the  idea  of  God,  even  when  re- 
vealed, without  reason.  He  never  could  have  examined 
the  evidence  concerning  God,  or  believed  that  there  is 
a  God,  without  reason.  In  other  words,  he  could  not 
have  received  the  testimony  God  has  given  of  himself, 
decided  upon  it,  and  believed  that  there  is  a  God.  ^o 
being  on  this  earth,  but  man,  is  capable  oi  faith.  ITo 
being  without  reason  is  capable  of  faith.  But  reason  can 
not  discover  God,  or  find  a  way  to  him,  except  through 
divine  revelation. 

No  doubt  some  man  before  us  is  ready  to  quote  from 
the  Nineteenth  Psalm:  "The  heavens  declare  the  glory 
of  God,  and  the  firmament  showeth  his  handiwork. 
Day  unto  day  uttereth  speech,  and  night  unto  night 
showeth  knowledge."  To  whom  do  the  heavens  declare 
the  glory  of  God?  To  the  North  American  Indian? 
The  Hottentot?  Not  a  word  of  it;  nor  to  a  single  peo- 
ple on  the  face  of  the  earth  who  have  no  revelation  from 
God.  But  to  those  who  have  the  Bible;  to  whom  God 
has  revealed  himself;  who  have  the  idea  of  God,  and 
many  wonderful  things  about  him,  "the  heavens  declare 
the  glory  of  God."  To  those  who  have  been  taught 
of  God,  that  the  sun,  and  moon,  and  stars,  are  the  work 
of  his  Almighty  hand,  "the  heavens  declare  the  glory 
of  God."  This  is  true  of  all  his  wonderful  works. 
When  the  Almighty  Father  is  revealed  to  us,  and  all 
the  works  of  nature  are  pointed  out  to  us  as  the  work 
of  his  hand,  they  declare  to  us  his  glory,  wisdom  and 
power.  But  they  declare  none  of  these  things  to  a 
man,  or    nation  of  men,  anywhere    on  earth,  without 


318  MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST,  AND 

revelation.  l^o  works  of  nature,  book  of  nature, 
human  reason,  or  science,  ever,  in  a  single  country,  or 
among  any  people  on  earth,  revealed  God  to  a  living 
man,  the  name  of  Jesus,  or  the  Holy  Spirit,  or  revealed 
to  him  a  heaven  or  hell,  an  angel  or  spirit.  But  after 
we  have  these  wonderful  matters  revealed  to  us  in  the 
Bible,  and  are  informed  that  all  nature  is  the  work 
of  the  hand  of  God,  we  can  look  through  his  work 
to  him  as  the  Author  of  it  all,  wonder,  admire  and 
adore  him. 

The  third,  and  remaining  theory  to  be  mentioned,  is 
that  held  by  the  Jews,  and  is  itself  from  revelation.  It 
is  that  the  Lord  thy  God  is  one  God.  There  is  one 
God;  the  Jehovah;  the  I  AM,  of  the  Old  Testament; 
the  Infinite  One.  We  never  speak  of  him  when  we  do 
not  feel  that  human  speech  is  too  feeble  to  give  an  ade- 
quate conception  of  the  Self-Existent  and  Unoriginated 
One  who  inhabits  eternity.  How  little  we  can  compre- 
hend of  Him  who  was  before  all  things;  who  created 
this  stupendous  universe,  and  who  has  sustained  it  by 
his  own  right  hand  so  man}^  thousands  of  years!  What 
can  we  know  of  Him  who  never  began  to  be?  Who  is 
self  existent  and  unoriginated?  Before  him  we  must 
come  in  profound  awe  and  reverence.  We  are  but  dust 
before  him. 

How  wonderful  it  is  that  our  whole  race  should  have 
become  alienated  from  this  great  Being — their  Creator 
and  most  merciful  Benefactor!  There  is  some  excuse 
for  those  preachers  who  preached  so  much,  about  fifty 
years  ago,  on  depravity.  They  saw  that  there  was  no 
sense  in  preaching  salvation  to  man  unless  he  was  lost. 
They  could  not  preach  a  system  of  salvation  that  had 
no  salvation  in  it.  Universalists  talk  of  salvation,  but 
really    have    no  salvation    for  anybody,  either    in    this 


man's  reconciliation  to  god.  319 

world  or  the  world  to  come.  They  deny  that  any  man 
is  saved  from  sin  in  this  world.  They  frequently  argue, 
at  great  length,  that  all  are  sinners  in  this  world;  that 
even  the  very  best,  such  men  as  Paul,  are  never  saved 
from  sin  in  this  life,  but  sin  till  they  die.  They,  then, 
not  only  have  no  universal  salvation  in  this  world,  but 
Qio  salvation  at  all  for  anyhody.  They  do  not  believe 
that  there  will  be  an}-  sin  in  the  world  to  come  from 
which  to  be  saved.  There  can  be  no  salvation  from  sin 
there,  then,  for  men  can  not  be  saved  from  something 
that  does  not  exist.  They  deny  that  there  is  any  hell, 
lake  of  fire,  second  death,  torment,  misery,  punishment, 
or  anything  else  to  be  saved  from  after  death.  They 
simply,  then,  have  no  salvation  for  anybody,  either  in 
this  world  or  the  world  to  come.  It  is  all  idle  talk 
about  salvation,  but  no  salvation  of  anybody  from  any- 
thing in  this  world  or  the  world  to  come.  Their  sys- 
tem, so  far  as  there  is  any  system  about  it,  consists  of  a 
great  effort  to  tell  the  people  something  that  they  do 
not  know,  and  something,  too,  without  knowing  which 
they  will  be  saved  as  well  and  certainly  as  with  know- 
ing it ! 

They  have  a  list  of  negatives  which  they  string  out, 
not  one  of  which  has  an  idea  of  salvation  in  it,  and 
from  which  they  infer  the  salvation  of  all  men.  They 
deny  that  there  is  any  devil,  or  Satan ;  any  hell,  second 
death,  or  judgment  after  death;  any  torment,  misery, 
or  punishment,  and,  therefore,  all  will  be  saved. 
"Therefore,"  in  this  case,  has  to  bridge  over  an  im- 
mense chasm.  There  is.  no  salvation  in  the  premises, 
and  certainly  can  be  none  in  the  conclusion. 

Calvinism  also  has  no  salvation  for  anybody.  Ac- 
cording to  this  theory,  the  elect  were  never  in  any  dan- 
ger of  being  lost.     They  were  elect  from  eternity — they 


320  MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST,  AND 

never  could  be  lost.  The  non-elect  can  never  be  saved. 
Not  one  of  the  elect,  by  any  possibility,  can  be  lost; 
nor  one  of  the  non-elect,  by  any  possibility,  be  saved. 
It  is,  therefore,  a  system  without  any  salvation  in  it 
for  anybody.  According  to  this  theory,  not  a  prophet, 
apostle,  evangelist,  church,  Bible,  tract,  book,  or  publi- 
cation of  any  sort;  not  a  missionary,  or  any  other 
human  instrumentality,  ever  saved  a  soul  of  our  race. 
The  immutable  decree  of  God,  before  the  beginning 
of  time,  determined  who  were  the  elect,  and  who  were 
the  non- elect,  and  the  number  thus  predestinated  is  so 
definite  that  it  can  be  neither  increased  nor  diminished. 
Not  one  of  the  elect  can  ever  be  lost,  nor  one  of  the 
non-elect  saved.  In  this  system  there  is  simply  no  sal- 
vation at  all.  This  immutable  decree  was  on  the  whole 
race  when  they  came  into  the  world.  There  is  no  sal- 
vation in  this  for  anybody. 

The  men  alluded  to  who  preached  total  depravity  saw 
that  unless  man  was  lost  there  was  nothing  from  which 
to  be  saved.  They,  therefore,  set  out  to  prove  that  all 
men,  unregenerated,  were  totally  depraved,  and  gener- 
ally maintained  that  this  total  depravity  was  Tiereditary, 
This  involved  a  long  train  of  unscriptural  language, 
and  never  could  be  made  satisfactory.  The  true  method 
is  to  open  the  Bible  and  ascertain  what  the  condition 
of  man,  without  Christ,  or  without  regeneration,  is. 
Did  man  need  a  Savior?  Did  he  need  regeneration? 
Did  he  need  mercy?  Did  he  need  remission  of  sins? 
Jesus  came  into  the  world  "that  the  world  through  him 
might  be  saved."— See  John  iii.  17.  He  came  to  save 
that  which  was  lost.  The  world,  then,  was  lost.  "  The 
Scripture  has  concluded  all  under  sin." — See  Galatians 
iii.  22.  "What  then,"  says  Paul,  "are  we"  (the  Jews) 
"better  than  they"  (the  Gentiles)?     "ISTo,  in  no  wise: 


man's  reconciliation  to  god.  321 

for  we  have  before  proved  both  Jews  aud  Gentiles,  that 
they  are  all  under  sin;  as  it  is  written,  There  is  none 
righteous,  no  not  one." — Romans  iii.  9,  10.  "All  have 
sinned  and  come  short  of  the  glory  of  God." — Verse  23. 
Again,  "God  has  concluded  them  all  in  unbelief,  that 
he  might  have  mercy  upon  all." — Romans  xi.  32. 

The  Lord,  then,  has  concluded  all,  both  Jews  and 
Gentiles,  in  unbelief,  and  under  sin,  that  he  might  have 
mercy  upon  all.  All,  then,  are  lost,  under  sin,  in  unbe- 
lief, condemned  and  guilty  before  God,  and  need  remis- 
sion of  sins.  All  are  alienated  from  God,  counted  ene- 
mies, and  put  down  in  unbelief,  and  mercy  is  extended 
to  all.  Before  they  can  enjoy  God,  they  must  be  recon- 
ciled. Alienation  is  terrible  anywhere,  but  the  more 
nearly  parties  are  allied  to  each  other,  the"^  more  terrible 
is  the  alienation.  The  hrst  thing  that  comes  up  when 
the  alienation  takes  place  is,  that  the  alienated  party 
can  not  meet  the  other  face  to  face.  The  iirst  thing 
when  the  original  offense  took  place  was,  that  the  of- 
fending party  could  not  meet  the  offeuded.  Confusion 
and  shame  cover  their  faces.  In  precisely  the  same 
way  now,  when  alienation  takes  place,  the  offending 
party  can  not  meet  the  offended.  If  a  son  has  offended 
against  a  father,  the  first  thought  of  the  son  is,  "I  can 
not  meet  my  father!  "  Why?  Is  he  not  as  good  as  ever? 
Certainly;  but  the  son  is  not.  If  a  daughter  has  sinned 
against  her  mother,  the  first  thought  is,  "I  can  not  meet 
my  mother!"  Why  not?  Is  she  not  as  good  as  ever?" 
Certainly;  but  the  daughter  is  not.  If  a  husband  and 
wife  become  alienated,  they  can  not  meet.  If  two- 
neighbors  become  alienated,  they  can  not  meet. 

How  terrible,  too,  the  misery  where  alienation  takes 
Dlace  between  parties  closely  allied,  and  dependent  on 
each  other.     It  is  all-important  that  they  maintain  love, 


322  MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST,  AND    * 

harmony  and  amity;  specially  is  this  all-important  to 
the  alienated  party,  whose  absolute  dependence  is  on 
the  offended  party.  If  a  son  becomes  alienated  from  a 
father,  he  is  sometimes  disinherited,  and  forfeits  all  the 
benefits  resulting  from  his  relation  to  his  father.  In 
the  case  of  the  sinner,  he  finds  himself  alienated  from 
his  God,  the  first  information  he  obtains  about  the  mat- 
ter. He  is  not  disinherited,  but  an  alie7i  and  for eigner^ 
who  has  never  been  adopted  into  the  heavenly  family ; 
never  constituted  a  citizen  in  the  kingdom  of  Christ. 
He  finds  himself  at  enmity  against  God,  an  enemy,  an 
alien,  and  yet  dependent  on  God  for  life,  and  all  things 
for  this  world  and  that  w^hich  is  to  come.  Before  he 
can  have  the  friendship  of  God,  the  benefits  of  the  iTew 
Institution,  and  the  promise  of  the  protection  of  the 
Almighty  Arm,  he  must  become  reconciled  to  God. 
How  is  this  to  be  done?  He  must  be  brought  back  to 
him  from  w^honi  he  is  alienated;  reconciled  to  him  and 
united  with  him.  But  he  can  not  meet  God  face  to 
face.  If  he  can  not  meet  a  man  from  whom  he  is 
alienated,  how  can  he  meet  the  Infinite  One,  against 
whom  he  has  sinned,  and  before  whom  he  is  guilty? 
The  thing  is  impossible. 

Here  is  the  necessity  for  a  Mediator,  or  a  middle  per- 
son between  man  and  God,  who  could  approach  man, 
on  the  one  side,  and  God,  on  the  other.  The  Mediator 
must  needs  be  a  friend  to  both  parties.  The  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  is  the  only  being  occupying  the  position  to  fill 
this  place.  He  is  related  to  the  Father  as  a  Son,  or,  by 
his  divine  nature,  he  is  the  Son  of  God.  He  is  related  to 
us  as  a  brother.  He  took  not  on  him  the  nature  of  an- 
gels, but  the  seed  of  Abraham.  By  this  human  nature 
he  is  our  brother;  bone  of  our  bont',  and  flesh  of  our 
flesh.     He  can  approach  the  Father  as  a  Son,  and  ap- 


MAN  S  RECONCILIATION  TO  GOD.  323 

proach  us  as  our  brother.  He  loves  the  Father,  and 
also  loves  us.  He  is  the  one  Mediator  between  God  and 
men.  ^o  man  comes  to  the  Father  but  by  him.  Kot 
a  prayer  offered  by  a  Jew,  or  anybody  else,  has  any  ac- 
ceptance with  the  Father,  unless  offered  through  him. 
To  come  by  him  is  to  come  by  his  mediation;  by  the 
way  he  has  appointed.  There  is  no  other  way  of  com- 
ing by  him,  only  to  come  by  the  way  he  has  appointed 
in  the  gospel. 

The  way  is  now  prepared  for  the  consideration  of  a 
hard  w^ord,  a  word  that  many  great  men  have  been 
much  perplexed  over.  We  allude  to  the  word  atone- 
mtnt.  This  word  occurs  but  once  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment. We  think  the  learned  say  it  is  Latin,  and  means 
at-one-ment.  Literally,  the  original  word,  in  the  Greek, 
from  which  it  comes,  means  reconGiliation.  This  is 
substantially  the  same  in  import,  as  at-one-ment^  or  at- 
one-again, and  has  something  of  the  same  idea  in  it  as 
the  word  religion^  which  means  to  rehind^  or  bind  back 
again.  The  original  Greek  w^ord,  katallagec^  from 
which  we  have  atonement  in  one  place,  occurs  four  times 
in  the  [N'ew^  Testament,  and  in  the  other  three  places  is 
translated  Vi  conciliation.  See  Romans  v.  1;  xi.  15.  2 
Corinthians  v.  18,  and  verse  19.  To  receive  the  atone- 
ment is  to  receive  the  reconciliation ;  and  to  be  recon- 
ciled to  God  is  to  be  at  one  again  with  God,  or  bound 
back  again  to  him. 

Christ,  the  Apostle  from  God  to  man,  was  clothed 
with  all  authority  in  heaven  and  on  earth,  as  a  Mediator 
between  God  and  men.  The  whole  matter  is  given  into 
his  hands,  and  the  command  of  the  Almighty  Father, 
as  it  came  from  his  own  lips,  in  the  mountain  of  trans- 
figuration, is,  "Hear  you  him."  He  has  the  reconcilia- 
tion, the  atonement,  and  the  world  is  required  to  hear 


324  MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST,  AND 

him,  to  come  to  him,  and  be  reconciled  by  him.  But 
the  question  will  be  started,  How  can  we  be  reconciled 
by  him?  He  is  not  here  now,  so  that  we  can  come  to 
him  and  be  reconciled.  True,  he  is  not  here;  but  be- 
fore he  left  the  world  he  appointed  amhassadors^  and 
clothed  them  with  the  authority  to  go  into  all  the 
world  and  present  the  word  of  reconciliation  to  every 
creature.  In  his  address  to  the  Father,  John  xvii.  14, 
he  says,  "  I  have  given  them  thy  word."  A  little  further 
on  he  says,  ''As  thou  hast  sent  me  into  the  world,  even 
so  have  I  also  sent  them  into  the  world.'' — John  xvii.  18. 
In  the  same  prayer  he  says,  "I  have  given  them  the 
words  that  thou  gavest  me;  and  they  have  received 
them." — See  verse  8. 

The  words  that  the  Father  gave  him,  as  his  Apostle^ 
he  gave  to  his  ambassadors,  the  apostles.  Paul  ?ays,^ 
"All  things  are  of  God,  who  has  reconciled  us  to  him- 
self by  Jesus  Christ,  and  has  given  to  us  the  ministry 
of  reconciliation." — See  2  Corinthians  v.  18.  He  pro- 
ceeds: "To-wit,  that  God  was  in  Christ,  reconciling  the 
world  to  himself,  not  imputing  their  trespasses  to  them; 
and  hath  committed  to  us  the  word  of  reconciliation. 
Now  then  we  are  ambassadors  for  Christ,  as  though 
God  did  beseech  you  by  us:  we  pray  you  in  Christ's 
stead,  be  you  reconciled  to  God."  The  ministry  of  rec- 
onciliation, or  the  ambassadorship,  was  given  to  the 
apostles.  This  was  the  office  to  open  to  men  the  way 
of  reconciliation,  and  negotiate  the  whole  matter  with 
them.  This  was  all  included  in  the  apostolic  office. 
The  apostles  were  authorized  in  Christ's  stead,  to  be- 
seech men  to  be  reconciled  to  God.  They  also  had  the^ 
word  of  reconciliation.  This  was  the  law  of  reconcili- 
ation. 

When  the  Lord  left  the  world  he  committed  the  min- 


man's  reconciliation  to  god.  325 

istry  of  reconciliation  to  the  ambassadors  of  Christ,  the 
apostles,  and  gave  them  also  the  terms  of  reconciliation, 
or  the  law  containing  the  terms.  The  authority  that 
God  gave  to  Christ,  or  the  power  as  his  Ambassador, 
to  negotiate  this  whole  afiair  of  man's  reconciliation, 
he  gave  to  his  ambassadors,  the  apostles;  and  the  word 
of  reconciliation,  or  the  law,  he  gave  to  the  apostles. 
The  world  can  not  now  go  directly  to  the  Father,  nor 
to  Christ,  nor  to  the  Holy  Spirit,  but  must  go  to  the 
apostles.  They  are  clothed  with  all  authority  to  nego- 
tiate the  w^hole  matter,  and  have  authority  from  the 
Father,  from  Christ,  and  from  the  Holy  Spirit.  The 
word  of  reconciliation,  or  the  law,  is  the  gospel. 

But  the  apostles  are  not  now  here,  and  how  can  we 
go  to  them  ?  The  word  that  the  Father  gave  to  Christ, 
and  that  he  gave  to  the  apostles — the  word,  or  law 
of  reconciliation,  the  apostles  committed  to  the  hands 
of  other  men,  commanding  them  to  commit  it  to  others, 
that  they  might  teach  others  also.  Hear  Paul  on  this: 
"  The  things  which  you  have  heard  of  me  among  many 
witnesses,  the  same  commit  to  faithful  men,  who  shall 
be  able  to  teach  others  also."  Thus  this  same  word 
of  reconciliation,  or  law,  the  gospel,  which  God  gave  to 
Christ,  and  he  gave  to  the  apostles,  has  been  committed 
to  the  hands  of  faithful  men,  who  have  transmitted  it 
to  others,  and  they  again  to  others,  and  by  the  blessing 
of  heaven  it  is  now  in  our  hands,  with  the  authority 
of  God,  Christ,  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  the  apostles  in  it, 
opening  the  way  for  man's  reconciliation  to  God  as  fully 
now  as  it  ever  was  at  any  other  period. 

When  the  Lord  was  about  to  commit  this  word  of 
reconciliation  to  men,  he  did  it  in  a  very  solemn  man- 
ner. To  one  of  the  men  whom  he  intended  to  stand 
at  the  front,  and  be  first  in  opening  up  the  matter,  he 


326  MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST,  AND 

said:  "You  are  Peter,  and  on  this  rock  will  I  build  my 
Church,  and  the  gates  of  Hades  shall  not  prevail  against 
it.  And  I  will  give  to  you  the  keys  of  the  kingdona 
of  heaven :  and  whatever  j^ou  shall  bind  on  earth  shall 
be  bound  in  heaven :  and  whatever  you  shall  loose  on 
earth  shall  be  loosed  in  heaven." — Matthew  xvi.  18, 19, 
The  theme  the  Lord  is  here  speaking  on  is  the  founda- 
tion of  the  Church,  or  the  rock  on  which  it  should  be 
built.  The  inquiry  leading  to  this  is  found  further  back 
in  the  narrative.  "Who  do  men  say  that  I,  the  Son 
of  Man,  am?"  The  answer  was  given  to  this,  and  the 
Lord  then  propounded  the  question:  "Who  do  you  say 
that  I  am  ? " — Matthew  xvi.  15.  Peter  answered,  "  Thou 
art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God."  This  sen- 
tence has  in  it  the  foundation  of  the  Church.  Hear  the 
Lord,  in  response  to  this:  "Blessed  are  you,  Simon,  son 
of  Jona;  for  iiesh  and  blood  hath  not  revealed  it  to  you, 
but  my  Father  who  is  in  heaven."  Hath  not  revealed 
what  to  you?  That  he  was  "the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the 
living  God."  This  is  the  foundation  truth  of  the  New 
Institution.  It  did  not  come  from  flesh  and  blood,  or 
from  man,  but  from  God.  As  the  Lord  stood  on  the 
bank  of  the  Jordan,  the  Almighty  Father,  with  his  own 
lips  uttered  the  oracle,  "Thou  art  my  Son,  the  beloved, 
in  w^hom  I  am  well  pleased."  Here  he  revealed  the 
great  truth;  the  oracle,  on  w^hich  all  the  truth  of  divine 
revelation  rests,  and  all  the  hopes  of  the  human  race 
beyond  this  life.  This  was  virtually  revealed  again  in 
the  mountain  of  transfiguration ;  but  not  till  after  the 
conversation  on  which  I  am  commenting,  when  the 
Father  said,  in  the  presence  of  Peter,  James  and  John : 
**This  is  my  Son,  the  beloved,  in  whom  I  am  well 
pleased:   hear   you   him."     It   still   further  show^  ^b-^ 


man's  reconciliation  to  god,  327 

promiueiice  the  Father  intended  this  wonderful  state- 
ment to  have. 

But  any  one  can  see  that,  in  the  nature  of  the  case, 
the  whole  rests  on  this.  This  is  seen  in  many  of  the 
clearest  Scriptures.  It  is  in  the  "good  confession," 
which  the  Lord  made  before  Pontius  Pilate;  in  the 
good  confession  made  by  Timothy  before  many  wit- 
nesses, and  the  confession  to  which  Paul  refers:  "If  you 
shall  confess  with  your  mouth  the  Lord  Jesus,  and 
believe  in  your  heart  that  God  has  raised  him  from 
the  dead,  you  shall  be  saved."  "Other  foundation," 
says  Paul,  "can  no  man  lay  than  that  which  is  laid, 
wliich  is  Jesus  Christ."  Christ  is  the  foundation,  and 
the  truth  that  "  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  liv- 
ing God,"  is  the  truth  concerning  the  foundation,  on 
which  the  whole  rests.  Overthrow  this  one  truth  and 
the  whole  is  gone  forever.  The  Lord  recognized  this 
when  he  said,  "  On  this  rock  will  I  build  my  Church." 
The  clause  that  follows  shows  that  he  saw  the  crucifix- 
ion, and  that  he  would  enter  Hades;  but  the  gates  or 
powers  of  Hades  should  not  prevail  against  him,  or 
against  the  rock,  or  foundation;  that  he  would  rise  and 
triumph  over  the  powers  of  Hades.  The  great  strug- 
gle was  over  his  rising.  "  Will  he  rise?"  His  declara- 
tion is  the  triumphant  language  of  victory.  He  will 
rise  and  vanquish  all  his  enemies. 

In  view  of  his  triumph  over  death,  in  his  glorious 
resurrection,  he  proceeds:  "And  I  will  give  to  you  the 
keys  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven:  and  watever  you 
shall  bind  on  earth  shall  be  bound  in  heaven :  and  what- 
ever you  shall  loose  on  earth  shall  be  loosed  in  heaven." 
Many  have  perplexed  their  minds  over  this,  trying  to 
explain  unimportant  matters,  and  missed  the  great  mat- 
ter.    Much  labor  has  been  expended  to  find  "keys"  in 


328  MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST,  AND 

the  plural,  and  some  have  supposed  that  one  key  was 
used  in  opening  the  kingdom  to  the  Jews,  and  the  other 
in  opening  the  door  to  the  Gentiles.  But  this  does  not 
explain  the  matter;  for  there  is  but  one  kingdom,  and 
one  door  to  it,  and  finding  different  peoples  to  enter  it, 
finds  no  use  for  two  keys,  specially  when  it  is  explicitly 
stated  that  God  "made  7io  difference  between  them  and 
us  " — the  Jews  and  the  Gentiles.  If  there  is  no  differ- 
ence^ the  same  key  will  open  the  door  to  both.  There 
is  nothing  in  the  circumstance  of  keys  being  plural, 
only  that  keys  have  generally  been  kept  in  a  bunch,  on 
a  ring,  or  string,  tied  together,  so  that  when  a  door,  or 
any  apartment,  was  to  be  opened,  the  keys  were  called 
for.  The  word  keys,  in  this  Scripture,  is  not  literal.  It 
stands  for  power.  The  power  to  open  the  kingdom  and 
it  shall  be  ratified  in  heaven.  Peter  had  the  authority 
to  open  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  and  the  assurance  is 
given  that  whatever  he  shall  bind  on  earth  shall  be 
bound  in  heaven,  and  whatever  he  should  loose  on  earth 
should  be  loosed  in  heaven. 

Here,  then,  is  the  man  that  has  the  authority  to  open 
the  kingdom  of  heaven.  How  does  he  open  it?  ]N"ot 
with  a  literal  key,  for  it  had  no  literal  door.  The  king- 
dom is  the  Church,  and  it  has  no  literal  door,  and  is 
opened  by  no  literal  key.  How,  then,  is  it  opened? 
When  the  Lord  commissioned  the  apostles,  he  com- 
manded them  to  "  preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature." 
They,  then,  were  to  preach  the  gospel.  We  have  seen 
that  the  Lord  gave  them  the  word  of  reconciliation,  or 
the  law.  This  word  of  reconciliation  is  the  gospel,  and 
contains  the  terms  of  reconciliation.  The  terms  of  rec- 
onciliation are  precisely  the  same  as  the  terms  of  par- 
don, or  the  terms  of  admission  into  the  kingdom  of 
God.    The  setting  forth  of  these  terms  of  reconciliation, 


man's  reconciliation  to  god.  329 

terms  of  pardon,  or  admission  into  the  kingdom,  so 
that  men  and  women  could  understand  how  to  enter, 
was  using  the  keys  of  the  kingdom,  or  opening  the 
door.  When  these  terms  were  declared,  it  was  all 
bound  in  heaven — ratified  ;  and  whoever  were  received 
on  these  terms  were  acknowledged  in  heaven.  Till  this 
day  these  terms  stand  ratified  in  heaven,  and  will  till 
the  last  trumpet  shall  sound. 

1^0  man  now  has  the  keys  of  the  kingdom,  in  any 
sense,  only  as  he  may  refer  to  and  set  forth  the  original 
terms,  as  set  forth  by  Peter  and  the  rest  of  the  apos- 
tles. These  terms  are  the  keys  that  open  the  door  of 
the  kingdom,  and  they  are  ratified  in  heaven.  He  who 
has  remission  of  sins,  according  to  these  terms,  has  the 
assurance  of  the  great  King  that  his  sins  are  remitted; 
but  he  who  has  not  remission,  according  to  these  terms, 
has  no  assurance  from  the  Lord  that  he  has  remission 
of  sins  at  all. 

If  we  would  know  how  the  door  was  opened,  we 
should  go  to  him  who  has  the  keys  of  the  kingdom,  and 
see  him  open  the  door  to  those  who  come  to  him,  in- 
quiring, "What  shall  we  do?"  The  amount  is  the 
same,  whether  we  take  this  inquiry  to  mean,  "What 
shall  we  do"  to  obtain  pardon,  salvation  from  sin,  be 
reconciled  to  God,  or  to  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God; 
for  the  man  reconciled  to  God  was  pardoned,  saved  from 
sin,  and  received  into  the  kingdom.  The  persons  mak- 
ing this  inquiry  were  seeking  reconciliation  and  accept- 
ance with  God.  They  desired  to  cease  their  alienation, 
enmity,  and  wandering  away  from  the  Lord;  to  be  rec- 
onciled to  him,  to  receive  pardon,  be  united  with  God 
and  accepted  by  him.  Their  inquiry  related  to  this. 
The  answer  covered  this  ground.  It  opened  to  them 
the  door  of  the  kingdom,  showed  them  the  way  to 
28 


330  MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST,  AND 

God,  how  to  be  made  one  with  God,  or  how  to  be  united 
with  him.  Opening  the  way  to  them,  or  the  door,  was 
exercising  the  power  indicated  by  the  keys  of  the  king- 
dom, or,  so  to  express  it,  using  the  keys  of  the  king- 
dom; or,  to  express  the  same  in  other  words,  opening 
the  way  to  them  to  be  reconciled  to  God.  Any  person 
desiring  to  know  how  to  be  reconciled  to  God,  only 
need  go  to  him  who  had  the  keys  of  the  kingdom,  and 
see  how  he  opened  the  way  to  the  three  thousand  on 
Pentecost,  the  five  thousand  in  Solomon's  porch,  and 
the  Gentiles  at  the  house  of  Cornelius,  and  to  the  allu- 
sions of  the  apostles  to  cases  where  persons  had  already 
been  reconciled,  and  learn  how  they  were  reconciled 
under  the  immediate  directions  of  the  inspired  apostles. 
Here  the  whole  matter  may  be  learned.  Those  who 
will  not  come  here  will  never  learn  the  way  of  salva- 
tion, but  will  be  fit  subjects  for  any  delusion  that  may 
chance  to  come  along. 

One  thing  worthy  of  note  is,  that  we  have  a  com- 
mand from  the  holy  book,  "Be  you  reconciled  to  God." 
— See  2  Corinthians  v.  20.  This  is  important  on  several 
accounts.  Paul  did  not  beseech  men  to  do  what  they 
could  not  do.  They  could.,  then,  be  reconciled  to  God. 
It  was  not  something  for  God  to  do;  and  no  matter 
how  much  they  might  desire  reconciliation,  they  could 
not  obtain  it  till  the  Lord's  own  good  time,  and  thus  be 
excused  from  guilt.  But  the  way  is  open,  and  the  alien 
is  besought  to  he  reconciled  to  God.,  and  censurable,  if 
he  dOiS  not  do  it.  He  is  left  without  excuse,  and  has 
no  cloak  for  his  sins.  This  Scripture  is  important  on 
another  account.  It  does  not  speak  of  reconciling  God 
to  man.,  but  man  to  God.  "Be  you  reconciled  to  God."" 
Some  have  Christ  reconciling  his  Father  to  us;  but  this 
is  in  another  book,  and  not  the  one  the  Lord  gave.    The 


man's  reconciliation  to  god.  331 

entreaty  is  not  to  the  Father  to  be  reconciled  to  us;  but 
to  man  to  ht  reconciled  to  God,  and  if  he  does  not  do- 
it he  will  be  lost.  The  entreaty  of  the  compassionate- 
Father  is,  "Turn  you,  turn  you;  why  will  you  die?"" 
"He  will  have  all  men  to  be  saved,  and  come  to  the- 
knowledge  of  the  truth."  And  again,  "He  is  not  will* 
ing  that  any  should  perish,  but  that  all  should  come  to 
repentance." 

It  is  not  uncommon  to  see  a  half  dozen  preachers  lay 
aside  the  word  of  reconciliation,  the  only  law  for  man'a 
reconciliation  to  God,  and  without  any  regard  to  the- 
terms  contained  in  it,  or  the  absolute  authority  of  that 
law,  and  come  down  in  front  of  an  audience,  and  call 
for  persons  who  want  reconciliation  to  come  forward 
and  unite  with  them,  in  petition  to  God  to  come  down 
and  TiConcile  them!     It  matters   not  with  these  men 
that  this  has  been  practiced  in  one  form  or  another  for 
a  hundred  years,  and  that  not  a  petition  of  the  kind  ha& 
ever  been  answered — that  not  an  instance  has  occurred 
w^iere  God  ever  came  down,  reconciled  a  sinner  in  that 
way,  or  pardoned  one  person.     Not  a  man  on  the  foot- 
stool of  our  God  can  produce  an  evidence  that  one  soul 
of  our  race  ever  entered  into  covenant  with  God  in  that 
way.     The  w^onder  is  that  the  whole  land  has  not  been 
driven  into   out-and-out  unbelief  with  this  groundless 
procedure — claiming   promises  where   the   Lord  never 
made  any;  miserable  failures  that  have  been  made;  the 
millions   of  honest   souls   that   have   been   induced  ta 
"come  and  try  it;"  have  come,  and  tried  it^  for  weeks^ 
months,  and,  in  numerous  cases,  for  years,  and  found 
nothing!     Were  it  not  for  the  native  divinity  of  the  re- 
ligion of  Christ,  and   the  manifest  need  of  it   among 
men,  this   kind  of  work,  deceiving  and  disappointing 
the  people,  would  long  since  have  run  the  entire  coun- 


332  MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST,  AND 

tr}^  into  utter  unbelief.  But  God,  in  his  infinite  mercy, 
has  in  this  century  opened  up  something  better  for  us. 
We  do  not  now  take  what  men  say  and  do  as  an  expo- 
nent of  the  Bible,  or  of  the  religion  of  Christ;  but  we 
go  to  the  Bible  and  see  what  is  in  it;  to  the  religion  of 
Christ  itself  and  see  what  is  in  it. 

Men  have  now  arisen  who  go  back  to  the  beginning; 
go  up  to  the  Divine  Source  of  all  truth  and  of  all  reve- 
lation, and  inquire  at  once  what  the  apostles  preached, 
what  the  people  heard  under  their  preaching,  what  they 
believed,  what  they  were  commanded  to  do,  what  they 
were  to  do  it  for,  what  the  Lord  promised  to  do  for 
them,  what  he  actually  did  for  them.  Did  the  apostles 
call  people  forward  as  seekers,  mourners,  inquirers?  Did 
they  come  forward,  seek,  mourn  and  grieve  for  days, 
weeks,  months,  and  years,  and  in  many  instances  find 
nothing?  Did  the  apostles  call  for  persons  who  desired 
the  prayers  of  the  Church  to  stand  up,  or  to  come  to 
the  mourner's  bench ;  to  pray,  or  be  prayed  for,  in  order 
to  pardon,  conversion,  or  reconciliation  with  God?  Did 
they  ever  join  with  such  persons  and  pray  for  the  Lord 
to  "come  down"  and  convert  them,  reconcile  them  and 
make  Christians  of  them?  Did  any  under  the  instruc- 
tions of  the  apostles  ever  "  stand  up,"  thus  evincing  a 
desire  for  "  the  prayers  of  the  Church,"  or  of  "  the  peo- 
ple of  God,"  as  a  means  of  conversion  or  reconciliation? 
Did  any,  under  their  instructions,  ever  thus  come  and 
"try  it,"  and  continue  to  "try  it,"  for  days,  weeks, 
months,  and  years,  and  never  find  anything?  Did  any 
ever  come  to  the  apostles,  inquiring  the  way  of  salva- 
tion, who  were  not  shown  the  way?  Did  any  ever  come 
to  the  apostles,  inquiring  what  to  do  to  be  reconciled  to 
God,  or,  which  is  the  same  in  amount,  to  be  saved,  or 
pardoned,  who  were  not  told  what  to  do?   Did  any  who 


man's  reconciliation  to  god.  3S^ 

were  told  what  to  do  to  be  saved,  ever  have  to  wait  a 
long  time  before  they  did  what  they  were  told  to  do? 
Did  any  ever  try  to  follow  the  apostolic  directions,  tO' 
do  what  they  told  them  to  do,  and  fail?  Did  any  ever 
do  what  they  told  them  to  do  to  be  saved,  and  fail  to  be 
saved?  Did  the  promise  of  Jesus,  in  the  words,  "He 
who  believes,  and  is  immersed,  sTiall  he  savedT  ever  fail? 
Did  any  ever  come  to  the  ambassadors  of  Jesus,  who 
had  both  "the  ministry  of  reconciliation,"  and  "the 
word  of  reconciliation,"  seeking  reconciliation  and  not 
fndit? 

Here  are  matters  of  momentous  importance  for  the 
]  eople  of  this  generation  to  inquire  into,  and  matters 
;is  easily  learned  as  spelling  in  two  syllables.  Any  man 
;an  teach  a  class  of  boys  or  girls  in  the  Sunday-schools, 
ill  about  these  matters,  as  easily  as  the  rudiments  of 
flnglish  literature.  Any  man  of  ordinary  intelligence 
>jan  get  the  answer  to  all  the  above  in  one  careful  read- 
ng  of  the  IN'ew  Testament.  One  answer  to  these  ques- 
tions will  be  obvious  to  every  one.  Ko  man,  who  will 
consider  the  matter,  can  fail  to  see  that  a  negative 
answer  must  be  given  to  all  these  questions.  Those 
^vho  came  to  the  apostles,  inquiring  the  way  to  God, 
were  shown  the  way  at  once,  and  shown  so  clearly  that 
in  every  case,  where  they  desired  to  turn  to  God,  they 
did  so  at  once.  When  they  were  told  what  to  do,  they 
did  it  at  once,  and  were  received  into  the  family  of  the 
faithful.  The  terms  of  reconciliation  were  clearly  pro- 
pounded, readily  and  easily  understood,  and  complied 
with.  There  was  not  a  failure  in  a  single  instance  when 
an  honest  person  desired  to  be  reconciled  to  God,  came 
to  the  apostles  inquiring  the  way,  and  were  told  what 
to  do.  There  has  never  been  a  failure  in  a  single  instance 
from  then  till  now  of  an  honest  person  following  the 


S34 

same  directions,  complying  with  the  terms  of  reconcili- 
ation, as  pointed  out  by  the  apostles.  There  never  can 
be  a  failure  where  men  and  women  come  honestly  to 
the  apostolic  directions,  comply  with  them,  and  trust  in 
the  promise  of  God.  The  promise  of  God  can  never 
fail.  Those  w^ho  hear  the  gospel,  believe  it  with  all 
their  heart,  and  faithfully  submit  to  it,  come  to  the 
promise  in  the  words,  "shall  be  saved."  These  words 
are  from  the  throne,  the  crown,  and  the  King  who  sita 
upon  the  throne,  and  are  backed  up  by  the  oath  of  the 
Almighty  Father  of  heaven  and  earth.  If  there  is  any- 
thing addressed  to  the  intelligence  of  man  that  can  be 
relied  on  with  the  most  implicit  confidence,  it  is  thig 
promise  of  our  Lord.  It  is  not  baptism  that  some  peo- 
ple in  our  day  need,  much  ado  as  they  make  about  it. 
They  are  not  fit  subjects  for  baptism.  Baptism  is  noth- 
ing to  a  man  without  faith.  While  they  talk  about 
faith,  "Abrahamic  faith,  "  faith  alone,"  and  the  like,  there 
is  nothing  they  so  much  need  a^  faith.  If  ever  their 
«ouls  shall  be  brought  under  the  power  of  faith,  so  that 
they  shall  not  "stagger  at  the  promise  of  God,"  or,  like 
^NToah,  they  shall  "believe  God,"  or,  like  Abraham,  shall 
-make  their  faith  "perfect  by  works,"  we  shall  hear  an- 
other kind  of  speech  from  their  lips,  see  another  kind 
of  practice,  and  the  manifestation  of  another  kind  of 
spirit. 

But  now  for  the  conclusion  from  the  foregoing. 

1.  Keconciliation  is  through  the  mediation  of  Christ, 
or  through  Christ,  the  Mediator.  No  man  of  any  note 
would  deny  this,  as  an  abstract  proposition.  But  what 
is  the  meaning  of  it?  The  meaning  of  it  is  the  same 
as  expressed  by  the  Lord  in  the  words,  "  No  man  comes 
to  the  Father  but  by  me." — John  xiv.  6.     To  come  by 


man's  reconciliation  to  god.  335 

him  is  to  come  by  the  way  he  points  out.     There  is  no 
other  wa}'  to  come  by  him. 

2.  He  committed  the  "ministry  of  reconciliation"  to 
the  apostles,  made  them  his  ambassadors,  so  that  they, 
in  Christ's  stead,  beseech  men  to  be  "  reconciled  to  God." 
He  also  committed  to  them  "  the  word  of  reconciliation ;" 
that  is,  the  law  of  reconciliation,  containing  the  terms 
on  which  man  can  be  reconciled  to  God.  He  made  the 
apostles  ministers  plenipotentiary  to  all  nations,  placed 
them  between  man  and  himself,  so  that  we  have  to  come 
by  the  apostles,  or  by  the  law  of  Christ,  the  law  of  rec- 
onciliation, committed  to  the  hands  of  these  ministers, 
and  by  them  published  to  all  nations. 

3.  When  the  Me-diator  left  the  ministers  of  reconcili- 
ation, he  promised  them  that  he  would  send  them  the 
Spirit,  who  should  guide  them  into  all  truth,  bring  all 
things  to  their  remembrance,  and  sjpeak  in  tlum^  so  that 
it  should  not  he  them  that  spoke,  but  the  Spirit  that 
was  in  them.  This  system  of  reconciliation  is  by  the 
Holy  Spirit,  who  spoke  it  in  the  apostles,  or  by  them, 
and  not  without  the  Spirit. 

4.  It  is  by  the  word  of  reconciliation,  or  the  law.  This 
word  of  reconciliation,  or  law,  is  the  gospel.  It  con- 
tains the  terras  of  reconciliation,  and  men  are  reconciled 
to  God  by  complying  with  these  terms.  They  thus 
come  to  the  promise  of  God,  are  reconciled  and  made 
one  with  God — at  one  again,  or  bound  back,  or  rebound 
to  the  Lord. 

The  following  results  follow : 

1.  As  no  man  can  come  to  God  but  by  the  Mediator, 
or  by  Christ;  and  as  to  come  by  him  is  to  come  by  the 
way  he  points  out  in  the  law  of  reconciliation,  there  is 
no  such  thing  as  a  man  Deinsr  reconciled  to  God  by  any 
immediate  power  or  intluence  from  God,  for  immediate 


336  MEDIATION  OF  CHRIST. 

is  without  a  medium,  or  without  a  mediator.  There  is^ 
then,  no  direct^  or  immediate  power  or  influence  from 
God  that  reconciles  man  to  God,  as  this  would  be  with- 
out a  mediator^  or,  plainly,  without  Christ. 

2.  As  the  apostles  are  ministers  of  reconciliation,  and 
the  Lord  has  committed  to  them  the  word  of  recoiicili- 
ation,  there  can  be  no  immediate  power  or  influence 
from  God,  through  which  man  can  be  reconciled  ta 
God,  for  this  would  be  both  without  the  ministry  and 
the  word  of  reconciliation.  Reconciliation  is  through 
the  ministers  of  reconciliation  and  the  word,  or  through 
the  ambassadors  of  Christ,  and  the  law  of  reconciliation 
published  by  them. 

3.  As  the  Holy  Spirit  was  to  speak  in  the  apostles; 
did  speak  in  them,  or  through  them,  and  set  forth  the 
word  or  law  of  reconciliation,  it  is  by  the  Holy  Spirit 
that  man  is  reconciled  to  God,  and  not  without  the 
Holy  Spirit;  but  not  by  an  immediate  or  direct  influ- 
ence or  power,  which  would  be  without  the  Mediator, 
the  ministry  of  reconciliation,  and  the  word  spoken  by 
the  Holy  Spirit. 

The  reconciliation,  then,  is  from  God,  through  Christ 
the  Mediator,  through  his  ambassadors,  the  apostles, 
through  the  Holy  Spirit  that  spoke  in  them,  and  through 
the  word  of  reconciliation.  This  is  all  set  aside  by  the 
modern  idea  of  an  immediate.,  or  direct.,  power  from 
God  that  converts  sinners,  and  reconciles,  and  makes 
them  Christians.  An  idea  more  subversive  of  the  en- 
tire scheme  of  redemption  than  this,  it  would  be  diffi- 
cult to  conceive.  This  is  a  sample  of  the  honor  that  a 
central  idea  with  thousands  and  millions  is  giving  the- 
Mediator  of  the  ISTew  Institution,  or  the  better  covenant 
upon  better  promises.  It  virtually  leaves  him  out,  an^ 
assumes  an  immediate  power  that  reconciles  man  to 
God  without  him. 


SERM0:N^   No.  XV. 

TUEME. — WHAT  WAS    THE  CAUSE    OF    SUCH  VAST   MULTITUDES 
BECOMING  CHRISTIANS  IN  THE  TIME  OF  THE  APOSTLES? 

It  is  what  is  called  an  axiomatic  truth,  that  there 
never  was  an  effect  without  a  cause.  It  is  settled 
among  men  of  reason,  that  there  never  can  be  an  effect 
without  a  cause.  There  may  be,  and  often  are,  effects 
where  we  can  not  see  the  cause,  or  determine  what  it  is, 
but  there  is,  nevertheless,  a  cause.  There  is  nothing 
like  examining  matters  of  fact  in  determining  what  the 
truth  is.  We  should  be  careful  and  see  that  our  facts 
are  real  facts^  and  not  merely  assumed,  but  when  ex- 
amined, not  facts  at  all.  When  we  have  real  facts  we 
may  reason  from  them,  and  reach  conclusions  with  cer- 
tai  nty . 

Is  it,  then,  a  real  fact  that  the  religion  of  Christ  did 
bring  thousands  into  its  fold  as  soon  as  it  was  fully  un- 
folded, and  that  it  moved  forward  with  most  triumph- 
ant march,  in  defiance  of  Judaism,  on  the  one  hand, 
and  Paganism,  on  the  other,  till  it  spread  throughout 
the  Roman  Empire,  and  raised  up  6,000,000  of  Chris- 
tians in  that  Empire  alone,  by  the  close  of  the  first  cen- 
tury, or  in  about  sixty -five  years  after  the  apostles  com- 
menced under  their  last  commission  ?  This,  or  what  is 
substantially  the  same  as  this,  is  as  certainly  a  fact  as 
well  sustained  and  as  fully  confirmed  by  all  the  history 
that  bears  on  it  at  all,  as  any  fact  stated  in  history 
known  to  us.  It  is  uncontradicted  by  any  authority,. 
29  (^^"^ 


338  WHY  so  MANY  BECAME  CHRISTIANS 

admitted  by  the  most  able  infidels  that  have  written, 
and  both  Paine  and  Gibbon  have  tried  to  account  for  it. 
It  may  be  received  and  treated  as  a  most  stubborn  y^c^, 
a  reality  that  can  not  be  questioned  with  any  show  of 
reason.  We  shall  regard  it  as  so  nearly  a  universally 
admitted  fact,  that  it  may  be  taken  for  granted,  relied 
upon  and  reasoned  from  as  a  settled  thing. 

It  must  be  kept  in  mind,  too,  that  the  apostles  did  not 
^vait  till  the  matters  they  laid  before  the  people  became 
stale,  and  of  no  interest  to  the  people,  and  till  their 
opponents  were  indifferent,  and  ceased  to  care  anything 
about  it.  But  they  commenced  soon,  while  the  matters 
were  all  fresh  in  the  minds  of  the  people,  and  while  all 
the  means  were  at  hand  for  a  refutation  of  their  pre- 
tenses, if  such  means  existed,  and  while  a  disposition 
was  still  in  the  hearts  of  the  people  to  refute  their  pre- 
tensions and  put  them  down.  The  witnesses  abounded 
all  around  them,  who  knew  all  about  many  of  the  thing? 
bearing  upon  their  claims,  and  certainly  willing  to  tes 
tify  anything  they  could  to  defeat  their  work. 

!N"or  did  the  apostles  go  to  some  other  place  first  tc 
tell  of  the  wonderful  things  they  had  seen  and  heard, 
but  stood  up  in  Jerusalem,  in  open  day,  and  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  very  people  who  had  the  fullest  opportunity 
of  any  people  in  the  world  to  know  whether  they  told 
the  truth  or  not.  It  was  there  the  Lord  was  crucified ; 
it  was  there  they  said  he  rose ;  and  there  they  said  they 
saw  him  ascend  up  into  heaven ;  it  was  in  the  midst  of 
the  people  there  that  the  great  matters  had  transpired 
connected  with  their  wonderful  theme. 

This  has  nothing  of  the  appearance  of  imposture 
about  it;  beginning,  as  they  did,  while  the  matters  were 
all  fresh  in  the  minds  of  the  people,  and  among  the  very 
people  where  the  transactions  occurred  connected  with 


IN  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  339 

their  work  and  mission.  They  did  not  build  upon  won- 
ders that  had  occurred  at  some  remote  period,  and  ia 
some  other  country;  but  wonders  that  had  occurred, 
and  were  still  occurring,  in  their  midst — tilings  that  the 
people  saio  and  heard.  The  people  knew  whether  Jesus 
fed  five  thousand  in  their  midst  by  a  miracle  or  not. 
They  did  not  have  to  take  it  on  trust.  They  knew 
whether  he  raised  the  dead,  gave  sight  to  the  blind, 
speech  to  the  dumb,  and  hearing  to  the  deaf.  They 
knew  whether  there  was  "a  great  earthquake"  when 
he  died;  whether  darkness  covered  over  the  whole  land; 
whether  the  rocks  were  rent  and  the  vail  split  in  two 
from  the  top  to  the  bottom.  These  were  matters  of 
personal  observation,  and  not  limited  to  a  few,  but  done 
openly  in  the  broad  blaze  of  daylight,  and  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  promiscuous  multitude,  as  if  to  challenge 
the  most  vigorous  investigation  and  searching  criticism. 
This  was  most  certainly  the  highest  order  of  procedure. 
There  was  nothing  hidden — nothing  covered  up — but  all 
was  most  bold  and  open. 

The  main  matter  for  investigation,  that  which  lay  at 
the  foundation  of  everything,  was  no  subtle,  mj'stical, 
and  speculative  thing,  about  which  there  was  nothing 
tangible,  intelligible  and  credible;  nor  something  so  in- 
tricate that  it  could  not  be  decided  upon  without  the 
utmost  stretch  of  intelligence,  but  a  matter  most  clear, 
intelligible  and  credible;  an  affirmative  proposition  con- 
cerning which  any  man  can  come  to  a  conclusion,  make 
up  his  mind  and  decide  as  readily  as  any  jury  ever  did, 
in  the  clearest  case  that  ever  came  into  court.  It  leaves 
the  mind  in  a  settled,  decided  and  well-established  con- 
dition. Kot  so  the  man  who  has  no  faith — the  unbe- 
liever, the  skeptic.  He  has  nothing  decided,  nothing 
settled,  nothing  on  which  to  rely.    His  creed  runs  back- 


840  WHY  so  MANY  BECAME  CHRISTIANS 

ward,  and  consists  in  what  he  does  not  hdieve.  There 
is  nothing  in  what  a  man  does  not  lelieve  to  lean  the 
soul  on,  living  or  dying,  in  this  world  or  the  world  to 
eome.  Denying  what  other  people  believe  has  nothing 
in  it  to  rest  on,  to  settle  the  mind  or  heart  on,  in  life  or 
in  death,  in  time  or  eternity.  There  is  no  light  in  mere 
negative  ground,  in  a  mere  denial  of  the  Bible,  a  mere 
denial  of  Christ  or  the  gospel.  A  man  might  deny  the 
Lord  and  the  Bible,  and  be  a  very  ignorant  man.  There 
is  nothing  in  mere  denials  of  any  sort  on  which  to  rest 
the  mind  or  heart. 

The  mere  man  of  unbelief  has  nothing,  defends  noth- 
ing and  maintains  nothing;  he  builds  nothing,  stand? 
ui)()n  nothing,  and  advocates  nothing;  he  has  nothing 
tor  himself  or  anybody  else.  He  is  out  in  an  open  sea 
of  confusion,  without  chart  or  compass.  It  is  all  dark 
beneath  him,  and  above  him,  and  all  round  him.  It  is 
all  dark  in  the  past  and  in  the  future.  He  can  tell  you 
nothing  about  whence  he  came,  nor  whither  he  is  go- 
ing. True,  he  has  no  God  to  fear;  but  he  also  has  no 
God  to  love,  to  trust  in  or  save  him !  He  has  no  hell  to 
dread ;  but,  then,  he  has  no  heaven  to  hope  for,  no  eter- 
nal happiness  in  anticipation,  no  house  not  made  witb 
hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens;  no  new  heavens  and  new 
earth  in  prospect;  and  if  he  boast  that  he  has  no  fear 
of  death,  he  also  has  no  hope  in  view  of  a  world  ta 
come.  How  different  from  all  this  is  the  man  of  faith! 
Faith  reaches  back  to  the  beginning  of  time,  to  the  cre- 
ation of  man,  and  all  along  the  history  of  the  human 
race,  down  to  the  present,  and  looks  away  into  the 
future;  into  the  new  heaven  and  the  new  earth;  into 
the  holy  city,  ISTew  Jerusalem,  where  they  need  no  light 
of  any  lamp,  or  even  the  sun,  for  the  Lord  God  and  the 
Lamb  are  the  light;  where  there  shall  be  no  more  sor- 


IN  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  341 

rowing,  nor  sighing,  nor  sickness,  nor  pain,  nor  death; 
where  our  hearts  shall  never  ache  again. 

What,  then,  is  the  great  affirmative  proposition,  lying 
at  the  bottom  of  all  faith,  and  hope,  and  everlasting  con- 
solation ?  What,  then,  is  the  great  truth  of  all  truth,  that 
is  under  all  and  supports  all?  It  is  the  truth  concern- 
ing the  Christ,  the  Anointed  of  the  Father,  full  of  grace 
and  truth;  that  he  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living 
God.  It  is  not  that  he  is  anointed.  Aaron  was  anointed, 
David  was  anointed,  and  so  were  many  others; 
but  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  or  the  Anointed,  in  a  sense 
above  all  others.  He  is  not  simply  Son  of  God^  or  a 
Son — there  were  many  sons  of  God — but  he  is  above  all 
these;  he  is  the  Son.  But  this  is  not  all;  he  is  not  only 
the  Son  of  God^  but  of  the  living  God.  There  were 
lords  many,  and  gods  many;  but  the  living  God  is 
above  all,  and  through  all,  and  in  all.  This  proposition 
concerning  Christ  is  one  of  the  most  complete  proposi- 
tions ever  uttered,  and  has  the  definite  article  inserted 
in  three  of  the  most  important  places  in  it  possible.  He 
is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God.  All  rests  on 
this.  This  is  the  central  idea  of  the  Bible.  It  is  the 
center  of  attraction  in  the  spiritual  system,  as  the  sun 
is  of  the  solar  system,  and  everything  else  revolves  round 
this. 

If  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God,  the 
whole  Bible  is  true;  for  then  he  knew  all  things;  knew 
what  was  from  God  and  what  was  not — and  whatever 
he  indorsed  is  divine.  The  Almighty  Father  indorsed 
Jesus  at  his  baptism,  and  introduced  him  to  Israel,  in 
the  following  words:  "Thou  art  my  Son,  the  beloved, 
m  whom  I  am  well  pleased."  The  Father  indorsed  him 
again  in  the  holy  mountain  of  transfiguration :  "  This  is 
my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am  pleased:  hear  you  Mm." 


342  WHY  so  many  became  christians 

That  this  is  the  foundation  of  the  ITevv  Ii>stitution  is  evi- 
dent from  the  following  conversation.  The  Lord  said  to 
the  apostles,  "  Who  do  you  say  that  I,  the  Son  of  Man, 
am  ? "  Peter  responded,  "Thou  art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of 
the  living  God."  The  Lord  replied,  ''Blessed  are  you, 
Simon,  son  of  Jona,  for  flesh  and  blood  hath  not  re- 
vealed it  to  you,  but  my  Father  who  is  in  heaven :  and 
you  are  Peter,  and  on  this  rock  will  I  build  my  Church, 
and  the  gates  of  Hades  shall  not  prevail  against  it." 
This  grand  statement,  that  he  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of 
the  living  God,  is  the  foundation  truth  of  the  whole 
system.  This  is  in  purport  the  same  as  the  statement 
of  Paul :  "  I,  as  a  wise  master-builder,  have  laid  the 
foundation,  and  other  foundation  can  no  man  lay  than 
that  which  is  laid,  which  is  Jesus  Christ." 

This  all  turns  on  one  question :  Did  he  rise  from  the 
dead?  If  he  rose  from  the  dead,  God  raised  him.  An 
impostor  could  not  have  raised  himself  from  the  dead, 
and  God  would  not  have  raised  him.  The  logic  runs 
thus:  If  he  rose,  God  raised  him;  if  God  raised  him,  he 
is  all  he  claimed  to  be,  for  God  would  not  have  raised 
an  impostor,  and  aided  him  in  palming  off  an  imposi- 
tion on  the  world.  If  he  was  what  he  claimed  to  be, 
he  knew  all  things.  He  could  not  have  erred  for  the 
lack  of  knowledge.  He  was  infinite  in  goodness,  and 
could  not  have  intentionally  deceived  us.  All  he  said 
w^as  true.  He  knew  all  about  Moses  and  the  prophets, 
and  quoted  them  as  the  word  of  God,  and  as  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Spirit  of  God.  This  indorsed  the  Old 
Testament.  He  called  and  sent  the  apostles,  and  in- 
ddrsed  them  by  w^onderful  displays  of  supernatural 
power  in  connection  with  their  work.  The  law^  and  the 
prophets,  the  Old  Institution  and  the  ]^ew,  rest  on  him. 

Paul  says:  "If  you  shall  confess  with  your  mouth  the 


IN  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  343 

Lord  Jesus,  and  believe  in  your  heart  that  God  has 
raised  him  from  the  dead,  you  shall  be  saved :  for  with 
the  heart  man  believes  to  righteousness,  and  with  the 
mouth  confession  is  made  to  salvation."  Did  Jesus 
rise?     This  is  the  matter  now  to  be  considered. 

The  first  testimony  to  be  taken  is  that  given  by  his 
own  chosen  witnesses.  Peter  says,  "  God  showed  him 
openly ;  not  to  all  the  people,  but  to  witnesses  chosen 
before  of  God,  even  to  us,  who  did  eat  and  drink  with 
him  after  he  rose  from  the  dead.  And  he  commanded 
us  to  preach  to  the  people,  and  to  testify  that  it  is  he 
who  was  ordained  of  God  the  Judge  of  the  living  and 
of  the  dead." — Acts  x.  40-42.  Peter  says,  *'  We  are  his 
witnesses  of  all  things  which  he  did,  both  in  the  land 
of  the  Jews,  and  in  Jerusalem;  whom  they  slew  and 
hanged  on  a  tree."  These,  being  his  own  select  wit- 
nesses, must  be  heard,  and  their  testimony  considered 
first.  We  are  not  going  into  any  minute  examination 
of  the  case,  but  simply  to  look  at  it  in  a  plain  practical 
way. 

The  witnesses  were  sufiicient  in  number.  JSTo  reason 
could  demand  more  than  twelve. 

They  were  entirely  competent.  They  were  men  of 
plain  common  sense.  They  had  been  with  Jesus  much 
of  the  time  for  about  three  and  a  half  years,  ate  with 
him,  drank  with  him,  talked  with*  him,  heard  him,  saw 
him,  and  handled  him.  They  claim  to  have  seen  him 
repeatedly,  to  have  talked  over  the  events  of  their  pre- 
vious travels  and  work;  their  previous  conversations 
and  public  acts.  These  interviews  were  at  intervals, 
and  mainly  in  daylight,  where  they  had  every  oppor- 
tunity to  identify  him.  They  claim  that  he  went  out 
with  them  to  Mount  Olivet,  in  open  day,  and  ascended 
up  out  of  their  sight.     The  matters  to  which  they  were 


844  WHY  so  MANY  BECAME  CHRISTIANS 

to  testify  were  all  the  plainest  matters  of  fact.  Some 
forty  days  elapsed,  during  which  they  had  these  re- 
peated iilterviews  with  him.  Between  these  interviews 
they  had  time  and  opportunity  to  talk  over  the  matter, 
to  refresh  each  other's  memories. 

We  see  no  way  of  throwing  the  testimony  of  these  men 
into  doubt,  unless  on  one  of  two  grounds :  1.  To  show 
that  they  might  have  been  mistaken ;  been  deceived  in 
the  matters  about  which  they  testify.  2.  To  show  that 
they  might  have  been  dishonest  men.  If  they  could  have 
been  mistaken  in  the  matters  concerning  which  they 
testify,  and  been  deceived,  it  involves  the  whole  in 
doubt.  If  they  might  have  been  dishonest  men,  it  in- 
volves the  whole  matter  in  doubt.  But  if  they  could 
not  have  been  mistaken,  or  been  deceived;  and  could  not 
have  been  dishonest  men,  it  is  impossible  to  involve 
their  testimony  in  doubt.  It  remains  invulnerable.  We 
need  spend  but  a  very  few  minutes  on  these  two  points. 

Could  they  have  been  mistaken,  been  deceived,  thought 
the  things  they  testified  were  true,  when  they  were  not? 
Could  twelve  men  have  been  mistaken  about  identifying 
a  person  with  whom  they  had  been  most  intimately  ac- 
quainted, and  with  whom  they  had  associated  the  greater 
part  of  their  time,  both  publicly  and  privately,  for  three 
and  a  half  years,  and  who  had  only  been  absent  a  few 
days,  and  then  met  him  repeatedly,  in  open  day,  had 
extended  interviews,  talked  over  their  previous  conver- 
sations, travels  and  works  ?  Could  twelve  men  have  been 
mistaken,  and  thought  they  saw  him  ascend  to  heaven 
in  open  day,  been  deceived  by  it;  actually  thought  they 
eaw  him  ascend  into  heaven,  when  they  did  not?  If  they 
could  have  been  mistaken  about  all  this,  and  thought 
they  saw  it  all,  when  they  did  not,  and  when  nothing 
of  the  kind  occurred,  then  there  is  an  end  of  all  c:r- 


IN  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  *        345 

tainty  in  testimony.  But  this  is  oulj  the  beginning. 
They  claimed  that  he  gave  them  power  to  heal  all  man- 
ner of  diseases,  and  even  to  raise  the  dead,  and  that  they 
did  these  things.  They  knew  whether  they  healed  all 
manner  of  diseases  or  not;  whether  they  raised  the 
dead  or  not.  There  was  no  mistaking  about  these  mat- 
ters. If  they  did  not  do  these  things  they  knew  it.  If 
they  did  not  do  these  things,  there  was  not  an  honest 
man  among  them.  They  knew  they  did  not — they 
could  not,  then,  have  been  mistaken  and  been  deceived. 

Could  they  have  been  dishonest?  This  scarcely  needs 
more  than  to  be  asked,  to  satisfy  all  that  they  must  have 
been  sincere.  They  all  testify  the  same  thing.  They 
were  all  together,  and  testified  the  same  things  at  the 
start,  or  on  Pentecost,  and  were  tried  for  that  testimony 
the  balance  of  their  lives.  They  were  tried  in  every 
way  that  could  be  invented  to  induce  them  to  recant, 
but  not  a  man  of  them  could  ever  be  induced  to  recant. 
One  fell  at  one  time,  and  another  at  another  time,  till 
the  last  one,  save  one,  fell  a  martyr  for  that  testimony. 
Some  of  them  suffered  many  long  years,  and  repeated 
and  most  harassing  tortures  were  inflicted  on  them. 
But  every  man  stood  firm  till  the  last.  Xot  a  man  re- 
canted. They  gave  the  highest  evidence  in  the  power 
of  man  to  give  of  honesty  and  sincerity.  ]N"o  reason- 
able man  can  believe  that  twelve  men  can  give  testi- 
mony, in  a  matter  where  they  could  have  no  personal 
interest,  if  their  testimony  was  false,  stand  to  tliat  tes- 
timony, as  some  of  them  did,  nearly  or  quite  sixty 
years,  and  die  for  it,  as  they  all  did  except  John,  when 
they  knew  all  the  time  it  was  not  true!  Human  cred- 
ulity can  not  receive  such  an  unreasonable  thing  as 
this!     They  could  not  have  been  dishonest. 

We  are  compelled,  then,  to  admit  that  they  could  not 


346  WHY  so  MANY  BECAME  CHRISTIANS 

have  been  deceived  in  the  matter  in  hand — about  the 
resurrection  of  our  Lord  from  the  dead.  They  posi- 
tively knew  whether  he  did  rise  or  not.  They  could 
not  have  been  dishonest  men.  They  gave  the  highest 
evidence  in  the  power  of  man  to  give  of  honesty.  They 
were  honest,  and  what  they  testified  was  true.  The 
Lord  Jesus,  the  great  Shepherd  of  the  sheep,  rose  from 
the  dead,  and  brought  life  and  immortality  to  light.  If 
there  is  anything  coming  within  the  grasp  of  the  human 
mind,  that  man  can  rest  on  without  a  doubt,  it  is  that 
Jesus  rose  from  the  dead — that  he  is  all  that  he  claimed 
to  be. 

Some  man  may  say  that  he  would  believe  if  nature 
would  testify — that  he  would  listen  to  the  voice  of  nature. 
.Is  it  right  certain  that  nature  has  not  testified — that  the 
voice  of  nature  has  not  been  brought  to  bear  upon  the 
matter  in  the  only  way  in  which  it  was  possible?  Let 
us  turn  our  eyes  to  the  crucifixion,  and  view  the  scene 
that  occurred  there,  and  see  if  nature  did  not  testify  in 
favor  of  the  Lord.  What  occurred  when  Jesus  died? 
Was  nature  quiet?  Was  nature  still?  By  no  means! 
There  was  a  great  earthquake.  Let  no  man  doubt 
whether  this  actually  occurred.  Eemember,  a  great 
earthquake  is  an  event  that  does  not  pass  out  of  the 
memories  of  the  people  in  a  short  space  of  time, 
nor  in  one  generation.  When  Matthew  wrote  his  re- 
port concerning  Christ,  and  it  appeared  in  Palestiuey 
there  were  thousands  living  that  knew  whether  there 
w^as  a  great  earthquake  when  Jesus  died,  and  to  have 
refuted  this  statement  would  have  been  to  overthrow 
the  testimony  of  one  of  the  professed  witnesses  of 
Jesus.  If  the  statement  had  been  false,  nothing  would 
have  been  easier  than  to  have  proved  it  to  have  been 
false..    But,  instead  of  proving  it  to  be  false,  not  oven  5. 


IN  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  '       347 

denial  is  found  on  the  records  of  the  times,  nor  an  ex- 
pression of  any  doubt  of  the  actual  occurrence  of  the 
"great  earthquake." 

But  this  is  not  all.  When  Jesus  died,  darkness  spread 
over  the  whole  land,  from  the  sixth  to  the  ninth  hour^ 
or  from  twelve  till  three  o'clock.  This,  too,  was  an 
event  that  would  not  have  passed  out  of  the  memories 
of  the  people  of  that  generation,  nor  would  it  have 
passed  out  of  their  records  and  traditions  for  many  gen- 
erations. Every  one  that  lived  till  the  report  made  by 
Matthew  appeared,  was  a  witness  to  testify  in  reference 
to  the  darkness.  If  the  statement  about  it  was  false^ 
more  than  half  the  population  knew  it  was  false,  and 
would  have  been  living  witnesses  by  whom  to  prove  it 
false.  But  did  any  man  prove  it  false?  Instead  of  thisy 
no  man  tried  to  prove  it  false.  We  have  no  account 
of  any  man  calling  it  in  question,  or  even  doubting  it. 
Ko  such  thought  appears  to  have  come  into  the  mind 
of  any  man. 

But  there  is  more  yet  in  this  matter.  Matthew  states 
that  the  rocks  were  rent  when  Jesus  died.  If  this  state- 
ment had  been  false,  it  would  have  been  the  easiest 
thing  in  the  world  to  have  proved  it,  for  the  rocks 
would  have  still  testified.  As  Hugh  Miller  would  have 
expressed  it,  they  would  have  found  '*  the  testimony  in 
the  rocks.''  But  no  man  went  to  the  rocks  to  find  tes- 
timony against  the  statement  of  the  witness  of  Jesus. 
The  reason  is  obvious.  "  The  testimony  of  the  rocks  " 
was  there,  but  it  was  on  the  other  side — favorable  to- 
the  witnesses  of  Jesus.  Nobody  denied  the  statement 
about  the  rending  rocks,  or  the  splitting  of  the  vail  in 
two.  Indeed,  nobody  of  any  note  denied  any  part  of 
the  statement.  It  comes  down  through  the  ages  un- 
contradicted.   There  was,  then,  a  great  earthquake  when 


348  WHY  so  MANY  BECAME  CHRISTIANS 

Jesus  died.  Darkness  did  spread  over  the  whole  land, 
from  the  sixth  to  the  ninth  hour,  the  rocks  were  rent, 
and  the  vail  in  the  temple  was  split  in  two  from  the 
top  to  the  bottom.  This  was  action  of  inanimate  mat- 
ter, convulsion  in  nature,  when  Jesus  died,  or  connected 
with  his  death.  ITo  wonder  the  Centurion  said,  "  Cer- 
tainly this  man  was  the  son  of  a  god."  He  did  not 
mean  the  Son  of  God,  or  know  anything  about  him; 
but  he  saw  that  this  was  above  nature,  and  ascribed  it 
to  Ob  god^  evidently  meaning  only  a  Pagan  god.  But, 
viewing  the  matter  in  the  true  light,  it  was  the  testi- 
mony of  nature  in  favor  of  our  Lord.  It  was  by  him 
and  for  him  that  God  made  the  universe,  and  all  things 
w^ere  under  him.  The  man  who  rejects  Jesus  has  to 
reject  the  voice  of  nature,  when  addressed  to  his  reason 
in  the  most  convincing  manner. 

Angels  of  God  testified  concerning  Jesus.  The  upper 
world  appeared  to  be  in  motion,  and  on  the  alert  from 
before  the  birth  of  Jesus  till  after  his  ascension  into 
heaven.  The  angels  appeared  to  be  ever  on  the  v/ay  to 
him  and  from  him,  as  the  wonderful  messengers  of 
Jehovah.  When  the  Lord  was  born  the  heavenly  hosts 
appeared  to  the  shepherds  as  they  minded  their  fiocks, 
and  shouted,  "We  bring  you  good  news  of  great  joy  to 
all  people !  To  you,  this  day,  in  the  city  of  David,  a 
Savior  is  born,  Christ  the  Lord."  There  was  no  worldly 
attraction  to  draw  the  mind  of  any  human  being  to  the 
birth  of  the  lowly  Jesus,  or  to  give  the  idea  that  any- 
thing great  or  extraordinary  had  occurred,  demanding 
the  attention  of  the  nations  of  the  earth.  But  the  an- 
gels that  appeared  at  his  birth  saw  and  proclaimed 
"good  news  of  great  joy  to  all  people.''''  These  mightj' 
messengers  of  Jehovah  saw  far  beyond  what  was  in 
the  view  of  man,  away  down  far  into  the  ages,  that  the 


IN  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  349 

'-good  news  of  great  joy"  was  "for  all  people."  This 
shows  that  God  was  in  that  testimony,  looking  down 
through  the  long  centuries  to  the  generations  to  come, 
and  announcing  the  "good  news  to  all  people." 

Eighteen  centuries  have  fled,  and  far  into  the  nine- 
teenth, and  the  "good  news  of  great  joy  to  all  people" 
is  still  what  it  was  then,  and  has  been  all  the  time, 
"good  news  of  great  joy  to  all  peopled  A  Savior, 
Christ  the  Lord,  was  born,  has  lived,  died,  was  buried, 
rose  again,  has  gone  into  heaven,  and  lives  forever  and 
ever.  His  name  is  now  above  every  name.  He  is  Head 
over  all  things  to  the  ChuKch.  In  him  all  fullness 
dwells. 

But  angels  testified  of  him  on  the  morning  of  his  res- 
urrection. When  the  women  came  to  the  tomb  to  em- 
balm his  body,  an  angel  had  come  and  rolled  back  the 
stone  from  the  entrance.  The  w^amen  advanced  in  fear, 
and,  looking  in,  saw  that  the  body  of  Jesus  was  gone. 
They  took  the  angel  for  a  man,  and  inquired  of  him, 
"Sir,  have  you  removed  the  body  of  Jesus?"  The  an- 
gel knew  all  about  it,  and  testified,  "He  is  not  here;  he 
is  risen  from  the  dead,  as  he  told  you  he  would,  and 
goes  before  you  into  Galilee.  Hasten  and  tell  his  dis- 
ciples." Here,  again,  is  the  explicit  testimony  of  an 
angel  of  God. 

Angels  testified  in  his  behalf  when  he  ascended  up 
into  heaven.  In  open  day  he  took  the  disciples  out  "  to 
the  Mount  Olivet,  on  the  first  day  of  the  week,"  and 
about  midday  he  imparted  to  them  his  last  benediction, 
and,  in  their  presence,  ascended  up  into  heaven.  As 
they  stood  gazing  up  after  him,  angels  appeared  and 
said,  "  Galileans,  why  stand  you  here,  gazing  up  into 
heaven?  That  same  Jesus  who  is  taken  up  from  you 
into  heaven,  shall  so  come  in  like  manner  as  you  have 


S50  WHY  SO  MANY  BECAME  CHRISTIANS 

seen  him  go  into  heaven." — See  Acts  i.  11.  This  testi- 
mony of  the  angels  was  given  in  the  presence  of  the 
disciples.  They  saw  the  angels,  and  heard  their  testi- 
mony. 

The  man  who  will  not  believe  on  our  Lord  sets  aside 
not  only  the  testimony  of  the  angels  here  referred  to,  but 
the  testimony  of  angels  as  connected  with  the  mission 
of  our  Lord  in  numerous  instances  that  can  not  be  men- 
tioned here. 

Paul  says,  "  The  Holy  Spirit  also  is  a  witness."  The 
testimony  of  the  Spirit  of  God  confirms  the  mission 
of  the  Lord.  It  is  a  fearful  thing  for  a  man  to  despise 
the  testimony  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  to  refuse  to  accredit 
it  or  respect  it.  When  the  Lord  ascended  from  his  bap- 
tism, and  stood  on  the  bank  of  the  Jordan,  he  appeared 
in  his  person  only  as  a  man,  and  there  was  no  comeliness 
that  we  should  desire  him.  There  was  not  a  worldly 
attraction  around  him,  nor  in  him.  But  the  Spirit  of 
Ood,  in  a  visible  form,  descended  as  a  dove  and  rested 
on  him.  What  was  the  meaning  of  that?  John  says, 
■^'I  knew  him  not,  but  he  who  sent  me  to  baptize  said: 
He  on  whom  you  shall  see  the  Holy  Spirit  descending 
and  remaining,  he  is  he" — that  is,  he  is  the  Messiah. 
The  Holy  Spirit,  then,  in  descending  and  remaining  on 
him,  was  testifying  to  John  the  Immerser  that  he  was 
the  Messiah. 

Paul  says  that  no  man  can  call  Jesus  Lord  but  by  the 
Holy  Spirit.  The  Spirit  of  God,  in  the  prophets  and  in 
the  apostles,  testified  concerning  Christ.  The  Spirit 
also  testified  in  the  wonderful  display  of  miraculous 
power  in  the  apostles  and  the  prophets.  The  man  who 
will  not  believe  on  Christ  sets  aside  all  this  testimony 
of  the  Holy  Spirit,  despises  and  discredits  it.  This  is 
certainly  a  most  fearful  thing.     Such  unreasonable  per- 


m  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  351 

sistence  against  testimony  can  but  land  anv  man  in 
ruin. 

The  Lord  was  made  a  witness  in  his  own  case.  The 
high  priest  swore  him,  put  him  upon  oath,  and  he  testi- 
fied under  oath.  The  high  priest  said, ''  I  adjure  thee,  by 
the  living  God ;  tell  me,  art  thou  a  king?"  The  Lord  an- 
swered affirmatively.  "  He  witnessed  a  good  confession," 
or  testified  to  a  good  conftssio7i  before  Pilate,  and  laid 
down  his  life  for  his  testimony.  This  was  the  highest 
order  of  testimony — the  sworn  testimony  of  the  Lord 
himself.  He  testified  at  sundry  times,  and  in  various  forms, 
during  the  three  and  a  half  years  of  his  personal  ministry, 
and  then  closed  the  whole  up  by  a  solemn  oath  before 
Pilate.  The  man  who  will  not  believe  on  him  sets  aside  all 
his  works,  which  he  said  testified  of  him;  his  clear  state- 
ments; and,  finally,  his  solemn  statement  confirmed  by 
an  oath,  and  for  which  he  most  deliberately  laid  down 
his  life,  despises  and  repudiates  it.  Can  the  man  who 
will  do  this  expect  anything  short  of  utter  ruin? 

But  we  must  summon  one  more  witness,  and  we  can 
rise  no  higher  and  go  no  further.  The  Almighty 
Father  of  heaven  and  earth  is  a  witness.  He  made  a 
promise  to  Abraham,  and  that,  by  two  immutable 
things,  in  which  it  was  impossible  for  God  to  lie,  we 
might  have  strong  consolation  he  confirmed  that  prom- 
ise by  an  oath.  The  two  immutable  things  are  the  oath 
and  promise  of  God.  This,  then,  is  the  testimony  of 
God,  in  his  promise,  confirmed  by  an  oath.  As  we  have 
seen,  in  a  previous  part  of  this  discourse,  the  Jehovah 
gave  his  testimony  concerning  Jesus,  when  he  ascended 
from  the  waters  of  Jordan:  "Thou  art  my  Son,  the  be- 
loved, in  whom  I  am  well  pleased."  Then,  again,  in 
the  mountain  of  transfiguration,  the  Father  testified, 
"This   is   my  Son,  the   beloved,  in  whom   I   am  well 


o.yJ.  WHY  so  MANY  BECAME  CHRISTIANS 

pleased  :  bear  jou  him."  When  he  was  coronated,  the 
Jehovah,  the  Infinite  One,  crowned  him  Lord  of  all ; 
and  as  he  could  swear  by  no  greater,  he  lifted  his  hand 
to  heaven,  and  swore  by  his  own  great  name,  that  he 
should  reign  till  every  knee  should  bow,  and  every 
tongue  confess  to  the  glory  of  God,  the  Father. 

All  the  testimony  given  by  all  the  prophets,  and  all 
the  apostles,  all  the  miracles,  the  wonderful  surround- 
ings of  our  Lord,  were  really  the  testimony  of  God  con- 
firming the  divine  mission  of  his  Son,  the  Lord  from 
heaven. 

What,  then,  but  the  utmost  perversity  and  persistence 
could  lead  any  man  who  considers  this  testimony  at  all, 
to  reject  and  utterly  disregard  it?  And  what  can  a  man 
expect  who  will  set  aside  the  testimony  of  the  twelve 
chosen  witnesses  of  our  Lord,  who  knew  positively 
whether  they  told  the  truth  in  the  matters  of  their  tes- 
timony concerning  Christ,  and  who  gave  the  highest 
evidence  possible  for  men  to  give  of  honesty  and  integ- 
rity? What  can  men  expect  who  will  not  consider  the 
wonderful  convulsions  of  nature;  of  inanimate  matter, 
when  the  Lord  died ;  but  will  treat  the  whole  as  noth- 
ing— a  matter  of  no  consequence — despise  and  reject 
it?  What  can  await  a  man  who  will  not  regard  the 
wonderful  testimony  of  angels,  given  under  the  most 
solemn  and  awful  circumstances;  who  will  not  listen  to 
the  testimony  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  the  testimony  of  the 
Lord,  given  under  oath,  and  the  testimony  of  the  Al- 
mighty Father  himself,  given  at  different  times  and  con- 
firmed by  his  oath  ? 

The  wonderful  and  overwhelming  transactions  here 
referred  to  w^ere  done  openly,  in  the  midst  of  the  peo- 
ple, and  some  of  them  in  the  presence  of  vast  multi- 
tudes, and  were  of  such  a  nature  that  they  could  but 


IN  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  35^ 

have  called  the  attention  of  the  people.  Thej  could  not 
have  passed  unnoticed,  or  without  the  most  careful  scru- 
tiny, investigation  and  criticism.  They  could  not  have 
occurred  without  having  been  on  the  lips  of  the  people, 
and  constant  matters  of  conversation.  Many  of  the 
main  transactions  were  matters  that  the  people  could 
have  been  in  no  doubt  about.  They  knew  whether  they 
occurred  or  not,  as  well  as  they  knew  whether  the  sun 
rose  and  set.  Look  at  a  few  cases.  The  resurrection 
of  Lazarus  was  an  open  transaction.  It  occurred  in 
open  day.  There  was  no  programme  marked  out.  isTo 
one  but  Jesus  knew  what  was  about  to  be  done.  It  was 
in  the  presence  of  a  promiscuous  company,  of  such  peo- 
ple as  pleased  to  come  together.  It  was  a  tangible  mat- 
ter. The  people  knew  whether  Lazarus  had  been  dead 
four  days ;  they  knew  whether  he  rose  or  not.  He  re- 
mained there  where  many  could  see  him,  and  where  any 
could  know  all  the  facts  about  his  resurrection.  There 
was  no  possibility  of  making  the  impression  generally^ 
that  he  rose;  making  the  belief  general,  that  he  rose^ 
and  having  it  spoken  of  by  the  masses  as  a  fact^  and 
nobody  calling  it  in  question,  denying  it,  or  doubting 
it,  in  the  midst  of  the  people  where  it  was  said  to  have 
occurred,  if  it  never  did  occur.  Such  an  idea  is  an  out- 
rage on  all  reason.  If  Lazarus  had  not  risen,  the  people 
could  and  would  have  confronted  the  statement  by  call- 
ing for  Lazarus — to  see  him !  But  the  truth  is  many 
of  them  did  see  him,  and  there  was  no  doubt  in  the 
community  about  his  rising.  Nobody  called  it  in  ques- 
tion. Manj  believed  on  the  Lord  in  view  of  the  trans- 
action. 

The  transactions  connected  with  the  birth  of  Christ, 
his  ministry,  his  death,  his  resurrection  and  ascension, 
in  the  main,  were  so  open,  exposed  in  some  instances  to 
30 


354  WHY  so  many  became  christians 

the  gaze  of  such  vast  multitudes,  of  such  various  char- 
acter, and  many  of  them  known  to  so  many  people,  that 
they  spoke  of  them  as  facts,  realities;  wonderful,  awful 
and  sublime  realities;  and  nobody  denied  their  reality. 
When  all  this  is  considered,  the  wonder  is  not  that  so 
many  believed  on  him,  but  that  there  were  any  that  did 
not  believe  on  him.  The  testimony  God  gave  of  his 
Son  was  so  various,  in  many  instances,  so  overwhelm- 
ing, and  so  open  to  the  people  at  large,  that  it  is  aston- 
ishing that  any  man  should  have  been  found  who  would 
not  believe  on  the  Savior  of  the  world. 

But  then  we  must  bear  in  mind  that  many  men  will 
not  reflect;  that  they  will  not  go  out  of  the  groove  in 
which  they  have  been  running;  see,  or  hear,  or  know 
anything  outside  of  their  little  circle,  where  they  have 
been  revolving  all  their  lives.  Anything  outside  of 
that  is  not  worth  knowing  or  listening  to.  There  are 
men  in  our  midst  who  are  indifferent  to  certain  things, 
and  never  consider  them  at  all.  They  are  not,  in  any 
sense,  witnesses;  for  they  have  given  no  attention.  A 
man  can  be  no  judge  in  any  matter  that  he  never  heard, 
a  juror  in  no  case  where  he  never  heard  the  testi- 
mony, never  considerd  it,  or  tried  to  understand  it. 
There  were  men,  in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  stolid, 
heartless  and  apathetic;  indifferent,  unfeeling,  and  of  no 
•conscience.  These  regarded  the  mere  incidental  refer- 
ences to  these  great  matters  that  frequently  fell  on  their 
ears,  as  coming  from  fanaticism,  and  worthy  of  no 
thought. 

We  must  not  forget  that  vast  numbers  of  men  were 
overwhelmed  in  schemes  of  government,  power,  honor 
and  wealth,  as  they  are  now;  and  that  their  minds  were 
60  engrossed  with  their  pursuits  that  they  never  turned 
aside  to  take  one  sober  thought  about  the  ground  of  i  ay 


IN  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  355 

new  doctrine,  but  simply  held  a  kind  of  indefinite  and 
traditional  idea  of  religion  that  they  had  received  in 
their  childhood.  Then,  again,  there  have  been  the  great 
masses  who  were  devotees  to  pride,  fashion  and  worldly 
display.  These  are  never  arrested  by  any  reason,  or 
anything  else,  till  some  calamity  falls  on  them,  or  judg- 
ment overtakes  them,  and  compels  them  to  stop  in  their 
wild  and  thoughtless  career.  These  were  all  too  much 
blinded  by  their  folly,  and  influenced  by  their  passions, 
to  give  any  attention  to  the  new  teaching  of  Christ  and 
the  apostles.  They  pressed  right  on  in  their  wild  and 
thoughtless  pursuits,  without  ever  turning  aside  to  con- 
sider anything  about  the  new  order  of  things  taking 
position  among  them.  There  were  also,  and  have  been 
ever  since,  the  lovers  of  folly  and  of  fun,  the  "  lovera 
of  pleasure  more  than  lovers  of  God,"  that  never  think 
nor  care  what  is  right  or  wrong.  They  are  the  thought- 
less, the  empty-minded  and  light-hearted.  They  'care 
not  who  was  crucified,  nor  who  rose  from  the  dead;  who 
ascended  to  heaven,  nor  who  was  crowned  Lord  of  all. 
They  know  not,  and  care  not,  who  were  martyred,  or 
who  martyred  them.  They  are  simply  gathered  into 
the  general  whirl,  and  are  whirling  in  it,  without  any 
thought  about  the  out-come  or  the  landing-place. 

The  classes  now  enumerated  comprise  a  large  element 
in  the  world,  and  did  at  the  time  of  the  founding  of  the 
jSTew  Institution,  on  whom  the  evidences  of  the  divinity 
of  our  Lord  made  no  impression.  They  knew  nothing 
of  his  pure  and  holy  teaching — that  it  was  a  miracle  iu 
itself;  in  that  it  was  all  perfect,  pure  and  holy — abso- 
lutely such.  In  this  it  difiered  from  all  others.  They 
taught  some  good  tJdngs^  but,  at  the  same  time,  taught 
some  things  that  were  not  good — some  things  that  were 


356  WHY  so  MANY  BECAME  CURISTIANS 

had.  All  that  Jesus  taught  was  not  only  good,  but  ^9^7*- 
fect-,  pure  and  holy.     There  was  no  exception. 

The  classes  of  whom  we  speak  know  nothing  of  the 
perfection  or  the  life  of  Jesus — that,  unlike  all  other 
teachers,  \^ practiced  lohat  he  taught.  His  practice  was  as 
perfect,  pure  and  holy  as  his  teaching.  His  practice  was 
not  only  good  in  some  tilings^  but  in  everything^  with- 
out an  infraction.  This  was  miraculous.  No  man  ever 
gave  us  a  perfect  practice.  The  Lord  rose  above  hu- 
manity, and  gave  the  world  a  perfect  practice.  The 
teaching  of  all  the  wise  men,  and  the  best  the  world 
has  ever  produced,  was  imperfect;  had  some  things  in 
it  not  pure  and  good — and  then,  they  did  not  practice 
what  they  taught.  They  fell  short  in  both  the  teach- 
ing and  practice,  and  proved  themselves  to  be  imper- 
fect. Jesus  was  perfect  in  both  the  teaching  and  prac- 
tice. But  these  wonderful  matters  were  hid  to  the 
thoughtless  multitudes  of  whicii  we  are  speaking.  They 
knew  nothing  of  them,  and  they  had  no  influence  on 
them.  We  need  not  wonder  that  they  were  not  con- 
verted. 

The  classes  of  which  we  are  speaking  never  stopped 
to  think  of  the  wonderful  things  of  which  they  inci- 
dentally heard,  no  doubt,  many  times;  nor  of  the  bear- 
ing these  things  had  on  the  claims  of  Christ;  or  even 
what  his  claims  were.  ]^or  do  they  now.  They  are  the 
inconsiderate.  They  never  consider  anything  outside 
of  their  little  circle,  unless  it  should  be  something  in- 
terfering with  some  of  their  schemes.  Then  they  only 
consider  how  to  oppose  it^  because  it  comes  in  their  way ; 
nor  are  they  very  scrupulous  about  the  means  of  doing 
this.  They  regarded  what  they  heard,  or  even  any- 
thing that  came  under  their  personal  observation,  as 
they  did  an  earthquake,  a  hurricane,  or  pestilence — as 


IN  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  357 

wonderful^  and  only  worthy  of  mention  because  it  was 
tvo7iderful^  and  not  because  of  its  connection  with 
Christ,  or  the  apostles,  or  the  New  Institution.  They 
saw  no  meaning  hi  it.  So  these  vast  multitudes,  that 
in  a  kind  of  wholesale  way  admit  that  all  the  wonderful 
things  that  occurred  in  founding  the  New  Institution, 
did  actually  occur.  It  has  never  come  into  their  minds 
to  doubt  this;  but  they  have  not  thought  enough,  nor 
have  they  connection  enough  in  their  minds  to  associate 
those  things  with  our  Lord,  his  apostles,  and  the  intro- 
duction of  the  better  covenant  upon  better  promises. 

We  must,  also,  take  into  the  account  the  fact  that  the 
Jews'  religion  was  from  God;  and  there  was  a  large 
class  of  priests  that  had  their  living,  as  a  class,  in  that 
religion,  and  its  abrogation  swept  away  these  priest- 
hoods and  their  livings.  They  would  be  slow  to  receive 
a  new  religion  that  would  do  this.  Then,  this  new  re- 
ligion struck  down  the  membership  of  the  whole  pro- 
fessing religious  world,  declaring  to  them  all  alike  that 
they  must  be  born  again,  born  from  above,  born  of  God, 
or  they  could  not  enjoy  the  kingdom  of  God.  Then 
it  struck  down  all  the  Pagan  altars,  priests  and  temples, 
and  destroyed  the  craft  of  numerous  men  who  had  their 
means  of  wealth  in  manufacturing  shrines  for  Pagan  in- 
stitutions, temples  and  gods.  All  this  fell  to  the  ground 
where  the  religion  of  Christ  prevailed.  This  was  evi- 
dent to  all  in  a  short  time  after  the  religion  of  Christ 
was  introduced.  Then,  the  question  at  the  opening  of 
this  discourse  comes  to  us  with  wonderful  force:  What 
induced  such  vast  multitudes  to  accept  it?  They  must 
have  had  reasons  of  the  greatest  w^eight,  and  of  the 
clearest  import,  to  have  led  to  such  a  result.  We  have 
taken  a  rapid  glance  at  the  situation ;  the  cause  that 
produced  such  an  effect,  and  we  have  seen  that  it  is  not 


358  WHY  so  MANY  BECAME  CHRISTIANS 

stnmge  that  the  result  was  what  it  was;  that  it  is  not 
strange  that  such  vast  multitudes  came  to  the  Savior, 
but  it  is  strange  that  all  did  not  come. 

We  simply  now  have  time  for  a  few  words  of  recap- 
itulation in  conclusion. 

We  have  seen  that  our  Lord  had  his  own  twelve 
chosen  witnesses,  whom  he  had  with  him  for  about 
three  and  a  half  years,  who  were  his  most  intimate  com- 
panions and  acquaintances,  but  who,  at  his  crucifixion 
and  death,  became  disheartened  and  discouraged,  and 
supposed  all  was  lost;  gave  all  up  and  returned  to  their 
former  avocation  of  fishing  for  a  livelihood,  and  gave 
up  all  as  lost;  but  the  Lord  appeared  to  them  repeatedly, 
under  difi:erent  circumstances,  talked  with  them,  ate 
with  them,  drank  with  them,  gave  them  the  fullest  op- 
portunity to  identify  him;  and,  after  thus  appearing  to 
them  at  intervals,  during  a  space  of  some  forty  days,  in 
the  open  day,  he  ascended  in  their  presence  into  heaven. 
We  have  seen  that  these  twelve  men  could  not  have 
been  mistaken  about  the  matters  concerning  which  they 
testify.  They  knew  whether  they  testified  the  truth  or 
not.  They  could  not  have  been  dishonest.  They  gave 
the  highest  evidence  in  the  power  of  men  to  give,  of 
honesty  and  integrity.  If,  then,  they  could  not  have  been 
dishonest,  nor  have  been  mistaken,  their  testimony  is 
conclusive.  The  Lord  rose  from  the  dead.  This  settles 
the  whole  question.  If  he  rose,  God  raised  him;  if 
God  raised  him,  he  was  all  he  claimed  to  be.  He  is  the 
supreme,  the  absolute  authority.  This  the  people  had 
before  them.  They  were  not  moved  by  blind  vagaries 
and  generalities,  but  by  most  clear  and  intelligible  mat- 
ter of  fact,  brought  to  their  understandings. 

The  wonderful  transactions  at  the  crucifixion,  the 
darkness,  the  great  earthquake,  the  splitting  of  the  vail 


IN  APOSTOLIC  TIMES.  359 

and  reading  of  the  rocks,  were  in  the  presence  of  the 
multitude,  in  open  day,  and  fresh  in  the  minds  of  those 
who  first  hecame  obedient  to  the  faith.  They  were  not 
things  purporting  to  have  transpired  at  a  distance,  or  as 
Paul  said  to  Agrippa,  "Not  done  in  a  corner,"  but 
openly,  and  the  people  who  first  yielded  to  the  gospel 
knew  whether  they  occurred  or  not,  of  their  own  per- 
sonal observation,  without  taking  the  report  of  any  man. 
Those  present  on  Pentecost  knew  whether  there  was  a 
sound  from  heaven  as  a  rushing  mighty  wind;  whether 
there  were  seen  to  sit  on  each  of  them  cloven  tongues, 
like  as  of  fire,  and  whether  they  heard  them  speak  in 
their  own  tongue.  These  were  matters  not  reported  to 
them,  but  matters  of  personal  observation,  so  that  Peter 
could  refer  to  them  as  "the  things  they  saw  and  heard." 
The  testimony  of  angels,  to  the  shepherds,  at  the 
resurrection  and  the  ascension,  was  accredited  by  the 
people  generally.  The  testimony  of  the  Spirit,  at  the 
Lord's  baptism,  was  open  to  the  people.  The  testimony 
of  the  Lord,  under  oath,  was  open  before  the  people; 
and  the  crowning  testimony  of  all,  that  of  the  Almighty 
Father,  at  the  Jordan,  and  in  the  mountain  of  transfig- 
uration, rises  to  a  climax,  and  puts  the  man  who  will 
not  believe  on  Christ  beyond  the  reach  of  all  evidence, 
and  the  pale  of  all  reason.  These  were  some  of  the 
wonderful  transactions  that  led  to  the  belief  that  Jesus 
is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God.  This  belief 
showed  its  mighty  power  in  shaking  down  Judaism,  on 
the  one  hand,  and  Paganism,  on  the  other;  in  toppling 
the  Pagan  gods,  altars,  priests  and  temples  to  the  ground, 
and  planting  itself  on  the  ruins.  It  has  also  shown  its 
divine  power  in  withstanding  all  Paganism,  Judaism,  and 
Infidelity,  for  the  past  eighteen  centuries.    God  is  in  it !. 


SERMOK  1^0.  XVI. 

THEME. — THE    SOLDIER   OF    THE    CROSS. 

That  we  may  be  good  soldiers  the  Apostle  commands 
us  to  "be  strong  in  the  Lord  and  in  the  power  of  his 
might."  It  may  be  regarded  as  a  settled  matter  that 
when  the  Lord  commands  anything  to  be  done,  the 
command  can  be  obeyed — the  thing  can  be  done.  The 
very  circumstance  that  the  Lord  commands  is  sufficient 
proof  that  whatever  is  commanded  can  be  done.  He 
could  not,  reasonably  and  justly,  command  his  creatures 
to  do  anything  that  he  knew  they  could  not  do.  With 
this  assumed,  as  a  settled  matter,  how  can  the  Christian 
obey  the  command  to  "be  strong  in  the  Lord  and  in 
the  power  of  his  might?"  Men  frequently  excuse 
themselves  from  doing  certain  things  which  they  believe 
and  admit  to  be  right,  on  the  ground  that  they  are  locak. 
Why  do  they  not  obey  the  command,  "Be  strong?" 
You  begin  to  inquire.  How  can  I  be  strong?  If  a  man 
has  physical  strength  to  lift  five  hundred  pounds,  and 
no  more,  he  can  not,  by  an  exercise  of  his  will,  lift  six 
hundred  pounds.  That  is  so.  Yet,  even  the  physical 
power  is  to  some  extent  under  our  control.  We  can 
greatly  increase  or  diminish  it  by  our  own  conduct. 

It  is  important  to  good  physical  strength  that  a  man 
have  good  wholesome  food,  in  the  right  proportion,  and 
that  it  be  prepared  in  a  proper  manner,  and  taken  at 
proper  intervals,  or  temperately.  In  this  matter  the 
«<eill  and  judgment  are  employed.  A  man  may  eat  too 
31  (361) 


362  THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CROSS. 

much,  and  thus  injure  his  strength,  or  eat  too  little, 
though  there  is  not  much  danger  of  this  latter.  Much 
depends  on  the  articles  of  food  and  preparing  them.  A 
few  simple  articles  give  the  greatest  amount  of  strength. 
A  great  variety  is  injurious.  Everything  should  be  in  its 
simpler  form,  and  not  too  much  refined,  nor  too  many 
good  tilings  in  it.  If  you  use  our  plain  article  of  corn 
bread,  make  the  simplest  and  plainest  article.  It  will 
give  the  greatest  amount  of  nourishment,  and  conse- 
quentl}^  the  greatest  amount  of  strength.  This  article 
is  easily  produced  in  this  country,  and  is  probably  as 
cheap  as  any  other.  It  gives  as  much  strength  proba- 
bly, for  the  same  amount  of  labor  or  expense,  as  any 
other  article  we  have  in  this  country.  But  now,  turn 
this  plain  article  over  to  one  of  your  artful  and  scien- 
tific manufacturers,  and  let  him  take  it  through  his  fine 
process  of  distillation,  and  bring  out  the  sparkling  ar- 
ticle, no  matter  whether  straight  or  crooked^  and  give 
that  to  men,  and  see  what  it  will  do  for  them !  Will  it 
give  them  strength  of  body,  or  brighten  the  intellect? 
It  will  give  them  blood-shot  eyes,  bloated  faces,  send 
them  staggering,  and  tumble  them  into  the  gutter.  It 
will  craze  the  brain  and  ruin  them  in  every  sense.  This 
is  a  bad  preparation.  A  man  has  it  in  his  power  to 
avoid  this,  use  the  plain  article  that  will  nourish  and 
strengthen. 

The  Lord  has  provided  "the  pure  milk  of  the  word'' 
for  the  "  new-born  babes"  in  the  kingdom,  or  the  young 
converts,  that  they  may  grow  thereby.  But  now,  let  a 
metaphysical  distiller  take  this  "  pure  milk  of  the  word  " 
and  put  it  through  a  course  of  metaphysical  distillation^ 
and  bring  out  the  essence  of  it,  in  the  form  of  a  human 
creed,  and  give  it  to  the  young  converts,  and  in  a  short 
time  they  will  be  ofl"  to  themselves,  rallying  round  their 


THE    SOLDIER   OF    THE    CROSS.  363 

essence^  and  will  not  fellowship  those  who  continue  ta 
partake  of  "the  pure  milk  of  the  word"  and  will  not 
take  their  essence.  This  is  not  the  way  to  obey  the 
command,  "  Be  strong,"  but  the  way  to  he  vjeah 

We  can  not  have  good  strength  without  exercise. 
Every  limb  and  muscle  should  be  exercised;  not  in  some 
folly,  but  useful  employment.  This  is  indispensable  to 
being  strong.  The  Lord  has  wisely  arranged  for  the 
strength  to  be  drawn  to  the  part  exercised,  where  it  is 
needed.  The  man  Avho  has  lived  a  life  of  indolence, 
and  never  hardened  his  limbs  and  muscles  by  exercise, 
has  not  near  tlie  strength  he  would  have  had  with  the 
exercise.  In  like  manner,  the  man  who  has  no\received 
the  pure  milk  of  the  word,  nor  exercised  his  mind  on 
it,  studied  it,  talked  about  it,  and  treasured  it  up  in  his 
memory,  has  not  only  not  grown  thereby,  but  has  not 
become  "strong  in  the  Lord  and  in  the  power  of  his 
might." 

When  we  think  of  a  "  soldier  of  the  cross,"  two  things 
readily  come  up  into  view:  1.  Becoming  a  soldier;  2. 
The  work,  or  life,  of  a  soldier.  There  are  two  classes 
that  greatly  mistake.  1.  One  class  never  enlist;  never 
become  soldiers.  2.  The  other  class  enlist  all  right,  but 
never  do  the  work  of  the  soldier.  There  were  some  old 
men,  too  old  to  belong  to  the  army,  at  the  battle  of 
Bunker's  Hill,  in  the  time  of  the. American  Revolution, 
and  fought,  as  we  would  say  it  in  our  Westernish  style, 
on  "their  own  hook,"  taking  position  behind  trees,  logs, 
stumps,  rocks,  etc.,  and  did  much  service.  There  were 
also  boys,  too  young  to  be  in  the  army,  who  did  the 
same.  The  historian  speaks  well  of  these,  and  gives 
them  credit  for  what  they  did;  but  they  were  not  en- 
rolled in  the  army,  and  received  7io  priy-  In  the  same 
way,  there  are  some  men  who  skirmish  for  our  King, 


364  THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CROSS. 

and  do  good  battle,  who  have  never  enlisted,  and  do  not 
belong  to  the  army,  and  while  we  feel  kindly  toward 
them,  and  commend  them  for  the  battle  they  make  for 
our  King,  we  regret  that  they  do  not  volunteer,  join  the 
army  and  do  the  complete  work  of  the  soldier;  so  that 
they,  with  the  other  soldiers,  may  receive  the  reward. 

Touching  the  other  class,  who  volunteer,  join  the 
army,  but  never  put  the  armor  on ;  or,  if  they  chance 
to  put  it  on,  never  do  battle,  we  have  a  long  chapter  for 
them  that  we  can  not  give  them  in  this  connection.  We 
will  try  and  not  forget  them  in  another  place  before  we 
close  this  discourse. 

If  a  chieftain  were  beating  up  for  volunteers  to  go  into 
an  army,  what  would  be  the  first  considerations  that 
would  come  into  the  mind  of  a  man  thinking  of  enlist- 
ing? He  would  likely  inquire,  Is  this  cause  a  good  one? 
In  answer  to  this,  he  who  is  recruiting  for  the  army  of 
the  Lord  can  reply:  The  cause  is  simply  holy,  just  and 
good.  But  w4iat  kind  of  a  commander  shall  I  have? 
would  be  inquired.  I  do  not  like  to  enlist  and  be  placed 
under  some  foolhardy,  reckless  and  drunken  commander, 
who  would  rush  me  into  ruin  to  no  purpose.  In  regard 
to  this  the  way  is  clear.  The  Captain  of  our  salvation 
is  perfect.  His  command  is  so  perfect  that  not  a  man 
who  oheys  orders  will  be  lost.  We  only  have  to  look  ta 
him,  keep  our  eye  on  and  obey  him,  and  all  will  go  well. 
We  are  always  infallibly  safe  when  we  obey  him.  If  he 
leads  all  will  be  well.  But  w^hat  is  the  prospect  of  suc- 
cess? Su<?cess  is  certain.  God  has  sworn  that  Jesus 
shall  reign  till  every  knee  shall  bow,  and  every  tongue 
confess.  In  his  time  he.  will  show  who  is  the  only  Po- 
tentate^  the  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords.  He  must 
reign  till  all  his  enemies  are  put  under  his  feet — till  he 
puts  down  all  rule,  authority  and  power. 


THE    SOLDIER   OF    THE    CROSS.  365 

Can  not  a  man  take  neutral  ground — le  neither  ou 
one  side,  nor  the  other — for  or  against  the  cause?  The 
King  has  decided  that  "he  who  is  not  for  us  is  against 
us."  He  puts  down  every  man  against  him  who  is  not 
for  him.  Every  man  who  does  not  enlist  he  puts  down 
against  him.  What  if  a  man  declines  to  enlist,  will  he  be 
conscripted?  No;  King  Jesus  has  no  conscripts  in  his 
army.  His  soldiers  are  all  volunt6<rs.  The}^  are  in  the 
sirniy  because  they  loant  to  he  in  it.  They  went  into  it 
themselves.  They  have  conscripts  in  some  ecclesiastical 
armies.  We  have  seen  a  great  recruiting  officer,  with 
his  name  loaded  down  with  titles,  go  down  to  the  cradle 
and  conscript  a  little  infant,  before  it  knew  its  right 
hand  from  its  left !  This  is  not  only  conscripting,  but 
the  hardest  hind.  Our  King  has  nothing  of  this  kind 
in  his  army.  What  is  the  term  of  enlistment?  Do  they 
enlist  for  one  year,  two  years,  three  years,  or  five  years? 
It  is  not  for  one  year,  two,  three,  nor  five,  but  forever. 
The  (covenant  is  everlasting.  Their  language,  when 
they  enlist,  is,  "Here,  Lor-d,  I  give  myself  away.''''  We 
are  nut  our  own^  but  have  been  bought  with  a  price,  and 
belong  to  Him  who  has  purchased  us  with  his  own 
blood.  AYe  know  one  ecclesiastical  army  that  has  a 
term  of  six  months — takes  in  six-months-men.  But 
King  Jesus  has  not  a  six-months-man  in  his  army. 
Those  in  his  army  are  in  forever. 

What  is  the  first  thing  when  a  man  enlists?  The  first 
thing  is  the  oath  of  allt glance.  What  is  the  oath?  We 
complain  of  the  Papists  for  having  so  many  sacraments, 
and  say.  We  Protestants  have  but  two.  But  where  did 
you  get  two  f  You  say,  Baptism  and  the  Lord's  Supper. 
Why  do  you  call  these  sacraments  f  They  are  not  so 
called  in  Scripture.  Sacramentum  is  an  oath  and  the 
resemblance  of  the  oath  taken  by  the  soldier,  and  the 


SQ6  THE    SOLDIER    OF    THE    CROSS. 

pledge  a  man  makes  iu  his  baptism,  and  the  renewal  of 
that  pledge  in  the  communion,  led  to  calling  baptisn. 
and  the  communion  sacraments.  It  is  this  that  lead? 
men  to  dread -baptism;  it  is  the  saGramentum — the  oath 
of  allegiance.  When  a  man  comes  to  it  he  hesitates, 
and  studies  the  words,  "  Into  the  name  of  the  Father, 
and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit."  There  is 
something  binding  in  that!  It  is  a  very  serious  mattor. 
I  am  afraid  I  shall  not  be  able  to  hold  out  faithful.  I 
take  upon  me  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son, 
and  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  I  am  afraid  that  I  have  not  the 
faith;  that  my  heart  is  not  right;  that  I  might  come 
short.  It  requires  more  argument,  reason,  and  Scripture, 
to  induce  one  man  to  come  to  baptism,  than  to  induce 
ten  to  come  to  a  mourners'  bench.  They  see  that  there 
is  nothing  binding  in  coming  to  the  mourners'  bencli. 
There  is  no  covenant  there — no  pledge.  God  did  not 
ordain  it,  and  has  no  promise  there.  The  preacher  who 
invites  you  to  come  there  claims  no  authority  of  God 
for  it,  and  promises  nothing.  But  he  says  he  has  known 
people  to  get  a  blessing  there,  and  invites  you  to  come 
and  try  it.  It  will  do  you  no  harm.  The  man  friendly 
to  religion  says,  There  is  nothing  binding  in  all  that. 
I  have  no  objection  to  go  up  and  ti'y  it.  This  changes 
no  relation,  but  leaves  the  man  where  he  was  before, 
except  that  he  must  excuse  himself  for  what  he  has 
done,  and  this  commits  him  to  the  defense  of  the  prac- 
tice. Kot  so  with  baptism — it  is  binding.  It  changes 
his  relation  ;  transfers  him  into  a  new  state — "  into  the 
name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,"  "into  one  body,"  "into  the  kingdom  of  God," 
and  binds  him  as  a  subject  of  the  great  King.  It  is  the 
oath  of  allegiance,  the  initiation,  the  entering  the  new 
and  everlasting  covenant — the  most  binding  obligation 


THE    SOLDIER   OF    THE    CROSS.  367 

that  any  oue  ever  took,  or  ever  can  take.  This  is  the 
reason  men  are  so  slow  to  come  to  baptism.  It  is  not 
the  water  that  intimidates  them,  nor  the  immersion  in 
water,  but  the  wonderful  obligation  they  enter  into,  the 
fearful  covenant,  signed  by  the  great  name  of  God, 
eealed  with  the  blood  of  Jesus,  and  confirmed  by  the 
oath  of  God.  Here  is  where  a  man  pledges  himself,  by 
all  the  honor  and  integrity  in  him,  to  be  true  to  the  Lord 
that  bought  him.  Every  week  this  covenant  is  re- 
newed, by  bringing  the  blood  and  body  of  the  Lord 
fresh  into  our  view,  in  the  breaking  of  the  loaf. 

We,  as  subjects  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  and  sol- 
diers in  his  army,  are  bound,  by  the  most  authoritative 
covenant  that  ever  bound  men,  not  to  a  sect,  a  creed  of 
man's  device,  but  to  God,  Christ,  the  Holy  Spirit,  the 
law  of  God,  and  the  body  of  Christ.  If  this  obligation 
will  not  hold  us  and  keep  us  in  the  good  and  the  right 
>vay,  we  need  try  no  other  obligation. ,  A  man  that  will 
not  regard  the  covenant  with  his  God  would  certainly 
regard  no  other  covenant,  unless  it  was  one  that  had 
8ome  legal  hold  on  his  person  or  property. 

But  some  one  is  ready  to  inquire.  Are  w^e  not  now 
ready  for  war,  as  we  have  enlisted  and  taken  the  oath? 
l^ot  ready  for  much  war  yet,  and  many  never  get  ready, 
and  never  do  much  in  the  way  of  war.  The  work  of 
enlisting  is  short  and  easy.  It  is  soon  done.  iS"or  does 
it  take  long  to  take  the  oath.  The  long  road  lies  ahead 
of  all  that.  The  hard  battles  are  all  j^et  to  be  fought. 
For  these  the  new  recruit,  who  has  just  taken  the  oath, 
is  not  yet  prepared.  Do  j^ou  inquire.  What  more  is 
wanting?  The  Apostle  exhorts,  "Take  you  the  whole 
armor  of  God,  that  you  may  be  able  to  withstand  in 
the  evil  day,  and  having  done  all,  to  stand." — See 
Ephesians  vi.  13.     He  does  not  mean  for  a  few  preach- 


868  THE   SOLDIER   OF    THE   CROSS. 

ers  to  take  to  themselves  the  whole  armor,  but  the 
Church,  the  whole  Church.  The  whole  body  of  Christ, 
the  entire  family,  are  soldiers,  and  must  be  armed  for 
battle. 

Hhey  are  not  to  go  round  telling  what  wonderful  bat- 
tles the  Holy  Ghost  has  fought  for  them.,  but  they  must 
themselves  "fight  the  good  fight  of  faith,  that  they  may 
lay  hold  on  eternal  life."  What  armor  must  they  take 
to  do  this  wonderful  service?  They  must  have  "the 
loins  girt  about  with  truth."  We  presume  the  Apostle 
had  the  Roman  soldier  in  his  mind  in  this  figurative 
language.  The  Roman  soldier  wore  a  beavy  leather 
belt,  as  a  support  to  the  back,  in  enduring  the  hardships 
of  war,  and  to  it  were  attached  some  of  his  implements 
of  war,  as  a  convenient  way  of  carrying  them.  This 
was  an  important  article  in  the  armor.  The  soldier  of 
Jesus,  instead  of  this,  has  "his  loins  girt  about  with 
truth."  This  is  the  support  he  needs  to  stand  in  his 
warfare.  lie  receives  the  truth,  the  whole  truth,  and 
nothing  but  the  truth,  believes  it  with  his  whole  heart, 
and  knows  that  the  powers  of  earth  and  hell  can  not 
overthrow  it.  This  is  a  wonderful  source  of  strength. 
This  requires  much  attention,  careful  thought,  reading 
and  conversation,  to  arm  ourselves  with  the  truth — to 
have  "  our  loins  girt  about  with  truth." 

We  must  have  "the  breastplate  of  righteousness." 
The  Roman  soldier  wore  a  breastplate,  sometimes  of 
steel;  in  other  instances,  of  sheet-iron,  brass,  or  copper. 
It  was  constructed  to  wear  on  the  breast.  The  sword, 
or  spear,  could  not  pierce  through  it.  It  would  stop 
the  force  of  many  other  missiles  employed  in  that  day  to 
kill  men,  and  was  considered  an  important  part  of  the 
panoply.  The  soldier  of  the  cross,  instead  of  this,  has 
on  "the  breastplate  of  righteousness."     Righteousness 


THE    SOLDIER   OF    THE    CROSS.  369 

is  simply  doing  right.  "He  that  doeth  righteousness  is 
righteous,  eveu  as  He  is  righteous." — 1  Johu  iii.  7. 
"  Whoever  doeth  not  righteousness  is  not  of  God." — 1 
John  iii.  10.  The  way  to  be  righteous  is  to  ^'' do  right- 
eousness," or  simply  to  do  right;  do  the  will  of  God. 
This  is  the  breastplate  for  the  soldier  of  the  cross — "the 
breastplate  of  righteousness  " — which  he  must  always 
have  on.  The  Roman  soldier  had  a  helmet  to  wear  on 
the  head,  in  the  form  of  a  heavy  cap,  with  thick  leather, 
brass  or  copper  in  it,  to  protect  the  head  from  stones 
thrown  in  slings,  darts,  and  other  missiles  of  war.  This 
was  also  considered  an  important  item  in  the  equipage 
of  the  soldier.  Instead  of  this,  the  soldier  of  the  cross 
has  "  the  helmet  of  salvation."  Salvation  is  important  in 
his  warfare  in  two  ways:  1.  To  be  firm  and  stand  strong 
in  the  faith,  a  man  must  have  scriptural  assurance  of 
pardon,  or  salvation  from  past  sin.  This  he  obtains  on  be- 
coming a  soldier.  2.  He  must  have  a  well-grounded  hope 
of  the  future  and  final  salvation.  This  latter  he  can 
only  have  "  by  a  faithful  continuance  in  well-doing, 
seeking  for  glory,  and  honor,  and  immortality,  that  he 
may  obtain  eternal  life." 

The  soldier  of  the  cross  must  have  a  shield.  "Above 
all,  taking  the  shield  of  faith,  wherewith  you  shall  be 
able  to  quench  all  the  fiery  darts  of  the  wicked."  The 
Roman  shield  was  constructed  to  wear  on  the  left  arm, 
and  was  made  of  thin  plate,  so  as  to  be  easily  carried, 
extending  from  below  the  knee  nearly  to  the  top  of  the 
head,  and  held  a  little  slanting,  as  the  soldier  advanced 
with  his  left  side  a  little  turned  forward,  thus  glancing 
off  darts  and  other  dangerous  missiles  hurled  at  him. 
Instead  of  this,  the  soldier  of  the  cross  has  "  the  shield 
of  faith."  By  this  he  is  to  quench  all  the  fiery  darts  of 
the  wicked.     The  Apostle  puts  this  above  all..  Truly  is 


370  THE    SOLDIER    OF    THE    CROSS. 

it  at  the  top.  Without  it  all  the  balance  is  nothing.  By 
faith  the  mighty  deeds  of  the  ancients  were  performed, 
and  by  faith  we  must  make  our  v^ay  to  the  everlasting 
rest,  if  we  ever  reach  it.  By  faith  we  withstand  every 
besetment,  overcome  every  obstruction,  offer  every 
prayer,  sing  every  song,  make  every  exhortation,  and 
preach  every  sermon.  "  Without  faith  it  is  impossible 
to  please  him ;  for  he  who  comes  to  God  must  believe 
that  he  is,  and  that  he  is  a  rewarder  of  those  who  dili- 
gently seek  him."  Be  careful,  then,  and  always  be 
armed  with  "the  shield  of  faith,"  that  you  may  " be  able 
to  quench  all  the  fiery  darts  of  the  wicked." 

The  soldier  must  have  his  feet  shod.  The  Roman 
soldier  had  a  strong  sandal  strapped  tightly  on  his  foot, 
that  would  stand  the  rough  ground  and  protect  the  feet. 
If  he  expected  to  travel  over  ice,  or  ascend  on  boards  in 
scaling  a  wall  or  breastwork,  spikes  were  inserted  in  the 
bottom  of  the  sandal,  so  that  the  foot  would  stand  on 
ice,  a  board,  anywhere,  and  would  not  slip  hack^  or  hack- 
slide.  Every  inch  of  ground  he  would  gain  he  could 
hold.  The  soldier  of  the  cross  must  have  his  feet  shod, 
that  he  may  not  haclcslide^  and  so  that  he  may  stand 
fast^  and,  having  done  all,  to  stand.  In  order  to  this 
he  must  have  his  "  feet  shod  with  a  preparation  of  the 
gospel  of  peace."  This  does  not  mean  that  a  few  priests 
shall  have  their  feet  shod  with  a  preparation  of  the  gos- 
pel of  peace,  and  the  balance  of  the  members  go  bare- 
footed; but  the  whole  Church,  all  the  members,  must 
have  their  feet  shod  with  the  preparation  of  the  gospel 
of  peace,  that  they  may  be  able  to  stand  in  the  evil  day, 
and,  having  done  all,  to  stand.  This  is  no  small  matter 
— this  "preparation  of  the  gospel  of  peace."  This  is 
not  attained  by  a  volition,  a  single  bound,  a  mere  emo- 
tion, but  requires  time,  careful  study,  much  read>>\g  and 


THE    SOLDIER   OF    THE    CROSS.  371 

application.  Indolent  people  do  not  attain  to  this,  and 
for  the  want  of  this  "  preparation  of  the  gospel  of 
peace"  are  never  able  to  battle  for  our  King,  and  always 
iiable  to  fall  victims  to  the  enemy.  In  order,  then,  to 
this  important  item  in  the  equipment,  the  word  of  God 
should  be  consulted  daily,  carefully  meditated  on,  and 
form  an  important  part  of  our  conversation. 

But  no  preparation  has  been  provided  for  the  ljaG\ 
in  case  of  a  retreat  I  That  is  so.  A  good  general  keeps 
his  eye  open  as  to  the  situation  behind  him,  so  that, 
should  the  necessity  come,  he  can  retreat.  But  it  is  de- 
moralizing to  talk  about  it,  or  to  let  there  be  any  visible 
preparations  for  retreating,  and,  in  ordinary  war,  there 
is  but  little  said  about  it.  The  talk  is  about  going  for- 
ward, attacking,  routing  and  pursuing  the  enemy.  But 
our  King  intended  no  retreating  in  any  event.  His 
order  is  ever  to  "stand,"  "stand  fast,"  to  "fight  the  good 
fight  of  faith,  and  lay  hold  on  eternal  life."  "  To  him 
who  overcomes  wnll  I  grant  to  sit  down  with  me  in  my 
throne,  as  I  overcame,  and  am  set  down  with  my  Father 
in  his  throne."  "He  who  overcomes  shall  be  clothed  in 
white  raiment,  and  I  will  not  blot  out  his  name  out  of 
the  book  of  life;  but  I  will  confess  his  name  before  my 
Father,  and  before  his  angels."  To  the  man  wiio  turns 
back  he  says,  "If  any  man  draw  back,  my  soul  shall 
have  no  pleasure  in  him."  If  the  soldier  of  the  cross 
turns  back,  retreats,  he  is  gone;  he  is  turned  coward, 
traitor,  and  is  gone  anyway,  and  no  provision  made  to 
protect  the  man  who  runs. 

Some  one  is  ready  to  say  that  this  whole  armor  is 
only  to  protect  the  soldier,  and  not  to  assail  the  enemy. 
There  is  not  an  aggressive  item  in  the  armor,  nothing 
to  wound  or  kill,  and  I  am  in  favor  of  putting  on  the 
armor  and  simply  standing  in  the  defensive.     I  am  not 


372  THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CROSb. 

willing  to  assail  the  enemy,  to  carry  on  a  war  of  aggres- 
sion^ of  conquest.  There  is  one  article  in  the  panoply 
that  has  not  heen  mentioned  in  this  discourse  yet.  That 
is  called  "  the  sword  of  the  Spirit,  which  is  the  word  of 
God." 

The  lloman  sword  did  not,  that  we  know  of,  differ 
materially  from  the  sword  now  in  use.  This  was  in  the 
Apostle's  eye  when  he  uttered  the  words  just  quoted. 
The  sword  is  not  made  simply  with  a  view  to  warding 
off  the  weapons  of  the  enemy;  nor  is  it  mainly  for  that 
purpose.  It  is  an  offensive  weapon;  it  is  aggressive;  its 
main  office  is  to  kill.  So  "the  sword  of  the  Spirit, 
which  is  the  word  of  God,"  is  not  mainly  to  ward  off 
the  weapons  of  the  enemy,  but  it  is  aggressive,  to  attack 
the  enemy,  assail  and  rout  him,  slay  him.  When  all 
things  were  ready,  and  the  Pentecost  fully  come,  the 
Apostle  Peter,  for  the  first  time  after  the  Spirit,  by  his 
wonderful  power,  had  put  the  sword  into  his  hands, 
drew  out  and  assailed  the  vast  multitude  before  him, 
and  yierced  the  hearts  of  three  thousand  people^  and 
they  critid  for  salvation.  This  was  the  office  of  the 
sword. 

A  man  cries  out,  "  That  is  all  right.  The  Spirit  took 
the  sword,  wielded  it,  and  slew  the  three  thousand,  and  I 
am  praying  daily  for  the  Spirit  to  come  now  and  take  the 
sword,  the  word  of  God,  and  do  the  work."  The  trouble 
now  is,  then,  that  the  Spirit  will  not  come  and  do  his 
work !  That  is  not  the  trouble  at  all.  The  Spirit  never 
failed  to  do  his  work;  nor  is  he  now  failing  to  do  his 
ivorh — but  men  are  failing  to  do  their  work.  Paul  did 
not  tell  the  Spirit  to  take  the  sword  of  the  Spirit  and 
wield  it,  but  told  men  to  take  it  and  wield  it.  Hear 
him:  "Take  the  helmet  of  salvation,  and  the  sword  of 
the  Spirit,  which  is  the  word  of  God." — See  Epheeians 


THE    SOLDIER    OP    THE    CROSS.  373 

_vi.  17.  Who  did  he  command  to  "take  the  helmet  of 
salvation?"  Certainly  not  the  Spirit.  Paul  never 
commanded  the  Spirit  to  do  anything.  But  he  com- 
manded the  saints  in  Ephesus,  and,  through  them,  all 
the  holy  ones  ever^'where,  to  "take  the  helmet  of  salva- 
tion, and  the  sword  of  the  Spirit,  which  is  the  word  of 
God."  Take  it  yourself  and  use  it;  do  the  work  of  a 
soldier,  and  not  pray  for  the  Spirit  to  do  what  you  are 
commanded  to  do  yourself. 

But  now,  are  we  not  ready  to  move  forward  on  the 
works  of  the  enemy,  seeing  that  we  have  enlisted  ac- 
cording to  law,  taken  the  oath,  and  put  on  the  whole 
armor  of  God?  By  no  means  yet.  This  armor  is  all 
Ti'^w  to  you^  and  you  know  not  how  to  use  it.  Then  the 
whole  aftair  of  war  is  new,  and  you  must  learn  war. 
Next  comes  the  drill.  This  is  a  dry  and  tedious  process, 
and  requires  practice,  endurance  and  determination  to 
go  through  it  and  become  proficient.  Some  one  is 
ready  to  exclaim.  What  do  you  mean  by  the  drill  f  Look 
back  over  the  armor  that  you  have  taken,  and  inquire, 
Are  you  ready  to  use  it?  "We  have  seen  the  green  sol- 
dier, or  the  green  ofiicer,  with  his  first  uniform  and 
equipment,  that  looked  soldierly  enough,  but  he  did  not 
understand  how  to  use  to  advantage  an  article  of  his 
equipment.  For  long  weeks  he  had  to  drill,  maneuver, 
and  learn  how  to  march,  handle  his  arms,  and  perform 
every  part  of  the  work. 

You  inquire,  What  drill  can  there  be  for  us?  In  this 
part  of  the  work  we  have  come  short  more  than  in  any 
other.  We  have  enlisted  many  soldiers  that  have  never 
been  drilled.  Some  of  them  will  not  he  drilUd.  In- 
deed, some  of  them  never  put  the  armor  on,  and  never 
learn  to  use  it.  But  this  is  not  telling  what  we  mean  by 
the  drill.    We  mean,  then,  instructing,  educating,  qualify- 


374  THE    SOLDIER    OF    THE   CROSS. 

ing  every  joung  convert,  developing  and  bringing  into 
activity  and  use  every  talent  to  sing,  read  the  Scriptures, 
pray,  exhort,  preach,  or  any  other  part  of  the  divine 
work,  thus  employing  their  heads,  hands  and  hearts,  ia 
that  which  is  great  and  good.  In  order  to  this  end, 
those  who  have  talent  to  sing  must  be  taught  to  sing,  to 
worship  God  in  song;  to  praise,  adore  and  honor  God 
in  song;  to  teach  and  admonish  in  song;  to  exhort, 
pray,  and  give  thanks  in  song  and  hymn.  This  is  trans- 
cendently  more  than  merely  learning  musio.  There  is 
no  praise  in  music,  no  prayer,  thanksgiving,  teaching, 
nor  admonition,  any  more  than  there  is  in  arithmetic. 
Thousands  have  their  heads  full  of  music  who  have  no 
worship  in  their  hearts,  or  on  their  lips.  The  worship 
is  in  the  sense  of  the  words  sung  with  the  spirit  and 
with  the  understanding.  It  is  a  great  matter  to  train 
Christians  in  this  part  of  worship.  We  have  a  vast 
number  that  have  not  the  first  conception  of  worship- 
ing in  psalms,  hymns  and  spiritual  songs.  They  think 
that  anything  that  will  make  music  will  fill  the  divine 
requirement.  But  making  music  is  not  worship  at  all. 
There  is  no  worship  in  music.  People  who  do  not  wor- 
ship at  all  love  music,  admire  it,  and  are  moved  by  it, 
as  much  as  any  other  people.  Music  is  simply  a  branch 
of  education,  or  an  item  in  education,  and  purely  secu- 
lar, as  much  as  spelling  and  reading,  grammar  and  arith- 
metic. Like  all  learning,  it  can  be  applied  to  good  or 
bad  uses. 

When  we  speak  of  singing  in  worship,  we  do  not 
mean  inusic,  but  singi?ig,  praising  God  in  psalms,  hymns 
and  spiritual  songs ;  teaching^  admonishing^  giving 
thanks,  exhorting  and  supplicating^  in  psalms,  hymna 
and  spiritual  songs;  doing  this  with  the  spirit  and  un- 
derstanding; doing  this  with  intelligence,  to  edification. 


THE   SOLDIER   OF    THE   CROSS.  375 

This  is  what  we  want.  In  order  to  this  we  must  have 
a  teacher  who  is  a  worshiper  in  the  true  sense;  who 
himself  worships  the  Lord  in  Spirit  and  in  truth ;  and 
not  a  mere  idolater,  who  worships  music,  and  whose 
highest  ambition  is  a  ijiusical  concert,  an  operatic,  the- 
atrical and  artistic  display.  We  have  been  disgusted 
with  this  class  again  and  again.  We  must  have  men 
of  God  to  teach  our  young  people  how  to  worship  in 
psalms,  hymns  and  spiritual  songs,  and  not  a  man  who 
loves  an  old  fiddle,  piano,  or  organ,  more  than  his  Bible, 
and  is  himself  not  a  worshiper  at  all,  but  a  mere  secular 
music  teacher  and  theatrical  performer.  Such  men  can 
never  teach  us  how  to  worship.  They  need  themselves 
to  be  turned  to  the  Lord,  constituted  worshipers,  and 
then  to  be  taught  what  it  means  to  worship,  and  how 
to  worship. 

This,  then,  is  an  important  part  of  the  drill — to  teach 
the  disciples  of  the  Lord  to  worship  in  psalms,  hymns 
and  spiritual  songs;  how  to  do  this  to  edification,  to 
the  encouragement  of  the  congregation,  and  in  an  ac- 
ceptable manner  to  the  Lord.  This  requires  extended 
training,  much  practice  and  devotion.  This  will  never 
be  attained  by  a  mere  lover  of  music.  To  attain  to  this 
one  must  love  the  Savior,  his  cause  and  people,  and  the 
worship  itself,  and  must  have  an  ardent  desire  to  be  a 
true  worshiper.  The  members  of  the  body,  in  any  com- 
munity, must  engage  with  the  determination  of  learn- 
ing how  to  worship  God;  teach  and  admonish  the  saints 
in  psalms,  hymns  and  spiritual  songs,  and  stick  to  it, 
with  the  settled  purpose  to  learn;  and  with  the  patience 
and  perseverance  of  the  young  girl  at  her  lessons  on  the 
piano,  or  the  men  in  the  brass  band,  and  practice  year 
after  year,  and  the  rare  attainment  will  be  reached — one 
who  can  worship  the  Lord  our  God  in  song;  one  who 


376  THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CROSS. 

cau  teach  and  admonish  one  another  in  psalms,  hymiio 
and  spiritual  songs.  An  utter  neglect  of  this  has  pre- 
vailed in  many  places,  and,  indeed,  very  generally. 

But  this  is  only  one  item  in  the  drill.  We  must  not 
always  expect  to  have  some  one  to  teach  us.  We  must 
become  able  to  teach  othtrs.  We  must  make  ourselves 
thoroughly  acquainted  with  the  Scriptures.  This  must 
be  done  by  careful,  daily,  and  prayerful  reading  and 
study  of  the  word  of  God.  We  must  not  simply  treasure 
it  up  in  our  own  minds,  and  store  our  minds  with  it,  but 
learn  how  to  impart  instruction  to  others;  how  to  select 
suitable  portions  of  the  word  of  the  Lord,  and  read  them 
publicly,  to  the  edification  of  the  Church.  We  must, 
as  good  soldiers  of  Jesus,  arm  ourselves  with  courage, 
fortitude  and  resolution,  as  far  as  we  can  become  capa- 
ble, to  come  before  the  public  assembly  and  assist  in 
the  exercises — in  prayer,  exhortation,  teaching  and  ad- 
monishing, and  thus  become  eflacient  and  effective  in 
the  divine  life.  All  our  young  men,  who  have  native 
ability,  ought  to  be  trained,  drilled,  and  all  the  talent 
they  have  developed  and  brought  into  lively  exercise. 
Here  is  where  many  of  the"  drilling  oflicers  are  fearfully 
deficient.  They  assume  that  they  are  teachers,  and  at- 
tempt to  perform  the  entire  work  by  lecturing.  The 
people  soon  become  weary  of  their  lecturing,  take  no 
interest  in  it,  and  do  not  even  listen  to  them.  They 
make  no  eftbrt  to  call  out  the  talent,  develop  it,  and 
bring  it  into  exercise,  and  thus  qualify  the  rising  gener- 
ation for  the  great  battle  before  them.  This  must  be 
done,  or  we  shall  never  be  a  powerful  and  effective  peo- 
ple, nor  able  for  the  great  work  God  has  committed  to 
our  hands. 

But  we  must  not  leave  this  work  of  the  drill  without 


THE    SOLDIER   OF    THE    CROSS.  377 

more  explicitly  looking  into  the  different  departments 
of  it. 

1.  The  greatest  department  for  this  work  is  in  the 
home  circle.  Here  the  head  of  the  family  is,  or  ought 
to  he,  master  of  the  situation.  He  decides  when  to  rise 
and  when  to  retire,  and  what  the  order  of  the  house 
shall  be.  Here  he  has  the  matter  in  hand,  can  read  the 
word,  comment  on  it,  impart  instruction  to  the  circle 
around  him,  and  thus  improve  himself  while  he  is  im- 
proving them.  Here  is  the  place  to  learn  how  to  pray, 
and  not  only  to  learn  liow^  but  ijray.  Here  is  the  most 
favorable  opportunity  of  all  others  for  instruction.  Here 
you  have  a  confiding  audience,  ready  to  receive  implic- 
itly all  you  teach;  true  and  unsophisticated  hearts, 
without  a  prejudice  in  the  way;  the  most  favorable 
hearing  you  will  ever  have  for  the  impartation  of  in- 
struction. The  neglect  of  this  is  most  disastrous,  as 
well  as  inexcusable. 

2.  The  Bible  Class.  Here  a  dozen  or  more,  as  the 
case  may  be,  may  meet  once  a  week,  recite  a  lesson  they 
may  have  had  in  hand  since  the  last  meeting,  compare 
notes,  talk  the  lesson  all  over.  This  is  a  pleasant  way 
of  acquiring  knowledge,  and  it  brings  the  friends  of  the 
Lord  together,  and  is  a  pleasant  and  joyful  meeting  in 
itself,  and  you  never  inquire,  "What  harm  is  it?" 

3.  The  Singing  Class.  This  should  meet  once  a  week, 
and  is  in  itself  a  most  pleasant  and  delightful  meeting. 
We  have  already  said  as  much  of  the  object  of  this,  and 
the  manner  of  it,  its  purpose  and  aim,  as  we  have  space 
for  now.  This  is  an  important  part  of  the  drill.  It 
must  by  no  means  be  omitted.  Xor  may  it  be  handed 
over  to  a  few — we  must  all  be  worshipers. 

4.  Meetings  for  prayers.  These  are  of  great  impor- 
tance, and  should  be  made  meetings  of  most  thriving 

32 


378  THE   SOLDIER    OF    THE    CROSS. 

interest.  We  do  not  see  any  sense  in  calling  them  social 
meetings.  They  are  no  more  social  than  any  other 
meetings.  They  are  meetings  for  devotion,  spiritual 
exercises,  edification  and  instruction,  and  those  who  need 
edification  and  instruction  should  be  there,  as  well  as 
those  who  can  edify  and  instruct.  They  should  be  made 
meetings  for  the  improvent  of  talent,  the  development 
of  all  the  powers  of  the  congregation,  and  bringing 
them  all  into  use.  ^o  one  who  expects  to  grow  in  the 
grace  and  knowledge  of  the  Lord  should  be  absent  from 
these  meetings. 

5.  The  regular  "meeting  on  the  first  day  of  the  week 
to  break  bread,"  is  the  divinely  appointed  assembly  for 
general  training,  instruction,  edification  and  encourage- 
ment, but  specially  for  the  celebration  of  the  Lord's 
death,  and  renewing  our  covenant  with  the  Lord.  Every 
soldier  of  the  cross  should  be  present  at  all  these  meet- 
ings, and  thus  derive  all  the  benefits  of  the  heavenly 
training. 

The  work  here  enumerated  is  regular  work^  not  for 
pastime^  mere  pleasure  or  social  enjoyment^  but  for  the 
cultivation,  development  and  preparation  of  the  soldiers 
of  the  cross  for  their  great  work.  They  should  engage 
in  all  this  in  view  of  becoming  good  soldiers  of  Jesus. 
But  now,  that  the  soldiers  are  enlisted,  sworn  in,  pano- 
plied and  drilled,  we  need  some  vmr  songs.  Where 
shall  we  find  them?  We  have  plenty  of  them.  One 
glorious  old  war  song  commences  with  the  words : — 

"Am  I  a  soldier  of  the  cross— 

A  follower  of  the  Lamb  ? 
And  shall  I  fear  to  own  his  cause, 
Or  blush  to  speak  his  name?  " 

This  has  the  spirit  of  war  in  it.  The  soldier  rouses. 
as  if  from  a  reverie,  and  bursts  forth  in  the  exclamation. 


THE    SOLDIER   OF    THE    CROSS.  379 

"Arn  I  a  soldier  of  the  cross?"  la  astonishment  he 
makes  this  exclamation,  in  view  of  his  wonderful  call- 
ins: — "a  soldier  of  the  cross !"  Further  on  he  exclaims : — 

"Must  I  be  carried  to  the  skies, 
On  flow'ry  beds  of  ease; 
While  others  fought  to  win  the  prize, 
And  sailed  through  bloody  seas?  " 

This  is  the  language  of  the  soldier;  the  man  that  de- 
sires to  do  his  part.    Then  he  follows  with  the  words: — ■ 

"Are  there  no  foes  for  me  to  face? 
Must  I  not  stem  the  flood?  " 

Then  he  adds: — 

"Sure  I  must  fight,  if  I  would  reign! 
Increase  my  courage,  Lord  I  " 

Another  good  war  song  commences  as  follows : — 

"  I'm  not  ashamed  to  own  my  Lord, 
Nor  to  defend  his  cause ; 
Maintain  the  honors  of  his  word. 
The  glory  of  his  cross." 

This  means  war.  Would  that  we  had  more  who 
could  sing  it,  and  mean  what  they  sing.  Another  one 
has  the  following  words  in  it: — 

"  Through  floods  and  flames,  if  Jesus  lead, 
I'll  follow  where  he  goes." 

This  is  expressive  of  the  soul  of  the  genuine  soldier 
of  the  cross.  He  has  his  eye  on  his  great  Leader  and 
Commander!  Let  him  but  load  the  way,  though  it  be 
through  Hoods  and  flames,  and  he  resolves  to  follow. 
How  different  the  spirit  in  this  from  the  one  in  which 
we  have  the  words : — 

•' How  tedious  and  tasteless  the  hours, 
Since  Jesus  no  longer  1  see." 


380  THE    SOLDIER   OF    THE    CROSS. 

This  is  not  the  language  of  a  resolute  soldier,  but  of 
one  who  has  lost  his  place  in  tlie  ranks,  lost  sight  of  hia 
Leader,  lost  his  musket,  and  became  "a  straggler,"  wan- 
dering through  the  fields  and  forests.  He  is  in  no  condi- 
tion to  sing;  he  had  better  ^r^?/,  that  new  courage  may 
be  put  into  him,  and  new  resolutions,  and  that  he  may 
be  enabled  again  to  get  his  eye  on  his  Commander,  and 
keep  it  on  him.  l!^or  do  we  want  him  to  sing  about 
*Hhose  gloomy  doubts  that  rise,"  but  to  rise  up  into  the 
region  of  faith  —  the  *'full  assurance  of  faith  "-  —  that 
shall  support  him  in  life,  and  bear  up  his  soul  in  death. 
We  want  to  see  the  grand  army  enlisted,  sworn  to  eter- 
nal allegiance  to  King  Jesus,  equipped,  panoplied  with 
the  whole  armor  of  God,  thoroughly  drilled,  and  with 
triumphant  war  songs,  moving  in  solid  columns,  all 
along  the  lines,  under  the  command  of  the  great  Head 
of  the  Church.  This  army  is  backed  up  by  the  armies 
in  heaven,  by  the  King  Eternal  and  Immortal,  the  Only 
Wise  God,  and  bid  to  move  upon  the  works  of  the  en- 
emy. The  strong  holds  of  sin  must  be  assailed ;  the  en- 
emies works  must  be  carried;  His  authority  must  be 
asserted  and  maintained  everywhere.  The  war  must  be 
vigorously  prosecuted,  and  the  King's  arms  carried  for- 
ward till  the  last  enemy  shall  put  down  his  arms  and 
surrender. 

But  now,  to  carry  on  war  successfully,  there  must  be 
several  points  guarded. 

1.  There  must  be  no  traitors  in  the  ranks.  If  men 
are  traitors^  send  them  through  the  lines  to  their 
friends,  thus  ridding  the  army  of  their  demoralizing 
iniiuence.  If  allowed  to  remain  among  the  true  sol- 
diers, they  will  demoralize  them,  create  panics,  muti- 
nies, cause  dissensions,  and  paralyze  the  army  generally. 
They  w^ill  divert  attention  from  the  genuine  means  of 


THE    SOLDIER    OT    THE    CROSS.  .381 

war  and  success,  and  tarn  It  to  insipid,  powerless  and 
ineffectual  means,  and  thus  destroy  the  power  of  the 
whole  army. 

2.  We  must  guard  against  men  who  are  cowardly  and 
afraid  of  the  issue,  and  desirous  to  keep  it  out  of  view. 
We  want  the  issue  to  appear  clear,  sharp,  and  well  de- 
fined, so  that  we  can  know  precisely  what  it  is,  and 
never  to  he  kept  in  the  background.  If  there  is  differ- 
ence between  the  gospel  and  everything  else,  as  there 
certainly  is,  as  clear  as  the  difference  between  day  and 
night,  let  it  appear,  and  let  the  world  know  what  it  is. 

3.  Look  out  for  men  in  collusion  with  the  enemy. 
When  Judas  was  ready  to  betray  his  Master,  lie  was  off* 
in  a  close  and  quiet  talk  with  the  priests.  Here  the 
plan  was  laid,  the  iniquity  was  done,  and  ruin  was 
brought  down  on  him.  Look  out  for  men  in  close  con- 
eultation  with  the  enemy.  They  are  in  had  Gomj)any, 
ISTo  good  will  come  of  their  keeping  such  company. 
They  are  seeking  recognition.  We  want  no  recognition 
from  any  who  will  not  take  our  King  as  their  only  spirit- 
ual Head,  and  his  law  as  their  only  law.  The  trouble  is 
not  to  get  them  to  recognize  us^  but  for  us  to  recognize 
tltem.  We  can  recognize  them  in  no  sense,  only  as  sec- 
tarians., schisms,  factions^  heresies;  not  one  of  them  as 
the  hody  of  Christ,  nor  all  of  them  together  as  the 
body  of  Christ.  There  may  be  those  in  some  of  them 
who  are  members  of  the  body  of  Christ,  but  certain  it 
is  that  not  one  of  them,  nor  all  of  them  together,  is  the 
body  of  Christ.  We  can  recognize  them  in  no  sense, 
only  as  belligerent  sects.  A  man  who  is  a  genuine  sol- 
dier of  the  cross  can  not  be  on  an  equal  footing  with  a 
man  in  one  of  the  sects;  nor  can  a  preacher  of  Jesus 
come  down  on  a  level  with  a  man  on  a  human  platform 
The  divine  foundation  is  above  all  human  platforms,  and 


382  THE    SOLDIER    OF    THE    CROSS. 

we  can  not  come  on  a  level  with  a  man  on  tlie  human. 

4.  Beware  of  men  who  sympathize  with  the  enemy; 
are  always  running  down  their  fellow-soldiers,  and  prais- 
ing the  enemy.  They  may  tell  fine  stories  about  get- 
ting the  ears  of  the  enemy^  but  there  is  nothing  in  it. 
They  have  not  got  his  ears^  but  his  heart.  He  is  one 
with  them,  all  but  the  independence  to  go  over. 

"We  want  the  true  soldier,  who  has  no  king  but  Jesns, 
no  law  but  the  law  of  God,  no  cause  but  the  cause  of 
God,  no  kingdom  but  the  kingdom  of  God.  This  cause, 
as  the  apostles  advocated  it,  and  nothing  else,  is  the 
cause  of  the  genuine  soldier  of  Jesus.  He  has  not  a 
prayer  for  any  other;  or  a  dollar;  nor  will  he  lift  a  hand 
to  fight  a  battle  for  any  other.  He  is  for  this  cause  liv- 
ing and  dying,  for  this  world  and  the  world  to  come. 
Side  by  side,  and  shoulder  to  shoulder  with  every  other 
man  that  is  for  it  he  stands,  and  intends  to  stand  till 
the  last.  He  has  his  settled  convictions,  his  abiding 
purposes,  and  is  strong  in  the  Lord  and  the  powder  of 
his  might.  He  looks  with  delight  to  the  time  when  the 
King  shall  come,  with  all  the  holy  angels,  and  when 
he  will  exclaim  to  those  who  shall  have  overcome, 
"Come,  you  blessed  of  my  Father,  inherit  the  kingdom 
prepared  for  you  from  the  foundation  of  the  world." 
"Sit  down  with  me  in  my  throne,  as  I  have  overcome, 
and  am  set  down  with  my  Father  in  his  throne."  "  He 
who  overcomes  shall  be  clothed  in  white  raiment,  and  I 
will  not  blot  out  his  name  out  of  the  book  of  life,  but  I 
will  confess  his  name  before  my  Father  and  before  hia 
angels. 

May  we  fight  the  battles  of  the  Lord  so  that  we  can 
say,  with  an  old  soldier,  "I  have  fought  a  good  fight;  I 
have  kept  the  faith;  I  have  finished  my  course;  hence- 


THE  SOLDIER  OF  THE  CROSS.  383 

forth  there  is  a  crown  of  righteousness  laid  up  for  me, 
which  the  Lord,  the  righteous  Judge,  shall  give  me  in 
that  day;  and  not  to  me  only,  but  to  all  those  who  love 
his  appearing."  May  we  be  among  those  who  shall  be 
accounted  worthy,  and  be  accepted  of  him  in  that  day. 


SERMOK   Ko.  XVII. 

THEME. — DANCING. 

Tht!  Ibfjme  of  this  discourse,  though  not  a  very  com- 
mon theme  for  a  religious  discourse,  is  by  no  means 
outside  of  the  Bible.  It  is  found  in  the  Bible  in  several 
different  forms.  It  is  not,  therefore,  an  untaught  sub- 
ject, on  \^hich  the  Bible  is  silent.  It  is,  then,  perfectly 
legitimate  that  we  should  pay  our  respects  to  it. 

DANCING  AS  A  RELIGIOUS  EXERCISE. 

We  know  of  no  people,  but  one,  that  hold  dancing  as 
an  item  in  their  religious  teaching,  and  regularly  prac- 
tice it  as  a  rtligious  extrcise.  The  Shakers  hold  danc- 
ing as  ail  item  in  their  religion,  give  it  a  place  in  their 
teaching,  and  regularly  practice  it.  But,  even  taking 
the  Old  Covenant  as  their  rule,  they  do  not  practice  it 
in  the  true  sense.  Let  us  then  open  and  read  from  the 
Bible,  of  dancing  as  a  rcllgioxis  exercise. 

Exodus  XV.  20,  21 :  '*And  Miriam  the  prophetess,  the 
eister  of  Aaron,  took  a  timbrel  in  her  hand;  and  all 
the  women  went  out  after  her,  with  the  timbrels  and 
with  dances.  And  Miriam  answered  them.  Sing  you  to 
the  Lord,  for  he  hath  triumphed  gloriously :  the  horse 
and  the  rider  hath  been  thrown  into  the  sea."  What 
are  the  facts  found  in  this  history?  1.  That  the  women 
danced.  There  is  no  account  of  any  men  dancing.  2. 
That  it  was  in  daylight.  3.  It  was  a  religious  exercise, 
as  much  as  the  singing.  4.  It  was  at  the  time  of  great 
33  (385) 


386  DANCING. 

victory;  a  special  favor  conferred  by  supernatural  inter- 
position, which  brought  their  deliverance  from  Egyptian 
bondage,  and  was  an  expression  of  gratitude  in  joy, 
praises  and  thanksgiving,  in  view  of  what  the  Lord  had 
done  for  them.  It  was  no  regular  and  stated  dance,  for 
amusement,  fun,  and  to  show  themselves  off;  but  an 
extraordinary  performance,  in  view  of  the  wonderful 
work  of  God  in  their  deliverance,  and  the  overthrow 
of  their  enemies.  It  was  no  regularly  established  cus- 
tom for  hilarity  and  amusement,  but  an  extraordinary 
event. 

Judges  xxi.  20,  21 :  "  Therefore  they  commanded  the 
children  of  Benjamin,  Go  and  lie  in  wait  in  the  vine- 
yards; and  see,  and  behold,  if  the  daughters  of  Shiloh 
come  out  to  dance  in  the  dances."  1.  This  dancing  was 
in  daylight.  2.  The  women  danced  alone.  3.  It  was  a 
religious  exercise,  in  view  of  a  great  victory  the  Lord 
had  given  them.  4.  It  was  not  a  regular  established 
custom,  but  an  extraordinary  transaction,  on  an  extra- 
ordinary occasion,  an  occasion  of  great  victory  and 
triumph  over  their  enemies,  in  expressions  of  praise 
and  gratitude  to  God.  There  was  no  dancing  for  pleas- 
ure, amusement,  or  fun. 

1  Samuel  xviii.  6:  "And  it  came  to  pass  as  they  came, 
when  David  was  returned  from  the  slaughter  of  the 
Philistine,  that  the  w^omen  came  out  of  the  cities  of 
Israel,  singing  and  dancing,  to  meet  King  Saul,  with 
timbrels,  with  joy,  and  with  instruments  of  music."  1. 
This  dancing  was  a  religious  exercise.  2.  The  women 
alone  danced.  3.  It  was  in  daylight.  4.  It  was  an  ex- 
pression of  praise  and  gratitude  to  God  in  view  of  an 
extraordinary  event  in  their  behalf.  It  was  no  regularly 
established  custom,  but  an  extraordinary  transaction,  in 
view  of  a  w^onderful  divine  favor. 


DANCING.  387 

2  Samuel  vi.  12-14:  "And  it  was  told  Kiut^  David, 
saying,  The  Lord  has  blessed  the  house  of  Obed-edom, 
and  all  that  pertains  to  him,  because  of  the  ark  of  God. 
So  David  went  and  brought  up  the  ark  of  God  from 
the  house  of  Obed-edom  into  the  city  of  David  with 
gladness.  And  it  was  so,  that  when  they  that  bore  the 
ark  of  the  Lord  had  gone  six  paces,  he  sacrificed  oxen 
and  fatiings.  And  David  danced  before  the  Lord  with 
all  his  might-;  and  David  was  girded  with  linen  and  an 
ephod."  1.  This  dancing  was  a  religious  exercise,  in 
an  expression  of  praise  and  gratitude  to  God,  in  view 
of  special  favor  conferred.  2.  It  was  in  daylight.  3. 
David  danced  alone.  4.  It  was  no  regularly  established 
custom,  but  an  extraordinary  transaction,  in  view  of 
special  favor.  It  was  not  a  dance  for  pleasure,  amuse- 
ment, fun,  nor  one  in  which  the  giddy  and  frivolous 
participated,  or  any  one  but  Israel's  psalmist  and  prophet. 

1  Chronicles  xv.  25-29:  "So  David,  and  the  elders  of 
Israel,  and  the  captain  over  thousands,  went  to  bring  up 
the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  out  of  the  house 
of  Obed-edom  with  joy.  And  it  came  to  pass,  when 
God  helped  the  Levites  that  bore  the  ark  of  the  cove- 
nant of  the  Lord,  that  they  oftered  seven  bullocks  and 
seven  rams.  And  David  was  clothed  with  a  robe  of  tine 
linen,  and  all  the  Levites  that  bore  the  ark,  and  the 
singers,  and  Chenaniah  the  master  of  the  song  with  the 
singers.  David  also  had  upon  him  an  ephod  of  tine 
linen.  Thus  all  Israel  brought  up  the  ark  of  the  cove- 
nant of  the  Lord  with  shouting,  and  with  sound  of  the 
cornet,  and  with  trumpets,  and  with  cymbals,  making 
a  noise  with  psalteries  and  harps.  And  it  came  to  pass, 
as  the  ark  of  the  covenant  of  the  Lord  came  to  the  city 
of  David,  that  Michal  the  daughter  of  Saul,  looking 
out  at  a  window,  saw  King  David  dancing  and  playing: 


388  DANCING. 

and  she  despised  him  iu  her  heart."  Here  we  have  the 
following  facts:  1.  The  dancing  was  in  daylight.  2. 
David  danced  alone.  3.  It  was  a  religious  exercise.  4. 
It  was  no  regularly  established  custom,  but  on  an  occa- 
sion of  great  joy,  and  an  expression  of  thanksgiving 
and  gratitude,  in  view  of  signal  favor  from  God.  It 
was  in  view  of  this  kind  of  dance  that  David  said, 
Psalm  cxlix.  2:  "Let  Israel  rejoice  in  Him  that  made 
him:  let  the  children  of  Zion  be  joyful  in  their  King. 
Let  them  praise  his  name  in  the  dance."  And  again, 
Psalm  cl.  4:  "Praise  him  with  timbrel  and  dance:  with 
stringed  instruments  and  organs." 

We  have  now  before  us  the  sum  of  religious  dancing, 
or  dancing  as  a  religious  exercise,  as  found  described  on 
the  pages  of  Scripture— an  expression  of  praise  and 
gratitude  to  God.  The  following  facts  appear  in  con- 
nection with  this  dancing: 

1.  It  was  not  a  regularly  established  practice,  at 
stated  times,  like  the  Shaker  dance,  but  an  occurrence 
that  only  took  place  on  extraordinary  occasions. 

2.  It  occurred  at  times  of  signal  favors,  great  deliver- 
ances, or  triumphs,  specially  wrought  by  the  hand  of 
God,  as  at  the  time  of  the  crossing  of  the  Red  Sea. 
This  explains  Solomon,  Ecclesiastes  iii.  4,  where  he 
speaks  of  a  "time  to  dance,"  when  God  wrought  some 
special  and  miraculous  deliverance,  or  gave  some  great 
victory.  This  was  a  tirne  to  dance — not  for  pleasure, 
amusement  and  hilarity,  but  in  devout  thanksgiving 
and  gratitude  to  God. 

3.  This  dancing  was  in  open  daylight.  There  was 
no  dancing  in  the  night,  to  say  nothing  of  protracted 
dancing  all  night. 

4.  The  men  or  women  danced  alone.     There  was  no 


DANCING.  389 

mixed  dancing^  or  men  and  women  dancing  together. 
The  men,  or  the  women,  danced  alone. 

5.  The  dancing  was  not  foi-  amusement,  pleasure,  or 
hilarit}^;  not  for  healthful  exercise,  relaxation,  or  diver- 
sion; nor  for  entertainment,  art,  or  gracefulness;  nor 
to  show  how  accurately  they  could  step  to  the  music; 
but  an  expression  of  their  greatest  and  most  extatic 
joys,  their  most  devout  thanksgiving  and  gratitude  to 
God.  It  was  performed  by  the  most  devout,  pious  and 
godly,  and  not  by  the  wild,  the  thoughtless,  the  "  lovers 
of  pleasure  more  than  lovers  of  God." 

6.  This  dancing  was  a  religious  exercise,  a  part  of 
their  devotions,  in  expressions  of  great  joy,  gratitude  and 
thanksgiving,  and  practiced  on  occasions  of  extraordi- 
nary interference  of  the  Lord  in  their  behalf,  and  in 
honor  and  praise  of  God,  accompanied  by  sundry  instru- 
ments of  music,  was  practiced  before  the  giving  of  the 
law,  and  also  under  the  law;  but  no  such  religious  ex- 
ercise is  found  in  the  religion  of  our  Lord.  He  and  his 
apostles  never  danced  in  their  devotions ;  nor  did  they 
ever  teach  anybody  to  "praise  Hira  in  the  dance;''  nor 
is  there  an  intimation  of  any  such  religious  exercise  in 
all  the  Lord  and  the  apostles  ever  taught;  nor  an  account 
in  the  Holy  Book  of  any  such  exercise  among  the  first 
Christians,  no  matter  hovy  signal  the  victories,  as  when 
Jesus  rose,  when  he  ascended,  when  he  gave  the  Spirit 
in  his  wonder-working  power,  when  three  thousand 
were  added  in  one  day,  when  Samaria  or  the  Gentiles 
received  the  word  of  God.  They  had  "great  joy,"  and 
were  filled  with  the  love  of  God;  were  unspeakably 
liappy,  but  always  expressed  their  gratitude  in  some 
other  way — never  in  a  dance.  Shaker  dancing,  as  a 
religious  exercise,  finds  no  support,  even  in  the  Jewish 
religion,  nor  anywhere  in  the  Bible.     It  is  a  human  in- 


390  DANCING. 

veiuion,  turning  the  worship  of  the  Most  High  into 
secular  amusement,  pleasure,  entertainment  for  thought- 
less and  light-hearted  people.  Nor  do  our  modern 
dancers,  for  amusement,  pleasure,  entertainment,  health- 
ful exercise,  relaxation  and  hilarity;  who  vie  with  each 
other  to  excel  in  the  refinement,  the  art  of  dancing, 
gracefulness  and  politeness,  find  any  support  here — no 
matter  whether  the  "parlor  dance,"  the  "social  dance," 
or  any  other  kind. 

But  we  now  proceed  to  some  dancing  a  little  more 
enthusiastic.  It  is  not  exactly  devoid  of  a  religious 
aspect.  Let  us  have  the  history  of  it  from  the  book  of 
God. 

Exodus  xxxii.  15-24:  "And  Moses  turned  and  went 
down  from  the  mount,  and  the  two  tables  of  the  testi- 
mony were  in  his  hand:  the  tables  were  written  on  both 
sides;  on  the  one  side  and  on  the  other  were  they  writ- 
ten. And  the  tables  were  the  work  of  God,  and  the 
writing  was  the  writing  of  God,  graven  upon  the  tables. 
And  when  Joshua  heard  the  noise  of  the  people  as  they 
shouted,  he  said  to  Moses,  There  is  a  noise  of  war  in  the 
camp.  And  he  said.  It  is  not  the  voice  of  them  that 
shout  for  mastery,  neither  is  it  the  voice  of  them  that 
cry  for  being  overcome;  but  the  voice  of  them  that  sing 
do  I  hear.  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  soon  as  he  came 
nigh  to  the  camp,  that  he  saw  the  calf,  and  the  dancing: 
and  Moses'  anger  waxed  hot,  and  he  cast  the  tables  out 
of  his  hands,  and  brake  them  beneath  the  mount.  And 
he  took  the  calf  which  they  had  made,  and  burnt  it  in 
the  fire,  and  ground  it  to  powder,  and  strewed  it  upon 
the  water,  and  made  the  children  of  Israel  drink  of  it. 
And  Moses  said  to  Aaron,  What  did  these  people  to 
thee,  that  thou  hast  brought  so  great  a  sin  upon  them? 
And  Aaron  said,  Let  not  the  anger  of  my  lord  wax  hot : 


DANCING.  391 

thou  knowest  the  people,  that  they  are  set  ou  mischief. 
For  they  said  to  me,  Make  us  gods  who  shall  go  before 
us :  for  as  for  this  Moses,  the  man  that  brought  us  up 
out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  we  wot  not  what  is  become 
of  him.  And  I  said  to  them.  Whosoever  hath  any  gold, 
let  him  break  it  off.  So  they  gave  it  to  me.  Then  I 
cast  it  into  the  hre,  and  there  came  out  this  calf." 

Our  modern  dancers  will  hardly  go  here  for  an  exam- 
ple for  dancing  the  "  social  dance,"  the  "  parlor  dance,'* 
the  "  square  dance,"  the  "  round  dance,"  or  any  other. 
It  appears  that  this  was  religious  dancing,  on  an  extra- 
ordinary occasion — the  advent  of  the  molten  calf.  It 
was  no  devotion  to  the  Lord;  but  devotion  in  blind 
and  stupid  idolatry.  We  can  not  learn  whether  the 
dancing  was  mixed,  the  men  and  women  together; 
whether  both  sexes  danced,  or  only  one.  The  dancing 
was  in  daylight;  not  any  regularly  established  custom, 
but  an  unusual  occurrence,  on  an  extraordinary  occa- 
sion— the  advent  of  a  new  god  to  go  before  them.  The 
unintelligible  noise  they  were  making  was  no  credit  to 
the  occasion,  the  dancers,  or  the  dancing.  It  was,  how- 
ever, no  regularly  established  practice;  nor  was  it  for 
pleasure,  amusement,  or  hilarity,  but  an  attempt  to  be 
happy  over  their  new  god,  and  express  great  joy.  But 
their  joy  was  soon  turned  into  regret,  when  Moses  made 
them  drink  the  water  with  the  gold  dust  in  it.  The 
modern  dance,  for  pleasure,  amusement,  relaxation,  or 
exercise,  finds  no  footing  here,  no  matter  which  sort  of 
the  many  refined  and  graceful  dances  they  speak  of. 

Judges  xi.  34 :  "And  Jephthah  came  to  Mizpeh  unto 
his  house,  and,  behold,  his  daughter  came  out  to  meet 
him  with  timbrels  and  with  dances."  This  dancing 
was  an  expression  of  joy  and  rejoicing  on  meeting  her 
father,  and  no  regular  dance  for  pleasure,  or  amusement. 


392  DANCING. 

Yet  the  judgment  of  God  was  upon  the  poor  damsel. 
There  is  nothing  in  the  case  to  encourage  dancing  for 
pleasure. 

1  Samuel  xxx.  16,  17:  "And  when  he  had  brought 
him  down,  behold,  they  were  spread  upon  all  the  earth, 
eating  and  drinking,  and  dancing,  because  of  all  the 
great  spoil  that  they  had  taken  out  of  the  land  of  the 
Philistines,  and  out  of  the  land  of  Judah.  And  David 
smote  them  from  the  twilight  even  to  the  evening  of 
the  next  day:  and  there  escaped  not  a  man  of  them, 
save  four  hundred  young  men  who  rode  upon  camels, 
and  fled.''  This  was  no  religious  dancing,  nor  religious 
exercise,  but  regular  reveling.  They  were  eating, 
drinking  and  dancing — carousing.  In  the  midst  of 
it  their  fates  were  upon  them.  Destruction  came 
and  swept  them  away.  Certainly  no  dancer,  or  apol- 
ogist for  dancing,  will  attempt  to  find  any  support 
for  any  of  the  kinds  of  dancing  practiced  in  our  day 
in  this  Scripture.  The  dancing  was  in  bad  company, 
and  soon  followed  by  terrible  retribution. 

Job  xxi.  11-20 :  "  They  send  forth  their  little  ones 
like  a  flock,  and  their  children  dance.  They  take  tim- 
brel and  harp,  and  rejoice  at  the  sound  of  the  organ. 
They  spend  their  days  in  wealth,  and  in  a  moment  go 
down  to  the  grave.  Therefore  they  say  to  God,  Depart 
from  us;  for  we  desire  not  the  knowledge  of  thy  ways. 
What  is  the  Almight}^  that  we  should  serve  him?  Lo, 
their  good  is  not  in  their  hand:  the  counsel  of  the 
wicked  is  far  from  rae.  How  oft  is  the  candle  of  the 
wicked  put  out!  and  how  oft  destruction  cometh  upon 
them!  God  distributeth  sorrow  in  his  anger.  They 
are  as  stubble  before  the  wind,  and  as  chafi'  that  the 
storm  carrieth  away.  God  layeth  up  his  iniquity  for  his 
children:  he  rewardeth  him,  and  he  shall  know  it.    His 


DANCING.  398 

eyes  stall  see  his  destruction,  and  he  shall  drink  of  the 
wrath  of  the  Almighty." 

What  a  description  this  is  from  first  to  last  I  This  is 
no  religious  exercise,  nor  dancing  as  an  act  of  devotion, 
except  to  their  own  lust.  This  dancing  is  not  approved, 
nor  were  the  people  who  were  engaged  in  it  approved. 
It  was  the  dancing  of  the  rich,  the  wicked — for  pleas- 
ure, amusement.  It  was  no  expression  of  praise  to 
God,  or  thanksgiving,  or  gratitude;  it  had  no  such  idea 
in  it.  It  was  dancing  for  the  sake  of  the  dance,  the 
love  of  it  and  devotion  to  it;  for  amusement,  pleasure, 
pastime.  It  was  not  for  relaxation;  but  for  idle  people, 
that  do  nothing,  and  need  no  relaxation;  nor  for  exer- 
eise,  because  they  needed  exercise,  hnt  for  the  sake  of 
dancing.  This  is  the  dance  of  those  "who  say  to  God, 
Depart  from  as;  for  we  desire  not  the  knowledge  of 
thy  ways.  What  is  the  Almighty,  that  we  should  serve 
him?"  Here  our  modern  dancers  can  find  their  kind 
of  dance,  and  dancers,  and  the  Lord's  description  of 
them.     It  is  a  dark  picture. 

Mark  vi.  18-26:  "John  had  said  to  Herod,  It  is  not 
lawful  for  you  to  have  your  brother's  wife.  Therefore 
Herodias  had  a  quarrel  against  him,  and  would  have 
killed  him;  but  she  could  not:  for  Herod  feared  John, 
knowing  that  he  was  a  just  man  and  an  holy,  and  ob- 
served him:  and  when  he  heard  him,  he  did  many 
things,  and  heard  him  gladly.  And  when  a  convenient 
day  was  come,  that  Herod  on  his  birthday  made  a  sup- 
pier  to  his  lords,  high  captains,  and  chief  estates  of  Gal- 
ilee ;  and  when  the  daughter  of  the  said  Herodias  came 
in,  and  danced,  and  pleased  Herod  and  them  that  sat 
with  him,  the  king  said  to  the  damsel,  Ask  of  me  what- 
ever you  will,  and  I  will  give  it  you.  And  he  swore  to 
her,  Whatever  you  shall  ask  of  me,  I  will  give  it  you, 


394  DANCING. 

to  the  half  of  my  kingdom.  And  she  went  forth,  and 
said  to  her  mother,  What  shall  I  ask?  And  she  said> 
The  head  of  John  the  Baptist.  And  she  came  in 
straightway  with  haste  to  the  king,  and  asked,  saying, 
I  will  that  you  give  me,  by  and  by,  in  a  charger,  the 
head  of  John  the  Baptist.  And  the  king  was  exceed- 
ing sorry;  for  his  oath's  sake,  and  for  their  sakes  who 
sat  with  him,  he  would  not  reject  her.  And  immediate!}'- 
the  king  sent  an  executioner,  and  commanded  his  head 
to  be  brought:  and  he  went  and  beheaded  him  in  the 
prison,  and  brought  his  head  in  a  charger"  (basin), 
"  and  gave  it  to  the  damsel :  and  the  damsel  gave  it  to 
her  mother." 

In  this  case  it  does  not  appear  that  any  one  danced 
except  the  damsel;  though  this  is  not  certain,  nor  is  it 
important.  The  dancing  was  for  pleasure,  amusement, 
entertainment.  It  was  for  the  sake  of  the  dance;  it 
was  in  hilarity — a  part  of  the  entertainment;  it  was  no 
religious  exercise,  and  not  in  expression  of  praise  or 
gratitude  to  God,  in  view  of  any  favor  bestowed;  nor 
did  it  appear  to  have  any  higher  motive  in  view  than 
to  please  the  king.  It  did  that  in  perfection,  and  opened 
the  way  for  the  mother  of  the  dancing  damsel  to  ac- 
complish a  malignant  purpose  she  had  in  her  heart.  She 
had  an  old  grudge  in  her  heart  against  the  Immerser. 
John  had  said,  "It  is  not  lawful  for  you  to  have  your 
brother's  wife."  This  offended  Madam  Herodias,  and, 
being  a  refined  lady,  she  determined  to  have  revenge. 
She  watched  for  an  opportunit3^  The  king,  being 
pleased  at  the  dancing  of  the  damsel,  made  a  rash  vow, 
opening  the  way  for  her  to  accomplish  her  purpose.  She 
told  her  dancing  daughter  to  demand  the  head  of  John 
the  Immerser  in  a  basin !  What  a  present,  that!  What 
taste  the  mother  and  daughter  must  have  had,  to  havo 


DA]^CING.  395 

been  gratified  with  the  head  of  the  man  of  God  all  in  a 
gore  of  blood!  The  guilt  of  her  living  in  an  unlawful 
marriage  w^as  still  on  her  soul,  and  now  a  malignant 
murder  added  to  the  previous  crime!  Dancing  for 
amusement,  entertainment,  pleasure — for  the  sake  of 
danciug — is  found  in  bad  company  here,  and  with  bad 
surroundings.     Tbis  was  the  dancing  of  the  wicked. 

Galatians  v.  19:  "Now  the  works  of  the  liesh  are 
manifest,  which  are  these.  Adultery,  fornication,  un- 
cleanness,  lasciviousness,  idolatry,  witchcraft,  hatred, 
variance,  emulations,  wrath,  strife,  seditions,  heresies, 
envyings,  murders,  drunkenness,  revelings,  and  such 
like:  of  which  I  tell  you  before,  as  I  have  also  told  you 
in  time  past,  that  they  who  do  such  things  shall  not  in- 
herit tbe  kingdom  of  God."  Here  we  have  an  awful 
catalogue  of  works  of  the  flesh,  and  the  list  is  not  com- 
plete, for  the  Apostle  adds  to  the  list  the  words,  "and 
such  like.''  What  is  the  decree  of  God  in  regard  to 
those  "who  do  such  things?"  It  is  that  "they  shall 
not  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God."  "Such  things"  are 
not,  then,  to  be  trifled  with ;  nor  is  the  doing  of  them 
of  small  moment,  seeing  that  it  excludes  from  the  king- 
dom of  God. 

The  things  in  this  list  are  not  things  difficult  to  deter- 
mine beyond  all  doubt.  Tbey  are  works  of  the  flesh, 
and  manifest.  They  are  matters  clearly  wrong.  In 
this  catalogue  we  find  "revelings."  The  original  word, 
komos,  and  the  English  word,  revelings,  includes  danc- 
ing, Tbe  authorities  are  well  agreed  about  it;  that  it 
embraces  feasting,  loud  talking,  music,  and  dancing.  It 
is  not  dancing,  as  an  expression  of  thanksgiving  and 
gratitude,  or  in  joy,  in  view  of  some  signal  victory  or 
special  favor  from  the  Lord,  or  as  a  religious  exercise 
of  any  sort;  but  dancing  for  amusement,  pleasure,  hilar- 


396  DANCING. 

ity — for  the  sake  of  the  dance^  the  love  of  it^  or  in  de- 
votion to  it.  This  is  the  dance  that  is  reveling,  and 
that  excludes  from  the  kingdom  of  God.  It  is  a  work 
of  the  flesh,  and  to  be  shunned  by  the  children  of  Gad, 
as  they  shun  witchcraft,  adultery,  idolatrj^,  or  murder. 

The  question  is  not  whether  there  are  not  degrees  in 
it;  whether  it  is  all  to  be  put  down  alike  or  not.  There 
are  degrees  in  drunkenness,  many  degrees  in  it,  but  they 
are  only  degrees  in  the  same  thing.  It  is  drunhenness^ 
whether  there  is  much  or  little  of  it.  It  is  the  same 
thing  in  kind,  though  not  the  same  in  degree.  A  man 
so  drunk  that  he  can  not  walk  is  certainly  a  degree 
further  than  one  who  is  so  drunk  that  he  only  staggers, 
but  can  walk.  There  are  degrees  in  stealing;  but  then 
it  is  stealing  to  take  one  dollar  without  liberty,  as  cer- 
tainly as  it  is  to  take  a  thousand — the  same  thing  in 
kind,  though  not  the  same  in  degree.  But  he  is  the 
greater  simpleton,  and  thinks  the  least  of  his  honor, 
who  will  get  drunk  at  all^  though  in  the  smallest  de- 
gree. Drunkenness  is  a  work  of  the  flesh,  and  sin,  no 
matter  how  small  the  degree  of  it,  and  excludes  from 
the  kingdom  of  God.  We  are  not  to  divide  drunken- 
ness into  several  kinds,  and  then  assume  that  Christians 
may  participate  in  one  kind  and  not  in  another.  They 
are  not  to  participate  in  drunkenness  at  all.  If  they 
dO;  they  sin,  and  should  be  called  to  account. 

There  are  degrees  in  adultery.  He  who  commits 
adultery  only  a  few  times  does  not  reach  the  same  de- 
gree in  it  that  he  does  who  practices  it  regularly  for 
twenty  years;  but  it  is  adultery^  sin,  a  work  of  the 
flesh,  and  there  stands  the  law  of  the  great  King  before 
him,  that  "they  who  do  such  thiiigs  shall  not  inheril 
the  kingdom  of  God."  Hatred  is  a  work  of  the  flesh, 
no  matter  whether  it  reaches  a  greater  or  less  degree. 


DANCING.  397 

and  may  not  be  indulged  at  all.  The  same  is  true  of 
reveling,  no  matter  whether  in  a  greater  or  smaller  de- 
gree— it  is  still  reveling^  and  may  not  be  indulged.  Any 
dancing,  for  pleasure,  amusement,  or  entertainment;  or 
for  the  sake  of  the  dance  itself,  for  the  love  of  it,  and  in 
devotion  to  it,  is  reveling,  no  matter  how  small  the 
degree,  and  should  be  utterly  repudiated.  We  want  no 
philosophers,  speculating  on  the  degrees  Christians  may 
go  into  sin.  We  are  on  dangerous  ground  the  moment 
we  attempt  to  speculate  on  the  degrees  we  may  go  into 
sin.  The  only  safe  doctrine  is  to  keep  as  far  from  it 
as  possible. 

We  can  not  divide  the  works  of  the  flesh  into  diff<  r- 
eiit  kinds,  some  of  which  may  he  practiced  by  Chris- 
tians, and  some  of  which  may  not  be  practiced  by  Chris- 
tians. When  the  Apostle  closes  this  terrible  list,  he 
adds,  "  and  such  like."  This  includes  not  only  the 
things  enumerated,  but  all  of  that  hind.  ISTone  in- 
cluded in  the  list  can  be  left  out,  and  all  others  of  the 
same  kind  are  to  be  included  in  the  catalogue.  It  is 
frequently  said  of  dancing,  or  reveling,  and  it  is  to  be 
remembered  that  all  dancing  for  amusement,  for  pleas- 
ure, for  the  love  of  it,  or  for  the  sake  of  dancing,  is  i^ev- 
ciing,  is  no  worse  than  some  plays  and  performances, 
about  which  nothing  is  said.  But  that  is  a  poor  com- 
pliment to  dancing,  that  it  is  no  ivorse  than  somethitig 
else  that  is  wrong.  All  these  other  things  are  included 
in  the  words,  "and  such  like;"  and  after  making  the 
catalogue  long  and  fearful,  in  order  to  be  sure  and  em- 
brace them  all,  he  adds,  "and  such  like,"  and  then  pro- 
nounces that  "they  who  do  such  things  shall  not  inherit 
the  kingdom  of  God."  ]N"otice,  he  does  not  say,  "they 
who  do  tliese  things,"  but  "they  who  do  such  things!''' 
There  is  no  escape  from  this  language. 


398  DANCING. 

We  have  a  solemn  charge  from  the  Apostle  to  "  Grive 
no  ofiense,  neither  to  the  Jews,  nor  to  the  Gentiles,  nor 
to  the  Church  of  God."  Dancing  is  offensive;  not  to 
ignorant,  prejudiced  and  weak  people,  but  to  the  best 
informed,  the  most  pious  and  devout.  If  there  were 
nothing  else  against  it,  that  would  stamp  it  with  the  seal 
of  condemnation.  It  is  under  ban,  not  only  in  the  view 
of  pious  persons,  but  all  classes.  ISTo  one,  in  the  Church 
or  out  of  it,  regards  it  as  any  credit  to  dance,  or  to  be 
a  good  dancer.  The  view  of  the  masses  generallj^  is, 
that  people  of  the  world,  young  and  thoughtless  people, 
may  dance  ;  the  lovers  of  pleasure,  of  amusement  and  en- 
tertainments; the  irreligious  may  dance.  But  religious 
persons,  who  profess  godliness,  who  have  been  made  par- 
takers of  the  divine  nature,  and  are  led  by  the  Spirit, 
and  have  the  mind  of  Christ,  do  not  dance.  It  would 
be  shocking  to  the  minds  of  all  people,  with  an  ordi- 
nary education,  in  this  country,  to  see  any  one  rise  from 
the  communion  table,  go  into  the  next  room  and  join 
in  the  dance  for  pleasure,  amusement,  fun.  So  would 
it  be  equally  shocking  to  the  mind  to  see  any  one  go 
from  the  dance,  even  your  refined  "parlor  dance,"  under 
the  eye  of  parents,  and  confined  to  proper  hours,  into 
the  assembly  of  the  saints,  and  take  a  seat  at  the  Lord's 
table!  The  people  of  the  world  would  notice  it  and 
make  remarks  about  it.  There  is  an  incompatibility 
about  it  that  strikes  every  one,  like  going  out  of  the 
darkness  of  the  night  into  the  light  of  day,  or  the  cold- 
ness of  winter  into  the  warmth  of  summer.  The  works 
of  the  flesh  are  incornpatible  with  the  works  of  the 
Spirit.  The  spirit  that  leads  those  who  practice  the 
works  of  the  flesh  is  not  the  same  as  that  which  leads 
those  who  bear  the  fruits  of  the  Spirit. 

Those  who  lead  in  the  dance  for  pleasure,  amusement 


DANCING.  399 

* 

or  entertainment,  we  care  not  what  their  pretext  for  it 
is,  whether  for  "healthful  exercise,"  "relaxation,"  or  to 
"learn  gracefulness,"  are  not  the  people  that  lead  in  re- 
ligion, in  worship,  or  piety.  They  are  of  a  cliiFerent 
type,  a  different  spirit,  and  under  the  influence  of  a  dif- 
ferent set  of  impressions,  emotions  and  impulses.  They 
are  not  in  front  in  the  assembly  of  the  saints,  leaders  in 
the  devotions.  The  prayers,  exhortations,  and  songs, 
do  not  come  from  them.  They  are  not  even  the  regular 
attendants.  When  they  do  attend  they  are  found  in 
the  remote  parts  of  the  house,  if  in  the  house  at  all. 
'Nov  are  they  the  grave  and  attentive  hearers,  the  most 
orderly  or  respectful  portion  of  the  audience ;  but  the 
most  light,  thoughtless  and  frivolous.  They  are  the 
parties  where  a  little  side-talk  starts  up  in  the  time  of 
preaching,  or  a  meaningless  titter  about  some  trifling 
thing.  They  are  not  the  parties. from  whom  the  funds 
come  to  support  religion,  nor  who  support  it  in  any 
sense.  They  are  not  the  examples  in  manners,  in  dress, 
order,  or  in  any  good  sense.  If  there  were  none  but 
dancers,  no  church,  deserving  the  name,  would  have  an 
existence. 

Dancing  stands  in  no  credit,  even  among  the  people 
of  the  world.  In  their  biographical  sketches  of  men 
whom  they  aim  to  honor,  after  they  die,  they  never 
record  that  he  danced,  that  he  loved  the  dance,  that  he 
was  ah  accomplished  dancer,  that  he  taught  and  encour- 
aged dancing!  The  dancers  themselves  would  be  as- 
tonished and  shocked  to  find  a  sketch  of  that  kind  of 
some  man  whom  they  delighted  to  honor.  ^"0  one 
thinks  that  would  honor  any  man  after  his  death.  In 
these  sketches  it  is  common  to  tell  that  he  was  a  good 
and  industrious  farmer,  or  mechanic;  professor  or  pres- 
ident in  a  college,  or  a  school  teacher;  a  true  and  trust- 


400  DANCING. 

worthy  officer  of  State,  doctor,  lawyer,  or  preacher; 
telegrapher,  engineer,  conductor  in  the  employ  of  the 
railway;  an  artist,  botanist,  or  anatomist;  but  they 
never  say  he  was  an  accomplished  dancer;  that  he 
love  I  dancing^  encouraged  it,  and  greatly  improved  the 
dancing  in  his  community!  Why  do  we  find  nothing 
of  this  kind?  Because  they  do  not  consider  it  any 
credit  to  any  man^  to  say  nothing  of  a  religious  man^ 
and  leave  it  blank. 

Some  ten  years  since  we  talked  with  an  intelligent 
and  pleasant  lady,  of  high  pretensions  in  Church,  who 
advocated  dancing — maintained  that  it  was  a  "health- 
ful   exercise;"    "good   for   relaxation;"    and   "taught 
young  people  how  to  be  graceful,  polite,"  etc.;  said  she 
"loved   it,"  "delighted  in   it,"  etc.     We   tried   sundry 
arguments,  but  soon  found  that  they  had  no  effect;  that 
she  could  not  be  made  to  feel  the  force  of  any  argu- 
ment, or,  indeed,  to  listen  to  any  ordinary  reasoning. 
When  we  fully  saw  the  situation,  we  inquired  whether 
she  really  thought  it  was  all  right,  and  as  good  a  thing 
as  she  had  represented.     She  said  she  did.     We  then 
told  her  that  if  she  should  die  before  we  did,  and  her 
friends  should  call  us  to  attend  her  funeral,  and  make  a 
few  remarks  in  memory  of  her,  we  would  state,  in  ref- 
erence to  her  life,  that  she  loved  the  dance,  was  a  beau- 
tiful   dancer,  encouraged  dancing;  and,  no  doubt,  her 
influence  and  practice  had  given  dancing  a  new^  impe- 
tus, and  greatly  extended  its  prevalence.     And  that,  if 
I  should  be  called  on  to  write  an  obituary  notice  of  her 
departure,  I  would  state  how  she  had  conversed  with 
me  herself,  and  assured  me  that  she  loved  the  dance; 
thought  it  a  graceful,  healthful  and  delightful  exercise; 
that  she,  in  her  lifetime,  encouraged  dancing,  improved 
the  dancing  of  the  community,  and  greatly  increased  its 


DANCING.  401 

prevalence;  that  she  was  a  most  accomplished  and  es- 
timable dancer;  and  that  the  dancing  community  were 
greatly  indebted  to  her  for  what  she  had  done  in  the 
cause  of  dancing — toward  making  it  creditable  and  re- 
spectable. Furthermore,  that  I  would  have  engraven 
on  her  tombstone : — 


Miss 


A  Member  of Churchy 

An  Accoynplished  Dancer, 

Who  never  Wearied  in  the  Encouragement  of  Dancing, 

Or  in  the  Practice  of  it. 

She  thought  that  would  be  ridiculous.  So  it  would 
be;  because  dancing  for  pleasure  is  a  folly,  and  nothing 
to  the  credit  of  anj^  one.  It  would  not  appear  ridicu- 
lous to  mention,  in  remarks,  on  the  occasion  of  her 
funeral,  that  she  was  an  accomplished  school  teacher,  or 
had  any  real  accomplishment;  but  dancing  is  not  accom- 
jplisliment  at  all.  It  is  on  the  down  grade.,  the  demor- 
alizing side  of  the  question.  It  is  a  vice^  and,  like  all 
vices.,  needs  no  advocacy.  It  is  not  an  article  of  cul- 
ture; it  needs  no  culture,  but  is  a  spontaneous  growth, 
that  comes  in  the  absence  of  cultivation.  It  requires 
no  man  to  go  through  the  country  and  lecture  on  danc- 
ing, advocate  it,  argue  in  its  favor,  or  discuss  its  merits. 
It  w^ill  not  bear  argument,  discussion,  investigation.  It 
wants  no  speeches  made  in  its  favor.  All  it  asks,  that 
all  keep  still,  let  it  alone,  say  nothing  about  it.  It  will 
come  itself,  like  the  weeds  in  the  rich  garden,  in  the 
absence  of  cultivation;  like  the  briers,  burs  and  rag- 
weeds that  come  up  on  the  rich  farm,  where  cultivation 
is  neglected.  That  is  the  way  the  dance  comes.  It  is 
no  accomplishment,  acquirement,  or  credit  in  any  way, 
and  not  a  thing  to  mention  to  the  credit  of  any  one 
after  death.  We  no  more  think  of  mentioning  dancing 
34 


402  DANCING. 

to  the  credit  of  any  one  who  has  died,  than  we  do 
swearing,  drinking,  or  gambling.  Those  who  practice 
it  do  not  want  it  mentioned;  their  idea  is  to  leave  it 
blank. 

Why  do  the  dancers  inquire  of  the  preacher,  *'  Is  it 
any  harm  to  dance?"  Because  it  is  of  doubtful  repute, 
under  suspicion,  not  of  good  report.  When  about  to 
feed  the  hungry,  clothe  the  naked,  or  do  deeds  of  hu- 
manity, we  never  inquire,  '-Is  it  any  harm?"  There  is 
no  doubt  about  these  deeds.  When  about  to  read  the 
Scriptures,  we  never  inquire,  "Is  it  any  harm?"  When 
about  to  assemble  for  worship,  we  hear  no  one  inquire, 
"Is  it  any  harm?"  We  never  make  that  inquiry  when 
about  to  do  anything  that  is  manifestly  right.  It  is  the 
label  for  doubtful  things.  Is  it  any  harm  to  go  to  theater? 
Is  it  SLuy  harm  to  go  to  the  circus  show?  Is  it  any 
harm  to  have  church  festivals?  Is  it  any  harm  to  buy 
lottery  tickets?  Is  it  any  harm  to  go  to  the  races?  Is 
it  a,ny  harm  to  go  and  see  the  dance  f  Is  it  any  harm 
to  dance?  When  these  questions  come,  if  you  will 
watch,  you  will  see  the  poor  weak-kneed  preachers,  the 
shaky  ones.  They  will  begin  to  shuffle,  higgle  and 
wriggle.  "It  is  no  worse  than  some  plays.  I  am  op- 
posed to  the  round  dance^  the  square  dance^  the  French 
Can-Can,  or  the  ball,  with  their  mixed  crowd,"  the 
preacher  makes  out  to  say.  But  the  dancer  proceeds: 
^'I  mean  the  select  company,  in  the  parlor,  and  limited 
to  prudent  hours,  under  the  eye  of  parents."  The 
preacher  says,  "That  alters  the  case;  and  if  youi'  weak 
brother  is  not  oflended  with  your  dancing,  and  you  do 
not  injure  yourself,  and  God  is  not  dishonored  thereby,  it 
is  no  harm."     That  is  enough.    The  dancer  returns  with 

the  joyful  news:  Bro. saj^s,  ^'It  is  no  harm.'^    That 

is  license  enough.     All  the  dancers  in  the  con  ,Mmiity 


DANCING.  403 

are  iuformed  that  the  preacher  said,  ''It  is  no  harm," 
and  his  "ifs"  and  "provisos"  are  all  left  out,  and  danc- 
ing is  free  in  the  whole  community. 

Your  preacher,  after  that,  may  tell  of  his  "consistent 
opposition  to  dancing"  till  doomsda}^;  but  all  the 
dancers  will  quote  him  on  their  side.  He  is  their  man. 
He  is  a  strong-minded  man,  a  man  of  great  learning, 
and  quotes  Latin  and  Greek,  talks  of  logic,  and  the 
great  principles  that  underlie  the  mere  truth  that  ap- 
pears on  the  surface;  and  discourses  to  us  of  "heart 
culture,"  "the  law  of  love,"  "the  spirit  of  obedience," 
and  delights  our  hearts  with  the  profoundness  of  hia 
discourses,  the  depth  of  his  arguments,  and  the  beauty 
and  elegance  of  his  descriptions.  It  is  wonderful  liow 
the  people  admire  him!  Here  is  the  outcome.  The 
demoralizing  influence  runs  like  fire  in  the  stubble.  It 
is  like  some  man  said  of  a  lie — that  "  it  would  travel  half 
round  the  world  before  truth  would  get  its  boots  on  to 
start."  A  demoralizing  word  from  a  preacher  will  be 
heard,  handed  from  hand  to  hand,  remembered,  repeated 
and  enlarged  on  for  an  age ;  but  words  of  resistance,  re- 
pressing demoralization,  ar^  not  often  repeated,  but  soon 
forgotten;  or,  if  repeated  at  all,  forgotten  to  such  an 
extent  that  the  force  is  lost  more  and  more,  till  it  is  finally 
gone  forever. 

Evil  is  a  spontaneous  growth,  and  requires  no  advo- 
cacy. ISTo  man  goes  through  the  country  advocating 
manufacturing  intoxicating  drinks.  ISTo  lecturers  are 
paid  for  lecturing  in  favor  of  such  manufacturing.  Nor 
are  any  lecturers  sought  or  paid  for  lecturing  on  selling 
these  destructive  drinks.  But  the  work  of  manufactur- 
ing and  selling,  both  wholesale  and  retail,  goes  on 
briskly.  They  hedge  it  in,  load  it  down  with  legal  en- 
iictments,  taxation  and  tines,  but  it  makes  its  way  on 


404  DANCING. 

and  tills  the  land.  The  State  comes  down  upon  those 
engaged  in  it,  arrests,  tries  and  imprisons  a  whole  lot 
of  them  for  dealing  in  "crooked  whisky;"  but  it  does 
not  stop  it.  Ten  thousand  preachers  denounce  the  whole 
thing  —  manufacturing,  selling,  drinking,  and  all;  a 
thousand  hired  tem})erance  lecturers  go  out  and  assail 
it  in  every  possible  form;  and  millions  of  temperance 
people  set  their  faces  against  it;  and  the  cries  of  thou- 
sands and  tens  of  thousands — drunkards'  wives,  -wid- 
ows, orphans,  fathers  and  mothers — are  lifted  against  the 
terrible  evd,  and  still  the  nefarious  work  goes  on. 

The  same  is  trne  of  all  works  of  the  flesh — they  need 
no  advocacy.  They  are  the  spontaneous  growth  that 
springs  np  in  the  absence  of  cultivation.  The  modern 
dance,  for  amusement,  pleasure,  fun;  for  the  sake  of 
the  dance,  the  love  of  it;  for  hdarity,  is  the  same  way. 
It  needs  no  advocate;  it  needs  no  indorsement  from 
pi'cacliers,  or  religious  scribes  and  editors.  A  few  easy 
and  loose  sentences,  such  as  that,  "It  is  no  worse  than 
some  plays;"  that  "it  is  a  healthful  exercise;''  that 
"  the  pallor  dance  is  no  liarm,"  from  the  poorest  preacher 
in  the  land,  will  be  sufficient  license  for  a  whole  com- 
munity of  dancers.  They  will  quote  him,  and  boast  of 
him  as  a  good  m.<>)i,  pi<ms  and  nfinul.  and  tell  that  "he 
don't  ohject  to  dancing."  One  thoughtless  chap,  in  the 
shape  of  a  "dancing  master,"  with  a  fine  suit,  no  matter 
whether  paid  for  or  not,  bowing  and  scraping,  with  his 
hat  turned  up  on  his  left  arm,  will  set  a  whole  commu- 
nity in  a  fever  for  the  dance,  and  pass  for  a  gentleman 
of  refinement  into  the  bargain — no  matter  whether  he 
ever  read  a  chapter  in  the  Bible  or  not,  or  whether  he 
knows  a  noun  from  a  verb,  or  what  the  word  logic 
means.  It  requires  no  argument  to  lead  people  in  the 
wrong  direction  on  the  down  grade.     ISTor  do  they  stop 


DANCING.  405 

to  reflect  when  the  wrong  is  presented.  They  never 
etndy  seriously,  unless  it  is  when  they  are  entreated  to 
do  right.  They  then  reflect.  It  is  a  serious  matter  to 
turn  from  the  wrong  and  do  right.  It  is  easy  to  do 
wrong,  but  more  diflicult  to  do  right.  There  are  many 
wrong  ways,  but  one  right  way.  Any  way  you  can  go 
is  wrong,  except  the  riglit  ivay.  It  is  easy  to  pull  down, 
but  laborious  to  build  up.  One  incendiary  can  set  on 
fire  and  destroy  more  property  in  one  night  than  a  thou- 
sand men  can  build  up  and  make  good  in  a  year.  "  One 
sinner  destroyeth  much  good."  One  dancing  master 
can  demoralize  and  pull  down  society  more  in  three 
months  than  can  be  repaired  by  the  whole  community 
in  five  years. 

You  talk  about  dancing  being  ''no  harm!"  Who 
ever  sends  for  a  dancing  master  to  visit  and  comfort  a 
dying  person?  ISTo  one  ever  thinks  of  such  a  thing. 
"Who  ever  sends  for  dancers  to  comfort  sick  and  dying 
people?  Dancers  themselves  do  not.  When  they  sicken 
and  think  they  are  in  danger  of  death,  they  never  send 
for  dancers  to  comfort  them.  They  know  full  well  that 
there  is  no  comfort  there.  IN'o;  they  turn  away  from 
their  own  class  and  seek  comfort  somewhere  else.  But 
the  genuine  Christian  goes  to  his  own  class  for  comfort, 
in  the  immediate  expectation  of  death.  He  goes  to 
those  with  whom  he  formerly  met  and  worshiped;  and 
he  wants  the  associations  in  death  he  had  in  life.  This 
has  the  appearance  of  sincerity  and  honesty  at  all  events. 

We  have  now  a  few  charges  to  prefer  against  danc- 
ing. We  mearf  the  same  kind  all  the  time  along  here; 
dancing  for  pleasure,  amusement,  fun;  for  the  sake  of 
the  dance,  the  love  of  it ;  for  devotion  to  it ;  or  for 
re<^,rf^tion. 

1.  It  is  exciring"  and  bewitching,  and  leads  people  be- 


406  DANCING. 

yond  all  reason.  Think  of  some  people  who  can  not 
lose  sleep  to  care  for  a  sick  person  for  a  single  night.  If 
they  lose  their  rest  it  makes  them  sick.  But  see  them 
at  the  dance  !  Any  comphtint  about  its  being  late,  about 
being  kept  so  long?  J^ot  a  word.  Any  complaint 
iibout  the  fatigue,  exhaustion,  poor  ventilation?  l^ot  a 
bit  of  it.  Any  complaint  about  the  laborious  character 
of  the  dance?  ITot  a  word.  Midnight  comes,  and  no 
complaint  of  its  being  late;  two  o'clock  comes,  no  com- 
plaint yet;  break  of  day  comes,  and  no  one  thought  of 
its  being  daylight  yet.  The  night  has  fled,  and  not  one 
particle  of  sleep!  What  is  all  this  for?  Iltaltfiful  ex- 
ercisef  Relaxation^  2iitQv  close  application  in  business? 
Not  a  word  of  it;  but  pleasure,  amusement,  fun,  hilar- 
ity; the  love  of  the  dance.  Who  will  defend  such  a 
bewitching  influence  as  this?  Where  has  reason  fled? 
Where  is  common  sense?  They  are  lost,  bewildered 
and  carried  away  with  the  hallucination  of  the  dance. 
They  have  lost  all  reasonable  regard  for  soul  and  body, 
and  all  thought  for  health,  personal  safety  and  propri- 
ety. Who  is  safe  under  the  influence  of  such  a  frenzy 
as  this?  Talk  about  its  being  ''  no  harm,"  when  it  carries 
away  all  reason  in  such  style  as  this !  It  sets  aside  the 
human  judgment  itself,  and  acts  without  judgment. 

2.  It  carries  them  away  in  expenses  beyond  all  reason. 
Think  of  the  outfit,  the  immediate  expense,  and  ask, 
Can  people  be  under  the  influence  of  sane  minds  who 
will  incur  such  expenses  in  view  of  all  they  get  in  re- 
turn? The  young  man  who  attends  the  dance,  with  his 
partner  in  due  form,  and  pays  his  portion  of  the  ex- 
penses for  one  night's  pleasure,  pays  out  the  hard  earn- 
ings of  a  week.  What  does  he  get  in  return?  Do  you 
Bay,  "Relaxation,"  "heathful  exercise,"  pleasure,  amuse- 
ment?    It  is  pretty  severe  "healthful  exercise,"  "relax- 


DANCING.  407 

ation,"  "pleasure,"  amusement!  But  that  is  not  all  he 
gets.  He  gets  the  loss  of  a  night's  rest,  a  night's 
"healthful  exercise,"  that  turns  out  to  be  exhausting, 
fatiguing  and  laborious  exercise,  most  injurious  to  health ; 
demoralization  of  the  whole  man,  from  which  the  phys- 
ical man  does  not  recover  in  a  week,  and  from  which 
the  moral  man,  in  many  instances,  never  recovers!  His 
money  is  gone,  and  he  is  injured  in  every  sense.  If  he 
would  give  as  much  to  the  church  in  twelve  months  as 
he  does  for  the  "healthful  exercise"  for  one  night,  he 
would  be  counted  liberal.  In  the  place  of  the  least  im- 
provement in  heart,  mind,  or  body,  he  is  injured  in 
heart,  mind  and  body.  "The  wages  of  sin  is  death."  It 
is  no  exaggeration  or  extravagance  to  say  he  has  been 
led  away  into  folly,  demoralized  and  damaged  in  heart, 
mind,  body  and  purse. 

3.  But  some  polite  sister  is  ready  to  respond,  "I  do 
not  justify  the  ball,  the  promiscuous  dance,  made  up  in- 
discriminately of  all  sorts  of  people,  and  dancing  in 
close  rooms,  not  ventilated,  at  a  late  hour.  I  think  that 
would  be  imprudent.  But  I  mean  a  select  company  of 
Christians,  in  a  parlor,  under  the  eye  of  parents,  lim- 
ited to  prudent  hours."  That  is  only  the  primary 
school,  the  initiatory,  where  they  get  accustomed  to  it, 
get  ofl*  the  embarrassment  that  all  sensible  people  have 
at  first,  the  preparatory  deportment — not  an  end^  but  a 
means  to  an  end.  It  looks  forward  to  the  great  dance, 
where  statesmen,  rich  men,  and  the  nobility  dance — pre- 
pares and  qualifies  for  that.  There  is  no  use  in  mincing 
the  matter.  Here  is  the  end  had  in  view.  It  is  the 
dance,  the  same  thing^  no  matter  whether  little  or  hig. 
It  is  like  a  snake — it  is  the  same  kind,  the  same  species, 
and  produces  the  same  sensation,  no  matter  if  it  is  not 
eix  inches  in  length.     We  can  find  no  good   kind  of- 


408  DANCING. 

snakes,  nor  drunkards,  nor  swearers,  nor  liars,  nor 
thieves.  Some  of  them  are  worse  than  others,  but  there 
are  no  good  ones.  Some  dancing  is  worse  than  others, 
and  some  dancers  are  worse  than  others;  some  are  not 
60  bad  as  others;  but  tJiPve  are  none  good.  They  are 
all  evil,  and  only  evil,  and  that  continually.  Some  of 
them  are  greater  than  others,  and  some  of  them  smaller; 
but  then,  they  are  simply  greater  and  smaller  evils. 

In  the  same  way,  there  are  greater  and  smaller  good 
things.  Some  good  things  are  better  than  others ;  but, 
then,  they  are  all  good.  The  ground  that  produced 
thirty-fold  was  good;  but  not  so  good  as  the  ground 
that  brought  sixty-fold;  and  the  ground  that  brought 
sixty-fold  was  not  so  good  as  the  ground  that  brought 
an  hundred-fold;  but  then,  it  was  all  good.  We  do  not 
stop  to  inquire  whether  dancing  is  worse  than  some- 
thing else,  or  not  so  good;  or  whether  one  kind  of 
dancing  is  better  than  another,  or  not  so  bad.  It  is  all 
bad;  and  we  want  none  of  it.  We  are  not  set  to  com- 
pare and  measure  evil,  and  decid-e  how  much  evil  one 
can  possibly  do  and  be  saved,  or  at  least  not  lost.  We 
do  not  desire  those  whom  we  instruct  to  study  how  much 
evil  they  can  do  and  still  enter  in  at  the  strait  gate, 
or  how  they  can  live  and  gain  a  hare  entrance  into  the 
everlasting  kingdom;  but  we  desire  them  to  so  live  that 
they  may  "gain  an  a,hundant  entrance  into  the  ever- 
lasting kingdom  of  our  Lord  and  Savior,  Jesus  Christ." 
• — See  2  Peter  i.  11.  "  If  the  righteous  scarcely  be  saved, 
where  shall  the  ungodly  and  the  sinner  appear?"  1 
Peter  iv.  18. 

Alluding  to  the  end — the  dissolution  of  the  heavens 
and  the  earth — the  Apostle  says,  "Seeing,  then,  that  all 
these  things  shall  be  dissolved,  what  manner  of  persons 
ought  you  to  be  in  all  holy  conversation  and  godliness, 


DANCING.  409 

looking  for  and  hasting  to  the  coming  of  the  day  of 
God,  wherein  the  heavens  being  on  fire  shall  be  dis- 
solved, and  the  elements  shall  melt  with  fervent  heat?" 
— 2  Peter  iii.  11,  12.  With  these,  and  numerous  other 
Scriptures  like  them,  that  can  easily  be  produced,  we 
can  not  clear  our  skirts  without  warning  all  against  the 
follies  of  the  world — specially  the  folly  of  dancing.  It 
is  on  the  other  side  from  piety.  Dancing  is  inimical  to 
it,  and  destructive  of  it.  Pious  and  godly  people  do  not 
dance.  Mothers  that  teach  their  children  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  pray  with  them,  do  not  send  them  to  danc- 
ing school.  Those  in  the  spirit  and  love  of  Christ  have 
no  love  for  the  dance.  It  is  perfectly  insipid  to  them. 
"If  any  man  loves  not  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  he  will  be 
accursed.  The  Lord  comes."  May  we  all  be  saved  from 
the  follies  of  the  world,  and  prepared  to  meet  Him  at 
his  coming' 


SERMON  No.  XYIII. 

THEME. — INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

If  any  one  had  told  us,  forty  years  ago,  that  we  would 
live  to  see  the  day  when  those  professing  to  be  Chris- 
tians; who  claim  the  Holy  Scriptures  as  their  only  rule 
of  faith  and  practice;  those  under  the  command,  and 
who  profess  to  appreciate  the  meaning  of  the  command, 
to  "observe  all  things  whatever  I  have  commanded 
you,"  would  bring  any  instrument  of  music  into  a  wor- 
shiping assembly,  and  use  it  there  in  worship,  we  should 
have  repelled  the  idea  as  an  idle  dream.  But  this  only 
shows  how  little  we  knew  of  what  men  would  do;  or 
how  little  we  saw  of  the  power  of  the  adversary  to  sub- 
vert the  purest  principles,  to  deceive  the  hearts  of  the 
simple,  to  undermine  the  very  foundation  of  all  piety, 
and  turn  the  very  worship  of  God  itself  into  an  attrac- 
tion for  the  people  of  the  world,  an  entertainment,  or 
amusement.  It  never  entered  into  our  mind  that  peo- 
ple once  enlightened,  and  made  partakers  of  the  heav- 
enly calling,  could  so  easily  be  turned  away  from  the 
contemplation,  of  the  ever-blessed  God,  his  wonderful 
love  for  man,  and  the  scheme  of  redemption;  from  oui 
Lord,  the  Christ;  all  he  said  and  did;  his  great  suffer- 
ings for  us,  his  death,  resurrection,  ascension  and  coro- 
nation; being  crowned  Lord  of  all,  imparting  gifts  to 
men  ;  his  grace,  his  blood,  the  remission  of  sins,  the  im- 
partation  of  the  Spirit;  the  ransom  of  man  from  the 
grave;  the  change  of  his  vile  body  into  an  immortal 

(411) 


412  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

body;  the  new  heaven  and  new  earth,  wherein  dwelleth 
righteousness;  the  presence  of  the  Almighty  Father, 
and  the  Lord  Jesus,  the  Christ;  the  pure  and  the  holy 
angels,  with  songs  of  everlasting  joys  in  the  great  as- 
sembly of  the  ransomed  of  the  Lord,  out  of  every  na- 
tion, and  kindred,  and  tribe,  and  people,  from  under  the 
whole  heaven,  to  dwell  with  God  and  the  Lamb  forever 
and  ever — we  say,  that  we  had  no  idea  that  people 
could  be  so  easily  turned  away  from  the  contemphition 
of  allthis,  and  all  the  pure  and  heavenly  aspirations  it 
inspires,  to  the  mere  contemplation  of  the  pleasing 
sounds  of  an  instrument  of  music,  of  the  melodious 
voices  of  men  and  women,  when  trained  in  artistic 
music,  and  taught  how  to  perform  their  part  well  in  an 
operatic  drama. 

It  appears  never  to  occur  to  the  multitudes  who  throng 
the  assemblies  to  hear  instruments,  sweet  voices  and 
artistic  melodies,  that  there  is  no  worship  in  it,  or,  at 
least,  divine  worship.  All  that  can  be  heard  in  a  the- 
ater, in  a  museum,  or  less  godly  places,  where  there  is 
certainly  no  worship.  There  is  no  worship  in  music,  in 
itself.  There  is  power  in  it,  enchantment,  but  as  easily 
associated  with  vice  as  virtue,  with  cruelty  as  with  benef- 
icence, with  corruption  as  purity.  We  find  music  where 
there  are  no  moral  qualities^  either  good  or  bad — a  mere 
secular  entertainment.  We  listen  to  it,  and  admire  it 
for  its  own  sake,  its  beauty,  its  delightful  strains,  its 
enrapturing  sounds,  its  melodies,  and  the  pleasing  sen^ 
sations  it  produces  within  us.  But  there  is  no  worship 
in  this.  It  is  simply  secular,  having  neither  moral  nor 
immoral  qualities  in  it.  We  listen  to  a  fine  performer 
to  see  how  he  can  perform,  and  admire  the  performance, 
as  artistic,  dramatic,  and  elegant,  and  give  him  the 
praise  due  a  good  performer.     But  there  is  nothing  re- 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP.  413 

ligious  in  it.  There  is  not  a  moral  idea  in  it;  it  has  no 
moral  character — there  is  nothing  spiritual  in  it;  it  has 
no  spiritual  character — there  is  nothing  religious  about 
it;  it  has  no  religious  character. 

In  this  respect  it  is  like  elocution — it  has  no  moral, 
spiritual,  or  religious  character.  We  listen  to  a  lecture 
on  elocution,  not  as  an  act  of  worship,  not  as  a  religious 
act,  or  even  a  moral  act.  We  listen  to  it  as  a  secular 
entertainment,  to  see  the  proficiency  of  the  man  in  an 
artistic  performance.  We  speak  of  his  performance 
and  of  him,  not  in  view  of  worship,  religion,  or  moral- 
ity, but  in  view  of  his  performance — that  he  did  well 
or  otherwise.  Elocution,  in  itself,  has  nothing  relig- 
ious in  it,  nor  even  moral;  but  relates  to  all  speaking, 
no  matter  what  the  theme.  It  is  a  great  advantage  to 
a  speaker  to  be  able  to  speak  eloquently,  no  matter  what 
he  is  speaking  on.  But,  then,  if  we  go  away  simply  ad- 
mking  the  eloquence,  he  has  done  no  more  than  to  get 
admirers  of  his  eloquence  and  of  himself,  and  taught 
the  pfople  notlii)ig.  This  is  a  poor  compliment  to  a 
speaker.  If  the  speaking  is  worth  anything,  we  speak 
oi  tcJiat  was  said,,  what  was  taught,  proved^  or  enforced^ 
and  not  of  the  man. 

Fine  reading  is  a  great  art,  a  rare  acquirement,  and 
much  to  be  admired.  But  if  a  man  reads  so  finely  that 
we  go  away  talking  of  i\\Q  fi)ie  reading^  and  do  not 
know  what  was  read^  it  amounts  to  but  little.  Reading, 
however,  is  nothing  but  human  art,  and  is  not,  in  itself 
worship.  It  is  not  religious,  spiritual,  or  even  moral. 
It  has  no  religious,  spiritual,  or  moral  character.  We 
like  to  hear  a  person  read  well;  but,  then,  we  do  not 
hear  reading  merely  to  judge  how  well  a  person  can 
read,  or  to  admire  the  reading,  or  a  good  reader.  The 
great  matter  is  that  which  is  read.     Bid  we  get  that 


414  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

which  was  read?  Did  we  understand  it?  If  we  did, 
the  true  object  in  reading  was  attained.  We  go  away 
speaking  of  what  was  read^  and  not  of  him  who  read 
it,  or  of  the  fine  reading,  unless  it  be  in  a  very  subor- 
dinate sense — even  then  the  exception,  and  not  the  rule. 
Reading  has  no  moral  character,  but  is  merely  a  human 
art,  a  secular  acquirement.  It  is,  however,  a  very  good 
and  useful  acquirement,  and  very  desirable.  The  attain- 
ment is  right;  but  there  is  no  religion  in  it,  nor  worship, 
in  itself.  The  mere  act  of  reading  is  not  worship.  No 
one  thinks  of  worshiping  when  reading  newspapers, 
secular  news,  nor  in  reading  of  agriculture.  It  depends 
on  what  we  read^  and  the  spirit  in  which  we  read, 
whether  there  is  any  worship  about  it.  The  mere  art 
itself  of  reading  is  not  worship  at  all. 

In  the  same  way,  in  music  itself  there  is  not  a  spirit- 
ual idea  or  moral  quality.  It  is  human  from  first  to 
last.  It  is  purely  an  invention  of  man,  a  human  art,  a 
fine  art,  a  delightful  and  useful  art.  It  is  right  to  en- 
courage the  cultivation  of  this  art.  But,  then,  it  must 
be  kept  in  mind  all  the  time  that  there  is  nothing  re- 
ligious in  music,  nor  irreligious.  I^or  is  there  any  re- 
ligion in  singing,  in  itsef^ t\iQ  mere  art  of  singing.  It 
depends  on  what  is  sung.  Singing  may  be  corrupting, 
demoralizing  and  degrading.  Men  sing  obscene,  vulgar 
and  licentious  songs.  That  is  corrupting  and  debas- 
ing. The  singing,  ^?^  itself ^  is  not  corrupting,  but  thed 
which  is  sung.  Then  there  is  mere  secular  singing, 
about  pretty  birds,  sweet  flowers,  and  the  like,  that  has 
no  moral  character — merely  for  entertainment.  This  is 
no  worship,  but  merely  singing  of  worldly  things  for 
amusement.  This  may  be  connected  with  reiitiement, 
improvement  and  taste. 

But  there  is  a  higher  order  of  singing  than  any  of 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP.  415 

this;  singing  in  the  regularly  ordained  worship  of  the 
Most  High;  singing  in  ohedience  to  the  commandment 
of  God.  This  is  the  singing  we  are  concerned  with. 
This  is  prescribed  in  Scripture.  Indeed,  the  entire  wor- 
ship is  pr<  Hcrihed  m  the  law  of  God.  No  man  knows 
what  worship  is,  only  as  the  Lord  has  prescribed  it.  The 
worship  is  all  positive^  and  comes  with  the  weight  of 
authority.  The  whole  of  it  is  arranged  to  please  God. 
The  whole  of  it  is  of  the  Supreme  Will.  It  was  not 
intended  as  an  attraction,  an  entertainment,  or  amuse- 
ment; but  as  homage,  adoration,  praise  and  thanks- 
giving, from  those  who  were  lost  and  have  been  found; 
who  were  fallen,  but  are  lifted  up;  were  enemies,  but 
are  now  reconciled;  were  separated  from  God,  but  have 
been  united  with  him;  were  in  bondage  under  sin,  but 
are  now  redeemed  by  the  blood  of  Jesus.  They  do  not 
sing  because  they  love  to  sing^  or  because  they  love 
'iuusic,  but  because  they  love  God  and  delight  to  do 
those  things  that  are  pleasing  in  his  sight;  to  obey  his 
command;  to  sing^  making  melod}^  in  their  hearts  to 
the  Lord.  In  obeying  this  command  their  minds  are 
not  taken  up  with  a  bundle  of  note  books,  tune  forks, 
or  with  music  at  all;  but  with  praising  God.  tlianhs- 
giving.,  exhortation.,  admonition  and  teaching.  The 
happy  soul  is  trying  to  praise  God  in  song;  to  render 
thanks  to  the  Fountain  of  eternal  love;  to  "teach  and 
admonish  one  another  in  psalms  and  hymns  and  spir- 
itual songs,"  and  not  to  make  a  display  of  music,  or  of 
himself. 

But  we  come  now  to  the  explicit  law  on  the  subject: 
"Let  the  peace  of  God  rule  in  your  hearts,  to  the  ""which 
also  you  are  called  in  one  body;  and  be  you  thankful. 
Let  the  word  of  Christ  dwell  in  you  richly  in  all  wis- 
dom; teaching  and  admonishing  one  another  in  psalms 


416  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

and  hymns  and  spiritual  songs,  singing  with  grace  in 
your  hearts  to  the  Lord.  And  whatever  you  do,  in 
word  or  deed,  do  all  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  giv- 
ing thanks  to  God,  even  the  Father  hy  him." — Colos- 
sians  iii.  15-17.  "Be  not  drunk  with  wine,  wherein  is 
excegs;  hut  be  filled  with  the  Spirit;  speaking  to  your- 
selves in  psalms,  hymns  and  spiritual  songs,  singing  and 
making  melody  in  your  heart  to  the  Lord ;  giving  thanks 
always  for  all  things  to  God,  even  the  Father,  in  the 
name  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ." — Ephesians  v.  18-20. 

This  covers  the  ground,  so  far  as  singing  is  concerned. 
Let  us  look  over  this  carefully,  and  see  what  is  contained 
in  it.     We  collect  the  following  items : 

1.  Singing  is  commanded  in  the  words,  ^^Singing  with 
grace  in  your  hearts  to  the  Lord."  It  is  the  precise 
thing  to  be  done.  It  is  not  a  command  to  jpcrform 
music^  either  vocal  or  instrumental.  The  music  is  only 
a  secondary  matter,  and  incidental,  and  not  the  thing 
commanded.  The  singing  is  the  precise  thing  com- 
manded. The  Apostle  says,  "And  even  things  without 
life,  giving  sound,  whether  pipe  or  harp,  except  they 
e^ive  a  distinction  in  the  sounds,  how  shall  it  be  known 
what  is  piped  or  harped.  For  if  the  trumpet  give  an 
uncertain  sound,  who  shall  prepare  himself  to  the  bat- 
tle? So  likewise  you,  except  you  utter  with  the  tongue 
words  easy  to  be  understood,  how  shall  it  be  known 
what  is  spoken?  for  you  shall  speak  into  the  air." — 1 
Corinthians  xiv.  7-9.  Again,  a  little  further  on.  he 
says:  "I  thank  my  God,  I  speak  with  tongues  more 
than  you  all.  Yet  in  the  church  I  had  rather  speak  1^yq 
words  with  my  understanding,  that  by  my  voice  I  might 
teach  others  also,  than  ten  thousand  words  in  an  un- 
known tongue."  Then  the  Apostle  is  here  speaking  of 
spiritual  gifts,  but  showing  the  importance  of  being  un- 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP.  417 

derstood  iu  the  churcli.  In  the  midst  of  this  he  says, 
"What  then?  I  will  pray  with  the  spirit,  and  I  will 
pray  with  the  understanding  also :  I  will  sing  with  the 
spirit,  and  I  will  sing  with  the  understanding  also." 

The  singing  in  worship  is  no  mere  exercise  in  musi( , 
or  musical  display,  but  singing  in  ohedience  to  the  divine 
command;  to  please  God;  to  do  his  will;  and  is  to  be 
with  the  spirit  and  the  understanding,  and  to  be  under- 
stood by  the  congregation,  as  we  shall  see  more  fully 
presently. 

2.  We  are  to  teach  one  another  in  singing.  This  sing- 
ing is  not  for  music,  a  musical  entertainment,  amusement, 
or  attraction,  but  one  method  of  teaching  one  another,  in 
the  church,  in  worship;  and,  therefore,  must  have  teach- 
ing in  it^  and  the  words  must  be  sung  so  that  they  can 
be  understood^  or  they  can  teach  nothing.  This  divine 
appointment  has  been  almost  wholly  subverted,  and  this 
important  method  of  teaching  set  aside  by  a  variet}^  of 
pieces  that  have  no  teaching  in  them;  the  merest  vapor 
ever  put  into  poetry;  the  most  insipid  trash  ever  ut- 
tered, and  sung  purely  for  music,  without  ever  think- 
ing of  the  meaning  of  the  words,  or  whether  they  have 
any  meaning.  ISTo  wonder  the  people  are  in  ignorance, 
when  the  very  means  God  has  ordained  for  teaching  is 
thus  subverted.  But  to  complete  the  farce  an  instru- 
ment is  brought  in,  as  if  the  determination  was  that  the 
appointment  of  God,  to  teach  one  another  in  singing, 
should  be  defeated  by  musical  sounds,  that  utter  no 
words,  and  confuse  the  ear,  so  that  not  one  word  of  five 
can  be  caught  at  all!  Who  is  taught  in  the  songs 
where  they  use  an  organ?  Who  listens  to  it  with  the 
x^Q'd,  oihoAw^  taught?  ITo  one.  ]N"ot  a  spiritual  idea  is 
imparted  in  a  month.  Still,  they  say,  ''What  harm 
is  it?" 


418  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

3.  "Admonishing  one  another."  What  hecomes  of 
the  admonishing  in  these  times  of  musical  show  and 
display?  Piece  after  piece  is  sung  and  played,  without 
a  word  of  admonition,  or  one  word  out  of  ten  heing 
understood  of  the  insipid  ditty  that  is  sung.  The  whole 
thing  is  thrown  into  confusion  hy  the  sound  of  an  in- 
strument that  can  not  admonish  anybody.  There  stands 
the  clear  command  of  God,  to  admonish  one  another  in 
psalms,  hymns  and  spiritual  songs — singing.  "We  put 
the  matter  to  any  man  who  fears  the  Lord  and  desires 
to  do  his  will,  to  answer  the  question.  Is  the  command 
to  admonish  obeyed  at  all?  Is  the  thing  commanded 
done  at  all?  Is  the  aim  to  do  it?  Does  any  one  think, 
while  listening  to  the  organ  and  the  choir,  that  the  com- 
mand to  admonish  one  another  is  being  obeyed?  ITot 
a  w^ord  of  it!  They  are  thinking  about  music,  and  mu- 
sical performance.  They  are  thinking  about  entertain- 
ing those,  who  come  to  be  entertained,  with  fine  music; 
and  amusing  those  that  come  to  be  amused;  and  attract- 
ing those  that  come  to  be  attracted.  They  are  doing 
the  very  work  intended  in  their  appointment.  But  the 
purpose  of  God  is  thwarted,  and  what  he  commanded  to 
be  done  in  singing  is  defeated,  and  7iot  done  at  all.  N'o 
teaching  and  admonishing  is  done,  and  there  is  no 
^'spirit  and  understanding"  in  it,  only  the  spirit  and 
understanding  of  a  piece  of  music,  l^oi  a  soul  is  taught 
or  admonished ;  nor  a  religious  or  spiritual  impression 
made.  There  w^as  a  pleasurable  sensation  in  hearing 
fine  music,  a  good  instrument,  and  beautifu'  voices  of 
men  and  women.  N'ot  a  cold  professor  went  away  re- 
proved or  taught,  and  not  a  sinner  brought  to  repent- 
ance. This  is  the  terrible  work  the  instrume:.t  is  doing 
in  the  Church.  How  can -a  holy  man  or  woi,..;^n  give  it 
any  countenance? 


IxVSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP.  419 

Bat  where  is  tlie  Scripture  against  it?  It  is  not  for- 
bidden. Neither  is  infant  church-membership  forbid- 
den; but  the  Pedobaptists  have  no  Scripture  for  infant 
membership!  Certainly  they  have  in  the  Jewish 
Church;  but  the  Jewish  Church  is  abolished.  Certainly 
It  is;  andj  with  it,  away  goes  infant  church-membership, 
instrumental  music  in  worship,  and  all  that  David  said 
about  the  psaltery,  the  timbrel,  the  harp,  the  organ,  and 
all  the  other  instruments  in  worship.  This  brings  us  to 
Christ;  the  Head  over  all  things  to  the  Church.  The 
command  iioio  is  to  hear  him.  TVe  have  no  authority 
about  worship  only  from  him.  When  he  came  into  the 
world  the.re  were  instruments  in  abuv^idance.  We  are 
not  aware  that  the  inventive  genius  of  modern  time? 
has  added  much  to  the  list.  They  had  them  in  the  wor- 
ship among  the  Jews  in  the  synagogues,  and  in  all  the 
public  worship.  The  Pagans  had  them  in  their  wor- 
ship everywhere.  There  would  have  been  no  conflict 
in  the  establishment  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  with  Jews 
or  Pagans,  in  bringing  instrumental  music  in  and  util- 
izing it.  The  way  was  open,  and  it  would  have  been 
owQ  pojjular  element.  But  did  our  Lord  utilize  iff  ]^o ; 
he  established  his  religion  in  a  country  where  all  wor- 
shipers, of  all  kinds,  used  instruments  in  worship,  but 
left  the  instrum<  nts  all  out!  lie  did  not  leave  them 
out  because  there  were  not  plenty  of  them,  nor  because 
he  could  not  get  them,  nor  because  they  v\'ere  not  pop- 
ular; but  because  he  did  not  want  them..  This  is  a 
divine  froliihition.  IN^either  he,  nor  any  one  of  his 
apostles,  ever  used  any  instruments  to  enable  them  to 
sing;  nor  any  one  even  professing  to  follow  him,  till  the 
man  of  sin  was  fully  developed,  and  there  was  a  full- 
grown  pope.  He  is  the  gentleman  to  whom  we  are  in 
debted  for  the  use  of  the  organ  in  worship.     His  fruit- 


420  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

ful  mind  caught  the  idea  of  utilizing  the  organ,  and  he 
took  it  from  its  more  congenial  place,  in  the  theater, 
and  consecrated  it  to  divine  service. 

We  do  not  see  that  there  was  anything  particularly 
inconsistent  in  the  pope  doing  this,  as  he  depends  on 
worldly  attractions,  influences  and  powers,  wholly  to 
sustain  his  cause.  He  appeals  to  the  lust  of  the  eye 
and  the  pride  of  life,  to  popularity,  secular  power,  or 
anything  that  can  be  addressed  to  the  eye  or  ear,  or  any 
of  the  senses  of  human  beings,  to  draw  the  people,  gull 
them,  and  assist  him  in  leading  them  captive  at  his  wilL 
He  has  borrowed  from  the  Jew,  the  Pagan,  the  philoso- 
pher, the  statesman,  the  rich  man,  or  from  any  source 
under  heaven,  to  build  himself  up,  gain  strength,  popu- 
larity, wealth  and  influence  in  the  world.  He  has  car- 
ried the  utilizing  principle  out  to  perfection,  and  util- 
ized everything  that  he  could  lay  his  hand  on,  till  he 
has  built  up  a  Babel  of  iniquity,  described  in  Holy  Writ, 
"the  man  of  sin,"  "a  falling  away,'"'  "an  apostas}^,"  a 
"sea  monster,"  or,  under  the  last  and  most  fltting  em- 
blem of  all,  "Mystery  Babylon  the  Great,  the  mother 
of  harlots  and  abominations  of  the  earth."  She  has- 
corrupted  the  earth,  and  to-day  has  two  hundred  mill- 
ions of  the  human  race  seduced  by  her  sorceries,  and 
the  blood  of  tifty  millions  of  martyrs  cries  to  heaven 
for  redress  for  her  cruelties.  This  is  what  has  come  of 
the  utilizing  principle!  The  mind  is  turned  a^vay  from 
the  Lord,  and  an  immense  swarm  of  devouring  priests 
has  risen  up,  worse  than  the  locusts  or  lice  ot  Egypt, 
who  never  think  of  a  divine  influence  for  converting 
and  saving  man.  The  gospel  has  disappeared  from 
among  them.  God  has  long  since  turned  away  from 
and  given  them    over  to  believe  the  lie,  that  they  all 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP.  421 

might  be  condemned  who  received  not  the  love  of  the 
truth  that  they  might  be  saved. 

The  work  of  God  can  not  be  improved.  The  wisdom 
of  God  is  in  it  at  the  start — it  is  perfect.  When  he 
gave  Peter  the  keys  of  the  kingdom,  and  declared  that 
w^hat  he  bound  on  earth  should  be  bound  in  heaven, 
used  the  keys,  or  the  power  thus  vested  in  him,  pre- 
scribed  the  terms  of  coming  to  Gocl^  the  matter  was 
settled.  ITo  other  terms  could  be  prescribed,  no  other 
gospel  could  be  preached,  by  man  or  angel,  without  in- 
curring the  curse  of  heaven.  Nothing  can  be  added  to 
these  terms,  and  nothing  can  be  taken  from  them.  There 
they  stand,  the  immutable  terms  to  all  nations,  all  kin- 
dreds and  peoples,  till  the  last  trumpet  shall  sound,  as 
if  guarded  by  the  angel  with  the  flaming  sword.  They 
are  stereotyped,  perfect  and  complete.  In  this  we  are 
generally  agreed.  Back  of  this  we  need  not  go  in  this 
argument. 

The  law  of  the  Lord  for  the  saints  is  equally  unalter- 
able. Nothing  may  be  added  to  it,  or  taken  from  it. 
The  worship  is  prescribed  in  the  law.  If  every  trans- 
gression and  disobedience  in  the  Old  Covenant  received 
a  just  recompense  of  reward,  how  shall  we  escape  if  we 
tamper  with  the  better  Covenant,  founded  on  better 
promises?  If  it  were  death  under  the  law  given  by  the 
ministrations  of  angels,  to  offer  strange  fire  on  God's  altar, 
what  may  we  expect  for  him  who  shall  tamper  with  the 
prescribed  worship  in  the  law  given  by  the  Son  of  God? 
If  death  were  inflicted  on  Uzzah  for  violating  the  law, 
in  touching  the  ark  of  God,  what  shall  we  expect  to 
befall  the  man  who  shall  tamper  with  the  law  prescrib- 
ing the  worship  of  God? 

We  have  now  come  to  the  point  where  the  main 
trouble  is   anticipated.     We   should   like   to  be  heard 


422  '  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

patientl}'  by  those  who  difier  from  us.  But  we  do  not 
expect  this.  We  can,  therefore,  only  expect  to  benefit 
those  wdio  will  hear.  We  invite  the  attention  of  these 
to  what  we  are  about  to  say  now,  even  if  they  resolve 
to  hear  us  no  more.  We  arc  under  the  inliuence  of  no 
prejudice,  no  ill  feeling  toward  any,  no  desire  for  oppo- 
sition and  strife,  but  an  utter  aversion  to  all  strife.  We 
desire  union  and  harmony  among  the  saints,  and  intend 
what  w^e  say  here  for  the  consideration  of  many  when 
our  voice  will  be  heard  no  more  on  earth,  and  wdaen  we 
shall  be  troubled  no  more  about  the  organ  in  w^orship, 
or  any  other  innovation.  Of  course  we  desire  every 
word  to  be  in  the  kindness,  humility  and  meekness  of 
Jesus.  Please  hear  us,  then,  w^hile  w^e  ofi'er  a  few  con- 
siderations further. 

1.  We  have  nothing  but  the  common  interest  at  stake 
in  this  matter.  We  can  not  see  an  earthly  interest  to 
influence  us  in  the  course  we  are  going.  We  know  we 
are  going  against  the  current,  against  wind  and  tide; 
and  it  has  been  said  that  "  He  who  spits  against  the 
wind  spits  in  his  own  face."  We  are  not  blind  to  this; 
we  know  it.  We  know^  that  it  is  not  popular.  We  are 
perfectly  aw^are  that  it  is  calling  down  on  us  the  dis- 
favor of  many  of  the  rich,  the  influential  and  popular; 
and  that,  on  account  of  it,  we  are  cut  ofl'  from  many 
amiable  people,  and  can  not  meet  and  worship  with 
them.  We  are  perfectly  aware  that  it  is  against  our 
temporal  interests.  We  have  not  been,  and  are  not, 
blind  to  all  this,  but  have  it  before  us,  and  have  con- 
sidered it  carefully,  and  made  up  our  mind  to  take  all 
the  consequences,  and  bear  with  meekness  and  patience 
whatever  shall  come.  We  do  not  court  these  conse- 
quences, nor  desire  them,  but  we  see  no  way  to  avoid 
them,  and    maintain  what    we  solemnly  believe    to  b.^ 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP.  423 

right.  We,  then,  cheerfully  accept  the  situation,  and 
■take  the  consequences,  rather  than  give  up  the  fullest, 
strongest  and  most  settled  conviction  of  our  inmost 
fiuul.  We  can  not  worship,  and  maintain  a  good  con- 
science, ^uith  the  organ.  We  are  certain  that  we  can 
worship  acceptably  loithout  the  organ.  The  friends  of 
the  organ  do  not  doubt  this.  They  entertain  not  one 
doubt  that  they  can  worship  acceptably  without  it.  Here 
is  something  that  is  safe.  There  is  no  doubt  or  uncer- 
tahity  about  it.  There  is  no  one  that  has  the  least 
doubt  that  we  can  worship  acceptably  without  the  organ. 
Here,  then,  is  safe  ground,  and  here  we  can  all  meet  and 
worship  acceptably',  in  harmony  and  without  any  doubt. 
But  we  can  not  meet  and  worship  with  it  without  doubt. 
We  hold  it  in  doubt,  to  put  it  in  the  mildest  form,  and 
can  not  yield  to  a  doubtful  practice,  or  doubtful  wor- 
ship, when  we  can  have  that  about  which  there  is  no 
doubt. 

2.  Some  advocates  of  the  organ  quote  the  words, "Praise 
God  on  the  harp."  These  do  not  quote  enough  to  get 
the  full  scope.  We  must  assist  them  a  little.  "Praise 
him  with  the  sound  of  the  trumpet:  praise  him  with 
the  psalter3^  Praise  him  with  the  timbrel  and  dance : 
praise  him  with  the  stringed  instruments  and  organs. 
Praise  him  upon  the  loud  cj'mbals:  praise  him  upon  the 
high-sounding  cymbals."  Our  organ  friends  are  partial, 
to  select  one  instrument,  the  organ.,  out  of  such  a  vari- 
ety! If  they  go  here  for  divine  authorit}',  why  throw 
aside  the  trumpet?  We  find  it  here.  See  Psalm  cl.  3-5. 
Why  pass  by  the  psaltery?  It  is  in  the  list.  Why  say 
nothing  about  the  harp?  It  is  involved.  Why  over- 
look the  timbrel?  It  is  enumerated  with  the  other  in- 
struments. Here,  too,  in  the  midst  of  this  group,  we 
.find  the  danc.     Why  not  bring  it  in?     We  have  the 


424  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

authority  of  David  for  it!  Would  it  not  be  well  to 
bring  the  dance  into  the  worship?  '^It  would  draw  the 
young  people  out;"  yes,  and  some  of  the  old  07ies,  too, 
and  then  we  might  preach  the  gospel  to  them!  But  the 
list,  according  to  Judaism,  is  not  complete  yet.  The 
stringed  instruments  are  mentioned.  We  must  have 
these.  Then,  here  comes  the  organ!  Yes,  and  the  loud 
cymbals,  and  the  liigli- sounding  cymbals! 

What  think  you  of  this  list?  Is  here  divine  authority 
for  the  use  of  the  organ?  Certainly,  it  is  commanded. 
So  is  the  use  of  all  these  other  instruments,  not  as  ex- 
pedients^ nor  things  indifferent,  but  part  of  tJie  loor- 
ship — the  dance  and  all!  l!To  revolting ;  no  backing  off 
from  your  ground.  You  are  commanded  to  praise  God 
with  these  instruments  and  w^ith  the  dance !  Let  there 
be  no  wincing  about  it.  Come  up  and  accept  the  situa- 
tion. The  use  of  these  instruments,  and  the  dance, 
constitute  a  part  of  the  worship,  and  is  commanded. 
It  is  no  matter  of  opinion,  expedient,  or  indifferent 
thing,  but  commanded  and  worship.  It  is  w^orship  to 
praise  God,  and  here  is  a  clear  command  to  praise  God 
with  these  instruments  and  the  dance!  It  is,  then,  loor- 
ship  and  commanded  !  Those  who  do  not  obey  are  dis- 
ohedient.  Let  him  that  has  no  instruments  put  out  to 
the  venders  of  instruments  and  buy;  and  those  who  can 
not  dance,  proceed  at  once  and  learn  to  dance;  then 
bring  these  instruments,  the  loud  trumpet  and  all — the 
dance,  too — into  the  church,  and  let  us  once  in  our  lives 
worship  according  to  Scripture,  and  obey  the  command 
in  this  Scripture ! 

"That  was  under  the  Old  Dispensation!"  Certainly 
it  was.  "It  is  not  binding  on  us,  then,  to  have  all  these 
instruments  and  the  dance ! "  ]^o;itisnot.  Why  not? 
Because  it  was  under  the  Old  Institution,  and  not  to  us 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP.  425 

at  all.  Then  away  with  these  instruments,  and  the 
dance,  too,  in  worship;  not  some  of  thtin^  but  all  of 
them^  as  things  not  belonging  to  the  E'ew  Dispensation 
at  all.  Jesus  and  the  apostles  never  used  any  of  them 
in  the  w^orship;  not  because  they  were  not  in  ^^^^ ,  for 
they  were  in  use  in  the  Jewish  worship  and  the  Pagan 
worship — in  all  the  worship  in  the  world.  All  this  be- 
longs not  to  m.o(\.QYn  prog ress^  iiivention^  or  to  advanced 
society^  but  to  Judaism  and  Paganism,  and  was  adopted 
not  by  our  Lord,  his  apostles,  or  any  Christians  during 
the  lirst  six  centuries,  but  by  the  pope  in  the  seventh 
€entury,  utilized^  and  connected  with  "divine  service!" 
This  gives  up  all  idea  of  the  organ  in  worship,  or,  at 
least,  all  idea  of  its  having  any  authority  in  Scripture, 
and  of  its  use  heing  any  part  of  worship. 

"We  do  not  claim  any  divine  authority  for  the  use  of 
tlie  organ  in  worsJiip^  or  that  it  is  commanded  at  all^  or 
that  it  is  any  part  of  the  worship^  or  an  element  in  wor- 
ehip;  but  a  mere  expedient^  one  of  the  things  indiffer- 
tnt.,  that  we  may  have  or  not."  Why,  then,  press  a 
thing  indifterent  into  the  church,  against  the  will  of 
good  members,  and  create  contention  and  strife?  Why 
be  so  persistent  in  this,  as  to  push  it  in  and  split  the 
church  in  two?  A  singular  expedient,  indeed,  that 
which  must  be  pushed  into  the  church,  against  the  will 
of  good  brethren,  and  forced  upon  them,  though,  in 
many  instances,  it  drives  them  clear  away  from  the 
church  and  the  worship!  A  singular  indifferent  thing, 
that  which  must  be  forced  into  the  church,  even  if  it 
divide  the  church!  Who  can  believe  you  when  you  call 
it  indifferent,  but  persist  year  after  year  in  pushing,  till 
you  get  it  into  the  worship,  and  then  persist  in  keeping 
it  there,  when  it  is  destroying ,  the  peace  of  the  church, 
driving  good  members  away,  and  not  a  good  fruit  re- 
36 


426  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

suiting  from  it!  If  yon  mean  what  you  say  when  yoa 
call  it  indifferent^  why  not  leave  it  out  when  you  see  the 
trouble  it  makes?  What  a  spirit  it  must  be  that  per- 
sists in  pushing  an  indifferent  thing  into  the  worship, 
an  element  of  contention,  and  there  can  not  be  prevailed 
on,  for  the  sake  of  peace,  love,  harmony,  and  the  unity 
of  the  Spirit,  to  desist!  There  is  something  more  than 
ind'ffer.  nee  in  this  ! 

But,  then,  if  you  hold  it  to  be  a  matter  of  indifference, 
others  do  not^  and  can  not.  We  do  not  hold  it  as  a  mat- 
ter of  indifference.  We  can  not  hold  it  thus.  We  have 
considered  it  for  many  years,  and  looked  at  it  from  every 
possible  angle,  and  tried  it  in  every  possible  way,  and 
our  judgment,  our  deepest  and  most  settled  convictions 
are  against  it,  as  an  innovation,  a  corruption  of  the  wor- 
ship, subversive  of  the  divine  purpose  in  worship — to 
teach  and  admonish  in  song;  carnalizing  the  worship, 
by  turning  it  into  an  entertainment,  a  mere  musical  at- 
traction, an  amusement.  Every  conviction  of  our  soul 
is  against  it,  and  disapproves  it.  We  can  ho  more  avoid 
this  than  we  can  change  our  sense  of  right  and  wrong. 
We  have  tried  to  make  every  excuse  for  it,  every  allow- 
ance and  apology,  but  all  to  no  purpose;  there  remains 
the  judgment  God  has  given  us,  the  understanding  we 
have  exercised  on  every  question  that  has  ever  come  be- 
fore us,  the  most  settled  conviction  of  our  inmost  soul 
against  it.  We  do  not  believe  the  Lord  approves  it. 
We  can  not  approve  it,  no  matter  what  it  costs. 

If  it  w^ere  a  matter  that  those  could  have  who  desire 
it,  and  not  impose  it  on  those  wdio  can  not  approve  it, 
the  case  would  be  different.  But  those  who  put  it  down 
on  the  list  of  indifferent  things,  put  it  into  the  church, 
and  compel  those  wdio  do  not  regard  it  indifferent, 
whose  judgments  are  against  it,  and  to  whom  it  is  oN 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP.  42T 

fensive,  to  submit  to  it.  Their  judgment  mu=t  be  set- 
aside;  their  most  settled  convictions  must  be  trampled 
down;  their  consciences  must  be  treated  with  indiffer- 
ence. Th  y  must  have  the  organ,  no  matter  how  much 
nor  whom  it  wounds;  no  matter  how  many  there  are 
who  can  not  conscientiously  worship  with  it,  they  must 
submit  to  worship  with  it,  or  leave.  It  becomes  a  bar 
of  fellowship,  and  must  be  submitted  to  as  much  as  the 
Bible  by  every  one  who  worships  in  the  congregation. 
Can  good  men  thus  impc^se  on  their  brethren  in  a  mat- 
ter which  they  themselves  consider  indifferent?  If  they 
may,  where  is  the  matter  to  end?  One  thing  after  an- 
other may  be  imposed  on  them  indefinitely. 

It  has  been  said  that  we  must  maintain  principle — 
immutahle  principle.  This  is  correct — a  settled  matter. 
Whit,  then,  is  the  true  principle?  For  the  want  of 
something  better,  we  embody  it  in  the  following: 

1.  We  are  united  on  the  things  of  God,  as  set  forth 
in  Scripture,  in  all  things  in  the  kingdom  of  God.  The 
will  of  God  to  man  contains  all  things,  both  of  faith 
and  practice.  INTothing  may  be  added,  and  nothing' 
taken  from  it. 

2.  The  worship  is  prescribed  in  the  law  of  God — the 
whole  of  it — and  nothing  may  be  added  to  it,  and  noth- 
ing may  be  taken  from  it.  We  may  not  offer  strange 
lire  on  God's  altar,  nor  do  anything  else,  under  a  pro- 
lessiou  of  worship,  only  what  is  divinely  prescribed. 

3.  There  is  no  provision  for  the  use  of  instruments  in 
the  divine  law  prescribing  the  worship.  This  is  not 
denied  by  any  one.  J^o  one  attempts  to  find  any  pro- 
vision or  authority  for  it  there.  It  is  simplj'  not  in  the 
iSTew  Covenant. 

4.  The  history  shows  that  the  use  of  instruments  in 
worship  finds  no  place  among  Christians  in  the  time  Df 


428  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

our  Lord  and  his  apostles,  nor  for  many  long  centuries 
after  their  time.  This  ought  to  be  enough  for  those  who 
talk  of  "the  ancient  gospel,"  "primitive  Christianity," 
"  the  ancient  order,"  and  the  like. 

5.  The  first  account  of  the  organ  in  worship  is  from 
the  pope,  and  not  from  our  Lord;  from  Rome,  and  not 
from  Jerusalem;  from  man,  and  not  from  heaven.  Thif 
ought  to  end  the  m^ter  with  us. 

6.  One  class  go  to  David  for  the  use  of  instruments 
These  lind  too  much  for  the  use  of  the  organ  party 
They  find  more  than  they  claim.  They  find  the  com- 
mand, "  Praise  God  on  an  instrument."  To  praise  Goa 
is  worship.  This,  then,  makes  the  use  of  the  instru- 
ment worship.  This,  then,  gives  it  dimne  authority^ 
and  those  who  do  not  praise  God  on  the  instrument  do 
not  oley  the  Gommand.  It  is,  then,  no  matter  of  opin- 
ion^ but  a  matter  of  divine  law.  Nor  are  we  left  to  se- 
lect one  instrument,  the  organ,  and  leave  out  all  the 
other  instruments,  the  use  of  which  is  commanded  by 
David.  Nor  are  we  to  stop,  even  with  the  use  of  all 
these  instruments  in  worship,  but  we  must  praise  him 
in  the  dance.  This  is  no  expedient^  nor  opinion^  but 
divine  law.  But  you  say,  "It  is  under  the  Old  Cove- 
nant." Certainly  it  is.  "  That  was  abolished."  So  it 
was;  and  with  it  the  use  of  all  these  instruments  in 
worship^  and  the  dance!  This  is  an  end  to  all  talk  of 
divine  authority  for  their  use.     There  is  none. 

7.  "  We  only  use  it  as  an  expedient^  a  matter  of  opin- 
io7i^  a  matter  indiffereiit.^^  Why,  then,  are  you  so  per- 
sistent? "We  only  ask  to  be  I  ft  free;  to  use  it  or  not^ 
as  tve  see  fitP  But  you  do  more  than  that.  You  put 
it  up  in  the  congregation,  and  use  it  in  the  public  wor- 
ship, where  all  are  as  free  as  you  are,  and  compel  all  to 
submit  to  its  use,  or  7iot  worship  with  you!     You  thus 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP.  429 

make  your  expedient^  matter  of  opinion^  of  indiffer- 
ence^ imperative;  and  to  it  every  man  must  submit,  or 
•not  worship  with  you!  A  singular  expedient,  that!  A 
singular  matter  of  opinion !  A  singular  ma':ter  of  in- 
difference ! — that  to  which  I  must  submit,  or  be  debarred 
from  the  worship  with  you!  If  you  are  sincere,  and 
mean  that  it  is  a  mere  expedient,  a  mere  matter  of  opin- 
ion, a  mere  matter  of  indifference,  why  do  you  compel 
me  to  submit  to  it^  or  not  worship  with  you?  Can  you 
tell  why?  You  certainly  could  not,  if  you  were  in  the 
last  judgment?  You  must  know  that  you  are  departing 
from  all  apostolic  authority  in  thus  compelling  me  to 
submit  to  an  expedient,  a  matter  of  opinion,  of  indiffer- 
ence,  for  which  no  authority  is  claimed;  that  you  have 
no  precedent  in  the  apostolic  practice,  or  in  the  original 
Church,  or  for  many  centuries  after,  for  thus  compelling 
all  who  differ  from  you  to  submit  to  your  expedient, 
inatter  of  opinion,  matter  of  indifference. 

In  doing  this,  in  the  place  of  making  the  use  of  the 
organ  a  matter  of  indifference,  you  make  it  a  matter  of 
indifference  whether  we  shall  adhere  strictly  to  the  law 
of  God  in  worship,  do  the  things  commanded^  add  noth- 
ing, or  take  nothing  away  from  what  is  clearly  pre- 
scribed in  the  lata  of  God.  That  is  where  the  indiffer- 
ence comes  in,  and  not  indifference  to  things  indifferent. 
Things  indifferent  can  easily  be  laid  aside  for  peace,  but 
the  law  of  God  can  not  be  laid  aside  for  anything.  The 
law  of  God  must  be  observed.  But  you  deny  setting 
aside  the  law  of  God!  I  have  charged  that  in  the  use 
of  the  organ  in  worship  there  is  indifference,  not  to 
things  indifferent,  but  indifference  to  the  law  of  God 
itsef. 

1.  Those  who  use  the  organ,  instead  of  showing  in- 
difference about  it,  push  it  into  the  worship,  against  the 


430  INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

will  and  conscience  of  many  good  brethren,  and  compe. 
them  to  worship  with  it,  submit  to  it,  or  not  worship 
with  them.  This  is  an  utter  repudiation,  in  that  which 
^'speaks  louder  than  w^ords,"  of  all  professions  of  in- 
difference. No  man  can  think  they  look  on  it  as  a  mat- 
ter of  indifference  while  they,  with  such  persistence  and 
•determination,  press  it  into  the  worship.  Many  of  them 
«how  more  zeal  in  this  than  they  ever  did  to  spread  the 
gospel,  or  build  up  the  kingdom  of  God.  The  profes- 
sion of  indifference  is  without  foundation,  only  as  they 
wish  those  opposed  to  it  to  be  indifferent  enough  to  suh- 
■mit  meekly,  and  let  them  bring  it  in.  Their  indiffer- 
ence never  leads  them  to  think  of  leaving  it  off  for  the 
-sake  of  peace. 

2.  They  violate  the  law  of  God  in  bringing  a  dumb 
instrument  into  the  w^orship,  that  can  not  teach^  admon- 
ish^ sing^  praise  God,  or  give  thanhs^  but  confuses  the 
worshipers,  so  that  they  can  not  teach^  admonish^  or  sing 
to  edification,  as  commanded  in  Scripture;  or,  in  other 
words,  it  prevents  doing  precisel}^  what  the  Lord  com- 
manded. To  this  no  Christian,  with  due  consideration, 
<ian  submit. 

3.  Instead  of  devout  worship,  in  song^  teaching  and 
•admonishing  one  another,  the  whole  affair  is  turned  into 
a  musical  entertainment^  an  attr'action  for  the  people 
of  the  world,  and  professors  of  religion,  who  have  lost 
their  taste,  or  never  had  one,  for  pure,  devout  and  spir- 
itual worship,  in  spirit  and  in  truth,  with  the  spirit  and 
understanding.  This  is  turning  the  worship  of  God  into 
an  entertainment,  an  amusement,  an  attraction  for  the 
people  of  the  world,  and  others  who  have  no  spiritual 
relish.  It  is  a  perversion  of  the  divine  worship,  and 
<iefeating  the  very  thing  commanded  to  be  done  Can* 
he  be  guiltless  who  does  this? 


INSTRUMENTAL  MUSIC  IS  '^A^ORSHIP.  431 

4.  It  13  a  bone  of  contention,  a  source  of  strife,  an 
entering  wedge  to  rive  the  claurches  asunder.  It  has 
already  brought  in  more  strife,  produced  more  discord, 
an  I  caused  more  grief  than  any  other  eviL  It  has  been 
productive  of  more  evil,  resulted  in  more  division,  and 
caused  more  alienation  tlian  any  other  one  thing  among 
us,  and  done  more  to  impede  the  progress  of  the  gospel. 
Can  he  be  a  friend  to  the  cause,  no  matter  how  much  he 
means  it,  who  will  press  such  a  source  of  evil  into  the 
worship? 

5.  The  movement  is  factious,  and  subversive  of  fun- 
damental principle,  of  clear  scriptural  and  pure  wor- 
ship, and  should  be  repudiated  and  utterly  avoided  by 
all  Christians.  It  is  of  the  spirit  of  tbe  world,  and  of 
ruin,  and  will  open  the  way  to  ruin  for  us  all,  if  we  do 
not  repudiate  and  avoid  it.  We  must  maintain  the  wor- 
ship in  its  purity,  as  the  Lord  gave  it,  and  permit  no 
perversions  of  it. 

6.  It  is  a  revolutionary  moverrK  nt.  It  involves  a  prin- 
ciple that  opens  the  floodgates  for  all  innovations — the 
observance  of  Christmas  as  a  holy  day^  etc. — without 
limit;  the  admission  of  anything  not  forhidden  in 
Scripture,  involves  a  principle  that  opens  the  way  to 
surrender  every  principle  v/e  hold,  and  leaves  jas  without 
a  reason  for  our  existence  as  a  religious  body. 

7.  "Well,  the  churches  generally  are  going  into  it, 
and  it  is  'a  foregone  conclusion  that  they  will  have  and 
use  the  organ,'  and  it  is  useless  to  stand  against  it."  IN'o, 
"the  churches  generally"  are  not  gone  into  it,  nor  are 
they  going  that  way.  We  do  not  know  the  number  of 
churches  in  the  United  States;  but  doubt  not  that  six 
thousand  would  be  a  Ipw  enough  estimate.  How  many 
of  them  use  the  organ  in  worship?  We  do  not  know 
this  with  certainty,  but  probably  not  more  than  from 


432  INSTEUMENTAL  MUSIC  IN  WORSHIP. 

one  hundred  and  fifty  to  two  hundred,  and  certainly  not 
five  luirdred.  The  organ  party  is  yet  small,  and  would 
amount  to  but  little,  had  it  not  found  way  into  a  few 
places  of  note  and  prominence.  There  are  still  whole 
States  that  have  not  an  organ  in  the  Church.  We  think 
there  is  not  one  in  use  in  Canada,  not  one  in  Virginia, 
Tennessee,  nor  Texas,  that  we  have  heard  of;  scarcely 
an\^  in  Kentucky,  West  Virginia,  Arkansas,  Missouri, 
Kansas,  ^N^ebraska,  and  many  other  States.  The  organ 
is  still  the  exception,  not  the  rule;  and  the  party  is 
small.  The  main  body  are  true  to  the  great  principles 
of  reformation — to  the  divine  purpose  of  returning  to 
and  maintaining  the  original  practice  in  all  things. 

8.  We  are  anxious  to  maintain  the  original  practice 
in  all  things,  so  that  the  way  would  be  clear  to  invite, 
the  people  to  come  to  the  Lord,  with  the  full  assurance 
that  not  a  burden  should  be  laid  on  them,  not  a  human- 
ism imposed  on  them,  and  so  that  they  could  see  their 
way  clear,  to  come  up  to  the  assembly  of  the  Lord,  and 
participate  in  the  pure  and  holy  worship,  as  the  Lord 
gave  it — and  this  we  intend  to  maintain.  If  others  will 
not,  on  their  own  heads  be  the  consequences;  w^e  w^ill 
not  be  partakers  with  them.  We  are  for  the  peace  of 
the  Church;  the  pure  worship  and  true  w^orshipers,  who 
worship  in  spirit  and  in  truth. 

We  have  done  a  great  work  in  the  past  fifty  years,  in 
building  up  so  many  congregations  and  setting  them  in 
order,  and  it  is  a  wonderful  mortification  to  see  that 
great  w^ork  impeded  by  human  expedients — specially 
such  as  are  borrowed  from  the  pope.  We  do  not  believe 
the  churches  of  the  Lord  wall  yield  to  this  wordly 
scheme,  thus  pervert  the  worship,  and  retard  the  great- 
est work  on  earth! 


SERM0:N'   No.  XIX. 

THEME. — THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

When  we  look   through   the   account   given   in  the 
Bible,  and  to  the  reports  from  other  sources,  of  the  won- 
derful  rise  and   triumphant  march  of  the  religion  of 
Christ,  first  in  Judea,  then  in  Samaria,  thence  to  Ces- 
area,  and,  still  later,  along   the  coasts   and  the  entire 
length  of  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  and  throughout  the 
Roman  Empire,  in  some  sixty-five  years  from  the  time 
it  was  fully  unfurled  and  proclaimed  to  the  world,  one 
is  impressed  with  the  idea  that  it  would  soon  extend 
over  all  the  earth,  and  that  the  knowledge  of  God  would 
soon  fill  the  earth,  as  the  waters  do  the  mighty  seas. 
But,  alas  I  the  mystery  of  iniquity  already  worked,  even 
in  the  time  of  Paul.     "The  man  of  sin,"  in  embrj'o,  al 
ready  existed.     The  time  was  coming  when  the  peopk 
would  not  hear  sound  teaching^  but  would  turn  awaj 
their  ears  from  the  truth,  and  be  turned  to  fables;  when 
they  would  heap  to  themselves  teachers,  having  itching 
ears.     It  was  clearl}^  foretold  that  the  time  would  come 
when  men  should  be  lovers  of  themselves,  proud,  boast- 
ers, and  despise  those  that  are  good. 

This  time  came,  and  vain  men  rose  and  began  to 
worm  themselves  into  power,  and  lead  away  disciples 
after  them.  They  attempted  to  adorn  the  pure  and  holy 
religion  of  our  Lord  with  Pagan  philosophy,  and  seek 
the  support  of  moneyed  influence,  the  State,  and  all 
kinds  of  worldly  power.  They  attempted  utilizing^ 
87  (483) 


434  THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

worldly  inJiuences,  amalgamating  the  world  and  religion 
more  and  more,  till  they  had,  as  they  phrased  it,  "a 
Christian  Emperor."  Worldly  men  thought  they  were 
succeeding  finely;  all  was  going  well,  and  suspected 
nothing  till  the  man  of  sin  had  completely  gained  the 
ascendency.  Knowledge  became  the  property  of  the 
feio;  ignorance  became  the  heritage  of  the  masses. 
The  overseers  grew  into  priests;  the  aggregated  churches 
in  a  given  district  into  bodies,  and  he  who  presided  in 
the  meetings  of  these  bodies  was  not  an  ordinary  over- 
seer, but  an  overscei'  of  overseers.  They  extended  the 
aggregation  to  a  State,  or  a  Province,  and  he  who  pre- 
sided in  the  State  Meeting,  or  Provincial  Meeting,  was 
an  archbishop,  or  an  arch-overseer.  They  then  extended 
the  aggregation,  or  confederation,  to  a  nation,  and  he 
who  presided  in  the  I^ational  Meeting  was  a  cardinal. 
They  then  extended  the  aggregation  to  all  the  churches 
throughout  the  world,  and  he  who  presided  at  one  of 
these  General  Councils  was  a  pope.  He  was  ''  the  visible 
head  of  the  Church  on  earth" — and  in  the  year  QQ^  a 
full-grown  pope  was  inaugurated,  and  recognized  as  the 
"Universal  Head,"  "His  Holiness,"  "Lord  God,  the 
Pope." 

This  was  the  work  of  organization  going  on  to  per- 
fection, and  culminating  in  the  great  apostasy.  While 
this  work  of  confederation  was  going  on,  making  great 
organizations,  after  the  form  of  civil  and  military  bod- 
ies, and  great  offices  and  great  men,  they  were  in  the 
same  ratio  making  ignorant  masses  of  the  people.  This 
work  of  iniquity  prevailed  till  the  Bible,  and  the  knowl- 
edge of  it,  were  taken  from  the  people,  and  not  only 
darkness,  but  gross  darkness  covered  the  puljlic  mind. 
This  brought  the  millennium  of  the  Papacy.  The  pros- 
pect was  that  the  light  from  God  was  crushed  out;  that 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION.  435 

<larkuess  had  triumphed;  that  hell  had  prevailed!  The 
question  now  was,  "  Can  these  dry  bones  live?"  Can 
the  truth  of  God  rise  out  of  all  this,  lift  up  poor  hu- 
manit}^  once  more,  and  give  it  one  more  opportunity? 
The  clouds  are  dark,  and  the  prospect  appears  gloomy. 

Still,  the  seed  of  the  kingdom  is  not  dead,  and  may 
yet  he  sown  in  the  hearts  of  the  people,  and  bring  forth 
much  fruit  to  the  honor  and  glory  of  God.  Seeds  have 
been  known  to  have  been  buried  in  ancient  ruins  for 
three  thousand  years,  and  when  brought  forth  to  the 
sun,  the  moisture  and  surface  of  the  soil,  to  grow  fresh 
and  vigorous  as  last  year's  seed.  So  this  seed — the  word 
of  God — though  long  buried,  and  kept  from  the  hearts 
of  the  people,  when  dug  up  and  sent  forth  into  good 
and  honest  hearts,  will  spring  up  and  grow  up  into  ever- 
lasting life. 

We  desire  to  consider  some  of  the  movements  in 
Divine  Providence,  in  lifting  up  humanity  out  of  this 
great  darkness,  and  opening  up  the  gospel  to  the  world 
once  more.  It  cost  immense  labor,  sacrifice,  and  no  lit- 
tle of  the  best  life  and  blood  of  the  human  race,  to  ac- 
complish the  work.  Some  fifty  millions  of  martyrs 
have  evinced  their  honesty  in  their  struggle  with  the 
Papacy,  in  the  various  movements  in  different  parts  of 
the  world  against  the  power  of  darkness.  We  can  only 
grasp,  in  a  rapid  sketch,  such  as  is  possible  in  one  short 
discourse,  a  few  of  the  chief  items  and  actors,  and  make 
passing  allusions  to  them,  in  the  progressive  steps  in 
rising  up  out  of  the  valley  of  dry  bones  to  which  we 
have  referred.  We  do  not  propose  giving  definite 
dates,  or  accurate  and  definite  particulars,  but  general 
outlines,  with  sufficient  accuracy  for  all  practical  pur- 
poses; nor  can  we  more  than  allude  to  some  of  the 
principal  events  and  men. 


436  THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

Wicklifte  made  his  appearance  in  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury. He  was  a  man  of  untiring  industry,  of  great  de- 
cision and  determination.  Aside  from  all  his  preach- 
ing, reading,  writing  and  conversing,  he  conceived  the 
idea  of  giving  the  people  the  Kew  Testament,  in  "the 
vulgar  tongue,"  as  the  priesthood  styled  it — the  English 
language.  To  this  work  he  applied  himself,  and  com- 
pleted a  translation  in  English.  We  have  never  seen  a 
copy,  or  anything  more  than  some  quotations  from  it, 
and  do  not  know  that  a  complete  copy  can  be  found. 
For  this  labor  he  was  summoned  before  the  authorities, 
tried  and  imprisoned.  After  some  months'  confinement 
he  was  brought  before  the  King  of  England.  Accusa- 
tions were  made  against  him,  and  speech  after  speech 
of  the  severest  kind;  and  the  Vulgate,  a  translation  of 
the  ]N"ew  Testament  in  the  Latin  language,  was  extolled 
in  the  strongest  terms.  One  of  his  accusers  said  the 
Latin  Yulgate  was  better  than  the  original.  To  this  the 
King  responded,  "My  heart  almost  melts  within  me  on 
account  of  the  words  just  uttered;"  and  he  called  on 
Wickliffe  to  say  whether  the  copy,  probably  in  manu- 
script, which  they  put  into  his  hands,  was  his  work. 
He  rose  up,  and  the  blood  started  fresh  from  the  wounds 
caused  by  the  irons  on  his  ankles,  and  ran  down  under 
his  feet,  to  which  he  gave  no  attention,  and  answered 
that  the  translation  was  his  work,  and  that  he  was  pre- 
pared to  defend  it  with  his  ashes  at  the  stake,  which  he 
fully  expected  to  do,  and  added,  addressing  himself  to 
the  King,  "I  will  make  a  plowboy  know  the  Scriptures 
better  than  you  do." 

There  is,  however,  something  in  human  nature  that 
will  respect  such  fearless  and  dauntless  decision  and  de- 
termination. He  did  not  meet  the  fate  he  expected,  but 
was  remanded    back  into  prison,  where  he  contracted 


TIMl  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION.  437 

cold,  pined  away  and  died.  This  was  a  dark  and  dis- 
couraging prospect  for  giving  the  people  the  word  of  God 
in  their  own  language,  and  a  long  period  elapsed  before 
anything  moi*e  of  consequence  was  done  in  this  great 
work.  When  the  Israelites  rejected  Moses,  when  he 
first  made  his  appearance  as  their  deliverer,  he  withdrew 
from  them,  and  left  them  to  groan  under  their  bonds  for 
the  space  of  forty  years,  or  till  one  generation  had 
passed  away.  So  the  Lord  withdrew  from  the  people 
after  they  rejected  "Wickliffe,  and  left  them  in  their 
ignorance  till  generations  passed  away. 

In  the  sixteenth  century  Wm.  Tj^ndale  produced  a 
translation  into  the  English  language.  It  was  printed 
and  published.  We  have  seen  some  three  copies  of  it; 
but  the  English  language  has  so  changed  that  the  com- 
mon reader  can  not  read  it  with  satisfaction,  or  even 
so  as  to  understand  it,  except  familiar  portions,  almost 
memorized.  Some  words  have  so  changed,  as  to  have 
not  only  a  different  meaning  from  what  they  had  then, 
but  even  an  opposite  meaning.  Admitting  his  transla- 
tion to  have  been  good  when  first  made,  it  is  not  good 
now,  on  account  of  the  change  in  the  English  language. 
The  reward  he  obtained  from  those  he  designed  to  bene- 
fit, was  to  be  arrested  as  a  criminal,  tried,  condemned, 
and  burned  at  the  stake.  John  Frith,  said  to  have  been 
one  of  the  most  elegant  and  learned  young  men  in  En- 
gland, at  that  time,  who  assisted  Tyndale,  after  the 
martyrdom  of  his  friend,  appears  rather  to  have  courted 
martyrdom,  was  burned  at  the  same  stake.  He  was 
only  about  thirty  years  of  age. 

This  wonderful  work  awakened  and  roused  the  peo- 
ple at  large,  and  led  them  to  profound  study  and  most 
solemn  inqulr3^  The  impression  made  was  of  the  most 
deep  and  astonishing  character.     ISTo  edicts  from  civil 


438  THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

courts  could  stop  the  spirit  of  inquiry  that  had  gone 
forth,  nor  stay  the  demand  for  the  word  of  God  in  their 
mother  tongue.  The  desire  spread  to  read  of  the  won- 
derful works  of  God  in  their  own  tongue,  wherein  they 
were  born.  The  efforts  of  John  Huss,  Cranmer,  and 
others,  were  put  forth,  and  their  authors  met  similar 
fates.  But  the  fiat,  as  of  old,  appeared  to  have  gone 
forth:  "Let  there  be  light,  and  there  was  light."  There 
appeared  to  have  been  no  earthly  power  that  could  stay 
it.  Thenmrtyrsdied^hnttheir  work  did  not  die.  Though 
dead,  like  the  old  prophets,  they  still  spoke;  the  people 
still  heard  them.  The  demand  for  the  Scriptures  in  the 
mother  tongue  did  not  die,  but  became  more  and  more 
wide-spread.  It  became  the  popular  sentiment.  This 
opened  the  way  ^  :t  the  bishops.  When  popular  senti- 
ment was  re""^lutionized,  and  demanded  a  translation, 
they  went  to  \\ork  and  made  a  translation,  and,  to  give 
character,  they  did  not  call  it  The  Bis/iops^  Translation, 
but  "The  Bishops'  Bible."  Public  sentiment  soon  be- 
came so  revolutionized  that  the  King  of  England  took 
the  matter  in  hand,  appointed  his  translators,  set  them 
to  work,  and  brought  forth  what  is  now  familiarly  styled 
the  "King  James,"  or  "  Common  Version."  It  was  a 
long  road  to  reach  this,  and  required  a  hard  struggle, 
and  the  blood  of  many  martyrs,  and  great  suffering. 
Martin  Luther  made  a  translation  of  the  Bible  into  the 
German  language.  John  Wesley  made  a  translation 
into  English,  now  on  sale  in  the  Methodist  Book  Con- 
cern, and  styled  "  Wesley's  Notes."  N'umerous  others 
made  translations.  Early  in  the  movements  of  Alex- 
ander Campbell,  he  published  a  new  translation,  com- 
piled from  James  Macknight,  George  Campbell,  and 
Philip  Doddridge,  styled  the  "Living  Oracles." 

There  was  so  little  light  on  the  subject  when  this  ver- 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION.  439 

81011  was  issued,  that  many  people  in  this  countr/  did 
not  know  that  the  Lord  himself  did  not  make  the  Com- 
mon Version ;  and  others  thought  King  James  was  in- 
spired. The  Baptist  people  were  specially  prejudiced 
against  it.  Edmund  Waller,  father  of  John  L.  Waller, 
was  greatly  exercised  over  it,  read  it,  and  in  prayer  in- 
quired of  the  Lord  what  he  should  do  with  it.  The 
Lord  answered  him,  he  said,  and  told  him  to  burn  it. 
He  obeyed  the  order.  Ilis  son,  John  L.  Waller,  alto- 
gether the  ablest  Baptist  preacher  and  editor  the  Bap- 
tists have  ever  had  in  the  Mississippi  Valley,  was  the 
President  of  the  Eevision  Association,  connected  with 
the  American  Bible  Union.  The  American  Bible  Union 
was  projected  and  brought  into  existence  among  the 
Baptists,  and  has  been  continued  mainly  under  their 
control  some  twenty-five  years;  and  is  not  only  revising 
the  Common  Version,  but  translating  the  Bible  into 
other  languages.  The  Queen  of  England  has  her  revis- 
ers at  work  revising  the  Common  Version,  modernizing 
it,  correcting  the  grammar,  orthography,  punctuation 
and  capitalization,  thus  making  it,  as  far  as  possible,  a 
perfect  modern  English  Version.  Very  likely  this  will 
be  about  all  the  present  generation  will  need  in  the  way 
of  translation.  This  was  one  great  part  of  the  work,  in 
Divine  Providence,  in  religious  reformation. 

This  opens  the  way  for  other  great  branches  of  the 
work  to  come  up  and  pass  before  us.  In  the  sixteenth 
century  Luther  rose  in  Germany,  and  gave  the  Papacy 
a  deadly  w^ound  in  that  country,  from  which  it  has  never 
recovered.  Whether  he  was  the  best  man  among  re- 
formers, or  not;  the  most  learned,  or  not,  he  was  as 
determined  and  invincible  as  any  other  man.  There 
^^  never  was  a  more  unconquerable  and  fearless  human 
being.     lie  knew  nothing  of  policy,  crouching  before 


440  THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

public  opinion,  or  fawning  before  rich  men.  When  the 
pope  issued  his  bull  of  excommunication,  cursing  him 
fe^om  the  crown  of  his  head  to  the  sole  of  his  foot,  and 
summoned  all  the  hierarchs  of  the  heavens  to  unite  in 
cursing  and  damning  him  forever,  and  sequestering  him 
from  the  kingdom  of  God,  he  deliberately  took  the  doc- 
ument, struck  out  his  name  wherever  it  occurred  in  it, 
and  inserted  the  pope's  name  in  the  place  of  it;  struck 
out  the  pope's  name  from  the  bottom  of  it,  and  signed 
his  name  in  the  place  of  it,  saying  that  he  had  as  much 
authority  to  excommunicate  the  pope  as  the  pope  had 
to  excommunicate  him. 

As  another  instance,  illustrating  the  material  he  was 
made  of,  it  may  be  related  that  when  he  was  on  his  way 
to  the  Diet  of  Worms,  he  was  informed  by  his  friends 
that  they  believed  it  would  cost  him  his  life  to  go  there. 
He  answered  them,  that  if  there  were  as  many  devils 
there  as  there  were  tiles  on  the  houses,  he  would  go. 
When  in  the  Diet,  he  was  called  on  to  state  whether  a 
volume  he  had  recently  produced  was  his  work.  He 
deliberately  took  the  volume  into  his  hands,  looked 
through  it,  and  closed  it,  saying,  "Yes;  I,  Martin  Luther, 
am  the  author  of  this  book,  and  I  will  defend  it — so 
help  me  God."  There  is  something  in  man  that  will 
respect  such  a  man  as  that.  He  was  spared,  w^ent  ahead 
and  literally  shook  Germany  from  the  center  to  the  cir- 
cumference. 

His  main  issue  was  with  the  unwritten  traditions  of 
the  Papacy,  or,  as  Papists  phrase  it,  "the  unwritten 
word."  They  style  what  we  have  in  the  Bible,  "the 
written  word,"  and  what  is  not  written  in  the  Bible, 
^*the  unwritten  word."  Luther  declared  their  "un- 
written word"  no  word  of  God  at  all;  but  a  bundle  of 
human  traditions  and  superstitions,  and  of  no  autliority 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION.  441 

at  all.  Among  Papists  this  unwritten  word  is  the  law^ 
and  the  law  of  God,  in  the  Bible,  is  set  aside  and  ren- 
dered nugatory.  Luther  declared  for  the  Bible — that  it 
contains  the  law  of  God;  the  absolute  authority.  His 
^' faith  alone"  was  virtually  the  Bible  alone,  or  without 
the  unwritten  traditions,  or  what  they  called  the  "  un- 
written word."  This  was  the  grand  battle-ground,  and 
Luther  broke  the  force  of  their  "unwritten  word,"  and 
from  his  day  to  the  present  time  it  has  never  had  the 
force  in  Germany  it  had  before.  Still,  he  aimed  at  noth- 
ing more  than  to  reform  the  Papists,  and  never  thought 
of  returning  in  all  things  to  apostolic  ground.  His, 
however,  was  an  important  item  in  the  great  work  of 
rising  out  from  the  darkness  of  the  Papacy.  Without 
his  work  we  sliould  never  have  stood  where  we  stand. 

John  Calvin  performed  an  important  part  in  the  great 
movements  in  coming  up  out  of  the  darkness  of  Rome, 
both  in  Switzerland  and  France.  His  main  issue  with 
the  Papac}^  was  not  precisely  the  same  as  that  of  Luther. 
His  main  attack  was  on  the  works  of  supererogation 
claimed  by  Papists.  They  claim  that  man  can  do  more 
good  works  than  the  Lord  requires,  and  they  call  such 
good  works,  "  works  of  supererogation."  They  further 
claim  that  these  good  works,  over  what  the  Lord  re- 
quires, may  be  transferred  to  another  part  of  a  man's 
life,  where  there  was  a  deficit,  and  supply  it ;  or  trans- 
ferred to  another  person,  to  make  up  a  deficit  in  his  life. 
They  do  not  precisely  agree  with  our  ideas  of  "good 
svorks."  We  generally  think  of  such  works  as  supply- 
ing the  wants  of  the  needy,  widows,  orphans;  educa- 
ting the  poor,  spreading  the  gospel,  and  building  up  the 
kingdom  of  God.  They  mean  paying  m'^ney  to  the 
priests  for  praying  souls  out  of  purgatory.  Calvin 
denied  that  a  man  could  do  more  ^cood  works  than  God 


442  THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

requires,  and  was  driven  to  the  opposite  extreme;  failed 
to  recognize  the  scriptural  place  for  good  works.  H^ 
also  denied  that  they  could  transfer  good  works,  either 
to  a  part  of  the  life  where  there  was  a  deficit,  or  to  an- 
other person.  He  denied,  also,  that  they  could,  by  any 
intercessions,  take  souls  out  of  purgatory;  that  those 
who  die  in  their  sins  are  beyond  redemption.  He  showed 
that  the  entire  scheme  of  works  of  supererogation  was. 
a  swindle,  and  a  cheat  to  rob  the  people.  His  work  in 
this  department  was  very  effective,  and  while  preaching, 
as  he  did  in  many  instances,  apparently  against  good 
works^  he  did  a  good  work  in  opening  up  the  nefarious 
scheme  of  the  papistical  priesthood  to  swindle  the  peo- 
ple out  of  their  money ;  and  deceive  the  people  with  the 
delusion  that  if  they  died  in  their  sins,  and  went  to  purg- 
atory, their  friends  could  have  them  taken  out.  The 
Papacy  in  France  never  recovered  from  the  wound  in- 
flicted on  it  by  the  master  hand  of  John  Calvin. 

Still,  Calvin  had  no  Avell-deiined  and  definite  aim.  He 
appeared,  at  least  in  his  early  life,  only  to  aim  at  ref6rm 
in  the  Church  of  Rome,  and  never  thought  of  such  a 
thing  as  a  return  to  the  original  ground,  to  stand  where 
the  apostles  and  first  Christians  did.  We  regret  while 
we  think  of  this  truly  great  man,  that  we  can  not  but 
think  of  that  terrible  deed,  the  instigating  of  the  burn- 
ing of  Servetus.  His  historian.  Dyer,  excuses  it  on  the 
ground  of  the  times  in  which  he  lived,  the  spirit  of  the 
age,  and  his  early  training.  Still,  we  can  but  regret 
that  he  did  it  at  all,  or  that  he  wrote  an  apology  for  it. 
But  we  are  indebted  much  to  the  life  of  Calvin  for  the 
results  that  have  followed,  and  for  the  position  we  are 
now  enabled  to  occupy. 

We  are  not,  in  a  sketch  like  this,  to  overlook  the  part 
John  Wesley  performed  in  the  great  drama.     He  maUo 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION.  44S 

his  appearance  in  England  not  quite  a  century  and  a  half 
since.  His  part  of  the  work  was  of  a  different  kind 
from  that  of  either  of  the  men  we  have  mentioned.  His 
attention  was  arrested  b}'  the  general,  if  not  almost 
universal,  want  of  piety  in  the  Church  of  England.  He- 
became  alarmed  at  the  immoralities,  the  want  of  what 
he  called  "personal  holiness,"  "personal  piety,"  and  art 
"experimental  knowledge  of  forgiveness  of  sins."  He 
maintained  that  persons  could  hnow  that  their  sins  were 
forgiven.  This  was  regarded  by  his  opposers  as  a  most 
preposterous  idea.  Under  the  influence  of  his  impulses 
in  viewing  the  state  of  things,  he  called  together  little 
companies,  in  some  convenient  place,  not  at  the  time  of 
the  stated  meetings  of  the  Church  of  England,  to  which 
he  belonged,  for  prayers.  These  companies  were  not 
aimed  to  be  churches,  and  were  only  styled  "societies,"" 
and  many  of  those  in  them,  like  Wesley  himself,  were 
members  of  the  Church  of  England.  In  these  societies 
they  prayed  for  "a  deeper  work  of  grace,"  "personal 
holiness,"  "an  actual  knowledge  of  remission  of  sins,"" 
etc. 

These  are  the  "societies"  mentioned  in  the  forepart 
of  the  Methodist  Discipline.  They  made  no  claim  to 
being  churches,  and  those  who  met  in  them  met  also  in 
the  Church  of  England,  if  members  of  that  body,  at  all 
the  stated  meetings,  the  same  as  before,  and  had  no  idea 
of  forming  another  church.  They  only  aimed  at  be- 
coming better.  Wesley  announced  no  new  doctrine, 
nor  did  he  claim  any  dissent  from  the  Church  of  En- 
gland in  doctrine.  But  his  praying  societies  were  con- 
sidered disorderly,  and  his  professions  of  a  desire  for 
more  piety,  holy  living,  and  a  closer  walk  with  God,  as 
mere  pretenses^  and  he  was  soon  despised  and  perse- 
cuted.    He  was  stoned  at  his  prayer-meetings,  and  nar- 


444         THE  PROGRESS  OF  r]:ligious  reformation. 

rovvly  escaped  with  his  life.  He  resorted  to  most  strict 
and  rigid  m<thod  in  his  study,  his  manner  of  life,  in 
everything,  and  his  enemies  styled  him  a  Methodist^ 
after  a  class  of  physicians  that  had  lived  long  before, 
who  were  methodical  in  their  studies,  diet,  and  entire 
practice.  He  and  his  friends  saw  no  evil  in  the  name 
they  had  given  them,  and  gloried  in  their  persecutions, 
and  adopted  the  name  Mtthodist.  But  it  w^as  not  the 
name  of  a  church,  for  there  was  no  church  yet;  but  those 
who  attended  these  prayer-meetings  and  adhered  to 
Wesley's  teaching  were  styled  Mthodists. 

There  were  no  churches  formed,  probabl^^,  till  Coke 
and  Asbury  came  over  to  this  country,  and  they  made 
themselves  bishops,  and  formed  churches  distinct  and 
independent  of  the  Church  of  England.  When  Wesley 
came  over,  at  a  subsequent  period,  he  disclaimed  their 
right  to  be  bishops,  and  said  he  only  claimed  to  be  an 
elder.  Their  disagreement  w^as  very  sharp,  and  he  re- 
turned to  the  mother  country  and  remained  in  the 
Church  of  England  the  balance  of  his  life. 

Wesley's  simplicity  of  manner  of  living,  his  plain 
diet,  dress,  and  perfect  repudiation  of  all  pride,  extrav- 
agance, worldliness,  and  folly,  are  worthy  of  imitation, 
and  very  far  from  what  we  now  see  among  the  people 
called  Methodists. 

David  Simpson,  in  his  "Plea  for  Eeligion,"  shows  up 
with  a  master  hand  the  impiety  of  the  clergy,  and  the 
necessity  of  some  move  to  save  the  people.  The  part 
these  great  men  performed  was  of  immense  value  to  the 
world,  and  did  no  little  toward  lifting  up  humanity  out 
of  the  darkness  and  impiety  into  which  a  carnal  priest- 
hood had  sunk  it.  We  never  could  have  stood  where 
we  stand,  if  Wesley  had  not  performed  the  part  he  did. 
Yet  he  never  conceived  the  idea  of  returning  to  apos- 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION.  445 

tolic  ground  in  all  things.  A  reformation  of  the  Church 
of  England  waif  about  the  extent  of  his  aim.  He  made 
a  decided  impression  on  the  Church  of  England,  and 
rose  fur  above  those  of  his  time. 

The  next  man  that  comes  up  in  our  brief  sketch  is 
Roger  Williams.  In  point  of  time  he  dated  consider- 
ably before  Wesley;  but  he  was  in  another  country,  and 
performed  a  very  difierent  part  of  the  work  from  Wes- 
ley. He  was  in  one  of  the  colonies  of  America — tho 
one  now  called  the  State  of  Khode  Island.  He,  with 
eleven  other  persons,  from  the  reading  of  a  version  like 
the  common  one,  with  the  word  baptize  transferred,  or 
Anglicized,  and  not  translated,  found  that  John  "bap- 
tized in  Jordan;"  that  he  "baptized  in  the  river  of 
Jordan;"  that  he  "baptized  in  Enon,  near  Salem,  be- 
cause there  was  much  water  there;"  that  when  Jesus 
was  baptized,  "he  went  up  straightway  out  of  the 
water;"  that  Philip  and  the  officer  of  Candace"came 
unto  a  certain  water;"  that  "they  went  down  both  into 
the  water;"  that  "they  came  up  out  of  the  water;" 
that  the  disciples  were  said  to  be  "  buried  by  baptism," 
"buried  in  baptism,"  "planted  together  in  the  likeness 
of  his  death;"  that  they  were  "born  of  water  and  of 
the  Spirit;"  that  their  "bodies  were  w^ashed  with  pure 
water;"  and  they  came  deliberately  to  the  conclusion 
that  they  had  never  been  baptized  at  all.  The  twelve 
went  "to  a  certain  water,"  and  one  of  their  number 
immersed  Roger  Williams.  He  then  turned  round  and 
immersed  the  others. 

So  far  as  history  informs  us,  these  were  the  first  per- 
sons immersed  in  the  colonies  of  America.  From  this 
immersion  commenced  in  this  country,  and  has  increased 
till  about  one-nfth  of  the  whole  population  are  now  im- 
mersioiiists.     This  will  serve  the  purpose  of  a  basis  on 


446  THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

which  to  make  an  estimate  of  the  time  it  will  require 
for  the  whole  population  to  become  immersionists.  This 
is  what  is  now  coming,  and  unless  some  plan  can  be  in- 
vented to  stop  the  wheel  from  turning,  the  time  will 
^  <jome,  and  that,  too,  at  no  distant  day,  when  the  whole 
population  will  be  immersionists. 

Williams,  and  those  associated  with  him,  at  once  com 
menced  defending  what  they  had  done,  and  laboring  tc 
<3onvince  others.  Immersion  commenced  spreading, 
and  their  number  commenced  increasing  rapidly.  Thia 
roused  opposition  and  persecution.-  Their  opponents, 
and  we  may  say  their  enemies,  said  everything  against 
them  that  could  be  thought  of.  They  called  them 
'''duckers,"  "dippers,"  "divers;"  compared  them  to  the 
water-fowls,  animals,  and  everything  that  they  thought 
•could  degrade  them;  asserted  that  they  dipped  people 
in  mud-holes,  drowned  them,  etc.,  etc.  But  there  was 
no  stopping  it.  The  plain  reading  of  Scripture,  the 
clear  expressions  in  a  translation  made  by  sprinklers, 
-carried  conviction  to  the  hearts  of  the  people. 

"When  their  numbers  had  become  formidable,  the  Pu- 
ritans, wdio  had  sought  an  asylum  in  America  to  escape 
persecution,  turned  round  and  became  persecutors,  and 
persecuted  the  immersionists,  in  some  instances  to  the 
•death.  This  led  the  reformers,  or  the  immersionists,  to 
plead  for  toleration — religious  liberty.  The  Quakers 
^Iso  suffered  persecution,  and  plead  for  toleration — for 
religious  toleration.  These  were  the  dawnings  of  the 
toleration;  the  religions  liberty;  the  freedom  of  speech 
and  of  the  press  we  now  enjoy.  Washington,  Franklin, 
Jefferson,  and  others,  had  all  this  before  them,  and  in- 
corporated these  ideas  in  American  institutions,  and 
they  are  now  operating  largely  on  the  civilized  world. 

We  are,  then,  indebted  to  Roger  Williams  and  the 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION.  447 

early  imniersionists  in  this  country  for  restoring  to  us 
the  original  rite,  hn?nersion,  and  for  religious  liherty. 
We  are  largely  indebted  to  the  same  Sbufce  for  the  idea 
of  the  independence  of  the  individual  congregations 
of  the  saints;  from  all  clerical  oppression  and  tyranny. 
Our  Baptist  brethren  would  do  well  when  they  get  to 
talking  about  their  "regularly  ordained  administrator 
of  baptism,"  to  tell  us  all  about  the  "  regular  ordination  " 
of  the  man  who  immersed  Roger  Williams  before  he 
had  been  immersed  himself!  If  the  immersion  of  Will- 
iams was  not  valid,  because  the  man  who  immersed  him 
had  never  been  immersed,  or  because  he  liad  never  beeit 
ordained,  then  all  below  that  are  not  valid  for  the  same 
reason.  But  the  immersion  of  Williams  was  valid,  and 
all  this  talk  about  an  "  immersed  administrator,"  or  "  a 
regularly  ordained  administrator,"  amounts  to  nothing. 
We  never  could  have  stood  where  we  stand  if  Roger 
Williams  had  not  performed  his  part  in  the  great  drama. 
Some  one  is  ready  to  say,  "I  do  not  see  that  we  have 
any  use  for  you  professed  reformers  of  the  nineteenth 
century.  The  great  w^ork  was  about  completed  before 
you  came  along."  Let  us  take  a  brief  survey  of  the 
field,  and  see  what  work  had  been  completed.  There 
was  a  general  and  pretty  united  protest  against  the 
Papacy;  but  in  the  place  of  those  who  followed  Luther, 
going  on  and  rising  up  to  the  original  ground,  they 
have  subsided  into  the  sect  now  styled  Lutheran,  and 
retrograded  till  they  are  far  below  the  man  whose  name 
they  bear.  Instead  of  those  who  followed  Calvin  going 
on,  and  rising  up  to  the  original  ground,  they  have  sub- 
sided into  the  sect  now  styled  Presbyterian,  and  retro- 
graded till  they  are  far  below  their  great  leader,  John 
Calvin.  In  like  manner,  instead  of  those  who  followed 
Wesley  going  on,  and  rising  up  to  the  original  ground. 


448  THE  PEOGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

they  have  now  subsided  into  the  sect  called  Methodist, 
and  retrograded  till  they  are  far  below  the  example  set 
for  them  by  Wesley.  In  the  same  manner,  also,  instead 
of  those  who  followed  Williams  going  on,  and  rising 
up  to  the  original  ground,  they  have  now  subsided  into 
the  sect  called  Baptist,  and  retrograded  till  they  are  far 
below  Roger  Williams,  and  those  who  stood  with  him. 
Thus  these  great  moves,  though  important,  have  sub- 
sided into  four  sects,  and  can  never  rise  any  higher. 
There  is  no  hope  in  any  one  of  them  for  any  possible 
return  to  the  original  ground. 

When  Alexander  Campbell  commenced,  he  found,  in- 
stead of  the  "unwritten  traditions"  of  the  Papacy,  the 
written  traditions  of  Protestants,  in  the  form  of  human 
creeds,  confessions  of  faith,  disciplines,  etc.,  supplanting 
the  law  of  God,  and  setting  it  aside,  almost  as  effectu- 
ally as  the  unwritten  traditions  of  the  Papacy.  He  did 
not  stop  to  examine  these  creeds,  confessions,  etc.,  to  see 
how  much  truth  there  was  in  each  of  them,  or  any  one  of 
them,  but  repudiated  the  whole  of  them,  as  subversive  of 
the  law  of  God,  and  to  be  rejected  because  they  are  human 
cr^eds^  without  any  regard  to  the  amount  of  truth  in 
them.  He  maintained  that  these  must  be  swept  away 
before  the  law  of  God  could  be  restored  and  enforced 
on  the  people,  or  the  world  converted.  This  made  one 
grand  issue  in  the  coming  conflict. 

He  maintained  that  nothing  short  of  a  complete  re- 
turn to  the  original  ground,  occupied  by  the  apostles 
and  first  followers  of  the  Lord,  in  both  faith  and  prac- 
tice, in  all  things,  would  meet  the  divine  approbation. 
This  had  never  been  attempted  before.  Above  this 
aim  no  human  beings  could  rise.  For  this  he  contended 
with  most  wonderful  ability.  This  made  another  grand 
issue,  and  before  him  nothing  could  stand,  for,  as  a  man, 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION.  44D 

he  had  great  strength,  but  the  native  strength  of  the 
position  could  not  he  successful!}^  assailed. 

He  took  "the  Bible,  and  the  Bible  alone,"  not  simply 
ill  word-,  but  in  deed^  with  a  determination  to  carry  it 
out  practically;  to  accept  it  as  the  creeds  the  supreme 
and  the  absolute  authority.  Where  it  speaks,  we  may 
speak;  where  it  is  silent,  we  must  be  silent.  "To  the 
law  and  to  the  testimony,"  was  the  word.  "If  they 
speak  not  according  to  this  word,  it  is  because  there  is 
no  light  in  them;"  "  If  any  speak,  let  him  speak  as  the 
oracles  of  God;"  "What  saith  the  Scriptures?"  "Thus 
saith  the  Lord,"  etc.,  etc,  was  the  style.  Clerical  pomp 
and  show;  clerical  titles  and  pretensions,  all  went  for 
nothing  before  the  men  of  the  Bible.  One  of  them 
"could  chase  a  thousand,  and  two  could  pnt  ten  thou- 
sand to  flight." 

Alexander  Campbell  and  Walter  Scott  developed  the 
great  central  idea  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  for  the 
unity  of  the  faith  in  the  bond  of  peace,  as  it  had  not 
been  done  before  since  the  time  of  the  apostles.  They 
showed  with  wonderful  clearness  and  force  that  the 
kingdom  of  God  does  not  rest  on  a  string  of  human 
opinions^  written  out  by  uninspired  men,  styled  "  articles 
of  faith,"  or  "articles  of  religion,"  but  on  the  living, 
divine  and  glorious  person  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  the 
Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God.  The  Almighty  lifted 
him  up  to  draw  all  men  to  him.  "He  is  the  way,  the 
truth,  and  the  life :  no  man  comes  to  the  Father  but  by 
him."  "He  is  Head  over  all  things  to  the  Church." 
"In  him  all  fullness  dwells."  He  is  the  soul  of  the 
Bible.  All  the  prophets  pointed  to  him  till  he  came 
into  the  world;  all  the  records  made  since  point  back 
to  him;  all  rests  on  him.  He  is  the  foundation  of  the 
38 


450  THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

faith;  the  foundation  of  the  building  of  God;  the  tem- 
ple of  God. 

He  knew  all  things,  and  in  quoting  Moses  and  the 
prophets,  as  the  word  of  God,  he  indorsed  the  Old  Book. 
In  calling,  sending  the  apostles,  and  confirming  their 
mission  by  signs  and  wonders,  he  indorsed  them,  and 
thus  confirmed  the  whole  Bible.  Its  entire  authority 
rests  on  him.  The  man  who  believes  on  him  is  bound 
to  believe  the  whole  Bible,  for  he  sanctioned  it  all.  The 
man  who  receives  him  receives  the  whole  volume  in 
him.  Our  heavenly  Father  has  thus  wisely  embodied 
the  entire  faith  in  a  single  proposition,  so  that  a  man 
receives  or  rejects  it  all  at  once.  It  is  all  in  the  one 
proposition  that  "Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the 
living  God."  When  the  treasurer  of  Queen  Candace 
said,  "I  believe  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the 
living  God,"  he  embraced  the  entire  revelation  from 
God  to  man.  This  belief  is,  on  the  one  hand,  the  most 
comprehensive,  and,  on  the  other,  the  most  exclusive 
ever  uttered.  It  includes  the  entire  will  of  God,  as  set 
forth  in  the  Bible,  and  excludes  all  that  is  not  in  the 
will  of  God,  as  set  forth  in  the  Bible.  It  includes  all 
that  is  divine,  and  excludes  all  that  is  not  divine. 

Here  is  the  ground  for  union,  not  on  opinions  in 
which  men  are  agreed,  but  on  the  one  belief  required 
of  all  men  alike,  and  without  which  they  can  jot  be 
saved  at  all :  "  That  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Soi^  of  the 
living  God."  He  who  believes  this,  and  rend'j^  the 
obedience  which  it  requires,  will  be  saved;  but  he  who 
believes  not  this  will  be  condemned.  This  one  article 
has  the  entire  faith  in  it — comprehends  all.  All  turns 
on  Christ,  on  believing  on  him,  receiving,  following  and 
obeying  him.  This  fills  the  entire  space,  occupie.  the 
whole  ground — leaves  no  room  for  any  other  found;  inn 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION.  451 

^*  Other  foundation  can  no  man  lay  than  that  which  is 
laid,  which  is  Jesus  the  Christ." 

The  development  of  this  great  proposition  concern- 
ing Christ,  the  embodiment  and  concentration  of  the 
faith — that  which  a  man  must  believe  to  be  saved — and 
the  confession  of  him  in  whom  all  this  centers,  opened 
the  way  for  clearly  and  intelligently  turning  to  the 
Lord,  being  "immersed  into  Christ,"  and  becoming 
members  of  his  body,  as  it  had  not  been  done  for  ages 
past.  This  was  a  great  item  in  the  movement  for  ref- 
ormation, and  thousands  of  precious  souls  were  rejoiced 
to  see  their  way  clear  to  turn  away  from  the  world  and 
become  the  people  of  God.  Thousands  who  had  been 
seekers,  mourners,  inquirers,  saw  their  way  clear  and 
entered  the  covenant,  and  laid  hold  of  the  exceeding 
great  and  precious  promises,  and  rejoiced  in  hope  of  the 
glory  of  God.  Instead  of  singing,  '''When  I  can  read 
my  title  clear  to  mansions  in  the  skies,"  etc.,  they  sang, 
'-■Since  I  can  read  my  title  clear,"  etc.  They  did  not 
now  say,  "I  hope  my  sins  are  pardoned,"  but  "I  helieve 
my  sins  are  pardoned;  for  the  Lord  says,  'He  who  be- 
Ueves,  and  is  immersed,  shall  he  saved?  I  helieve  his 
promise.'"  They  did  not  believe  their  sins  were  par- 
doned because  ihQj  felt  that  they  were  pardoned;  but 
ihay  felt  their  sins  were  pardoned  because  they  helieved 
it.  The  feeling  came  from  the  belief,  and  not  the  belief 
from  the  feeling. 

In  these  matters  the  reformation  movement  was  com- 
pletely revolutionary.  It  swept  away  at  once  the  false 
theory,  that  faith  is  an  immediate  impartation  from  God. 
and  showed  that  it  is  the  belief  of  the  divine  testimony 
recorded  in  Scripture.  "  These  things  are  written  that 
you  might  believe."  It  swept  away,  also,  the  idea  that 
repentance  is  an  immediate  gift  from  God,  and  showed 


452  THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

that  it  is  a  commandment — something  that  man  is  to- 
do  himself.  "  Repent  you,  therefore,  and  turn,  that 
your  sins  may  be  blotted  out."  The  sinner  is  commanded 
to  repent  and  turn  himself  and  not  to  pray  for  the  Lord 
to  impart  repentance  to  and  ticr7i  him.  "Turn  you, 
turn  you;  why  will  you  die?"  says  the  prophet.  It 
also  cleared  away  the  idea  that  pardon  is  something  done 
in  a  ma7i  that  he  can  feel^  as  he  does  an  impression 
made  on  his  flesh ;  and  showed  that  it  is  an  act  of  God 
in  heaven^  done  for  a  man.,  and  that  he  believes  it  is 
done  from  the  promise  of  pardon  in  the  Bible,  and  not 
from  ctny  new  revelation  from  God  made  in  any  vmy. 
This  was  all  perfectly  new  to  the  people,  and  entirely 
revolutionary. 

This  was  regarded  as  perfectly  dangerous,  setting 
aside  "experimental  religion,"  "Holy  Ghost  religion,'* 
"heart-felt  religion,"  etc.,  etc.  The  idea  of  giving  up 
their  old  hope,  that  they  had  talked  of  a  hundred  times, 
founded  on  impulses,  emotions,  sensations,  dreams, 
sights,  sounds  and  impressions,  that  came,  they  could 
not  tell  how,  and  accepting  a  hope  based  on  the  prom- 
ises of  God  in  the  Bible;  the  "mere  word,"  or  "the 
bare  word,"  as  they  phrased  it,  could  not  be  endured. 
Kever  was  anything  resisted  with  more  zeal  than  this. 
Unreasonable  as  they  were,  they  held  on  with  a  per- 
sistence utterly  unaccountable.  Still,  the  rising  genera- 
tion came  up,  and  saw  that  "  the  exceeding  great  and 
precious  promises"  are  founded  in  God,  and  if  they  can 
not  be  relied  on  nothing  can  be — that  they  are  confirmed 
by  the  oath  of  God.  They  also  saw  the  uncertainty  in 
the  impressions,  sensations,  emotions,  impulses,  dreams, 
sights,  sounds,  etc.,  etc,  on  which  their  parents  had 
leaned,  and  determined  not  to  trust  in  them.  They  saw 
that  there  was  no  evidence  of  acceptance  with  God,  or 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION.  453 

r<3niissioii  of  sins,  in  these  impressions,  etc.,  and  turned 
their  attention  to  the  unfailing  and  immutable  promises 
of  God  in  the  Bible. 

Over  this,  probably,  the  contest  has  been  as  sharp  as 
over  any  other  point,  in  the  onward  march  of  reforma- 
tion. But  the  battle  has  been  fought,  the  victory  gained, 
and  the  "true  Israel  of  God"  are  now  trusting  in  the 
divine  promises  found  in  Scripture.  "He  who  believes, 
and  is  immersed,  shall  he  savedP  "Kepent,  and  be  im- 
mersed every  one  of  you  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ, 
for  the  remission  of  sins,  and  you  shall  receive  the  gift 
of  the  Holy  Spirit y 

The  idea  of  meeting  on  the  first  day  of  the  week  reg- 
ularly "to  break  bread"  came  to  the  people  like  a  new 
revelation.  Not  a  church  in  this  country  did  this  pre- 
vious to  this  great  reformatory  movement;  nor  were  any 
of  the  churches  prepared  for  it,  but  they  all  resisted  it. 
It  would  not  do  to  commemorate  the  death  of  our  Lord 
every  week!  This  great  frequency  would  destroy  the 
solemnity  of  it!  But  it  was  maintained  and  put  into 
practice.  There  are  now  several  thousand  churches 
that  meet  on  the  first  day  of  the  week  to  break  bread, 
in  memoi-y  of  the  Savior's  death,  thus  obeying  the  com- 
mand, "Do  this  till  I  come."  Nothing  is  more  import- 
ant than  the  regular  commemoration  of  the  death  of 
Jesus,  in  keeping  the  Lord  before  our  mind,  and  keep- 
ing the  price  of  our  redemption  in  view.  No  man  can 
persuade  even  himself  that  he  loves  the  Savior,  or  im- 
press others  with  the  idea  that  he  loves  the  Savior,  who 
does  not  delight  to  meet  to  break  bread  on  the  first  day 
of  the  week,  as  the  first  followers  of  Christ  did. 

The  shallow  pretense  to  a  miraculous  call  and  quali- 
fication to  preach,  which  had  possessed  the  public  mind 
generally,  and  put  forth  by  nearly  all  the  preachers,  was 


454  THE  PROGRESS  OF  RELIGIOUS  REFORMATION. 

swept  away,  and  the  denial  was  maintained  that  men 
were  now  inspired  as  the  apostles  were,  or  that  any 
new  revelations  w^ere  made.  It  was  maintained  that  the 
last  will  and  testament  from  God  is  in  the  Bible;  that 
since  John  the  Apostle  wrote  the  close  of  the  Apoca- 
lypse, not  a  revelation  has  been  made  from  heaven;  that 
the  Bible  contains  the  complete,  the  perfect,  and  final 
revelation  from  God  to  man ;  the  supreme  and  absolute 
authority  in  all  matters  of  religion;  and  that  not  a  man 
in  the  world  knows  anything  about  the  will  of  God  to 
man,  only  as  he  has  learned  it  directly,  or  indirectly, 
from  the  Bible.  The  victory  on  this  point  has  been 
quite  complete.  Scarcely  a  pretense  of  the  kind  is  now 
beard  anywhere. 

Another  important  point  in  the  work  of  reformation, 
and  the  only  one  that  can  now  be  mentioned,  was  the 
proper  division  of  Scripture,  a  strict  regard  to  dispensa- 
tions, the  right  application,  enforcement  and  defense  of 
Scripture.  This  was  of  immense  importance,  and  has 
been  a  means  of  recovering  the  Bible  from  derision  and 
sneers  to  a  wonderful  extent.  Without  this  it  never 
could  have  been  saved  from  the  torrent  of  skepticism 
it  has  been  compelled  to  withstand.  All  that  is  needed 
for  the  defense  and  maintenance  of  the  Bible  is  to 
clearly  understand  and  set  it  forth.  The  wisdom  of  God 
will  gleam  out  from  every  part  of  it,  and  the  weakness 
of  men  will  appear  in  their  feeble  efforts  to  overthrow 
it.  To  the  name  of  its  great  and  glorious  Author, 
through  our  Lord  Jesus  the  Christ,  be  the  praises  for- 
ever and  ever. 


SERMON   No.  XX. 

THEME. — IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

The  Lord  says,  "On  this  rock  I  will  build  my  Church." 
— Matthew  xvi.  18.  Paul  says,  "Husbands,  love  your 
wives,  even  as  Christ  also  loved  the  Church,  and  gave 
himself  for  it;  that  he  might  sanctify  and  cleanse  it 
with  the  washing  of  water  by  the  word.'' — Ephesians 
V.  25.  The  Church  spoken  of  in  these  Scriptures  is  not 
simply  a  church,  among  many  more  of  the  saine  kind, 
but  is  "the  Church."  It  is  "the  Church  of  God," 
and  so  st3ded  in  Scripture,  "the  Church  of  the  living 
God.  Our  Lord  gave  himself  for  it;  he  built  it;  he 
loved  it ;  he  "  sanctified  and  cleansed  it  with  the  wash- 
ing of  water  by  the  word."  It  is  called  in  Scripture, 
"his  body,"  "the  body  of  Christ,"  "one  body."  It  is 
also  called  "the  kingdom,"  "the  kingdom  of  God," 
"the  kingdom  of  heaven,"  "the  kingdom  of  God's  dear 
Son."  This  body,  or  kingdom,  as  differently  phrased  in 
different  expressions  in  Scripture,  is  of  God,  and  all  the 
exceeding  great  and  precious  promises  are  to  those  who 
compose  this  body.  It  is  styled  in  Scripture,  "God's 
building,"  "the  temple  of  God."  God  himself  dwells 
in  it;  Christ  dwells  in  it;  the  Holy  Spirit  dwells  in  it. 
To  be  in  this  body  is  the  same  as  to  be  "in  Christ,"  in 
a  state  of  justification  or  acceptance  with  God;  or  the 
same  as  to  be  reconciled  to  God,  adopted  into  the  heav- 
enly family,  justified,  sanctified,  saved  from  all  past  sin. 
It  is,  then,  no  unmeaning  and  empty  ceremony,  but  a 

(455) 


456  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

reality,  a  matter  of  fact,  to  be  made  a  member  of  this 
body,  that  a  man  can  know,  as  certainly  as  he  can  know 
anything  of  which  he  is  assured  in  Scripture. 

The  body  of  Christ  is  not,  then,  a  mere  imagination, 
a  kind  of  ideal  representation,  mere  poetical  imagery, 
but  a  reality,  as  much  so  as  the  Kingdom  of  Great  Brit- 
ain, or  the  Republic  of  the  United  States  of  America. 
It  is  an  actual  existence,  with  its  limitations,  law  and 
citizens.  There  is  a  without  and  a  witliin  to  it.  It  has 
a,  real,  an  actual,  and  a  living  Head,  that  leads,  controls 
and  governs  it,  though  that  Head  is  invisible  to  us.  The 
Head  of  that  body  is  an  absolute  monarch.  His  will  is 
the  law^  and  from  it  there  is  no  appeal.  He  is  the  right- 
ful Sovereign;  in  him  is  vested  all  authority  in  heaven 
and  on  earth;  we  come  to  him  as  the  source  of  all  light, 
and  life,  and  everlasting  consolation,  blessed  forever  and 
over.  There  is  no  other  name  but  his  given  under 
heaven,  and  among  men,  whereby  we  can  be  saved. 

Among  all  the  bodies  of  people  that  now  exist  in  the 
world,  can  we  find  the  one  styled  in  Scripture,  "the 
body  of  Christ" — the  one  of  which  the  Lord  is  the 
Head?  Can  we  find  and  identify  the  "  temple  of  God?" 
Is  the  Church  of  God  in  existence?  Can  it  be  identi- 
fied? Is  the  kingdom  of  God  in  existence?  Can  it  be 
identified  ?  If  these  questions  must  be  answered  nega- 
tively, then  no  man  knows  whether  he  is  "in  Christ" 
or  not;  in  "the  body  of  Christ,"  or  out  of  it;  whether 
he  is  justified,  adopted,  or  not.  Then  the  whole  matter 
of  man's  reconciliation  to  God,  and  acceptance  with 
him,  is  in  the  dark.  Here,  then,  is  matter  of  most  mo- 
mentous importance  for  our  meditation.  We  all  talk 
about  "the  Church;"  but  where  is  it?  What  is  it? 
Can  it  be  identified?     Can  an  honest  man,  who  desires 


IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH.  457 

to  become  a  member  of  the  body  of  Christ,  iind  that 
body,  so  as  to  become  a  member? 

The  matter  iu  hand  is  not  to  find  something  lihe  t/ie 
Church  of  God^  or  resemhling  it;  nor  yet  to  find  some- 
thing as  near  lik<  it  as  any  other  body,  or  even  neo^rer 
like  it;  but  can  we  find  the  "body  of  Christ"  itself; 
*'the  Church  of  the  living  God;  the  pillar  and  support 
of  the  truth?"  This  is  the  matter  of  investigation 
now.  It  is  a  matter  of  no  importance  now  to  find  aii}- 
other  church  or  body.  The  Lord  did  not  love  any 
other  body.  He  did  not  give  himself  for  any  other 
body.  He  did  not  say,  "I  will  build"  any  other 
church.  He  did  not  give  Peter  the  keys  of  any  other 
kingdom.  He  is  not  tlie  Head  of  any  other  body.  God 
does  not  dwell  in  any  other  temple;  Christ  does  not 
dwell  in  any  other  body;  the  Holy  Spirit  does  not  dwell 
in  any  other  body;  the  "exceeding  great  and  precious 
promises"  are  not  to  those  in  any  other  body.  ]*To  other 
body  is  called  in  Scripture,  or  is  in  reality,  the  "  whole 
family  in  heaven  and  on  earth." 

Is  there,  then,  any  fact  universally  admitted  that  we 
can  reason  from  in  reaching  any  certain  conclusions  in 
this  matter?  There  certainly  is  one  thing  admitted,  a 
matter  of  fact  ^  universally  admitted,  that  is  of  momen- 
tous importance  in  reaching  certain  conclusions.  That 
fact  is  that  the  body  in  question  existed  in  the  time  of 
the  apostles.  This  is  simply  undeniable.  It  is  not 
called  in  question  by  anybody.  We  need  not  argue  it, 
but  may  accept  it  as  a  settled  matter.  It  follows,  then, 
with  the  force  of  demonstration,  or  we  may  say,  of  actual 
certainty,  that  any  body  of  people,  or  party,  wiiose  en- 
tire history  is  found,  and  exhausted,  before  we  reach 
back  to  the  time  of  the  apostles,  is  not  the  hody  in  ques- 
tion— the  hody  of  Christ.  We  have  several  works, 
39 


458  IDENTIT:"  0-^  THE  CHURCH. 

aimed  to  be  histories  o^  I'eligions  parties,  or  denomina- 
tions. Some  of  these  Jije  wri!.ten  by  their  friends,  in- 
deed, nearly  all  of  them.  Some  of  them  are  in  distinct 
volumes,  a  volume  containing  the  entire  history  of  a 
party,  or  a  ''denomination,"  as  generally  phrased;  and 
a  few  of  them  extended  works,  ^aiming  to  give  a  history 
of  all  of  them,  devoting  a  certain  space  to  each  one. 
There  need,  then,  be  no  prejudice  in  the  case;  no  excite- 
ment; no  noise  about  logic,  fairness  or  unfairness;  no 
part}'  feeling,  or  strife;  no  crimination  or  racrimiration  ; 
but  simply  an  inquiry  into  matter  of  fact. 

That  any  one  may  see  >'^' hat  we  mean,  take  the  history 
of  Mormonism  and  Mormons,  and  all  the  allusions  to 
Mormonism  and  Mormons,  \rhetber  in  distinct  history, 
or  allusions  in  one  way  or  anotHor  Interspersed  through 
the  literature  of  the  world,  wherever  found,  and  it  is  ill 
exhausted  before  we  get  back  to  the  beginning  of  this 
century.  Tracing  back  through  the  literature  of  tl  e 
times,  allusions,  in  one  form  or  anotlnr,  %:^  found  lo 
Mormonism  and  Mormons.  It  matters  act  whether 
these  allusions  are  friendly  or  unfriendly,  &.^  far  .^s  our 
purpose  is  concerned.  Before  the  time  of  Joseph  Sn.itl , 
Jr.,  the  Mormon  Prophet,  and  before  the  Book  of  Moi 
mon  was  written,  no  one  ever  heard  of  Mormonisra  c  - 
Mormons.  When  we  trace  the  history,  and  all  the  his 
toric  allusions,  touching  Mormonism  and  Mormons,  bad 
to  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  and  the  time  in  which  he  lived 
we  reach  the  origin  of  the  concern.  Before  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr.,  there  was  not  a  Mormon,  and  before  the 
Book  of  Mormon  there  was  no  Mormonism  in  the 
world.  Eighteen  hundred  years  of  the  Christian  era 
passed  away  before  there  was  any  Mormonism,  or  a 
Mormon  on  earth.  There  is  nothing  in  this  to  wrangle 
over  or  dispute  about.    It  is  simply  the  most  undeniable 


IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH.  459 

matter  of  fact.  The  Mormon  body  was  born  eighteen 
hundred  years  too  late  to  be  the  body  of  Christ. 

The  Methodist  body  encounters  the  same  difficulty. 
Its  own  historians,  who  evidently  aim  to  make  the  case 
as  favorable  as  possible,  exhaust  its  history  before  they 
reach  back  a  century  and  a  half.  Before  we  trace  back 
through  the  literature  in  which  allusions  to  that  body 
are  found,  one  hundred  and  fifty  years,  we  come  to 
where  there  is  not  a  trace  of  it.  There  was  no  Metho- 
dist body  on  earth  before  the  time  of  John  Wesley. 
There  was  no  Methodism  before  that  time.  It  has  not 
a  trace  in  history  of  any  sort,  friendly  or  unfriendly,  in 
the  literature  of  the  world;  not  even  a  historic  allusion, 
written  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago.  Before  that 
time  the  Methodist  body  did  not  exist.  It  was  born  too 
late.  It  is  not  the  hody  of  CJirist.  This  is  simply  mat- 
ter of  fact,  too  plain  for  argument.  We  are  not  asking 
for  succession^  or  any  history  of  succession,  but  history 
about  it  of  any  sort,  before  the  time  we  have  described. 
Its  whole  history  is  exhausted  inside  of  one  hundred 
and  fifty  years.  Before  that  time  there  was  nothing 
of  it. 

The  Presbyterian  body  is  liable  to  the  same  objection, 
only  it  is  a  little  older.  Before  the  time  of  John  Calvin 
there  was  no  Presbyterian  body.  When  we  go  back  to 
John  Calvin  we  have  exhausted  the  history  of  Presby- 
terianism.  It  has  no  history  back  of  that.  In  the  lit- 
erature of  the  world  it  has  not  a  historic  trace  beyond 
the  time  of  Calvin,  and  beyond  that  time  the  Presby- 
terian body  did  not  exist.  Presbyterian  history  itself 
finds  not  a  trace  of  it  back  of  the  birth  of  John  Calvin, 

The  Baptist  body  is  in  the  same  row.  Its  entire  his- 
tory is  exhausted  in  tracing  back  some  two  hundred 
years.    In  all  the  literature  written  from  the  time  of  the 


460  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

birth  of  Christ  down  to  some  two  hundred  years  ago, 
there  is  no  trace  of  the  Baptist  Church,  or  body,  or,  as 
they  sometimes  phrase  it,  of  the  "  Baptist  denomination." 
Nor  do  we  find  during  that  long  period,  in  all  the  writ- 
ings produced,  friendly  or  unfriendly  to  that  body,  any 
allusions  to  the  Baptist  Church.  It  is  sufficient  to  de- 
feat forever  any  claim  of  that  church  to  the  body  of 
Christ,  that  there  is  not  a  trace  of  it  in  Scrij^t^tre;  but 
w^hen  Ave  add  to  this  the  simple  matter  of  fact  that  there 
is  not  a  trace  of  it,  or  an  allusion  to  it,  in  the  history, 
or  any  of  the  literature  produced  during  the  long  period 
from  the  time  of  the  apostles  down  to  some  two  hun- 
dred years  ago„  it  becomes  painful  to  hear  any  one  talk 
of  tracing  the  history  of  the  Baptist  Church  back  to 
John  the  Immerser!  It  simply  leaves  the  Baptist 
Church  out  of  the  question.  It  is  useless  to  look  any 
more  for  it. 

But  what  of  the  great  apostasy,  the  falling  away,  the 
man  of  sin,  now  styled  the  ^'Church  of  Rome,*'  or 
sometimes  the  "Papacy,"  or,  incorrectly,  the  "Catholic 
Church?"  In  this  we  find  something  different  from  all 
we  have  alluded  to.  "We  find  it  not  only  now  a  distinct 
and  organized  body,  but  we  find  it  with  a  thousand 
years'  history,  as  distinct,  clear  and  definite  as  the  his- 
tory of  any  nation  or  people,  or  even  any  civil  govern- 
ment of  the  same  antiquity.  For  one  thousand  years 
back  the  literature  of  the  world,  or  a  large  portion  of 
it,  is  interwoven  with  it.  There  is  not  the  least  trouble 
in  tracing  it  in  all  those  countries  and  among  all  those 
peoples  where  it  has  had  a  footing.  In  one  particular 
it  is  unlike  all  others,  as  it  appears  in  history,  in  that 
its  history  runs  to  no  ch finite  j^eriod^  no  distinct  t'nne 
nor  person  in  which  it  had  its  origin.  It  did  not  orig- 
inate with  any  one  man^  nor  at  any  one  definite  t'nnt,^ 


IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH.  461 

nor  in  any  one  definite  move.  Its  history  and  that  of 
the  genuine  body — the  body  of  Christ — are  precisely 
opposites,  in  character,  in  one  particular.  As  we  ascend 
the  stream  of  time,  after  we  have  gone  some  thirteen 
hundred  years,  the  history  of  the  Papac}^  becomes  more 
and  more  dim,  till  it  entirely  disappears.  When  we 
reach  the  time  of  the  apostles,  we  are  beyond  the  last 
trace  of  the  Papacy,  except  as  de&cribed  in  prophecy. 
Aside  from  the  prophetic  descriptions,  there  is  not  a 
trace  of  it  in  the  Bible.  As  it  fades  away  in  tracing  up 
the  stream,  the  history  of  the  true  Church  looms  up 
into  view,  as  the  land  does  when  we  are  coming  to  the 
shore  of  the  ocean.  Much  of  the  literature  of  the 
world  abounds  with  allusions  to  the  Papacy,  its  political 
intriguing,  management  and  power;  its  awful  arrogance, 
assumptions  and  blasphemous  pretensions;  terrible  per- 
secutions and  barbarities.  There  is  no  lack  of  history 
touching  it  for  ages  past,  nor  traces  of  its  existence  in 
different  parts  of  the  world.  For  the  last  tw^elve  or 
thirteen  hundred  years  past,  the  space  the  Papacy  has 
had  in  history  is  sufiicientl}'  conspicuous  to  establish 
the  fact  of  its  existence  as  distinctly  as  the  principal 
civil  governments  of  the  world.  This  is  all  clear.  But 
passing  back  up  the  stream  of  history  till  within  five 
hundred  years  of  the  time  of  the  apostles,  and  after 
that,  one  feature  after  another  is  missing  in  all  the  allu- 
sions to  that  body.  The  reader  ceases  to  find  any  men- 
tion of  the  pope,  or  any  allusions  to  him;  any  cardinal, 
any  archbishop,  and,  we  may  add,  any  bishop  or  priest, 
in  the  papistical  sense.  The  Councils  run  out  in  his- 
tory, not  a  trace  of  one  being  found  before  the  Council 
of  ^ice.  When  the  reader  ascends  up  into  antiquity, 
and  reaches  the  Council  of  iTice,  he  is  at  the  first  end 
:>f  all  Councils.     Back  of  that  he  finds  not  a  trace  of 


462  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

any  Councils.  As  the  reader  traces  back,  one  feature 
after- another  of  the  Charch  of  Rome,  or  the  Papacy,  is 
wanting,  till  the  last  one  is  lacking.  When  he  reaches 
the  time  of  the  apostles,  and  finds  an  account  of  the 
only  true,  ^the  holy  and  Apostolic  Church,  all  that  is 
Romish  and  Papistical  has  entirely  disappeared  from 
the  pages  of  history,  and  not  a  vestige  of  it  is  to  be 
found,  except  in  the  prophetic  descriptions  of  the  com- 
ing apostasy,  which  was  demanded  to  fulfill  the  word 
of  God.  All  the  leading  features  of  the  Antichrist 
gradually  disappear,  and  the  features  of  the  true  Church 
begin  to  appear  more  and  more,  till  we  reach  the  time 
of  the  apostles,  where  we  find  not  only  the  features,  but 
the  true  Cliurcli^  as  she  came  from  the  hand  of  God, 
and  was  approved  of  him  by  sublime  displa^^s  of  mirac- 
ulous power.  This  Church  is  the  body  of  Christ,  and 
fills  the  whole  space.  All  these  others  that  v^e  have 
alluded  to  have  disappeared  from  the  records  '>f  the 
time,  in  the  Bible  or  out  of  it.  All  those  which  we  have 
mentioned,  and  all  others  not  mentioned,  whose  entire 
history  is  exhausted  before  we  reach  back  to  the  apos- 
tles, no  matter  what  they  are  called,  are  out  of  the  ques- 
tion. We  need  not  wrangle  over  them,  or  dispute  about 
them,  as  to  which  is  the  preferable,  or  the  more  nearly 
resemble  the  original.  We  are  in  search  of  the  original 
itself. 

Now  for  another  item  universally  admitted,  that  we 
may  have  something  to  reason  from  about  which  there 
is  no  dispute.  All  agree  that  the  original  Church  was 
established  in  Jerusalem.  We  need  no  argument  on 
this.  It  is  not  denied,  or  held  in  the  least  doubt  by  any- 
body of  any  note.  The  original  Church,  the  Church 
of  God,  or  the  body  of  Christ,  had  its  rise,  or  was  es- 
tablished, ill  Jerusalem.     No  matter  where,  then,  any 


IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH.  463' 

church  hegan — in  what  country,  province,  or  city;  nor 
is  it  any  matter  for  anything  else  about  it,  if  it  did  not 
begin  in  Jerusalem  ;  if  it  did  not  take  its  rise  there;  was 
not  founded  there,  it  can  not  be  the  body  of  Christ,  or 
the  true  Church.  If  a  church  originated  in  Ilome,  that 
is  enough — a  final  settlement  of  the  question;  we  need 
no  further  aro^ument.  It  can  not  be  the  true  Church — 
the  true  Church  did  not  originate  in  Rome,  London  or 
Genova.  It  was  not  founded  in  England,  Germany  or 
France.  There  stands  the  fact^  and  nobody  denies  it — 
the  true  Church  originated  in  Jtricsalein.  It  did  not 
originate  in  tivo  places^  but  one.  This  point  is  too 
plain  to  need,  or  even  admit  of  any  comment  that  can 
malce  it  plainer.  We  have  plenty  more  plain  and  easy 
arguments  that  all  can  understand. 

We  then  proceed  to  another  item  universally  admit- 
ted. Christ  is  the  Author  of  the  true  Church.  He 
founded  it,  or  built  it.  "  On  this  rock  I  will  huild  my 
CliuTclb?''  In  tracing  back  through  history,  we  gener- 
ally complete  the  work  by  finding  some  man  who  was 
the  originator,  or  founder,  of  a  body  of  people,  as  a 
church.  When  w^e  reach  that  man  w^e  reach  the  end  of 
the  history  of  it.  The  history  is  exhausted  when  we 
reach  him,  and  terminates  in  him.  The  history  of  the 
Lutheran  Church  is  plain  and  clearly  marked  till  w^e 
get  back  to  Luther.  There  is  the  end  of  it.  There  is 
no  account  of  it;  not  a  trace  of  it;  nor  an  allusion  to  it 
beyond  that.  The  historj^  of  the  Lutheran  Church,  as 
we  pass  back,  ends  with  Luther.  There  is  not  a  trace 
of  it  beyond  him.  The  Lutheran  Church  originated  in 
the  wrong  person.  The  body  of  Christ  originated  with 
Christ.  In  the  same  w^ay,  for  further  example,  in  trac- 
ing the  history  of  the  Friends'  Church,  we  come  to 
George  Fox;   but  there  the  history  is   exhausted  and 


464  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

ends.  Back  of  George  Fox  we  fiud  not  a  trace  of  a 
Quaker  Church.  He  was  the  origin  of  that  body,  but 
lie  did  not  originate  the  body  of  Christ.  In  like  man- 
ner, Methodism  has  a  distinct  and  clearly  traceable  his- 
tory back  to  John  Wesley ;  but  back  of  him  there  is 
not  a  trace  of  a  Methodist  Church.  When  we  reach 
Wesley,  Methodist  history  is  exhausted,  and  with  him 
it  ends,  tracing  back.  The  Swedenborgian  body  orig- 
inated with  Swedenborg.  Before  his  day  that  body  had 
no  existence.  Mohammedanism  originated  with  Mo- 
hammed. In  the  same  way,  the  body  of  Christ  origin- 
ated with  him.  When  we  go  back  through  history  to 
Christ,  we  find  the  rise  of  the  body  of  Christ.  It  orig- 
inated in  him,  and  the  history  of  that  body  is  not  ex- 
hausted till  we  go  back  to  him.  In  tracing  back  to 
Christ,  we  reach  the  first  end  of  the  history  of  the  body 
of  Christ;  and  continuing  on  back  we  find  no  further 
trace  of  it,  only  in  the  proph»etic  Scriptures  pointing 
forward  to  the  good  things  to  come.  The  religion,  and 
the  religious  body,  that  originated  in  our  Lord,  is  the 
true  religion  and  the  genuine  body.  This  is,  or  ought 
to  be,  an  end  of  all  controversy. 

The  true  Church,  the  body,  or  the  kingdom  of  God, 
is  governed  by  the  law  of  God.  It  has  no  other  law. 
It  is  under  Christ  as  its  only  Head,  and  his  law  as  its 
only  law.  Any  body  of  people,  under  any  other  king 
but  the  Lord  Messiah;  any  law  but  his;  or  any  other 
religious  head,  is  not  the  body  of  Christ.  His  law  is 
the  only  creed;  the  absolute  rule  and  authority  in  his 
body.  The  Koran  is  not  the  law  of  Christ;  and  the 
people  under  it  are  not  under  the  law  of  Christ,  or  under 
Christ  at  all.  The  Papists  are  not  under  the  law  of 
Christ,  but  under  the  unwritten  traditions  of  Rome,  aa 
executed  or  administered   by  the  Papacy.     These  un- 


IDENTITY, OF  THE  CHURCH.  465 

^vi'itten  traditions  are  no  law  of  Christ,  nor  of  God,  in 
any  sense;  nor  are  the  papistical  priesthood  ministers 
of  Christ,  to  administer  his  law ;  and  the  body  under 
these  is  not  the  body  of  Christ.  The  same  is  true  of  all 
the  v)ritten  traditions,  or  opinions  of  uninspired  men, 
put  down  in  modern  creeds,  styled  "articles  of  faith," 
or  "articles  of  religion,"  of  the  sects  of  our  time.  No 
one  of  them  is  the  law  of  Christ,  nor  all  of  them  to- 
gether; and  those  under  any  one  of  them  are  not  under 
the  law  of  Christ,  nor  are  they  the  body  of  Christ. 

We  need  not,  then,  look  to  any  of  these  creeds  for 
the  law  of  Christ,  nor  to  those  under  them  for  the  body 
of  Christ.  Nor  need  we  look  to  any  Council,  Confer- 
ence, General  Assembly,  Association,  Annual  Meeting, 
or  Convention,  for  the  body  of  Christ;  or  to  any  other 
aggregations,  confederations,  etc.,  now  generally  known 
and  talked  about.  Nor  need  we  look  to  any  succession 
of  officers,  ministers,  ordinances,  or  bodies  of  people,  in 
trying  to  find  the  body  of  Christ.  All  these  successions 
have  two  objections  lying  against  them.  First,  there 
is  no  authority  for  them  in  Scripture;  second,  they  are 
all  too  dim  in  history  ever  to  be  followed,  even  if  they 
were  demanded.  They  are  of  no  value — nothing  can 
be  determined  by  them. 

Again,  nothing  can  be  the  true  Church,  or  body,  not 
built  on  the  foundation  that  God  laid.  Now  we  are 
coming  to  something  tangible — to  the  foundation  of 
the  building  of  God.  "  On  this  rock  I  will  build  my 
Church,"  says  the  Lord.  He  does  not  mean  by  "my 
Church" — my  meeti7ig -house.,  or  my  synagogue;  but  my 
Churchy  congregation^  or  assembly.  The  congregation 
of  the  Lord  has  a  foundation,  and  any  congregation  not 
built  on  that  foundation  is  not  the  "building  of  God," 
the  "temple  of  God,"  or  the  "body  of  Christ." 


466  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

What,  then,  is  the  foundation?  Paul  says,  "I,  as  a 
wise  master-builder,  have  laid  the  foundation."  —  1 
Corinthians  iii.  10.  He  is  very  exclusive,  for  he  adds: 
^'  Other  foundation  can  no  man  lay  than  that  whicli  ia 
laid."  We  need  look  for  no  other — there  is  no  other. 
Then  follows  the  statement  that  tells  what  that  founda- 
tion is:  '*  Which  is  Jesus  Christ."  There  is  no  circum- 
locution in  this  language — it  is  most  explicit  and  direct. 
The  foundation  is  not  some  opinions  of  men  concerning 
Christ,  or  their  views  of  him;  but  Jesus  the  Christ 
HIMSELF.  He  is  the  Rock  of  which  we  sing,  that  is 
**  higher  than  I,"  or,  as  Paul  says,  in  reference  to  Him 
that  followed  the  Israel  of  God  in  the  wilderness,  and 
gave  them  water — "That  Rock  was  Christ."  He  is  the 
foundation  of  the  Church.  The  building  of  God  rests 
on  him.  He  walks  in  the  midst  of  the  assembly,  and 
the  whole  congregation  give  p'raises  to  him.  He  is  the 
way,  and  the  truth,  and  the  life.  'No  man  comes  to  the 
Father  but  by  him.  He  said,  "I,  if  I  be  lifted  up,  will 
draw  all  men  to  me." 

The  building  of  God,  or  the  body  of  Christ,  is,  then, 
built  on  Christ,  as  their  foundation.  Where,  then,  is 
that  building  that  is  built  on  Christ — the  building  of 
God?  Can  w^e  find  it?  Can  we  identify  it?  Is  it  on 
€arth?  It  has  no  geographical  lines,  limiting  it  to  any 
one  country.  The  command  to  the  prime  ministers  was 
to  "  Go  into  all  the  world."  The  field  in  which  the  seed 
of  the  kingdom,  the  word  of  God,  is  sown,  is  "the 
world."  The  Lord  taught  his  followers  to  pray,  "  Thy 
kingdom  come,  thy  will  be  done  o?i  earth.'''  This  locates 
this  building  on  earthy  in  this  worlds  but  limits  it  to  no 
particular  part  of  it.  It  had  a  certain  locality  for  the 
place  of  beginning;  but  from  that  time  forward  it  was 
n<5t  limited  or  restricted  to  any  particular  country,  but 


IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH.  467 

was  for  all  the  xoorld.  Nor  was  it  limited  to  any  one 
nation,  or  blood,  but  was  given  to  "all  nations."  "In 
every  nation,  he  who  fears  God  and  works  righteous- 
ness is  accepted  with  him."  One  religion  and  one  Savior 
for  the  whole  worlds  and  all  nations;  one  kingdom  of 
God,  or  body  of  Christ,  and  but  one  for  all;  one  found- 
ation for  this  one  body,  or  building  of  God,  and  that 
foundation  is  Christ. 

We  need  not,  then,  trouble  ourselves  about  any  long 
iines,  or,  as  Paul  has  it,  "endless  genealogies;"  about 
any  blood  or  locaV  limits.  These  have  nothing  to  do, 
then,  in  identifying  the  body  of  Christ.  Nor  need  we 
trouble  ourselves  about  any  succession  of  churches,  min- 
isters, officers,  or  ordinances,  for  the  Bible  requires  none 
of  these,  and  not  one  of  them  has  a  clear  and  reliable 
history.  Nor  need  we  look  to  Councils,  or  their  decis- 
ions; for  their  history  all  ends  before  we  get  back  to 
the  apostles,  and  their  decisions  have  no  divine  warrant. 
They  amount  to  nothing.  How,  then,  is  this  wonderful 
matter  to  be  settled?  Kecollect,  we  are  not  obliged  to 
settle  it  for  all  nations,  or  for  everybody.  The  import- 
ant matter  is  for  a  man  to  settle  it  for  himself.  Each 
has  the  follovx'ing  question  to  solve  for  himself:  Am  I 
in  the  body  of  Christ?  This  is  the  main  thing  for  each 
man  and  woman  to  know. 

Our  Lord  says  the  seed  of  tlie  kingdom  is  the  word 
of  God.  What  we  should  do,  then,  is  to  go  back  to  the 
apostles,  to  the  instances  in  which  they  sowed  this  seed 
— the  word  of  God.  We  have  already  seen  where  they 
were  to  sow  this  seed.  They  were  to  "go  into  all  the 
world,"  to  sow^  the  seed,  or,  literally,  to  preach  the  gos- 
pel, for  that  is  precisely  the  meaning  of  it — "preach  the 
gospel  to  every  creature."  We  are  simply  to  follow 
them,  in  the  history,  and  inquire  into  the  facts.     What 


468  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

resulted  from  sowing  this  seed — preaching  the  gospel? 
What  kind  of  fruit  came  from  this  seed?  What  was 
the  product  from  this  sowing?  It  is  no  trouhle  to  learn 
what  grew  up  from  it.  Churches  were  built  up,  and  set 
in  order.  In  them  we  have  the  building  of  God,  the 
body  of  Christ.  In  the  work  of  the  apostles,  as  set 
forth  in  the  sacred  history,  we  learn  how  the  apostles 
did  the  work;  how^  they  sowed  the  seed,  or  preached 
the  gospel;  what  effect  it  had  on  the  people;  that  some 
received  it  joyfully,  believed  it  with  all  their  hearts; 
that  they  obeyed  it;  that  they  received  it  into  good  and 
honest  hearts,  understood  it  and  brought  forth  much 
fruit;  that  many  repented,  confessed  Christ,  and  were 
*'  immersed  into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son, 
and  of  the  Holy  Spirit;"  that  they  were  "added  to  them," 
"added  to  the  Lord,"  "added  to* the  Church." 

"Added  to  the  Lord,"  "added  to  them,"  and  "added 
to  the  Church,"  are  three  ways  of  expressing  the  same, 
in  substance.  The  amount  of  it  is,  that  they  were  added 
to  the  body  of  Christ.  That  body,  to  which  they  were 
added,  originated  with  Christ,  the  right  person;  in 
Jerusalem,  the  right  place;  in  the  time  of  the  apostles, 
the  right  time;  and  was  built  on  the  right  foundation, 
Christ.  It  had  the  right  creed,  the  law  of  Christ.  Here 
we  identify  the  true  Church,  the  body  of  Christ.  God 
acknowledged  this  body  by  the  most  grand  and  awful 
displays  of  supernatural  power.  We  trace  through  the 
sacred  record  to  learn  all  about  it — what  its  creed  was; 
how  it  was  designated;  what  its  worship  was;  its  prac- 
tice, and  everything  in  reference  to  it.  Here,  then,  we 
identify  the  true  Church.  In  regard  to  this  there  is  no 
dissent.  All  admit  that  it  was  the  true  Church — the 
body  of  Christ. 

Is  that  Church  in  existence  now  ?    Some  man  is  ready 


IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH.  469 

to  say,  There  is  not  a  church  in  the  world  that  can  trace 
its  history  back  to  that  Church.  Suppose  we  can  not, 
but  can  find  the  same  thing — the  identical  same  hody 
now;  in  all  respects  the  same — that  is,  identifying  it^ 
no  matter  if  there  is  a  thousand  years  out  of  its  history 
utterly  lost.  It  is  not  its  history  we  want,  but  its  iden- 
tity. Can  we  identify  it?  We  have  read  of  seeds  that 
lay  buried  in  ancient  ruins  three  thousand  years,  and 
when  brought  to  the  air,  and  placed  under  suitable  con- 
ditions, they  grew  as  well  as  if  they  had  been  last  year's 
seed.  They  brought  their  hind,  and  were  identified  as 
the  same  thing,  though  they  had  been  buried  three 
thousand  years,  during  all  of  which  time  we  have  no 
history  of  them.  In  the  same  way,  if  the  seed  of  the 
kingdom,  the  word  of  God,  has  been  long  buried  in  the 
rabbish  of  Popery,  but  has  been  iinally  dug  up,  and 
sown  in  good  ground,  as  Jesus  explains,  in  "good  and 
honest  hearts,"  and  results  in  turning  them  to  the  Lord, 
and  adding  them  to  the  saved — to  the  body — they  are, 
then,  in  the  body,  and  are  precisely  the  same  kind  of 
product  as  came  from  the  same  kind  of  seed  in  the  time 
of  the  apostles.  Ko  matter  about  their  history,  or 
genealog}',  or  whether  we  ever  know  where  this  seed  of 
the  kingdom  was  for  ages  while  it  was  dormant,  or  not. 
The  circumstance  that  seeds  of  different  kinds,  and,  it 
may  be,  of  all  kinds,  will  lay  in  the  earth  dormant,  if  deep 
enough,  and  then  grow,  when  brought  near  enough  to  the 
surface,  has  led  many  to  think  that  some  kinds  of  vegeta- 
tion come  without  seed.  But  it  never  comes  without  seed. 
The  seed  was  in  the  ground,  but  too  deep  to  grow,  while  it 
lay  dormant,  and  when  brought  near  enough  to  the  sur- 
face to  receive  the  light,  warmth,  moisture,  and  air,  it 
grew.  In  this  way  the  farmer  sometimes  finds  a  beau- 
tiful stand  of  clover  where  he  did  not  expect  it.    Several 


470  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHUECH. 

years  before  he  had  broke  a  clover  sod  qwte  deep,  thus 
burying  an  abundance  of  seed  six  and  eight  inches 
deep,  where  it  lay  dormant  for  several  years,  when  he 
broke  it  again,  as  deep  as  before,  thus  bringing  the  dor- 
mant seed  to  the  surface,  and  in  a  short  time  he  had  a 
beautiful  stand  of  clover.  He  does  not  prove  it  to  be 
clover  by  telling  all  about  where  it  had  been,  and  what 
it  had  been  doing  all  the  time  while  he  saw  nothing  of 
it,  but  by  its  own  qualities  and  characteristics.  It  is  a 
certain  article  that  can  be  identified.^  whether  we  can 
tell  where  it  has  been  all  the  time  or  not. 

More  than  eighteen  hundred  years  ago  the  Lord  com- 
manded men  to  sow  the  seed  of  the  kingdom  in  good 
and  honest  hearts  of  men  and  women.  This  seed  of 
the  kingdom,  as  he  called  it  figuratively,  is  the  word  of 
God.  It  grew ;  brought  a  certain  product  then ;  built 
up  a  body  of  people  styled  "the  body  of  Christ."  This 
body  of  people  had  a  law,  a  worship,  a  life,  a  practice; 
it  had  a  character.  I^ow,  that  eighteen  hundred  years 
have  passed  away,  this  same  seed  of  the  kingdom  has 
been  dug  up,  sown  in  the  same  soil — good  and  honest 
hearts — been  understood,  and  brought  forth  much  fruit; 
the  same  fruit  it  did  in  the  time  of  the  apostles.  It  has 
made  believers,  led  them  to  repentance,  to  confess 
Christ  and  be  immersed;  brought  these  together,  and 
added  others  to  them,  and  thus  formed  a  body.  On 
close  inspection  we  find  this  body  to  be  the  same  pre- 
cisely as  that  in  the  time  of  the  apostles — as  clearly  sa 
as  the  plant  that  comes  from  the  same  seed  is  the  same 
as  the  original.     It  is  the  identical  same  thing. 

It  matters  not  that  philosophers  and  theologians  can 
not  tell  where  this  seed  has  been  all  this  time;  nor  how 
God  has  kept  the  same  life  in  it;  nor  how  he  has  now 
caused  it  to  grow  again,  and  give  us  the  same  product. 


IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH.  471 

Here  it  is — the  same  thing,  the  same  seed,  and  the  same 
body.  God  gives,  in  the  natural  world,  ^'to  every  seed 
its  own  body."  He  has  done  so  in  this  instance.  He 
has  given  us  the  same  body  from  the  seed  of  the  king- 
dom— the  word  of  God. 

We  care  not  that  the  philosophers  can  not  tell  us  how 
wheat  buried  in  ancient  ruins  has  been  preserved  so 
many  ages;  nor  how  it  is,  that,  when  brought  to  the 
surface,  it  will  grow,  thus  demonstrating  that  the  orig- 
inal life  was  preserved  in  it  all  the  time,  and  that  the 
product  from  it  is  precisely  the  same  as  the  original. 
But  the  man  that  grew  it  brings  the  article,  and  shows 
that  it  is  wheat  as  certainly  as  the  original — the  same 
article  in  every  particular.  This  settles  the  question  of 
idtntity. 

Is  there  now  in  the  world  the  same  seed  of  the  king- 
dom of  God — the  word  of  God?  There  certainly  is; 
and  there  is  no  dispute  about  what  it  is,  nor  where  it  is. 
We  have  no  trouble  in  identifying  it.  l^o  matter  about 
how  long  it  has  been  buried  among  the  rubbish  of 
humau  traditions  and  superstitions;  nor  where  it  has 
been  all  this  time;  nor  how  the  life  has  been  preserved 
in  it — we  now  have  it,  have  identified  it,  and  are  per- 
fectly agreed  about  it.  We  can  not  be  mistaken  about 
the  "good  ground"  in  w^hich  this  seed  should  be  sown, 
and  from  which  it  will  spring  up,  grow,  and  bring  forth 
much  fruit.  The  Lord  explains  what  this  ground  is. 
It  is  "a  good  and  an  honest  heart"  in  a  man  "who  re- 
ceives it,  understands  it,  and  brings  forth  much  fruit." 
That  is  the  good  ground.  There  is  no  trouble  in  iden^ 
tifying  it. 

When  this  seed  of  the  kingdom  springs  up,  grows, 
and  produces  fruit,  we  examine  it,  in  all  its  stages,  and 
compare  it  with  the  original,  and  identify  it  at  every 


472  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

step  as  the  same.  When  the  seed  is  sown,  many,  on 
hearing,  believe.  Believe  what?  Believe  the  word — 
that  which  they  heard.  This  was  precisely  the  case 
eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  when  this  seed  was  sown, 
or  the  word  was  preached.  "  Many  of  the  Corinthians, 
hearing,  believed."  As  they  believed  the  same  thing, 
their  faith  was  the  same ;  and  it  being  the  same  thing 
believed  in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  it  identifies  their 
faith  as  the  same.  This  being  the  same  faith  ihaj  had 
in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  leads  to  the  s^me  repent- 
ance, and  thus  identifies  the  repentance.  This  is  trav- 
eling on  safe  ground.  Following  the  history  in  the  time 
of  the  apostles,  and  the  efi^ect  produced  now,  we  are  led 
to  the  same  confession.  "If  thou  shalt  confess  with  thy 
mouth  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  believe  in  thine  heart  that 
God  hath  raised  him  from  the  dead,  thou  shalt  be  saved." 
This  identifies  the  confession,  and  shows  precisely  what 
it  was,  and  what  it  is.  We  follow  the  history,  to  learn 
what  came  next  in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  and  learn 
that  they  were  buried  with  Christ  in  immersion,  and 
rose  with  him  to  a  new  life.  We  look  now  to  the  re- 
sults— where  the  seed  of  the  kingdom  is  sown;  where 
the  word  of  God  is  received  into  good  and  honest 
hearts,  and  understood,  and  find  that  it  leads  to  the 
same  result.  They  are  buried  with  Christ  in  immersion, 
and  rise  to  a  new  life.  So  far  the  work  is  identified, 
and  found  to  be  the  same  as  that  in  the  time  of  the 
apostles. 

But  how  were  they  designated  in  the  time  of  the 
apostles?  There  were  some  people  called  disciples  of 
Moses — that  is,  learners,  or  scholars,  of  Moses.  There 
were  others  called  "disciples  of  John."  They  were 
learners,  or  pupils,  of  John  the  Immerser.  Then  we 
read  of  "Christ's  disciples."     They  were  students,  or 


IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH.  473 

learners^  under  Christ,  and  followed  him.  These  be- 
came numerous,  and  sufficiently  noted,  so  that  they  were 
frequently  called  "the  disciples,"  or,  in  some  instances, 
simply  "disciples;"  not  as  a  proper  name,  or  a  religious 
designation,  but  to  indicate  whose  students  they  were, 
who  was  their  Teacher,  or  whom  they  followed.  But 
as  Christ  is  the  Alpha  and  the  Omega,  in  one  figure, 
styled  Head  over  all  things  to  the  Church;  and,  in  an- 
other figure,  the  foundation  on  which  the  Church  is 
built — he  is  really  the  Great  Teacher,  in  the  highest 
sense;  and  the  highest  religious  sense  at  that.  His  dis- 
ciples are,  then,  religious  students^  or  learners^  learning 
of  Jesus,  their  Teacher. 

But,  subsequently,  as  the  Anointed,  or  the  Christed, 
was  their  Leader,  they  were  called  ''■Christians  first  at 
Antioch,"  after  Christ  their  Head.  Among  the  schol- 
ars there  has  been  a  sharp  controversy  over  the  ques- 
tion, Avhether  they  were  thus  called  by  divi7ie  appoint- 
ment;  or  whether  tlie  Lord  thus  first  called  them,  or 
their  enemies;  and  whether  they  were  thus  called  as 
the  name  the  Lord  intended  them  to  wear,  or  a  name 
given  them  through  derision.  But  we  do  not  see  that 
much  rests  on  this  dispute,  and  we  certainly  shall  not 
here  undertake  to  decide  on  the  merits  of  the  argument; 
but  one  thing  we  can  see,  and  that  is,  that  the  name  is 
proper  any  umy^  and  it  makes  no  difierence  whether  the 
Lord  thus  called  them  because  the  name  was  proper,  or 
the  enemies  gave  them  a  name  through  derision,  which 
proved  to  be  proper.  It  is  certain  that  the  name  did 
not  become  very  current  in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  or, 
at  least,  in  their  writings.  Still,  it  is  equally  certain 
that  it  was  recognized  as  proper  in  the  time  of  the 
apostles. 

It  is  a  fact  in  history  that  their  persecutors  put  many 
40 


474  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

of  them  to  death  on  the  charge  of  their  being  Chris- 
tians. They  did  not  even  have  to  prove  the  charge,  but 
simply  to  make  it^  and  the  person  thus  charged  had  to 
prove  himself  clear — that  is,  prove  himself  not  a  Chris- 
tian^  or  die.  While  matters  were  in  this  shape,  their 
enemies  had  no  objection  to  their  being  called  Chris- 
tians^ nor  had  they  any  hesitation  in  thus  calling  them. 
But  now  it  has  come  round,  that,  to  say  the  least  of  it, 
there  is  no  odium  attached  to  the  name  Christian;  but, 
on  the  other  hand,  it  is,  abstractly,  indorsed  by  all  as 
right.  The  enemy  is  not  willing  to  call  those  Clivistians 
who  are  simply  the  followers  of  Christ.  They  do  not 
now  desire  to  allow  them  the  very  name  for  which  their 
brethren  anciently  died.  But  if  they  are  built  on  the 
same  foundation,  have  the  same  Head,  the  same  creed, 
the  same  law,  the  same  faith,  repentance,  confession, 
immersion,  and  are  the  same  throughout,  they  can  be 
designated  in  the  same  way.  They  may  be  called  Chris- 
tians, after  Christ,  their  Head;  disciples,  in  view  of 
their  being  learners  of  Christ,  and  his  being  their 
Teacher;  or  they  may  be  called  children  of  God,  in 
view  of  their  being  horn  of  God,  and  belonging  to  his 
family;  or  they  may  be  called  saints,  in  view  of  their 
being  holy  ones',  or  citizens,  in  view  of  their  relation 
to  the  kingdom;  or  members,  in  view  of  their  relation 
to  the  body  of  Christ.  As  individuals  they  can  be  des- 
ignated in  the  same  way,  and  by  the  same  terms,  as  in 
the  time  of  the  apostles. 

As  a  whole,  they  were  called  **the  Church,"  "the 
Church  of  God,"  "the  Church  of  the  living  God,"  "  the 
kingdom,"  "the  kingdom  of  God,"  "the  kingdom  of 
heaven,"  "the  body,"  "the  body  of  Christ,"  etc.,  in  the 
time  of  the  apostles.  If  we  have  the  same  body  now 
it  can  be  designated  in  the  same  way,  and  by  the  sann3 


IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH.  475 

terms.  If  any  body  of  people  now  found  can  not  be 
described  and  designated  by  tbe  same  termi;,  it  must  be 
because  it  is  not  the  same  hody.  The  same  body  can 
always  be  described  and  designated  in  the  same  terms^ 
no  matter  where  you  find  it.  When  we  find  a  body  that 
has  the  same  name,  is  described  and  designated  in  the 
same  words,  by  all  the  same  terms  as  the  original  body, 
or  the  body  in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  it  is  a  strong 
indication  that  it  is  the  saine  hody. 

The  original  body  met  on  the  first  day  of  the  week  to 
break  bread,  in  memory  of  their  Lord,  and  of  his  great 
sufierings  for  their  sins,  to  carry  out  his  commandment : 
*'Do  this  till  I  come;"  "Do  this  in  memory  of  me." 
This  is  one  mark  by  which  the  same  body  may  be  iden- 
tified now.  Is  there  a  body  that  meets  on  the  first  day 
of  the  week  to  break  bread;  to  commemorate  the  suf- 
ferings of  Jesus — that  do  this  in  remembrance  of  him? 
If  there  is,  it  is  a  strong  evidence  that  it  is  the  same 
body. 

Is  there  a  body  now  that  walks  by  the  same  ride.,  that 
minds  the  same  thing  the  original  body  did?  Is  there 
one  now  that  pleads  for  the  same  rule.,  the  same  in  all 
tilings?  If  there  is,  it  must  be  the  same.  Is  there  a 
body  now  that  pleads  for  observing  all  things,  whatever 
the  Lord  commanded  the  original  disciples  and  churches 
to  follow?  If  there  is,  and  one  that  not  ou\y  pleads  for 
thus  observing  all  things  whatever  the  Lord  commanded, 
but  that  does  all  things  that  he  commanded,  that  is  the 
body  of  Christ.  "By  this  shall  all  men  know  that  you 
are  my  disciples:  if  you  do  whatever  I  command  you," 
says  the  Great  Teacher.  This  identifies  the  followers 
of  Christ  wherever  they  may  be  found,  and  the  body 
of  Christ — to  find  them  doins:  all  thins^s  whatever  he 
co'^manded  them  to  observe. 


476  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

But  there  is  ^-et  another  mark  by  which  the  followers 
of  Christ,  as  a  body,  may  be  identified.  Some  chief 
men  amono^  the  Jews  said  of  the  orio^iual  body :  "  We 
know,  as  concerning  this  sect,  that  everywhere  it  is 
spoken  against."  Is  there  any  church,  or  body  of  peo- 
ple, in  our  time — a  religious  body — that  bears  this  mark? 
Is  there  any  one  religious  body  that  is  everywhere 
spoken  against?  There  is  certainly  one  religious  body 
that  bears  this  mark.  !N"o  matter  how  many  difierences 
there  may  be  among  the  various  parties  of  these  times, 
nor  how  great  their  differences,  nor  what  their  nature 
may  be,  there  is  one  point  on  which  they  all  agree — that 
18,  to  speak  against  the  religious  body  that  takes  Christ 
as  their  only  Head,  and  his  law  as  their  only  rule;  who 
acknowledge  no  authority  but  him.  They  are  all  very 
lenient  toward  each  other,  frequently  conceding  that 
^'whatever  a  man  thinks  is  right,  is  right  to  him;"  but 
this  does  not  hold  good  all  around.  If  a  man  thinks 
the  law  of  God  is  right;  that  to  follow  that  law  is 
right;  that  the  law  of  God  is  the  absolute  authority  in 
all  matters  of  religion,  they  will  not  admit  it  to  be  right, 
no  matter  how  much  he  thinlcs  it  is  right.  But  the 
plain  truth  is,  that  the  law  of  God,  as  set  forth  in  S^^rip^ 
ture,  is  rights  whether  men  think  it  is  right  or  not.  All 
other  religious  law  is  wrong,  no  matter  how  manj^  men 
think  it  is  right,  or  try  to  prove  that  it  is  right. 

We  rejoice  that  thinking  that  the  truth  is  a  lie,  can 
not  make  it  such  ;  nor  can  thinking  that  the  true  Church 
is  false,  make  it  false.  Men  can,  and  do,  think  wrong, 
about  as  often  as  they  do  anything  else  wrong.  Indeed, 
it  is  almost  invariably  the  case  that  thinking  wrong 
leads  to  doing  wrong.  But  we  stop  not  here  to  discuss 
matters  of  this  sort,  but  proceed  to  sum  the  whole  mat- 
ter up.     There  is,  as  a  reality,  now.  existing  one  body, 


IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH.  477 

called  iu  Scripture  "the  Church;"  or  sometimes  since- 
we  have  bodies  that  are  not  the  true  Church,  styled  "the 
true  Church;"  and  these  are  now,  in  reality,  "  Chris- 
tians." The  main  matter,  then,  that  concerns  us  now, 
is  not  successions  of  priests  of  any  sort,  ordinances,  or 
religious  bodies,  but  simply  two  matters:  First,  how  a 
man  became  a  Christian  in  the  time  of  the  apostles; 
second,  what  were  those  Christians  when  assembled  in 
the  time  of  the  apostles,  as  a  whole,  or  in  their  congre- 
gated capacity?  They  were  the  Ehklesia  in  that  place. 
This  is  tlie  Greek  word  for  "church,"  or  generally 
translated  church  in  the  Common  Version.  It  occurs 
one  hundred  and  sixteen  times  in  the  Kew  Testament, 
and  is  translated  "church"  in  all  but  three  places.  In 
those  three  places  the  word  has  the  same  meaning  it  has 
in  all  the  other  places.  Those  three  places  are  Acts  xix. 
32,  39  and  41.  In  these  places  it  is  translated  "assem- 
I)ly."  But  any  one  can  see  that  it  means  assembly  in 
all  the  other  places,  as  certainly  as  it  does  in  these 
places.  It  is  true,  in  these  places  the  assemlly  was  very 
different  from  the  assemhlles  in  the  other  places;  but 
that  difference  can  not  be  learned  from  the  word  EJchlesia, 
That  word  simply  means  assembly-,  or  congregation^  and 
we  must  learn  what  kind  of  a  congregation^  or  assein- 
hlij^  is  meant  from  the  connection,  and  not  from  that 
word,  or  from  any  peculiar  translation  of  that  word. 

The  Christians  met,  or  assembled,  in  any  city,  town, 
or  community,  are  the  congregation,  or  the  Church 
there,  or  the  body  of  Christ  there.  Hearing  the  gospel, 
then,  believing  it,  and  obej^ing  it,  brought  a  man  to 
Christ;  made  him  a  Christian,  and  he  was  then  added 
to  the  saved — to  the  others,  who  had  in  like  manner 
been  saved.  These,  by  faith  in  Christ,  are  one  with  all 
the  other  Christians  in  the  world;  or,  we  may  say  more. 


478  IDENTITY  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

with  'Hhe  whole  family  in  heaven  and  on  earth."  Here, 
then,  ends  the  whole  matter  of  identifying  the  body  of 
Christ,  and  the  union  of  Christians.  When  we  are 
turned  to  the  Lord,  reconciled  to  Grod,  made  one  with 
him,  we  are  united  with  all  that  are  united  with  him. 
This  is  the  genuine  union,  the  genuine  religion,  and  the 
genuine  body  in  which  to  meet  and  worship. 

Look  carefully  into  the  Scriptures,  and  there  learn 
how  to  come  to  the  Lord,  and  be  united  with  him,  and 
you  will  have  no  trouble  about  uniting  with  those  that 
have  come  and  been  made  partakers  of  the  divine  na- 
ture. How  precious  and  glorious  to  know  that  he  loved 
us,  and  has  provided  for  us,  so  that  we  can  come  and 
worship  him  acceptably.  To  Him  be  glory  in  the  con- 
gregation now  and  ever. 


SERMOI^  No.   XXI. 

THEME. — THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

In  the  works  of  God  everything  is  arranged  in  the 
best  possible  manner — no  room  is  left  for  improvement. 
No  light,  invented  by  man,  or  what  is  called  artificial 
light,  is  as  good  as  the  light  God  has  ordained  for  the 
day — the  light  of  the  sun.  In  the  arrangement  in  na- 
ture, no  human  wisdom,  or  even  angelic  wisdom,  can 
suggest  a  single  improvement  that  would  not  result  in 
failure.  In  the  work  of  God  everything  is  perfect. 
There  can  be  no  change  without  injury.  This  is  true, 
not  only  in  nature,  but  in  all  the  works  of  God.  No 
way  can  be  invented  to  do  anything  better  than  the  way 
God  has  ordained.  It  is  preposterous  and  absurd  to 
presume  anything  else,  and  worse  to  attempt  it. 

This  men  generally  appear  to  know,  in  the  whole 
range  of  temporal  things.  In  the  mechanic  arts,  natural 
powers,  and  all  operations  with  material  substances,  the 
laws  of  nature,  or  the  laws  of  God  in  nature,  have  to 
be  strictly  observed.  If  these  laws  are  misapprehended, 
mistaken  and  violated,  the  consequences  are  certain. 
There  can  be  no  departure  from  them  without  disaster. 

The  Lord  has  set  the  members  of  the  human  body 
in  order,  and  ordained  each  one  to  perform  its  own  part. 
There  can  be  no  change  made  in  these  members,  or  in 
their  arrangement,  or  work,  without  disaster.  The  ar- 
rangement is  simple^  but  it  is  perfect.     It  is  the  result 

(479) 


480  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

of  infinite  wisdom.  The  body,  as  the  Lord  made  it, 
with  all  the  members,  and  the  arrangement  of  the  mem- 
bers, is  complete  and  perfect.  There  is  not  a  complica- 
tion in  the  entire  structure.  Every  emergency,  or  con- 
tingency, that  can  possibly  occur  in  its  operations,  is 
provided  for.  The  Creator  did  not  make  it  and  then 
wait  to  see  how  it  would  work,  but  he  hiiew  how  it 
would  work  in  every  part.  He  did  not  create  it,  and 
leave  somebody  free  to  remodel  it,  organize  it,  as  human 
wisdom  might  think  best. 

In  the  same  way,  the  divine  economy,  in  the  !^ew  In- 
stitution, was  perfect  at  the  start.  It  can  not  be  im- 
proved— it  is  the  perfection  of  infinite  wisdom.  The 
Lord's  work,  or  the  work  lie  does  Idmself^  is  simply 
right.  The  revelation  he  has  made  to  man  is  perfect- 
complete.  The  gospel  is  perfect — complete.  IlTothing 
can  be  added,  and  nothing  taken  away,  without  bring- 
ing ruin  on  him  who  does  it.  The  divine  procedure,  in 
the  first  promulgation  of  the  gospel,  and  turning  the 
people  of  the  world  from  darkness  to  light,  and  from 
the  power  of  Satan  to  God,  was  right,  and  that  proced- 
ure was  a  model  for  doing  the  same  work  in  all  time  to 
come.  The  same  gospel  preached  by  the  apostles  must 
be  preached  now,  and  in  all  time  to  come,  and  preached 
in  the  same  way.  It  must  be  heard  and  believed  in  all 
time  to  come,  the  same  as  it  was  then.  The  same  re- 
pentance must  follow,  now  as  then ;  the  same  confes- 
sion of  the  Lord  Jesus  is  required  now,  as  was  then; 
the  same  immersion,  "into  the  name  of  the  Father,  and 
of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit,"  is  required  now  to 
introduce  a  person  into  the  kingdom  of  God,  as  was  in 
the  time  of  the  apostles;  the  same  promise  of  pardon, 
and  the  impartation  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  stands  as  good 
to-day  as  it  did  in  the  time  of  the  apostles.    On  all  this 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  481 

we  have  stood  as  one  man,  and  the  united  powers  of 
all  the  parties  around  us  have  been  unable  to  repel  and 
resist  us,  or  prevent  our  onward  march.  We  have 
realized  that  the  strength  of  the  Lord  was  with  us,  and 
that  our  opposers  could  not  stand  before  us. 

When  we  immersed  penitent  believers  into  Christ,  in 
any  community,  and  brought  them  together,  they  were 
the  congregation,  assembly,  or  church,  in  that  commu- 
nity. This  was  precisely  the  case  in  the  procedure  of 
the  apostles.  They  preached  the  gospel  to  the  people, 
and,  hearing,  the  people  believed  and  were  immersed 
into  Christ.  Those  thus  turned  to  the  Lord,  and  gath- 
ered together,  in  any  city,  or  section  of  countr}',  were 
the  congregation  of  the  Lord  in  that  place,  as  in  Jeru- 
salem, Corinth,  Ephesus,  etc.  After  the  apostles  had 
called  out  people  in  this  way,  turned  them  to  the  Lord, 
and  brought  them  into  congregations,  and  time  elapsed 
to  prove  them,  the  apostles  visited  them  to  see  how  they 
were  doing,  and  "set  them  in  order."  In  doing  this 
work,  they  ordained  overseers  and  deacons  in  every 
congregation. 

But,  though  clothed  with  apostolic  authority,  they 
did  not  assume  the  right  to  select  even  the  men  who 
should  "serve  tables,''  but  said,  "Look  you  out  among 
you  seven  men  of  honest  report,  full  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
and  wisdom,  whom  we  may  appoint  over  this  business. 
But  we  will  give  ourselves  continually  to  prayer,  and  to 
the  ministry  of  the  word." — See  Acts  vi.  3,  4.  What 
humility  is  seen  here,  on  the  part  of  the  apostles,  in 
leaving  it  to  the  brethren  to  looh  out  these  men,  and 
then  the  desire  to  commit  "this  business"  into  the  hands 
of  other  men^  and  not  to  manage  to  get  it  into  their  own 
hands,  and  what  devotion  they  manifested,  in  speaking 
41 


482  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

of  their  desiring  to  give  themselves  "continually  to 
prayer,  and  to  the  ministry  of  the  word." 

Some  men  among  us  have  talked  much  of  the  Bible 
being  a  book  of  principles.  That  it  does  contain  prin- 
ciples— general  principles — that  ought  to  be  observed,  I 
doubt  not,  is  one  of  the  clear  matters  of  divine  revela- 
tion. In  this  Scripture  we  have  from  the  apostles,  a 
clear  principle  of  procedure  inculcated  that  is  of  im- 
mense value  to  the  cause,  and  a  great  security  against 
all  usurpation  in  the  congregations  of  the  Lord.  The 
apostles  recognized  the  principle  that  the  congregations 
have  the  rights  and  are  commanded  to  look  out  men 
among  them  to  perform  any  particular  service,  or  at- 
tend to  any  particular  "  business,"  in  or  for  the  congre- 
gation. No  man,  nor  set  of  men,  came  from  abroad, 
looked  out  men  among  them,  or  brought  men  from 
abroad,  and  set  them  over  "this  business;"  but  the 
congregation  itsdf  "  looked  out  these  men."  This  is 
the  first  instance  recognizing  the  right  of  an  individ- 
ual congregation  to  act,  as  a  body,  or  a  congregation  of 
the  Lord.  It  is  simply  congregational  action  which 
the  apostles  commanded,  and  that,  too,  in  a  very  im- 
portant matter,  selecting  men  to  perform  a  certain 
function,  or,  in  the  plain  style  of  Scripture — "attend 
to  this  business." 

I  am  now  ready  to  enter  into  a  subject  of  vital  in- 
terest to  the  cause — a  matter  involving,  as  I  think,  the 
safety  and  lihcvty  of  the  people  of  God.  To  get  into 
the  subject  fully  and  fairly,  and  to  some  extent  by  de- 
grees, let  some  inquiries  be  instituted. 

1.  Have  we  any  example  or  precept  for  congregational 
action,  or  for  a  congregation  acting  as  a  congregation, 
or  in  a  body?  Nobody  that  we  are  aware  of  doubts 
that  we  have  both  precept  and  example  for  congrega- 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  483 

tional  action.  We  think  we  are  safe  in  taking  it  that 
this  is  universally,  or,  if  not  universally,  so  near  uni- 
versally admitted  that  it  is  useless  to  consume  time  in 
giving  references  to  Scripture  authority.  We  shall  take 
it  as  granted. 

2.  Is  there  any  precept  or  example  in  Scripture  for 
iiny  aggregation,  or  confederation,  of  congregatioiis  into 
a  hody,  so  that  they  can  act  as  a  body — as  a  Methodist 
Conference,  or  a  Preshyterian  Synod,  or  General  As- 
sembly? Ko  matter  how  many,  or  how  few,  congrega- 
tions are  thus  aggregated  or  confederated,  nor  what  the 
purpose  is,  nor  whether  there  is  much  action  or  little — 
is  there  any  precept,  or  example,  for  any  such  aggrega- 
tion, or  confederation,  or  the  action  of  any  such  body 
at  all?  If  there  is,  who  can  produce  it?  No  matter 
what  they  called  it,  where  it  was,  nor  who  t\\Qy  were, 
nor  what  the  object — as  a  historical  fact,  was  there  any- 
thing of  the  kind  at  all  in  the  time  of  the  apostles?  I 
do  not  desire  to  appear  dogmatical,  and  therefore  assert 
nothing  more  than  this:  If  there  is  any  precept,  or  ex- 
ample, of  the  kind,  I  do  not  know  it. 

3.  Is  there  any  precept,  or  example,  for  any  "Preach- 
ers' Institute,"  meeting  of  preachers,  overseers  and  dea- 
cons, of  different  congregations,  to  deliberate  as  a  body, 
to  consult  on  the  interests  and  work  of  the  congrega- 
tions, or  on  any  matters  of  the  kingdom,  the  spr(iad  of 
the  gospel,  the  government  of  the  churches,  to  raise 
money,  or  anj'thing  of  the  kind;  or  is  there  any  account 
of  anything  of  the  kind  in  the  records  of  Scripture?  I 
am  perfectly  aware  that  "Paul  and  Barnabas,  and  cer- 
tain others,"  went  to  Jerusalem  to  the  apostles  and 
olders  about  a  Judaizing  question,  and  that  apostoltG 
autliority  settled  that  question,  not  simply  for  tliein^  and 
that  time^  but  for  all  time  to  come^  and  that  was  the  end 


484  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

of  the  matter.  They  did  not  form  themselves  into  a 
Preachers'  lustitate,  an  Association,  or  an  "  Officers' 
Union,"  or  any  other  standing  body.  Was  there  any- 
thing of  the  kind  in  the  time  of  the  apostles?  If  there 
was,  we  have  seen  no  account  of  it. 

4.  Is  there  any  precept,  or  example,  for  any  man  from 
abroad,  or  whose  membership  is  not  in  the  congregation, 
concerned;  or  any  set  of  men,  coming  and  attempting 
to  adjust  troubles  in  the  congregation,  or  exercise  any 
authority  in  their  congregational  matters,  or  in  any  way 
meddle  with  them?  or  is  there  any  account  of  anything 
of  the  kind  in  Scripture?  We  are  perfectly  aware  that 
congregations  wrote  to  the  apostles  and  communicated 
with  them,  but  this  was  to  obtain  ai^ostoliG  authority^ 
as  we  now  go  to  their  writings;  but  this  is  no  example 
for  in  any  way  interfering  with  their  action,  as  a  con- 
gregation— interrupting,  or  setting  it  aside. 

5.  Is  there  any  intimation  of  the  action  of  any  con- 
gregation, as  a  congregation,  or  in  a  body,  ever  being 
overhauled,  acted  upon  again,  reversed,  or  set  aside? 

6.  Is  there  any  account  of  any  action,  except  congre- 
gational and  individual? 

Here  we  have  material  for  meditation,  of  a  most  im- 
portant character.  Let  us  enter  the  examination,  then^ 
in  the  most  careful  manner. 

The  iirst  point,  then,  I  shall  consider,  is  involved  in 
the  following  question: 

Was  the  Urst  church  intended  to  be  an  example^  or  a 
models  for  all  churches?  I  maintain  that  it  was,  and 
intend  to  show  this  beyond  question,  and  that  to  deny 
this  is  schismatical  and  perfectly  disastrous.  Here  is 
work  involving  divine  authority^  and  I  intend  to  treat 
it  as  such. 

1.  Was  not  the  whole  procedure,  on  the  part  of  the 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  485 

.  apostles,  and  the  principal  men  who  acted  publicly  in 
the  proclamation  of  the  gospel,  turning  the  people  to 

.  the  Lord,  and  the  building  up  the  first  congregations, 
under  the  infallible  guidance  of  the  Spirit  of  God  ?  Did 
they  not  set  them  in  order,  deliver  to  them  the  "  ordi- 

•  nances  of  the  divine  service,"  and  make  them  what  they 
ought  to  be  in  everything,  so  far  as  they  followed  the 
directions  given  them  by  the  apostles?  Of  course  the 
first  congregations  can  only  be  regarded  as  examples^ 
ov  models,  where  they  followed  th.Q  apostles^  teaching. 
Their  departures  were  no  better  than  our  departures ; 
but  where  they  followed  the  apostles'  teaching  they  were 
right,  and  examples  for  all  who  followed  in  the  ages  to 
come. 

2.  Did  not  the  divine  presence  in  these  congregations, 
in  the  various  visible  gifts  of  tongues,  prophecy,  heal- 
ing, raising  the  dead,  etc.,  etc.,  prove  that  the  Lord 
accepted  and  approved  them  as  congrvgationsf  Did 
not  the  aw^ful  display  of  supernatural  power,  in  the 
death  of  Ananias  and  Sapphira,  prove  God's  disappro- 
bation of  their  wicked  act,  and  thus  demonstrate  that 
those  among  whom  it  occurred  w^ere  his  people,  and 
that  the  congregation  was  his,  and  that  his  judgment 
should  fall  on  the  man  who  would  come  there  in 
hypocrisy? 

3.  When  Paul  said  to  the  congregation  in  Corinth, 
/'You  are  God's  building,"  did  he  not  recognize  that 
congregation?  When  he  said,  "Let  every  man  take 
heed  how  he  builds  thereon"  (on  the  foundation),  did 
he  not  intend  to  warn  men  to  see  to  it  how  they  did 
their  work;  to  work  according  to  the  rule  he,  "  as  a 
wise  master-builder,"  gave  them?  If  he  gave  them  a 
rule  to  work  by,  and  they  worked  by  it,  their  work  was 
right,  and  is  a  model  for  all  workmen  on  the  building 


486  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

of  God  for  all  time  to  come.  Of  this  there  can  be  no 
doubt. 

We  can  not  go  to  John  the  Baptist  to  find  a  model 
for  a  church,  for  John  built  up  no  church,  or  congrega- 
tion. He  established  no  regular  meetings,  or  congrega- 
tional worship ;  he  established  no  congregations,  regular 
meetings,  or  "ordinances  of  divine  service,"  and,  of 
course,  no  form  of  church  government.  Nor  did  our 
Lord,  while  on  earth,  build  up  any  regular  congrega- 
tions, meetings,  or  worship,  much  less  give  any  form  of 
"church  government/'  These  matters  appear  to  have 
been  overlooked  by  all  those  who  think  the  kingdom 
was  established  before  Pentecost;  yet  they  are  wonder- 
fully significant.  They  show  us  at  once  that  no  model 
can  be  found  for  a  church  in  the  time  of  John  the  Bap- 
tist, or  the  time  of  the  Savior.  !N"or  was  any  general 
law  laid  down  during  that  time,  giving  us  a  process  in 
which  sinners  turn  to  the  Lord.  On  the  contrary,  in  no 
two  cases,  w^hen  persons  came  to  the  Lord  for  instruc- 
tion, did  he  require  them  to  do  the  same  thing.  This 
was  wonderfully  significant,  showing  that  what  he  told 
them  to  do  was  special  law,  for  special  cases,  as  all  law- 
givers have  a  right  to  give ;  but  never  to  he  regarded  as 
general  law. 

He  never  required  but  one  man  to  have  spittle  and 
clay  put  over  his  eyes  to  restore  his  sight.  That  was 
divine  requirement,  but  a  special  law  for  a  special  case, 
and  never  again  required  of  any  man.  The  time  for 
the  general  law  to  be  given  had  not  yet  come.  This 
could  be  argued  at  great  length,  with  any  amount  of 
the  most  conclusive  illustrations  to  show  what  is  meant, 
and  demonstrations  showing  its  correctness.  But  when 
we  go  to  the  great  commission,  we  get  the  general  law, 
in  condensed  form,  for  preaching,  and  what  to  preach 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  487 

in  all  time  to  come.  This  is  general^  for  all  preachers, 
nations  and  time,  unchangeably.  The  preaching  of  the 
apostles  under  this  commission  was  under  the  infallible 
guidance  of  the  Spirit  of  all  truth  and  of  all  revelation. 
It  was  a  model  for  all  preaching,  preachers,  nations  and 
time.  There  must  be  no  departure  from  it.  The  process 
which  those  passed  through  who  turned  to  the  Lord 
under  that  preaching  is  a  model  for  all  who  turn  to  the 
Lord  in  all  nations  and  all  time.  There  must  be  no 
deviation  from  that  process. 

The  churches  formed  under  the  labors  of  the  apos- 
tles were  built  up  under  the  infallible  guidance  of  the 
Spirit  of  God,  according  to  the  pattern  shadowed  by 
the  ancient  temple  built  by  divine  direction.  These 
first  congregations  of  the  Lord,  built  up  under  the  in- 
fallible guidance  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  and  then  con- 
firmed by  the  most  stupendous,  grand  and  awful  dis- 
plays of  supernatural  power,  are  the  divine  models  for 
all  churches.  They  were  creations  from  the  hand  of 
Divine  Power,  and  intended  to  be,  in  the  true  sense, 
models  for  all  churches  in  all  time.  Departure  from 
them  is  departure  from  the  Lord — it  is  apostasy.  This 
has  been  received  as  a  principle,  a  settled  and  an  im- 
portant principle,  from  the  beginning  of  the  reforma- 
tory movement  of  this  century;  and  one  at  the  founda- 
tion of  all  that  is  dear  to  us.  Any  departure  from  it  is 
apostasy.  Cut  loose  from  this  grand  anchorage,  and 
we  are  out  at  sea,  without  chart  or  compass. 

This  is  not  as  some,  who  have  tried  to  break  its  force, 
have  said:  "So  straight,  that  it  leans  a  little  ovev."'^  It 
is  simply  straight — it  does  not  lean  at  all.  This  is  not 
the  trouble.  The  trouble  is  not  that  it  leans^  but  that 
it  condemns  all  that  does  lean.  The  leaning,  twisting, 
crooked  establishments  men  have  made,  when  brought 


488  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

along-side  of  the  divhie  models  are  exposed  at  once. 
But  why  try  to  get  rid  of  the  idea  tliat  the  original 
church  is  a  model  f     I  will  proceed  to  tell  why. 

1.  Because  ambitious  men  can  not  find  any  account 
of  any  arcTihishops  in  the  original  church.  Christ  is 
the  Archhishoj}^  the  Chief  Shepherd^  and  the  only  one 
in  the  kingdom  of  God.  All  the  other  archbishops  are 
without  any  authority  from  Prince  Messiah.  They  orig- 
inated long  since  the  time  of  the  apostles,  and  belong 
to  another  priesthood,  and  a  very  difi*erent  one  from  any 
of  which  we  have  any  account  in  Scripture,  as  existing 
in  the  kingdom  of  God.  To  hold  that  the  original 
church  is  a  models  at  once  leaves  these  dignitaries  all 
out.  It  does  not  turn  them  out^  cut  them  off,  or  un- 
ehristianize  tliem^  but  leaves  them  where  they  were  all 
the  time — in  Babylon.  There  is  not  a  trace  of  them  in 
the  Bible,  or  in  any  authentic  account  of  the  first 
church.  At  once  away  goes  all  idea  of  one  fine  office, 
one  position  of  much  ecclesiastical  power,  and  a  most 
lovely  salary!  This  many  men  can  not  endure;  yet,  if 
the  original  church  is  a  model,  it  must  be  endured. 

2.  Because  ambitious  men  can  not  give  up  the  pre- 
cious idea  of  the  pastorate,  '^o  matter  if  no  such  office 
is  mentioned  in  Scripture,  no  qualifications  laid  down 
in  Scripture  for  a  man  to  fill  any  such  office,  or  of  the 
installation  of  any  man  in  any  such  office — "other  de- 
nominations" have  their  "pastors,"  their  installations., 
and  we  are  Xaii  free  to  have  a  "pastor."  ]^o  matter  if 
the  word  "pastor"  is  only  found  once  in  the  New  Test- 
ament, nor  if  it  comes  there  from  the  original  word  in 
every  other  place  where  it  occurs,  in  the  l:^ew  Covenant, 
translated  shepherd.,  and  used  there  figuratively,  as  the 
correlative  of  the  word  flock.,  and  means  literally  over- 
seers— we  must  have  the  "pastorate"  and  the  "pastor." 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  489 

But  this  precious  idea,  too,  must  be  given  up,  if  the 
first  church  is  to  be  regarded  as  a  model.  Tliis  is  an- 
other trouble  in  the  idea  that  the  first  church  is  a  modeL 
Both  preacher  (pastor)  and  flock  fail  to  accept  this. 

3.  Because  the  idea  of  congregations  with  humble 
overseers  and  deacons — plain  men — it  may  be  farmers, 
mechanics,  merchants,  doctors,  or  lawyers,  at  the  head 
of  affairs,  as  in  the  first  church — is  not  to  be  endured  in 
this  advanced  age  of  refinement,  taste  and  learning. 
Such  a  state  of  things  can  not  be  endured.  Xo  matter 
if  we  do  not  know  half  as  much  about  the  Bible  as 
these  humble  men  did  in  the  first  church,  or  as  similar 
men  did  among  us  fifty  years  ago,  we  have  more  taste, 
polish  and  refinement,  and  we  can  not  endure  these 
plain  men.  It  is  not  always  "taste,  refinement,  or  pol- 
ish," that  is  in  the  way,  but  much  of  it  is  pride,  igno- 
rance and  unregenerated  humanity;  and  we  must  be 
brought  into  subordination  to  our  Lord,  reconciled  to 
God,  conformed  to  the  image  of  Jesus.  When  this 
shall  be  done  thoroughly,  we  shall  love  the  things  of 
Ood,  that  which  God  sanctioned  and  approved,  because 
it  came  from  God^  was  dictated  hy  Ms  wisdom^  and  thus 
proved  to  be  right. 

4.  Because,  if  the  primitive  church  is  a  model,  and 
we  must  mold  the  churches  after  it,  and  make  them 
like  it^  and  do  as  it  did^  we  can  have  no  aggregation 
of  churches  into  one  great  body,  like  "  other  denomin- 
ations," with  Presidents,  Vice-Presidents,  Secretaries, 
^tc,  for  there  was  nothing  of  this  kind  in  the  original 
church.  This  is  humiliating  in  the  extreme.  What 
shall  we  do  with  all  our  great  talent,  learning,  and  great 
men  generally?  If  they  can  have  no  great  meetings  in 
which  to  preside^  make  speeches,  and  display  their 
talent,  learning  and  oratory,  we  are  coming  to  a  strange 


490  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

pass  indeed!  These  great  men  can  not  go  out  among 
plain,  humble  and  obscure  people,  and  preach  Christ  to 
them,  as  the  ministers  of  Jesus  did  in  the  time  of  the 
apostles.  Their  talent,  learning  and  eloquence  do  not 
lead  them  in  that  way.  The  thought  of  going  out  to 
the  people,  and  preaching  the  cross  to  them,  and  turn- 
ing  them  to  the  Lord,  in  all  parts  of  the  land;  to  the 
high  and  to  the  low,  to  the  rich  and  to  the  poor,  to  the 
cultivated  and  uncultivated;  in  one  word,  to  cultivate, 
elevate  and  educate  men  and  women  wherever  they  may 
"be  found,  and  make  a  lifetime  work  of  it,  as  some  who 
now  live  have  done,  and  as  the  first  preachers  of  Christ 
did,  is  a  work  they  have  not  studied.  If  the  original 
church  is  a  model,  this  is  the  work  for  the  men  of  talent 
and  power,  and  not  confederating  the  congregations  of 
the  Lord  into  an  ecclesiasticism,  with  them  at  the  head 
of  it.  This  is  one  reason  our  great  men  can  not  see  it. 
It  does  not  suit  their  ideas. 

5.  Because,  if  the  original  church  is  a  model,  there 
are  no  long  trains  of  officers,  in  grades,  as  in  the  mili- 
tary ranks,  in  which  men  can  be  jpromoted  from  grade 
to  grade,  higher  and  higher,  giving  them  more  and 
more  ^oxDer  and  money;  for,  in  the  original  church, 
there  were  no  grades  of  officers  in  which  there  could  be 
any  such  promotion.  In  that  body  a  man  could  gain 
no  position  of  power  by  any  sudden  promotion^  but  a 
man  gained  power  by  continued  faithfulness,  trustworth- 
iness and  usefulness;  by  a  life  of  purity,  devotion  and 
perseverance  in  the  work  of  the  Lord — and  was  loved 
for  his  work's  sake.  But  this  is  too  slow  a  way  to  reach 
influence,  distinction  and  greatness  for  some  men.  If 
they  have  to  wait  till  they  ear7i  it^  by  straightforward 
works  of  righteousness,  labors  of  love,  and  good  de- 
portment, in  the  kingdom  of  God,  they  despair  of  ever 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  491 

attaining  to  it.  Yet  this  is  the  only  road  to  influence 
and  greatness  in  the  cause  of  Christ.  When  a  man  gets 
some  power,  or  influence,  in  this  way,  he  knows  what  it 
cost.  It  did  not  come  to  him  by  a  fortuity,  a  sudden 
promotion  to  an  office,  or  a  sudden  promotion  of  any 
kind;  but  he  earned  it  by  unassuming,  long-continued 
and  untiring  toil,  constantly  evincing  his  love  and  de- 
votion to  the  cause.  This  is  a  slow^  but  a  sure  way  to 
gain  influence,  and  to  hold  it  when  gained. 

6.  Because,  if  the  original  church  is  a  model,  we  have 
no  precept,  or  exampk,  of  any  arrangement  for  a  great 
center,  where  the  money  is  to  come  from  the  churches 
into  a  treasury,  and  be  at  the  disposal  of  a  few  men. 
We  saw  a  man  once  who  had  a  large  sugar-orchard,  on 
an  extended  hillside,  the  trees  standing  remarkably 
thick.  lie  tried  to  plan  guttering  poles,  split  in  two, 
and  extending  tributaries  from  the  trees  into  the  main 
trunk,  and  thus  bring  the  water  all  into  one  vessel  at 
the  lower  side  of  the  orchard,  without  the  labor  of 
gathering  and  hauling.  This  would  have  served  his 
purpose  very  well,  if  it  had  not  cost  more  than  it  would 
be  worth.  But  in  the  original  church  there  was  no 
*'  plan  "  like  this  to  extract  money  from  the  pockets  of 
the  people,  and  make  the  churches  tributaries,  and  by 
some  kind  of  machinery  convey  the  money  into  one 
common  treasury,  and  arrange  it  for  a  few  men  to  ap- 
propriate the  money  of  the  whole  people.  In  the  first 
congregations  they  had  no  great  moneyed  centers  for 
avaricious  men  to  wrangle  over.  The  appropriations 
were  made  by  the  individual  congr<  gations^  and  not  by 
hoards  at  a  distance.  The  congregations  that  gave 
the  money  could  also  appropriate  it. 

7.  Because,  if  we  go  back  to  the  original  churches 
for  a  model,  we  find  no  account  of  any  action  but  con- 


492  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

gregatioital  aud  hidividual.  Congregations  acted,  in 
their  capacity,  as  congregations;  and  individuals,  in 
their  capacity,  as  individuals.  A  number  of  churches, 
in  a  body,  never  acted.  We  have  not  a  trace  of  such 
action  in  the  Bible,  or  any  other  writing  of  the  first 
and  second  centuries.  The  whole  idea  of  any  such 
action  is  lost  the  moment  we  regard  the  first  church  as 
a  model. 

8.  Because,  if  we  regard  the  first  chuich  as  a  model, 
we  have  neither  precept  nor  example  for  an  Association 
of  Churches,  a  Conference  of  Churches,  a  Missionary 
Society,  Publication  Society;  Bible  Society,  an  Annual 
Meeting  or  a  Monthly  Meeting.  This  will  cut  us  off 
from  many  fine  things,  now  occupying  more  space  in 
the  prints  than  the  gospel  of  Christ.  But,  no  matter 
how  closely  it  prunes  us,  we  must  submit  to  it  or  sur- 
render our  idea  of  "  ancient  order,"  the  ''  Bible  alone," 
a  "thus  saith  the  Lord"  for  everything,  and  the  first 
church  a  model.  All  this  must  go  for  nothing,  and 
much  more,  or  we  must  submit.  I  am  ready  to  submit, 
for  the  wisdom  of  God  was  in  the  formation  of  the 
first  church.  Whatever  was  not  in  it  was  left  out  by 
infinite  wisdom  because  it  was  not  needed.  We  must 
not  assume  deficiencies  in  the  work  of  infinite  wisdom, 
nor  that  finite  wisdom  can  supply  such  assumed  de- 
ficiencies. Such  assumption  would  be  arrogant  in  the 
extreme,  and  open  the  way  for  any  heresy  men  could 
invent. 

What  has  the  wisdom  of  men  done  for  us,  in  depart- 
ing from  the  original  cJiurch  as  a  model?  One  class  of 
men  have  claimed  that  their  human  organizations,  made 
by  uninspired  men,  are  scriptural,  and  can  be  sustained 
by  Scripture;  and  they  enter  the  arena,  open  the  Bible, 
and  undertake  the  proof.     The  Pope  claims  Scripture 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  493 

lor  his  confederation  of  congregations,  and  his  long  list 
of  officers,  and  quotes  Scripture  in  its  behalf.  The 
Episcopalians,  in  like  manner,  claim  Scripture  for  the 
Episcopal  form  of  church  government,  and  open  the 
Book  to  find  it.  The  Presbyterians  also  claim  Scrip- 
ture and  enter  the  list,  quote  Scripture  and  apply  it,  as 
if  the  church  of  which  we  have  an  account  in  the 
Bible,  and  of  which  these  Scriptures  treat,  were  Pres- 
bj^terian.  But  the  Bible  testifies  not  about  that  church. 
It  is  an  outside  body,  brought  into  the  w^orld  many  long 
centuries  too  late  to  have  any  record  in  Scripture,  unless 
a  prophetic  one,  like  all  sects.  But  men  have  become 
weary  of  the  tedious  process  of  hunting  for  Scripture; 
and  another  class,  and  a  much  larger  one,  admit  that 
there  is  no  Scripture  for  any  of  them;  but  they  are  left 
free  to  form  any  kind  of  a  conference,  association,  co- 
operation, or  confederation,  they  may  see  fit;  or,  as  ex- 
pressed in  a  paper  at  hand,  "that  the  Scriptures  leave 
God's  people  free  to  adopt  whatever  plan  of  general 
organization  and  co-operation  may  seem  to  them  best 
calculated  to  promote  the  unity  and  prosperitj^  of  the 
churches.''  This  assumes  that  the  Lord  has  given  no 
law,  or  rule;  no  "plan  of  general  organization  and  co- 
operation;" and  as  he  has  given  no  law,  we  are  left  free 
to  adopt  any  law  that  may  stem  hcst  I 

But,  if  the  Lord  has  given  no  plan  for  the  purposes 
here  specified,  why?  Does  the  conclusion  follow  that 
we  may  adopt  any  that  may  scem  htstf  Not  by  any 
means.  More  likely  for  the  reason  that  he  did  not  in- 
tend any  such  plan  or  organization,  and  that  the  whole 
aftair  is  an  arrogant  assumption.  I  take  it  that  he  leg- 
islated where  legislation  was  needed,  and  where  he  did 
not  legislate,  it  was  not  needed,  nor  intended.  Why  did 
not   the  apostles  and  first   Christians  proceed  on  this 


494  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

freedom^  and  legislate  where  the  Lord  failed  to  legis- 
late, and  do  this  great  work  which  the  Scriptures  left 
the  people  of  God  free  to  do?  The  apostles  understood 
it  not  in  that  way.  The  first  Christians  never  understood 
it  in  that  way.  They  never  did  it  in  that  way.  This  is 
a  long  leap  in  the  dark — it  is  a  strange  precedent! 

But  the  beauty  of  this  human  device  is,  that  it  is  to 
subserve  where  the  divine  appointment  fails!  The  con- 
gregations are  of  the  Lord,  and  formed  under  divine 
direction.  The  overseers  and  deacons  are  appointed  by 
divine  authority.  When  these  congregations,  thus 
divinely  modeled  and  built  up;  set  in  order,  according 
^0  the  law^  of  God,  get  into  difficulty,  and  fail  to  settle 
their  trouble,  this  higher  court,  the  one  the  Scriptures 
have  left  God's  people  free  to  adopt,  made  by  uninspired 
men,  comes  in  and  settles  the  trouble,  and  makes  a 
jlnalty  of  it.!  This  is  where  we  get  at  one  leap  when 
we  start  ofl"  with  this  arrogant  assumption  of  the  right 
to  legislate  in  the  kingdom  of  God.  But  even  this 
reaches  not  the  climax.  When  the  first  assumption  is 
made  it  is  easy  to  make  another.  This  self-made  body, 
we  care  not  whether  delegated  or  representative; 
whether  all  preachers,  or  preachers,  overseers  and 
deacons,  OY  even  a  representation  o^  private  memhers, 
assumes  the  right  to  ordain  overseers  and  deacons /b/^ 
the  churches;  yes,  and  to  "  install  pastors."  They  need 
no  Scripture  for  this.  The  sihncr  of  the  law  of  God 
leaves  them  free  to  set  up  an  official  in  the  church, 
separate  from  the  divinely  authorized  overseers  and 
deacons,  and  above  them,  and  call  him '' pastor,"  and 
^''i7istaW  him  over  God's  people — "God's  heritage," 
overseers  and  deacons,  and  all  the  balance ! 

By  the  time  you  get  this  far  into  the  matter,  what  has 
become  of  the  rights  of  the  private  members?     They 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  495 

have  uo  rights  by  this  time,  only  to  fill  their  places  in 
the  pews,  have  "  the  word  of  God  dispensed  to  them, 
and  the  bread  of  life  broken  to  them,"  and  they  pay 
the  money.  They  will  never  take  this  latter  right  from 
the  people — the  right  to  pay  the  money  I  That  is  an 
inalienable  right !  ISTo  matter  how  good  the  men,  how 
honest,  nor  how  pure  their  purposes — their  work  in  any 
kind  of  aggregation,  or  confederation,  of  congregations, 
will  result  in  taking  away  the  rights  and  liberties  of  the 
people ;  oppressing  and  enslaving  them,  on  the  one  hand, 
and  building  up  a  clerical  aristocracy,  who  will  tax  the 
people  and  rule  them  with  a  rod  of  iron,  on  the  other 
hand.  All  history  proves  this.  It  also  results  in  the 
ignorance  of  the  masses,  and  making  them  vassals  to 
the  few.  Fate  is  not  more  certain  than  this.  To  avoid 
this  calamity  there  is  but  one  remedy,  and  that  is  to 
follow  the  model  found  in  the  first  church,  and  admit 
no  other  form  of  church  or  rule.  Stand  to  and  main- 
tain the  congregational  form  of  church  government  and 
management. 

We  always  have  occasion  to  look  out  for  something 
new  and  wrong,  when  language  is  used  in  reference  to 
anything  not  found  in  Scripture.  We  have  long  essays, 
and  essays  by  the  series,  and  sermons,  too,  on  "  church 
organization."  Whence  this  language?  "Church  or- 
ganization!" Indeed!  What  does  that  mean?  We 
have  no  use  for  the  phrase  at  all,  unless  as  we  use  it 
now,  to  show  that  it  means  something  outside  of  the 
divine  arrangement;  something  that  does  not  belong 
to  the  ITew  Institution.  We  can  describe  anything  in 
the  kingdom  of  God  without  it;  anything  that  the 
apostles  said  or  did.  If  a  brother  visits  a  new  place, 
preaches  the  gospel,  turns  sinners  to  the  Lord,  and 
builds  them  together  on  the  foundation  of  the  apostles 


496  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMT. 

and  prophets,  Christ  the  chief  corner,  and  reports  what 
he  has  done,  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten  he  has  it  that  he 
"  organized  a  church."  Instead  of  saying,  There  is  no 
church  in  a  given  place,  or  no  congregation,  the  reporter 
says,  "There  is  no  organization,"  or  "no  organism." 
What  does  all  this  mean? 

But  this  is  the  more  innocent  use  of  the  word  "  organ- 
ize" among  us.  "With  our  advanced  tliinkers^  it  generally 
means  some  kind  of  aggregation  or  confederation  of  con- 
gregations into  one  general  body,  so  as  to  need  some 
officers  unknown  to  the  Scriptures,  such  as  President, 
Vice-President,  Secretary  and  Treasurer.  All  this  pro- 
ceeds on  the  principle  that  "  God's  people  are  left  free  to 
adopt  whatever  plan  seems  best,"  or,  in  plain  English, 
left  free  to  bind  any  yoke  on  the  necks  of  God's  people 
that  will  suit  their  purposes  best.  This  is  a  curious 
kind  of  being  left  free.  Let  God's  people  accept  the 
human  plans  men  are  assuming  the  right  to  impose  on 
them,  and  see  how  long  the}^  will  be  free,  and  what 
kind  of  freedom  it  will  be!  It  will  be  the  freedom  of 
one  class  to  rule.,  and  the  balance  to  he  ruled;  for  one 
class  to  pay^  and  another  class  to  he  jpaid. 

The  Lord  made  the  congregations  under  him  free,  in 
the  highest  sense,  from  all  rule,  all  authority  and  power 
outside  of  themselves,  except  their  King  in  heaven. 
Christ  is  their  Ruler,  and  his  law,  laid  down  in  Scrip- 
ture, is  the  absolute  authority  with  them.  They  read 
it  and  understand  for  themselves;  they  apply  and  en- 
force it  on  themselves  as  a  body.  Nobody  stands  be- 
tween them  and  the  Lord — they  are  thoroughly  fur- 
nished for  every  good  work. 

The  churches,  legitimately,  have  two  things  to  do :  1. 
To  attend  to  their  own  internal  affairs;  to  look  after 
their  members ;  to  see  that  they  walk  orderly;  that  they 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  497 

keep  themselves  pure,  and  walk  circumspectly  before 
the  world.  The  meaning  of  ovtrseer  is  one  who  has 
the  oversight,  or  sees  over;  and  the  overseer  in  the 
Church  of  God  is  one  who  sees  over  the  church,  takes 
care  of  it;  watches  as  those  who  shall  give  account. 
He  is  no  clergyman^  or  august  dignitary^  but  a  good 
man,  apt  to  teach,  of  good  report,  etc.  As  a  congrega- 
tion, they  are  commanded  to  keep  themselves  in  the 
love  of  God,  to  edify  one  another,  and  to  build  each 
other  up  in  the  faith.  They  are  never  taught  to  look 
abroad  for  some  one  to  teach  them,  to  break  the  loaf 
to  them,  to  settle  their  troubles,  etc.  When  members 
in  the  Corinthian  Church  went  to  law  with  each  other  be- 
fore infidels,  Paul  inquired:  "Have  you  not  a  wisi  man 
among  youf^^  They  had  their  supernatural  gifts  of 
the  Spirit,  and  were  boasting  of  them,  and  yet  had  not 
a  wise  man  amonac  them  to  settle  the  smallest  matters! 
They  resorted  to  the  civil  courts!  Some  of  our  wise 
men  would  have  us  provide  an  ecclesiastical  court  to 
which  we  can  appeal  when  the  court  the  Lord  has  pro- 
vided, the  cougregatioD  of  the  Lord,  with  its  overseers 
and  deacons,  shall  fail.  The  court  the  Lord  has  pro- 
vided, in  their  arrangement,  is  the  lower  court,  and  the 
one  they  propose  to  provide  is  the  higJier  court — the 
court  of  a,]?peals.  Its  decisions  are  final;  its  excommu- 
nication will  be  "  the  greater  excommunication."  2.  The 
other  part  of  the  work,  for  which  the  church  is  respon- 
sible, is  "holding  forth  the' word  of  life."  This  work 
was  done  anciently  by  congregations  and  individuals. 
They  needed  no  special  license  to  do  this.  They  were 
all  free  alike,  as  congregations  and  as  individuals,  to- 
ehold forth  the  word  of  life."  The  love  of  Christ  was 
in  them,  and  the  love  that  burned  in  their  hearts  toward 
man  impelled  them  on  in  this  work,  and  it  was  in  tlieir 
42 


498  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

aearts  and  lives  to  spread  the  gospel;  to  turn  the  world 
to  the  Lord  to  the  extent  of  their  ability.  This  was 
true  of  all  who  had  obtained  the  heavenly  gift,  and  is 
true  of  all  of  the  same  class  still.  This  work  is  not  a 
concentrated  work,  to  be  done  in  one  place;  nor  to  be 
done  by  conventions,  conferences,  synods,  assemblies, 
or.  councils.  It  is  done,  and  has  been  done  in  all  ages, 
by  the  congregations  of  the  Lord,  scattered  throughout 
the  world,  and  the  individual  memhers^  wherever  they 
have  mingled  with  their  fellow-creatures. 

One  such  man  as  Philip,  who  went,  at  the  command- 
ment of  the  Lord,  "down  into  the  way  leading  from 
Jerusalem  to  Gaza,  which  is  desert,"  without  waiting  to 
hear  one  word  about  the  pay,  is  worth  a  score  of  those 
men  who  must  have  the  dollars  stipulated  before  they 
will  move  an  inch  or  preach  a  sermon.  This  man  alone, 
80  far  as  the  history  informs  us,  when  he  met  with  the 
officer  of  state,  the  Treasurer  of  Queen  Candace, 
preached  to  him  Jesus  and  immersed  him.  He  did  not 
wait  till  he  could  show  him  a  congregation,  all  in  order, 
but  turned  him  to  the  Lord,  and  left  other  matters  to 
come  up  in  their  proper  place.  I  only  give  this  as  a 
sample,  showing  that  the  work  is  not  a  concentrated  one; 
and  co-operating  in  it  is  not  in  concentrating  our  money 
in  a  treasury^  nor  going  to  a  Missionary  Convention,  but 
doing  the  same  kindoi  work  anywhere  and  everywhere, 
and  contributing  means  to  the  same  kind  of  work.  It 
is  the  work  of  the  Lord  to  turn  souls  to  God  anywhere, 
and  he  who  does  it  is  co-operating  with  all  others  en- 
gaged in  that  great  work,  no  matter  who  they  are,  nor 
where  they  are.  All  the  churches,  everywhere,  "shin- 
ing as  lights  in  the  world,"  "sounding  out  the  word  of 
life,"  and  all  the  individuals  who  participate  in  the 
flame  work,  either  by  doing  a  portion  of  it  themselves, 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  499 

or  by  sustaining  those  who  do  it — no  matter  how  re- 
mote from  each  other,  nor  whether  they  ever  heard  of 
each  other — are,  nevertheless,  co-operating  in  the  same 
work.  They  are  "  laborers  together  with  God,"  in  his 
husbandry — workmen  on  "God's  building."  One  may 
plant,  and  another  water,  while  God  gives  the  increase ; 
but  the  work  is  in  the  same  cause,  the  same  work — the 
Lord's.  All  who  work  in  it  are  co-operating  with  all 
others  who  work  in  it. 

The  enemy  does  not  aggregate  his  forces,  nor  mass  his 
armies,  but  scatters  them  throughout  the  world,  and 
stations  one  here  and  another  there.  We  can  not  ag- 
gregate our  forces,  mass  our  armies,  and  move  on  the 
enemy  in  a  body,  and  disband  his  armies,  scatter  his 
hosts,  and  capture  them.  Instead  of  this,  when  our 
King  made  the  first  grand  move  on  the  enemy,  the 
Lord's  army  was  "  all  scattered  abroad."  The  wisdom 
of  this  world  would  have  thought  that  a  very  unwise 
move — the  first  thing  to  scatter  all  the  soldiers  abroad. 
But  this  was  necessary,  for  the  work  to  be  done  was 
"all  scattered  abroad."  The  Lord's  hosts,  when  all 
scattered  abroad,  "  went  everywhere  preaching  the 
word."  That  was  co-operation  in  missionary  work; 
"associated  eftbrt"  in  the  work  of  the  Lord;  that  was 
the  Lord's  way  of  doing  the  work.  Where  were  their 
Presidents,  Vice-Presidents,  Secretaries,  Treasurers, 
Conventions,  Great  Speeches,  Missionary  Agents,  and 
Plans  for  Raising  Money?  Where  was  their  great  con- 
centration? Where  was  their  human  plan,  originated 
by  uninspired  men  ?  The  Lord  invented  a  j^lf^^h  ^i*  a 
v^ay^  to  do  the  work,  and  such  a  one  as  the  wisdom  of 
man  never  thought  of,  and  never  would  have  thought 
of.  Among  all  the  missionary  movements  schemed  by 
men,  who  ever  heard  of  one  that  started  out  by  scatter- 


500  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

ing  the  operators  all  ahroadf  There  was  no  concentra- 
tion, aggregation,  or  confederation  of  the  soldiers;  no 
massing  of  the  armies;  no  great  officers,  with  fine  sal- 
aries, at  the  head  of  the  army,  deciding  who  should  go 
into  it,  and  who  not;  what  their  pay  should  be,  or  fi7i- 
gerlng  the  money.  They  were  all,  except  the  apostles, 
scattered  abroad,  and  went  everywhere  preaching  the 
word. 

This  was  a  Jerusalem  modtl^  under  the  eyes  of  the 
apostles,  and  guided  by  the  wi'sdom  of  God !  This  was 
not  a  failure — it  spread  the  gospel.  Though  this  was 
the  greatest  missionary  movement  of  which  we  have 
any  account,  our  great  missionary  men,  who  never  do 
any  missionary  work^  but  are  always  talking  ahout 
missionary  work^  make  no  reference  to  it.  They  see  no 
missionary  work  about  it,  though  the  disciples  were  all 
missionaries  !  When  looking  for  ^/^xw^,  they  never  go 
to  this  movement  for  a  pla7i.  There  was  not  "organi- 
zation" enough  in  this  for  them.  There  was  too  much 
work  in  this;  and  work  for  all,  a-nd  no  fine  offices!  Our 
great  men  see  no  example  in  all  this;  no  model;  no 
wisdom  for  them!  The  idea  of  "all  scattering  abroad" 
— going  "everywhere  and  preaching  the  word,"  has  no 
charms  for  them.     Their  idea  is  to  serid  somehody. 

The  idea  of  a  modern  great  man  is  to  get  rid  of  the 
Jerusalem  Church,  as  a  model,  and  get  Spurgeon  or 
Beecher  in  view;  mass  the  Lord's  people,  build  a  great 
temple;  imitating  Paganism  more  than  Christianity, 
the  kingdoms  of  this  world  more  than  "a  kingdom 
not  of  this  world;"  getting  a  great  salary,  and,  once  in 
three  months,  make  a  pitiful  contribution  for  the  mis- 
sionary cause,  with  the  idea  of  se^iding  some  man  to 
the  heathen  I   This  way  never  did  and  never  will  do  the 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  501 

work.  It  is  nothing  but  a  very  poor  apology  for  not 
doing  the  work  at  all. 

In  looking  over  the  historj^  of  what  is  called  "  the 
Church,"  if  we  were  to  keep  an  eye  on  the  leaders,  after 
an  early  period  in  the  second  century,  we  would  be  led 
to  the  conclusion,  that,  if  "the  Church"  has  lilled  its 
mission,  as  intended  by  its  Divine  Founder,  that  mission 
must  have  been  to  raise  up  a  few  men  to  fill  places  of 
popularity,  distinction  and  power,  to  enslave  and  rule 
the  masses.  This  is  one  reason  these  leaders  do  not 
know  Jesus  and  his  apostles.  They  do  not  read,  nor 
admire  the  teaching  and  example  of  our  Lord  and  his 
apostles.  The  things  their  hearts  are  on  are  not  found 
in  all  the  Lord  and  his  apostles  ever  said  and  did.  When 
they  go  to  their  teaching  and  example,  they  find  noth- 
ing but  their  own  condemnation.  The  wonderful  sim- 
plicity found  in  the  life  of  the  Lord,  and  the  lives  of 
the  apostles,  and  inculcated  in  their  teaching;  their  hu- 
mility, lowliness  and  meekness;  their  indifference  to  the 
world,  and  the  things  of  the  world;  their  disinterested 
lives,  labors  and  deportment;  their  love  to  the  people, 
continual  care  and  watchfulness  for  the  welfare  of  those 
for  whose  benefit  they  labored;  their  neither  organiz- 
ing, nor  trying  to  attain  to  any  great  ofl3.ces,  organi- 
zations, high  places,  seats  of  honor;  nor  wearing  or 
giving  any  great  titles,  but  discouraging  them,  etc.,  etc., 
etc.,  neither  in  part,  nor  as  a  whole,  can  be  pleasing  to 
the  ecclesiastical  rulers  in  any  age. 

The  plain  and  unassuming  congregations  of  the  Lord, 
with  their  humble  overseers  and  deacons;  and  the  sim- 
ple worship,  ordained  by  the  Great  King;  with  the 
apostles'  teaching,  the  fellowship,  breaking  of  bread,  and 
prayers,  and  not  a  worldly  attraction  about  it,  does  not 
suit  the  ambition  of  those  who  are,  or  would  be,  pro- 


602  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

motea  to  great  popularity,  distinction  and  power,  by  a 
sudden  election  or  appointment  to  a  high  position.  In 
a  congregation  like  this  there  is  no  work,  only  the 
training  of  the  members  of  the  body,  and  efforts  to  turn 
the  people  of  the  world  to  the  Lord.  It  has  in  it  no 
intricate  work,  dif^cult  to  learn;  no  deep  and  compli- 
cated ecclesiasticism;  no  profound  schemes  for  learned 
men;  but  the  simple  work  of  turning  the  world  to  God, 
and  teaching  those  turned  how  to  do  the  will  of  God; 
how  to  worship,  and  how  to  live  soberly,  righteously 
and  godly  in  this  present  world;  how  to  walk  in  the 
strait  and  narrow  way,  so  as  to  enter  by  the  strait  gate 
into  the  everlasting  city. 

Is  it  any  wonder  that  "the  word  of  God  grew;"  that 
it  "ran  and  w^as  glorified;"  that  great  numbers  became 
"obedient  to  the  faith;"  and  that  there  was  "great  joy 
in  that  city" — where  the  gospel  was  preached?  In  the 
true  sense,  they  "came  out  from  the  world,"  "gave 
themselves  to  the  Lord,"  and  "served  God."  They 
were  all  missionaries.  They  did  not  get  their  ideas 
about  missionary  work  from  the  Pope,  nor  from  secta- 
rians,  but  from  the  Lord.  They  did  not  make  it  an 
occasional  thing,  and  have  a  great  missionary  meeting, 
a  week  of  prayer,  and  a  quarterly  contribution,  but 
prayed  "  continually,"  "  without  ceasing,"  and  went 
"  everywhere  preaching  the  word."  They  were  not  stnt 
out  by  a  society,  but  went  everywhere — were  "  all  scat- 
tered abroad."  This  put  them  right  where  the  work 
was  to  he  done — among  the  people.  They  went  ahead 
and  did  the  work,  and  the  example  is  on  the  record. 

How  was  the  gospel  so  spread  in  this  country  fifty 
years  ago?  Men  went  ever^^where  and  preached  the 
word.  Why  did  they  go?  The  love  of  Christ  con- 
strained them.     They  were  full  of  the  love  of   God; 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  503 

thej  were  unspeakably  happy,  and  wanted  to  make  the 
whole  world  happy.  They  had  themselves  been  saved 
by  the  grace  of  God,  and  they  wanted  to  carry  this 
grace  that  saved  them  to  all  men.  They  realized  that 
the  whole  world  lay  under  the  power  of  the  wricked 
one,  and  they  could  not  rest  without  an  effort  to  bring 
men  to  the  Savior.  They  had  found  "the  knowledge 
of  salvation,"  and  were  moved  by  the  love  that  moved 
the  Savior,  and  brought  him  into  the  world;  and  could 
not  be  persuaded  that  the}-  w^ere  true  to  him,  if  they  did 
not  extend  that  knowledge  of  salvation  to  their  fellow- 
creatures.  How  shall  w^e  ever  clear  our  skirts,  and  pre- 
pare ourselves  to  stand  in  the  presence  of  Him  who  laid 
down  his  life  for  us,  if  we  carry  not  this  knowledge  of 
salvation;  this  "glorious  gospel  of  the  blessed  God;" 
this  "good  news  of  great  joy  to  all  people?" 

We  need  two  things :  1.  To  be  fall  of  the  knowledge 
of  salvation  ourselves;  and,  2.  To  go  everywhere  preach- 
ing it.  This  can  not  be  done  mechanically^  or  by  a  few 
men  working  at  it,  as  a  trade^  for  money ^  and  all  the 
balance  doing  nothing,  only  paying  a  little  monty. 
This  never  did  the  work  in  any  part  of  the  world,  and 
never  can.  The  building  of  God  is  built  up  of  lively 
st07i<  s;  not  simply  a  part  of  it,  but  the  whole  huilding. 
Their  hearts  are  full  of  the  grand  theme  of  redemption ; 
their  souls  are  overflowing  with  the  love  of  God;  their 
very  songs  pour  forth  "peace  on  earth  and  good  will  to 
men;"  their  exhortations  barn  with  zeal  and  ardor  that 
move  everything  around  them;  their  prayers  have  an 
unction  that  appears  like  opening  the  very  gates  of 
heaven;  their  conversations  manifest  a  solicitude  in 
the  cause,  a  divine  concern  for  the  recovery  of  man,  the 
reclamation  of  a  race  of  polluted,  degraded  and  lost 
mortals,  that   appear    without   limit;   their  hearts  are 


504  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

full,  their  tongues  will  not  be  silent.  If  they  were  to 
hold  their  peace,  the  stones  would  cry  out.  Their  eyes 
gleam  with  eloquence,  delight  and  happiness,  as  they 
fluently  proceed  with  their  wonderful  theme. 

These  are  genuine  missionaries  of  Jesus,  in  the  true 
spiirit  of  missionaries,  and  their  wo^'k  manifests  itself, 
not  in  getting  up  great  organizations,  confederations, 
conventions,  speeches,  etc.,  etc.,  but  in  lives  spent  in 
spreading  the  gospel,  extending  the  knowledge  of  God 
among  men,  and  recovering  them  from  the  manacles  of 
sin  and  death.  They  wait  not  for  a  great  assembly,  a 
fine  meeting-house,  a  pulpit,  or  any  great  occasion,  to 
preach  Christ.  They  wait  not  to  hunt  a  text,  get  up  a 
sermon,  etc.,  etc.;  nor  for  Sunday,  but  on  any  day,  any- 
where— in  the  private  circle,  in  public,  in  business — 
where  a  lost  human  being  will  give  heed  to  a  few  words, 
they  issue  forth  the  words  of  ev-erlasting  life.  Their 
minds  are  stored  with  these  words  of  salvation  and 
life;  their  hearts  are  full  to  overflowing,  and  their  de- 
sire to  save  man  is  unbounded. 

The  impartation  of  knowledge  is  not  like  the  impar- 
tation  of  money,  exhausting  tli(:ir  stock.  The  more 
they  give,  the  more  they  have  left.  The  impartation  in- 
creases their  stock;  and  the  continual  effort  to  save 
others  keeps  their  own  hearts  warmed  up  in  the  cause; 
full  of  the  love  of  Christ;  and  keeps  the  trutli  they  are 
trying  to  induce  others  to  receive  fresh  in  their  memo- 
ries; and  the  preciousness  of  that  truth,  its  greatness 
and  goodness,  its  wonder-working,  transforming  and 
glorious  power,  is  a  realization  in  the  soul  of  him  who 
is  trying  to  save  others,  and  thus  keeps  up  a  lively  ap- 
preciation of  it  in  him  who  is  constantly  laboring  to 
impart  it  to  others.  It  is  not  an  occasional  thing,,  but 
a  life  devoted  to  the  loorJc  of  the  Lord,     Who  would 


THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  505 

not  be  under  such  a  hallowed  influence,  full  of  love  to 
God  and  to  all  mankind;  a  subject  of  such  a  gracious 
and  merciful  power,  as  inspires  the  heart  with  an  in 
expressible  solicitude  for  the  good  of  the  whole  world? 

Then,  it  brightens  and  intensifies  the  happiness  to  be 
associated  with  a  whole  congregation  of  the  same  lively, 
loving  and  solicitous  souls,  all  interested  in  the  same 
great  cause;  their  hearts  all  full  of  the  same  great 
theme;  the  same  ardor,  devotion  and  zeal;  and  unitedly 
lifting  their  voices  in  songs  to  their  Lord  and  Redeemer; 
or  unite  in  the  fervent  prayer  of  faith ;  or  give  heed 
when  one  of  their  number  is  making  a  mighty  appeal, 
in  the  name  of  their  Great  Leader,  to  the  people  of  the 
world  to  turn  to  the  Lord  and  live  forever;  or  when 
they  unitedly  commemorate  the  sufl:erings  of  Him  who 
made  his  soul  an  offering  for  sin!  To  be  a  member  of 
the  body;  to  be  in  the  assemblies  of  the  saints;  a  par- 
ticipant in  the  heavenly  joys;  and  realize  that  the  Lord 
walks  in  the  midst  of  the  assembly;  that  he  dwells  in 
it;  comes  in  to  the  saints  and  sups  with  them,  and  they 
with  him— is  honor  enough,  one  w^ould  think,  to  satisfy 
the  loftiest  aspiration  of  a  soul  redeemed  from  sin. 

Those  thus  redeemed,  and  realizing  the  value  of  their 
redemption;  the  great  price  that  bought  them;  and 
what  it  is  to  be  delivered  from  guilt,  from  condemna- 
tion, justified,  made  partakers  of  the  "divine  nature;'' 
to  be  filled  with  all  the  fullness  of  God,  and  be  seated 
in  heavenly  places  in  Christ  Jesus,  and  made  a  guest 
among  the  saints  in  light;  and  join  in  all  the  expectan- 
cies of  the  riches,  and  treasures,  and  honors,  and  glories, 
and  sublimities  of  the  'New  Jerusalem,  the  everlasting 
city  of  our  God,  with  all  the  saints  of  all  ages;  in  the 
"house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens, 
whose  Maker  and  Builder  is  God;"  in  "the  new  heave-i 


506  THE  SIMPLICITY  OF  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY. 

and  the  now  earth,  wherein  dwells  righteousness" — may 
most  assuredly  lift  up  their  hearts  to  Him  who  sits  on 
the  throne,  and  to  the  Lamb,  and  adore,  and  praise,  and 
honor  Him  forever  and  ever!  These  glorious  expectan- 
cies are  sufficiently  lofty  for  the  mightiest  spirit  among 
the  sons  of  men.  They  beggar  all  human  effort  at  de- 
scription, and  are  transcendently  beyond  all  that  we 
ask  or  think,  or  that  ever  entered  into  the  heart  of  man. 
"  We  know  not  what  we  shall  be ;  but  we  know  this, 
we  shall  see  Jesus,  and  be  like  him;  for  we  shall  see 
him  as  he  is." 

Let  Jesus  be  the  theme  in  all  our  preaching,  our  ex- 
hortations, onr  prayers  and  our  songs;  let  the  desire 
continually  be:  "Make  us.  Lord  Jesus,  daily  more  like 
thee ; "  let  his  words  dwell  upon  our  lips,  his  example 
be  our  pattern,  and  learn  to  love  him  and  do  the  things 
that  are  pleasing  in  his  sight;  let  the  ambition  be  to 
look  to  him  and  honor  him. 

The  work  of  the  Lord  is  done  in  small  items.  He 
waters  the  earth  with  mere  drops  of  rain.  The  earth 
is  cultivated  by  diffusing  the  laborers  over  it.  The  work 
of  the  Lord  to  be  done  in  this  world  is  widely  extended 
over  its  surface ;  and  men  must  go  where  it  is  to  do  it. 
"We  need  no  great  convocations  to  do  any  of  it.  We  can 
instruct  saints,  meet  and  worship  in  small  assemblies, 
or  preach  to  the  people  of  the  world,  and  turn  them 
from  darkness  to  light,  and  from  the  power  of  Satan  to 
God,  without  any  large  gatherings  of  the  people.  No 
matter,  then,  about  any  great  assemblies  in  this  world. 

But  when  the  King  of  kings  and  the  Lord  of  lords 
comes,  and  he  shall  gather  his  elect  from  the  four  quar- 
ters of  the  globe ;  gather  them  from  the  East  and  from 
the  West,  from  the  ^N'orth  and  from  the  South,  out  of 
every  nation,  and  kingdom,  and  tongue,  and  tribe,  aiie) 


THB  SIMPLICITY  OP  THE  DIVINE  ECONOMY.  507 

people — we  shall  see  tlie  grand  throng,  the  great  as- 
sembly that  John  saw,  which  no  man  can  compute. 
The  Loid  shall  then  stand  before  them  and  cry,  "Father, 
here  am  I,  and  here  are  the  children  that  thou  gavest 
me."  Then  shall  they,  in  one  mighty  chorus,  unite  in 
ascribing  Messing,  and  glory,  and  honor,  and  dominion, 
and  might,  to  Him  who  sits  on  the  throne,  and  to  the 
Lamb,  forover  and  ever!  Shall  we  be  there  in  that 
great  day,  and  shall  we  be  counted  worthy  and  accepted 
by  ITim  ?  Let  us  strive  to  that  end ;  labor  to  enter  into 
that  rest,  so  that  we  may  be  able,  as  the  beloved  John,  to 
say :  "  Come,  Lord  Jesus,  quickly  come ! " 


^e/j> 


B