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PRINCETON  •  NEW  JERSEY 


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THE  V^^,. .^v^.v't 


JOY  OF  THE  MINISTRY. 


A// 

ENDEAVOUR   TO  INCREASE    THE  EFFICIENCY 

AND  DEEPEN  THE  HAPPINESS  OF 

PASTORAL    WORK, 


BY  THE   REV. 

FREDERICK    R.    WYNNE,   M.A., 

CANON   OF   CHRIST   CHURCH,    AND   INCUMBENT   OF 
ST.    MATTHIAS',   DUBLIN. 


SECOND    THOUSAND. 


HODDER     AND     STOUGHTON, 
27,  PATERNOSTER  ROW. 


MDCCCLXXXVII. 


{^All  rights  reserved.) 


Printed  by  Hazell,  Watson,  &  Viney,  Ld.,  London  and  Aylesbury. 


CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE   JOY    OF   THE   MINISTRY. 

Country  work— External  pleasantness — Air,  exercise,  each 
day's  "walking  tour"  —  Varying  views  —  Interesting 
scenes — Cheering  welcomes — Happy  spiritual  efforts — 
City  work— The  '*  wealth  of  souls  "—Each  street  linked 
with  happy  memories— Valued  friends — Public  preaching 
—  Winning  souls  —  Human  sympathy  often  —  Christ's 
sympathy  always — The  crown  of  glory    •         •         i         • 


CHAPTER  n. 

PERSONAL  QUALIFICATIONS  FOR  THE  MINISTRY 

FAITH. 

Nature  of  pastoral  office— Intellectual  faith— Doubts  and  per- 
plexities :  how  far  they  unfit  for  the  office,  how  far  they 
may  cling  to  the  earnest  believer — Morbid  doubts  and 
healthy  questionings— Mind  inquiring,  horizon  widening, 
mental  perspective  changing — Great  lines  of  truth  un- 
alterable—Heart-faith— Varieties  in  religious  history,  one 
essential,  individual  communion  with  Christ — Secret  of 
unction  in  teaching  and  preaching— Spiritual  exercise 
needed  to  keep  faith  fresh— Religious  dangers  in  religious 
work — Safeguard  in  the  secret  Presence  .         .         •         •       ^4 


vi  Contents, 


CHAPTER  III. 

PERSONAL  QUALIFICATIONS  FOR  THE  MINISTRY 

THE    LOVING    SPIRIT. 

PAGE 

Delicacy  of  pastoral  work — Heart-secrets — Close  intimacy — 
Sacred  sorrows — Only  love  gives  needful  delicacy  of  heart 
— '*  Faithful,"  but  hateful  clergyman — Clerical  mannerism 

—  Difficulties  in  loving  —  Uninteresting  parishioners  — 
Helps  in  loving— Feeling  ourselves  sent  to  our  people 
— Thought  of  their  infinite  destiny — St.  Paul's  example — 
Thought  of  the  Saviour's  love — Loving  actions — Prayer 

for  love — Pi'ayer  for  the  people        .....       28 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   WARRIOR    SPIRIT. 

Apparent  quietness,  real  battle  of  clerical  life — Each  day's  work 
a  campaign — The  pastor  a  leader — Reproof  and  rebuke- 
Plain  speaking — Independence— INIisery  of  vacillation — 
Clearness  and  decision  in  public — Holy  boldness  in  per- 
sonal intercourse — Temptations  to  shrink  from  difficult 
duties — Desire  to  please  rather  than  to  profit — Dread  of 
awkwardness  and  unpleasantness — Cultivation  of  soldier 
spirit — Instinctive  obedience  to  duty — Caution  against 
bluster  and  swagger — Troublesome  valorousness  of  weak 
man— Difference  between  boldness  and  hardness — Bold- 
ness strengthened,  yet  softened,  by  love  ,         ...       41 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE    LABOURER. 

Temptations  to  indolence  in  pastoral  work — Facility  of  giving 
mock  work — Easy-going  popular  clergymen — Need  of 
self-examination — Confession  of  indolence  to  the  Master 
— Work  should  be  reasonable — Fuss  and  hurry  hinder 
usefulness — Quality  of  work  more  important  than  quantity 

—  Method  and  order  —  Conscientious  forethought  — 
Arrangement  of  time — Due  proportion  to  various  branches 
of  work — Parish  books  and  statistics — Programme  of 
each  day's  work — System  careful,  but  elastic ;  to  help,  not 

to  bind 50 


Contents,  vii 


CHAPTER  VI. 

HINTS    FOR    THE    STUDY. 

PAGE 

Study  a  branch  of  parochial  work,  not  a  rival  to  it — Special 
dangers  of  cultured  members  of  our  flocks — The  uncul- 
tured clergyman's  difficulties  in  helping  them— Simplicity 
of  speech  and  mental  cultivation— Imperfect  education 
and  tawdry  rhetoric— Division  of  labour  between  study 
and  parish— Subjects  of  our  reading  :— I.  Holy  Scripture 
—Thoughtful  study  of  it— Search  for  God's  teaching  to 
the  heart— The  frame  and  the  picture— Danger  of  mere 
"  text-theology  "—Mind  attuned  to  Divine  teaching- 
Study  for  others— Study  for  ourselves— Sacred  seasons  for 
listening  to  the  Divine  voice.— H.  Evidences  of  religion 
—Difficulties  of  modern  thought— Means  of  helping.— 
III.  Dogmatic  theology — God's  Revelation  and  man's 
thoughts— Sympathy  with  human  difficulties,  mistakes,  and 
struggles.— IV.  Ecclesiastical  history— History  of  Chris- 
tian thought — Unity  and  continuity  of  Christ's  Church — 
Study  of  Church  histoiy  counteracts  "parochialism."— 
V.  Mental  and  moral  philosophy.— VI.  Natural  science 
—Investigation  of  facts— Gives  calmness  of  thought- 
Counteracts  bigotry,  dogmatism,  intolerance. — VII.  Gene- 
ral literature— Relaxation— Culture  of  mind— Facilitates 
utterance — Sympathy  with  the  brotherhood  of  humanity 
—Caution— "  One  thing  needful  "—Danger  of  literary 
ostentation— Unity  in  varied  studies  through  spiritual 
aims.— VIII.  Advantage  of  having  always  one  solid  book 
on  hand "3 


CHAPTER  VII. 

ON  THE  KNEES. 
Prayer  the  link  between  outdoor  and  indoor  work— Human 
poAverlessness  to  change  human  hearts — Faith  in  the 
reality  of  prayer — Involved  in  the  reality  of  God — Pray- 
ing to  keep  pace  with  working— Prayer  for  each  person 
spoken  to— The  "House  of  Prayer  "—Services  of  the 
Church— Sacraments  of  the  Lord  Jesus— Notes  in  sanc- 
tuary ministration,  reverence,  love,  joy    .         .         •         "94 


viil  Contents. 


CHAPTER  VIIL 

IN  THE  PULPIT.     PART  I. THE  SERMON  MATTER. 

PAGE 

The  messenger  and  the  tidings—"  Preaching  Christ  "—The 
manifestation  of  God— Awakening  the  conscience— Ana- 
lysis of  heart  motives— Exhibition  of  God's  standard — 
Warnings— Questionings— Need  of  keeping  the  body 
awake — Danger  of  duhiess—  The  snore  in  the  pew  and  the 
snore  in  the  pulpit — Need  of  skill  as  well  as  earnestness — 
Vehemence  fatiguing — Study  to  interest — Variety,  change 
of  style,  illustration — All  to  waken  conscience— The  glad 
tidings— The  old  but  ever  new  story— Gospel  proclama- 
tion— Stirring  the  will  to  holy  action — Righteousness  the 
great  end  of  the  Gospel io6 

CHAPTER  IX. 

IN     THE     PULPIT.       PART   II. THE     MANNER    OF 

OUR    PREACHING. 

Brevity— Unity — Well-considered  arrangement — Good  and 
bad  division — Diverging  and  converging  lenses — Danger 
of  monotony  in  character  of  preaching — Monotony  in  each 
sermon — Light  and  shade — Reason  and  passion — Prepa- 
ration of  sermons — Written  or  "extempore" — Laying 
out  the  lines — Mental  gaze  at  people  while  preparing — 
Dominant  position  of  conclusion — Delivery — Self-forget- 
fulness  —  Self-possession  —  Looking  at  congregation  — 
Management  of  voice — Concluding  prayer        .        •        ,120 


CHAPTER  X. 

REACHING  YOUNG  HEARTS. 

Work  among  the  young — Its  importance,  hopefulness,  happi- 
ness—]ts  difficulties  — Schools,  classes— Young  men- 
Young  women — An  assemblage  of  children — What  is  to 
be  taught  ? — Definite  aim— Making  the  lesson  pleasant — 
Weariness  leads  to  turbulence— Order  kept  by  brightness 
in  teaching — Interest  the  understanding — Keep  the  mind 
busy — Strike  home  to  heart  and  conscience      .         .         .     147 


Contents.  ix 


CHAPTER  XL 

THE     SICK-ROOM. 

PAGH 

Twofold  work,  to  comfort,  to  profit  —  Twofold  power, 
human  sympathy  and  Divine  truth — Sympathy  cannot 
be  counterfeited — Sought  and  found  at  the  Source  of  love 
— Skilful  application  of  the  word — Many  lessons — Great 
result,  consolation — Christ's  tenderness — God's  absolution 
— Eternal  life — Helping  sufferer  to  learn  his  lessons — 
Using  the  opportunity — Heart  to  heart  relation  between 
pastor  and  patient — Care  not  to  fatigue  the  body — One 
definite  lesson  for  each  visit — Example  of  '  *  visitation 
service  " — Order  in  our  successive  lessons — Prayer — Visi- 
tation service  again  our  model — "  Extempore  "  prayer — 
Holy  Communion — Preparation  for  death        ,         •         .162 


CHAPTER  XII. 

FROM    HOUSE    TO    HOUSE. 

A'aried  scenes — Same  drama  of  life — Where  visits  most  needed 
— Objects  in  visiting  : — ist.  Acquaintance  with  our  people 
— The  Confessional — The  model  pastor — 2nd.  Material 
assistance — Its  duty — Its  dangers — 3rd.  Gathering  to  the 
means  of  grace — Seeking  the  lost  sheep — God's  call  to  the 
erring — 4th.  Personal  dealing — Tending  the  flock — Indi- 
vidual cases — Spirit  and  manner  of  visiting — Order  and 
method — Parochial  lists— Sympathy,  yet  earnest  watchful- 
ness over  our  people — Watchfulness  over  ourselves — 
Temptations  in  visiting — Delivering  the  message — Read- 
ing and  prayer,  how  far  expedient — The  word  in  season  .     181 


PREFACE. 


I  HOPE  the  word  "Endeavour"  will  prevent 
the  title  of  this  little  book  from  sounding  too 
ambitious.  To  increase  the  efficiency  and  deepen 
the  joy  of  pastoral  work  is,  I  know,  an  achieve- 
ment great  beyond  human  power  to  accomplish. 
But  it  is  not  too  great  to  aim  at.  And  I  have 
to  call  the  book  what  it  really  is.  It  is  written 
for  the  purpose  of  helping  our  younger  fellow- 
labourers  in  the  ministry  to  do  their  work,  and 
to  enjoy  their  work.  This  we  can  at  least  try 
to  do  for  one  another.  No  doubt  each  heart, 
each  life,  each  ministerial  career  has  its  own 
peculiar  difficulties.  It  has  secrets  of  personal 
trial,  struggle,  need,  with  which  no  stranger  can 
intermeddle,  and  in  which  no  one  can  help  except 
the  great  Helper.  But,  to  a  very  real  degree,  it 
is  granted  to  those  who  are  labouring  for  God 
to  be  able  to  strengthen  the  hands  of  those  who 
labour  along  with  them.     As  we  tell  each  other  of 


xii  Preface, 

our  experiences,  as  we  warn  each  other  against  the 
dangers  we  have  found  hurtful  to  ourselves,  and 
encourage  each  other  by  describing  the  supports 
by  which  we  have  been  strengthened,  and  the 
gladness  which  has  made  sunshine  in  our  own 
lives,  we  do  bring  to  each  other  very  material 
help. 

One  workman  cannot  give  to  his  fellow-worker 
the  strength  of  hand,  clearness  of  sight,  wisdom 
of  heart,  with  which  skilled  labour  has  to  be 
carried  on  ;  from  the  Creator,  and  not  from  the 
fellow-creature,  these  gifts  must  come.  But  he 
can  give  his  comrade  many  a  useful  hint,  show 
him  in  many  a  little  way  how  his  work  can  best 
be  got  through,  and  cheer  and  guide  his  apprentice 
efforts  by  sympathy  and  counsel.  To  endeavour 
to  do  this  for  each  other  is  surely  our  right,  our 
duty,  and  our  privilege.  I  claim  the  right  and 
exercise  the  privilege  as  I  send  out  these  pages 
among  my  brethren,  hoping  that  the  spirit  in 
which  they  receive  them  will  cause  the  little 
"  endeavour "  to  be  for  many  hearts  a  real 
success. 

Some  of  the  suggestions  in  the  earlier  chapters 
on  "  the  personal  qualifications  for  the  ministry," 
I  have  given   in  a  previous  work.*     But   I  could 

*  "The  Model  Parish." 


Preface.  xiii 

not  help  repeating  the  substance  of  them  here. 
With  changing  years  our  ideas  on  many  subjects 
become  changed  or  modified.  But  as  to  the 
great  motives  for  Christian  Hfe  and  Christian 
work,  I  can  truly  say,  that  as  time  goes  on,  I 
only  feel  a  deeper  sense  of  their  necessity,  an 
increasing  desire  that  they  may  occupy  a  larger 
space  in  my  own  heart  and  the  hearts  of  my 
brethren. 

The  successive  chapters  in  this  book  were  pre- 
pared as  addresses  to  a  party  of  Divinity  students 
and  young  clergymen,  who  have  been  in  the  habit 
of  meeting  together  during  the  university  terms  at 
my  house.  Already,  almost  before  the  echoes  of 
the  spoken  words  have  died  away,  the  hearers  of 
them  are  scattered  abroad  in  many  parishes  and 
many  lands.  They  will  be  glad,  I  am  sure,  if  these 
pages  meet  their  eye,  to  be  reminded  of  happy 
evenings,  and  earnest  conversations  with  friends 
and  fellow-students,  when  our  hearts  burned  within 
us  as  we  "  took  sweet  counsel  together  "  concern- 
ing our  work  and  our  battle  for  our  Master.  As 
the  addresses  were  prepared  for  beginners  in  the 
ministry,  my  elder  brethren  will  excuse  their  con- 
taining suggestions  that  are,  perhaps,  to  riper 
experience,  too  obvious  to  need  mention.  Still, 
as  from  the  first  day  of  our  ministry  till  we  pass 


xiv  Preface, 


to  the  service  on  high,  we  have  all  essentially  the 
same  work  to  do,  the  same  Person  to  make  known, 
the  same  human  heart  to  deal  with  among  our 
people,  and  to  watch  over  with  ourselves,  I 
venture  to  hope  that  these  addresses  to  our 
younger  fellow-labourers  may  bring  some  help 
and  cheer  even  to  those  who,  like  myself,  have 
grown  grey  in  the  glorious  work. 

And  help  we  elder  ones  verily  need  after  all 
our  years  of  service.  If  time  makes  our  work 
easier  in  some  ways,  in  others  it  makes  it 
harder.  The  spiritual  vision  is  apt  to  grow 
dim,  and  spiritual  efforts  to  fall  into  routine. 
Practice,  indeed,  makes  it  easier  to  speak  and 
preach.  Long  experience  gives  judgment  in 
dealing  with  mankind  ;  but  the  fire  on  the 
altar  sometimes  burns  low,  the  smouldering 
embers  need  to  be  stirred  from  time  to  time, 
so  that  the  flame  may  burst  forth  again  with 
quickened  vigour,  and  souls  may  be  kindled  by 
the  glow  of  our  enthusiasm,  as  well  as  lives 
directed  by  our  maturing  wisdom. 

If  this  little  book  should  touch  the  heart  of 
some  toiling,  and  perhaps  weary,  fellow-labourer 
here  or  there,  and,  calling  attention  to  spirit- 
stirring  truths  long  known,  but  in  the  routine 
of  daily  life  rather  fading  out  of  notice,  should 


Preface.  xv 

rouse  it  to  a  fresh  start  of  happy  energy  in 
our  dear  Lord's  service,  the  author,  though  he 
may  never  on  earth  know  the  comrade  he  has 
helped,  will  thank  God  hereafter  for  such  a 
precious  crown  of  success. 

F.  R.  W. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE    JOY    OF    THE    MINISTRY. 

T7RIENDS  and  fellow-labourers, — My  object 
^  in  the  following  pages  is  to  help  you  in 
your  work.  I  want  to  show  you,  as  far  as  I 
can,  what  the  work  is,  the  qualifications  for  it 
the  difficulties  and  responsibilities  of  it,  and  the, 
best  way  of  carrying  it  out  with  vigour  and 
efficiency.  But  I  shall  occupy  this  preliminary 
chapter  in  speaking  of  the  joy  that  brightens 
the  toil  you  are  undertaking.  If  you  were  about 
to  guide  a  traveller  over  a  difficult  mountain 
pass,  you  might  wish  to  encourage  him  before- 
hand by  telling  him  of  the  pleasures  and  glories 
as  well  as  of  the  difficulties  of  the  walk  ;  and 
I  should  wish,  before  entering  into  the  considera- 
tion of  the  anxious  and  laborious  efforts  of 
ministerial  life,  to  cheer  you  by  a  short  descrip- 
tion   of  its   very    real    delight. 

Most  emphatically  I  declare  my  conviction  that 

1 


The  Joy  of  the  Ministry. 


he  who,  feeUng  himself  called  by  Providence  and 
the  Spirit  of  God,  undertakes  the  office  of  a  clergy- 
man in  the  Church  of  Christ,  undertakes  not  only 
a  good  but  a  delightful  work.  For  my  own  part, 
if  I  had  to  choose  again  a  hundred  times  my 
course  in  life,  I  should  choose  the  ministry.  It  is 
not  only  that  necessity  is  laid  upon  me — that  I 
should  have  to  say,  "  Woe  is  me  if  I  preach  not 
the  Gospel "-7— it  is  not  only  that  1  feel  my  Master's 
call  commanding  me,  and  the  needs  and  dangers 
of  my  brethren  pressing  on  me — it  is  not  only  that 
there  is  a  constant  impulse  and  instinct  urging  me 
(whether  I  like  it  or  not)  to  try  to  make  the  light 
of  the  glorious  Gospel  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
shine  more  brightly  on  human  hearts  amidst  the 
world's  darkness  and  sin  ;  but  it  is  also  that  I 
have  found  ministerial  work  so  full  of  interest  and 
joy,  that  every  other  employment  would  seem  dull 
in  comparison.  I  believe  there  is  no  profession 
where  the  drama  of  life  is  so  varied  as  in  the 
Christian  ministry.  There  is  in  it  constant  move- 
ment, thrilling  pathos,  breathless  interest.  Issues 
of  tremendous  importance  are  at  stake.  Work  of 
the  most  varied  kind  has  to  be  done.  Human 
nature  in  all  its  forms  and  aspects  has  to  be 
dealt  with.  Sympathy  and  companionship,  sweet 
brotherhood    and    sisterhood    in    labour,   brighten 


The  Joy  of  the  Ministry. 


all  its  action  ;  and  underneath  its  eager  and 
interesting  struggles,  its  passion  of  hope  and 
fear,  its  triumphs  of  success  and  catastrophes  of 
failure — underneath  all  there  is  deep  repose,  calm 
heart-satisfying  rest. 

Our  work  indeed,  as  I  hope  to  show  more 
fully  by-and-by,  is  work,  and  not  play.  We 
must  make  up  our  minds  for  real,  tough  unsenti- 
mental labour,  both  of  body  and  mind.  "  Preach- 
ing the  Gospel  "  is  a  very  sublime  thing  in  theory  ; 
but  a  young  clergyman  sitting  down  to  write 
his  sermon  when  ideas  won't  come,  and  the  sen- 
tences (no  matter  how  he  turns  them)  refuse 
to  express  his  meaning,  is,  like  a  schoolboy  at 
his  exercise,  almost  driven  to  tears.  And  there 
are  often  several  sermons  to  be  preached  in  a 
week  ;  and  there  are  rainy  days  ai;d  dirty 
lodgings,  and  long  trudges  through  mud  or 
snow  to  unsatisfactory  patients  ;  and  there  are 
long  stories  from  prosy  people  to  be  listened 
to  ;  and  there  are  critical  and  quarrelsome  pa- 
rishioners, and  troublesome  school-children,  and 
obstinate  and  ignorant  churchwardens,  and  domi- 
neering rectors,  or  (more  terrible  still  !)  rectors' 
wives,  and  uncongenial  fellow-curates,  and  huffy 
organists,  and  unmanageable  choir  singers.  Nc 
dreamy   bed   of    roses   is   a   clergyman's   position. 


The  Joy  of  the  Ministry. 


It  has  its  petty  worries  and  it  has  its  heavy 
toils.  And  "  the  sorrow  of  others  "  often  casts 
its  shadow  upon  his  life.  He  has  to  be  almost 
every  day  in  the  "house  of  mourning."  His 
blessed  office  is  to  bring  to  the  heavy-laden 
and  broken-hearted  consolation  from  his  Master. 
And  if  he  is  a  real  messenger  of  Christ,  if  he 
is  a  real  friend  and  brother  to  his  people,  and 
not  a  mere  machine  for  grinding  out  consolatory 
phrases,  his  own  heart  will  often  bleed,  as  he 
goes  to  comfort  his  brethren.  It  will  be  im- 
possible for  him  to  lighten  their  burden  without 
sharing  its  heaviness  himself  ;  and  often  will 
the    tears 

"  Rise  in  tlie  heart,  and  gather  in  the  eyes," 

as  he  thinks  of  the  weeping  faces  he  has  been 
looking  into,  and  the  sorrowful  stories  he  has 
been  listening  to,  and  the  bereaved  and  death- 
stricken   homes  he   has   been   visiting. 

Still,  notwithstanding  these  shadows  across  his 
path,  and  these  rough  places  on  his  road,  I 
maintain  that  the  pastor's  life  is  full  of  joy. 
Even  externally  its  work  has  much  pleasant- 
ness. In  the  country  there  are  the  walks  or 
rides  through  the  fresh  air,  as  you  go  from  cot- 
tage to  cottage.  In  one  you  sit  down  before 
the  fire,  and  father  and   mother,  young  men   and 


The  Joy  of  the  Ministry,  5 

maidens,  gather  round  to  speak  to  "  the  mini- 
ster," and  listen  to  his  words.  In  the  next 
your  visit  is  stiller  and  sadder,  but  with  a  touch- 
ing pathos  of  its  own.  You  are  brought  into 
the  little  back  room,  where,  on  the  bed,  covered 
with  its  patchwork  quilt,  there  lies  some  poor 
sufferer — a  fair  girl  perhaps,  with  the  bright 
eyes  and  hectic  flush  of  consumption  ;  or  the 
aged  grandmother,  with  grey  locks  and  wrinkled 
face,  stretching  out  her  thin  brown  hand  to  grasp 
3-ours  with  tremulous  eagerness  ;  or  the  father 
of  the  family — the  bread-winner — prostrate  with 
sickness,  but  grateful  for  your  visit,  and  anxious 
to  listen  to  your  message. 

Blessings  follow  you  as  you  leave  the  home 
where  the  simple  people  have  been  cheered  in 
their  sadness,  and  comforted  in  their  pain,  by 
prayer  and  "  the  ministry  of  the  Word." 

So  you  go  from  house  to  house  ;  sometimes 
shown  into  stiff  and  stuffy  parlours,  sometimes 
sitting  down  on  the  three-legged  stool  in  the 
cottage  or  cabin,  sometimes  paying  a  visit  in  the 
refined  atmosphere  of  the  country  gentleman's  or 
nobleman's  drawing-room,  sometimes  fighting  your 
way  through  barking  dogs  to  the  farmer's  door. 
So  you  go  on,  splashed  and  muddy  no  doubt, 
but  invigorated  in  body  by  exercise,  and  interested 


The  Joy  of  the  Ministry. 


in  heart  by  varied  spiritual  work  ;  and  as  you  re- 
turn in  the  quiet  evening,  the  calm  of  the  amber 
sunset  under  the  painted  clouds  harmonises  well 
with  the  glow  of  happy  thankfulness  which  floods 
your  heart  as  you  look  back  on  your  day's  work 
for  God  among  brethren   and  sisters. 

Each  pastoral  round  has  the  zest  of  a  walking 
tour.  Those  lanes,  how  pleasant  they  are  in 
summer,  with  their  garlands  of  wild  roses  and 
honeysuckle.  The  high  road  is  long  and  dusty, 
but  we  can  step  along  it  with  vigorous  strides, 
and  pause  from  time  to  time  to  chat  with  groups 
of  poor  but  hearty  friends  going  to  market,  or 
children  tripping  to  school.  Then  we  can  leave 
it  occasionally,  and  strike  across  the  fields,  and 
enjoy  the  repose  of  a  ramble  by  the  meadow 
banks,  and  the  excitement  of  a  voyage  of  dis- 
covery over  hedge  and  ditch.  And  in  the  wild 
moors  what  wealth  of  flowers  we  have  under 
our  feet  !  The  purple  butterwort,  the  starry 
asphodel,  the  aromatic  bog  myrtle,  "  banks  where 
the  wild  thyme  grows,"  and  forests  of  heather 
with  the  bees  busy  and  musical  in  their  blossoms. 
As  we  toil  over  these  many-coloured  plains,  and 
watch  the  soft  blue  hills  in  the  distance,  seeming 
to  float  over  the  aerial  haze  on  the  horizon, 
or  as  we  breast  the  shoulder  of  the  hill  to  reach 


The  Joy  of  the  Afinisliy. 


some  little  lonely  cottage  that  stands  with  its 
two  or  three  fir  trees  like  the  advanced  guard 
of  civilization  in  the  midst  of  rock  and  heather 
and  gorse,  how  many  trains  of  thought  are  we 
able  to  follow  out,  and  how  marvellously  are 
the  ideas  suggested  by  our  morning's  study  of 
books  enriched  and  enlarged  by  this  intimate 
"  converse  with  nature." 

Truly  if  in  after  years  we  are  called  by  the 
providence  of  God  to  work  for  Him  in  a  city, 
often  will  our  thoughts  go  back  with  yearnings 
akin  to  regret  from  the  narrow  streets  and  noisy 
thoroughfares  to  our  quiet  rambles  in  the  breezy 
and  wide-horizoned  country. 

But  even  in  the  city  the  joy  follows  us.  The 
trees,  the  meadows,  the  flowers  are  vanished,  but 
there  is  the  "  wealth  of  souls."  To  what  numbers 
of  immortal  beings  we  are  privileges  to  minister  | 
What  interesting  varieties  of  character  we  become 
acquainted  with !  Delightful  as  it  is  to  study 
the  beautiful  works  of  God  in  outward  nature, 
yet  it  must  ever  be  true  that  "  the  noblest  study 
for  mankind  is  man."  These  streets  that  at  first 
looked  so  dull  and  hard,  soon  come  to  have 
associations  for  our  minds  more  sweet  than  the 
fragrance  of  the  new-mown  hay,  more  beautiful 
than   the  tints   of   the   wayside   flowers.      In  that 


8  The  Joy  of  tJie  Ministry. 

gloomy  brick  house  there  is  a  group  of  merry 
children,  who  love  to  gather  round  us,  and  cling 
to  our  hands.  In  the  next  there  is  a  mourning 
family,  with  whose  tears  our  own  have  often 
mingled.  Here  a  dying  sufferer  lies,  with  the 
radiance  of  heavenly  peace  and  joy  on  the  wan 
face.  This  evening  light  comes  from  the  window 
of  an  earnest  student,  whose  spiritual  struggles 
we  have  shared,  and  whose  intellectual  difficulties 
we  have  helped  to  clear.  Here  is  the  buzz  o^ 
the  busy  school-house,  where  day  by  day  we 
teach  the  grand  truths  of  God's  revelation  to 
fresh  young  hearts. 

As  the  years  pass  by,  every  street  becomes 
linked  with  some  hallowed  memory.  Not  a  step 
can  we  take  in  our  district  without  being  reminded 
of  loved  and  valued  friends,  friends  who  have 
laboured  with  us  in  God's  work  ;  friends  whom 
we  have  been  enabled  to  guide  and  cheer  in 
the  battle  of  life  ;  friends  by  whose  bedside  we 
have  knelt  in  sickness,  and  whose  last  sighs  we 
have  received  in  death.  Verily  these  happy 
human  associations  make  the  wilderness  of  brick 
and  mortar  to  "  rejoice  and  blossom  as  a  rose." 

And  then  the  public  preaching  of  the  Word — 
it  has  its  difficulties,  its  anxieties,  we  might 
almost   say   its   agonies  ;  but  through  and  above 


J  he  Joy  of  the  Ministry. 


all,  has  it  not  its  joy  ?  Look  at  all  those  up- 
turned faces.  Think  of  the  immortal  spirits,  the 
infinite  destinies,  the  eventful  histories — histories 
of  joy  and  of  sorrow,  of  struggle,  success,  and 
failure — represented  by  each  one  of  them.  Look 
at  those  hard  countenances  softening,  those  gentle 
eyes  glistening,  those  children's  faces  beaming 
with  interest.  See  how  God's  message  can 
awaken  and  attract  and  touch.  Think  of  how 
the  words  He  has  given  you  to  speak  bring  into 
the  lives  of  these  listeners  elements  of  renovation, 
of  comfort,  of  hope,  of  strength.  As  you  see  the 
great  congregation  hushed  in  earnest  attention 
while  you  reason  with  them,  plead  with  them,  and 
declare  to  them  the  glad  tidings  of  your  embassy, 
is  there  not,  even  in  the  midst  of  your  anxiety 
and  consciousness  of  weakness,  is  there  not  a  joy 
vivid  and  intense,  like  the  mother's  joy  amidst 
her  labour  pangs  } 

But  above  all  other  joys  in  the  ministry  is  the 
joy  of  being  able  to  hope  that  you  have  won 
souls  for  Christ.  We  meet  with  much  dis- 
couragement indeed,  much  disappointment.  And 
when  we  consider  what  we  are,  is  it  any  wonder  } 
But  I  believe  that  every  earnest  minister  of  Christ 
is,  sooner  or  latter,  in  one  way  or  another,  blessed 
to  many  hearts.      And  it  is  often   given  to  him  to 


lo  The  Joy  of  the  Ministry. 

know  this  even  on  earth.  Sometimes,  and  in 
some  positions,  the  harvest  seems  rich.  And 
many  rise  up  to  thank  him  for  leading  them 
to  know  the  reality  of  their  own  sin,  and  the 
reahty  of  their  Saviour's  love.  Sometimes  the 
seed  seems  longer  underground,  or  seems  to  be 
most  of  it  carried  away  by  "  the  fowls  of  the  air." 
But  he  who  patiently,  laboriously,  and  prayer- 
fully strives  to  press  the  Gospel  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  home  to  men's  hearts  and  consciences, 
never  has  his  labour  in  vain  in  the  Lord.  And 
the  joy  of  success  in  this  work  of  ours  is  a  joy 
almost  awful  in  its  intensity.  You  have  been 
attending  for  weeks  at  some  bed  of  sickness  ;  the 
patient,  who  had  been  ignorant  and  downcast  and 
irritable  at  the  beginning,  has  been  first  soothed 
and  comforted  by  your  teaching,  then  awakened, 
enlightened,  led  to  know  and  trust  the  Lord 
Jesus,  and  is  at  the  close  of  the  solemn  season 
quietly  resting  on  the  Saviour's  love,  and  bowing 
to  the  Father's  will.  As  the  poor  wan  face 
lights  up  at  your  approach  ;  as  you  find  that 
your  visits  are  the  bright  spots  in  the  patient's 
long  day  ;  as  you  find  that  you  have  been 
the  means  of  bringing  to  that  soul  gladness  and 
peace  in  this  world,  and  a  sure  hope  for  eternity 
do   you    not  feel    a   joy    "  too   deep   for   tears "  \ 


The  Joy  of  the  Ministry.  1 1 

And  when  you  find  the  same  testimony  borne  by 
many,  both  in  sickness  and  in  health,  in  youth 
and  in  age  ;  when  it  is  expressed  by  the 
moistened  eye,  and  the  brotherly  grasp  of  the 
hand,  and  the  broken  and  agitated  words  ;  when, 
though  you  hardly  dare  to  believe  it,  it  is  brought 
home  to  your  heart  that  you  have  been  used  by 
the  Most  High  to  rescue  souls  from  sin,  to 
confirm  them  when  wavering  and  undecided,  and 
to  convey  to  them  the  precious  gift  of  everlasting 
life,  is  not  the  sense  of  honour  and  privilege 
almost  greater  than  you  can  bear  ?  Do  you  not 
cry  out,  "What  am  I,  O  my  Lord,  that  Thou 
shouldest  do  such  wondrous  things  by  my 
hand  ?  " 

This  joy  is  indeed  mingled  with  many  conflict- 
ing emotions.  If  some  souls  for  whom  you 
longed  have  been  won,  many  for  whom  you  have 
longed  equally  seem  still  among  the  erring  and 
straying.  And  while  people  are  thanking  you 
for  the  good  you  have  done  them,  you  feel  with 
shame  how  much  evil  there  is  in  yourself,  how 
much  lower  is  the  state  of  your  heart  and  life 
than  the  tone  of  your  words.  And  even  as  they 
praise,  you  feel  that  if  they  knew  all — all  the 
cowardice  and  indolence  and  inconsistency  that 
have  marred  the  very  efforts  for  which  they  are 


1 2  The  Joy  of  the  Ministry. 

thankful — not  praise,  but  reproach,  would  be 
your  portion.  Thus  you  sympathise  with  the 
poet's  aspiration — 

"  Pray  we  our  God  one  pang  to  send 

Of  deep  remorseful  fear 
For  every  smile  of  partial  friend  ; 
Praise  be  our  penance  here. " 

Still,  whatever  you  are  yourself,  to  have  souls 
won  for  Christ,  and  for  goodness  and  for  heaven, 
is  a  substantial  cause  for  gladness.  And  to  the 
Saviour  Himself  you  tell  the  secret  faults  that 
oppress  you  :  and  you  know  that  He  forgives  all 
the  sin,  and  accepts  all  the  service.  You  know 
that  He  loves  you  with  the  love  of  human 
brotherhood,  as  well  as  of  Divine  compassion. 
You  know  that,  as  you  go  out  to  your  daily  toil, 
you  have  His  constant  sympathy.  As  you 
hesitate  in  awkwardness  or  nervousness.  He 
sympathises  with  your  difficulty.  If  the  winged 
words  come,  and  you  are  able  to  speak  home  to 
brothers',  or  sisters'  hearts.  He  sympathises  with 
your  success. 

Your  work  is  a  work  for  Him  and  with  Him. 
He  sends  you  out,  and  He  goes  with  you.  He 
counts  you  not  His  servant,  but  His  friend.  He 
encourages  you  to  tell  Him  all  things.  He  loves 
you  when  you  get  on  well  in  your  work ;  and 
when  you  get  on  badly  He  loves  you  still.      Oh  ! 


The  Joy  of  the  Ministry.  1 3 

if  you  believe  He  is  really  what  the  Gospel 
declares  Him  to  be,  must  not  your  work  as  His 
messenger  be   steeped   in  joy  ? 

Often  your  imaginative  powers  are  too  feeble 
to  realize  the  happiness.  You  have  to  plod  on, 
doing  what  you  know  to  be  right,  saying  what 
you  know  to  be  true,  without  feeling  anything 
very  particular.  But  the  joy  is  there,  like  the 
music  of  a  rippling  stream,  sometimes  forgotten, 
sometimes  in  the  clatter  of  life  flowing  on 
unnoticed,  but  flowing  on  night  and  day  through 
cloud  and  sunshine  with  its  liquid  melody,  flowing 
on  ever.  So  your  joy  remains,  giving  a  sense  of 
rest  and  peace  amidst  the  varying  emotions  of 
the  heart.  You  are  trying  day  by  day  to  carry 
out  the  will  of  the  Master  who  is  dear  to  you. 
You  are  trying  to  be  of  real  use  to  brothers 
and  sisters  who  are  dear  to  you  too.  They  often 
appreciate  your  efforts  ;  He  always  does.  They 
cheer  you  often  with  their  spoken  sympathy  ;  His 
unuttered  and  unutterable  love  never  ceases. 
They  give  you  the  delightful  reward  sometimes  of 
letting  you  see  in  changed  and  elevated  lives  the 
fruit  of  your  labour  on  earth.  He  promises,  in 
spite  of  all  your  failures  and  mistakes,  that  "when 
the  chief  Shepherd  shall  appear,  you  shall  receive 
a  crown  of  glory  that  fadeth  not  away." 


CHAPTER   II. 

PERSONAL    QUALIFICATIONS    FOR  THE   MINISTRY: 
FAITH. 

T  N  order  to  do  a  thing  well,  it  is  of  primary 
-■-  importance  to  know  what  it  is  that  is  to  be 
done.  As  ministers  of  Christ's  Gospel,  what  have 
we  to  do  } 

Our  office  has  manifold  duties  ;  we  have  to 
comfort  the  sorrowful,  to  instruct  the  ignorant,  to 
stir  up  slumbering  consciences,  to  guide  and  direct 
earnest  inquirers,  to  encourage  and  stimulate 
people  of  all  kinds  in  holiness  of  life  ;  we  have 
to  administer  sacred  ordinances,  to  lead  the  worship 
of  the  assembled  people,  to  kneel  by  the  bedside 
of  the  sick  and  dying,  to  bury  the  dead.  But 
through  and  amidst  all  these  varied  offices  we 
have  one  great  duty.  It  is  to  make  known  God, 
as  He  has  been  revealed  in  Jesus  Christ,  to  cause 
Him  to  be  trusted,  lovedp  and  honoured  by  as 
many  as   we   can   in   any  way  reach   or  influence. 


Faith, 


15 


We  come  to  men  in  this  material  world  as  mes- 
sengers from  the  great  unseen  God.  Ambassadors 
for  Christ,  with  a  commission  from  Him,  with 
invitations  from  Him,  warnings  from  Him,  promises 
from  Him — such  is  our  awful  position. 

I.  It  is  plain,  then,  that  the  very  first  qualifi- 
cation for  our  work  must  be  faith  in  the  message 
we  have  to  deliver.  Though  we  should  speak 
with  the  tongues  of  men  and  angels,  if  we  did  not 
believe  what  we  were  saying,  it  would  be  better 
for  us  to  hold  our  peace.  Better  to  be  a  "  dumb 
dog "  than  a  hypocrite  or  an  actor.  No  man 
should  dare  to  stand  up  in  the  church  as  an 
ambassador  from  God,  unless  he  is  thoroughly 
convinced  of  the  truth  of  that  revelation  of  God 
which   we  call   "  the   Gospel." 

Some  young  clergymen  are  fond  of  parading 
what  they  call  "  honest  doubts."  They  think  that 
a  little  flavour  of  rationalism  is  a  sign  of  a  strong 
mind.  It  seems  to  me  to  be  neither  a  strong  nor 
an  honest  proceeding  to  take  pay  for  teaching 
what  you  are  not  sure  is  true.  A  man  may  feel 
much  hesitation  as  to  accepting  the  Gospel  records; 
his  mind  may  be  in  painful  suspense  between  evi- 
dence on  one  side  and  difficulties  on  the  other  ; 
he  may  have  this  conflict  and  wrestling  going  on 
within  him,  and  be  a  perfectly  sincere  and  earnest 


1 6  Personal  Qualifications : 

man.  But  while  such  a  state  of  suspense  lasts, 
he  is  unfit  to  be  ordained  as  a  preacher.  Let  him 
first  be  thoroughly  persuaded  in  his  own  mind. 
Let  the  difficulties  be  resolutely  faced,  grappled 
with,  wrestled  with.  When  they  are  overcome, 
the  man  will  be  all  the  stronger  to  teach.  He 
will  know  all  the  better  how  to  help  those  who 
are  in  mental  perplexity.  But  while  the  battle  is 
undecided,  though  the  combatant  may  do  his  duty 
and  pray  to  God,  and  trust  Him  in  heart  amidst 
intellectual  difficulties,  he  is  manifestly  unfit  to 
go  forth  among  his  brethren  as  a  herald  of  the 
Gospel. 

Let  me  make  myself  plain.  There  are  some 
men  who,  from  the  character  of  their  mental  con- 
stitution, will  always  be  liable  to  the  recurrence  of 
painful  doubts.  They  may  nevertheless  be  sincere 
and  earnest  believers.  The  very  fact  of  their  feel- 
ing Christ's  religion  to  be  the  hope  and  joy  of 
their  life  will  raise  up  ever  and  anon  morbid 
questionings  as  to  the  reality  of  the  foundation 
upon  which  all  that  they  hold  dear  depends.  But 
they  can  honestly  teach  what  they  know  to  be 
true,  although  shadows  of  constitutional  scepticism 
blur  and  dim  it  sometimes  to  their  own  vision. 
They  would  die  a  thousand  deaths  for  the  Gospel, 
though    it  sometimes  seems  to  their  anxious  and 


Faith,  1 7 


longing  hearts  as  if  it  were  only  a  beautiful  but 
unsubstantial  dream.  Again,  we  may  be  thorough 
believers  in  the  truth  of  God's  revelation,  and  yet 
retain  the  position  of  inquirers  all  our  lives. 
Every  man  whose  intellect  is  not  paralysed  or 
crusted  over  by  prejudice  must  retain  that  position. 
The  thoughtful,  active  mind  cannot  help  consider- 
ing and  weighing  every  idea  that  comes  before  it. 
And  as  we  advance  in  experience  and  in  large- 
ness of  knowledge  both  of  men  and  things,  and  as 
the  passionate  prejudices  of  youth  are  gradually 
left  behind,  our  convictions  on  many  points  are 
apt  to  be  modified.  Some  views  that  were  once 
cherished  with  eagerness  are  felt  to  be  exaggerated 
or  untenable.  As  we  rise  higher  in  power  of 
thought,  the  horizon  widens.  Things  that  used  to 
seem  large  diminish.  Things  in  heaven  and  earth 
that  were  not  dreamed  of  in  our  philosophy  gra- 
dually come  into  view.  The  perspective  changes 
with  the  point  of  vision.  But  the  great  convictions 
of  the  soul,  the  grand  lines  of  truth,  the  sky- 
reaching  mountains  on  their  eternal  foundations, , 
remain  unchanged.  The  earnest  thinker  has  the 
same  faith  as  the  little  child.  With  all  his  in- 
creased knowledge,  his  enlarged  and  enlarging 
ideas,  his  perception  of  old  mistakes  and  glimpses 
of   ne'v  vistas    into   truth,   he  still  says  with  the 

2 


1 8  Personal  Qualifications : 

same  fervour  as  he  said  it  at  his  mother's  knee, 
"  I  believe  in  God  the  Father  Almighty,  and  in 
Jesus  Christ  His  only  Son  our  Lord." 

II.  But  the  kind  of  faith  needed  for  our  work  is 
not  merely  the  conviction  of  the  understanding, 
but  more  especially  what  is  called  "heart-faith." 
Never  will  there  be  the  genuine  "ring"  in  our 
Gospel  preaching  till  we  have  felt  in  our  own 
spirits  the  thrill  of  the  good  news.  Nothing  has 
power  with  men  like  the  persuasive  force  that 
comes  from  personal  experience.  "  That  which 
we  have  seen  with  our  eyes,  which  we  have  looked 
upon,  which  our  hands  have  handled  of  the  word 
of  life,  that  declare  we  unto  you,  that  ye  may  have 
fellowship  with  us."  Here  was  the  spring  of  the 
Apostles'  energy,  and  one  of  the  secrets  of  their 
success.  They  spoke  not  about  matters  which 
they  theoretically  approved  of,  but  about  those 
which  they  had  actually  experienced.  The  same 
cause  gives  energy  still,  and  still  procures  success. 
If  the  sinfulness  of  man,  salvation  by  the  blood  of 
Christ,  and  the  offering  up  of  self  in  God's  service, 
if  these  are  with  you  only  theories,  you  may  preach 
orthodox  sermons,  and  be  admired  as  a  sound 
expositor  of  Scripture,  but  you  will  not  bring 
many  souls  to  the  Saviour.  There  is  something  in 
the  tone  of  personal   conviction   that   cannot  well 


Faith.  1 9 


be  imitated.  There  may  be  great  differences  in 
the  reHgious  history  of  different  persons.  Religious 
conviction  with  some  is  gradual,  growing  with 
their  growth,  and  strengthening  with  their  strength ; 
with  others  it  is  sudden  and  rapid,  bursting  out 
like  the  blaze  of  day  in  the  tropic  morning.  But 
however  this  may  have  been  with  you,  not  till 
there  has  been  the  wrestling  against  evil  in  your 
own  soul,  and  the  looking  up  amidst  the  strife 
and  conflict  to  the  loving  face  of  the  Saviour,  and 
the  relief  of  resting  your  soul  upon  Him,  and  the 
interesting  effort  to  please  Him  day  by  day,  not 
till  then  will  there  be  any  of  what  St.  Augustine 
calls   "  unctioji "   in   your   preaching. 

You  sometimes  hear  a  young  clergyman 
delivering  himself  of  a  sermon.  It  is  very  nice  ; 
every  word  of  it  is  true.  The  ideas  are  sensible, 
and  placed  together  in  very  suitable  order.  But, 
without  wishing  to  judge,  you  feel  instinctively 
that  the  sermon  will  do  nobody  any  good.  In 
fact ,  it  seems  hardly  meant  to  do  so.  It  seems 
meant  to  say  what  is  nice  and  proper,  and  what 
every  one  will  approve  of.  It  does  that,  and  it 
does  nothing  more.  Every  one  goes  away  saying, 
"  that  was  a  nice  sermon  of  Mr.  Green's,''  and 
every  one  forgets  all  about  it  before  he  reaches 
home.      But  a  year  afterwards  you  happen  to  hear 


20  Personal  Qualifications  : 

the  same  preacher  ;  you  can  hardly  believe  it  is 
the  same.  It  is  not  that  he  has  grown  cleverer. 
It  is  not  that  he  has  improved  in  the  art  of 
composition.  Perhaps  his  sentences  are  not  quite 
so  well  formed.  Perhaps  there  is  hardly  as  much 
fluency  and  self-possession  in  his  manner.  But 
now  he  preaches  like  a  man  who  is  in  earnest- 
He  has  something  that  he  wants  to  say,  and 
wants  to  say  it  as  strongly  and  as  warmly  as  he 
can.  He  is  looking  at  his  audience,  and  evidently 
wanting  them  to  think  of  something  and  feel 
something  ;  and  they  are  not  remarking  on  the 
propriety  of  his  demeanour  and  the  niceness  of 
his  sentences,  but  are  evidently  touched  and 
impressed  by  what  he  is  saying  to  them. 
Whence  comes  the  difference  }  What  has  made 
that  stiff  and  properly  conducted  young  gentle- 
man change  so  quickly  into  an  earnest  evangelist } 
How  comes  it  that  instead  of  being  like  a  big 
schoolboy  reading  his  carefully  prepared  "  theme," 
he  is  a  man  speaking  to  men,  and  really 
grappling  with  their  consciences  }  How  comes 
it  that,  instead  of  putting  together  orthodox 
doctrines  in  neatly  turned  sentences,  he  is 
speaking  with  living  words  of  a  living  Person, 
"  a   great   God   and   a    Saviour "  } 

The   answer   is    simple,       His    own    heart    has 


Faith.  1 1 

been  awakened  ;  he  has  learnt  to  know  and 
hate  his  own  sins.  He  has  felt  the  unreality 
and  hollowness,  the  mere  professionalism,  of  his 
life.  He  has  cast  himself  in  real  humiHation 
at  his  Saviour's  feet.  He  has  poured  out  to 
Him  the  confession  of  his  failures.  He  has  found 
the  sweet  rest  of  believing  in  His  pardon.  This 
experience  of  the  reality  of  Christ's  Gospel  in 
his  own  heart  gives  fervour  and  simplicity  and 
strength   to   his  teaching. 

Let  me  press  this  thought  home  to  the 
conscience  of  each  of  my  brothers  before  going 
farther.  You  have  to  preach  about  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  to  others.  Do  you  know  Him 
yourself.'*  Has  there  been  real  heart  dealing 
between  you  and  Him  }  When  you  come  as 
an  ambassador  of  God  to  awaken  the  careless, 
and  to  guide  anxious  inquirers,  and  to  comfort 
the  sorrowful,  will  you  be  able  to  speak  about 
a  Saviour  with  whom  you  have  become  ac- 
quainted by  personal  experience }  Is  not  this 
the  very  first  qualification  for  your  work — a  real 
living  faith  in  the  Person  whose  message  you  are 
to   bring   to  your  brethren  } 

HI.  And  faith  in  our  unseen  Lord  has  to 
be  the  permanent  habitual  attitude  of  our  own 
souls.      It   is     not   past   conviction,    but    present 


2 1  Personal  Qualifications  : 

conviction,  that  gives  life  to  our  words.  As  we 
speak  from  day  to  day,  and  from  month  to 
month,  of  the  solemnities  of  eternity  and  the 
comforts  of  our  Lord's  lovingkindness,  it  is 
absolutely  necessary  to  have  echoing  and  re- 
echoing within  us  the  consciousness,  "  It  is  all 
true  ;  what  I  am  saying  is  as  -real  as  my  own 
existence."  This  keeps  our  teaching  fresh  ; 
prevents  it  from  falling  into  the  *'  sing-song " 
of  an  oft-repeated  tale.  For  we  have  to  go 
on  continually  telling  the  "  old,  old  story." 
However  we  may  vary  the  way  of  putting  it, 
the  burden  of  our  teaching  must  be  the  same 
essential  truth.  If  we  have  not  our  Christian 
creed  to  tell  of,  we  have  no  special  message 
from  God.  But  we  do  not  tire  of  telling  it. 
We  tell  it  rather  with  ever-freshening  fervour, 
because  the  longer  we  live  on  it,  the  more  we 
feel  it  to  be  true.  And  as  we  tell  a  mortal  man 
that  the  eternal  God  loves  him,  and  that  his 
sins  have  been  borne  on  the  cross  of  Christ,  and 
that  the  incarnate  Saviour  at  God's  right  hand 
feels  for  him,  and  has  help  to  give  him  now,  and 
a  crown  of  glory  to  give  him  hereafter,  as  we 
tell  this,  and  know  that  we  are  saying  what  is 
profoundly  true,  is  there  not  in  our  very  words 
and  manner  a  fresh  glow  of  sympathy  with  each 


Faith.  2  3 

individual  to  whom  we  repeat  the  wonderful 
truth  ?  We  speak  with  ever-renewing  interest, 
because  we  speak  what  we  believe. 

But  there  is  no  doubt  that  much  spiritual 
exercise  is  needful  to  keep  up  this  ever  fresh, 
vivid  faith.  There  is  a  great  deal  in  our 
ministerial  work  that  tends  to  make  faith  dull. 
You  may  be  surprised  at  my  saying  this,  but 
I  am  sure  it  is  the  case.  A  religious  profession 
brings  with  it  dangers  to  religion.  We  are 
obliged  to  be  always  talking  religiously.  And 
though  this  talking  is  both  a  necessity  and 
a  duty,  it  is  a  snare.  Much  handling  takes  away 
the  bloom  of  the  fruit  and  the  freshness  of  the 
flower  ;  and  much  talking  about  the  Lord  Jesus 
and  His  love,  and  about  heavenly  hope,  and 
"  peace  and  joy  in  believing,"  may  easily  inter- 
fere with  the  simplicity  and  purity  of  these  very 
things  in  our  own  hearts.  The  devotion  of  a 
soul  to  its  unseen  Lord  is  a  delicate  flower.  It 
loves  shadow  and  quietness.  In  the  glare  of 
publicity  it  droops.  Draw  aside  the  shading 
leaves  of  humility  and  holy  reserve,  and  the 
lovely  colours  fade,  and  the  exquisite  fragrance 
departs.  So,  likewise,  as  you  go  about  from 
house  to  house  and  person  to  person,  speaking 
of  your  Saviour,  you  may  easily  be  led  to   speak 


24  Personal  Qualifications: 

rather  about  yourself  than  about  Him,  and  to 
lay  bare  to  others  thoughts  and  experiences  that 
ought  to  be  secrets  between  you  and  the  Beloved 
of  your  soul. 

Truly,  this  duty  of  religious  talking  is  fraught 
with  perils  to  our  deepest  spiritual   life.     And   if 
the  talking    may  easily  hurt  the  delicate  growth 
of  that   which   is   most   precious   within    us,  very 
easily  at  the  same   time   it    may  hide  the   injury 
from    our   observation.     We  may  be  deceived  by 
the   words   of   others,   but    no   words    have    such 
power   of  misleading   as   our  own.      However  we 
feel,  we    must    talk    earnestly.      It    is    manifestly 
our  duty   to  do    so ;  for   we   have    to    speak    of 
things   as   we   know    they    are,    and    not    as    we 
happen  to  feel  about  them  at  the  moment.     And 
when    we   have  been  preaching  or  speaking  with 
intensity  and   fervour,  how  hard  to  suppose  that 
we   could   be  slackening  in  our  own  interest  for 
the  things  about  which  we  have  been  so  eloquent  ! 
And  yet  such  a  calamity  is  quite  possible.     The 
praise  of  men,  the  desire  of  their  favour  or  ap- 
proval, may  have  been  insinuating  itself  between 
our  hearts  and  our  Lord.      His  will.  His  service, 
may   have  become    less    and    less    prominent    in 
our   minds ;    to    please    Him    less    and    less    the 
great    reward  sought  for  ;  and   all  the  time   His 


Faith.  25 


name  may  have  been  constantly  on  our  lips, 
spoken  of  always  with  the  deepest  enthusiasm. 
And  so  the  warmth  of  our  words  may  conceal 
from  our  conscience  the  dangerous  cooling  of 
our  hearts.  And  the  good  opinion  of  others 
carries  on  the  deception.  A  clergyman  who  is 
externally  laborious,  and  has  warmth  and  zeal 
of  manner,  is  almost  always  highly  thought  of 
by  his  people.  Ah  !  how  ready  they  are  to 
credit  us  for  infinitely  more  piety  than  we 
possess  !  Sometimes  it  terrifies  us  to  perceive 
on  what  a  lofty  pedestal  their  hero-worshipping 
imagination  has  placed  us.  And  there  is  great 
danger  that  through  our  folly  and  vanity  we 
should  take  ourselves  at  their  good-natured  es- 
timate. While  they  think  us  so  earnest  and 
self-devoted,  how  easy  to  glide  into  the  idea 
that  they  are  right !  While  they  give  us  their 
obsequious  and  reverential  "greetings  in  the 
market-place,"  how  natural  for  our  pharisee 
hearts  to  suppose  ourselves  the  saints  they 
consider  us !  They  see  nothing  of  our  mixed 
motives,  and  our  self-seeking,  and  our  world- 
liness,  and  our  heart  inconsistency,  and  hence  we 
may  pleasantly  forget  that  such  faults  exist.  On 
account  of  these  dangers  specially  besetting  the 
ministerial  office,  the  clergyman  needs  very  spe- 


26  Pei'soiial  Qualifications  : 


cially  to  stir  up  the  gift  that  is  in  him  by  close 
and  frequent  communion  with  the  Lord.  Above 
all  other  men  he  requires  faith  in  the  unseen 
to  give  vigour,  reality,  freshness  to  his  daily  and 
hourly  work.  His  work  is  speaking  God's  truth. 
It  must  not  be  spoken  in  mechanical  and  con- 
ventional language.  It  must  be  spoken,  if  it  is 
to  be  spoken  aright,  in  words  that  come  warm 
from  the  heart.  But  his  work  in  a  very  peculiar 
way  tends  to  chill  that  very  heart-warmth.  His 
only  remedy  and  safeguard  is  to  be  much  in 
the  secret  presence  of  the  Lord  Himself  There 
his  strength  will  be  renewed  "  like  the  eagle's." 
There,  in  that  holy  sanctuary,  the  live  coal  from 
the  altar  will  be  found  to  touch  his  lips,  and 
enable  him  to  speak  in  words  of  fire.  There, 
in  the  light  of  that  grand  countenance  he  is 
looking  into,  he  will  see  his  own  deficiencies, 
and  yet  see  continually  the  mercy  and  love  of 
which  he  is  to  be  the  herald.  There,  alone  with 
his  God,  he  can  consider  what  he  is  working 
for,  and  how  he  is  carrying  on  the  work.  The 
shadows  of  human  praise  and  earthly  reward 
will  shrink  into  their  true  insignificance.  The 
sublimity  of  the  truths  he  has  to  witness  to, 
the  preciousness  of  the  souls  he  has  to  win  and 
watch  over,  will  stand   out  in   their  real  import- 


Faith.  2  7 

ance  ;  while  at  that  unfailing  fountain  of  strength 
he  can  seek  and  find  continually  new  supplies 
of  grace  to  quicken  his  soul's  life,  to  increase 
his  faith,  to  warm  and  rouse  his  enthusiasm, 
and  to  vivify,  gladden,  and  refresh  all  his  spiritual 
energies. 


CHAPTER  III. 

QUALIFICATIONS    FOR    THE    MINISTRY: 
A    LOVING    SPIRIT. 

A  "\  7  HEN  we  considered  our  position  as 
'  '  messengers  from  God  and  ambassadors 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  we  felt  that  the  first 
quaHfication  for  our  work  must  be  earnest  heart- 
faith  in  Him  who  sends  us,  and  in  the  message 
we  have  to  deliver.  We  cannot  speak  of  Him. 
really,  unless  we  believe  thoroughly  in  what  we 
have  to  say  about  Him. 

But  as  surely  as  we  require  faith  in  Him  who 
sends,  so  surely  we  require  also  love  for  those  to 
whom  we  are  sent. 

"  God  so  loved  the  world,  that  He  gave  His 
only  begotten  Son."  "Jesus  Christ  loved  His 
church,  and  gave  Himself  for  it."  St.  Paul 
"  travails  in  birth  "  for  his  people,  till  Christ  be 
formed  in  their  hearts.      A  similar  spirit  should 


A  Loving  Spirit.  29 

be  in  every  one  who  comes  with  God's  message 
to  human  souls.  He  must  come  to  them  not 
only  with  God's  word,  but  with  something  (in  all 
reverence  be  it  spoken)  of  God's  love.  He 
comes  as  a  comforter,  as  a  helper,  as  a  herald  o^ 
good  news.  He  comes  to  persuade,  to  win,  and 
to  warn.  Can  he  effectually  come  on  such  an 
errand  if  he  does  not  care  for  those  to  whom 
he  comes } 

His  mission  is  a  most  delicate  one.  He  has 
often  to  hear  heart-secrets  poured  out ;  he  has  to 
be  present  in  the  sacred  hour  of  sorrow  ;  when 
any  one  else  would  be  counted  an  intruder,  he 
has  to  be  as  God's  messenger  of  comfort  in  the 
desolate  home  ;  he  has  to  stand  with  the  husband 
beside  his  dying  wife  ;  he  has  to  hold  the  poor 
mother's  hand  while  the  body  of  her  dead  child 
is  lying  cold  and  white  upon  the  bed  ;  he  has  to 
still  the  wail  of  the  fatherless,  and  to  lead  the 
desolate  widow  to  Him  who  alone  can  support 
and  uphold  her  now.  How  vain  for  any  one 
to  fill  such  an  office,  whose  heart  is  not  made 
sensitive  and  delicate  by  the  refining  power  of 
real  love !  If  you  do  not  care  for  the  people 
to  whom  you  minister,  you  might  as  well  stay- 
away,  and  not  disturb  and  weary  them  with  your 
official    interference.       If   you  have    no   love    for 


Qualifications  for  the  Ministry  : 


them,  you  have  no  real  ministry  to  offer  them  ; 
better   not   mock   them    with  a  counterfeit. 

There  are  some  clergymen  who  pride  them- 
selves on  being  "  faithful  ; "  but  there  is  a 
hardness  about  their  tone,  a  self-sufficiency  and 
want  of  sympathy  that  makes  their  ministry 
disagreeable  and  useless.  How  easily  we  picture 
to  ourselves  this  fussy  loud-voiced  parson,  very 
decided  and  dogmatic  in  his  sermons,  very 
"  clear "  in  his  testimony  against  what  he  calls 
error,  very  scathing  in  his  denunciations  of  every- 
body's sins,  very  diligent,  but  very  detestable  ; 
making  you  cringe  when  you  listen  to  him,  and 
slip  away  when  you  see  him  coming,  making  you 
long  to  contradict  everything  he  says,  making 
even  the  most  sacred  truth  sound  odious  in  his 
mouth.  Everybody  says  he  is  a  very  good  man, 
but  everybody  feels  he  is  a  very  objectionable 
man.  And  he  is  utterly  unfit  for  the  ministry  of 
the  Gospel  ;  for  he  lacks  that  which  is  the 
mainspring  of  the  whole  Gospel,  the  spirit  of  love. 
He  is  "  playing  Hamlet  with  the  part  of  Hamlet 
left  out." 

May  I  venture  to  hint  that  young  clergymen 
often  fail  sadly  on  this  important  point }  New 
to  themselves,  new  to  their  office,  they  are  sorely 
tempted    to    be    self-occupied,    to    be    busied    in 


A  Loving  Spirit.  31 

thinking  of  their  own  dignity  or  their  own 
position,  rather  than  of  the  souls  of  the  people 
to   whom   they   are   sent. 

We  all  know  the  manner  of  a  youth  who  has 
just  been  put  into  his  tailed  coat.  He  cannot 
forget  his  accession  of  dignity.  Wherever  he 
goes,  whatever  he  does,  he  is  manifestly  conscious 
of  the  solemn  appendage  that  he  carries  behind 
him. 

Is  it  too  much  to  say  that  you  are  often 
reminded  of  this  by  a  certain  mannerism  that 
hangs  about  young  clergymen  }  Is  it  their 
beautifully-cut  clerical  clothes  and  the  starch  of 
their  clerical  stocks  that  stiffen  their  words  and 
looks  1  No,  it  is  something  from  within,  not 
from  without.  It  is  the  thought  of  self.  Their 
new  office  brings  an  accession  of  self-con- 
sciousness. They  have  not  entered  the  ministry 
exactly  from  sordid  motives,  nor  entirely  without 
thought,  and  prayer,  and  desire  to  do  their  duty 
conscientiously  ;  but  they  have  not  entered  it 
from  any  real,  yearning  love  for  souls  ;  they  have 
not  been  impelled  to  it  by  any  enthusiasm  for 
their  Master's  service  ;  there  has  been  no  earnest 
purpose  to  go  and  spend  and  be  spent  for  their 
Lord  among  those  He  wants  to  have  as  "  the 
travail  of  His  soul."      They  have  only  gone  into 


32        Qualifications  for  the  Ministry: 


the  ministry  as  a  suitable  and  respectable  pro- 
fession, and  so  they  are  mere  professional  men,  and 
carry  with  them  the  egotism  and  self-importance 
of  young  professionals.  And  their  chief  thought 
about  their  work  is,  "  How  am  I  behaving  ?  how 
do  I  impress  people  ?  how  do  I  look  ?  how  do  my 
words  sound  ? "  rather  than,  "  How  can  I  help 
these  men  and  women  ?  what  good  can  I  do  them  ? 
what  comfort  can  I  bring  them  ?  with  what  hope 
and  strength  and  courage  can  I  inspire  them  ? " 

Take  it  as  an  axiom  that  you  cannot  help  where 
you  do  not  love.  But  how  are  we  to  love  ?  It 
is  easy  to  like  nice  people,  amiable,  interesting, 
and  attractive  people.  Thank  God  we  do  meet 
many  such.  There  is  not  a  parish,  there  is  hardly 
a  family,  where  there  are  not  some  individuals 
whom  we  could  not  help  being  interested  in. 
You  are  sent  down  to  some  out-of-the-way  neigh- 
bourhood ;  you  intend  to  do  your  duty,  but  you 
expect  to  be  rather  lonely  and  friendless.  You 
are  not  there  many  weeks  before  you  are  surprised 
to  find  that  you  have  already  several  close  friends. 
Some  of  them  may  be  in  your  own  class  of  life  ; 
some  of  them  among  the  poor  and  uncultured. 
But  they  are  people  full  of  intelligence,  with  warm 
hearts,  with  genial  manners,  with  ready  and  re- 
sponsive  sympathy.       It  is     pleasant   to   talk   to 


A  Loving  Spirit.  33 

them,  pleasant  to  look  into  their  kindly  faces, 
pleasant  to  remember  afterwards  your  conversa- 
tions together,  and  perhaps  your  prayers  together. 
I  have  been  in  a  great  many  different  parishes,  in 
the  north  and  in  the  south,  in  the  country  and  in 
the  city,  among  "  the  aristocracy,"  among  the  poor 
and  among  the  middle-classes  ;  and  in  every  place 
where  I  have  been,  and  among  all  classes,  I  have 
met  delightful  friends, — people  whom  it  was  a  joy 
to  know  and  have  intercourse  with  at  the  time, 
and  to  look  back  upon  whom,  through  the  long 
perspective  of  bygone  years,  and  to  think  of  whose 
brotherly  or  sisterly  friendship  is  still  a  deep  and 
real  joy,  and  will  be,  I  am  sure,  "a  joy  for  ever." 
It  is  easy  to  be  fond  of  such  people.  But  there 
are  (it  must  be  confessed)  numbers  of  people  who 
to  our  natural  tastes  are  not  attractive.  Indeed, 
we  cannot  conceal  from  ourselves  that  they  are 
tiresome,  uninteresting,  and  even  repelling.  And 
as  long  as  they  appear  to  us  in  this  light,  our 
ministry  is  very  unlikely  to  help  them.  How  are 
our  hearts  to  be  warmed  to  the  "  uninteresting 
people  "  }  How  are  we  to  learn  to  love  them,  so 
that  we  may  come  to  them  in  public,  in  private,  in 
prosperity,  in  adversity,  as  messengers  from  the 
pitiful  Father  and  the  tender  Saviour } 

I.  Feeling  that  we  are  se7it  to  them  helps  us  to 

3 


34       Qualifications  for  the  Ministry  : 


care  for  them.  There  is  an  instinct  in  our  hearts 
by  which  anything  particularly  connected  with 
ourselves  assumes  in  our  eyes  a  particular  interest- 
Why  is  it  said  that,  be  it  ever  so  lowly,  there  is 
"  no  place  like  home  "  ?  Because  it  is  your  own. 
Your  own  friends,  your  own  family,  live  there  ; 
your  own  occupations,  joys,  and  sorrows  cluster 
around  it.  Sweeter  than  trellices  of  honeysuckle 
and  rose  are  the  memories  that  cover  it  with  their 
tender  associations:  It  is  not  brick  and  mortar, 
wood  and  stone,  that  you  see,  but  the  centre  of 
infinite  affections  and  innumerable  interests.  Even 
the  prosaic  uniformity  of  the  dull  street-dwelling 
is  turned  into  poetry  by  the  magic  word  "  my 
own."  And  when  a  set  of  people  become  by  God's 
providence  your  own  flock,  must  they  not  be  in- 
vested for  you  with  an  infinite  interest }  I  do  not 
say  that  this  is  the  highest  motive  for  caring  for 
them  ;  but  in  its  place  and  its  degree  it  is  real  and 
natural.  "  These  are  my  people.  God  has  given 
them  to  me  to  take  care  of.  My  employments, 
my  most  earnest  efforts,  my  joys  and  sorrows,  are 
to  be  associated  with  them.  Must  they  not  have 
a  very  special  place  in  my  heart  t  Each  one  of 
them  has  been  entrusted  to  me  to  win  for  Christ, 
or  to  keep  for  Christ.  In  some  very  real  sense 
each  will  be  required  at  my  hand."      Can  you  look 


A  Loving  Spirit.  35 

on  your  parishioners  thus  without  feeling  a  strong 
link  between  your  heart  and  theirs  ? 

2.  Remind  yourself  also  of  the  infinite  destiny 
before  each  parishioner.  That  dull  old  farmer, 
whose  talk  is  of  bullocks  ;  that  still  duller  old 
woman,  whose  talk  is  of  her  own  diseases  ;  that 
dried-up  spinster,  most  tiresome  of  all,  whose  talk 
is  of  her  enemies  and  of  her  ill-usage  ;  that  awk- 
ward and  coarse-looking  young  man,  who  can  talk 
about  nothing  at  all — has  not  every  one  of  these 
an  immortal  soul  ?  Is  there  not  opening  out  before 
each  a  vista  of  unending  glory,  or  a  tragedy  of 
ruin  and  misery  too  terrible  to  contemplate  ?  Can 
you  think  of  these  awful  alternatives,  these  tre- 
mendous issues,  without  a  yearning  of  love  and 
longing  ?  Can  there  be  anything  really  dull  or 
commonplace  about  a  life  on  which  hinges  an 
eternal  destiny  ?  Is  there  not  an  infinite  pathos 
or  an  infinite  grandeur  about  these  apparently 
uneventful  histories,  in  each  of  which  a  decision 
has  to  be  made,  whose  results  will  never  end  ? 
How  can  I  influence  that  decision  ?  What  part 
can  I  take  in  the  solemn  drama  of  that  man's  or 
that  woman's  momentous  existence  ?  In  the  pre- 
sence of  such  a  question,  does  not  my  first  impres- 
sion of  dulness  and  lack  of  interest  with  regard  to 
these   people   seem  childish  and    shallow  ?     The 


36       Qualifications  for  the  Ministry  : 

habit  of  thus  contemplating  all  men  and  women 
as  on  their  probation  for  eternity  tends  greatly  to 
correct  that  superciliousness  and  superficiality  of 
youthful  judgment  with  which  we  are  apt  to  begin 
our  dealings  with  our  fellow-creatures.  "  In  me," 
says  the  poet,  who  had  long  been  an  earnest 
student  of  nature, 

"  The  meanest  flower  that  blows 
Awakens  thought  that  often  lies  too  deep  for  tears." 

Does  not  the  student  of  that  grandest  branch 
of  nature,  humanity,  find  a  like  depth  of  interest 
in  the  plainest  and  commonest  human  being.?  Or. 
rather,  does  he  not  learn  to  look  on  no  human 
being  as  "  common".?  The  blue  of  the  "  forget- 
me-not,"  the  gold  of  the  buttercup,  the  graceful 
droop  of  the  harebell,  what  are  these  in  comparison 
to  the  interest  that  lies  behind  the  most  coarse  or 
wrinkled  face,  which  bears  upon  it  the  traces  of  sin 
conquered,  or  sin  committed,  and  carries  with  it 
the  prophecy  of  an  eternity  in  heaven  or  in  hell  1 

3.  Read  the  description  of  St.  Paul's  feelings 
for  the  people  among  whom  he  labours,  and  his 
example  will  help  to  stir  and  kindle  your  affec- 
tions. "  My  little  children,  for  whom  I  travail  in 
birth  till  Christ  be  formed  in  your  hearts."  "  I 
ceased  not  to  warn   every  one  of  you  night  and 


A  Loving  Spirit.  37 


day  with  tears."  "  We  were  gentle  among  you, 
even  as  a  nurse  cherisheth  her  children."  "  We 
were  willing  to  have  imparted  unto  you,  not  the 
Gospel  of  God  only,  but  also  your  own  souls, 
because  you  were  dear  unto  us."  Would  it  not  be 
well  often  to  study  such  expressions,  and  then  to 
ask  the  conscience,  Could  I  honestly  speak  thus  t 
Is  this  the  spirit  in  which  I  am  labouring  .!*  Is 
there  in  my  heart  anything  of  this  travailing  in 
birth  for  my  people,  this  almost  anguish  of 
yearning,  this  readiness  to  spend  and  be  spent  for 
them,  no  matter  how  they  feel  towards  me  ;  this 
willingness  to  impart  to  them  even  my  own  soul, 
in  my  absorbing  desire  to  do  them  good  t 

4.  But  the  great  power  for  stirring  love  to  man 
in  our  hearts  is  the  thought  of  our  Saviour's  love. 
If,  by-and-by,  when  you  go  to  your  parish, 
you  are  tempted  to  be  indifferent  and  cold 
about  your  people,  inclined  to  go  your  rounds 
of  visiting,  teaching,  and  preaching  as  a 
matter  of  routine,  a  duty  that  must  be  done, 
then  remember  how  the  Lord  Jesus  took  upon 
Him  the  form  of  a  servant,  and  humbled  Himself 
to  the  death  of  the  cross,  for  these  very  people. 
Ah  !  remember  first  how  He  loved  you,  and  gave 
Himself  for  you.  Think  of  how  He  has  borne  with 
all  your  folly  and  selfishness  and  mixed  motives, 


38       Qualifications  for  the  Ministry  : 

and  yet  how  He  loves  you  still,  and  condescends  to 
use  you.  Then  think  how  He  came  to  seek  and  to 
save  these  people.  He  loves  them,  He  died  for 
them,  He  thinks  of  them,  and  pleads  for  them. 
Can  what  He  loves  be  indifferent  to  you  }  Does 
not  the  example  of  His  self-sacrificing  kindness 
make  you  ashamed  of  your  selfish  coldness  t 
Must  you  not  feel  it  a  privilege  to  devote  your 
affectionate  care  to  those  for  whom  He  died  ?  Is 
not  the  chief  Shepherd  "  going  before  you,"  lavish- 
ing among  the  poor  feeble  sheep  the  most 
exquisite  tenderness  }  Are  you  not  drawn  irresist- 
ibly to  follow  in  His  steps,  to  go  out  and  try  to 
help  and  tend  every  member  of  your  flock  with 
something  of  that  patient,  tender,  thoughtful, 
special  care  with  which  He  treats  both  yourself 
and  them  t 

5.  But,  with  all  our  efforts,  we  cannot  altogether 
command  our  emotions.  The  will  is  indeed  a 
monarch  in  that  inward  realm  of  feeling  ;  but  his 
monarchy  is  a  constitutional  monarchy,  and  his 
authority  is  limited  by  mental  and  physical  laws. 
But  in  the  reign  of  action^  the  will  has  a  more 
dictatorial  sway.  I  cannot  make  myself  feel  thus 
or  thus,  but  I  can  make  myself  act  thus  or  thus. 
And  the  execution  of  a  command  in  the  outer  and 
more  subject  realm  often  causes  it  to  be  obeyed  in 


A  Loving  Spirit.  39 

the  inner.  Therefore  in  order  to  cultivate  loving 
feelings  towards  those  amongst  whom  we  minister, 
it  is  of  great  importance  to  practise  amongst  them 
loving  acts.  You  cannot  get  yourself  all  at  once 
to  feel  fond  of  that  tiresome  old  woman,  but  you 
can  listen  patiently  to  her  story  ;  you  may  speak 
a  kindly,  sympathising  word  to  her  ;  you  may 
put  yourself  out  of  your  way  to  do  her  some  good. 
I  know,  indeed,  that  love  is  a  thing  that  cannot 
be  counterfeited.  As  it  is  itself  the  most  beau- 
tiful of  graces  so  the  imitation  of  it  is  the  most 
■hideous  of  affectations.  Do  not  pretend  to  love 
people  whom  you  do  not  care  for.  Do  not  try  to 
put  love  in  your  manners  and  in  your  looks,  when 
it  is  absent  from  your  heart.  The  roughest  words  or 
ways  are  hardly  so  odious  as  "  oily  manners  "  and 
"greasy  smiles."  Be  frank,  straightforward,  real. 
Be  yourself,  whatever  you  are.  But  try  to  get  rid 
of  your  selfishness  in  act  and  word,  and  that  will 
go  far  to  banish  it  from  your  feelings.  As  you 
endeavour  to  speak  kindly,  which  you  know  is 
your  duty,  and  to  do  whatever  is  in  your  power, 
which  is  your  manifest  duty  also,  the  kindliness  of 
feeling  will  grow.  It  is  your  duty  to  love  those 
souls  whom  Christ  has  committed  to  your  charge- 
But  it  is  your  duty  also  to  speak  to  them  with 
sympathy.      It  is  your  duty  to  put  aside  the  sub- 


40        Qualifications  foj^'  the  Ministry, 

jects  that  are  occupying  your  own  thoughts  so  as 
to  give  them  your  full  attention.  It  is  your  duty 
to  give  them  your  time,  your  labour,  your  trouble. 
As  you  try  to  perform  these  external  duties,  which 
are  within  your  power,  day  by  day,  to  all  sorts  of 
people,  you  will  find  it  easier  to  fulfil  the  deeper 
duty  in  the  heart.  Kindly  acts  will  help  the  growth 
of  kindly  feelings  ;  and  then  the  growing  love  will 
make  the  loving  words  and  deeds  more  easy,  more 
natural,  more  effectual.  In  a  word,  pray  that  you 
may  feel  the  sacred  bond  that  unites  you  to  your 
flock  ;  pray  that  you  may  realise  the  preciousness 
and  infinite  value  of  immortal  souls,  and  that  the 
sense  of  Christ's  love  towards  yourself  and  towards 
your  fellow-sinners  may  be  shed  abroad  in  your 
heart ;  and  then  go  on  your  way  looking  into  the 
faces  of  your  people,  grasping  them  with  the  hand 
of  brotherly  cordiality,  visiting  their  homes  both 
in  joy  and  in  sorrow,  speaking  your  message  of 
comfort  or  of  warning  home  to  their  hearts. 
Praying  thus,  and  acting  thus,  it  will  be  strange  if 
you  do  not  find  a  warmer  love  springing  up  in 
your  heart  towards  the  people  for  whom  you  pour 
out  your  prayers,  and  among  whom  you  daily  and 
hourly  labour. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE    WARRIOR    SPIRIT. 

T  N  the  great  world-wide  battle  between  good 
-■-  and  evil  the  minister  of  God  has  to  act  as 
a  leader.  He  is  to  be  "  gentle  to  all  men,  apt 
to  teach,  patient,"  but  he  has  also  to  quit  himself 
like  a  man  and  to  be  strong.  There  are  many 
who  imagine  they  would  like  the  clerical 
profession,  because  it  would  secure  them  a  quiet 
and  easy  kind  of  life.  They  think  of  a  pretty, 
peaceful  country  parsonage,  and  picture  to  them- 
selves the  parson  spending  his  days  there  between 
learned  leisure  and  quiet  visits  to  old  women,  who 
curtsey  at  his  approach.  Very  different  from 
this  pastoral  dream  is  the  real  clergyman's  real 
life.  Quiet  enough  outwardly  it  may  be,  but 
wherever  it  is  lived  earnestly  it  is  the  opposite 
of  easy.  Each  day's  work  is  a  campaign.  Each 
ministerial  effort  is  the  storming  of  an  enemy's 
stronghold.      The  pastor  goes  among  his  people 


42  The   Warrior  Spirdt, 

with  the  tenderest  love  and  sympathy,  and  yet  he 
has  to  go  "  armed  to  the  teeth."  Always  he  has 
to  be  "  very  courageous/'  and  sometimes  he  has 
to  be  as  one  of — 

"Those  who  clench  their  nerves  to  rush 
Upon  their  dissokition." 

He  has  to  carry  a  vigorous  war  into  an  enemy's 
country.  For  he  comes  as  an  envoy  from  the 
holy  God  to  stir  up  his  brethren,  to  rouse  and 
urge  them  onward  in  the  daily  and  hourly  conflict 
with  evil. 

This  involves  speaking  often  what  the  listeners 
do  not  like  to  hear.  He  has  to  reprove  and 
rebuke  as  well  as  to  comfort.  He  cannot  be 
a  flatterer  or  a  mere  speaker  of  "  smooth  things." 
Though  he  will  shrink  with  the  courtesy  of 
a  {gentleman  and  the  tenderness  of  a  Christian 
from  unnecessarily  hurting  the  feelings  of  another, 
yet  he  will  often  feel  it  an  imperative  necessity 
to  say  what  will  give  pain.  Sometimes  in  his 
doctrinal  teaching  he  will  have  to  go  against  the 
current  of  popular  or  fashionable  opinion.  Some- 
times he  will  have  to  speak  plainly  to  a 
member  of  his  congregation  about  a  special  sin. 
Sometimes  in  the  little  politics  of  the  parish  he 
will    have   to  take   part   against   the    great   man, 


The    Warrior  Spirit.  43 

or,  more  awful  still,  the  great  lady  of  the  place. 
Straightforwardness,  directness,  truth,  and  justice 
must  be  stamped  on  all  his  dealings.  And  these 
qualities  will  bring  him  from  time  to  time  into 
collision  with  one  and  another  of  his  flock.  The 
clergyman  is  the  servant  of  his  people,  and  as 
such  he  has  to  be  humble,  gentle,  and  self- 
forgetting  ;  but  he  is  also  their  teacher,  and  to 
a  certain  degree,  and  within  a  certain  sphere, 
he  is  their  ruler,  and  he  must  use  his  authority 
with  dignity  and  determination.  He  must  speak 
what  he  believes  to  be  the  truth,  whether  men 
hear  or  whether  they  forbear.  He  has  to  do 
what  he  considers  to  be  right,  wise,  just,  and 
expedient,  whether  they  approve  or  disapprove. 
A  weak,  undecided  clergyman,  who  is  afraid  of 
a  frown  or  of  a  sneer,  or  of  the  pious  shaking  of 
an  old  woman's  head,  is  in  a  pitiable  position. 

Differences  of  opinion  among  his  parishioners 
on  various  ecclesiastical  subjects  will  most  pro- 
bably arise.  And  the  rector  or  curate  will  be 
eagerly  expected  by  both  parties  to  take  their 
views  of  the  matter.  And  "  Surely,"  Lady 
Orthodox  will  exclaim,  "  he  could  not  agree 
with  those  fearfully  lax  and  dangerous  opinions." 
And  "  Surely,"  Mr.  New-Light  thinks,  "  it  would 
be  impossible  for  an  educated   man  to  hold  such 


44  The   Warrior  Spirit. 

antiquated  notions."  And  "  Surely,  surely," 
groans  Mrs.  Goodbody,  "  the  world  cannot  have 
come  to  such  a  pass  that  a  clergyman  should 
^\MQ.  his  consent  to  such  new-fangled  practices." 
And  the  Rev.  Mr.  Please-all  is  in  a  state  of 
distraction.  For  no  matter  what  side  he  takes, 
or  what  he  teaches,  or  what  he  does,  some  one 
will  be  scandalized,  and  some  influential  people 
offended  at  the  line  he  has  chosen.  And  so  he 
chooses  nothing.  He  vacillates  miserably  from 
one  side  to  another.  No  one  knows  what  he 
believes,  or  what  he  purposes  to  do.  No  one 
knows,  and  very  soon  no  one  cares ;  for  he  is 
soon  felt  to  be  a  cypher.  There  is  influence 
belonging  to  the  office,  but  if  there  is  net  a  man 
in  the  office,  if  there  is  in  it  only  a  lay  figure 
hung  over  with  the  varying  opinions  of  others, 
or  a  puppet  to  be  pulled  hither  and  thither  by 
the  grand  people  or  by  the  good  people  of  the 
parish,  the  influence  passes  away  as  completely 
as  does  the  power  of  frightening  from  an  old 
scarecrow  to  which  the  birds  have  grown 
accustomed. 

To  do  our  duty  in  public,  therefore,  and  to 
take  our  proper  place  among  those  over  whom 
we  have  been  appointed  teachers  and  watchmen, 
requires   some   manly   boldness.     We   must  our- 


The   Warrior  Spirit.  45 

selves  know  what  we  believe,  we  must  make  up 
our  minds  what  line  of  action  is  really  the  best  ; 
and  then  we  must  stand  like  soldiers  to  our 
colours,  and  neither  be  ashamed  of  the  views 
which  we  believe  to  be  true,  nor  of  the  course  of 
conduct  which  we  judge  to  be  right. 

In  private,  too,  we  have  to  take  our  stand 
in  the  same  spirit  of  holy  boldness.  Each 
day's  work,  if  done  effectually,  must  be  done 
courageously.  There  is  always  a  temptation  to 
shrink  from  the  real  difficulty  of  our  duty.  We 
are  ready  enough  to  go  and  pay  a  visit  or  speak 
to  a  parishioner,  and  say  the  nice  things,  the 
proper  things,  we  are  expected  to  say.  And 
then  we  go  on  our  way,  laying  the  sweet  unction 
to  our  soul  that  we  have  done  our  duty  ;  we 
have  paid  our  visit,  we  have  spoken  piously  :  and 
all  the  time  we  secretly  know  that  we  have  not 
come  to  close  quarters  with  the  man's  spirit  at 
all.  Ah  !  is  there  no  voice  to  whisper  in  our 
conscience,  "  Coward !  coward  !  You  have  pre- 
tended to  do  your  duty,  but  you  have  not  had  the 
manliness  to  do  it  really.  You  were  afraid  of 
looking  the  man  straight  in  the  face,  and  speaking 
to  him  soul  to  soul.  You  have  really  done  him 
harm  instead  of  good  ;  you  have  left  him  with 
the   idea   that  listening   to   your   pious  talk   was 


46  The   War^rior  Spirit, 


some  kind  of  pious  act,  something  to  be  put  to 
the  credit  of  his  spiritual  account  ;  you  have  not 
sent  one  arrow  of  conviction  home  to  his  heart ; 
you  have  not  shaken  him  in  the  slightest  degree 
out  of  his  fatal  self-satisfaction  and  slumber  of 
conscience  ;  you  were  afraid  to  do  so,  afraid  of 
its  being  disagreeable  and  awkward  to  yourself  to 
startle  or  distress  him,  or  go  outside  the  routine 
expressions  of  religion." 

It  is  necessary,  then,  to  be  "  very  courageous," 
in  order  to  do  real  ministerial  work  ;  and  in  order 
to  be  courageous  it  is  necessary  not  only  to  think 
about  courage,  but  to  practise  it.  There  are  in 
our  daily  work  many  petty  temptations  to  turn 
and  flee.  We  must  steadfastly  resist  them.  We 
must  make  it  a  matter  of  principle  never  to  be 
satisfied  with  half  measures  when  whole  measures 
are  our  duty,  never  to  let  ourselves  stay  silent 
when  we  ought  to  speak,  never  to  allow  ourselves 
to  say  pleasant  things  instead  of  true  things, 
never  to  shrink  from  a  conversation  or  interview 
because  it  is  disagreeable  or  awkward.  We  must 
cultivate  the  soldier  spirit.  Promptitude  and 
steadiness  in  obeying  orders  should  be  like 
a  second  nature  to  us.  One  question  only  must 
decide  all  our  movements — what  is  my  duty  } 
What  is  my  great  Captain  commanding  me  to 
do? 


The    Wam'ior  Spmt,  47 

But  care  has  to  be  taken  not  to  mistake  bluster 
for  courage.  The  true  soldier  does  not  strut 
or  swagger.  His  step  is  firm,  but  it  is  steady 
and  regular.  Do  not  think  so  much  about  being 
brave  as  about  doing  what  is  right.  There  is 
a  spasmodic  valorousness  about  the  acts  of  a 
really  weak  man  that  is  most  troublesome.  A 
secret  consciousness  of  cowardice  prevents  him 
from  considering  simply  what  is  the  best  thing 
to  be  done,  and  makes  him  eager  to  do  some- 
thing that  will  seem  brave.  And  the  apparently 
brave  thing  is  often  the  wrong  thing.  And  so 
the  fear  of  his  own  timidity  drives  him  to  a 
course  that  is  unwise  and  mischievous.  We 
ought  to  look  on  the  doing  of  our  duty  un- 
flinchingly just  as  a  matter  of  course,  nothing 
to  make  a  fuss  about  or  to  admire  ourselves 
for,  but  only  what  must  be  expected  from  a 
soldier  of  Christ. 

Let  us  be  on  our  guard  also  against  confusing 
boldness  with  hardness.  Because  you  are  deter- 
mined to  speak  the  truth,  there  is  no  necessity 
to  speak  it  roughly  or  without  consideration  for 
others.  You  can  be  uncompromising,  unflinch- 
ing in  your  duty,  and  yet  full  of  tenderness  in 
your  heart  and  kindness  in  your  manner.  The 
surgeon's    hand    must  be   firm   and   strong   as    i.c 


The   Warrior  SpiiHt. 


cuts  home  to  the  root  of  the  disease.  But  what 
woman  would  lift  the  patient  more  gently  than 
he  does?  What  fingers  could  dress  and  soothe 
the  wound  more  tenderly  than  those  which  held 
the  knife  with  such  an  iron  grasp  ?  Be  bold, 
but  let  your  boldness  proceed  from  love,  and  be 
softened  and  beautified  by  love.  Be  bold,  be- 
cause you  love  your  Master,  and  cannot  bear 
to  be  diverted  by  anything  from  doing  as  He 
wills.  Be  bold,  because  you  love  your  brother, 
and  are  ready  to  go  through  fire  and  water  to 
do  him  good.  Such  boldness  may  sometimes 
hurt,  because  it  has  to  thrust  home,  but  it  will 
never  chafe  or  irritate,  because  the  love  from 
which  its  force  comes  causes  it  to  be  used  with 
tact,  with  tender  consideration,  and  that  sincerity 
and  earnestness  of  purpose  which  is  so  hard  to 
be  imitated,  and  yet  so  easily  recognised  where 
it  really  exists.  Boldness  without  love  is  hard^ 
defiant,  inconsiderate,  and  unsympathizing.  It 
produces  that  style  of  almost  insolent  criticism 
that  is  characterized  in  the  well-known  couplet — 

"  Of  all  the  ills  that  Heaven  can  send. 
Save,  oh  !  save  me  from  a  candid  friend." 

Boldness  with  love  makes  the  speech  honest  and 
sincere  ;  but   it   makes   the  tear  glisten,  and  the 


The    Warrior  Spirit.  49 

voice  tremble,  as  the  painful  word   is  spoken.  It 

makes  the  undaunted  soldier  of  Christ  be  at  the 

same    time    gentle    "  as    a   nurse    cherisheth  her 
children." 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE    LABOURER. 

T  N  the  last  chapter  we  considered  the  Christian 
-■-  ministry  in  its  martial  aspect.  But  the 
minister  of  Christ  has  to  be  a  labourer  as  well  as 
a  soldier.  A  great  deal  of  his  work  is  not  directly 
aggressive,  and  yet  it  is  hard  work.  Happily  the 
clergyman  has  not  to  be  always  controverting  error, 
not  always  rebuking  and  warning,  not  always 
taking  a  side  among  opposing  cliques  and  parties. 
True  as  it  is  that  he  is  a  warrior,  and  needs  the 
warrior  spirit,  it  is  equally  true  that  he  is  essen- 
tially a  man  of  peace,  coming  from  the  Prince  of 
Peace  on  a  message  of  holiest  peace.  But  he  has 
a  vast  and  difficult  task  before  him,  and  if  he 
is  to  do  any  good  in  it,  he  must  go  to  work 
"  with  a  will." 

There  is  on  this  point  a  difference  between  a 
clergyman's  work  and  that  of  other  professions. 
Your  pay  in  them  is  proportioned  to  your  labour; 


TJie  Laboitre7\  51 


you  must,  therefore,  either  work  or  starve.  The  lazy 
doctor  or  the  lazy  lawyer  gets  few  fees.  But  the 
lazy  clergyman  gets  his  salary  regularly.  The 
amount  of  his  work  is  not  a  matter  of  profit 
or  loss,  but  a  matter  of  conscience  :  for  in  the 
clerical  profession  it  is  quite  easy  to  keep  up 
the  appearance  of  working  while  you  are  idling. 
Mock  work  can  be  given  with  fatal  facility. 
Shallow,  external  work  makes  great  show.  You 
can  be  fussy  and  outwardly  active,  and  have 
innumerable  church  services,  and  pay  innumerable 
visits,  while  you  are,  as  to  will  and  thought  and 
purpose  and  spiritual  effort,  an  idle  lounger. 
Bad  doctoring  is  found  out  by  patients  dying  ; 
bad  engineering  by  bridges  breaking  ;  but  bad 
ministry  is  not  found  out  till  the  Day  of  Judg- 
ment. If  you  are  affable  in  your  manners,  and 
ready  with  a  pleasant  word  for  every  one ;  if 
you  have  a  few  grand-sounding  sentences  in  your 
sermons,  and  often  go  in  and  out  among 
your  parishioners,  saying  polite  nothings  to 
the  young  ladies  and  pious  nothings  to  the 
old  ladies,  you  are  sure  to  be  popular  ;  you  are 
honestly  liked  by  the  simple  and  good-natured 
people  who  form  a  majority  in  every  parish. 

Very  earnestly  and  honestly  should  the  clergy- 
man try  himself  as  to  the  reality  of   his  work, 


52  The  Labourer. 


"  Am  I  indeed  labouring  for  my  Master  ?  Have 
I  given  any  toil  for  Him  to-day  ?"  Such  should 
be  the  evening's  question.  "  Have  I  exerted  my 
energies  ?  have  I  shaken  off  sloth  ?  have  I  taken 
any  real  trouble  ?  have  I  resisted  any  lazy 
impulses  ?  have  I  been  busy  or  have  I  been  idle 
at  my  work  ?"  And  when  the  answer  is  dragged 
from  the  reluctant  conscience,  "  I  have  been  idle  ; 
I  have  only  gone  through  a  nice-looking  form  ; 
I  have  satisfied  myself  with  the  appearance  of 
doing  my  duty,  while  I  have  in  truth  done  no- 
thing ;  I  have  shrunk  from  everything  difficult  or 
painful,  and  taken  my  ease  in  respectable  clerical 
routine  ;"  then  bring  the  confession  with  lowly 
penitence  to  your  Master.  Humble  yourself  at 
His  feet  with  deep  self-abasement.  Tell  Him  how 
you,  the  teacher  of  duty,  have  neglected  your 
own  duty.  Tell  Him  how  you,  the  leader  in  service, 
have  been  an  idler.  At  His  cross  and  through 
His  blood  seek  that  pardon  for  yourself  you  pro- 
claim to  others.  Ask  for  supernatural  strength 
from  Him  to  overcome  your  natural  self-sparing 
instincts,  and  then,  strong  in  the  power  of  His 
might,  make  a  fresh  start  in  your  work. 

It  is  to  be  hard  work,  but  it  is  to  be  reasonable 
work.  If  there  is  to  be  in  it  the  motive  power 
of  Christian  earnestness,  there  is  to  be  also   the 


The  Labourer,  53 


guiding   and  restraining  power  of  good  sense  and 
thoughtful  consideration.      Some  young  men  wear 
themselves  out  in  spasmodic  and  exciting  efforts  ; 
they  seem  to  be  always  panting  and  blowing  in 
the  eagerness  of  their  motion.    In  their  ill-regulated 
zeal  they  make  themselves  so  busy  that  they  have 
no  time  to  do  anything.     A  man  of  this  kind  comes 
in  to  pay  a  visit,  but  he  cannot   listen  to  what  his 
people  wish   to  say  ;  he    cannot  give    sympathy, 
attention,  kindly  consideration  ;  he  must  be  off  to 
the  next  house  on  his  list  ;  he  must  "  go  on  with 
his  work."   He  meets  a  parishioner  on  the  roadside ; 
here  is  a  golden  opportunity.     The  man  is  by  him- 
self ;  he  is  glad  to  see  his  clergyman  ;  he  stops  to 
give  him  a  kindly  greeting.     Not  for  years,  perhaps, 
will  there  be  such  a  chance  of  cultivating  personal 
intimacy  with  this  member  of  his  flock,  and  speak- 
ing to  him  eye  to  eye,  as  "a  man  and   a  brother." 
A  little  genial  sympathy  now,  a  judicious  question, 
a  firm  though  gentle  home-thrust,  a  patient  listen- 
ing to  a   heart's  difficulties  and  puzzles,  and  an 
effect  may  be  produced  which  years  of  preaching 
could  not  accomplish.      But  our  fussy  friend   is  so 
busy    that   he  cannot  stop.      He  must  rush  "  on 
to  his  work."     Alas  !  in  his  headlong  rushing  he 
leaves  his  work  behind. 

So  at  the  school,  so  at  the  sick  bed,  so  in  his 


54  The  Labom^er, 


classes  and  lectures  ;  hurry  and  fuss  prevent  him 
from  giving  his  v/hole  attention  to  the  matter 
in  hand.  He  has  been  too  busy  to  prepare  what 
he  has  to  teach  ;  he  has  not  thought  over  it  nor 
digested  it.  His  teaching  is  vague,  confused,  with- 
out definite  point  or  sharp  home-thrust.  It 
produces  little  impression  and  is  quickly  forgotten. 
Even  as  he  sits  among  his  pupils  he  only  gives 
them  half  his  attention  ;  he  is  absent  and  pre- 
occupied. Where  is  the  close  watchfulness  for 
each  individual  soul  in  his  class  ">  where  is  the 
keen  scrutiny  of  each  young  face,  so  that  an  idea 
may  be  formed  of  what  is  going  on  underneath  } 
where  is  the  intense  interest  for  each  hesitating 
answer,  the  smile  that  encourages,  the  sympathy 
that  takes  away  shyness,  the  earnest  reverence 
that  abashes  every  approach  to  levity }  Ah  !  you 
look  for  all  this  in  vain  from  that  fidgety  teacher 
who  is  going  through  the  lesson  with  the  manifest 
desire  to  get  it  over  as  quickly  as  possible.  He 
has  really  so  much  to  do  that  he  cannot  let  himself 
be  delayed  too  long  by  these  school  children.  His 
time  is  so  precious  that  he  must  hurry  over  this 
piece  of  work  and  go  on  to  the  next.  Even  by 
the  solemn  sick  bed,  even  in  the  house  where 
sorrow  and  death  have  come  with  their  hush  of 
mournful   calm,  he  cannot  leave  behind  him  his 


The  LabotLver,  55 


eager  fussiness.  It  makes  him  almost  heartless. 
That  poor  worn-out  sufferer,  why  cannot  he  sit 
with  him  for  awhile,  and  let  him  have  the  sad 
relief  of  talking  about  his  pains  to  a  sympathizing 
friend  ?  Why  does  the  pastor  silence  his  complain- 
ing- so  curtly,  take  out  his  Bible  and  administer 
"  the  portion"  and  the  prayer  so  imperatively  ? 
He  wants  to  get  on  with  his  business.  He  must 
do  his  "  duty"  with  the  sick  man,  and  not  waste 
his  time  in  unnecessary  talk.  He  is  very  sorry 
for  these  mourners,  but  he  has  other  people  to 
visit  ;  he  must  not  stay  too  long  here.  This  or 
that  consoling  phrase,  this  or  that  nice  text  of 
the  Bible,  ought  to  be  enough  for  them,  and  away 
he  goes  "  on  his  work." 

So  he  gets  through  his  day,  very  busy  but  very 
useless.  He  has  a  long  list  of  entries  for  his 
diary,  but  what  record  of  his  visits  will  there 
be  when  the  great  Books  are  opened  } 

How  is  this  fussiness  and  hurry  in  parochial 
work  to  be  guarded  against .? 

Let  the  stress  be  laid  on  the  quality  of  the 
work  rather  than  on  its  quantity.  What  we 
really  want  is  not  to  pay  a  great  many  visits,  teach 
a  great  many  classes,  or  preach  a  great  many 
sermons,  but  to  bring  a  great  blessing  to  human 
souls.     It  is  well  to  strive  to  reach  as  large  numbers 


56  The  Labourer. 

of  people  as  possible,  so  that  we  may  have  many 
opportunities  for  getting  at  their  hearts  ;  but  ft  is 
the  heart-work  we  have  always  to  aim  at,  feeling 
that  nothing  is  done  unless  this  is  achieved.  The 
quantity  of  efforts  made  must  be  looked  on  only 
as  the  means  ;  the  end  in  view  is  the  spiritual  he^p 
to  living  souls. 

The  good  fisherman  tries  to  "  cover  as  much 
ground  "  as  he  can.  The  further  he  walks  along 
the  river  bank  the  greater  his  chance  of  filling  his 
basket  in  the  course  of  the  day.  But  how  warily 
he  watches  every  ripple  ;  how  deftly  he  throws  his 
fly  where  the  water  eddies  behind  the  rock,  or 
sleeps  under  the  shadowy  bank,  or  breaks  in 
merry  laughter  down  the  swift  incline  !  He  walks 
far  so  that  he  may  have  more  and  more  of  those 
favourable  spots  for  exercising  his  skill  and  wiling 
his  silvery  prey  from  their  hiding  places.  But 
what  he  thinks  of  with  eager  interest  is  not  for  how 
many  miles  he  can  whip  the  stream,  but  how  many 
fish  he  can  catch.  His  day's  success  depends  on 
the  dexterity  with  which  each  cast  is  made. 

Have  we  not  a  picture  here  of  the  work  of 
those  whom  God  has  appointed  to  be  fishers  of 
men  ? 

**  Cast  after  cast,  by  force  or  guile, 
AH  waters  must  be  tried." 


The  Labourer.  57 


Much  time  must  be  spent  in  the  work,  many 
efforts  made,  many  people  approached  in  various 
ways.  The  recognised  instrumentalities  must  be 
used,  and  from  time  to  time  fresh  ones  invented 
and  tried  ;  but  our  success  depends,  humanly 
speaking,  not  on  the  number  of  efforts  we  make 
but  on  the  deep  gaze  of  mental  and  spiritual 
attention  with  which  we  watch  the  opportunities 
afforded  by  each  of  them,  and  the  intensity  of 
thoughtful  endeavour  with  which  we  strive  to 
seize  the  opportunities  as  they  present  themselves. 
Let  us  have  it,  then,  well  impressed  on  our  minds 
that  bustle  is  not  work — that  our  work  must  be 
done  quietly  and  carefully,  or  not  at  all.  Let  us 
have  a  holy  horror  of  religious  "  red  tapeism." 
Regular  returns  and  entries  and  statistics  of  paro- 
chial work,  and  orderly  and  neatly-kept  journals — 
all  these  things  look  very  nice,  they  delight  the 
hearts  of  clerical  old  maids  ;  but  if  laid  much  stress 
on,  they  become  a  "  mockery,  a  delusion,  and  a 
snare."  Soul-work  cannot  be  measured  or  tabulated. 
The  reckoning  of  its  results  is  entered  on  no 
earthly  page.  The  Books  on  which  it  is  inscribed 
will  be  opened  in  due  time,  but  not  here  below. 

But  orderly  method,  although  if  wrongly  used 
it  leads  to  bustle,  if  rightly  used  prevents  bustle 
and  economises  labour.      Method,  like  many  other 


58  The  Labotirer. 

useful  things,  is  a  hard  master  but  a  good  servant. 
If  you  do  your  parish  work  for  the  sake  of  your 
parish  books,  the  wretched,  superficial  fussiness  we 
have  just  spoken  of,  results  ;  but  if  you  use  your 
books  judiciously,  they  will  help  your  memory, 
regulate  your  time,  and  enable  you  to  do  your 
duty  more  easily  and   more  effectually. 

There  is  a  danger  of  working  by  fits  and 
starts.  We  are  apt  to  make  a  great  rush  at 
our  work  sometimes,  when  we  are  in  the  mood 
for  it,  and  to  shrink  back  from  it  at  other  times 
when  we  feel  disinclined  for  the  exertion,  or 
inclined  for  some  other  occupation.  And  there 
is  so  little  external  restraint  upon  most  of  us 
clergymen,  we  are  left  so  much  to  our  own  dis- 
cretion as  to  the  management  of  our  time,  that 
we  might  very  easily  drift  into  a  desultory  and 
irregular  kind  of  working,  guided  only  by  our 
varying  impulses.  And  we  naturally  enjoy  some 
parts  of  our  work  much  m.ore  than  others.  Some 
of  us  like  to  be  always  at  our  books  ;  some  of 
us,  with  the  schoolboy  spirit,  are  anxious  to  shut 
up  the  books  and  be  off  into  the  open  air  ;  some 
have  a  delight  in  teaching  and  school-work,  and 
dread  the  solemnity  of  the  sick  room  or  the 
hospital  ward.  Most  of  us  have  our  favourite 
parishioners,   people    whom   we    like   seeing    and 


The  Labourer,  59 


talking  to ;  while  others  of  our  flock  are  dis- 
tasteful to  us,  and  spoken  to  only  from  a  sense 
of  duty.  And  our  memories  are  very  treache- 
rous, and  we  forget  often  how  long  it  is  since 
we  have  performed  this  or  that  duty  of  brotherly 
kindness  or  pastoral  vigilance  ;  and  we  are  vexed 
and  surprised  when  that  tiresome  old  bedridden 
Mrs.  Grumble  informs  us,  with  reproachful 
accuracy,  that  it  will  be  three  months  next 
Wednesday  since  we  visited  her  last,  and  we 
had  promised  to  come  again  in  a  fortnight. 

To  do  our  work  well,  therefore,  it  is  necessary 
to  do  it  systematically.  Time  should  be  care- 
fully and  thoughtfully  laid  out  beforehand — the 
time  for  the  study,  the  time  for  school,  and  the 
time  for  the  parish.  If  the  parish  is  large,  and 
the  engagements  numerous,  each  day  of  the 
week  should  have  its  programme.  The  pro- 
gramme, whether  for  the  day  or  the  week,  must 
be  elastic.  It  must  be  a  help  to  loving  work, 
and  not  a  fetter  of  iron  bondage.  At  a  call  for 
help  or  sympathy  from  brother  or  sister  the 
season  of  study  must  be  allowed  to  be  interrupted 
without  ill-humour.  Christ's  servant  must  be  at 
the  disposal  of  the  poor  and  the  suffering  and 
the  anxious  at  all  times.  The  plan  of  work 
laid  out  for  Monday  must  be   modified  if  some- 


6o  The  Labourer. 


thing  more  immediately  pressing  has  to  be  done. 
But  let  there  be,  as  far  as  possible,  the  careful 
and  economic  prearrangement  of  employment, 
so  that  the  pastor  may  not  have  to  waste  his 
time,  like  a  little  child,  in  puzzling  what  on 
earth  he  is  to  do   next. 

The  statistics  of  the  parish  should  be  care- 
fully drawn  up  wherever  it  is  possible — the 
number  and  ages  of  children  ;  who  are  confirmed 
and  who  unconfirmed  ;  notes  of  any  important 
or  interesting  circumstance  connected  with  the 
family  ;  records  of  when  each  has  been  visited 
by  the  clergyman.  Carefully  and  regularly  should 
this  book  be  kept,  and  carefully  should  it  be 
studied.  Are  we  tempted  to  be  idle,  to  be  par- 
tial in  our  attentions  to  our  people  }  Those 
blanks  in  our  visiting  lists  look  at  us  with  re- 
proachful gaze.  Memory  is  awakened,  conscience 
is  stirred,  we  are  reminded  of  work  we  ought 
to  do,  we  are  supplied  with  information  that 
directs  us  in  our  doing  of  it.  In  addition  to 
the  general  statistics,  special  lists  should  be  kept 
of  those  who  need  special  attention — the  sick, 
the  aged,  the  delicate,  the  troubled  "  in  mind, 
body,  or  estate."  Thus,  by  a  little  careful  system, 
both  as  to  the  time  and  as  to  the  objects  of  our 
labour,    we    secure    greater    steadiness,    accuracy, 


The  Labourer.  6i 


and  efficiency  in  our  work,  with  less  of  bustle 
or  hurrying  to  and  fro  to  overtake  what  has  been 
forgotten  or  neglected. 

Hard  work,  then,  we  have  before  us,  and,  like 
all  real  work,  steady  and  regular,  and  almost 
plodding  sometimes.  Hard  work,  but  always 
happy  work  ;  work  for  God,  for  immortal  souls, 
for  heavenly  results.  Happy  is  our  labour  in 
its  very  hardness.  Our  energies  are  employed, 
all  our  faculties  are  busy,  our  deepest  sympathies 
are  called  out.  The  regularly  returning  order, 
the  portion  of  toil  for  each  day,  the  pleasant 
consciousness  when  evening  comes  of  "  something 
accomplished,  something  done,"  gives  a  sense 
of  calm  and  repose  in  the  midst  of  effort.  We 
look  forward  as  our  privilege  and  joy  by-and-by 
to  serving  God  day  and  night  in  His  holy  temple. 
The  joy  has  begun  already.  The  teaching  and 
wrestling  with  consciences  by  day,  the  study  and 
prayer  by  night — what  are  they  but  angels'  work  } 
The  faces  of  friends  that  we  look  into,  the  eyes 
that  brighten  with  gladness  or  soften  in  tears 
as  we  bring  our  message — what  stars  can  sparkle 
in  the  temple  on  high  with  sweeter  interest  for 
us  than  these  t  We  are  even  now  God's  minis- 
tering servants,  doing  His  pleasure,  carrying  on 
His  work,  helping  the  souls    He   has    redeemed. 


62  The  Labourer. 

The  room  where  we  think,  read,  and  pray  (even 
though  it  be  but  a  curate's  humble  lodging),  the 
city  street,  the  village  church,  the  darkened  sick 
room — each  spot  where  we  carr;^  on  our  labour 
of  love — is  it  not  God's  temple,  glorious  with 
His  unseen  presence,  thrilling  with  the  interest 
of  His  service  ? 

Shall  we  grudge,  then,  labour  for  our  Lord  ? 
Shall  we  look  on  the  incessant  toil  of  the  minis- 
try as  a  hardship  ?  Even  if  we  dared  to  be 
idle,  could  we  bear  to  be  so  ?  Will  there  not 
be  a  heart-thrill  of  triumph,  as  well  as  a  sense 
of  necessity  laid  upon  the  conscience,  as  we 
apply   to   ourselves   the  poet's   words  : 

"  Think  not  of  rest ;  though  dreams  be  sweet, 
Start  up,  and  ply  your  heavenward  feet. 
Is  not  God's  oath  upon  your  head 
Ne'er  to  sink  back  on  slothful  bed  ? 
Never  again  your  loins  untie, 
Nor  let  your  torches  waste  and  die, 
Till,  when  the  shadows  thickest  fall, 
Ye  hear  your  Master's  midnight  call "  ? 


CHAPTER  VI. 

HINTS    FOR    THE    STUDY. 

T3AR0CHIAL  work  and  study  of  books  are 
"*-  often  thought  of  as  if  they  were  rivals,  or 
antagonistic  to  each  other.  They  should  be 
considered  really  as  branches  of  the  same  work. 
The  pastor  is  labouring  for  the  great  object  of 
making  God  known  to  men  when  he  is  storing 
his  mind  with  sacred  truths  and  burning  thoughts, 
as  well  as  when  he  is  striving  to  press  these  truths 
and  these  thoughts  home  to  the  hearts  of  his 
brethren. 

To  be  a  good  teacher  you  must  be  a  diligent 
learner.  To  go  on  year  after  year  teaching  well, 
you  must  go  on  in  your  learning.  Let  the 
learning  slacken,  let  the  stream  of  thought  grow 
stagnant,  and  the  instruction  will  soon  lose  its 
sparkle  and  its  freshness.  If  a  clergyman  is 
really  enlightened,  mentally  and  spiritually,  on 
the  revelation  of  God  to  men's  souls,  and  if  he 


64  Hints  for  the  Study, 


has  good  sense  to  recognise  his 
other  matters,  and  honesty  not  to  make  a  pre- 
tence of  what  he  does  not  possess,  he  may  do 
much  good,  though  his  range  of  knowledge  is 
very  limited.  But  he  will  find  this  limitation  to 
his  knowledge  a  continual  hindrance  to  his 
usefulness  ;  and  in  proportion  as  he  is  energetic 
and  strong-minded,  he  will  strive  to  overcome  it 
by  diligent  and  wisely-directed  study.  There  are 
few  parishes  in  which  a  clergyman  can  be  placed 
where  he  will  not  have  some  members  of  his 
congregation  who  are  well  acquainted  with  letters 
and  books.  In  the  present  day  it  is  often  these 
persons  who  most  need  the  pastor's  help.  The 
tone  of  current  literature  is  such  as  to  make  for 
them  difficulties  and  temptations  which  are  almost 
unknown  to  those  whose  mental  activities  have 
not  been  awakened,  and  whose  inherited  ideas 
have  not  been  disturbed.  If  the  clergyman  is 
unaccustomed  to  the  lines  of  thought  by  which 
their  difficulties  are  suggested,  he  can  bring  them 
very  little  real  guidance  or  comfort.  He  may 
be  very  good  and  very  earnest,  but  they  quickly 
see  that  he  has  not  breathed  their  intellectual 
atmosphere,  and  does  not  understand  the  language 
in  which  they  and  their  fellows  commune. 
Underneath   any  regard   they  may  have  for  him 


Hints  for  the  Study.  65 

personally,  there  lurks  something  which,  if  it  is 
not  exactly  contempt,  is  as  much  akin  to  it  as  is 
a  big  boy's  feeling  for  his  grandmother's  well- 
meant  cautions.  The  advice  is  very  kind,  no 
doubt,  but  it  comes,  thinks  the  receiver  of  it,  from 
one  who  is  incapable  of  judging  on  the  subject  of 
the  advice. 

And   no  one  can   speak  so  simply   to    simple 
people  as   those  whose  minds  have  been  trained 
and    clarified    by    careful    study.       High   talking, 
bombastic     sentences,    long    words,    tawdry    and 
flowery  rhetoric — these  puzzles  to  the  poor  and 
offences   to  the   refined,  where   do  we  find   them 
most  ?     Is  it  not  with  those  whose  education  has 
been  imperfect }     A  little  knowledge  is  dangerous 
in    many   ways.      It  certainly  has   the  danger  of 
giving    to     the    style    of    speaking     or     writing 
a     nameless,     yet     very    perceptible,     flavour     of 
vulgarity.       Look   at  the  man   who  has   reached 
the    position    of   what   may    be   called    a    "  half- 
gentleman  ; "     see     the     little     tokens     of     self- 
importance     and     self-display     breaking    out     in 
pompous   manners,    showy  watch-chains,   flashing 
rings,   and    astounding   waistcoats.     Is  there   not 
something    reminding    us   of   this    in    the    grand 
words   of  the   smatterer   in    knowledge  t       He   is 
proud  of  his  newly-acquired  possession,  and  likes 

5 


66  Hints  for  the  Study. 

to  adorn  himself  with  it.  The  possession  is  not 
large  enough  to  make  him  forget  himself,  or  feel 
his  own  littleness,  or  exercise  what  power  he  has 
with  directness  and  simplicity  of  aim.  Instead 
of  wanting  people  to  understand  and  feel  the 
subjects  of  his  discourse,  he  wants  them  to  under- 
stand and  feel  how  accomplished  and  admirable 
he  is,  and  how  perfectly  he  expresses  himself. 

In  order,  then,  to  reach  the  sympathies  of  the 
educated  and  the  understandings  of  the  poor,  it 
is  of  great  importance  that  their  spiritual  pastor 
should  be  a  well-read  man.  It  may  not  be 
always  possible  for  clergymen  to  be  learned  men, 
but  they  should  always  be  cultured  men.  The 
proportion  of  time  to  be  devoted  to  study  must, 
of  course,  vary  according  to  circumstances.  It 
must  be  in  each  individual  case  a  matter 
of  thoughtful  and  conscientious  judgment. 
Different  advice  is  required  according  to  differing 
characters.  Pressure  must  be  brought  on  some 
men  to  leave  their  beloved  books  and  their 
comfortable  study,  and  sally  out  into  muddy 
roads,  and  noisy  schools,  and  squalid  rooms,  and 
all  the  bustle  and  effort  of  busy  outward  life  ; 
while  others,  who  can  talk  easily,  and  like  mixing 
with  their  fellow-men,  and  enjoy  the  exercise  and 
interest  of  the  parochial   round,    need   the  strong 


Hints  for  the  Study.  67 

sense  of  duty  to  bind  them  down  for  any  length 
of  time  to  the  more  uncongenial  labour  of  steady, 
mental  work.  Let  the  division  of  labour  be 
recognized  as  a  matter,  not  of  inclination,  but 
of  conscience.  Do  not  stay  and  read  when  you 
like  it,  and  go  out  and  visit  when  you  like  it. 
But  go  on  reading  as  long  as  you  feel  it  to  be 
your  duty,  and  stop  reading  as  soon  as  you 
believe  it  to  be  your  duty.  To  one  the  going  on 
will  be  the  difficulty,  to  another  the  stopping 
will  be  the  difficulty  ;  but  to  all  alike,  both  the 
going  on  and  the  stopping  should  be  a  matter, 
not  of  impulse,  but  of  principle.  And  this  much 
I  think  we  may  lay  down  as  a  general  rule,  that 
every  day  should  have  its  portion  of  study,  as 
well  as  its  portion  of  active  exertion.  An  hour 
or  two  in  the  morning,  and  an  hour  or  two  in  the 
evening,  might  surely  be  secured  for  the  purpose 
in  the  most  busy  sphere.  Any  arrangement  of 
parochial  work  which  would  make  such  an 
allocation  an  impossibility  is,  I  do  not  hesitate 
to  say,  a  defective  arrangement,  and  ought  to  be 
changed.  All  the  work  will,  in  the  long  run, 
be  degraded,  and  tend  towards  a  perfunctory 
routine,  if  the  workmen  cannot  be  invigorated 
and  freshened  in  their  inward  life  by  regular 
study. 


68  Hints  for  the  Study, 


I.  As  to  the  subject  of  our  reading,  I  hope  it 
is  unnecessary  for  me  to  say  that  the  first  place 
must  always  be  given  to  the  "  reading  and 
weighing  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  " — other  things 
are  useful,  but  this  is  essential.  The  minister  of 
Christ  is  not  a  mere  moral  policeman  to  keep 
men's  conduct  in  order  ;  nor  is  he  only  a  teacher 
of  mental  philosophy,  guiding  their  inquiries  and 
speculations  and  guesses  at  the  unknown.  He  is 
an  ambassador  with  an  authoritative  message  from 
the  living  God  ;  he  is  entrusted  with  a  definite 
revelation  as  to  the  character,  will,  and  dealings 
of  that  unseen  and  awful  Being.  In  the  life 
and  words  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  in  the  teaching  of 
His  inspired  Apostles  and  Prophets,  the  revelation 
is  embodied.  By  the  records  of  that  sacred  life, 
by  the  writings  of  those  holy  men,  the  revelation 
has  been  preserved  for  the  Church.  There  it 
has  to  be  studied  ;  there  its  meaning  and  import 
have  to  be  searched  for  ;  there  the  teacher  must 
have  his  own  spirit  embued  with  the  blessedness 
and  glory  of  the  Divine  message  which  he  has  to 
re-echo. 

It  is  not  the  object  of  these  papers  (even  if  the 
writer  were  capable  of  it)  to  guide  you  in  the 
study  of  that  grand  and  widely-varied  course  of 
literature    which    we    group    together    under    the 


Hints  for  the  Study.  69 

familiar  name  of  "  the  Bible."  I  must  content 
myself  here  with  two  or  three  suggestions 
connected  with  our  special  subject,  the  pastor's 
work. 

I.  Strive  in  your  reading  of  Scripture  always 
to  search  for  God's  teaching  to  the  human  heart. 
The  Bible  is  often  studied  almost  in  the  same 
way  as  are  Homer  and  Herodotus.  There  is 
much  interesting  criticism  of  ancient  language, 
and  much  valuable  research  into  ancient  history. 
The  student  can  give  the  most  accurate  in- 
formation as  to  the  genealogy  of  Hebrew  kings 
or  the  geography  of  ancient  cities.  His  studies 
are  no  doubt  useful  in  their  way,  and  may 
indirectly  elucidate  the  moral  and  spiritual 
teaching  of  the  inspired  writers  ;  but  it  must  not 
be  supposed  that  this  kind  of  reading  is  a  study 
of  God's  revelation.  It  is  well  that  the  picture 
frame  should  be  cleaned  and  burnished,  but  it 
must  not  be  mistaken  for  the  picture.  It  is  well 
that  the  casket  should  be  carefully  handled  ;  but 
the  casket  is  one  thing,  the  gem  it  contains  is 
another. 

Do  not  be  satisfied  then  with  reading  so  many 
chapters  of  the  Bible,  or  becoming  acquainted 
with  this  or  that  portion  of  Scripture  history. 
As    Christ's    messenger,    learning    His    message* 


JO  Hints  for  the  Study. 

let  your  constant  inquiry  be,  "  What  light  is  here 
thrown  upon  the  relation  between  God  and  man  ? 
What  do  I  learn  as  to  who  God  is,  what  God 
wishes,  what  God's  plans  and  purposes  are  ? " 
Ever  as  you  read  let  this  questioning  be  an 
undercurrent,  giving  a  thoughtful  tone  and  an 
earnest  purpose  to  your  study.  And  in  pro- 
portion as  it  tends  to  make  your  searching 
of  Scripture  thoughtful  and  earnest,  it  will  also 
make  it  honest.  It  will  lift  you  above  what 
we  may  call  "text  theology."  Instead  of 
dexterously  picking  out  expressions  here  and 
there  to  "  prove  "  doctrines  that  agree  with  your 
tastes  and  prejudices,  you  will  be  anxious  to 
find  out  as  you  read  what  was  really  meant  by 
the  writer.  You  will  study  the  history  of  God's 
dealings  with  men,  and  the  outpourings  of  the 
hearts  of  those  whom  from  time  to  time  He  has 
raised  up  and  filled  with  a  special  portion  of  His 
Spirit,  so  that  your  own  heart  may  be  more  and 
more  attuned  in  harmony  with  the  tone  of  His 
thinking  and  teaching,  and  your  ideas  and 
convictions  become  more  and  more  faithful  echoes 
of  His  revelation.  Thus  you  will  come  to  be 
indeed  "  thoroughly  furnished "  for  your  work. 
Taught  by  your  Master's  inspired  teachers, 
catching  up  the  tone  that  breathes  through  their 


Hints  for  the  Study.  71 

pages,  there  will  be  a  certain  inspiration  in  your 
own  teaching.  There  will  be  a  power  about 
it  to  touch,  and  waken,  and  comfort,  that  will 
surprise  yourself;  for  it  is  the  power  of  the 
"  Word  of  God."  Speaking  week  after  week  and 
day  after  day,  there  will  still  be  an  ever-renewing 
freshness,  vividness,  and  interest  in  what  you 
say  ;  for  it  will  be  drawn  from  the  cool  depths 
of  that  "well  of  water  which  springeth  up  unto 
everlasting  life." 

2.  But,  while  you  read  Holy  Scripture  to 
strengthen  you  in  your  teaching  of  others,  take 
care  lest  the  thought  of  these  others  should  inter- 
fere between  your  own  soul  and  God's  teaching. 
It  might  easily  do  so.  I  fear  it  often  does  so 
with  us  clergymen.  "  What  a  nice  text  this  verse 
would  make  !  How  exactly  it  suits  the  case  of 
Mr.  Jones  or  Mrs.  Brown  !  How  profitably  we 
might  improve  this  passage  for  the  Bible-class!" 
Do  not  such  thoughts  often  rise  in  our  minds  as  we 
read.'*  And  when  they  come,  is  not  our  own  learning 
from  the  sacred  page  greatly  hindered  }  I  think 
it  is  well,  then,  that  we  should  have  special  times 
for  devotional  reading.  Besides  our  general  study 
of  Scripture,  as  students,  with  the  help  of 
commentaries  and  critical  apparatus  ;  besides  our 
study  as  teachers,  preparing  for  our  expositions, 


72  Hints  for  the  Stztdy. 

and  storing  our  minds  with  the  treasures  we  are  to 
impart  to  others,  we  should  have  our  little  sacred 
seasons,  when,  as  weak  and  ignorant  children,  we 
come  ourselves  to  the  Father  of  lights  to  hear  what 
He  has  to  say  to  our  souls. 

These  times  should  be  looked  upon  as  precious 
moments  for  being  with  Himself  "  behind  the 
veil."  Not  as  teachers,  but  as  poor  puzzled 
learners  ;  not  as  guides  of  others,  but  as  erring 
and  straying  our  own  selves,  we  try  to  look  up 
into  His  face  and  listen  to  His  voice  ;  and  it  is 
what  He  says  to  our  own  hearts,  and  not  what 
He  says  to  any  one  else,  that  we  want  to  hear. 
Jealously  we  should  strive  to  guard  the  holy 
privacy  of  these  intimate  communings.  What  we 
read  is  God's  word  to  our  own  ear.  We  try  to 
keep  away  the  thought  of  how  it  bears  on  anyone 
else.  What  my  God  and  Saviour  is  to  me,  how 
He  loves  me,  how  He  treats  me,  what  He 
has  in  store  for  me,  what  He  wishes  for  my 
character,  my  conduct,  my  feelings — this  is  what 
I  want  to  learn,  this  is  what  I  ask  Him  to 
teach  me.  The  more  quickly  and  attentively  I 
listen  to  His  voice  to  myself  now,  the  stronger 
shall  I  be,  the  richer  in  knowledge  and  expe- 
rience, to  talk  to  my  brethren  by-and-by. 

I  do  not  mean  that  there  is  to  be  bondage  in 


Hints  for  the  Study.  73 

this  matter,  or  a  straining  of  conscience,  or  a 
laying  on  it  any  kind  of  burden.  I  only  mean 
that  we  should  recognize  the  importance  of  daily 
study  of  Scripture  for  the  nourishment  of  our  own 
spiritual  life,  and  that  there  should  be  a  firm  deter- 
mination of  the  will  that  such  should  be  regularly 
secured. 

II.  Closely  connected  with  our  study  of 
Scripture  is  the  study  of  the  evidences  of  our 
religion.  It  is  closely  connected  ;  for  the  reading 
we  have  just  spoken  of  is  the  study  of  one  great 
branch  of  evidence.  It  is  proving  the  truth  of 
what  we  have  been  taught  to  believe  by  the  test 
of  experiment.  When  we  bring  our  hearts  into 
contact  with  the  story  of  Christ's  life  and  character, 
and  the  teaching  of  His  commissioned  messengers; 
when  we  find  the  longings  and  aspirations  of 
our  moral  nature  so  grandly  satisfied  by  the 
Gospel  of  the  Lord  Jesus  ;  when  we  find  so  many 
of  the  deepest  questions  of  the  understanding 
answered  by  it,  and  so  many  of  the  difficulties  and 
trials  of  actual  life  made  easier  by  it,  we  are  face 
to  face  with  an  evidence  that  is  of  all  others 
perhaps  the  most  practically  potent.  But  it  is  only 
one  of  the  many  lines  of  proof,  by  the  convergence 
of  which  we  are  convinced  that  Jesus  Christ  is  God 
manifest  in  the   flesh,  and  that  our  Christian  faith 


74  Hints  for  the  Study. 

is  based,  not  on  hopes  or  dreams,  but  on  the  firm 
foundation  of  positive  fact.  The  ordinary  believer 
is  often  satisfied  (and  the  satisfaction  is  by  no 
means  unreasonable)  with  the  inward  and  spiritual 
line  of  evidence  that  comes  so  straight  home  to  his 
consciousness  ;  but  the  teacher  of  religion  is  ill- 
furnished  for  his  office,  unless  he  is  familiar  with 
the  other  lines  also.  In  the  present  day  this  is 
especially  the  case.  The  danger  pressing  most 
immediately  upon  us  now  is  the  danger  of 
scepticism.  The  difficulty  which  our  people  have 
to  contend  with  is  not  merely  the  old  difficulty 
of  serving  God,  but  the  difficulty  of  believing  in 
God  at  all.  Does  the  supernatural  exist }  God, 
goodness,  eternity,  heaven,  hell,  are  there  any 
realities  corresponding  with  these  old  words  on  our 
tongues,  and  old  ideas  in  our  minds  }  These  are 
the  questions  that  men  and  women  are  asking  all 
around,  sometimes  with  the  levity  of  those  who 
are  glad  to  escape  from  seriousness  of  thought 
in  a  complacent  agnosticism,  sometimes  with  the 
agony  of  hope  and  fear  of  those  who  feel  that  on 
the  answer  to  the  questions  depends  their  all  in  all. 
Clear,  decided,  and  convincing  should  be  the 
answer  Christ's  ambassador  brings  to  such 
questioning.  To  give  it  well,  to  give  it  according 
to  the  different  needs  of  different  doubters,  to  give 


Hints  for  the  Study.  75 

it  so  as  to  meet  the  special  difficulties  of  the  modern 
mind,  he  should  be  well  versed  in  modern  apologetic 
literature.  Happily  there  is  a  noble  supply  to 
meet  the  urgent  demand.  Year  by  year  powerful 
and  deeply  interesting  works  issue  from  the  press, 
making  us  know  the  certainty  of  the  things 
wherein  we  have  been  instructed.  To  some  minds 
the  study  of  such  works  is  an  intense  pleasure. 
The  accurate  reasoning  that,  on  grounds  of 
physical  and  mental  philosophy,  grapples  with  the 
negations  of  the  materialist ;  the  learned  antiqua- 
rian researches  that  help  to  establish  the  genuine- 
ness and  authority  of  our  sacred  books  ;  the 
careful  grouping  together  of  events  in  the  world's 
outward  history,  and  more  momentous  events  still 
in  the  history  of  its  thought  and  morals,  that  puts 
in  a  vivid  light  the  reality  and  stupendous 
significance  of  the  Gospel  story, — these  lines  of 
thought  and  study  are  more  interesting  to  many 
readers  than  the  most  thrilling  novel.  To  others 
they  are  painful  and  harassing.  The  cold  arguing 
over  subjects  in  which  their  heart's  love  and  life's 
hopes  are  bound  up  seems  to  them  almost  like  the 
philosophy  of  those  who  "  peep  and  botanize  upon 
their  mother's  grave."  But  whether  we  like  it  or 
like  it  not,  it  is  a  training  that,  as  leaders  in  the 
great  warfare  between  light  and  darkness,  we  must 


76  Hints  for  tJie  Study. 

go  through.  All  clergymen  are  not  indeed  placed 
exactly  in  the  same  position  with  regard  to  their 
warfare.  The  weapons  of  some  have  to  be  directed 
against  moral  rather  than  intellectual  antagonists. 
Their  people  are  generally  simple  and  uneducated, 
with  dangers  and  temptations  enough  (God  knows), 
but  no  great  temptations  from  either  the  use  or 
abuse  of  their  reasoning  powers.  And  all  men  have 
not  similar  mental  qualifications.  The  power  of 
firmly  grasping  and  clearly  expressing  difficult  and 
complicated  lines  of  argument  is  not  a  common 
possession.  Some  men  are  therefore  better  suited 
for  work  among  the  educated,  and  some  for  work 
among  the  uneducated.  And  it  would  be  well  that, 
in  choosing  spheres  of  labour,  men  should  have 
regard,  not  only  to  the  quantity  of  work  to  be  done, 
and  the  quantity  of  pay  to  be  received,  but  also 
very  specially  to  the  kind  of  work  to  be  done  in 
that  special  post,  and  its  suitability  to  their 
peculiar  qualifications.  Still  in  every  field  of  work 
the  clergyman  is  placed  as  the  "  defender  of  the 
faith;"  and  no  matter  what  be  his  natural 
aptitudes,  he  should  carefully  and  earnestly  learn 
the  use  of  "the  weapons  of  his  warfare."  He 
ought  to  have,  therefore,  clearly  in  his  mind  the 
main  lines  of  argument  that  prove  the  truth  of  his 
great  message. 


Hints  for  the  Stzcdy.  yy 

III.  Besides  your  study  of  Scripture  and  of  the 
evidences  of  religion,  you  have  before  you  also  the 
vast  field  of  what  is  called  "dogmatic  theology." 
This  is  often  supposed  to  be  a  "  dry"  study.  The 
dryness  of  the  study  depends  on  the  spirit  of 
the  reader.  If  you  merely  try  to  charge  your 
memory  with  theories  and  controversies,  and  texts 
on  this  side  and  that,  so  that  you  can  exactly  tell 
what  were  the  views  of  various  heretics,  and 
what  were  the  arguments  by  which  the  orthodox 
refuted  them,  the  subject  will  be  dull.  You  are 
approaching  it  in  a  dull  spirit.  You  are  like 
a  schoolboy  learning  a  Greek  play  by  rote. 
You  are  like  an  auctioneer  taking  an  inventory 
of  valuable  pictures.  The  beauty  and  wonder 
of  the  things  you  are  dealing  with  make  no 
impression  on  your  spirit.  Your  learning  may 
enable  you  to  answer  an  examiner's  questions  ; 
it  may  give  you  the  credit  of  being  "  a  well-read 
man  ; "  but  it  will  not  make  you  a  stronger  man. 
It  will  not  make  you  wiser  to  know  the  difficulties 
and  temptations  of  humanity,  nor  wiser  to  apply 
to  them  the  Divine  remedy.  It  will  not  make 
your  visits  to  men  and  women  more  instructive, 
nor  your  sermons  more  powerful,  nor  your 
spiritual  life  more  watchful.  This,  however,  is  not 
the    fault    of   theology,    but   of   the    student.      If 


78  Hints  for  the  Study. 

approached  in  a  right  spirit,  the  study  of  theology 
is  the  study  of  the  two  most  interesting  subjects  in 
existence — God's  revelation  and    man's  thoughts 
about  it.      It  is  the  study  of  mistake    and  error  as 
well   as  truth.      But  even  in  the  errors  we  learn 
to    discard    and    refute     there     is    deep    interest. 
They  are  the  efforts  of  human  thought  to  grasp 
the    Divine.     There    is    sublimity    mingled    with 
pathos    in   the    very    failures.      Heresies,    narrow 
views,  exaggerations  of  religious  doctrine,  are  they 
not  marks  of  the  struggle  between  a  great  thing 
and   a  greater — between  man's  mind  and    God's 
truth  }      Study  your  theology  with  sympathy  for 
the  human  thought,  as  well  as  with  prayer  and 
longing    to  know    exactly   what    God   has    made 
known.      Feel   for   the   difficulties   of  Arius   even 
while  you  join  with  Athanasius  in  his  demolition. 
Let  your  imagination  be  interested  and  your  heart 
touched  by  the  long  and  majestic  history  of  Latin 
Christianity,    even   while   you   feel   as    keenly    as 
Luther  the  danger  and  falsehood  of  Romish  super- 
stition.     Thrill    in    solemn    awe   with    Calvin    in 
presence     of    Divine    omniscience     and     Divine 
immutability,     even     though     you     preach     with 
Arminius  the  reality  of  the  separate  human  will. 
What  God  has  taught  distinctly  or  with  dim  hints, 
what  men  have  thought  about  it  rightly  or  wrongly, 


Hints  for  the   Study.  79 

wisely  or  foolishly,  carefully  or  rashly,  such  aie  the 
subjects  of  theologic  study.  They  may  be  described 
in  dry  language;  they  may  be  read  about  in  a  dry 
spirit ;  but  when  studied  with  reverence  for  God's 
teachings,  and  sympathy  for  man's  thinkings,  they 
are  glorious  subjects,  calculated  to  lift  the  heart 
above  petty  worldliness  and  self-seeking,  calculated 
to  clear  and  strengthen  the  understanding,  and  to 
fit  Christian  ministers  for  their  grand  ministerial 
work  of  dealing  with  men's  souls,  entering  into  the 
intricacies  of  their  moral  and  mental  difficulties, 
and  bringing  them  face  to  face  with  the  Revelation 
of  God. 

IV.  The  study  of  ecclesiastical  history  is  in 
reality  a  branch  of  the  study  of  theology.  Still, 
as  we  read  it,  we  have  before  us  man's  thinkings 
upon  God's  revelations.  For  the  most  important 
part  of  the  history  of  the  Church  is  the  history  of 
its  thought.  We  have  God's  various  dealings  in 
outward  providence — the  working  out  of  the  great 
laws  by  which  nations  and  dynasties  rise  and  fall 
— the  manifestations  of  tendencies  in  man's  nature 
by  which  divisions  and  schisms  and  wars  and 
tumults  and  mutual  persecutions  sweep  over  society 
like  the  gusts  of  wind  over  the  stormy  sea.  We 
have  these  changing  events  in  ecclesiastical  history, 
but  deep  underneath  all  we  have  the  strivings  of 


8o  Hints  for  the    Study. 

man's  mind  to  know  and  express  the  true,  and 
cast  out  the  false.  The  turmoil  on  the  surface 
comes  from  the  struggles  of  the  buried  Titan.  If 
we  read  our  ecclesiastical  history  in  an  enlightened 
spirit,  we  are  watching  still  that  greatest  and  most 
interesting  of  phenomena — man's  thinking,  feeling, 
and  acting  with  regard  to  God's  teaching.  But 
there  is  a  special  use  in  this  branch  of  theology, 
besides  the  knowledge  it  gives  us  of  human  cha- 
racter, and  the  fresh  aspects  it  shows  us  of  Divine 
truth.  It  makes  us  feel  the  unity  and  continuity 
of  Christ's  Church.  It  tends  to  counteract  the 
strong  tendency  in  the  clerical  mind  to  settle  down 
into  "  parochialism."  Naturally  and  rightly  his 
own  parish  has  the  very  deepest  interest  for  the 
pastor's  heart  ;  and  he  has  to  think  of  it,  wish  for 
it,  and  look  into  it  so  much,  that  there  is  a  danger 
of  his  not  looking  beyond  it.  And  so  his  mind 
easily  becomes  narrowed,  and  his  sympathies  con- 
tracted. He  begins  to  forget  that  there  is  any- 
thing outside  his  parish,  or  that  there  was  anything 
of  interest  there  before  he  began  his  work.  The 
attendance  at  his  Sunday  School,  the  number  of  his 
communicants,  the  quarrels  of  his  old  women,  the 
impression  made  by  his  last  sermon — these  seem 
to  him  the  great  events  of  the  world's  history.  Is 
it  not  well  for  him  to  be  reminded  that  there  have 


Hints  for   tJie   Study, 


been  in  the  past,  and  are  going  on  in  the  present, 
some  other  events  nearly  as  important  ?  Is  it  not 
well  that  his  attention  should  sometimes  be  turned 
from  Tommy  Smith's  misconduct  at  school,  and 
Mr.  Holdfast's  stinginess  in  his  subscriptions,  and 
the  extraordinary  sleepiness  of  the  congregation 
on  Sunday  evening,  to  the  struggles  and  trials  and 
failures  and  triumphs  of  Christ's  people  throughout 
the  ages  ?  As  he  remembers  the  agonies  of 
martyrs  and  the  struggles  of  reformers,  and  the 
long  labours  of  missionaries,  as  he  thinks  of  the 
fire  of  persecution,  and  the  blight  of  false  doctrine, 
and  the  oppressions  of  statecraft,  and  the  tyranny 
of  priestcraft,  and  the  grand  thunder  of  Christian 
preachers,  and  the  massive  writings  of  Christian 
fathers,  and  the  wisdom  of  councils,  and  the  waver- 
ing and  yet  ever  onward  progress  of  the  line  of 
Christian  teaching  through  the  world,  must  he  not 
be  lifted  up  in  spirit,  and  made  a  larger-hearted 
and  truer  teacher  ?  He  feels  perhaps  more  in- 
tensely than  before  that  he  is  God's  messenger  to 
the  little  flock  around  him  ;  but  he  feels,  too,  that 
he  is  but  one  in  the  long  procession  of  God's 
soldiers  and  servants  here,  soon  to  be  gathered 
into  the  great  number  whom  no  man  can  number 
on  high.  He  feels  that  he  and  his  people  are  but 
part  of  "  the  holy  Church  throughout  the  world." 

6 


82  Hints  for   the    Study. 

V.  There  are  other  studies,  not  usually  looked 
upon  as  theological  or  even  religious,  which  seem 
to  me  important  and  useful  ingredients  in  the  in- 
tellectual diet  of  a  clergyman.  Prominent  among 
these  is  mental  and  moral  philosophy,  the  investi- 
gation of  the  laws  of  thought,  and  of  the  relation 
and  interaction  of  the  various  wheels  within  wheels 
of  that  wonderful  inward  mechanism  by  which 
man  perceives,  feels,  wishes,  purposes,  and  acts. 
The  more  the  spiritual  physician  understands  this 
psychological  anatomy,  the  more  skilfully  can  he 
apply  his  medicines,  and  the  more  boldly,  when 
needs  be,  can  he  cut  home  with  the  keen  blade 
of  argument  or  reproof.  Much  preaching,  for  want 
of  this  knowledge,  is  only  waste  of  energy.  Men 
say  fine  things  and  perhaps  true  things ;  they  harp 
on  one  subject,  thunder  on  another,  but  the  right 
chord  in  the  heart  of  the  hearers  is  not  touched. 
The  particular  emotion  needed  to  move  the  will 
has  not  been  awakened.  More  knowledge  of  the 
laws  of  mind,  more  thoughtful  determination  to 
act  on  them  and  through  them,  would  have  kept 
these  orators  from  many  a  long  train  of  useless 
eloquence, 

VI.  The  study  of  natural  science  is  also  par- 
ticularly beneficial  to  a  clergyman ;  for  it  is  another 
form  of  the  search  after  God's  truth.      It  is  the 


Hints  for   the    Study,  8 


study  of  what  is.  It  is  the  investigation  of  facts. 
Such  studies  help  to  produce  a  tone  of  patient  and 
careful  inquiry,  a  judicial  calmness  of  thought  that 
is  specially  useful  to  the  clerical  mind.  The  mere 
theologian  is  apt  to  be  passionate  and  eager  in  his 
opinions.  The  subjects  on  which  he  thinks  are  so 
interwoven  with  his  dearest  affections  and  most 
ardent  hopes,  that  it  is  hard  for  him  to  preserve  an 
unprejudiced  and  impartial  judgment.  Where  we 
feel  intensely,  it  is  not  easy  to  reason  calmly. 
Hence  comes  the  odhim  theologicum  that  has  been 
always  such  a  reproach  to  religion,  and  such  a 
hindrance  to  the  advance  of  religious  knowledge. 
Zeal  for  God's  truth,  as  it  is  called,  has  been  the 
most  prolific  source  of  error.  Men  are  so  eager  for 
orthodoxy,  so  fierce  in  their  pious  horror  of  hetero- 
doxy, that  they  rush  into  the  theological  fray 
with  eyes  blinded  to  everything  but  their  own 
taditional  ideas.  Thus  errors  and  superstitions 
become  enthroned  in  pious  affections,  and  half 
truths  pass  for  whole  truths,  and  realities  can  never 
be  separated  from  the  garments  of  conventional 
expression  in  which  they  are  wrapped  up.  Thus 
good  men  who  believe  in  the  same  living  Lord  are 
kept  asunder  by  hard  barriers  of  doctrinal  differ- 
ences ;  and  there  is  the  sad  spectacle  to  the  world 
of  perpetual    disunion    in    the    Church  of    Christ 


84  Hints  for   the    Study. 

mutual   suspicion,    mutual    recriminations,    mutual 
denunciations,  religious  people  "hating  one  another 
for  the  love  of  God."      No  doubt  the   moral  faults 
of  bigotry,  dogmatism,  and  intolerance  need  moral 
remedies.      But  the  habit  of  mind  engendered  by 
scientific   study  helps   the  cure.      Those  who  are 
altogether  occupied  in  these  studies  have  their  own 
dangers,  which  we  need  not  enter  into  now.      But 
a  mingling  of  scientific  investigation  with  the  study 
of  theology  counteracts  the  theologic  faults.      In 
arriving  at   conclusions   on    debated  subjects,  the 
tone  of  mind  it  engenders  does  not  ask,  "  Is  this 
the  orthodox  view  .<*  is  it  nice .?  does  it  sound  pious  ? 
does  it  fall  in  with  the  traditions  of   my  party  ? 
how  would  it  be  approved  of  by  this  person  or 
that  person  .?      It  simply  asks,  "  Is  it  true  }  what 
is  the  evidence  for  it  t    what  are  the   objections 
against  it }    on    which  side   does  the   balance  of 
proof  lie  1 "      Calmly  and  steadfastly  it  strives  to 
shut  out  all  considerations  but  this  one,   "What 
conclusion  does  the  evidence  lead  to.?"      I  strongly 
recommend    Divinity   students,   therefore,   not    to 
think    the    science    they  have    to    learn   in    their 
"  arts "    course    an    interference    with    their    pre- 
paration  for  the  great  work  of  the  mmistry   but 
rather    a    help    to    it,    for    which    they    may    be 
thankful,   and    which    it   is   well   they  should  use 


Hints  for   the   Sttidy.  85 

earnestly.  And  I  think  it  is  useful  for  clergymen 
in  their  after-life  to  keep  up  their  interest  in 
scientific  subjects,  and  whenever  they  have  an 
opportunity  to  carry  on  their  study  of  them. 
They  will  thereby  be  larger- minded  men,  more 
capable  of  weighing  evidence  and  arriving  at 
unbiassed  judgments,  and  they  will  not  be  less 
humble  and  loving  servants  of  the  Creator  for 
being  careful   students  of  His  works. 

VII.  General  literature,  too,  the  "  light 
literature"  even  of  the  day,  should  have  its  corner 
in  the  clergyman's  library,  and  its  portion,  though 
not  a  very  large  portion,  of  his  time.  Relaxation 
is  needed  ;  the  bow  must  be  unbent  ;  and  just 
as  it  is  well  that  the  body  should  have  its 
invigorating  exercise,  the  ride,  the  walk,  the 
mountain  ramble,  the  game  of  tennis  or  cricket, 
or  the  good  pull  on  the  water,  so  it  is  well  that 
the  mind  also  should  have  its  hours  of  unbending 
in  which  the  mental  powers  may  find  pleasant 
exercise  and  interest  without  fatigue.  This  can 
best  be  effected  by  literature.  After  the  careful 
study  of  the  morning,  after  the  straining  of  all  the 
energies  of  thought  and  feeling  in  preparation  of 
sermons  or  addresses  that  are  to  rouse  and  guide 
the  souls  of  our  fellow-men,  after  the  day's  toil 
in   schools   and   classes,    and    visits   to    sick    and 


86  Hints  for  the    Study. 

sorrowing  and  sinning  men  and  women,  it  is 
a  wonderful  rest  to  "  read  from  the  treasured 
volume  the  poem  of  our  choice,"  to  be  carried 
away  by  the  ripple  of  sweet  rhyme,  or  the  music 
of  stately  prose,  or  the  fascinating  spell  of 
imaginative  thought,  away  from  our  struggles, 
anxieties,  and  disappointments,  away  into  a  fresh 
atmosphere,  where  we  can  breathe  softly  and 
quietly  while 

"  The  cares  that  mfest  the  day 
May  fold  their  tents  like  the  Arabs, 
And  as  silently  steal  away." 

But  the  refreshment  of  literature  is  neither  its 
only  nor  its  chief  advantage.  It  gives  to  the 
mind  and  to  the  style  of  speaking  and  writing 
that  indescribable  "  something "  which  carries 
with  it  so  much  charm  and  power,  which,  though 
akin  to  knowledge,  is  not  exactly  the  same  as 
knowledge,  which  for  want  of  a  better  name  we 
call  "  culture."  Learning  and  severe  study  will 
not  produce  it  ;  they  should  underlie  it  ;  but  over 
them  there  should  be  layers  of  gentler  lore,  even 
as  over  the  seed-bearing  calyx  of  the  rose  are 
folded  the  soft  and  fragrant  petals.  This  culture 
is  a  very  real  help  to  the  clergyman  in  his 
teaching.  Tact,  delicacy,  and  refinement  of 
feeling,  though  they  are  the  offspring  of  love,  are 


Hints  for  the    Study,  87 

assisted  in  their  birth  by  culture  ;  and  grace  and 
felicity  of  expression  are  entirely  its  gift.  Culture 
will  not  make  you  know  the  truth.  It  will  not 
give  fire  and  enthusiasm  to  preach  it  from  your 
heart.  But  when  you  know  it,  and  love  it,  and 
long  to  make  it  known  to  men,  culture  will 
facilitate  your  utterance,  will  supply  you  with 
many  a  helping  word  and  happy  idea,  so  that 
what  you  feel  and  believe  may  be  more 
effectively  commended  to  your  hearers.  It  is 
impossible  to  describe  the  manifold  advantage 
it  is  to  a  clergyman  to  be  a  cultivated 
gentleman.  It  gives  you  topics  of  mutual 
interest  and  sympathy  with  the  educated  members 
of  your  flock  ;  it  wins  for  you  a  sort  of  access 
to  them  which  if  you  are  in  earnest  you  will 
use  for  your  deeper  work.  It  helps  you  also 
to  know  what  such  people  are  thinking  about, 
what  ideas  are  likely  to  be  floating  in  their 
minds,  what  dangers  to  heart  and  understanding 
you  have  to  guard  them  against.  The  literature 
of  the  day  reflects  the  general  thought  and  feel- 
ing of  the  day.  You  find  it  hard  perhaps  to 
have  many  opportunities  for  close  conversation 
with  the  gentlemen,  the  lawyers,  or  doctors  of 
your  congregation.  But  as  you  read  the 
Nineteenth   Century   or  the    Contemporary  Review, 


88  Hints  for  the   Study. 

you  know  some  of  the  subjects  to  which  their 
thoughts  have  been  directed. 

And  you  read  not  merely  as  a  physician 
looking  out  for  the  diseases  he  is  to  cure,  but 
also  as  a  man  with  a  healthy  appetite  looking 
in  many  storehouses  for  nourishing  food.  Your 
mind  wants  to  be  strengthened,  enlarged,  and 
supplied  with  varied  ideas.  Every  honest  book 
you  read  brings  you  some  of  these.  Well  does 
one  of  our  most  earnest  poets  describe  the  spirit 
in  which  general  literature  ought  to  be  read  : 

"  We  get  no  good 
By  being  ungenerous,  even  to  a  book, 
And  calculating  profits — so  much  help 
From  so  much  reading.     It  is  rather  when 
"We  gloriously  forget  ourselves,  and  plunge 
Soul  forward,  headlong,  into  a  book's  profound, 
Impassioned  for  its  beauty  and  its  salt  of  truth, 
'Tis  then  we  get  the  right  good  from  a  book."  * 

I  cordially  agree  with  this  noble  sentiment  ;  I 
think  that  we  parsons  and  embryo  parsons  need 
to  be  reminded  of  it.  We  are  not  mere  quaran- 
tine officers,  to  whom  literature  has  to  be  submitted, 
to  see  whether  it  is  safe  from  the  plague.  We 
are  not  a  separate  priest-caste,  looking  down  from 
our  dignified  elevation  upon  weak  and  inferior 
races.  We  are  men  and  brothers,  knit  together  in 
the  great  fraternity  of  the  human  race,  throbbing 

*  Mrs.  Barrett  Browning. 


Hints  for  the    St7idy.  89 

with  the  pulse  of  its  varied  Hfe,  sharing  its  joys 
and  sorrows,  hopes  and  fears,  feeHng  our  hearts 
heave  and  swell  with  the  pant  of  its  intellectual 
labour.  We  are  elder  brothers  indeed,  through 
our  office,  commissioned  by  our  Father  to  help  and 
guide,  but  brothers  still,  and  the  more  brotherly 
the  better  helpers  ;  so  we  like  to  share  with  our 
brother-men  our  common  heritage  of  thought  and 
knowledge. 

But  we  must  take  care  that  literary  knowledge 
and  culture  do  not  interfere  with  what  the  Apostle 
calls  "  simplicity  and  godly  sincerity."  Not  with 
fleshly  wisdom,  but  by  the  grace  of  God,  souls  are 
won  for  Christ.  If  you  read  the  thoughts  and 
opinions  and  speculations  of  the  day  so  much 
that  you  can  no  longer  truly  say,  "  I  am  deter- 
mined to  know  nothing  among  you  but  Jesus 
Christ  and  Him  crucified,"  if  the  Lord  Himself — 
His  love  and  His  service — becomes  to  you  one 
of  the  many  things  you  want  to  teach,  instead  of 
the  "  one  thing  needful,"  to  which  everything  else 
is  subservient,  then  your  books  and  your  studies 
have  become  to  you  noxious  weeds,  entangling 
thorns,  choking  the  celestial  seed.  And  there  is 
another  danger.  "  Knowledge  puffeth  up."  You 
might  easily  pride  yourself  on  being  accomplished 
and  well-read.     And    then   there   would    come   a 


90  Hints  for  the    Study. 

tone  of  show-off  into  your  language.  You  would 
use  your  culture,  not  to  make  your  message  better 
known,  and  its  beauty  more  deeply  felt,  but  to 
dress  yourself  up  more  prettily  for  people's 
admiration.  Your  quotations  would  be  not  for 
the  purpose  of  illustrating  truth,  but  of  adorning 
the  preacher.  Ah,  my  cultured  friend,  it  would 
have  been  better  to  have  remained  an  honest 
dunce  than  to  have  become  a  conceited  pedant. 

The  difference  between  literary  knowledge  as 
a  snare  or  as  a  help  depends  on  the  motive  and 
spirit  of  your  study.  St.  Paul  was  an  eminently 
cultured  man,  and  used  his  knowledge  with  a 
master  hand  ;  but  he  used  it  as  nothing  in  itself, 
but  just  as  a  means  for  that  great  labour  in  which 
he  "  travailed  in  birth  "  for  his  spiritual  children, 
"  till  Christ  should  be  formed  in  their  hearts." 
Whatever  learning  or  culture  he  had,  he  counted 
it,  as  well  as  everything  else,  "  but  loss  for  the 
excellency  of  the  knowledge  of  Christ  Jesus  his 
Lord,  by  whom  the  world  was  crucified  unto  him, 
and  he  unto  the  world."  In  our  reading  of 
literature,  then,  as  well  as  in  every  other  branch 
of  our  work,  we  must  earnestly  pray  that  the  "love 
of  Christ  may  constrain  us."  Lord  Brougham  has 
suggested  that  it  is  important  for  every  reader,  who 
would   read    with   profit,   to   aim    at   unity  in   his 


Hints  for   the    Study,  91 

studies.  There  should  be  some  one  subject  or 
branch  of  thought  kept  prominent  in  his  mind. 
No  matter  how  varied  his  reading,  there  should  be 
a  constant  under-current  of  endeavour  to  make  it 
bear  on  this  one  specialite  of  his.  Thus  desultori- 
ness  in  study  will  be  prevented  ;  and  as  many 
blossoms  are  strung  by  children's  hands  on  one 
twine,  so  all  the  books  he  reads,  and  lines  of 
thought  he  pursues,  will  be  kept  from  waste  and 
dispersion  by  their  connection  with  his  one  leading 
topic.  A  noble  unity  is  given  to  all  the  reading 
of  a  minister  of  Christ,  by  the  one  great  object 
that  dominates  his  life.  He  wants  to  bring  men 
from  darkness  to  light,  from  the  power  of  Satan  to 
God.  He  wants  to  be  a  real  helper  to  human 
hearts.  In  all  his  reading  of  all  kinds  he  should 
keep  this  well  in  mind.  I  want  to  be  a  helper;  is 
there  anything  here  that  will  help  me  to  help?  In 
theology,  in  history,  in  essay,  in  poem,  in  fiction, 
in  whatsoever  book  he  takes  in  his  hand,  the  same 
search  should  be  prosecuted.  Is  any  light  thrown 
here  on  the  working  of  my  brethren's  hearts,  on 
their  dangers,  their  difficulties,  their  mistakes,  their 
delusions  }  Can  I  get  any  hint  here  as  to  how  I 
might  reach  them  more  directly,  or  bring  to  bear 
on  them  more  effectively  the  glorious  revelation 
of  God  }     Thus  manifold  lines  of  reading  do  not 


92  Hints  for   the    Stttdy, 

distract  his  mind  or  dissipate  his  mental  energies. 
The  varying  notes  are  attuned  to  one  harmony, 
the  many-coloured  rays  are  concentrated  into  one 
focus.  All  he  reads,  whether  light  or  serious, 
religious  or  secular,  is  made  subservient  to  one  end, 
and  that  end  is  the  great  object  of  his  life,  to  bless 
and  elevate  his  fellow-men,  to  help  them  to  know  the 
true  and  do  the  right,  and  fulfil  their  great  human 
mission  to  "  minister  in  the  temple  of  immensity.' 
VIII.  Before,  however,  passing  away  from  the 
subject  of  the  clergyman's  reading,  I  should  like 
to  suggest,  as  a  practical  hint,  that  to  prevent 
desultoriness,  it  is  well  to  have  always  one  good 
solid  book  on  hand.  The  subjective  unity  I  have 
spoken  of  would  hardly  be  a  sufficient  safeguard 
without  some  external  help.  There  may  be 
varieties  and  light  delicacies  of  many  kinds  at 
your  table,  but  in  order  to  make  a  wholesome  meal 
you  require  a  sufficient  allowance  of  plain  sub- 
stantial food.  See  that  it  is  the  same  in  your 
reading.  The  review,  the  poem,  the  pleasant  essay, 
are  very  well  in  their  way  ;  but  if  you  have  not 
some  book  that  will  call  out  your  mental  energies, 
your  soul  will  soon  "  loathe  the  light  food."  One 
really  carefully  written  work,  either  old  or  new, 
one  book  that  has  in.it  thought  and  materials  for 
thought,  and  that  will  need  concentrated  attention 


Hints  for   the    Study,  93 

ought  to  be  part  of  your  daily  study.  And  the 
advance  of  your  mark  in  this  book,  or  the  reproach 
of  its  long  residence  in  nearly  the  same  place,  will 
help  to  remind  you  how  far  you  are  steadily 
studying,  or  how  far  you  are  letting  yourself  grow 
into  a  mere  literary  dilettante. 


CHAPTER  VIL 

WORK    ON    THE    KNEES. 

XT  7"E  are  now  leaving  the  quiet  study,  and 
^  ^  about  to  sally  forth  on  the  practical  work 
of  our  parish.  This  is  the  best  time,  therefore,  to 
speak  of  the  great  tie  that  binds  together  the  out- 
side and  the  inside  work.  I  do  not  know  whether 
it  is  itself  carried  on  most  out  of  doors  or  indoors. 
I  do  not  know  whether  there  is  most  real  prayer 
under  the  vault  of  heaven,  in  the  momentary  pauses 
during  the  anxious  work  of  life,  or  when  we  enter 
into  our  closet,  and  shut  the  door,  and  there  pour 
out  the  yearnings  of  our  hearts  to  the  Father 
which  seeth  in  secret. 

The  work  of  our  ministry  is  a  tremendously 
arduous  work.  Its  sphere  is  that  region  so  diffi- 
cult of  access  from  without,  the  human  spirit,  the 
human  will.  How  hard  it  is  for  one  man  to  make 
another  man  better ! 

**  Each  in  his  hidden  sphere  of  joy  and  woe, 
Our  hermit  spirits  dwell,  and  range  apart." 


Work  on  the  Knees.  95 

The  solemn,  lonely,  separate  individuality  of  each 
soul  is  such  that  even  the  Omnipotent  One  was 
obliged  to  say,  "  How  often  would  I,  .  .  .  but  ye 
would  not."  Miserably  powerless  we  feel  at  the 
door  of  this  impregnable  citadel — another  human 
being.  It  is  one  of  the  disappointments  of  mini- 
sterial life  to  find  out  this  powerlessness  of  words. 
We  feel  deeply  ourselves,  our  convictions  are  strong 
and  intense  ;  we  think  that  our  enthusiasm  must 
carry  all  before  it :  "  If  I  can  but  speak  to  that  man, 
if  I  can  tell  him  what  is  in  my  heart,  if  I  can  plead 
with  him  face  to  face,  and  talk  to  him  of  the  base- 
ness and  misery  of  sin,  and  the  glory  of  righteous- 
ness, and  the  mercy  of  the  Saviour  ;  if  I  can  be- 
seech him  with  the  passion  of  love  and  longing  for 
his  salvation  that  I  feel  v/ithin  me,  he  must  yield 
— it  would  be  impossible  for  him  to  resist."  I  make 
my  attempt  full  of  triumphant  anticipation.  The 
man  stares  at  me  stolidly — he  does  not  under- 
stand me — or  he  moves  uneasily  away.  He  gives 
a  polite  assent  that  means  nothing.  I  see  that  I 
have  not  moved  him  in  the  least.  Though  I  were 
to  speak  to  him  with  the  tongues  of  men  and 
angels,  it  would  not  divert  for  a  moment  his 
interest  in  the  odds  on  the  Derby,  or  in  the  rise 
or  fall  of  the  price  of  bullocks. 

And  it  is  not  only  my  stolid  friend  that  is  un- 


96  Work  on  the  Knees. 


moved  by  my  eloquence.  I  begin  to  find,  as  I  go 
about  among  men  and  women,  how  hard  it  is,  in 
the  press  and  hurry  of  life,  amidst  its  thousand 
interests,  and  pleasures,  and  pains,  and  eager  de- 
sires, and  daily  companionships,  and  habitual  set- 
ting of  the  thoughts  into  time-worn  channels — 
how  hard  it  is  to  get  any  practical  influence  on  any 
one.  And  emotions  change  so  fast,  and  other  in- 
fluences come  so  quickly,  that  for  my  influence  to 
be  a  permanent  power  in  changing  the  current  of 
a  life  seems  almost  impossible.  And  truly,  to  any 
large  or  decisive  extent,  "with  men  it  is  impos- 
sible." Therefore,  he  who  would  carry  out  mini- 
sterial work  with  any  eflect  is  driven  to  prayer. 
His  experience  of  powerlessness  sends  him  to  the 
Omnipotent  Power. 

In  order  to  have  praying  and  working  effect- 
ively combined,  it  is  of  paramount  importance 
to  believe  in  the  reality  of  prayer.  It  is  easy  to 
believe  in  the  reality  of  work.  We  see  it.  We  see 
it,  in  spite  of  many  a  failure,  still  manifestly  a  real 
power.  Self-complacency  sometimes,  perhaps, 
leads  us  to  exaggerate  the  value  and  effectiveness 
of  our  own  work.  But  prayer — it  is  an  invisi- 
ble mysterious  agency.  I  cannot  conceive  how 
it  works.  Nothing  can  enable  me  to  be  certain 
that    it   is   a  reality,   except   that   faith  which   is 


Work  on  the  Knees.  97 

the  "evidence  of  things  not  seen."  If  I  am  to 
pray,  I  must  believe  that  there  is  a  Power  above 
and  beyond  human  will  and  thought  that  works 
on  human  will  and  thought.  I  must  believe 
that  my  will  can  reach  and  influence  that  Power, 
and  that  It  can  reach  and  influence  others.  But 
that  is  only  another  way  of  saying  that  I  must 
be  a  believer  in  God.  And  unless  I  am,  unless 
I  know  Him  to  be  as  real  as  my  own  soul,  I 
have  nothing  to  teach  mankind,  and  am  as  little 
capable  of  working  as  I  am  of  praying.  And 
I  need  not  rely  less  in  the  reality  of  prayer, 
because  the  more  I  think  of  it  the  more  incon- 
ceivable it  seems.  The  same  is  true  as  to  all 
the  phenomena  of  that  mystery  of  mysteries — life. 
The  connection  between  my  volition  and  the 
substances  of  which  my  bodily  nerves  and  joints 
are  composed  defies  explanation.  That  a  desire 
in  my  heart  should  "  move  the  arm  that  moves 
the  world "  is  indeed  an  inscrutable  mystery, 
but  that  it  should  move  the  muscles  and  bones 
of  my  own  arm  is  in  reality  as  entirely  beyond 
explanation. 

Let  me  then  believe,  as  a  matter  of  faith,  that 
I  have  a  God  that  heareth  prayer.  Let  it  be 
a  deeply  felt  conviction  underlying  all  my  life 
that  every  whisper  of  my  heart  to   Him   reaches 

7 


9  8  Work  on  the  Knees. 

His  ear,  and  becomes  an  infinite  power  ;  so  shall 
I  feel  that  when  I  am  praying  I  am  employing 
the  mightiest  conceivable  agency.  In  proportion 
as  by  faith,  by  standing  face  to  face  with  the 
unseen,  I  realize  this  great  truth — in  that  pro- 
portion shall  I  become  a  man  of  prayer,  a  man 
who  holds  free  and  loving  intercourse  with  the 
King  of  kings,  a  man  whose  poor  human  efforts 
produce  effects  beyond  what  could  have  been 
thought  of  or  dreamed  of,  because  they  are 
accompanied  by  the  power  and  blessing  of  the 
Omnipotent  One. 

With  this  conviction  as  to  the  reality  of  prayer 
strong  on  our  hearts,  we  shall  endeavour  always 
to  make  our  praying  keep  pace  with  our  working. 
It  has  been  said  that  a  good  sermon  is  always 
prepared  "  on  the  knees."  I  believe  it  is  the 
same  with  all  our  work.  It  is  only  well  done 
"  on  the  knees."  Before  the  work  is  undertaken,  it 
is  commended  to  God  for  His  blessing.  While 
it  is  being  carried  out,  though  the  body  may  be 
active,  and  the  mind  with  all  its  energies  at  full 
stretch,  yet  the  spirit  is  in  the  attitude  of  prayer. 
And  when  the  work  is  done,  it  is  followed  with 
renewed  beseechings  that  its  weakness  and  faults 
may  be  pardoned,  and  that  through  its  stum- 
bling efforts  a  real  benefaction   may  be  conveyed. 


Work  on  the  Knees,  99 

Thus  the  daily  parochial  round  becomes  a 
walk  with  God.  Before  we  start,  as  we  lay 
out  the  programme  of  duty  in  our  minds,  we 
spread  it  before  Him  in  prayer.  We  tell  Him 
what  we  are  going  to  do,  whom  we  are  going 
to  see.  As  we  knock  at  each  door,  the  heart 
is  knocking  at  heaven's  gate,  that  it  may  be 
gYWQVi  to  us  what  to  say.  As  we  kneel  by  the 
bedside  of  the  sick  and  dying,  we  speak  for 
them  with  happy  confidence  to  the  known  and 
trusted  Friend  who  is  standing  between  us  and 
them.  As  we  mount  the  pulpit  stairs,  the  hand 
may  cling  to  the  railing  with  a  tremble  of  natural 
nervousness,  but  the  heart  clings  in  childlike 
trust  to  the  hand  stretched  out  from  on  hip-h, 
and  strong  in  His  strength  we  speak  to  the 
few  or  the  many,  the  learned  or  the  unlearned, 
the  great  or  the  humble,  the  message  He  bids 
us  speak  for  Him.  And  then,  when  the  evening 
comes,  and  we  kneel  in  the  sohtude  of  our 
chamber,  we  tell  Him  the  story  of  our  work, 
and  one  by  one  we  bring  Him  the  names  of 
those  whom  we  have  seen  and  spoken  to  ;  and 
those  whom  we  have  toiled  for  in  the  day  we 
pray  for  now  ;  and  we  tell  our  Father  of  our 
hopes  for  them  and  our  fears  for  them ;  and 
believing  that  He  loves  us,  and  hears  our  prayer, 


lOO  Work  on  the  Knees, 

we  lay  out  their  cases  before  Him,  and  plead  for 
them,  that  they  may  be  pardoned,  strengthened, 
and  comforted.  And  so  the  sacred  bond  between 
pastor  and  people  grows  closer  and  dearer  as 
it  is  embodied  in  the  golden  link  of  sweet  com- 
munion between  the  pastor  and  his  God. 

But  nowhere  probably  is  the  strength  and 
sacredness  of  that  bond  between  people  and  pastor 
and  Father  in  heaven  brought  into  greater 
prominence  than  in  the  place  where  pastor  and 
people  generally  meet  first,  and  meet  most  often. 
If  prayer  is  the  golden"  link,  where  does  it  flash 
and  shine  so  vividly  as  in  the  "house  of  prayer".? 
Wearing  the  vestments  that  mark  him  out  as  a 
minister  of  the  sanctuary,  the  pastor  takes  his 
place  there  among  the  people  to  whose  help  his 
life  is  to  be  dedicated.  There,  in  that  building 
hallowed  by  so  many  associations — where  the 
bride  and  bridegeoom  have  been  joined  together 
in  holy  union,  and  the  young  mothers  have 
brought  their  babes  to  the  font,  and  the  mourners 
have  laid  down  their  dead  for  a  little  while,  to  let 
the  solemn  hush  of  sorrow  be  broken  by  the  words 
of  Christian  hope  and  triumph  ;  there,  where  those 
whom  God  entrusts  to  the  pastor's  keeping  are  so 
often  to  meet  in  prayer  and  praise  to  the  Father 
in  heaven,  he  kneels  with  them   now  to  lead  them 


Work  on  the  Knees.  loi 

in  worship.  Much  of  his  ministerial  work  will 
have  to  be  carried  on  in  the  same  place.  Hence- 
forth the  solemn  worship  of  the  people,  and  their 
reception  of  the  Sacraments  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  and 
the  most  sacred  epochs  of  their  lives,  will  be  asso- 
ciated with  him  in  that  church.  Is  it  not  well 
then  that  we  should  dwell  for  a  little  while  upon 
the  tone  in  which  this  part  of  our  praying  work 
should  be  carried  on  } 

I  think  that  the  principal  notes  in  the  chord  of 
feeling  which  should  be  struck  in  the  sanctuary 
ministrations  are  Reverence,  Love,  and  Joy.  God 
is  everywhere  ;  every  spot  in  heaven  and  earth 
is  holy  with  His  presence.  Reverent  God's  child 
should  strive  to  be  wherever  he  is  ;  so  reverent  as 
to  crush  every  feeling,  and  to  silence  every  word, 
that  would  be  dishonouring  to  the  glorious  Being 
who  is  ever  by  his  side.  But  He  who  said,  "  I  am 
with  you  always,"  said  also,  "  Where  two  or  three 
are  gathered  together  in  My  name,  there  am  I  in 
the  midst."  He  meant  something  real  by  this 
saying.  Therefore  the  reverence  which  we  should 
strive  to  have  in  our  hearts  wherever  we  are 
we  should  strive  specially  to  express  in  voice  and 
look  and  manner  when  we  come  into  the  house 
consecrated  to  the  purpose  of  meeting  together 
in    the  name   of  the   Lord.     We  need  not  puzzle 


102  Work  on  the  Knees. 


ourselves  with  the  question,  in  what  sense  is  He 
with  us  here  more  than  elsewhere  ?  We  want 
to  worship  Him  in  a  very  solemn  way  here  ;  we 
want  together  to  lift  up  heart  and  voice,  and 
express  our  homage  and  devotion  to  Him  ;  we 
want  to  make  our  reverence  and  loyalty  known 
to  our  brethren  and  to  the  world.  He  surely 
sympathizes  with  our  wish,  and  meets  us  as  we 
come  to  Him.  In  all  our  demeanour,  then,  we,  as 
the  leaders  of  our  brethren's  worship,  should  show 
that  we  believe  our  God  is  in  our  midst.  Prayer 
to  Him  is  a  very  sacred  act ;  voice  and  gesture 
should  show  that  we  feel  it.  We  are  gathering 
round  a  King  ;  we  are  speaking  to  a  King,  even 
the  King  of  kings.  Are  lounging  attitudes  and 
gabbled  words  and  careless  glances  suitable 
expressions  of  our  approach  to  His  majesty } 
Reverent  then,  with  a  simple  but  humble  reverence, 
should  be  every  posture,  every  word,  every  look. 
Reverent,  not  with  slavish  awe,  but  with  sweet, 
filial  respect.  We  are  in  the  presence  of  a  King  ; 
but  the  King  is  our  dear  Father  in  Christ  Jesus. 
We  are  not  afraid  of  Him  ;  we  do  not  want  to 
propitiate  Him.  We  know  He  accepts  and  loves 
us.  Prostrations  and  grovellings  upon  the  ground 
are  not  suitable  to  our  mutual  relation.  We  and 
our  brothers   and   sisters   are  joining  together  to 


Wo7^k  on  the  Knees.  103 

hold  communion  with  our  royal  and  honoured 
Father.  We  do  so  in  a  spirit  hushed  and  subdued, 
but  with  the  calmest  confidence,  and  without  any 
burden  of  awe  or  fear  upon  our  consciences. 

And  love  should  be  very  present  too.  We  are 
a  company  of  brethren  joined  together  by  the 
closest  and  dearest  bonds.  Our  united  worship  is 
one  of  the  means  by  which  we  express  our  fellow- 
ship one  with  another  ;  and  as  we  speak  together 
to  our  Father,  we  learn  more  and  more  how  sacred  is 
our  companionship  and  identity  of  interests.  The 
Father  whom  we  address  is  very  dear  to  us.  Dear 
to  us  also  should  be  the  brethren  who  are  speak- 
ing to  Him  with  us.  The  clergyman  is  not  a 
functionary  doing  something  for  the  people.  He 
is  their  elder  brother  leading  them  to  the  common 
Father's  presence,  and  saying  aloud  in  their  names 
what  they  are  saying  in  their  hearts.  Sometimes 
they  join  with  their  voices  ;  sometimes  they  speak, 
and  he  is  silent.  But  always  it  is  a  company  ot 
brethren  with  one  brother  solemnly  ordained  and 
appointed  to  be  the  leader  of  the  rest.  A  certain 
tenderness  and  unction  there  should  be  in  the  way 
he  leads  their  devotions.  A  dry,  hard,  official 
tone  is  miserably  unseemly  for  one  who  is  not  a 
mere  clerk  paid  for  his  reading,  but  a  brother 
praying  with  his  brothers.      I  say  there  should  be 


I04  Work  on  the  Knees. 

a  certain  loving  unction  in  his  manner.  But  great 
care  must  be  taken  that  it  should  not  degenerate 
into  tmctiwiLsness.  A  greasy,  hypocritical,  vulgar 
unctuousness,  with  drawling  of  voice  and  rolling 
of  eyes,  is  most  detestable.  Whatever  else  we  are, 
we  must  be  simple  and  unaffected.  Let  us  not 
try  for  affectionate  manners  and  affectionate  looks, 
but  let  us  try  to  remember  we  are  in  the  presence 
of  a  Father  whom  we  love  and  honour,  and  of 
brethren  with  whom  we  sympathise.  Uncon- 
sciously, and  without  effort,  the  outward  manner 
will  reflect  what  is  within. 

And  joy  is  to  be  our  other  note.  Our  worship 
of  our  Father  is  a  glad  and  happy  employment. 
We  must  try  to  feel  this,  and  make  it  be  felt. 
Some  clergymen  seem  to  think  it  pious  to  be 
dismal  :  they  read  in  a  slow,  mournful,  moan- 
ing tone  ;  the  more  slow,  the  more  pompous,  the 
more  unnatural  they  are,  the  more  reverent  they 
suppose  themselves  to  be.  There  is  no  reverence 
in  being  either  slow  or  sad.  It  makes  some  of 
the  congregation  sleepy  ;  it  drives  some  of 
them  wild  with  impatience  ;  it  makes  others,  I 
fear,  titter  at  the  "  drony  manner"  of  their  "  solemn 
and  stupid  parson."  Very  slow  reading  is  tire- 
some and  difficult  to  follow.  The  operations  of 
the    mind    are    instantaneous,    and    your     fellow- 


Work  on  the  Knees,  105 

worshippers  have  mentally  run  to  the  end  of  your 
sentence  while  you  are  still  drawling  on  in  the 
middle  of  it.  They  have  to  stop  and  wait  for  you 
to  begin  the  next.  If  reading  is  too  quick,  the 
ear  cannot  catch  it.  The  hearing  of  poor  people 
and  aged  people  is  sometimes  a  little  blunt.  But 
more  time  should  never  be  spent  in  reading  a 
sentence  than  is  necessary  to  make  it  distinctly 
heard  ;  any  slowness  beyond  what  is  needful  for 
this  distinct  utterance  produces  fatigue.  If  you  try 
to  appear  reverent  by  your  slow  manner  of  conduct- 
ing service,  you  will  really  be  only  tiresome. 

Let  us  be  "  glad  to  go  into  the  house  of  the 
Lord."  Let  us  feel  it  to  be  good  and  pleasant  to 
praise  Him  ;  and  then,  though  we  have  to  bow  in 
humble  confession,  and  pour  out  eager  beseech- 
ings  and  cries  for  help  in  trial,  and  for  comfort  in 
sorrow  ;  still  in  our  Father's  presence,  believing 
that  He  forgives  all  our  sins,  and  remembers  them 
no  more,  believing  that  He  knows  our  wants,  and 
will  give  us  more  than  we  ask  or  think  ;  believing 
that  our  brethren  are  around  us,  sharing  our 
feelings,  the  predominant  tone  in  our  hearts  will 
be  happiness  and  spiritual  refreshment ;  and  this 
inward  note  will  reflect  itself  in  a  certain  calm 
brightness  of  manner  and  aspect  even  in  the  midst 
of  our  deepest  reverence. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

IN    THE    PULPIT. 

Part  I. —  The  Sernion  Matter. 

I  ^HE  Christian  preacher  comes  to  his  congre- 
-■■  gation  as  a  herald  or  authorized  messenger 
from  God.  His  first  and  principal  duty  is  to  see 
that  his  message  is  really  delivered.  He  is  not  fit 
for  his  office,  unless  he  understands  in  his  heart 
what  that  message  is.  Why  should  the  messenger 
run,  if  he  has  no  tidings  }  ^ 

There  may  often  be  the  question  in  the  young 
preacher's  mind,  Hoiv  shall  I  speak  }  But  "  What 
shall  I  speak  about  V  is  a  question  he  should  never 
need  to  ask.  What  on  earth  shall  I  say  next 
Sunday  }  How  shall  I  ever  fill  up  my  twenty 
pages  of  sermon  paper,  or  my  fifteen  minutes  of 
sermon  time }  Is  not  this  a  pitiful  question  for 
one  who  comes  as  a  messenger  from  the  living 
God  to  immortal  souls  1     Why  did  you  ask  for 

*  See  "  Rest  Awhile,"  by  Dr.  Vaughan. 


The  Sermon  Matter,  107 

authority  to  preach  the  Gospel  in  the  Church  of 
God  ?  Why  did  you  declare  your  trust  that  you 
were  inwardly  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost  to  your 
office  and  administration,  if  when  you  come  face 
to  face  with  your  people  you  do  not  know  what  to 
say  to  them  ? 

What  shall  I  say  ?  Yes.  How  shall  I  find  words 
to  express  the  glorious  things  I  want  to  say  ? 
How  shall  I  put  them  so  that  they  may  come 
home  fresh  and  real  to  my  hearers'  hearts  ?  How 
shall  I  bring  them  warm  from  my  own  heart 
without  cooling  and  stiffening  them  in  conven- 
tional forms  of  speech  ? 

But  what  have  I  to  speak  about  ?  Surely  that 
which  is  in  my  thoughts  from  day  to  day  and 
hour  to  hour, —  that  which  is  the  comfort  and 
strength  and  joy  of  my  life, — that  which  is  the 
most  familiar  and  precious  thing  in  my  heart, 
though  so  great  and  marvellous  that  my  tongue 
can  hardly  utter  it.  If  I  do  not  know  what  this 
is,  no  matter  how  well  I  might  be  able  to  speak,  I 
could  not  be  a  Christian  preacher. 

The  message  we  have  to  deliver,  and  the  sub- 
stance of  our  teaching,  may  be  described  in  many 
ways,  but  I  believe  the  simplest  and  clearest  de- 
scription of  it  is  that  which  we  so  often  find  in  the 
New  Testament — "  preaching  Christ."    God's  great 


io8  In  the  Pulpit. 


revelation  to  man  in  the  Gospel  was  not  a  set  of 
accurate  propositions,  nor  a  set  of  definite  precepts, 
but  a  living  Person.  The  Christian  creed  is  the 
history  of  that  Person.  Christian  faith  is  the  affi- 
ance of  the  heart  to  that  Person.  Christian  morality 
is  the  following  of  that  Person.  Christian  love 
and  hope  and  joy,  and  power  to  conquer,  all  centre 
round  that  Person.  Here,  then,  is  what  we  have 
to  preach — Christ,  the  manifestation  of  God,  the 
Saviour  of  sinners,  the  Holy  Sovereign  of  man- 
kind. 

In  order  to  preach  Him  with  any  reality,  my 
fellow-workers,  you  have  to  recognize,  and  cause  to 
be  recognized,  the  meaning  and  awfulness  of  that 
word  "  sin."  The  conscience  must  be  grappled 
with.  Each  man  must  be  brought  face  to  face 
with  his  own  soul.  There  is  no  meaning  nor  in- 
terest in  the  Incarnation,  nor  in  all  the  great  truths 
connected  with  it,  unless  there  is  the  consciousness 
of  personal  sin — sin  to  be  hated  and  dreaded,  sin 
to  be  pardoned,  sin  to  be  conquered.  Set  this 
before  you  as  one  branch  of  your  great  office  of 
preaching  Christ — to  have  the  conscience  azvakened. 
The  more  you  know  of  your  own  heart,  the  more 
earnestly  you  are  striving  yourself  to  be  holy  even 
as  He  is  holy,  the  more  effectively  will  you  be  able 
to  rouse  in  others  the  sense  of  shame  and  dissatis- 


The  Sermon  Matter.  109 

faction  with  self.  Aim  at  this  object  more  or  less 
in  every  sermon.  Remember  that  there  are  pro- 
bably many  sitting  in  the  church,  looking  very 
respectable,  assenting  to  every  religious  statement 
with  orthodox  gravity,  but  utterly  uninterested  in 
the  Gospel  of  Christ.  They  are,  as  to  heart  and 
conscience,  fast  asleep.  You  might  preach  very 
nicely,  and  only  make  them  sleep  all  the  sounder. 
Your  first  business  is  to  awaken  them.  You  must 
be  very  wide  awake  yourself  to  do  it.  A  strong, 
vigorous  grasp,  a  rough  shaking,  is  often  needed. 
Ah!  unless  you  are  thoroughly,  I  might  say 
terribly  in  earnest,  you  will  let  them  sleep  on. 
Many  ways  you  must  take  to  awake  the  sleepers. 
They  are  so  accustomed  to  be  preached  at,  that 
they  have  a  wonderful  faculty  of  dozing  on  un- 
disturbed. "  It  is  all  very  right,  all  very  true," 
they  murmur  through  their  apathy,  "  but  it's 
nothing  particular  to  me."  You  must  use  every 
device  that  prayerful  thought  and  study  and  loving 
imagination  can  suggest,  to  get  them  to  feel  that 
it  is  something  particular  to  themselves.  Careful 
delineations  of  character,  vivid  sketches  of  human 
life,  close  and  keen  analysis  of  the  heart's  motives, 
solemn  warnings,  plain  repetitions  of  Divine  threats, 
clear  exhibitions  of  what  the  Lord  w^ants  us  to  be. 
and  what  the  Lord  Jesus,  our  great  pattern,  was— 


no  In  the  Pulpit. 

these  and  such-like  tones  must  be  tried  in  varying 
succession.  Often  there  should  be  the  pause, 
the  startling  question,  the  bold,  earnest  appeal — 
what  are  you  ?  what  are  you  living  for  ?  what 
have  you  done  for  your  Lord  ?  what  is  your 
position  in  His  sight  ?  are  you  a  real  penitent  ? 
are  you  an  earnest  believer  ?  are  you  ready  to 
meet  your  God  ?  The  eye,  with  its  eager  glance, 
the  voice,  with  its  tone  of  determination  to 
be  listened  to,  as  well  as  its  thrill  of  anxious 
longing,  should  accompany  the  words  of  the 
questions,  and  bring  home  to  each  heart  the 
command,  "  You  iimst  give  attention,  you  must 
look  your  position  in  the  face,  you  must  take 
this  question  to  heart,  weigh  it,  and  give  it  an 
honest  answer." 

In  your  striving  to  awaken  the  conscience,  you 
must  not  forget  the  importance  of  keeping  the 
body  awake.  Take  care  of  a  monotonous  tone  of 
voice,  take  care  of  a  monotonous  tone  of  thought. 
What  is  the  commonest  fault  in  preaching  }  what  is 
the  greatest  hindrance  to  its  efficacy  ?  Is  it  not 
didncss  ?  "  A  good  sermon,  but  rather  dull  ; "  how 
often  you  hear  this  criticism  !  What  does  it  mean } 
That  true  things  were  said,  but  so  said  that  they 
did  not  interest ;  that  their  truth  and  reality  and 
power  were  not  felt.      A  blunt  sword  will  not  cut  ; 


The  Sermon  Matter.  1 1 1 

a  dull  sermon  will  not  reach  the  conscience.  The 
sword  must  be  sharpened,  and  the  sermon  must 
be  sharpened  too.  The  preacher's  laziness  or  half- 
heartedness,  want  of  earnest  faith  in  Christ  and 
earnest  love  to  men,  blunts  the  edge  of  his 
sermons.  Ah !  he  needs  to  be  sharpened  him- 
self; stirred  up  continually  to  fresh  energy  and 
communion  with  his  Saviour,  and  affectionate 
interest  for  his  fellow-men.  Nothing  prevents 
dulness  so  effectually  as  energy  and  zeal.  The 
snore  from  the  pew  is  often  only  the  echo  of  the 
snore  from   the  pulpit. 

But  pains  must  be  taken  to  give  variety  and 
mterest  to  our  appeals  to  the  conscience. 
Earnestness  is  the  chief  thing,  but  even 
earnestness,  unskillfully  expressed,  may  become 
tiresome  :  to  some  classes  of  mind  it  is 
particularly  tiresome.  "Above  all,"  says  the 
French  courtier,  "  let  us  have  no  zeal."  There  is 
a  selfish  though  polished  refinement,  a  "  man  of 
the  world  "  culture,  that  feels  itself  wearied  and 
"  bored  "  by  any  show  of  earnestness.  Mere 
vehemence  only  sends  such  natures  into  the 
slumber  of  languid  disgust  ;  the  more  the  honest 
preacher  thunders,  the  sounder  they  sleep.  Art 
and  skill,  as  well  as  earnestness  of  purpose,  must 
be   used    to   arouse    attention.      The    imagination 


112  In  the  Ptclpit. 


should  be  always  busy  in  finding  fresh  and 
interesting  ways  of  putting  the  old  truth.  The 
cunning  angler  whom  we  lately  spoke  of  changes 
the  dressing  of  his  fly  according  to  the  changes 
of  the  weather,  or  according  to  the  character  of 
the  waters  in  which  he  plies  his  craft.  The  sharp 
hook  is  always  the  same,  but  the  glistening  silk 
and  coloured  feathers  will  vary  according  as  the 
sky  is  bright  or  grey,  and  the  stream  sluggish  or 
rapid.  The  solemn  truth  we  preach  is  always  the 
same,  the  awful  realities  we  have  to  press  on  the 
conscience  are  the  same ;  but  the  skill  of  the 
preacher  is  showm  in  the  varied  aspects  in  which 
he  can  put  the  truth,  the  varied  illustrations  he 
can  bring  to  make  it  felt  and  thought  of,  and  the 
varied  and  attractive  lights  in  which  he  can  make 
it  gleam  and  glisten  to  catch  the  attention  and 
arouse  the  interest  of  his  listeners.  No  doubt 
there  are  great  natural  differences  between  men 
in  this  respect.  Some  are  quick  in  fancy,  fertile 
in  imagination,  warm  in  sympathy.  These  are 
nature's  orators.  Great  is  their  privilege,  great 
their  responsibility,  too,  to  use  their  rich  endow- 
ments for  the  benefit  of  their  fellow-men  and  the 
glory  of  their  God.  But  the  rank  and  file  of  men 
have  not  these  facilities.  By  reading,  observation, 
thought,   and  earnest  effort,   we   ordinary    people 


The  Scruion  Matter.  \  1 3 


must  try  to  fit  ourselves  more  and  more  for  the 
difficult  task  of  arresting  the  attention  and  con- 
vincing the  conscience.  We  must  study  to  be 
interesting.  We  must  be  continually  on  the 
watch  for  thoughts,  ideas,  illustrations,  which 
will  brighten  our  addresses,  and  relieve  their 
monotony.  A  young  clergyman,  who  found  that 
his  preaching  was  considered  rather  heavy,  asked 
me,  not  long  ago,  to  recommend  him  some  book 
in  which  he  might  find  similes  to  put  into  his 
sermons.  I  fear  I  was  not  able  to  give  him 
much  satisfaction.  I  know  of  no  shop  where  you 
can  buy  second-hand  clothes  to  dress  your  ideas 
in.  Your  own  thoughts  and  borrowed  adorn- 
ments seldom  go  well  together.  But  though  you 
cannot  get  your  illustrations  ready  made,  yet 
every  book  you  read,  every  walk  you  take,  every 
sight  you  see,  every  friend  you  speak  to,  will, 
if  you  are  observant  and  thoughtful,  furnish 
materials  for  varying,  beautifying,  and  brightening 
your  productions. 

Try,  then,  by  every  device  your  ingenuity  can 
suggest,  to  interest  your  hearers.  Keep  them 
awake  ;  make  them  listen  to  you  ;  change  your 
style  and  method  of  address  ;  do  not  let  their 
attention  flag,  do  not  let  their  eyes  close  ;  get 
them    to    think,    to    wonder,    to    sympathize,     to 

8 


114  ^^^  i^^^  Pulpit. 

enjoy ;  but  all  so  that  you  may  reach  the 
conscience.  Keep  this  object  before  you  con- 
tinually. You  are  an  ambassador  of  God  to 
speak  to  men  about  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  You 
must  constrain  them  to  listen,  whether  they  like 
it  or  not.  You  must  awaken  that  part  of  the 
complex  nature  to  which  Christ's  message  is 
addressed.  You  must  perform  the  preliminary 
office  of  the  rough,  uncompromising  prophet, 
whose  voice  rang  through  the  wilderness,  rousing 
men  to  the  consciousness  of  sin,  and  so  preparing 
the  way  of  the   Lord. 

Oh,  how  we  need  that  voice  still  !  How  we 
need  to  hear  it  in  our  own  hearts,  wakening  us 
from  indolence  and  cowardice  and  self-seeking  ! 
How  we  need  to  go  out  among  our  people 
amidst  their  apathy  and  worldliness  and  secret 
scepticism,  and  make  the  solemn  voice  resound 
in  the  conscience,  "  Repent,  for  the  kingdom  of 
heaven    is    at   hand." 

But  very  specially  the  preacher  of  Christ's 
Gospel  is  a  messenger  of  glad  tidings.  Over  the 
dark  mountains  of  human  life,  shadowed  by  so 
many  uncertainties,  roughened  by  so  many 
difficulties,  he  comes  with  the  beautiful  tread  of 
one  who  is  sent  to  publish  peace.  Never  should 
the    Christian    preacher  forget   this    glory    of  his 


The  Sermon  Matter.  1 1 


office.  As  he  stands  in  his  pulpit,  and  sees 
before  him  the  assembly  of  his  brothers  and 
sisters — sinning,  suffering,  toiling  men  and 
women — he  should  feel  that  he  stands  there  to 
bring  them  comfort  and  help  from  the  great 
unseen   Lord. 

Christ  Jesus  came  into  the  world  to  save 
sinners.  His  whole  work  on  earth  was  a  work 
of  remedy.  Amidst  man's  mistakes  and  failures, 
sins  and  woes,  He  brought  guidance,  knowledge, 
comfort,  pardon.  This  marvellous  remedy  of 
His  the  preacher  has  to  proclaim.  Plainly, 
simply,  earnestly,  with  loving  reiteration,  he  has 
to  make  known  Christ's  salvation.  This  is  the 
essential  business  of  his  office.  He  is  not  a  mere 
moral  policeman,  a  clerical  beadle,  to  keep  people 
in  order.  He  is  an  authorized  witness  to  the 
great  work  God  in  Christ  has  done  for  men.  He 
must  bear  his  witness,  or  there  is  no  use  in  his 
preaching. 

Christ's  love,  Christ's  sympathy,  and  pity  ;  the 
pardon  of  sin  there  is  through  faith  in  Him — 
pardon  full,  free,  immediate  ;  the  grand  gift  of 
His  Holy  Spirit  ;  the  glorious  hope  for  His 
Church  in  the  future  ;  the  old,  yet  ever  new 
story  of  how  God  in  Christ  Jesus  has  come  to  the 
rescue  of  sinful  men  ;  this  is  what  Christ's  minister 


ii6  In  the  Pulpit. 


has  to  preach.  It  is,  indeed,  a  deHghtful  office. 
It  is  angels'  work.  There  may  be  sneers  here 
and  there  about  old-fashioned  theology  and  tire- 
some repetition  of  worn-out  doctrines.  But  the 
messenger  of  God,  strong  in  his  knowledge  of 
men's  wants,  strong  in  his  knowledge  of  God's 
provision  for  them,  can  afford  to  let  the  sneers 
pass  unheeded. 

The  simple  Gospel  of  the  Lord  Jesus  can  never 
be  old-fashioned.  Music  of  waves  on  the  sea 
shore,  carol  of  birds  in  the  summer  sky,  sweet 
songs  from  our  sisters'  voices, — can  these  ever  be 
old-fashioned  .''  The  good  news  of  Divine  love  and 
help  and  pardon  ;  can  any  change  of  men's  ways 
of  thinking  and  speaking  diminish  its  sweetness  t 
As  long  as  there  are  the  same  great  needs  in 
human  nature,  "  as  long  as  the  heart  has  passions, 
as  long  as  life  has  woes,"  so  long  will  the  message 
that  God  has  sent  to  man's  soul  in  Christ  Jesus 
have  undiminished  freshness. 

The  preacher  may  be  tiresome,  but  the  Gospel 
never  can.  His  way  of  putting  thmgs  may  be 
uninteresting ;  dulness  of  faith  and  coldness  of 
love  may  give  the  drone  to  his  voice  and  the 
monotony  to  his  style.  But  the  proclamation  of 
what  God  is,  and  what  God  has  done,  and  what 
God    promises    in     Christ    Jesus,    can     never    be 


The  Sermon  Matter.  117 

anything  but  a  wonder  and  a  glory  to  men  and 
angels.  Whatever  may  be  your  peculiar  views 
of  doctrine  on  special  points,  whether  you  be 
High  Church,  Low  Church,  or  Broad  Church,  if 
you  want  your  people  to  be  happy,  if  you  want 
them  to  be  good,  if  you  want  them  to  be  earnest, 
preach  to  them  with  all  your  heart  the  good  news 
that  Jesus  Christ  came  into  the  world  to  save 
sinners. 

If  you  w^ant  your  people  to  be  good  and 
earnest,  I  say  preach  to  them  Christ's  gospel. 
And  this  is  the  end  we  have  to  set  before  us  in 
all  our  teaching  and  preaching — to  help  our 
hearers  to  be  good.  Christ  came  not  to  save 
from  the  consequences  of  sin,  but  to  save  from 
sin  itself.  Moral  evil  is  the  great  calamity  from 
which  man  needs  rescue.  Sin  indulged  is  hell 
begun  on  earth  ;  whatever  the  awful  future  may 
be,  it  is  but  the  outcome  and  the  carrying  on 
to  its  terrible  consequence  of  base  and  selfish 
conduct  now.  We  preach  Christ  to  waken  men's 
conscience,  to  comfort  their  hearts,  but  very 
specially  to  stir  their  wills  to  holy  action. 
Motives  for  righteousness  and  strength  for 
righteousness  we  strive  to  bring  them  through  the 
knowledge  of  the  personal  God  and  Saviour. 

In  every  sermon  I  think  we  ought  to  have  before 


1 1 8  In  the  Pulpit. 


us  this  practical  aim.  We  should  take  "  the 
Word"  in  its  highest  sense  as  the  Revelation  of 
God  to  man  in  Christ  Jesus,  and  use  it  to  lift  men 
up  above  their  natural  worldliness  and  self-seeking 
to  a  nobler  platform  of  desire,  aspiration,  and 
effort.  How  best  to  carry  out  our  purpose  we 
shall  consider  presently ;  but  the  purpose  itself 
should  be  very  definitely  and  very  constantly 
before  our  minds.  I  have  to  preach  Christ  as  the 
Light  of  the  world.  I  have  so  to  display  the 
light,  that  the  shadows  may  flee  away.  I  have  to 
try  to  make  it  so  shine  in  every  heart  that  foul 
thoughts  may  be  abashed,  and  that  longings  and 
strivings  for  holiness  may  take  the  place  of  worldly 
tastes  and  sinful  pleasures.  I  have  to  cause  the 
Lord  Jesus  to  be  so  felt  as  a  reality,  as  a  real 
Presence,  a  real  loving  Lord,  a  real  Deliverer  and 
Friend,  that  all  the  enthusiasm  of  the  heart  may 
be  awakened,  and  all  the  spiritual  energy  of  the 
soul  put  in  motion  to  spurn  the  evil,  and  struggle 
for  the  good. 

When  Demosthenes  finished  one  of  his  orations, 
the  murmur  that  ran  through  the  people,  and 
swelled  into  irresistible  acclamation,  was,  "  Let  us 
go  and  fight  against  Philip."  That  was  what  he 
wanted.  If  the  people  had  spent  their  energies 
in  applauding  the  beauty  of  his  speech,  he  would 


The  Sermon  Matter.  1 1 9 

have  felt  that  he  had  failed.  He  spoke  to  waken 
their  patriotism,  to  inflame  their  martial  ardour,  to 
rouse  them  to  undying  hate  of  the  invader. 
All  his  art,  all  his  powers  of  persuasion,  all  his 
fierce  and  passionate  eloquence,  tended  to  this 
one  result — the  fight  against  Philip. 

So  it  should  be  with  us  Christian  preachers. 
If  men  go  away  from  our  sermon  saying  how 
eloquent  it  was,  how  sweet  the  language  was,  we 
have  failed.  If  men  go  away  saying,  "  I  must  try 
to  lead  a  new  life,"  we  have  succeeded.  Therefore 
we  grapple  with  their  consciences,  therefore  we  tell 
them  of  redeeming  love,  therefore  we  strive  to 
make  the  Lord  Jesus  live  before  their  eyes  as  a 
personal  Saviour.  We  want  them  to  be  loyal  to 
the  good  and  true  ;  we  want  them  to  cut  off  the 
right  hand  or  pluck  out  the  right  eye  rather  than 
yield  to  the  evil  ;  we  want  them,  in  the  great 
world-wide  strife  between  right  and  wrong,  to 
be  "more  than  conquerors  through  Him  that 
loved  us." 


CHAPTER     IX. 

IN    THE    PULPIT. 
Part  II. —  The  Manner  of  our  Preachiiig, 

'\7l  7'E  have  seen  what  should  be  the  matter 
of  it  ;  now  we  have  to  consider  what 
should  be  its  manner — by  what  practical  method 
we  can  best  bring  this  all-important  matter  be- 
fore our  people.  Let  us  think  first  of  the  struc- 
ture of  a  sermon.  It  is  a  short  address.  It 
generally  comes  after  a  long  service.  Brevity  is 
an  essential  element  in  its  success.  If  it  goes  on 
so  long  that  the  body  of  the  listener  grows  weary 
and  his  attention  flags,  the  result  is  not  only 
that  what  is  said  after  the  weariness  has  begun 
is  useless,  but  that  what  was  said  before  is  for- 
gotten. The  long  flat  end  sweeps  away  the 
impression  of  the  keen,  bright  beginning.  Be 
the  sermon  good,  bad,  or  indifferent,  it  ought 
to  be  short.      If  it  is  dull,  the  less  of  it  we  have 


The  Manner  of  our  Preaching.      1 2 1 

the  better  ;  if  it  is  interesting  and  profitable, 
it  is  a  pity  to  spoil  it  by  that  last  tiresome  ten 
minutes.  Modern  doctors  do  not  insist  on  such 
great  doses  of  physic  being  swallowed  as  their 
predecessors  did  :  their  patients,  I  suspect,  get 
well  all  the  quicker  for  the  change.  The  march 
of  intellect  is  leading  modern  preachers  in  the 
same  direction.  Whether  their  sermons  are  more 
or  less  agreeable  to  the  taste,  they  are,  at  all 
events,  shorter.  I  suppose  we  may  take  from 
fifteen  to  thirty  minutes  as  the  limits  of  an 
ordinary  sermon.  This  necessary  brevity  gives 
its  peculiar  character  to  the  address.  There  is 
no  time  for  rambling  from  topic  to  topic.  There 
is  no  time  for  elaborate  explanation.  A  great 
work  has  to  be  done.  Men's  consciences  have 
to  be  roused,  their  hearts  touched,  and  their 
will  stirred  to  some  practical  result — all  in  about 
twenty  minutes.  It  is  evident  that  you  cannot 
speak  at  random.  Care  must  be  taken  to  say 
the  things  that  are  the  very  best  to  say,  and 
to   leave   out   all   that   is    needless. 

A  distinct  tuiity  in  each  sermon  is  therefore 
an  important  element  in  its  construction.  You 
must  not  try  to  say  many  things,  but  one  thing 
strongly  and  well.  There  may  be  various 
thoughts    and     ideas,    but     they    should     be     all 


122  In  the  Piilpit, 


gathered  up  around  some  one  leading  subject. 
They  should  be  used  to  bring  that  subject  into 
prominence,  to  have  it  understood  distinctly, 
thought  of  with  interest,  and  left  ringing  in  the 
conscience.  Every  one  ought  to  be  able  to  tell 
what  the  sermon  was  about.  The  subject  should 
be  so  used  as  to  touch  different  chords  in  the 
heart,  and  produce  different  results  according  to 
the  different  needs  of  the  hearers — to  inform 
the  mind,  to  rouse  the  conscience,  to  comfort, 
to  encourage,  or  to  warn  ;  but  it  should  be  still 
the  same  subject.  If  this  unity  is  not  kept  up, 
the  effect  of  the  sermon  is  interfered  with.  One 
subject  drives  out  another.  The  hearers'  minds 
are  confused.  And  though  they  may  be  inter- 
ested by  the  various  separate  parts  of  the  sermon, 
no  definite  impression  on  the  conscience  and  will 
is  left.  It  is  better  to  drive  one  nail  at  a  time 
well  home,  than  to  give  random  taps  to  a  great 
many. 

In  order  to  bring  out  this  effective  unity,  there 
should  be  careful  arrangement.  I  prefer  the  word 
arrangement  to  division.  Divisions  may  easily 
become  snares.  The  large  Roman  figures,  I.,  II., 
III.,  and  the  smaller  arables,  i,  2,  3,  may  look 
very  nice  on  the  paper,  but  in  the  pulpit  we  must 
beware  lest  they  cut  up  the  sermon  into  little  bits, 


The  Manner  of  our  Preaching.        123 

and  destroy  its  oneness.  There  are  some  lenses 
that  make  the  rays  of  light  diverge,  and  some  that 
make  them  converge  upon  a  point.  Bad  divisions 
in  a  sermon  are  like  the  former,  wise  and  skilful 
ones  like  the  latter.  You  take  a  text,  and  find  in 
it  three  or  four  truths  that  lead  the  mind  in  quite 
different  directions.  Your  divisions  are  very  clear ; 
what  you  say  on  each  head  is  very  nice  and  true, 
but  your  discourse  fails  in  effect.  If  it  had  been  a 
commentary  that  you  were  writing,  it  would  have 
been  good,  but  as  a  sermon  it  is  bad. 

In  thinking  over  our  text,  we  must  not  be 
satisfied  with  finding  what  are  the  ideas  suggested 
by  it,  and  putting  them  down  one  after  another  ; 
we  must  earnestly  consider  how  they  can  best  be 
brought  out  so  as  to  support  each  other,  and  lead 
all  together  to  one  spiritual  result.  We  must  con- 
sider which  may  be  touched  upon  lightly,  which 
left  unnoticed  for  the  present,  which  brought  into 
strong  prominence,  which  placed  first,  which  kept 
for  the  end.  It  is  necessary  to  have  definite 
divisions,  so  as  to  be  able  to  think  the  subject  out 
thoroughly  in  our  own  mind  beforehand,  and  make 
it  more  easily  remembered  by  the  hearers  afterwards. 
But  the  divisions  need  not  be  always  expressed. 
It  is  often  better  that  they  should  be  felt  as  they 
follow  each  other  in  orderly   succession,  than  that 


24  In  the  Pulpit, 


attention  should  be  distracted  from  the  spiritual 
thoughts  to  the  mechanical  "  firstly,  secondly, 
thirdly."  There  are  times  when  this  mechanical 
precision  arrests  attention  ;  but  it  should  not  be 
done  too  regularly  and  habitually,  lest,  instead  of 
a  help  to  memory,  it  should  become  a  help  to 
somnolence. 

There  should  be  caution  in  the  expression  of 
divisions,  for  fear  of  monotony,  also  for  fear  of  an 
appearance  of  artificiality.  In  preaching  as  well 
as  every  other  laborious  human  effort,  ars  est  celare 
artein.  You  do  require  great  thought  and  care 
and  mental  arrangement  to  carry  on  your  work 
for  God  ;  but  the  traces  of  your  labour  ought  to 
be  well  swept  out  of  sight.  What  you  say  to 
your  people  should  come  from  the  heart,  warm, 
fresh,  and  simple. 

Expression  of  division  must  be  used  with  cau- 
tion, and  division  itself  must  be  used  with  caution, 
lest  it  should  be  a  scattering  of  thoughts  rather 
than  a  grouping  of  them.  But  used  it  must  be 
very  really,  if  effect  is  to  be  produced.  It  is  well 
to  consider  from  the  beginning  what  is  the  last 
thought  to  be  pressed  home.  Sometimes  you  may 
think  it  best  to  have  it  a  thought  to  comfort  and 
cheer,  or  to  lead  on  to  the  heavenly  future. 
Sometimes  you  may  think  it  better  to  have  it  an 


The  Manner  of  our  Preaching.       125 

urging  to  a  definite  practical  duty  ;  sometimes  a 
final  grappling  with  souls,  an  intensely  earnest  set- 
ing  before  them  the  eternal  issues  to  be  chosen. 
The  whole  order  of  the  sermon  will  depend  a  good 
deal  upon  what  is  to  be  its  conclusion.  If  the 
conclusion  is  to  be  comforting,  the  appropriate 
place  must  be  determined  on  for  warning.  If  it 
is  to  be  a  practical  appeal,  the  doctrinal  exposi- 
tion or  spiritual  invitation  should  be  placed  in  a 
due  position.  If  it  is  to  be  the  close,  earnest,  life- 
or-death  wrestling  with  souls  that  we  spoke  of,  the 
rest  of  the  sermon,  step  by  step,  through  explana- 
tions to  the  understanding,  and  motives  for  the 
heart  and  conscience,  should  lead  up  to  the 
solemn  ending.  Thus  one  part  of  the  sermon  is 
so  dependent  on  the  others,  that  the  order  of 
thought  needs  to  be  carefully  laid  out  beforehand. 
I  need  hardly  say  that  this  order  and  careful 
pre-arrangement  should  be  used  to  help  and 
strengthen  the  preacher,  but  not  to  bind  him.  He 
may  occasionally  feel  it  necessary,  as  he  speaks, 
to  deviate  considerably  from  his  prepared  order,  or 
even  to  throw  it  aside  altogether.  If  he  is  a  man 
of  faith  and  prayer,  a  diligent  student  of  Holy 
Scripture,  he  need  not  be  afraid  sometimes  to  let 
the  rush  of  fresh  thoughts  that  have  come  into 
his  heart,   as  he  looks   at   his    people,   carry  him 


126  In  the  Pulpit. 


over  and  beyond  the  boundaries  he  had   marked 
out.      But  the  stream  will  generally  be  strongest 
and  most  efficient  for   its  work  when  it  flows   in 
the  channel  that  prayerful  forethought  has  traced. 
Needful  as  it  is  to  have  variety  in  the  matter  of 
our  sermons,  it  is  equally  needful  to  have  it  in  the 
arrangement  of  them.      Our  thoughts  might  easily 
take  a  kind   of  stereotyped    pattern,     and    every 
subject    be   pressed   into   its    unchanging    mould. 
How  easy  it  is  to  tell  beforehand  how  a  certain 
kind  of  preacher  will  treat  any  text !      To-day's 
text  is  not  the  least  like  last    Sunday's  ;  but   we 
may  be  sure  that  the  sermon  will  be  almost  exactly 
the  same.     And  no  matter  what  texts  the  preacher 
takes,  he  contrives  to  squeeze  them  all  into  the 
same  mould,  and  turn  them  out  in  the  same  shape. 
And  in  reality  the  temptation  to  run  thus  into  a 
regular  and  always  recurring  order  is.  very  great. 
Your  own  mind  and   natural  character  always  re- 
main the  same  ;  the  objects  you  want  to  attain  in 
preaching  are  always  the  same,  or  nearly  the  same; 
and  the  wants  of  your  people  are  the  same.      But 
if  you  try  to  supply  those  wants  always  in   the 
same  way,  the   appetite  for  your  nourishment  will 
pall,  and   the  efficacy  of  }^our  medicine  will  wear 
out  by  repetition.      You  must  be  very  determined, 
therefore,  to  change  and   vary  from  week  to  week 


The  Manner  of  our  Preaching.       1 2  7 

your  method  of  approaching  and  striving  to 
influence  souls.  And  the  book  from  which  your 
teaching  is  drawn  is  a  wonderful  help  in  this  effort. 
What  a  marvellous  variety  there  is  in  the  Efble  ! 
If  you  strive  to  bring  out  faithfully,  and  cause  to 
be  felt  in  your  hearers'  hearts,  the  thoughts  of  the 
inspired  writer,  and  not  thoughts  of  your  own, 
which  you  can  manage  ingeniously  to  hang  on  to 
them,  your  way  of  addressing  men,  and  the 
arrangement  of  ideas  you  bring  before  them,  must 
have  constant  variety. 

One  sermon  should  vary  in  its  method  of 
structure  from  another,  and  one  part  of  the  same 
sermon  should  vary  in  its  tone  from  other  parts.  If 
you  are  too  intense  all  through,  attention  becomes 
fatigued,  and  effect  is  lost.  There  should  be  in  a 
picture  repose  as  well  as  movement,  and  so  there 
should  be  in  a  sermon.  Part  should  be  calm  and 
deliberate,  instructing  the  understanding  and 
persuading  the  judgment  ;  part  should  be  fervent, 
impassioned,  bold,  shaking  men's  hearts  with  its 
vehemence,  wrestling  with  their  conscience,  and 
refusing  to  let  them  go  till  they  hearken  and  yield. 
A  famous  old  Welsh  preacher  (Christmas  Evans) 
puts  this  important  principle  in  arrangement  with 
such  an  apt  illustration,  that  I  cannot  conclude 
our   consideration   of  the    structure    of  a   sermon 


128  In  the  Pulpit. 

better  than  by  describing  it.  I  do  not  remember 
his  exact  v/ords,  but  what  he  says  is  to  this 
effect :  "  There  is  no  use  in  striking  cold  iron. 
You  may  hit  away  and  make  plenty  of  noise,  but 
you  make  no  change  in  the  shape  of  the  metal. 
Even  so  there  is  no  use  in  fervent  appeal  and 
thundering  words  to  a  congregation,  before  their 
hearts  have  been  brought  up  to  the  proper  heat. 
You  make  a  noise,  and  fatigue  yourself  and  them, 
but  you  do  not  influence  them.  Observe  how  the 
smith  deals  with  the  iron  ;  carefully  he  lays  it  in 
the  fire,  gently  and  deftly  he  draws  the  coals  all 
over  it,  then  gradually  the  bellows  blow  the  embers 
into  a  warmer  glow  ;  quietly  he  stands  by  ;  the 
great  hammer  is  idle  in  his  brawny  hand  till  he 
sees  that  the  white  heat  is  reached ;  then  the  glow- 
ing iron,  all  hot  and  sparkling,  is  laid  on  the  anvil, 
and  blow  after  blow  falls  upon  it  irresistibly. 
Harder  and  harder  he  hits,  and  never  stops  for 
breath  till  the  iron  is  plunged  into  the  water,  beaten 
into  its  proper  shape.  So  should  the  preacher  deal 
with  the  human  soul.  Quietly  and  gently  he  should 
put  him  in  contact  with  the  truth  of  God  ;  with 
care  and  skilful  exposition  its  meaning  should  be 
brought  out  before  him  ;  closely  and  more  closely 
it  should  be  brought  to  press  on  his  conscience, 
till  the  heart  begins  to  burn  and  glow,  and  interest 


The  Manner  of  our  Preaching.       129 


is  felt,  and  consciousness  of  sin,  and  hopes  and 
desires  for  better  things  ;  then,  when  attention 
has  been  thoroughly  roused,  and  the  sympathies 
enlisted,  then  let  the  great  sledge-hammer  blows 
strike  home ;  then  let  yourself  loose  in  all  the 
fervour  of  longing  desire  to  save  ;  then  pour  out 
your  appeals,  your  warnings,  your  eager  invitations; 
and  the  terror  of  the  Lord,  and  the  foulness  of  sin, 
and  the  love  of  Christ,  and  the  cross  of  Calvary, 
and  the  beauty  of  holiness,  and  the  glory  of 
eternity,  and  every  emotion  that  the  heart  can 
feel,  should  be  used  to  bring  it  to  the  personal, 
individual  question,  '  What  must  I  do  to  be 
saved  ?'  and  to  the  definite  resolve  of  the  will,  'I 
will  arise  and  go  to  my  Father,'  or,  '  Lord,  I  will 
follow  Thee  whithersoever  Thou  goest.'" 

These  remarks  upon  the  structure  of  a 
sermon  show  pretty  plainly  that  its  preparation 
must  take  much  time  and  thought.  In  one  sense, 
all  your  life  is  a  preparation  for  your  preaching. 
Your  inward  life  of  communion  with  God,  your 
outward  life  of  service,  your  intellectual  life  of 
study,  thought,  and  observation — all  contribute  to 
make  you  full  of  matter,  and  more  and  more 
strong,  earnest,  and  wise  to  bring  that  sacred 
matter  to  bear  in  your  great  work  of  winning 
souls.      And  if  from  time  to  time  you   are  called 

9 


ijo  In  the  Piilpit. 

on  unexpectedly  to  preach,  you  cannot  be  said  to 
be  unprepared.  Knowing  your  Lord  and  Master 
personally  and  (may  we  not  dare  to  say  it  ?) 
intimately,  knowing  well  the  wants  and  needs  of 
your  brethren,  familiar  with  the  teaching  of  Holy 
Scripture,  you  may  perhaps  at  such  times  preach 
with  a  power  and  warmth  that  surprises  yourself 
The  instinct  of  the  loving  heart  and  the  well- 
stored  mind  will  be  better  than  any  rules  of 
rhetoric.  Yes  !  may  you  not  in  such  a  case  take 
to  yourself  the  promise  of  our  Lord,  "  The  Holy 
Ghost  shall  teach  you  in  that  hour  what  to 
speak  "  ?  But  special  preparation  for  each  sermon 
should  certainly  be  your  rule.  Whether  you 
write  or  preach  "  extempore,"  as  it  is  called,  the 
preparation  is  equally  needful.  There  are  certain 
advantages  in  each  plan.  But  the  writer  should 
study  and  prepare,  so  as  to  attain  as  much  as 
possible  the  advantages  of  the  speaker,  and  the 
speaker  should  study  so  as  to  secure  the 
advantages  of  the  writer.  I  do  not  think  the 
two  methods  need  be  compared  with  each  other, 
or  put  into  competition.  I  think  the  same  person 
may  with  benefit  to  himself  and  his  people  adopt 
both.  Careful  writing  will  make  him  a  more 
thoughtful  and  accurate  speaker,  and  frequent 
speaking    will    make    him     write     with     quicker 


The  Manner  of  otir  Preaching.       1 3 1 

movement  and  a  more  bright,  lucid,  and 
attractive    style. 

In  preparing  a  written  sermon,  the  first  thing 
to  be  done  is  to  have  it  thoroughly  thought  out 
from  beginning  to  end.  The  leading  ideas,  the 
point  of  highest  intensity,  the  conclusion,  the 
main  thought  intended  to  be  driven  home — this 
should  be  carefully  arranged  in  the  mind  before 
beginning  to  write,  even  as  the  ship-builder  draws 
out  all  the  lines  of  the  ship  before  a  timber  is  laid 
down.  Otherwise,  as  you  write,  you  may  be 
tempted  to  stray  away  into  tempting  collateral 
thoughts,  and  have  your  paper  all  written  over 
before  the  principal  lesson  of  the  sermon  has 
made  its  appearance  at  all. 

And  in  writing  it  is  very  important  to  keep  in 
view  the  people  to  whom  you  are  to  preach.  If 
you  are  speaking,  as  you  look  at  people's  faces 
you  instinctively  suit  your  words  to  the  people 
you  address.  When  you  write,  you  are  in  danger 
of  merely  expressing  what  you  think  and  feel 
yourself,  or  of  addressing  an  auditory  of  the  same 
mental  tone  as  your  own.  So  it  often  happens 
that  what  in  one  sense  might  be  called  a  good 
sermon  is  practically  a  bad  sermon.  It  does  not 
fulfil  its  object.  It  does  not  enlighten,  persuade, 
or   move    the    people  to   whom    it   is   addressed. 


132  In  the  Pulpit. 

The  children  do  not  listen  to  it  at  all.  The 
farmers  think  it  mighty  fine,  but  too  learned  for 
them.  The  ladies  think  it  dull.  The  country 
gentlemen  wonder  what  on  earth  that  young 
parson  is  driving  at,  and  the  scholars  and 
theologians  who  might  be  interested  in  its 
discussions  are  not  there  to  hear.  The  thoughtful, 
carefully  prepared  sermon  is  preached,  but  none 
of  its  hearers  are  edified.  It  has  not  done  its 
work.  It  is  a  failure.  The  preacher  in  his  study 
thought  of  his  subject,  but  did  not  think  of  the 
hearts  and  consciences  to  whom  his  subject  was 
to   be   medicine   of  Divine  healing. 

The  remedy  for  this  fault  is  to  have  vividly 
before  the  mind  as  you  write  a  picture  of  the 
congregation.  Fill  the  church  pews  with  their 
accui^tomed  occupants.  Put  the  fat  farmer  into 
his  corner,  and  the  poor  widow  with  the  shabby 
bonnet,  and  the  bustling  shopkeeper,  and  the 
lounging  young  men,  and  the  fashionable  ladies, 
and  the  red-faced  squire,  and  the  footmen  and 
housemaids,  and  the  schoolboys  and  schoolgirls, 
and  the  anxious  and  earnest  faces  every  here  and 
there  that  you  know  so  well,  and  that  seem  to 
gaze  on  you  with  such  a  hungry  desire  to  get 
some  real  food,  some  comfort  and  strength  for  the 
hard   battle  they    are   waging — put   them    all    in 


The  Manner  of  our  Preaching,       133 

their  places.  Look  at  them  before  you  kneel 
down  to  ask  for  guidance  in  planning  out  the 
sermon.  Look  at  them  as  you  are  laying  out  its 
divisions.  Lift  up  your  eyes  from  your  desk, 
every  now  and  then,  as  you  write,  and  look 
straight  into  their  faces.  How  do  they  return 
your  look.?  Does  the  fat  farmer  understand.? 
Does  the  footman  care  .?  Does  the  fine  gentle- 
man stop  twirling  his  moustache  for  an  instant  to 
attend?  Are  the  hungry  and  anxious  ones 
soothed  and  satisfied  } 

Instinctively,  as  you  ask  yourself  these  questions, 
the  style  of  your  writing  is  modified.      It  becomes 
more  flexible,  more  lifelike.      Stilted  and  formal 
sentences  are  scratched  out  with  scornful   impa- 
tience.     You  are  a  man    and  a  brother,  speaking 
to  men  and  brethren,  and   not  a  student  writing 
a  theme.     And  when  you  come  to  preach  your 
sermon  on  Sunday,  you  will  find  yourself  able,  not 
merely  to  read  it,  but  truly  to  preach  it.     You 
will  feel  it  to  be  a  real  address  to  the  very  people 
before  you.     Their  attention  will  be  aroused,  their 
sympathies    kindled:    your    written    sermon    will 
be  poured  out  from  your  heart  into  theirs  with  the 
same  kind  of  warmth  as  if  it  came  from  the  im- 
pulse of  the  moment.     You  will  be  able  to  speak 
It  to  them  because  you  wrote  \\.  for  them. 


134  J^  i^^^  Ptdpit. 


And  if  your  sermon  is  not  to  be  written  out, 
all  the  more  necessary  it  is  that  it  should  be 
well  thought  out.  The  temptation  to  careless 
work  is  then  very  great.  It  is  so  easy  and  natural 
to  save  yourself  trouble  and  accurate  thinking  by 
leaving  the  hard  parts  to  chance,  or  to  the  inspi- 
ration of  the  moment  in  the  pulpit.  This  tempta- 
tion should  be  conscientiously  resisted.  Every 
detail  of  your  subject  should  be  mastered.  The 
whole  sermon  should  be  mentally  preached  to  the 
mental  audience.  The  divisions  and  subdivisions 
should  be  clearly  impressed  on  the  mind.  The 
substance  of  all  that  is  to  be  said,  from  beginning 
to  end,  should  be  well  digested.  Here  and  there, 
on  important  or  difficult  points,  it  is  well  to  have 
the  very  words  pre-arranged. 

Great  care  should  be  taken  about  the  conclusion. 
A  good  beginning,  it  is  said,  is  the  half  of  all,  but 
a  good  ending  is,  to  a  sermon,  almost  the  whole. 
It  is  just  the  part  that  is  most  apt  to  be  slurred 
over — left  after  the  other  thoughts  to  a  kind  of 
mental  "  etc.,  etc.,"  left  to  be  finished  with  the 
pious  hortatory  words  that  come  up  to  the  mind 
at  the  moment.  Very  likely,  by  the  time  you 
reach  the  conclusion  of  your  sermon,  your  body 
will  be  tired,  or  your  feelings  so  excited  that 
you    have    lost    something    of   your  presence    of 


The  Manne}^  of  our  Preaching.       135 

mind,  and  your  last  words,  if  not  well  prepared, 
ramble  off  into  vague  generalities,  and  the  part  o 
your  address  that  ought  to  be  strongest,  most  in- 
cisive, most  calculated  to  live,  is  the  weakest  and 
most  commonplace  of  it  all.  The  child  has  been 
brought  to  the  birth,  but  there  has  not  been 
strength  to  deliver.  The  arrow  has  been  drawn 
to  the  head,  but  the  hand  has  been  too  nerveless 
to  speed  it  forth  on  its  flight.  In  preaching,  it  is 
specially  true  that  "  the  end  crowns  the  work." 
The  plant  that  God  makes  grows  higher  and  higher 
with  its  tapering  stem  ;  it  throws  out  its  rich  leaves 
from  side  to  side  as  it  rises  ;  but  it  finishes  its 
course  with  the  expanding  petals  and  glowing 
colours  of  its  flower.  In  that  with  which  it  ends 
is  gathered  up  the  strength  and  glory  of  the  whole. 
Something  like  this  should  be  a  really  well- 
organized  address — growing,  gathering  strength, 
increasing  in  intensity  and  loftiness  of  thought, 
and  culminating  in  its  earnest,  loving,  and  happy 
peroration. 

I  trust  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  repeat  here 
what  we  thought  of  together  some  little  time  ago 
— that  the  sermon  should  be  prepared  "on  the 
knees."  If  in  any  part  of  our  work  we  should 
feel  our  weakness  and  insufficiency,  if  in  any  of  it 
we  should  feel  the  need  of  castincf  ourselves  en- 


36  In  the  Pulpit 


tirely  upon  the  guiding  and  support  of  our  Father's 
arm,  surely  it  is  in  this,  the  most  solemn  and  the 
most  difficult  branch  of  it  all.  This  must  be  in- 
deed "  begun,  continued,  and  ended  in  Himy  In 
choosing  our  text.  His  advice  must  be  sought  in  a 
childlike  spirit.  In  thinking  out  its  meaning,  in 
trying  to  feel  the  force  of  its  teaching  in  our  own 
hearts,  in  deciding  on  its  most  profitable  arrange- 
ment, in  thinking  over  the  persons  to  whom  it  is 
to  be  preached,  and  considering  how  its  truth  will 
best  help  their  various  spiritual  needs,  guidance, 
wisdom,  strength  must  be  supplicated  from  the 
same  Source.  The  preparation  of  the  heart,  as 
well  as  the  answer  of  the  lips,  is  fro  m  the  Lord  ; 
and  if  the  preaching  of  the  sermon  is  to  be  an 
earnest  wrestling,  as  for  life  and  death,  with  men's 
hearts  and  consciences  in  the  church,  the  making 
ready  for  it  must  be  another  wrestling,  the  wrest- 
ling in  spirit  with  our  God,  wrestling  with  Him  in 
a  very  agony  of  prayer  that  He  may  give  us  the 
right  thoughts  to  think  and  the  right  words  to  say, 
and  above  all,  that  He  may  give  us  the  souls  to 
whom  we  preach  for  our  hire. 

And  now,  the  preparation  over,  the  sermon 
ready,  thought  out  clearly  in  our  minds,  or  written 
out  in  our  hands,  now  as  we  stand  in  the  pulpit, 
how    are    we    to    deliver    it  ?     Perhaps    the   best 


The  Manner  of  ottr  Preaching.       137 


answer  to  this  question  would  be,  "  Do  not  think 
about  delivering  it  at  all,  only  think  of  the 
subject  you  have  to  speak  of,  and  the  people 
you  have  to  speak  to.  Let  your  mind  be  full 
of  your  message,  and  your  heart  full  of  your 
flock,  and  let  the  delivery  take  care  of  itself. 
In  other  words,  the  most  important  part  of  good 
delivery  is  self-forgetfiilnessr  Wise  advice  this 
is    to    give,    but    not    so    easy    to    follow. 


Less  of  self,  and  more  of  Thee, 
None  of  self,  and  all  of  Thee  "- 


How  we  need  this  prayer  at  all  times  !  how 
specially  we  need  it  in  the  pulpit  !  xA.ll  eyes 
turning  to  us,  all  hearts  expecting  something 
from  us,  all  minds,  we  fancy,  judging  and  criti- 
cising us, — how  hard  to  forget  self,  how  hard 
to  put  away  the  shyness  and  timidity  on  the 
one  hand,  or  the  self-conceit  and  swagger  on 
the  other  hand,  that  arise  from  the  same  source — 
self-consciousness. 

A  real  love  of  our  people,  fostered  by  ac- 
quaintance with  them,  and  by  familiarity  with 
their  troubles  and  temptations  ;  a  real  love  of 
our  Master,  fostered  by  close  and  constant  com- 
munion with  Him,  and  an  habitual  sense  of  the 
reality   and    awfulness    of   the   great   subjects    on 


138  In  the  Pulpit, 

which  we  speak,  are  the  powers  which  drive 
away  self-consciousness.  As  the  souls  of  the 
people  come  into  the  foreground,  self  shrinks 
into  the  background.  If  you  are  trying  to 
rescue  a  darling  child  out  of  a  fire,  will  you 
care  about  how  you  look  }  You  think  of  the 
little  one  sleeping  in  its  cradle,  you  think  of  its 
piteous  cry,  and  the  fierceness  of  the  devouring 
flames  ;  you  have  no  thought  about  yourself, 
except  that  you  will  press  through  smoke  and 
fire  and  falling  timbers,  snatch  your  babe  from 
its  peril,  or  perish  in  the  attempt.  This  may 
be  an  exaggerated  picture  of  what  we  do  feel 
when  addressing  our  congregations,  but  it  is  an 
exaggerated  picture  of  what  we  ought  to  feel  } 
I  believe  that  there  is  eternal  life  or  eternal 
death  before  each  of  these  people  on  whom  I 
am  looking.  I  believe  that  there  are  dangers 
round  each  of  them,  more  really  awful  than 
the  scorching  flame.  I  believe  that  God  allows 
me  now  an  opportunity  of  rescuing  them  from 
their  peril.  Can  I  stop  to  think  of  what  kind 
of  appearance  I  make,  or  whether  my  words 
sound  pretty  or  ugly }  How  can  I  help  these 
souls }  how  can  I  deliver  them  }  that  is  the 
only  thought  worth  thinking  of  Anxiety  for 
our  people,  and   forgetfulness  of  self,  then,  is  the 


The  Manner  of  our  Preaching.       1 39 

first  qualification   for  the    efficient    delivery   of  a 
sermon. 

It  may  sound  inconsistent  with  this,  and  yet 
I  believe  it  is  true,  that  self-possession  is  almost 
equally  necessary.  Nervous  fuss  and  flurry  must 
be  put  away.  The  preacher  should  be  calm 
and  at  his  ease,  though  intensely  earnest.  A 
horse  soon  knows  if  his  rider  is  afraid  of  him. 
A  congregation  quickly  discover  the  same  with 
regard  to  a  preacher.  If  they  see  he  is  ner- 
vous, they  become  nervous  too,  afraid  he  may 
break  down,  and  cause  an  unpleasant  sensation  ; 
or  else  their  sense  of  the  ludicrous  is  awakened, 
and  they  are  amused  at  the  fidgety  movements 
of  their  frightened  instructor.  Do  not  be  afraid 
of  your  congregation,  then.  The  grim  old  lady 
with  spectacles,  who  stares  so  solemnly,  looks 
formidable,  no  doubt,  and  so  does  the  portly 
squire,  and  the  supercilious  young  officer,  and 
the  stolid  churchwarden.  But  they  are  not  so 
terrible  as  they  look.  The  old  lady  will  have 
to  take  off  her  spectacles,  and  put  her  wrinkled 
face  within  the  frills  of  her  nightcap ;  she  is 
only  a  poor,  weary,  worn  human  pilgrim,  after 
all ;  and  the  squire  knows  the  pinch  of  care 
and  sorrow  ;  and  the  smart  officer  has  his  hopes 
and    fears   and   disappointments,  very    much   like 


140  In  the  Pulpit. 

yourself ;  and  even  the  churchwarden  has  some- 
where under  that  capacious  waistcoat  a  human 
heart  that  beats  and  throbs  like  your  own. 

Stand  up,  then,  Hke  a  man  before  your  con- 
gregation, to  teach  them,  and  not  to  tremble 
at  them.  They  can  do  you  no  harm,  but  you 
can  do  them  great  harm.  You  can  send  those 
who  have  come  to  be  fed  by  the  Word  of  God 
empty  and  hungry  away.  You  can  send  them 
away  more  deeply  steeped  than  before  in  spiritual 
slumber,  more  comfortably  satisfied  with  them- 
selves, harder  henceforth  to  be  awakened  and 
touched.  If  you  give  them  only  empty  common- 
places, if  you  do  not  really  speak  straight  and 
true,  home  to  their  conscience,  you  hurt  them 
grievously.  Pity  the  poor  people  if  you  preach 
badly.  Tremble  for  them,  but  do  not  tremble 
at  them.  Standing  in  your  responsible  position^ 
put  away  from  you  the  fear  of  man.  Be  de- 
liberate in  your  speech.  Take  your  time  to 
say  what  you  want  to  say.  If  you  have  not 
made  it  plain,  stop  and  say  it  again.  Do  not 
think  it  a  calamity  if  you  have  to  pause  a  moment 
to  think,  or  if  you  have  to  hesitate  for  an  instant 
for  the  choice  of  a  word.  It  is  much  more 
important  to  get  the  right  word,  than  to  flow 
on   in    an   uninterrupted    stream.      It   is    not    the 


The  Manner  of  our  Preaching.       141 

smoothness  of   your    speech,  but    its    force,   that 
touches  the  conscience. 

Closely  connected  with  self-possession  is  the 
habit  of  looking  at  your  congregation.  Look 
them  straight  in  the  face,  not  with  a  nervous 
flickering  glance,  but  steadily,  quietly,  deliberately 
look  from  one  to  the  other.  You  know  how  dis- 
agreeable it  is  in  conversation  when  the  speaker 
will  not  look  at  you;  he  looks  down  at  your 
waistcoat  buttons,  up  at  the  ceiling,  his  eyes  waver 
restlessly  hither  and  thither,  but  you  never  can 
calmly  and  peaceably  meet  them.  It  is  hard  to 
feel  that  he  is  really  speaking  to  you,  and  wanting 
you  to  listen  to  him.  Beware  of  this  fault  in 
preaching.  You  want  to  speak  to  those  people 
down  in  the  pews.  You  have  something  to  say 
to  them,  that  you  are  anxious  they  should  listen 
to.  Look  at  them,  then,  before  you  speak.  Look 
at  them  while  you  are  speaking.  Let  your  eye 
attentively  pass  from  face  to  face,  not  staying  too 
long  on  any  one,  but  resting  on  each  deliberately. 
It  will  help  you  in  your  speaking,  it  will  help  them 
in  their  listening.  Your  heart  w411  catch  the  re- 
sponse of  their  unspoken  sympathy.  They  will 
feel  that  you  mean  what  you  say,  and  that  it  is  to 
their  own  very  selves  you  are  speaking.  If  their 
attention  is  flagging,  if  you  are  beginning  to  weary 


142  In  the  Pulpit. 

them,  you  will  perceive  it  at  once.  You  can  change 
your  tone,  enliven  your  manner,  and  waken  up 
both  yourself  and  them  in  a  fresh  start  of  reviving 
interest. 

And  looking  at  them  will  help  you  in  another 
important  part  of  delivery,  the  management  of  the 
voice.  Be  the  matter  of  your  preaching  ever  so 
good,  it  is  not  likely  to  be  of  use  if  it  is  not  heard. 
And  if  it  is  heard  as  a  shout  or  a  roar,  it  will  be  so 
fatiguing  and  irritating  to  the  ear,  that  it  will  hardly 
touch  the  heart.  To  modulate  the  voice,  to  speak 
so  loudly  as  to  be  heard  by  all,  and  yet  not  loudly 
enough  to  weary  any,  is  an  art  of  prime  necessity  to 
a  public  speaker.  Nothing  facilitates  it  so  much 
as  the  habit  of  looking  at  the  people  to  whom  you 
speak.  Without  effort,  without  premeditation,  the 
voice,  that  wonderfully  sensitive  and  wonderfully 
obedient  messenger  of  the  soul,  adapts  itself  to  its 
work,  and  knows  the  best  tone  in  which  to  deliver 
its  message.  If  the  church  is  large,  and  the  con- 
gregation crowded,  it  is  well  to  address  yourself 
chiefly  to  the  people  who  are  farthest  away.  Look 
pretty  often  at  the  sitters  in  that  corner  behind  the 
pillars.  Be  sure  that  the  shabby  old  man  close 
to  the  western  door  can  hear  what  you  say.  If 
your  voice  carries  well  to  the  far  regions,  it  is  sure 
to  be  heard  by  those  who  are  near.      In  trying  to 


The  Manner  of  02cr  Preaching,       14 


make  yourself  well  heard,  be  more  careful  about  the 
distinctness  of  your  utterance  than  its  loudness.  It 
is  not  at  all  easy  to  listen  to  shouting.  The  noise 
is  heard  only  too  plainly,  but  not  the  articulate 
words.  A  distinct  whisper  will  carry  farther  than 
a  gruff  roar. 

But  in  trying  to  speak  distinctly,  beware  of  an 
artificial  utterance.  Do  not  make  the  consonants 
sound  in  a  different  way  from  what  they  do  in 
ordinary  speech.  The  sonorous  smack  and  pompous 
mouthing,  with  which  some  speakers  try  to  make 
themselves  heard,  is  as  contrary  to  good  sense  as  it 
is  to  good  taste.  Be  careful  to  finish  your  words, 
be  careful  not  to  drop  your  voice  at  the  end  of  a 
sentence,  be  careful  not  to  hurry  your  utterance,  and 
to  give  sufficient  time  between  your  sentences. 
But  see  that  you  do  not  exchange  the  manly  and 
straightforward  speech  of  a  Christian  gentleman 
for  the  vulgar  declamation  of  a  second-rate  stage 
player.  Be  on  your  guard  also  against  tricks  of 
manner  and  gesture  in  the  pulpit.  In  the  excite- 
ment and  eagerness  of  your  efforts,  these  might 
easily  steal  upon  you  unawares.  Sawing  the  hand 
up  and  down,  shrugging  the  shoulders,  swaying 
the  body  to  and  fro,  raising  and  lowering  it  in  a 
kind  of  curtseying  motion — these  awkward  and 
ungainly  habits  distract  attention,  and  take  away 


144  ^'^  ^^^^  Pulpit. 


from  your  hearers  something  of  the  sense  of  the 
dignity  of  your  office,  and  of  the  "  sweetness  and 
light"  of  your  message. 

Let  whatever  action  you  use  be  natural  and 
simple,  but  let  it  be  guarded  at  the  same  time.  It 
is  better  to  err  on  the  side  of  quietness  than  of 
exaggerated  gesticulation.  The  movements  of  the 
body,  the  movements  of  the  hands,  as  well  as  the 
movements  of  the  countenance,  naturally  go  with 
the  emotions  of  the  heart,  and  help  the  voice  to 
utter  them.  But  a  certain  amount  of  self-restraint 
may  be  necessary  in  order  to  prevent  their  hinder- 
ing, instead  of  helping,  expression.  If  you  are 
naturally  inclined  to  vehemence  of  movement,  to 
work  your  body  and  hands  as  your  mind  is  in  its 
travail  pangs,  you  must  take  care  lest  in  .your 
eager  labour  you  should  make  yourself  tiresome 
or  ridiculous. 

We  conclude,  then,  this  matter  of  delivery  as  we 
began  it.  Think  of  your  people,  think  of  your 
subject,  think  of  your  Master.  Pray,  as  you  enter 
the  pulpit,  that  you  may  be  helped  in  speaking,  and 
that  your  words  may  be  a  real  blessing  to  the 
congregation.  Look  at  your  people  as  you  stand 
there,  and  think  of  the  eternal  destinies  that  are 
before  them  ;  think  of  the  eager  human  hearts 
represented  by  all  those  quiet  faces  ;  think  of  the 


The  Man7ier  of  our  Preaching.        145 

many  perils,  and  temptations,  and  difficulties,  and 
anxieties,  and  trials  that  press  upon  them.  Think 
of  the  awfulness  of  having  one  of  those  souls  lost, 
the  joy  and  delight  of  having  one  of  them  rescued 
from  sin,  and  saved  for  evermore.  Think  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  and  His  yearning  love  for  those 
immortal  beings.  Remember  that  He  sends  you 
to  those  individuals  to  teach  them,  to  warn  them, 
to  invite  them,  to  plead  with  them  in  His  name. 

Then,  lifting  up  your  heart  to  Him  for  help,  lift 
up  your  voice  and  speak  what  you  have  thought 
and  prayed  over,  and  what  you  believe  it  is  best 
for  you  to  say.  Speak  it  boldly  and  without  fear 
of  man ;  speak  it  with  a  tremble  of  solemn  awe  at 
the  same  time,  feeling  your  own  insufficiency  and 
the  sacredness  of  God's  Word ;  speak  it  quietly  and 
deliberately ;  speak  it  so  that  it  can  be  well  heard ; 
speak  it  with  straightforward,  manly  simplicity,  as 
something  you  know  ought  to  be  listened  to;  speak 
it  with  solemn  earnestness,  as  something  you  know 
it  would  be  dangerous  to  neglect;  speak  it  with 
affectionate,  even  passionate,  vehemence  sometimes, 
longing  to  help  your  brethren,  longing  to  rescue 
them  from  their  perils,  and  to  win  them  for  ever- 
lasting life.  And  then,  in  the  hush  that  follows 
the  close  of  your  earnest  address,  commend  your- 
self and  your  hearers  to  God  Almighty,  that  He 

10 


46  In  the  Pulpit. 


may  forgive  you  your  faults  in  preaching,  and  for- 
give them  their  faults  in  listening,  and  that  the 
dew  of  His  Spirit  may  water  the  sowing  of  His 
word,  and  that  you  and  your  people  may  rejoice 
together  in  the  harvest  thanksgiving  on  high. 


CHAPTER  X. 

REACHING  YOUNG  HEARTS. 

The  clergyman's  mission  is  to  the  soul  of  every 
human  being  in  his  parish.  But  his  work  among 
young  people  is  specially  important.  In  youth 
are  formed  to  a  great  degree  the  habits  of  feeling 
and  acting  which  give  the  permanent  set  to  the 
character.  Human  hearts  are  more  easily  reached 
and  influenced  then  than  in  after-life.  When  a 
man  has  grown  old  it  is  hard  to  rouse  him  to 
new  feelings  or  to  stir  his  wiH  sufficiently  to  make 
him  break  through  long-established  habits  of  life. 
Something  of  dulness,  something  of  obstinacy  per- 
haps, something  of  easy-going  indolence,  makes 
him  rather  deaf  to  the  voice  that  tries  to  charm 
him  be  it  never  so  wisely.  There  used  to  be  an 
idea  that  when  young  people  had  "sown  their 
wild  oats,"  and  had  grown  graver  and  wiser 
through  the  lapse  of  years,  it  would  be  easier  to 
get  them  to  be  religious.     It  may  be  easier  to  get 


48  RcacJiing  Young  Hearts. 


them  to  look  religious,  but  all  experience  has 
shown  us  that  it  is  infinitely  more  difficult  to  lead, 
them  really  to  be  religious.  The  wild  oat  that  has 
been  sown  has  a  knack  of  growing.  The  habits 
of  self-will  and  self-indulgence  and  disregard  of 
duty  may  change  their  form,  even  as  the  green 
blade  changes  into  bearded  grain,  but  they  re- 
main in  their  evil  essence  and  their  ugly  root  the 
same,  only  harder  to  overcome. 

God's  infinite  grace  may  touch  and  soften  and 
transform  into  new  life  the  stupidest  and  most 
hardened  old  sinner,  but,  humanly  speaking,  the 
chances  of  doing  him  any  good  are  small.  We 
may  minister  to  the  old,  we  may  comfort  and 
cheer  them  when  they  know  the  Lord,  and  cause 
their  declining  days  to  be  gilded  and  glorified 
by  the  heavenly  sunlight,  but  I  fear  that  our 
converts  among  them  are  not  likely  to  be  many. 
We  must  not  indeed  slacken  our  exertions  among 
them  or  presume  to  judge  who  are  or  are  not 
within  reach  of  the  Gospel  power.  Our  business 
is  to  preach  it  and  teach  it  with  all  love  and 
earnestness  to  all  whom  we  can  get  to  listen. 
But  while  in  our  work  among  the  old  and  the 
middle  aged  we  have  often  to  hope  against 
hope,  our  work  among  the  young  is  full  of  hope. 
We  are  sowing   in   the  spring  ;  we  are  dropping 


Reaching  Young  Hearts.  149 

our  seed  beside  the  soft-flowing  waters  ;  our  labour 
is  a  labour  of  joy  as  well  as  of  love,  because 
we  can  have  every  reasonable  expectation  of 
seeing  its   fruit. 

Our  ministrations  among  the  young,  therefore, 
should  be  looked  upon  not  as  a  matter  of  secondary 
importance,  but  as  the  most  momentous  portion 
of  our  work.  It  is  the  work  that  is  most  urgently 
needed,  and  that  has  the  greatest  likelihood  of 
leaving  after  it  real   and  permanent  result. 

And  surely  no  part  of  our  ministry  carries  with 
it  so  manifestly  its  reward  of  joy.  We  have  good 
hope  of  winning  the  children's  souls  ;  we  are  sure 
of  winning  their  affections.  They  always  love  the 
clergyman  who  takes  an  interest  in  them,  and  who 
is  cheery  and  affectionate  in  his  manner  to  them. 
How  the  eyes  of  the  little  ones  brighten  when  the 
pastor  comes  into  the  school.  With  what  shy 
pleasure  they  look  up  at  him  from  their  slates  and 
their  books  !  How  merrily  the  little  footsteps  trip 
over  to  him,  and  the  little  fingers  clasp  his  hand 
a^nd  hold  him  as  their  own  especial  property,  as  he 
draws  near  the  house  where  the  children  live. 

Hard  indeed  must  be  the  heart  that  the  joyous 
child-welcome  does  not  gladden.  And  in  after- 
years  how  pleasant  it  is  to  feel  the  cordial  grasp 
of  the  young  men  greeting  their  pastor  as  trusted 


150  Reaching  Young  Hearts, 

guide  and  honoured  friend,  and  to  know  that  he 
has  the  confidence  of  the  gentle  maidens  whose 
souls  have  been  awakened  by  his  teaching  to  the 
thrill  of  heavenly  life.  There  are  often  dis- 
couragements and  long,  weary,  unappreciated 
efforts  in  other  branches  of  our  duty,  but  our 
dealings  with  the  young  are  full  of  delights. 

Labour  it  is,  nevertheless,  real  labour,  calling 
forth  all  our  energies.  It  requires  care,  and 
thought,  and  patient  perseverance.  Very  fallacious 
is  the  idea  that  we  must  take  pains  with  our 
sermons  and  addresses  to  grown-up  people,  but 
that  anything  will  do  for  the  children.  If  we 
want  really  to  help  them,  we  must  give  them  our 
very  best.  Dull  sermons  may  bring  the  more 
visible  punishment  of  empty  pews  and  grumbling 
parishioners,  but  dull  teaching  brings  its  punish- 
ment, almost  sadder,  in  wandering  glances,  vacant 
countenances,  and  poor  little  hearts  sent  empty 
away. 

Let  us  brace  ourselves,  then,  with  the  most 
earnest  vigour  to  do  our  work  among  the  young, 
recognising  it  as  the  most  important,  the  most 
hopeful,  the  most  happy,  and  yet  in  some  re- 
spects the  most  difficult  branch  of  our  pastoral 
duty. 

When   we  speak  of   work   among  the  young. 


Reaching   Yotmg  Hearts.  151 

we  embrace  young  people  of  various  ages  and 
various  classes,  who  require  to  be  dealt  with, 
of  course,  in  modes  adapted  to  their  varying 
circumstances. 

There  are  the  daily  schools  containing  the  chil- 
dren of  the  poor,  from  the  infants  who  sing  and 
clap  their  hands  to  the  big  boys  and  girls  who 
humble   and   terrify  us  with   their  knowledge   of 
arithmetic  and  geography.     There  are  the  board- 
ing schools  situated  in  our  parishes  where  weekly 
classes  can  often  be  held  by  the  clergyman  if  he 
tries  to  establish  them,  and  where  the  children  of 
our  upper  ranks  are  found  not  seldom  considerably 
inferior  in  religious    knowledge    to    the    children 
brought  up  in  the  parish  school.     There   are  the 
Sunday  Schools,  which  ought  to  comprehend  not 
only  little  children,  but  young  men  and  women  in 
the  opening  of  their  lives  under  earnest  and  sym- 
pathising teachers.     There  are  the  vitally  impor- 
tant classes  preparatory  for  Confirmation.     There 
are  the  children's  services  in   church,  where    the 
young  of  all  ages  and  ranks  should  be  marshalled 
side    by  side.     There    are    also    organizations  ot 
various   kinds   to   enlist   young   men    around   the 
banner  of  the  Cross,  and  to  give  help  and  guid- 
ance to  young  women  at  service  and  in  business 
amidst     the     difficulties     and     temptations     that 


152  Reaching   Young  Hearts. 

surround  them.  All  these  are  spheres  for  the 
clergyman's   work   among  the  young. 

For  the  present,  however,  I  think  it  will  be 
most  useful  for  me  to  suggest  some  thoughts  as 
to  the  best  way  of  teaching  and  influencing  young 
people  in  general,  and  to  leave  to  another  oppor- 
tunity the  details  of  the  various  special  efforts 
we  have  spoken  of. 

I  will  suppose,  then,  that  you  have  before  you 
an  assemblage  of  children  of  various  ages  and 
ranks  whom  it  is  your  duty  to  teach.  There  they 
stand  in  their  youthful  freshness, 

"The  bright  and  ordered  files 
Like  spring  flowers  in  their  best  array, 
All  sunshine  and  all  smiles." 

You  recognise  that  you  are  God's  messenger  to 
these  immortal  beings  at  the  outset  of  their  life's 
journey.  You  breathe  a  prayer  to  the  heavenly 
Father  for  them,  that  He  may  teach  and  guide 
them,  for  yourself  that  He  may  teach  you  to 
teach,  and  guide  you  in  guiding.  Then  you  stand 
up  among  the  little  ones  and  begin  your  lesson. 
An  important  question  arises, — What  have  you  to 
teach .^  Readily  the  answer  rushes  to  the  lips,  "I 
have  to  teach  them  the  Bible.  I  have  to  teach  the 
Catechism,  the  formularies  of  the  Church."  Such 
an   answer  is  no  doubt  right  to  some  degree,  but 


Reaching  Young  Hearts.  153 

it  is  shallow  and  insufficient.  You  have  to  teach 
chapters  and  verses,  Catechism  or  collects.  But 
they  are  only  the  instruments  for  your  work.  The 
knowledge  of  them  is  not  the  end  you  have  in 
view.  It  only  furnishes  tools  to  accomplish  the 
real  end.  What  you  want  these  children  to  know 
is  not  any  book  or  document,  but  a  living  Person. 
You  want  them  to  know  God  Himself,  to  know 
His  will  and  how  to  please  Him.  You  want  to 
have  their  hearts  drawn  into  union  with  the  great 
Divine  Being.  You  want  to  make  the  children 
good  and  happy,  and  to  lead  them  on  the  way  to 
the  heavenly  home.  Religious  teaching  is  vanity 
and  delusion  if  it  is  not  meant  for  this. 

As  you  pray  remember  the  object  of  your  work  ; 
as  you  teach  keep  it  firmly  in  mind. 

Instruction  is  often  vague,  tiresome,  and  utterly 
useless,  for  the  simple  reason  that  the  teacher  has 
no  definite  idea  of  what  he  is  trying  to  do.  He 
wanders  over  chapters  of  the  Bible  and  answers 
in  the  Catechism.  The  brains  of  the  children  are 
puzzled  and  their  hearts  are  wearied  by  elaborate 
distinctions  and  definitions,  and  dry  enumeration 
of  historical  details.  If  you  ask  the  man,  "  What 
are  you  doing  }  what  are  you  aiming  at  .'* "  he  is 
as  puzzled  as  his  pupils.  It  did  not  occur  to  him 
that  he  had   anything   particular    to    do    beyond 


154  Reaching  Young  Hearts. 

hammering   into   the   children   the  words   of  the 
Catechism  or  the  facts  of  Jewish  history. 

Keep  in   mind   then,  first,  what  you  are   there 
to  teach. 

And  as  you  teach  exert  yourself  to  make  the 
lesson  pleasant.  Whether  it  is  or  is  not  possible 
to  make  learning  generally  more  pleasant  than 
we  are  accustomed  to  think  may  be  a  subject  for 
educational  theorists.  But  it  cannot  be  questioned 
that  the  teaching  of  the  glorious  gospel  of  God 
should  be  made  bright  and  happy.  It  has  been 
sent  as  "  glad  tidings  of  great  joy."  Take  great 
trouble,  then,  to  make  your  lesson  interesting.  If 
ever  you  shake  off  dull  sloth,  shake  it  off  now. 
Don't  be  sleepy  or  languid.  Be  wide-awake  your- 
self, and  keep  the  children  awake.  Do  not  think 
it  necessary  to  wear  too  sober  a  countenance. 
Do  not  be  afraid  of  a  merry  smile  on  the  chil- 
dren's faces  as  you  teach.  The  smile  or  even  the 
rippling  laughter  of  enjoyment  is  very  different 
from  the  grin  of  irreverence  or  insubordination. 

One  great  instrument  for  putting  down  the 
turbulent  spirit  of  juvenile  rowdyism,  which  shows 
itself  even  in  a  Bible-class,  is  to  bring  in  the 
element  of  pleasure.  Weariness  in  a  child  pro- 
duces fidgets,  fidgets  quickly  turn  into  turbulence, 
and  turbulence  is  fatal  to  instruction.      You  must 


Reaching  Young  Hearts,  155 


keep  your  class    well   in   hand,  or   else   you   had 
better  stop  teaching.     There  must  be  order,  atten- 
tion, reverence  of  demeanour.     Anarchy  can  be 
no   more  tolerated   in  a   class  than   in  an  army. 
But  one  of  the  most  effective  means  for  producing 
order  is  to  make  the  teaching  agreeable.      If  you 
are  a  martinet,  always  checking  smiles  and  whis- 
pers, if  you  are  stern   and   hard   in   your  manner, 
you  will  not  only  injure  your  usefulness  in  deeper 
ways,  but  you  will  arouse  (among  the  boys,  at   all 
events)  a  spirit  of  opposition.      They  see  you  are 
personally  annoyed  by  their  fidgety  movements  ; 
they  will    use  them   as  weapons   to   wound   you, 
and  to  carry  on  a  secret  war  of  rebellion  against 
you.     Those  little  hosts  are  easily  induced  to  take 
their  side  against   the  teacher.      When  they  do, 
their   arms  are  ready  at  hand,  and   their  insub- 
ordination  is  hard   to  be  quelled.      "  We  do   not 
like   that   solemn   teacher ;    he  is   hard   upon   us ; 
we'll    pay   him    off"     Then    begin   the   countless 
forms  of  restless  motion  and   inattentive  gestures, 
and  disturbing  noises  which  harass  the  instructor, 
and   make   it  impossible  for  the  quiet  and  well- 
conducted    children   to    attend   to    what  he   says. 
Turn  the  flank  of  opposition   by  making  teaching 
bright  and  pleasant      Let  the  little  people  find  it 
more  interesting  to  listen  to  you,  and  to  answer 


156  Reaching  Young  Hearts. 

you,  than  to  interchange  their  whispers  and  their 
pinches.  This  may  seem  an  achievement  beyond 
the  power  of  ordinary  humanity.  I  admit  that  it 
is  difficult,  and  that  it  needs  art  and  effort  ;  but 
I  think  there  are  few  clergymen  who  could  not 
accomplish  it  if  they  tried. 

If  you  want  to  be  a  useful  teacher,  then,  let  it 
be  your  first  ambition  to  be  a  pleasant  teacher. 
If  you  are  unpopular  with  the  children,  if  they 
look  upon  you  as  tiresome  or  cross,  you  do  them 
very  little  good.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  you  have 
made  yourself  the  friend  of  the  young  people  in 
their  homes  or  at  their  play,  or  by  the  part  you 
have  taken  in  their  ordinary  lessons,  your  task  of 
pleasing  them  in  the  religious  instruction  will  be 
much  easier.  When  they  are  fond  of  you  they 
will  like  what  you  say.  I  have  spoken  before  of 
the  importance  of  loving  feelings  and  loving  ways 
in  our  dealing  with  human  souls.  But  in  no  part 
of  our  work,  perhaps,  is  this  element  so  essential 
as  in  our  teaching  of  the  little  ones.  We  must 
come  among  them  in  the  spirit  of  Him  who  took 
them  up  in  His  arms,  laid  His  hands  on  them, 
and  blessed  them.  We  must  come  with  a  yearn- 
ing desire  to  be  a  real  blessing  to  them,  to  lift 
them  above  the  snares  and  dangers  of  earthly 
life,  till  their  young  faces   look  up  into  the  Divine 


Reaching  Yotmg  Hearts.  157 

Face  that  is  looking  down  into  theirs.  We  must 
come  to  them  with  affectionate  human  sympathy. 
And  what  is  sympathy  with  a  child  ?  Is  it  not 
sympathy  with  its  love  of  mirth  and  gladness, 
sympathy  with  the  feelings  that  make  it  delight 
in  a  frolic,  that  bring  the  laughter  so  quickly  to 
break  up  the  rosy  cheek  into  those  merry  dimples, 
as  well  as  sympathy  with  the  tender  heart  that 
makes  its  stormy  grief  so  passionate,  and  with 
the  solemnity  of  its  position  on  the  verge  of  such 
momentous  possibilities  of  endless  destiny } 

But  that  charming  art,  "  the  art  of  pleasing,"  is, 
I  need  hardly  say,  only  a  step  towards  something 
further.  You  put  the  children  at  their  ease,  you 
get  them  to  feel  happy,  and  then  you  have  to 
interest  their  understandings.  You  want  to  have 
their  minds  active,  not  passive.  With  all  their 
liveliness,  they  are  lazy  little  things,  those  children, 
and,  like  yourself,  they  shrink  from  any  difficult 
mental  exertion.  It  is  your  business  now  to 
make  them  think,  whether  they  like  it  or  not. 
Merely  telling  them  things,  cramming  any  amount 
of  knowledge  into  them,  is  useless.  Nothing  will 
make  a  permanent  lodgment  in  their  minds,  or 
have  a  permanent  effect  upon  their  character, 
except  what  they  (more  or  less)  work  out  for 
themselves.      Make    them  work   now.      Stir  them 


Reaching   Young  Hearts. 


with  lively  questions.  Get  them  to  wonder,  to 
puzzle  their  little  brains,  to  recognise  their  igno- 
rance, to  wish  to  know,  to  try  to  find  out,  to 
succeed  in  finding  out,  and  to  delight  in  discovery 
It  has  been  said,  and  I  think  well  said,  that 
/  the  golden  rule  in  teaching  is,  "  Question  the 
"'  knowledge  into  the  children,  and  then  question 
it  out  of  them."  Your  questions  must  be  rapid, 
varied,  skilful.  If  the  first  form  of  a  question  is 
not  answered,  change  it  into  another  form,  then 
another,  lead  up  to  its  answer  by  simpler  questions, 
but  never  stop  questioning  till  you  get  your  answer. 
Pass  the  question  quickly  from  child  to  child, 
from  the  younger  to  the  elder,  fragments  of  it 
or  echoes  of  it  back  again  from  the  elder  and 
thoughtful  ones  who  have  understood  it  and 
elucidated  it  to  the  younger  ones  who  were 
puzzled  by  it ;  but  see  that  it  does  its  work,  that 
somewhere  or  somehow  it  causes  to  be  known 
and  understood  the  point  it  was  framed  to  make 
clear.  Count  it  always  as  a  disgrace  and  a 
defeat  if  you  cannot  get  your  question  answered 
without  answering  it  yourself. 

Get  the  minds  interested,  the  understandings 
busy  and  active  ;  this  is  your  second  step.  Get 
important  knowledge,  great  truths,  precious  facts 
to  be  thus  taken  into  the  young  people's  mentz^l 


Reaching  Young  Hearts.  159 

consciousness,  and  recognised  as  things  that  really 
are  or  actually  have  been. 

Then,  as  your  third  duty,  strike  home  to  heart 
and  conscience.  What  you  have  led  the  children 
to  understand  help  them  to  feel.  The  truths  ycu 
have  taught  them  to  know  strive  to  range  as 
urgent  motives  for  practical  action.  Do  not  be 
satisfied  unless  you  can  hope  you  have  in  some 
measure  done  this.  Picture  to  yourself  the  chil- 
dren's daily  life.  Try  by  the  use  of  your  imagi- 
nation and  remembrance  of  your  own  childish 
feelings  to  realize  how  they  are  likely  to  feel. 
Use  all  kinds  of  illustrations,  anecdotes,  supposed 
cases,  so  as  to  make  them  perceive  the  practical 
bearing  of  what  they  have  been  learning  upon 
their  own  intentions  and  conduct.  You  cannot,  in- 
deed, by  any  amount  of  effort  certainly  secure  this 
result  ;  your  business  is  to  sow  the  seed,  another 
Power  than  yours  can  alone  make  it  grow.  But 
your  object  in  sowing  is  that  it  should  grow.  It 
is  your  business  to  sow  in  such  a  way  as  to 
facilitate  growth.  The  seed  may  indeed  lie 
dormant  for  a  long  time.  Not  till  after  many  a 
drenching  storm,  it  may  be,  and  many  a  long 
dark  winter's  night,  will  the  green  sprout  appear 
over  the  surface  of  the  ground. 

But  however  this   may   be,  what  you   have   to 


i6o  Reaching  Yozmg  Hea7'ts. 


aim  at  and  strive  for  is  that  the  teaching  of  God's 
revelation  may  have  its  effect  at  once,  and  may 
begin  its  working  from  the  first.  You  picture  to 
yourself  the  children's  homes,  their  plays,  their 
lessons,  their  companions,  their  joys,  and  their 
sorrows  ;  you  try  to  realize  to  yourself  how  they 
feel  in  daily  life,  their  eager  impetuous  desires, 
their  bounding  spirits,  the  forms  in  which  evil 
temper,  self-will,  meanness,  greedy  self-seeking, 
cowardice,  idleness,  and  other  childish  faults  tempt 
and  beset  them.  You  direct  your  teaching  so 
that  amidst  all  these  outward  circumstances  of 
child  life,  and  inward  emotions  of  child  hearts, 
the  Word  of  God  may  be  a  power  for  righteous- 
ness, pressing  with  very  urgent  force  upon  all  the 
springs  of  their  being.  Thus  every  lesson  is  an 
endeavour  to  lift  your  pupils  into  a  higher  moral 
and  spiritual  atmosphere. 

You  must  not  turn  your  teaching  into  preach- 
ing. The  v^eary  yawn  and  wandering  glance 
will  soon  tell  you,  if  you  are  sufficiently  on  the 
alert  to  mark  such  signs,  that  sermons  do  not 
suit  the  little  ones.  You  must  continue  teaching 
and  questioning  and  keeping  your  class  awake 
with  sharp  and  lively  home  thrusts.  But  through 
all,  your  final  aim  is  the  heart  and  conscience. 
And   you   feel    an    intense    longing  that  all  your 


Reaching  Young  Hearts.  i6i 

questions,  and  illustrations,  and  little  anecdotes, 
and  short  earnest  appeals,  should  lead  to  this  one 
result,  the  bringing  the  children's  souls  into  closer 
contact  with  the  great  unseen  realities,  and  thence 
the  formation  of  Christian  habits,  and  the  develop- 
ment of  a  Christian  character. 

The  foregoing  remarks  apply  specially  to  the 
instruction  of  little  children.  But  they  may  be 
useful,  I  venture  to  hope,  in  teaching  young  people 
of  various  ages.  Whatever  kind  of  class  he  has 
before  him,  it  is  needful  for  an  ambassador  of 
God  to  keep  prominently  in  mind  the  nature  and 
object  of  the  teaching  he  is  commissioned  to 
deliver  ;  and  then,  as  he  teaches,  he  must  try  to 
make  his  lesson  pleasant  and  interesting,  he  must 
awaken  the  activities  of  the  understanding,  and 
above  all  he  must  press  the  lesson  home,  so  as  to 
touch  the  conscience  and  influence  the  will.  In 
short,  he  has  to  endeavour  to  carry  out  the  three 
rules  given  by  the  ancient  master  in  oratory. — 
^^ placer e^  docere^  inovere»* 


ir 


CHAPTER    XL 

THE    SICK-ROOM. 

T  F  there  is  any  spot  in  the  parish  where  the 
-■■  pastor  should  feel  thoroughly  at  home,  it  is 
in  the  sick-chamber.  "The  world,"  it  has  been 
well  said,  "  is  a  room  of  sickness,  where  each  heart 
knows  its  own  anguish  and  unrest."  Into  this 
wide  sick-room  our  Master  came  as  the  Great 
Physician  to  bring  consolation  and  remedy  ;  and 
like  Him,  and  on  the  self-same  mission.  His 
ministers  are  to  come  into  the  narrower  rooms 
where  poor  sufferers  now  lie.  Christ's  gospel  was 
especially  meant  to  be  "  glad  tidings,"  It  is  our 
privilege  to  bring  those  glad  tidings  just  where 
gladness  is  most  wanting.  And  truly  it  is  a  privi- 
lege and  a  joy  unspeakable  to  be  a  comforter,  a 
bearer  of  light,  soft  and  sweet,  into  the  darkness. 

Our  work  among  the  sick  and  suffering  is  of 
two  kinds — efforts  to  comfort  and  efforts  to  profit. 
The   efforts   are  in   practice   so  blended    together 


The    Sick- Room.  163 

that  we  cannot  draw  any  sharply  defined  boun- 
dary between  them.  But  our  work  will  be  more 
useful  if  we  keep  in  mind  that  it  has  this  twofold 
object.  Pain  is  a  wound  which  we  must  try  to 
soothe  and  heal  after  the  example  of  Him  who 
came  to  bind  up  the  broken  in  heart.  It  is  also 
a  stroke  from  the  Father's  rod  :  we  have  to  try 
to  make  its  teachings  and  warnings  be  taken  to 
heart.  I  speak  first  of  efforts  to  comfort,  for  I 
am  sure  that  he  who  comforts  most  lovingly  will 
profit  most  effectually.  The  eyes  must  be  some- 
what dried  before  the  lesson  can  be  read.  And 
in  this  branch  of  our  work  success,  almost  more 
than  we  dared  to  hope,  generally  meets  us. 
Whether  we  succeed  or  fail  in  profiting  our  parish- 
ioners we  often  cannot  judge.  We  have  to  wait 
for  the  manifestation  of  success  or  failure,  to  wait 
to  know  whether  the  success  were  as  real  as  we 
thought,  whether  the  failure  were  as  complete  as 
we  teared  ;  we  have  to  wait  for  this  till  the  books 
are  opened  and  the  secrets  of  all  hearts  made 
known.  But  we  have  not  to  wait  so  long  to  see 
the  resul  of  our  endeavours  to  comfort.  Eyes 
brightening  as  we  enter  the  room,  faces  shining 
with  soft  peace  as  we  finish  our  prayer,  restless- 
ness calmed,  weariness  soothed,  even  pain  of  body 
forgotten  as  we  sit  by  the  bedside  and  speak  of 


1 64  The    Sick-Room. 

the  Saviour,  all  these  symptoms  tell  us  plainly 
enough  that  our  brotherly  sympathy  and  our 
message  of  consolation  are  successful  in  soothing 
pain  and  bringing  some  real  joy  in  the  midst  of 
suffering.  Very  often  the  clergyman's  visit  is  the 
one  bright  spot  in  the  patient's  long  dull  day. 
There  are  times,  indeed,  when  the  wisest  and  most 
loving  pastor  fails  to  comfort.  There  are  wounds 
so  sore  that  the  sufferer  can  bear  no  eye  to  look 
at  them,  no  hand  to  touch  them  but  God's. 
There  are  pains  of  body  sometimes  so  acute,  ill- 
nesses so  stupefying,  that  human  ministry  can 
bring  the  heart  no  help.  But  these  cases  are 
exceptional.  Generally  in  sickness  pain  can  be 
more  or  less  soothed  by  the  two  great  powers  the 
pastor  wields — human  sympathy  and  Divine  truth. 
If  he  goes  into  the  sick-room,  indeed,  without 
either  of  these,  he  fails.  If  he  does  not  feel  for 
his  brother's  trials,  if  he  does  not  believe  in  the 
reality  of  God's  revelations,  he  can  do  no  good. 
Under  such  conditions  his  visits  tire  and  hurt. 
Ah !  the  mere  official  clergyman  just  doing  what 
he  is  paid  for,  saying  words  whose  reality  he  does 
not  feel,  putting  on  a  grave  or  Sorrowful  manner 
just  as  he  puts  on  his  surplice  in  the  vestry, 
what  a  hard  intrusion  is  his  visit  in  a  sick-room  ! 
People  send  for  him  and  endure  him  when  a  man 


The   Sick- Room.  165 

is  sick  even  as  they  send  for  the  undertaker  when 
a  man  is  dead,  because  it  is  the  "  proper  thing.'' 
Go  in,  you  clerical  hireling,  with  your  solemn 
manners,  and  read  your  chapter,  and  say  your 
prayer,  but  don't  think  you  bring  the  poor  man 
any  more  of  help  or  comfort  than  will  the  black- 
coated  mutes  by-and-by  when  they  walk  beside 
his  hearse.  If  you  want  to  succeed  in  comforting, 
you  must  come  with  real  fellow-feeling.  You  will 
not  find  it  of  much  use  to  put  on  an  appearance 
of  sympathy  that  you  do  not  feel.  If  you  do  not 
feel  for  the  sufferer,  you  had  better  not  pretend 
you  do.  You  had  better  humble  yourself  in  the 
dust  before  the  Saviour  who  died  for  you  both, 
confess  to  Him  your  selfishness  and  hardness  of 
heart,  and  then,  coming  from  that  throne  of  pity 
and  love,  go  back  again  to  the  sufferer's  bedside 
as  a  real  brother.  And  where  there  is  love  and 
sympathy  for  him  in  your  heart,  the  voice,  manner, 
and  countenance  will  unconsciously  testify  to  its 
presence  without  special  endeavour  to  put  on 
sympathizing  looks  or  sympathizing  tones. 

And  coming  thus  from  the  Saviour's  throne  to 
the  bedside  of  your  brother  or  sister,  you  will 
come  with  gentleness  and  meekness  as  well  as 
with  affection.  You  will  treat  the  poorest  invalid 
with     honour     and     respect.      Pompous    bearing, 


1 66  The   Sick- Room, 


authoritative  tones,  condescending  airs,  how  im- 
possible they  are  to  a  messenger  who  feels  himself 
sent  by  the  Crucified  Master  to  comfort  one  for 
whom  He  has  died.  Your  entrance  into  the  sick- 
room should  bring  with  it  a  light  from  Him  who 
came  to  be  the  Light  of  the  world.  But  is  there 
not  a  light  shining  on  that  pale  face  too  ?  "  I  was 
sick  "  (the  Judge  is  to  pronounce),  "  and  ye  visited 
Mer  Each  sufferer  is  to  you  a  representative  of 
the  great  voluntary  Sufferer.  If  the  Lord  Jesus 
were  lying  on  that  bed,  what  honour  would  you 
not  pay  Him  ?  What  a  privilege  you  would  feel 
it  to  be  allowed  to  come  and  minister  to  Him  ! 
When  you  are  tempted  to  be  overbearing  in  a  sick 
man's  house,  to  be  sharp  and  fault-finding,  to  ask 
questions  in  a  magisterial  tone,  will  it  not  humble 
you  and  soften  you  to  think  for  a  moment  of 
the  Divine  sentence — "  Inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  to 
the  least  of  these,  ye  did  it  unto  Me  "  ? 

You  come  to  comfort,  then,  with  sympathy 
really  felt,  but  you  must  come  also  with  the  Word 
really  believed  in.  A  message  has  been  left  by 
Him  who  tabernacled  among  us  to  bind  up  the 
broken  in  heart.  This  message  is  the  true  medicine 
to  heal  their  sickness.  The  skilful  application  of 
the  Word  is  one  of  the  most  important  branches 
of  the    art  of  consolation.      Sympathy  makes  you 


The   Sick- Room,  167 

y — 

weep  with  him  who  weeps,  but  only  with  God's 
truth  can  you  dry  his  tears.  You  must  not  indeed 
cry  "Peace,  peace,"  where  there  is  no  peace.  You 
must  be  earnestly  on  your  guard  against  fictitious 
consolation.  Your  teaching  must  not  be  a  mawkish 
reiteration  of  soft  half-truths.  It  must  be  honest 
courageous,  faithful. 

But  into  the  sick-room  you   do  come  with    a 

message   from  the  invisible  world  just  when   the 

visible   is   most  darkly  clouded.     You  want  that 

message  to  bring,  as  it  was  meant,  gladness  and 

peace.      Even  when  conscience  has  to  be  probed, 

the  slumbering  heart  awakened,  when  the  terror  of 

the  Lord  and  the  awe  of  eternity  have  to  be  vividly 

brought  forward,  the  end  of  it  all  is  consolation. 

The   godly   sorrow   is    to   issue   in    tears    of  joy. 

Reproof  and  rebuke  are  to   lead    to  rest  in  the 

Redeemer.     In  order,  therefore,  rightly  to  divide 

the    word    of   truth    in    a    sick-room,    you    must 

remember    that    you    come    into    that    darkened 

chamber  as  a  consoler  :  and  you  can  only  efficiently 

console  by  the  consolation  with  which  you  yourself 

are  comforted  of  God.     Try  to  feel  the  reality  of 

His  consolation  in  your  own  heart.     You  believe 

in  a  Father  in  heaven  ;    try  to  grasp  firmly  the 

great   truth    that   a   sparrow   cannot    fall    to    the 

ground  without  Him,  and  that  He  makes  all  things 


1 68  The   Sick- Room. 

work  together  for  good  to  those  that  love  Him. 
Your  words  about  this  will  sound  empty  common- 
places, tiresome  platitudes,  unless  they  come  from 
a  deep  conviction  of  the  ever-present  fact  they 
express. 

You  believe  in  the  Saviour's  human  tenderness 
and  Divine  omniscience,  and,  resulting  from  both, 
His  exquisite  sympathy  for  every  detail  of  man's 
suffering  and  sorrow.  Dwell  on  this  in  your  own 
heart.  Recognise  that  it  is  true  with  yourself, 
that  He  knows,  and  is  interested  in  everything 
that  pleases  or  pains  you.  So  will  you  be  able  to 
bring  the  Bible  declarations  of  His  love  and  pity 
with  the  ring  of  delightful  reality  to  the  ears  of 
your  patient. 

You  believe  in  the  forgiveness  of  sins.  Take 
home  the  blessedness  of  it  to  your  own  heart. 
Remind  yourself  of  how  surely,  in  spite  of  all  your 
faults,  you  are  for  Christ's  sake  pardoned  and 
"  accepted  in  the  Beloved."  So  will  you  be  able 
to  bring  the  glad  tidings  to  the  anxious  and 
troubled  penitent.  Your  declaration  of  God's  abso- 
lution will  sound  in  his  ears  not  as  an  ecclesiastical 
form,  but  as  the  very  voice  of  the  Saviour  thrilling 
over  the  storm,  and  saying,  "  Be  of  good  cheer." 

You  believe  in  eternal  life.  You  believe  for 
yourself  that,  whether  you  weep  or  whether  you 


The   Sick- Room,  1 69 

rejoice,  the  time  is  short,  and  the  fashion  of  the 
world  is  passing  away,  and  that,  whether  you  gain 
or  lose  more  or  less  here,  you  have  a  treasure 
in  the  heavens  that  faileth  not.  With  this  faith 
strong  in  your  own  heart,  with  this  prospect  con- 
stantly gleaming  before  you  in  your  own  life,  you 
will  be  strong  and  confident  in  the  sick-chamber 
to  re-echo  God's  promises  of  eternal  happiness. 
To  the  sick  man,  amidst  his  agonies,  you  will  be 
able  to  say,  without  any  misgiving  or  any  sense 
of  hollow  unreality,  "The  sufferings  of  this  present 
world  are  not  worthy  to  be  compared  with  the 
glory  that  shall  be  revealed."  To  the  friends  who 
stand  by,  suffering  with  the  sufferer's  pain,  trem- 
bling in  dread  of  the  awful  separation  of  death, 
you  will  be  able  (without  fear  of  being  a  "  Job's 
comforter")  to  whisper  words  of  faith  and  hope 
and  courage. 

But  you  do  not  come  into  the  sick-room  only 
to  comfort.  You  have  another  task.  God  is 
wielding  the  fatherly  rod  ;  it  is  your  duty  to  help 
the  sufferer  to  learn  his  lesson.  You  have  to  be 
faithful  as  well  as  sympathizing.  That  season  of 
sickness  is  a  great  opportunity  ;  you  must  try  to 
have  the  opportunity  used. 

The  sick  man  is  forcibly  withdrawn  from  the 
bustle  and  hurry   and    excitement   of  the   world. 


170  The   Sick- Room. 

He  has  time  for  thought,  self-examination,  and 
prayer.  The  "  eternal  and  the  spiritual"  are, 
from  his  circumstances,  made  to  stand  out  before 
him  more  vividly  than  usual.  Sometimes,  indeed, 
there  is  so  much  pain  and  bodily  exhaustion,  that 
the  mental  faculties  are  almost  or  entirely  stupefied. 
Cases  like  these  teach  us  how,  after  all,  health 
is  the  only  reliable  opportunity  for  preparing  for 
eternity.  The  coming  of  a  painful  or  prostrating 
sickness  is  often  the  practical  closing  of  life's 
probation.  But  still,  as  a  general  rule,  it  is  found 
that  sickness,  with  its  retirement  and  its  warning 
call,  is  an  opportunity  for  special  thought  and 
spiritual  exercise. 

It  is  an  opportunity  for  the  patient,  and  it  is 
an  opportunity  for  the  clergyman  too.  It  is  often 
hard  to  meet  your  parishioner,  hard  to  get  close 
to  him,  to  be  able  to  speak  distinctly  home  to  his 
conscience.  If  you  are  admitted  to  the  sick-room, 
these  difficulties  vanish.  The  man  is  there.  He 
cannot  bustle  off.  He  expects  you  to  speak  to 
him.  He  generally  likes  you  to  speak  to  him. 
His  circumstances  incline  him  to  listen  with  special 
interest  to  what  you  are  sent  to  say. 

Take  care  that  you  do  not  let  this  opportunity 
slip.  Seize  it,  and  use  it.  It  is  well  to  be  on  the 
watch  for  sickness.      Do  not  wait  to  be  sent  for. 


The    Sick-Room.  171 


People  seldom  send  for  a  clergyman  unless  there 
is  supposed  to  be  danger  of  death.  But  lighter 
sicknesses  are  generally  better  opportunities  for 
heart  work  than  those  which  are  more  severe.  So 
when  you  hear  of  your  parishioners  being  confined 
to  the  house  through  sickness,  go  and  see  them 
if  possible. 

Be  ready,  I  need  hardly  say,  to  respond  to  any 
sick  call,  whether  by  day  or  by  night.  The  call 
may  be  unnecessary  or  unreasonable ;  it  may  come 
from  a  superstitious  feeling,  or  from  morbid  ner- 
vousness ;  but  when  you  are  called  never  hesitate 
to  go.  Whatever  may  have  been  the  motive  on 
the  part  of  the  sender,  there  is  an  opportunity  for 
you  to  do  your  Master's  work,  and  deliver  your 
Master's  message  ;  for  His  sake  earnestly  seize  it- 
If  the  illness  is  infectious,  you  must  no  more 
shrink  from  it  than  must  the  soldier  from  the 
enemy's  guns. 

In  trying  to  comfort  we  saw  what  an  important 
power  is  brotherly  sympathy.  In  trying  to  profit 
it  is  equally  needful.  Do  not  be  too  eager  to 
lecture  the  poor  sick  man.  Do  not  show  a  fussy 
desire  to  discharge  at  him  your  clerical  artillery 
of  texts  and  prayers.  Come  to  him  as  a  man 
and  a  brother  ;  sit  down  beside  him.  Listen  to 
him  with  friendly  attention.     Do  not  think  your 


172  The   Sick- Room, 

time  is  being  wasted  while  he  tells  you  of  his 
diseases,  or  of  the  doctor's  remedies.  They  are 
the  great  events  in  his  world  now.  If  you  really 
care  about  the  man  himself,  you  will  take  an 
interest  in  hearing   about  them. 

Then  when  a  friendly  relation  has  been  esta- 
blished between  you  and  him,  go  on  to  your  deeper 
work.  Try  to  get  the  man  to  speak  to  you  on 
spiritual  subjects.  Lead  him  to  open  his  heart, 
and  to  tell  you  about  his  life,  his  hopes,  his  fears, 
and  his  difficulties.  It  will  be  easier  for  you  then 
to  direct  your  conversation,  and  to  choose  your 
Scripture  thoughts,  so  as  to  suit  his  wants. 

Be  very  careful  not  to  fatigue  the  body.  Take 
care  not  to  let  the  nervous  system  be  either  over- 
excited or  wearied.  Watch  the  face,  and  if  you 
see  the  hectic  flush  coming,  or  the  eyes  gleaming 
out  too  eagerly,  stop  the  conversation  as  quickly 
as  you  can.  Sometimes  the  patient  ought  not  to 
speak  much  ;  sometimes  he  is  not  able  to  listen 
for  more  than  a  few  minutes  ;  loving  tact  and 
careful  watchfulness  will  make  you  graduate  your 
visit  accordingly. 

But  perhaps  you  think  you  must  deliver  your 
soul  whatever  condition  the  man  may  be  in.  He 
is  drawing  near  to  eternity,  and  you  must  speak 
your  message  even  though  it  fatigues,  excites  him, 


The    Sick- Room.  173 

and  aggravates  his  disease.  It  is  hardly  kind  to 
deHver  your  soul  by  killing  your  neighbour's 
body.  And  though  you  may  satisfy  your  own 
conscience,  you  are  not  likely  to  do  your  patient 
any  real  good  when  you  have  begun  to  tire  him. 
Once  fatigue  has  come,  and  the  restless  pulse 
and  the  jaded  attention,  the  opportunity  of  helping 
has  passed. 

It  is  well  to  have  one  definite  lesson,  if  possible, 
for  each  visit  :  one  short  passage  of  Scripture,  one 
verse  embodying  one  aspect  of  truth  and  duty,  so 
that  after  you  are  gone  the  patient  may  have 
something  he  can  easily  think  of.  The  exhorta- 
tion in  the  Service  for  the  Visitation  of  the  Sick 
gives  an  example  of  the  kind  of  lesson  to  teach. 
It  is  short,  plain,  and  definite.  It  takes  one  short 
passage  of  Scripture,  and  in  simple,  loving,  and 
earnest  words  points  out  its  teaching.  It  leaves 
behind  the  definite  echo;  suffering  is  God's  fatherly 
chastisement ;  what  is  to  be  the  attitude  of  the 
chastened  child  towards  the  loving  but  rebuking 
Father  } 

A  certain  order  may,  I  think,  be  with  advantage 
observed  in  the  lessons  we  bring  :  at  first,  for 
example,  thoughts  of  humiliation,  penitence,  self- 
examination,  then  teachings  as  to  God's  love 
and     free     pardon     through     Christ    Jesus,    then 


174  ^/^^    Sick-Room. 

lessons  as  to  faith  and  patience  and  the  bearing 
of  burdens  as  our  work  for  the  Master,  then 
brighter  and  more  joyful  teachings  as  to  the 
heavenly  reward  and  the  glory  that  is  to  be  revealed. 
We  are  not,  indeed,  to  bind  ourselves  to  this 
order  or  to  any  previously  prepared  scheme  of 
treatment.  Praying  that  the  Holy  Ghost  may 
teach  us  what  to  say,  we  should  watch  in  the 
patient's  feeble  and  hesitating  words,  in  the  very 
lights  and  shadows  that  flit  over  his  face,  for 
every  indication  of  what  is  passing  within  his  soul, 
so  that  we  may  provide  accordingly  out  of  the 
varied  treasure-house  of  God's  truth.  But  our 
visits  are  likely  to  produce  a  more  real  and  per- 
manent impression  if,  instead  of  vague  and  general 
words  of  comfort  and  exhortation,  we  can  lead 
on,  step  by  step,  one  precious  truth  at  a  time, 
through  the  various  elements  of  thought  and  feel- 
ing on  which  the  Christian  character  rests. 

When  our  conversation  is  done  it  should  be 
followed  by  a  short  prayer.  There  should  be  no 
bonds  of  formalism  in  our  brotherly  visits  at  the 
bedside,  and  so  sometimes  we  may  feel  that  the 
few  words  we  have  had  together  are  as  much  as 
the  sick  man  can  bear,  and  that  we  had  better 
leave  him  to  pray  over  them  in  his  own  heart 
But  as  a  rule  we  must  keep  in  mind  the  inspired 


The    Sick- Room.  175 

injunction  that  the  elders  of  the  Church  are  to 
pray  over  the  sick  Accordingly  when  we  come 
into  the  sick  man's  room  we  should  feel  that  we 
have  come  there  chiefly  to  pray,  to  pray  with  him 
and  to  pray  for  him,  to  lead  him  and  his  friends 
in  their  petitions  to  the  throne  of  grace,  and  to 
join  them  in  wrestling  in  prayer  for  blessing  both 
to  his  soul  and  body.  Here,  too,  we  may  take 
the  Visitation  Service  for  our  model.  It  is  well 
to  know  some  of  the  prayers  in  that  service  by 
heart,  for  often  we  shall  feel  that  no  words  could 
carry  up  our  desires  more  simply  and  accurately 
than  they  do.  Young  clergymen  often  find  a 
difficulty  in  praying  "extempore."  Even  at  a 
sick-bed  the  intellectual  effort  to  put  thoughts 
into  definite  words  interferes  with  the  free  course 
of  prayer.  These  beautiful  collects,  known  by 
heart,  will  prevent  the  necessity  of  what  to  some 
people  seems  the  chilling  form  of  taking  a  book 
out  of  the  pocket.  Most  clergymen,  however,  find 
it  better  to  use  no  specially  prepared  form  of 
prayer.  If  ever  it  is  easy  to  say  simply  to  our 
Father  what  comes  into  our  heart  to  wish,  it  is  in 
the  quiet,  the  privacy,  the  solemnity  of  the  sick- 
chamber.  Self-consciousness,  thoughts  of  the  effect 
produced  on  others  by  our  words,  these  things 
which  interfere  with    freedom    and    simplicity   of 


176  The    Sick-Roojn. 

speech  elsewhere,  can  hardly  intrude  much  as  we 
hear  in  our  ears  the  struggling  breath  of  the  sick 
or  dying  man,  and  beseech  our  Father  to  help 
him  in  his  sore  need.  Our  prayer  should  be,  as 
I  have  just  suggested,  very  short.  It  should 
correspond  to  the  tone  of  the  conversation  that 
has  gone  before.  That  prayer  will  be  most  easily 
prayed  that  expresses  to  God  the  emotion  or 
desire  most  prominent  in  the  heart  at  the  moment. 

When  illness  continues  for  any  length  of  time 
arrangements  should  be  made  for  the  patient  to 
receive  the  Holy  Communion  at  regular  intervals, 
not  as  a  preparation  for  death,  but  as  a  sacred 
duty  for  life  and  a  Divinely  appointed  means  for 
strengthening  and  refreshing  the  soul  amidst  the 
shadows  of  sickness  as  well  as  amidst  the  bustle 
and  distractions  of  health.  And  never  perhaps  is 
the  sweetness  of  communion  with  our  Lord,  and 
with  one  another,  more  vividly  felt  than  when  two 
or  three  are  gathered  together  in  the  quiet  cham 
ber,  and,  with  hushed  voice  and  soft  footstep,  the 
pastor  goes  from  friend  to  friend  till  he  stoops 
over  the  wasted  form  upon  the  couch  and  puts 
into  the  wan  hand  the  pledge  of  the  Redeemer's 
love. 

There   are   two  ends  to   sickness — recovery  or 
death.     The  preparation  for  both  is,  in  the  deepest 


The   Sick- Room.  177 


sense,  the  same.  The  awakening  of  soul,  the 
humiliation,  the  approach  to  the  cross  of  Christ, 
the  clinging  to  the  Divine  Master  in  trust  and 
love  and  joyful  hope — these,  which  are  the  prepa- 
rations for  meeting  the  Lord  in  death,  are  just 
the  preparations  needed  also  to  go  forth  for  a 
fresh  start  in  life.  But  it  is  of  preparation  for 
death  I  want  now  to  speak  a  few  concluding 
words.  All  your  ministry,  if  it  is  real,  is  a  pre- 
paration for  death.  From  the  time  you  begin  to 
teach  the  infant  to  lisp  the  sacred  name  of  Jesus, 
through  all  your  teaching  by  classes,  by  sermons, 
by  books,  by  private  conversation,  you  are  striving 
to  make  the  soul  God  has  committed  to  your  care 
fit  for  its  eternal  destiny,  meet  for  the  inheritance 
of  the  saints  in  light.  But  now  you  are  called  to 
attend  on  one  just  at  the  brink  of  the  grave.  At 
first  perhaps  there  was  uncertainty  as  to  whether 
he  would  recover  or  die.  You  tried  to  make  him 
ready  for  either  alternative.  Now  the  struggle 
between  hope  and  fear  is  over.  It  is  plain  that 
he  must  die.  The  passage  may  last  a  few  days 
or  a  few  weeks,  but  there  is  no  doubt  as  to  the 
dark  door  to  which  it  leads. 

Oh,  how  solemn  it  is  to  stand  beside  a  man 
who  is  so  soon  to  be  in  the  presence  of  the  secrets 
that    lie    "behind    the    veil."     What    an    earnest 

12 


178  The   Sick- Room. 

supplication  should  be  breathed  to  the  Father  that 
guidance  may  be  given  in  the  solemn  task  of 
making  this  immortal  being  ready  for  such  a 
crisis  in   his  fate ! 

But  we  know  that  there  is  only  one  real  readi- 
ness. If  the  man  is  united  to  the  Lord  Jesus  by 
living  faith,  he  is  ready.  If  he  is  outside  Christ, 
if  he  has  not  come  to  Him  in  spirit,  if  he  is  not 
clinging  to  Him  by  faith,  he  is  unready.  If  he 
is  forgiven,  he  is  ready  ;  his  robes  are  washed  in 
the  blood  of  the  Lamb  ;  he  is  fit  to  take  his  place 
in  the  dazzling  procession  of  the  "  saints  in  light." 
If  he  is  impenitent  and  unforgiven,  his  last  gasp 
in  death  brings  him  under  the  awful  sentence, 
"  Depart  from  Me  into  the  outer  darkness."  With 
what  intensity  should  the  pastor  who  watches  for 
his  soul,  as  one  who  must  give  account,  strive  both 
in  prayer  and  personal  exhortation  that  this  great 
question  should  be  settled  with  the  dying  man — 
in  Christ  or  outside  Him,  forgiven  or  unforgiven  ! 

Your  striving  is  to  be  in  order  that  it  should 
be  really  settled  in  the  man's  own  heart.  Do 
not  harass  him  with  questions  that  he  is  to  answer 
to  you,  or  to  answer  so  as  to  be  heard  by  the 
bystanders.  The  danger  of  unreality  and  of  con- 
ventional professions  does  not  pass  away  even 
amidst  the  shades  of  death.     The  important  thing 


The   Sick- Room.  1 79 

is  not  what  the  man  says  to  you,  but  what  is  the 
attitude   of  his   soul   to  the  Saviour.     You  want 
him   to   be  a  penitent ;   you  want  him   to   know 
and  trust  the  Saviour.      Labour  with  him  that  he 
may  recognise  his   sinfulness  ;   labour,  above  all, 
that  he  may  know  the  love,  the   tenderness,   the 
forgiveness  of  the   Lord  Jesus.      It  is  well  when 
a  dying  man  can    give   a   clear  testimony  as  to 
Him  in  whom   he   has   believed.     It  is  a   conso- 
lation   to   his    friends.      It    is    a    confirmation    to 
Christ's  people  in  their  faith.     But  after  all  the 
great  thing  is    not  what   a   man    says,  but   what 
he  is.     Press   your   teaching  continually,  so  that 
he   may   be  a   believer  in    Christ  Jesus.     Try  to 
tear   from   his  eyes   all  veils  of  self-deceit.     Try 
to   break  down   under  him   all   supports   of  self- 
righteousness  or  conventional  religion,  so  that  he 
may  rest  on  "  Jesus  only."     Try  to  strengthen  his 
feeble  faith,  and  to  cheer  his  trem.bling  heart  by 
describing  to  him   what  Jesus  is  and  what  Jesus 
has  done.      Roman   Catholic  clergymen  hold  the 
crucifix  or  figure  of  Christ  upon   the  Cross  before 
the   eyes    of  the  dying.      Let  your  endeavour  be 
to  hold  up  before  the  dying  man's  heart  and  con- 
science the  Saviour  Himself ;  strive  to  make  him 
see  Him  beside  him  in   His   Jove  and   tenderness, 
and  in  the  power  and  plenitude  of  the  pardon  He 


T  80  The   Sick- Room. 

has  purchased  on  the  Cross.  So  will  he  be  ready 
to  go  forth  into  the  solemn  shadows  without  fear, 
knowing  that  to  "  depart  and  be  with  Christ  is 
far  better." 


CHAPTER  XII. 

FROM    HOUSE    TO    HOUSE. 

TT  OW  many  pictures  rise  before  our  minds  as 
we  use  this  phrase  "  from  house  to  house/ 
The  stately  mansion  embosomed  in  woods  ;  the 
little  cottage  far  up  the  mountain  side,  hardly  dis- 
tinguishable from  the  rocks  and  the  heather  amidst 
which  it  seems  to  grow  ;  the  dingy  hovel  in  the 
back  lane  of  the  country  town  ;  the  respectable 
house  in  the  city  street  or  fashionable  square  ;  the 
busy  and  bustling  farmhouse;  the  lonely  little 
cabin  where  some  poor  old  woman  spends  the 
evening  of  her  days  ;  the  loathsome  attic,  up  the 
creaking  and  broken  staircase,  in  the  foul  alley  of 
the  city  ;  pictures  like  these  stand  out  before  the 
imagination  as  we  speak  of  visiting  from  house  to 
house. 

We  think  of  the  solemnity  of  passing  through 
grand  park  gates,  and  the  slight  awe  inspired  by 
tall  powdered  footmen,  and  the  light  and  colour 


i8:>  From  House  to  House. 

and  fragrance  of  tasteful  drawing-rooms,  and  the 
rustle  of  silken  dresses,  and  the  soft  music  of  gentle 
ladies'  voices.  We  think  of  stuffy  front  parlours, 
and  hard-headed  men  of  business  immersed  in 
work  and  care.  We  think  of  rough  kitchens,  with 
great  pots  boiling  on  the  fire,  and  women  scrub- 
bing churns,  and  workmen  and  children  and  fowls 
and  four-footed  animals  crowding  in  and  out.  W^e 
think  of  prayers  by  wretched  pallets,  interrupted 
by  the  heavy  breathing  of  the  dying,  and  whispers 
of  hope  and  peace  listened  to  in  quiet  bedrooms^ 
where  the  roses  look  in  through  the  latticed  win- 
dows on  the  fair  face  whose  own  roses  have  gently 
faded  away.  Varied,  indeed,  are  the  scenes  sug- 
gested by  the  words  "  from  house  to  house." 

But  they  are  the  scenes  where  our  work  has  to 
be  carried  on.  And  different  as  may  be  the  scenes 
that  shift  as  we  go  from  home  to  home,  the  drama 
that  is  acted  amidst  them  all  is  nearly  the  same. 
We  soon  find  that  between  "  my  lady  "  and  her 
cook  there  is  no  very  great  difference.  In  the 
castle  and  in  the  cabin,  in  the  softly  carpeted 
library  and  in  the  blacksmith's  forge,  the  human 
hearts  of  the  inhabitants  go  through  wonderfully 
similar  experiences.  Joy  and  sorrow,  hope  and 
fear,  sin  and  repentance,  faith  and  service,  show  in 
their  history  and   their  successions  no  respect  of 


From  House  to  House.  183 


persons ;  and  the  minister  of  God  can  show  no 
respect  of  persons  either.  The  only  distinction 
he  has  a  right  to  make  in  his  visits  is  grounded 
upon  the  thought  of  who  may  need  him  most 
Those  who  are  most  tempted,  most  tried,  most  in 
danger,  or  most  perplexed,  are  those  to  whom  he 
has  to  show  most  attention.  He,  the  messenger 
of  God's  good  news,  has,  like  another  sterner 
messenger,  to  knock  equally  at  the  doors  of  rich 
men's  palaces  and  of  poor  men's  huts. 

It  has  been,  perhaps,  the  fashion  of  late  rather 
to    depreciate     visiting   in    comparison     to    other 
branches   of  ministerial  labour.     Fashion   has   its 
changes  in  ecclesiastical  matters  as  well  as  in  the 
other  affairs  of  life.      It  is  not  only  the  cut  of  the 
clerical  garments,  and    the  shape  of   the  clerical 
hats,  that  are  influenced  by  its  laws,  but  even   the 
views  and  ideas  of  clerical  duty.      And  it  requires 
considerable  strength  of  mind  and   earnestness  of 
purpose  in    a  young  man  to  keep   himself  unin- 
fluenced by  the  ebbing  or  flowing  of  clerical  fashion, 
and  to  look  upon  things  as  his  understanding  and 
conscience  tell  him  they  really  are,  no  matter  what 
ideas  on  the  subject  happen  to  be  "  in  "  or  "  out  " 
among  the  majority  of  his  fellow-curates. 

But   any   fashion  that  would   depreciate  house- 
to-house  visiting  is  certainly  a  foolish  fashion.      No 


184  From  House  to  House. 


other  instrumentality  can  fulfil  its  office.  It  is 
not  to  be  a  substitute  for  other  and  more  regular 
branches  of  work,  but  it  must  be  an  accompani- 
ment to  all  work.  If  it  is  neglected,  all  other 
work  will  soon  flag.  Schools,  classes,  services, 
sermons,  meetings,  clubs,  guilds,  corporate  efforts 
of  all  kinds,  require  to  be  stimulated  and  supple- 
mented by  the  separate  personal  action  of  house- 
to-house  visitation.  It  is  only  one  of  the  tools 
needed  for  our  work,  but  it  is  one  for  which  no 
other  can  be  a  substitute,  and  which  we  can  never 
leave  long  out  of  our  hands. 

It  will  help  us  in  our  visiting  to  present  to  our 
minds,  as  distinctly  as  we  can,  the  objects  we  want 
to  accomplish  by  it.  The  first  of  these  objects  is 
to  become  acquainted  with  our  people,  to  acquire 
a  personal  knowledge  of  them  as  friends,  brothers 
and  sisters,  to  know  what  kind  of  thoughts  they 
think,  what  difficulties  and  temptations  they  have 
to  struggle  against,  what  ideas  are  current  among 
them,  what  are  their  mistakes,  their  needs,  their 
pleasures  and  troubles.  Only  by  going  in  and  out, 
and  mixing  with  common  daily  life,  can  this  know- 
ledge be  obtained.  Even  if  we  had  the  confes- 
sional of  the  Roman  Church,  it  would  not  supply 
it.  The  outpourings  of  hearts  in  the  enthusiasm 
of  religious  excitement,  or  the  mechanical  repeti- 


From  House  to  House.  185 

tion  of  habitual  and  routine  acknowledgment  of 
sin,  would  not  enable  us  to  understand  what  people 
are  amidst  the  rough  realities  of  daily  life.  Want  of 
this  knowledge  makes  much  of  the  preaching  and 
teaching  of  young  clergymen  useless.  They  are 
eager  about  the  controversial  points  they  used 
to  hear  discussed  in  college.  They  ardently  take 
this  side,  or  that  side,  in  theological  disputes  ;  but 
the  needs  and  the  ideas  of  Thomas  the  footman, 
Hodge  the  ploughman,  Mary  the  kitchen-maid' 
Mr.  Sharp,  the  country  attorney,  or  Mr.  Sharp's 
bustling  wife  and  fashionable  daughters,  are  as 
unknown  to  them  as  the  habits  and  customs  of 
the  Sphinx. 

If  we  want  to  speak  as  men  and  brothers  to 
our  brethren,  if  we  want  to  speak  to  them  simply, 
directly,  earnestly,  we  must  go  to  their  houses  and 
sit  down  by  their  firesides,  see  the  cook  in  her 
kitchen,  walk  with  the  ploughman  beside  his  horses, 
and  listen  to  the  farmer  as  he  discourses  of  his 
bullocks.  In  this,  as  in  everything  else,  the  Great 
Pastor  should  be  our  model.  He  mixed  freely 
with  human  life,  spoke  to  His  people  in  their 
homes,  by  the  wayside,  in  their  rough  fishing  boats, 
as  well  as  in  the  synagogues  and  under  the  arches 
of  the  Temple.  And  mingling  and  sympathising 
as   He  did  with  common  human  life,  His  words 


1 86  From  House  to  House. 

came  home  to  His  hearers  with  the  ring  of  reality 
And  wherever  there  aremen  who  sow  and  reap, 
buy  and  sell,  marry  and  give  in  marriage,  there 
the  simple  teaching  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth  is  still 
felt  as  a  power  that  reaches  straight  to  the  heart. 
From  house  to  house  then,  like  our  Master,  we 
must  go,  in  and  out  among  our  brethren,  so  that 
we  may  know  them,  so  that  we  may  feel  with 
them,  know  their  needs,  and  be  able  to  address 
them  in  language  they  understand. 

And  we  go  from  house  to  house,  not  only  to  fit 
ourselves  for  our  work,  but  to  do  our  work.  The 
Lord  Jesus  went  about  "  doing  good."  And  such 
must  be  the  character  of  our  visiting  :  we  want  to 
do  good  to  our  people,  to  help  them  in  every  way 
we  can.  Sometimes  we  can  do  good  to  them  with 
regard  to  their  material  concerns.  We  find  them 
in  destitution,  poverty,  perplexity,  and  we  are  able 
either  to  give  them  substantial  relief,  or  put  them 
in  the  way  of  obtaining  it. 

We  come  to  the  poor  and  neeay  as  real, 
brotherly  friends  ;  and  we  must  take  an  interest 
in  their  bodily  condition,  and  really  try  to  be  of 
use  to  them  with  regard  to  it,  otherwise  we  shall 
hardly  do  much  for  their  souls.  If  we  say  in 
bland  and  solemn  piety,  "  Depart  in  peace  ;  be  ye 
warmed  and  filled,"  and  do  not  stretch  out  a  hand 


From  House  to  House.  187 


to  help,  it  will  be  difficult  to  persuade  them  of  our 
friendship.  No  doubt  we  shall  have  to  exercise 
much  watchfulness  and  discretion  lest  we  should 
encourage  mendicancy,  and  give,  as  is  not  at  all 
uncommon,  a  clerical  premium  to  imposture.  In 
large  parishes  it  is  well  to  follow  the  example  of 
the  apostles,  who  appointed  helpers  to  "serve 
tables,"  while  they  gave  themselves  to  the  Word 
of  God  and  prayer. 

Still  the  clergyman  who  watches  for  the  souls 
of  the  poor  must  take  a  real  hearty  interest  in 
their  bodily  condition  also.  There  is  an  instinct 
which  drives  the  poor  to  the  clergyman  as  their 
natural  helper.  It  is  not  a  mistaken  instinct. 
The  business  of  the  pastor's  life  is  ministry  to 
others.  He  comes  among  the  people  to  do  good. 
The  soul  and  body  are  so  closely  linked  together, 
that  the  spiritual  helper  cannot  leave  the  bodily 
condition  unregarded.  He  may  not  have  oppor- 
tunity, means,  power  to  help  as  he  would  wish  ; 
but  he  will  always  have  sympathy  for  the  distress, 
often  valuable,  practical  counsel,  and  sometimes 
from  himself  or  from  Christian  friends  relief  for 
the  present  necessity. 

But  our  direct  business  as  ambassadors  from 
God  is  with  the  soul  rather  than  the  body.  We 
have  a  message  to  deliver,  great  truths  to  declare, 


1 88  From  House  to  House. 

warnings,  promises,  invitations  from  God  to  make 
known  to  men. 

One  important  way  of  carrying  on  this  work  in 
our  visiting  is  by  gathering  in  our  people  to  the 
public  means  of  grace.  It  is  not  enough  to  have 
the  bell  tolled  for  service.  Many  an  ear  will  be 
deaf  to  its  chime  which  can  yet  be  reached  by  the 
loving  voice  of  the  pastor.  From  house  to  house 
we  must  go,  and  really  see  who  go  to  church,  to 
school,  to  classes,  to  Holy  Communion,  who  stay 
away,  and  for  what  reasons.  We  cannot  be  in- 
quisitorial or  impertinent,  but  it  is  necessary  for 
us  to  be  very  careful  and  earnestly  searching  in  our 
inquiries.  We  must  not  let  ourselves  be  put  off 
with  vague  and  evasive  answers,  but  must  exercise 
a  certain  firm  and  honest  persistency,  although  re- 
spectful and  gentle  with  the  very  poorest.  We  have 
to  make  ourselves  acquainted  with  the  real  facts. 
Servants  must  be  thought  of  and  inquired  after 
as  well  as  their  masters,  children  as  well  as  their 
parents,  the  men  among  our  parishioners  even 
more  carefully  than  the  women.  The  shepherd 
has  to  go  and  seek  the  lost  sheep  over  the  moun- 
tains. Much  of  our  visiting  has  to  be  of  this 
seeking  character,  looking  for  the  erring  and  the 
straying.  They  will  not  come  to  us.  We  must 
go  to  them.     The   Gospel    has   no  attraction  for 


From  House  to  House.  189 


them.     Though  they  need  it  so  sorely,  they  have 
no   wish   to  hear  it.     They  are   absorbed  in  the 
bustle,  or  toil,  or  care  of  ordinary  life.      They  are 
busy  and    half  sceptical   perhaps ;    they  are   gay, 
thoughtless,  and  absorbed  in  sport  or  amusement  ; 
they  are  poor,  badly  dressed,  and  wholly  occupied 
in  the   struggle   for  existence.      If  left  to   them- 
selves, they  would  never  come  within  the  sound  of 
God's  Word.     Out  into  the  highways  and  hedges 
we,  as  God's  messengers,  have  to  go,  and  compel 
them    to  come   in.     We  must  invite  them,  urge, 
press   them   to  the  services  of  the  Church  ;   but, 
above  all,  wherever  we  find  them  we  have  to  press 
home    God's   call    to   their  souls.      Our  language 
should    not    be,    "Come    to-morrow,    and   I    will 
preach   to  you    about    Christ,"   but   "He  is   here 
now.      He  promises  you  eternal  life  ;  He  asks  you 
for  your  heart."     By  touching  the  conscience,  by 
awakening  the  sense  of  guilt  and  of  longing  for 
better  things,  the  strongest  argument  for  church- 
going  will  be  applied. 

But  as  pastors  to  tend  and  feed  our  flock,  we 
go  from  house  to  house,  as  well  as  to  look  for  the 
straying.  We  want  to  encourage  the  individual 
members  of  it  by  personal  sympathy.  We  want 
to  find  out  their  needs,  and  supply  them  by 
the  ministrj^  of  the  Word.     If  they  are  perplexed 


190  From  Hoitse  to  House. 

and  puzzled,  we  want  to  give  them,  as  far  as  we 
can,  the  clue  of  Divine  truth  that  may  lead  them 
through  the  intricate  maze  of  mental  difficulty. 
If  they  are  hampered  and  weakened  by  what  we 
believe  to  be  mistakes  or  narrow-minded  traditions, 
we  want  to  loose  them  from  those  bands.  If  they 
are  in  special  temptation,  we  want  to  nerve  them 
to  steadfastness.  If  they  are  indolent  and  lagging 
in  their  Christian  course,  we  want  to  urge  them 
forward.  If  they  are  disappointed,  sorrowful,  or 
lonely,  we  want  to  comfort  them  with  Divine 
consolation. 

Great  charges  are  laid  upon  us  to  "  feed  the 
flock  of  God,  which  He  has  purchased  with  His 
blood,"  His  "beautiful  flock,"  which  He  will  re- 
quire at  our  hands.  We  have  to  tend,  guard,  and 
guide  its  members  scattered  through  "  this  naughty 
world."  We  have  "  never  to  cease  our  labour,  our 
care,  our  diligence,  till  we  have  done  all  that  lieth 
in  us  to  bring  all  such  as  are  committed  to  our 
charge  unto  that  agreement  in  the  faith  and 
knowledge  of  God,  and  to  that  ripeness  and  per- 
fectness  of  age  in  Christ,  that  there  shall  be  no 
place  left  among  us  either  for  error  in  religion, 
or  for  viciousness  in  life."  The  prophet  Ezekiel 
describes  the  shepherd's  duty  as  "  strengthening  the 
diseased,   healing   that  which  is  sick,  binding  up 


From  House  to  House,  191 


that  which  is  broken,  bringing  again  that  which  is 
driven  away,  seeking  that  which  is  lost." 

Only  by  following  the  members  of  our  flock 
into  their  homes,  and  dealing  with  them  there 
personally,  face  to  face,  can  these  various  and 
difficult  offices  be  fulfilled.  It  is  very  hard  to 
fulfil  them  even  thus.  The  human  soul  is  very 
sensitive,  and  shrinks  up  into  itself  at  the  approach 
of  a  stranger.  It  is  hard  even  in  people's  homes 
to  come  into  close  quarters  with  their  hearts. 
They  often  keep  us  at  arm's  length.  With  mar- 
vellous ingenuity,  and  with  most  voluble  chatter, 
they  contrive  to  put  all  kinds  of  obstacles  between 
us  and  their  souls.  And  the  many  interruptions 
of  home  life  increase  the  difficulty  of  close  and 
open  personal  intercourse.  But  with  all  its  diffi- 
culties, this  watching,  tending,  pastoral  work  must 
be  carried  on  by  seeking  our  people  as  best  we 
may  from  house  to  house. 

Appreciating  then  the  importance  of  visiting 
work,  and  realizing  to  ourselves  the  special  objects 
at  which  it  aims,  let  us  go  on  to  consider  the 
spirit  and  manner  in  which  it  is  to  be  carried  out. 
If  it  is  to  be  done  effectually,  there  must  be,  as 
was  suggested  before,  with  regard  to  all  our  work, 
regular  order  and  method  in  our  doing  of  it. 
There  is  no  part  of  our  pastoral  duty  in  which 


192  From  House  to  House. 

the  temptations  to  impulsive  and  spasmodic  action 
are  so  constant.  There  is  no  external  pressure. 
One  day  would  seem  to  do  as  well  as  another  for 
each  visit.  Some  people  are  pleasant ;  some  are 
dry  and  unattractive.  There  are  places  from 
which  we  are  apt  to  shrink,  because  it  seems  so 
hard  to  do  any  good  there.  There  are  other 
places  where  we  are  welcomed  so  heartily,  where 
our  coming  seems  to  be  felt  as  such  a  comfort 
and  profit  that  we  should  like  to  go  there  often. 
And  so  those  who  want  us  least  might  easily  be 
attended  to  at  the  expense  of  those  who  want  us 
most.  The  places  where  our  Master  sends  us 
might  be  passed  by  for  those  to  which  our  own 
desires  and  fancies  lead  us. 

And  if  our  parish  is  large,  and  its  inhabitants 
numerous,  no  unassisted  memory  can  keep  count 
of  where  we  have  been  and  where  we  are  wanted. 
One  of  the  first  things  necessary,  therefore,  for 
regular  parochial  work  is  a  carefully  drawn-out 
list  of  our  parishioners,  so  arranged  that  entries 
of  our  visits  can  be  made  after  each  name.  It  is 
well  to  have  as  full  information  as  we  can  collect 
recorded  in  this  book — the  number  and  names 
of  the  children  who  are  confirmed  or  unconfirmed 
— who  have  died,  married,  or  gone  away  since  we 
knew  them.     Thus,  at  a  glance,  as  we  prepare  for 


From  House  to  House.  193 

our  visiting,  we  can  be  reminded  of  the  condition 
of  the  family  we  are  going  to  see. 

Another  list,  as  was  suggested  in  a  previous 
chapter,  should  be  kept  of  those  who  require  our 
special  attention — the  sick,  the  aged,  the  infirm, 
the  lonely,  people  who  are  not  able  to  attend  the 
public  ministrations  of  the  Church,  and  to  whom, 
therefore,  the  Church  is  bound  to  minister  indi- 
vidually with  thoughtful  and  diligent  regularity. 

What  an  interest  this  list  should  have  in  the 
eyes  of  the  pastor  !  It  tells  him  of  the  members 
of  the  flock  who  are  in  a  very  special  way  com- 
mitted to  his  care.  They  are  the  weakly  and 
tender  ones  whom  the  Great  Shepherd  "  carries  in 
His  bosom."  The  under-shepherd  should  surely 
feel  that  they  have  a  very  sacred  place  in  his  heart. 
And  as  he  passes  his  eye  from  name  to  name,  and 
there  arises  in  his  mind  the  picture  of  the  desolate, 
bed-ridden  old  woman,  or  the  confirmed  invalid  in 
the  dreary  monotony  of  the  one  dull  room  ;  as  he 
thinks  of  the  saddened,  joyless  lives,  and  the 
weary  faces,  and  the  plaintive  voices  ;  or  as  he 
thinks  of  the  courage,  faith,  and  patient  hope,  still 
gleaming  in  sunken  eyes  or  glowing  on  wasted 
cheeks,  that  dry  list  becomes  to  him  a  manuscript 
illuminated  with  glistening  colours,  a  beautiful  and 
touching  record   of  sorrow  and  endurance,  of  the 

13 


94  From  Ho2ise  to  House. 


world's   trials,   and    of   the   Divine   strength    that 
gives  the  victory  over  them. 

This  human  interest  should  gild  and  glorify  all 
our  parochial  statistics  ;  otherwise  our  lists  and 
our  entries  will  become  a  snare  to  us.  Some 
clergymen  are  in  bondage  to  their  parish  books. 
It  is  not  the  souls  of  their  parishioners  they  are 
anxious  for,  but  the  regular  and  orderly  keeping 
of  their  visiting  lists.  When  the  day  is  over,  the 
questioning  is  not  as  to  how  many  fellow-creatures 
have  been  helped,  how  many  tears  dried,  how 
many  consciences  touched,  how  many  brothers 
and  sisters  drawn  to  the  Saviour  :  it  is  simply 
as  to  how  many  entries  there  may  be  for  the 
diary.  Their  rejoicing  is  not  for  names  written 
in  the  book  of  life,  but  for  names  written  in 
their  own  petty  memorandum  books. 

There  should  be  the  desire  and  determination  to 
go  with  orderly  method  all  through  our  parish  ; 
yet  that  desire  must  be  always  subservient  to  the 
great  object  of  our  ministry — doing  real  good. 
We  are  methodical  because  we  can  thus  do  the 
most  good  to  the  greatest  number.  But  some- 
times we  can  do  more  good  by  interrupting  our 
method  for  a  while.  On  the  field  of  battle  the 
army  advances  in  line.  But  every  here  and  there 
the  line  must  be  broken,  the  forces  concentrated 


From  House  to  House.  195 

on  some  special  point  of  advantage,  the  position 
gained  by  a  fiery  charge,  and  then  the  line  formed 
again  and  the  regular  march  resumed.  In  our 
battle  against  evil,  there  are  occasions  on  which  we 
must  disregard  our  regular  parochial  plans.  We  are 
particularly  needed  here  or  there.  Opportunities 
come  when  by  going  out  of  our  way  and  giving 
all  our  attention  for  a  while  to  some  special  efforts, 
results  can  be  produced  which  could  not  be  pro- 
duced by  our  ordinary  routine.  We  must  hold 
ourselves  free  for  these  movements.  We  are  not 
visiting  machines,  to  be  wound  up  and  set  a-going 
like  clockwork.  We  are  thoughtful  and  careful 
watchmen,  watching  for  the  souls  of  our  people  as 
those  who  must  give  account,  trying,  as  far  as  we 
can,  to  think  of  each  individual  with  his  wants  and 
needs,  and  ready,  whenever  duty  or  kindness  calls,  to 
leave  the  ninety-nine  who  are  in  comparative  safety 
in  order  to  go  over  the  mountains  and  seek  for  the 
one  lost  and  wandering  sheep  ever  till  we  find  it. 
So  our  visiting  is  to  be  on  the  whole  regular,  but  with 
an  elastic  regularity  which  guides  without  binding. 
We  saw,  not  long  ago,  how  one  of  the  most 
important  agents  for  being  of  use  in  our  visitation 
of  the  sick  is  the  spirit  of  sympathy.  The  same 
may  be  said  with  regard  to  all  our  visiting.  We 
go,  not  as  clerical  policemen  or  census  collectors 


196  From  House  to  House. 

but  as  men  and  brothers.  We  go  to  weep 
with  those  who  weep,  and  to  rejoice  with  those 
who  rejoice.  We  must  put  away  our  red-tape 
and  our  mannerism,  our  hardness,  dryness,  official 
airs  of  superiority  or  official  severity,  We  must 
try  to  forget  self,  and  go  in  and  out  among 
our  brethren  full  of  interest  for  their  interests  and 
care  for  their  cares.  The  loving  heart  of  which 
we  spoke  before,  warmed  by  our  union  with  the 
centre  of  love,  will  supply  the  fountain  from  which 
the  sympathy  will  flow.  This  will  make  our  visits 
pleasant  to  ourselves,  and  to  those  on  whom  we 
call.  As  we  knock  at  the  door  we  shall  not  have 
the  secret  feeling,  "  I  hope  the  people  are  out,  so 
that  I  may  be  saved  the  trouble  of  talking  to  them," 
but  "  I  hope  they  are  at  home,  for  I  want  to  see 
them,  and  know  all  about  them,  and  have  some 
interesting  intercourse  with  them."  Then  we  shall 
enjoy  seeing  the  old  folks,  the  little  children,  the 
young  men,  and  the  maidens.  And  as  we  sit 
down  in  their  midst,  many  a  pleasant  word  will  be 
said,  and  many  a  pleasant  smile  will  brighten  the 
faces  both  of  visitor  and  hosts,  and  we  shall  go 
on  our  way  cheered  and  gladdened  ourselves,  and 
feeling  that  we  have  left  a  pleasant  ray  of  bright- 
ness behind  us.  We  shall  all  feel  happier  because 
we  have  had  a  little  Christian  sympathy  together. 


From  House  to  House.  197 

But  though  we  wish  to  come  with  the  genial 
warmth  of  human  sympathy,  we  must  come  at  the 
same  time  in  a  spirit  of  earnest  watchfulness. 
Every  faculty  is  to  be  on  the  alert.  We  have  to 
observe  all  the  indications  of  the  state  of  mind, 
character,  and  life  of  our  people.  As  the  old 
woman  moans,  and  we  feel  for  her  desolation,  we 
have  to  consider  whether  her  religious  expressions 
are  true  and  honest,  or  only  pious  conventionalities. 
While  the  lady  of  the  manor  house  talks  on  so 
graciously,  it  is  our  business  to  try  to  discern 
whether  her  heart  is  awake  to  the  great  spiritual 
realities.  While  we  walk  with  the  squire  through 
his  demesne,  or  with  the  farmer  over  his  fields, 
while  we  sit  with  John  in  the  harness  room  or 
Mary  in  the  kitchen,  while  we  lean  over  the 
wasted  form  upon  the  bed  of  suffering,  or  look  into 
the  eyes  of  the  dying,  we  have  to  seek  for  the 
answer  to  the  same  grave  questioning — What  is 
the  spiritual  condition  here  }  Is  the  soul  waking 
or  sleeping,  thriving  or  languishing,  busy  and 
earnest  for  God,  or  careless,  indolent,  and  self- 
indulgent  }  We  are  not  judges,  indeed,  but  we 
are  watchmen.  It  is  not  our  business  to  pass  i 
sentence,  either  of  acquittal  or  condemnation,  on 
those  to  whom  we  minister.  We  may  be  thankful 
that  it  is  not  so.      Sorely  puzzled  should  we  often 


198  From  House  to  House. 

be  in  deciding  between  contradictory  appearances. 
It  is  a  great  rest  to  remember  that  not  judgment, 
but  teaching,  is  our  office.  Still,  in  carrying  out 
our  pastoral  duty,  very  careful  and  prayerful 
observation  is  needed,  so  that  to  each  the  suitable 
teaching  maybe  given.  What  does  this  one  want.? 
How  can  I  best  help  him  t  Is  it  by  encouraging 
and  comforting,  or  is  it  by  setting  his  conscience 
to  work  in  solemn  self-questioning  .?  There  should 
be  the  diagnosis  of  the  patient  before  the  applica- 
tion of  the  remedy. 

And  in  our  visitation  watchfulness  must  be  kept 
up,  not  only  over  our  people,  but  over  ourselves. 
We  are  not  angels  coming  down  on  gentle  wings 
from  purer  spheres.  We  are  men  of  like  passions 
with  those  whom  we  visit.  And  the  temptations 
that  assault  us  "  from  house  to  house  "  are  legion. 
The  daily  battle  that  has  to  be  carried  on  by  a 
Christian  man  against  vanity,  self-seeking,  indo- 
lence, impurity,  and  evil  temper — does  it  cease  as 
he  goes  on  his  pastoral  rounds  ?  Does  the  enemy 
give  him  a  truce  at  such  times  t  I  fear  we  shall 
find  that  he  is  just  then  especially  busy. 

"  Watch  and  pray,  lest  ye  enter  into  temptation," 
is  our  Lord's  direction  to  His  chosen  apostles.  We 
must  try  to  carry  out  that  direction  as  we  go  our 
way  at  His  bidding.      If  tempted  to  magnify  self. 


From  House  to  House.  199 


to  put  self  forward,  to  have  our  own  ministry  and 
our  own  influence  thought  of  instead  of  our 
Master's  love ;  if  tempted  to  flatter  the  great, 
or  to  despise  the  poor  ;  if  tempted  to  look  too 
much  on  woman's  beauty,  or  on  man's  grandeur ; 
if  tempted  to  be  cross  or  angry  when  our  vanity 
is  wounded,  or  our  opinion  contradicted,  then  the 
prayer  must  be  earnestly  lifted  up,  and  the  vigi- 
lance diligently  used,  lest  by  the  yielding  of  the 
will,  even  for  a  little  moment,  to  the  downward 
drawing,  our  Master  be  dishonoured,  and  the  holy 
offlce  of  His  ministry  be  defiled. 

I  hope  it  is  almost  unnecessary  to  suggest  the 
need  of  thoughtful  tact  and  careful  politeness  in 
our  visits  to  the  very  poorest  as  well  as  to  the 
upper  classes.  A  clergyman  ought  to  be,  in  the 
deepest  sense  of  the  word,  a  tJioroiigh  gentleman. 
Whatever  may  have  been  his  social  position  by 
birth,  he  should  have  learned,  in  order  to  be  fit  for 
his  work,  that  delicate  consideration  for  the  feel- 
ings of  others,  that  chivalrous  honour  to  woman- 
hood, and  deference  to  the  weak  that  gives  the  true 
"  sweetness  and  light  "  to  the  real  gentleman's 
manners.  So  in  the  cottage  and  the  castle,  in 
the  old  woman's  hovel  and  the  sick  maiden's  bed- 
chamber, he  will  be  alike  a  welcome  guest.  The 
most   sensitive    feelings    will    not    shrink    at   his 


200  From  House  to  House. 

presence.      His  manner  will  have  the  grace  and 
attractiveness  that  come  not  from  artificial  polish, 
but  from  kindness,  modesty,  and  loving   thought 
fulness. 

But  along  with  his  sympathy  and  watchfulness 
and  thoughtfulness,  the  pastor  must  have  a  stead- 
fast determination  to  do  his  work  and  deliver  his 
message.  Otherwise  he  might  as  well  stay  at  home. 
No  matter  how  well  drilled  and  how  well  dressed 
a  soldier  may  be,  he  is  of  no  use  unless  he  is  ready 
to  fight.  As  we  knock  at  each  door,  as  we  sit 
down  in  each  room,  as  we  look  into  each  friend's 
face,  we  must  have  the  resolve  thrilling  in  our 
hearts,  "  God  helping  me,  I  will  try  to  do  some 
work  for   Him  here." 

I  do  not  think  that  it  is  either  needful  or 
expedient  for  a  clergyman  always  to  read  the 
Scriptures  or  to  pray  when  he  visits.  Such  a 
rule  would  seem  to  me  to  savour  of  bondage, 
if  not  of  superstition.  To  hold  a  meeting 
for  exposition  and  prayer  is  one  thing  ;  to  pay 
a  pastoral  visit  is  another  thing.  The  special 
objects  of  visiting,  although  kindred,  are  not 
the  same  as  the  objects  of  a  prayer-meeting. 
Often  when  occasion  offers,  when  there  is  likely 
to  be  no  interruption,  when  the  conversation  leads 
up  to  it,  when  there  has  been  expression  of  strong 


From  House  to  House.  201 

emotion,  when  there  is  mourning  or  anxiety  in 
the  home,  a  short  and  earnest  prayer  to  God  will 
be  felt  as  a  comfort  and  a  help.  Watch  for  such 
an  opportunity,  and  gladly  seize  it  But  do  not 
make  any  hard-and-fast  rule  on  the  subject. 
The  reading  of  a  "  chapter "  is  almost  always 
formal.  I  think  it  is  better  to  have  in  our  mind 
as  we  go  our  rounds  some  one  pregnant  and  im- 
pressive verse,  short,  striking,  and  easily  remem- 
bered, and  if  no  other  spiritual  thought  has  been 
brought  out  in  conversation,  to  press  that  earnestly 
home  before  we  leave. 

These,  however,  are  only  matters  of  detail. 
How  to  do  our  work  best  we  must  ask  our  Master 
to  show  us  in  each  visit,  but  the  great  thing  is  to 
be  earnestly  determined  to  do  it.  We  must  bind 
ourselves  to  no  stereotyped  plan.  We  must  let 
ourselves  be  used  by  our  Master  on  each  occasion 
just  as  He  wants  us.  But  as  we  go  on  His  message 
from  house  to  house,  we  must  try  to  feel  in  each 
house,  "  Lord,  I  am  here  as  Thy  messenger.  Thy 
will  I  am  determined  to  do.  Thy  word  I  will 
endeavour  to  speak  ;  Thy  people  here,  the  souls 
for  whom  Thou  hast  died,  the  souls  whom  Thou 
hast  given  into  my  care,  I  will  strive  by  some 
means  or  other  to  help,  to  warn,  to  guide,  or  to 
comfort."      Surely  He  sees  the  resolution.     Surely 


202  From  House  to  House. 

He  hears  the  heart  cry  for  help.  Surely  it  will  be 
given  us  in  that  hour  what  to  speak.  And  the 
word  that,  in  His  name,  and  at  His  bidding,  we 
have  spoken,  though  with  stammering  lips,  shall 
not  return  to  Him  void.  Echoes  of  it  shall 
doubtless  thrill  in  living  hearts  long  after  we  have 
been  laid  in  our  graves.  And  not  till  the  "  great 
day "  shall  we  know  the  train  of  results  that 
have  followed  our  feeble  but  faithful  endeavour 
to  proclaim  our  Master's  message. 


THE    END. 


Printed  by  llazcll,  Watson,  &  Yiney,  Ld.,  London  and  Aylcsbnry. 


BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR, 

SPENT    IN    THE    SERVICE. 

A  Memoir  of  the  Very  Rev.  Achilles  Daunt,  D.D., 
Dean  of  Cork. 

With  SELECxieNS  from  his  Letters,  Diaries,  and  Sermons. 
Third  Edition.      With  Portrait,  5s. 


"We  feel  grateful  to  Mr.  Wynne  for  giving  us  so  life-like  a  sketch 
of  a  very  beautiful  character." — Literary  Chjtrchniaii. 

"A  most  interesting  memoir.  Mr.  Daunt  appears  to  have  been  not 
only  an  eloquent  and  fervent  preacher,  but  a  most  holy  man,  singu- 
larly true  and  thorough  in  all  relations  of  life.  The  memoir  is 
unusually  well  written  and  readable." — Guardian. 

"This  is  a  very  fascinating  biography,  simply  and  lovingly  written. 
It  presents  to  us  the  portrait  of  a  singularly  devout  and  consecrated 
life.  Everywhere  he  was  a  faithful  and  indefatigable  minister,  and  a 
popular  preacher.  He  had  no  special  connection  with  any  great 
movements.  His  was  the  life  of  a  simple  ordinary'-  clergyman ;  but 
we  have  not  often  read  a  more  beautiful  and  touching  record  than  its 
earnestness  and  saintliness  constitute." — British  Quarterly  Review. 

"A  very  rich  addition  to  our  stores  of  evangelical  biography." — 
Methodist  Recorder. 

"  The  record  of  consuming  earnestness  with  which  he  laboured  in 
his  Master's  cause  is  full  of  profitable  lessons  to  all  Christians." — 
Record. 

"Dr.  Daunt  was  so  remarkable,  in  fact,  so  admirable,  a  man  that 
we  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  this  memoir  is  worth  reading. 
It  would  be  impossible  to  obscure  the  beauty  of  such  a  character 
as  Dr.  Daunt's.  It  answers  in  a  striking  way  to  the  noble  counte- 
nance which  meets  our  e3'es  on  the  frontispiece,  a  countenance 
expressive  at  once  of  genius  and  of  a  singularly  loving  nature.  His 
life  gave  abundant  proof  of  a  nature  truly  saintly  in  ite  purity  and 
unselfishness." — Spectator. 

"A  valuable  biography." — Churchman. 

"  This  is  one  of  the  most  charming  biographies  of  the  year.  It  is 
the  record  of  a  devoted  life,  a  loving  and  yet  faithful  portrait  of  a  man 
whose  piety  was  saintly  without  being  ascetic,  and  whose  culture 
was  thorough  without  quenching  the  passionate  ardour  of  an  earnest 
nature.  It  will  be  welcomed  by  many  of  the  late  Dean's  friends  and 
admirers." — Dublin  Mail. 

"  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  it  is  a  useful,  a  faithful,  and  beautiful 
life  that  is  narrated  in  these  pages." — Ecclesiastical  Gazette. 


London:    HODDER  &  STOUGHTON,  27,  Paternoster  Row. 


BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOtx. 

PLAIN    PROOFS    OF   THE    GREAT    FACTS 
OF    CHRISTIANITY; 

For    the    Help    of    Minds    Perplexed    with 
Difficulties. 

Cheap  Edition.     Crown  ?>vo,  price  Is.  6d.,  cloth. 

Contents: — The  Great  Question. —  The  Great  Power. —  The  Great 
Figure.  —  The  Great  History.  —  The  Great  Message.  —  The  Great 
Literature 


"Nothing  more  telling,  striking,  powerful,  on  the  great  subject  of 
Christian  Evidence,  has  come  into  our  hands  for  many  a  day.  Nor  do 
we  know  of  any  book  which  so  fitly  meets  the  case  of  those  described 
on  the  title-page,  or  is  so  likely  to  be  '  for  the  help  of  minds  perplexed 
with  difficulties.'  " — Edinburgh  Daily  Review. 

"  It  is  a  masterly  summary  of  the  great  historical  and  irresistible 
arguments  in  defence  of  Christianity,  written  in  a  simple  and  unaf- 
fected style." — Public  Opinion.. 

"  The  language  of  these  lectures  is  simple  in  the  extreme,  but  the 
argument  is  solid ;  and  Mr.  Wynne  must  have  been  at  considerable 
pains  to  put  together  in  so  small  a  space  and  easy  a  method  a  popular 
defence  of  the  vital  facts  of  revealed  religion." — Irish  Ecclesiastical 
Gazette. 

"  His  work  may  prove  helpful  to  many  readers  from  the  clear  and 
attractive  way  in  which  the  various  arguments  adduced  are  ex- 
pressed."— Rock. 

"  The  tone  of  the  work  is  excellent,  the  style  clear,  and  the  manner 
persuasive,  and  to  clergy  and  people  alike  its  compressed  matter  will 
be  of  immense  value." — Churchman's  Shilling  Magazine. 

"  A  very  timely,  well-conceived,  and  well-executed  little  work.  His 
great  subjects  are  treated  in  a  manly,  independent,  and  really  original 
manner,  and  with  admirable  clearness,  precision,  and  moderation  of 
treatment,  tone,  and  style." — Wesleyan  Methodist  Magazine. 

"  One  of  the  most  satisfactory  of  the  many  books  of  the  kind  that 
has  appeared  in  recent  years.  The  book  is  original  in  its  plan,  which 
is  so  lucid  and  simple  as  to  be  level  to  the  capacity  of  the  million, 
while  the  mode  of  conducting  the  argument  is  so  logical  that  the 
most  sharp-witted  sceptic  will  find  it  no  easy  task  to  set  aside  the 
conclusion. " — Christian  Week. 


London    HODDER  &  STOUGHTON.  27,  Paternoster  Row, 


HODDER  &  STOUGHTON'S 

^eto  anir  Recent  publications^ 


THE    MESSAGES    TO   THE    SEVEN 

CHURCHES  OF  ASIA  MINOR.  An  Exposition  of  the 
First  Three  Chapters  of  the  Book  of  the  Revelation.  By  the  Rev. 
Canon  A.  Tait,  LL.D.,  F.R.S.E.     With  a  Map.     8vo,  los.  6d. 

A  POPULAR   EXPOSITION   OF   THE 

EPISTLES  TO  THE  SEVEN  CHURCHES  IN  ASIA. 

By  the  Very  Rev.  E.  H.  Plumptre,  D.D.,  Dean  of  Wells.  Third 
Edition.     Crown  8vo,  5s. 

THE  ENGLISHMAN'S  BIBLE,  Designed  to  put 

the  Reader  in  Possession  of  Some  of  the  Precisions,  Beauties, 
and  Hidden  Treasures  in  the  Hebrew  and  Greek  Originals.  By 
Thomas  Newberry.  Price  i6s. ;  Turkey  Morocco,  2is. ;  Levant 
Yapp,  calf-lined,  30s.     One  Volume  with  Maps. 

NATURAL   LAW   IN    THE    SPIRITUAL 

WORLD.     By  Professor  Henry  Drummond,  F.R.S.E.,  F.G.S. 

Eightce.  li,  Edition.      Price  Js.  6d. 

"  The  extraordinary  success  of  the  work  is  due  to  its  merits.  Itr, 
form  and  its  leading  ideas  are  quite  original;  its  style  is  admirable." 
— British  Quarterly  Review. 

"  Most  able  and  interesting.  Mr.  Drummond  writes  perfect  Eng- 
lish ;  his  ideas  are  fresh,  and  expressed  with  admirable  felicity," — 
Literary  Churchman. 

CHEAP  EDITION.     BAMPTON  LECTURES  FOR  1875. 

THE  DOCTRINE  OF  RETRIBUTION  PHI- 
LOSOPHICALLY CONSIDERED.  By  the  Rev.  William 
Jackson,  M.A.,  F.R.S.,  F.S.A.  Formerly  Fellow  of  Worcester 
College.     Third  Edition,     8vo,  cloth,  5s. 

"In  his  eight  Lectures,  Mr.  Jackson  has  supplied  us  with  one  of 
the  ablest  defences  of  the  Christian  faith,  by  his  careful  consideration 
of  the  human  nature  to  which  that  faitli  brings  its  message." — 
Spectator. 


London  :    HODDER  &  STOUGHTON,  27,  Paternoster  Row. 


THE  BOOK  OF  KOHELETH,  commonly  called 

Ecclesiastes,  considered  in  Relation  to  Modern  Criticism, 
and  to  the  Doctrines  of  Modern  Pessimism.  With  a 
Critical  and  Grammatical  Commentary  and  a  Revised  Transla- 
tion.    By  the  Rev.  C.  H.  H.  Wright,  D.D.,  Ph.D.     8vo,  I2s. 

"The  student  is  likely  to  find  Dr.  Wright's  work  a  source  of  valu- 
able assistance.  It  displays  mature  and  wide-reaching  scholarship, 
and  may  be  expected  to  take  a  high  rank  in  the  exegetical  literature 
of  Ecclesiastes." — Academy. 

"  This  is  incomparably  the  ablest  and  fullest  work  hitherto  pub- 
lished on  Ecclesiastes.  It  is  a  rare  combination  of  deep  and  wide 
erudition,  sound  critical  judgment,  and  close  and  conclusive  argu- 
mentation."— English  ClinrcJunan. 

ZECHARIAH  AND  HIS  PROPHECIES,  Es- 
pecially the  Messianic,  Considered  in  Relation  to  Modern 
Criticism.  With  a  Revised  Translation,  and  a  Critical  and 
Grammatical  Commentary.  By  the  same  Author.  Being  the 
Bampton  Lecture  for  1878.     A  new  Edition.     Demy  8vo,  14s. 

"  It  is  imcomparably  the  best  commentary  hitherto  published  by  an 
English  author  upon  the  prophecy  of  Zechariah."— 5/7//s/i  Quarterly 
Review. 

CHRISTIANITY  AND  MODERN  SCEPTI- 
CISM. By  the  Rev.  A.  P.  Girdlestoxe,  Vicar  of  All  Saints', 
Clapham.     Crown  Svo,  3s.  6d. 

"  Mr.  Girdlestone's  work  .  .  .  has  no  superior,  and  perhaps  no 
equal,  as  a  suitable  work  for  Christians  in  dealing  with  sceptics." — 
Leeds  Mercury. 

THE  ENGLISHMAN'S  CRITICAL  AND  EX- 
POSITORY BIBLE  CYCLOPAEDIA.  By  Rev.  A.  R. 
Faussett,  M.A.  (Trin.  Coll.,  Dub.),  and  part  Author  of  the 
"  Critical  and  Expository  Commentary."  With  600  Illustrative 
Woodcuts.     Cheap  Edition,  in  one  large  volume.     4to,  lOs.  6d. 

The  Dean  of  Canterbury  says  :— "  I  have  carefully  examined  your 
new  Bible  Cyclopaedia,  and  can  conscientiously  speak  of  it  in  high 
terms  of  praise." 

"It  is  a  rich  and  full  storehouse  of  Scripture  knowledge.  The 
literary  execution  of  the  articles  is  excellent." — The  Guardian. 

"The  work  is  illustrated  with  numerous  woodcuts  of  an  interesting 
and  useful  kind,  and  will  undoubtedly  give  to  many  '  the  substance  01 
most  that  is  valuable  in  other  Dictionaries,  though  at  considerably  less 
cost.'     It  is,  in  fact,  a  marvel  of  cheapness." — Contemporary  Review. 


i-ondon:    HODDER  &  STOUGHTON,  27,  Paternoster  Row 


KADESH-BARNEA:    Its  Importance    and   Pro- 
bable  Site,  with  the   Story  of  a  Search  for  it;   including 
Studies   of  the  Route  of  the  Exodus   and    the    Southern 
Boundary  of  the  Holy  Land.     By  H.  Clay  Trumbull,  D.D. 
With  Two  i\Iaps  and  Illustrations.     Large  8vo,  2 is. 
"  This  is  a  truly  noteworthy  book,  and  will  at  once  command  the 
attention  of  all  Biblical  scholars.    Dr.  Trumbull  has  given  his  personal 
explorations  the  setting  of  a  scholarly  and  beautiful  volume  lucidly 
arranged  and  firmly  written,  with  phototypes  of  rare  excellence  and 
good  maps.     He  has  truly  estimated  the  historical  and  geographical 
value  of  Kadesh-Barnea,  and  well  vindicated  the  older  view  of  the 
route  of  the  Israelites."' — Acadeniy. 

EGYPT,   PALESTINE,   AND   PHGENICIA:  A 

Visit  to  Sacred  Lands.     By  Professor  Felix  Bovet.     Trans- 
lated from  the  Eighth  PVench  Edition  by  the  Hon.  and  Rev.  W. 
H.  Lytteltox,  M.A.,  Rector  of  Hagley  and  Canon  of  Gloucester. 
With  Maps,     Large  Crown  8vo,  9s. 
"  In  style  he  belongs  to  the  'picturesque'  class  of  writers.    English 
readers  will  find  a  freshness  and  unconventionality  in  the  point  of  view 
which  will  pleasantly  surprise  them.     Mr.  Lyttelton  has  performed 
his  part  of  the  work  with  taste  and  judgment.'" — Pall  Mall  Gazelle. 

"  Godet  sa3-s  of  the  volume,  in  an  introductory  letter,  '  M.  Bovet's 
book  has  a  character  all  its  own.  It  is  a  flower  gathered  in  Palestine 
and  brought  away  in  all  its  freshness  and  fragrance.'  What  better 
commendation  could  he  give  ?  We  do  not  wonder  that  it  has  been 
translated  into  German,  Swedish,  Dutch,  and  Italian.'  — Evangelical 
Magazine.  ' 

SACRED    STREAMS.      The   Ancient   and   Modern 

History  of  the  Rivers  of  the  Bible.     By  Philip  Hexry  Gosse, 

F.R.S.       With    Forty-four    Illustrations    and    Map.       New   and 

Cheaper  Edition.     Handsomely  bound,  3s.  6d. 

"  Mr.  Gosse  is  one  of  the  most  charming  as  well  as  accomplished 

writers  on  natural  history.     He  was  the  guide  and  tutor  of  Charles 

Kingsley  in  this  branch   of  study,   and   many  of  his   books  are  as 

daintil}'  fascinating  as  a  page  out  of  old  Gilbert  White  himself.     The 

present  work  has  been  written  speciall}'  for  Sunda\'  reading.     The 

object  has  been  attained  by  the  popularity  it  has  achieved." — Glasgou.' 

Herald. 

GARDEN     GRAITH;     or,    Tales    among   my 

Flowers,     By  Sarah  F.  Smiley.     Fifth  Edition.     Handsomely 

bound.     Crown  8vo,  3s.  6d. 
CoxTEXTS  : — The    Garden   Itself.  —  Seed  Sowing.  —  "Consider   l/ie 

Lilies." —  Weeds. — Fragrance. — Pol-bonnd. — After  the  Rain. — The 

Life  Beyond. 
"  A  charming  book,  full  of  heavenly  wisdon." — Christian. 
"Full  of  beautiful  thoughts," — Sylvia's  Home  Journal. 
"  The  garden,  the  seeds,  the  flowers,  the  weeds,  the  fragrance,  the 
process  of  gardening,   are  used    as   similes   of  religious   life.      The 
literary  style  is  fascinating." — Literary  World. 

London:   RODDER  &  STOUGHTON,  27,  Paterxoster  Row. 


STUDIES    ON     THE     NEW    TESTAMENT. 

By  F.  GoDET,  D.D.,  Professor  of  Theolog}",  Neuchatel.  Edited  by 
the  Hon.  and  Rev.  W.  H.  Lyttelton,  M.A.,  Canon  of  Gloucester. 
Sixth  Edition.     7s.  6d. 

Contexts: — The  Origin  of  the  Four  Gospels. — Jesus  Christ. — The 
Work  of  Christ. — The  Four  Chief  Apostles. — The  Apocalypse. 

STUDIES  ON  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT.     By 

F.  GoDET,  D.D.  Edited  by  the  Hon.  and  Rev.  W.  H.  Lyttelton, 
M.A.     Third  Edition.     Crown  8vo,  7s.  6d. 

Contents  : — Angels. — The  Plan  of  the  Development  of  Life  on  our 
Earth. — The  Six  Days  of  Creation. — The  Four  Greater  Prophets. — 
The  Book  of  Job. — The  Song  of  Songs. 

"  Unquestionably  M.  Godet  is  one  of  the  first,  if  not  the  very  first, 
of  contemporary  commentators.  We  have  no  hesitation  in  advising 
all  students  of  the  Scripture  to  procure  and  to  read  with  careful 
attention  these  luminous  essays." — Literary  Churchman. 

MODERN      HEROES     OF     THE      MISSION 

FIELD.  By  the  Right  Rev.  W.  Pakenham  Walsh,  D.D. 
Bishop  of  Ossory,  Ferns,  and  Leighlin.  Second  Thousand. 
8vo,  5  s. 

The  lives  sketched  in  this  volume  all  belong  to  the  present  century,  and 
include :— Henry  Martyn,  JVilliam  Carey,  Adonirant  Judson,  Robert 
Morison,  Samuel  Marsden,  John  Williams,  William  Johnson,  John 
Hunt,  Allen  Gardiner,  Alexander  Duff,  David  Livingstone,  and  Bishop 
Patteson. 

HEROES  OF  THE  MISSION  FIELD.     By  the 

same  Author.     Second  Edition.     Crown  8vo,  5s. 

"  Brilliant  sketches." — Literary  Churchman.  ■ 

"  We  can  heartily  recommend  his  book  to  our  readers." — Spectator. 

A     PRACTICAL     COMMENTARY     ON      ST. 

MATTHEW.  By  James  Morison,  D.D.  New  ard  Revised 
Edition.     Crown  8vo,  14s. 

A     PRACTICAL     COMMENTARY     ON     ST. 

MARK.  By  the  same  Author.  Fourth  Edition  Revised. 
Crown  8vo,  12s. 

The  Opinions  of  Two  Eminent  Commentators. 

"Dr.  Morison's  Coriiinentaries  on  St.  Matthew  and  St.  Mark  are 
simply  invaluable.  His  st3'le  is  so  racy,  so  graphic,  so  idiomatic,  that 
one  reads  him  not  onl}'  with  no  sense  of  labour,  but  with  constant 
surprise  and  delight." — Rev.  Samuel  Co.v,  D.D. 

"  We  are  happy  to  call  attention  to  this  painstaking  and  exhaustive 
work.  No  student  can  well  do  without  it.  It  is  a  marvellous  display 
of  learning  and  labour." — Rev.  C.  H.  Spurgeon. 


London  :   HODDER  &  STOUGHTON,  27,  Paternoster  Row. 


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BV660  .W98 

The  joy  of  the  ministry  :  an  endeavour 

Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


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