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tif I me !x :

GOSPEL PREACHING :

ISCBttrSf

PREACHED AT 'niE OPENING OP 'niE SYNOD

YTERIAN CHURCH,

, JUNE 12, 1868.

AITKEN,

OONOBBOATIOX, gMim's FAIXD.

0, 0. W.i
KING 8TBBET EAST.

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^-;j«':^:'^^-s*:;;^3^?;5

^.^£M&."U>'^j.

jj^SG^"^

it NOV %y

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'/'(j-eS, ^^

■ t

N«»tK.— As It ift not the pi-acticc ol" the SyjHxl of the United Prosbyteriau
('hurch to re<|iieBt publication of the DlscourwH preached at the coDimeDce-
ment of itn successive ScsMonf. by the retiring Mt)derator«, the t'ollovrinf
DiBCOui-se, »K»ing one of t|iat cIjwh. wrb composed witliont <ho slightest cxpec-
fAtion that \l would ever be published.

Many of the Ministers Sind Eldersj howo-er. in whose hearing it was
'delivered, having expressed a strung desire to Imve it in a printed fonn. it
is in deference to that desire committed to the prcf«B.

In the course of transcriptiou from the original raanuecript.'somealtenir
tions bav« been made. Thes(> alterations, however, liave been, for the mosl
part, merely verbal ; and have in no instance been of such conseejuenee as to
call for iMtrticnlar specification. . W. .V>i

■./ \

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Smith's Famx. Julij 4. IKW,

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Sm--. ■ .-y-r

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GOSPEL PREACHING.

For ChHWT 8KXT MK not to liAPTIZK, but to PrKACII tub liOrtPKL: .NOT

WITH W18DOM OF Words, I.E8T Tim Oross ok Ohriot sMon.D be

MADK <l|.' XOXB KFFK(T.— T (JOF., i: 17.

The Gospel had not yfet beea introduced into Corinth
when Paul, soon after his ever-memorable discourse to the
Athenians on Mars' Hill, proceeded thitljipr. His apostolic
labours in this new field were eminently successful, apd a
Christian Church was ere long organized

This was an event of no small moment in its bearing
on the advancement of the Redeemer's cause

The Corinth of that age was a city of recent growth
which had sprung from the ruins of the Corinth of ancitat
Grecian history, and which, originating in the planting ofk
Roman colony, had rapidly attained to a high degree of
prosperity. Favoured by its peculiar situation it became
a great seat of commerce-^the well-known Isthmus on
which It stood giving it the command of the intercourse by
land between the Peloponnesus and the regions lying to
the northward ; while its harbours on either side, communi-
catmg respectively with the Ionian and JEgeah Seas
received the traffic both oftheeastem and the western worlds'
It formed a central point in the direct line of travel between
imperial Rome and her Asiatic^rovinces j and its public
games, of which, from the early times of Hellenic indepen-
dence and renown, the Isthmus had been the scene, and
which thence accordingly derived their distinctive name
^ttracted multitudes from afar to their triennialcelebration'
he fame of its schools o! phUosophy a»d art, moreover— "

" ■ ■ ■ \ "

not inferior in reputation to those of Athens itself-madc
it a place of general resort for the votaries of learning. It»
population was of the miscellaneous character which might
naturally bo conjectured to belong to such a city, and while
consisting mainly of Greeks and Romans, contained rcpre-
sentatives, more or less numerous, of many different nation*
and tribes, among whom were included not a few of the
Hebrew race.' Corinth thus offered advantages for the
wide and rapid propagation of the Gospel such as were
then scarcely to be found connected with ajiy other city on
the face of the earth. A religion promulgated there,
especially a religion of such novel and extraordinary char-
acteristics as the Gospel, might, on all grounds of reason-
able calculation, be reckoned nearly sure of^commg
speedily known to the remotest limits of Rome's far-ex-
tending rule. .

The same reasons which thus rendered it desirable that
a CHurchofGhrist should be established in the chief city
of Achaia, in like manner rendered it desirable that the
Church there established should be one fitted by its char-
acter to bear unequivocal and decided testimony to the
excellence of the Gospel. At a very early period, however,
in the history of the Corinthian Church, notwithstanding
the illustrious ministry by which it had been founded,
gnevous errors and inconsistencies, appeared in it, of a
description only too well adapted to detract from the value
of its example as affecting the furtherance of the chrimp

cause...

The apostolic churches at large had difficulties to contend
against— difficulties both of jnterhal constitution and exter-
nal ciroumstance, Qf a kind placing formidable hindrances
in the way of the steady maintenance of their purity and
peace. Tfieir membership— partly Jewish, partly Gentae

•comprised elements in many respects uncongenial and
antagonistic. The Jew and the Gentile respectively bronght
into them prejudices — the result of their previous training
— ^which, if resembling in nothing else, were alike at least
in obstinate tenaciousness. Low and unspiritual notions
of religion generally-^misconceptioHM of the relation of the
Gospel economy to that by which if was preceded, and
deep-felt reluctance to an entire abandoru^ent of the peon*
Uarities of the ancient system—the speculaii[ons of a vain
and deceitful philosophy — the differences of sects and
parties, and the animosities hence engendered— the abound-
ing wickedness, also, of an age which if paralleled <wa8
assuredly never exceeded in immorality and J ittkltiQusn^s
•r-thcse and such like causes, operating from timout and
within, conspired to disturb the harmony of those primitive
christian societies — to unsettle ^||<IU corrupt their doctrine,
and relax the strictness of their moral practice.

To the dangers springmg from the various sources just
indicated the Church in Corinth was in no ordinary measure
exposed ; and the consequences can be readily traced in
the irregularities and disorders which showed themselves
within its pale. Among the evils which hence arose, the
connection in which our text occurs leads us especially to
notice that schismatic spirit^to which, in the immediately
preceding portion of this chapter, the apostle so emphati-
cally refers, and "whose malignant operation the Church of
Christ, in all subsequent generations, even as then, has
had so much reason to deplore. In the Corinthian Church
this unhappy spirit wrought with exceeding virulence.
Concerning those wlio composed its fellowship only too
truly had it been reported to the apostle, as he felt boun#
to testify, "that there were contentions'lirnong them." So
far from exhibiting a visible agreement corresponding to

*'*■■

those hidden ties which form a bond <rf union %_J"**
intimate and hallowed among all the true disciples o^^us,
thoy were separated— the. persons concerning whom this^es-
timony was delivered— into a number of sections, each of
which ranked under its distinctive head. One professed to
hold peculiarly by Paul, another by Apollos, and a third
by Cephas, while a fourth, running, as it would seem, into
precisely the opposite extreme, declared itself to be for
Christ alone— in a sense, it may be pn^sumed, involving
an undue disparagement of those servants ofjhe Redeemer
whom the rest so improperly exalted. , /

The state of things thus obtaining was to the apostle an
occasion of deep sorrow, and it called forth his pointed
rebuke as dishonouring to the Saviour, and evincing a
gross misapprehension and perversion of the just claims of
the human instruments employed in the promulgation of
His religion. For himself, Paul utterly repudiated the
false honour which the misdirected regard of his friends in
Corinth would have conferred upon him in constituting
him the chief of a party, and so placing him in a position
of vain rivalry to certain of his fellow-labourers in the work
of the Gospel, and in a position 6f impious rivalry even to
his Blessed Master, the common Lord of all. " Is Christ,"
he demands, « divided ?— was Paul crucified for you ?— or
were you baptized in the name of Paul ?" As matters had
fallen out it was a source of satisfaction to him to reflect
that only in two or three instances altogether the baptismal
rite had been administered by him in the Corinthian
Chutfch. He recalled this with satisfaction, because thus
he had been saved from furnishing even the semblance of
a pretext for the allegation which might otherwise have
vbeen made, that he baptised in his own name. " I thank
God," he exclaims, "that I baptized none of you but

•. ■ - ■

■ ■

wV?

Crispus and Oaiua, and I baptized also the househbtd of
Stephanas ; besides, I know not whether I baptized any
oUier.'^ Why so very few among the Corinthians had
received baptism at his hands, notwithstanding the length-
ened period of his sojourning among them, we are not
particularly informed ; but this general explanation of the
fact is ^ivcn, that to the office to which he had been divinely
designated pertained a higher function — one therefore
entitled Jo his chief consideration. " Christ," he affirms,
** sent me not to baptize, bnt to preach the Gospel ;" and
with respect to the mode in which the ministry which thun
he had received was to be fulfilled^ it is added, ^* not with
wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of
none eflfect."

In the AvordH (|^|||f($ us, therefore, we have Pauljs^
account of the greaf duty of his apostolii; mission, and
next of the manner in which that duty must be discharged.
And in the sequel of this discourse, after some observations
on these i^rticulars in exposition of the text, we shall
request your attention to several remarks obviously ^sug-
gested by it, and having a practical bearing on the work
of the Christian Ministry. -.

I. First of all, then, we have in the text Paul's account ol
the great duty of his apostolic mission. "Christ," he der
dares, " sent me not to baptize, but to preach the Gospel."

PaulV apostolic authority was an authority derived
directly froiri the Redeemer himself. It was Christ who
sent him. The circumstances, indeed, under which he
received his call to the apostleship differed widely from
those under which his fellow-apostles were called. But
though there were some— even in the Corinthian Church
founded by his instrumentality— who took advantage of ' t<
this difference to question the validity of his title to the '

•' : 1 ..

_J_

tpostleship ; and thouglv in nelf-abaning reniembranoo of
his early hostiUly to Chriil and 1 1 i», cause— while acknow-
ledgihg Ihal it was " as one bom out of due time" that he
r had seen the Lord— he felt constrained H» oonfpss himself
the "least ot|hc apostles," and us " not meet to be called
an apostle"— yVt by. the grace of God he was what he was,
nnd UQiic couUrndvance a more unimpeachable claim to
the apostolic dignity than he. . As an apostle Clirist had
Hcnt hiui. lie was His ambasnador— His delegate.

And hit* mi>«Mioii us thus sent, according to the represen-
tation here given,' was u mi*«»ion *• not to baptize, but to
preach the Go^«pcl." Of course this announcement is not-
to be taken willi-such absolute atriclness us if it were In- j
tended to import, that tlic fidministration of the baptismal!
rile was something entirely aside from the pi-opcr businessj
of his apostolic office. No such exclusive meaning wai^
designed. Elsewhere; maktni^ use of similar pliraseolog»
Paul describes himself as speaking, in the ennunciation of
the Gospel, " not as pleasing men, hut God," the^ trier bf
men's hearts. Ho did not thus, however, Wish it to be
understood that, in preaching, the Gospel, he cared poai-
lively nothing whether he pleased men or not. We knciw,
on the contrary, that within the limits prescribed by a
good conscience, and for a worthy end, he was ready to
"become all things to all men." All he desired was, by a
.strongly significant form of speech, to intimate that I the
pleasing of men \vas to him as a thing of no account in
comparison of the pleasing of God. And so here— all he
would affirm is— in a manner of like jsignificance-^thit in
^ the work of his mission, baptizing was an* inconsiderable
matter as compared with the preaching of the Gospel.
Christ sent him not so much to baptize, as rathei- un-
speakably rather— to preach the Gospel. In accordance

" 1

.y.

nbranoo of
le aoknow-
le'Mhat he
psn himself
to be called
hat he w&B,
le claim to
I Chriflt had
j^ate.

Iio roprcscn-
[jtizr, but to
•mcnl is not'

it were in- j
le baptismal!
per businessl
eaning waa
pliraseolog}'^
unciation of
' the^ trier of
^Ish it to be

cared posi-
We kn<iw,
scribed by a
vas ready to
ed was, by a
ite that the
) account in
hcre-^ajl he
tnce— that in
considerable
the Gospel.
\ rathei— un-
I accordance

{

with what Taui thus declares, white in the general apos-
folic commission, baptizing is NjMscified, it iv yet introduced
in such a manner ns may bo conceived to indicate itn jab-
ordinato importance viewed in relation to the other duty
. there at the same time enjoincd,r-" <io ye therefore, an^
teach all nutionM, baptizing tlieui in the name of thp^
Father, and of Son, and of the Holy Gliont : teaching them
to observe all things whatsoever I have comiuunded you."
In the ordinary practice, moreover, of thoMc to whom this

• commission was addressed, llit; inferior conMe<|uence at-
tached to baptizing would appear to have been distinctly
signified by this V^rvice being to u great extent devolved
on others. * ' ' ;

PauPs apostolic mission, then, wum a mission in >yhich
° the preaching of tj^e Gospel was to have the decided pre-

* eedence of baptizing. Christ sent him not to baplize—
save as holding baptizing jseeondary to the |)reaohing of
the Gospel, an^ making that his principal concern.. Christ
sent him not lo baptize, but to preach the Gospel— literally,
to evangelize— to proclaim the good news— the glad tidings
of great jdyv-the good ne\vs, \\w. glad and joyful tidings,
that God so loved the world as to give lli» only-begotten
Son for its redemption— that God is In Christ reconciling the
world unto himself, not imputing to men their trespasses —
the good news, the glad and joyful tidings bi salvation to
our apostate i^nd ruined race— salvation with eternal glory
-^a salvation lit all the fulness and variety of its imperish-
able benefits, free and accessible to all^ — not only to them
that are Jews by nature, but also to sinners of the Gentiles
—salvation through a sufTering and crucified, a risfeii'and
exalted Redeemer, by faith in His name. Suchyin Paul's
view, was the great work which as an apostlef had be^
given him to do— to publish in a sin-stricken and perishing
world that good news— that glad tidings of great joy, the

■ ■' ■'!■

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blcsHcdei^angclofGod'8 redeeming love. And the lepreaen-
talion thus giv«n i^ confirmed and illustrated by the terms
of the special commission, which, as we learn, from the
history of his conversion in hij unrivalled defence before
King Agrippa, he received from the Lord Jesus. ** Rise,
gind stand upon thy feet," was the command addressed to
him by the ascended Saviour,^ when arrayed in more than
snn-like glory, He revealed himself to him on the way to
Dama^us-^" for I have appeared unto thee for this pur-
pose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these
things which thou hast seen, and of those in which I wilj
appear unto thee ; delivering thee from the people ancj
from tlie Genlilos, unto whom now f send thee, tdoperf
their eye^ancl to turn themfrom darkness to light and from
ibe power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forr
giveness^f sins, and inheritance among them which arc
sanctified by faith that is in me." ■ ^

Thus Paul was delegatod not to baptize, but to evan-
gelize. And how nobly was the task so allotted to |iim
performed! With what intense earnestness of spirit—
with what self-denying devotedness — with what invincible
fSblution^did he apply I^impelf to its execution ! .Shrink-
ing from no toil nor hardship— dismayed by nodilficully nor
danger— dauntlessly confronting sufl'ering and death in
their most painful and appalling forms— "appr(^ving him-
self as the minister of God, in much patience, in afflic-
tions, in necessities, in distresses, instcipes, in imprison-
ments, in tumults, in labours, |n watdhings, in fastings."
"Of the Jews," he could testify, " five times received I
forty stripes save oiie, thrice was I beaten with rods,* once
was(I stoned, thrice I auffered shipwreck, a night and a
., day I have been in the deep.; in journey ings often, in
perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by miae

,l''v

a imprison-

, own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the
city, in peril» in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, .
in perils among false brethren; in weariness and pain-
fulness, in watchings ofteii, in hunger and Ihlfst, in
fastings often, in cold u4®nakodncss." But "none of
these things, moved him^'Whrs Christian magnanimity

/ bore him triumphantly tiirough them all — " neither counted
tic his life dear unto himself, so that he might finish bis
course with joy, and the ministry which he had received
of the Lord Jesus, to testify the (>ospel of the grace of

... God." . ; . ■ ■ ■ .■■.-./:: :■■ ■■■.--.■ ^■^.:;^

H, But in the text, we have an aocotint not only of iKid
great duty of PauPs apostolic mission^ but likewise of tlie:
manner in which that duty was to be discharged. Sent
by Christ not to baptize, but to preach the Gospel-^hc
must do so, "not with wisdom of words, lest the cro«»
of Christ should be made of none eflect."

His preaching was to be . " not with wisdom of words."
As to the precise meaning to be attached to this expression,
fhere has been some difference of opinion. Without, how-
ever, adverting particularly to the . various explanations
which have consequently been proposed, it is obvious to
remark, that the apostle is by no means to be understood
as thereby intimating that the verbal form in which the
truth of the GospeH i^%ht ^ set forth, was to be reckoned
a ime^ter of pure indiifeience.

Neither, further, is he to be understood in a sense
which would precbide the use of human eloquence, when
it might serve more efTectually to impress the truth on the
tni^ds of Gospel-hearers. /^

Jfhe apostle, as we <(onceive, makes allusion in the
expression in questioji, to the philosophic subtleties and
fhetoriqalartifices current in the Corinthian schools, the

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cmploymont of wiiich, by u public speaker, however it
might cxcilc admiration of his own ingenuity and taste,
and throw a certain speciovisciribellishment around hi»
subject, coukr not avail in the enunciation of the truth to^
render it more perspicuous or impressive, but muet, on the
contrary, tend to involve it in obscurity, and impair its
proper cflicaey. All such oratorical refinements and afTec-
lations* the apostle felt bound to repudiate. Sent to preach
the Gospel, and having no extreme dislike— any more than
incompetency— to draw upon the resourcea^)! human learn-
ing, when it could with adyantage^,:6onsecrated to that
holy serviqe, yet was he not to preach the Gospel with
wisdom- of word;?, after the rya^^iHer of the philosophers
and rhetoricians of the schools.

The special reason assigned is this-^"^e»t the cross of
Christ should be made of none effect."

Since the days of the apostle, to the cross of Christ, in
fabled sffbstance, and in mere unsubstantial form, a
blind.snperstition, given over to strong delusion to believe
a He, Jias attributed miraculous virtues and peculiar
sanctity, making it consequently the object ot an idolatrous
veneration. It can liardly be necessary to remark, that the
cross of Christ in this sense, is not that which Paul here
intended. Nothing, assuredly, could be more thoroughly
repugnant to all his deepest convictions and fedings, than
such a monstrous perversion of religious homage.

More than once in Scripture, by the cross is signified,

• persecutiops and sufferings incurred and submitted to in
thekedecmer'scafuse and for bis sake. "If any man will
coirie after* me,"/ were accordingly the words of Jesus,
"let him deny feself, and take up his cross, and follow

"me." The erosL however, in this use of the terra, is

^'f/

y-^a

manifestly the cross of the Christinn di^iple — not the
cross of Him who thus prescribes the indis^nsdble condi-
tion of Christian disciplcship.

in the text, on the contrary, the cross spoken of, is
Christ's own cross. It is the sufferings which He himself
endured— siiflcrings issuing in the awful decease, which
He accomplished at Jerusalem, to which that cros£r bears
reference ; and it may be regarded as denoting generaily
the truth of scripture in relation to the sufferings of^Christ,
the Gospel doctrine of Christ crucified.

Conformably to thd vip\y of the cross of Christ just
presented, the manner in wli(ich it is here brought forward,
evidently implies its high and vital importance in the
preachlpg of the Gospel. Not with Wisdom of words
must the Gospel be preached, and why ?^-lest the cross of-
Christ should be made of none effect,ilest it should be
rendered vain and ineffective, lest it should be prevented .
frdm duly exerting its proper influence, and hindered of
its proper glory. . / \^ ^

To the suflerings; of Christ on the cross pertained a
character strictly peculiar— these sufferings were vicarious
and expiatory. When He expired ot^ the tree of shante*
and woe, He did not die as any mere mortal might have
died, being appointed to so terrible a ddom— Christ cruci-
fied was in His death a sacrifice of dtonement fbr the^ins
of our fallen and tebel|!|pus rdce. Jn His cross standsr re-
vealed, the wondrouQo^ethod devised by ineffable love
and unsearchable wisdom for the salvation of sjnncrs of
mankind-=-a method of salvation fraught with glory to God
in the highest, while breathing peace and good-will to
men. The exhibition of this method of sajvation is indis-
pensable to the accomplishment of the grealt end, so fur as
, sinners are concerned, contemplated in th^ preaching of

A- <

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the Gospel. Hence the language of the apostle in a sub-
sequent verse of the present chapter— " after Uiat in the
wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it
pleased God by llic foolishness of preaching, (that is, ^
the preaching of the cross— " to them that perish foolish-
ness,") to save them that believe."

To make the cross of Christ of none effect, ihercfofC,
was virtually to make of none effect the Gospel of man's
salvation altogether— thwarting and frustrating the ineffa-
bly gracious design fur which it was to be preached to
perishing sinners. With reason, then, might the apostle
feel himself laid under .an imperative obligation to reject
in his preaching the wisdom of words, as adapted to lead
to a consequence so disastrous. And every one conversant
with his writings knows how ihorpughly in keeping with
such an obligation was the *.pirit which he habitually
cherished. With what deep energy does he once and
again give utterance to that spirit Thus, in the com-
mencement of the following chapter-^" I, brethren, when
I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of
wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. Fori
determined not to know anything among you, save Jesns
Christ and Him crucified." And again in his Epistle to
the Galitians— " God forbid that I should glory save in
the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ."

HI. Having, in the foregoing observations endeavoured
to unfold the meaning of the text, we have now, as we pro-
posed, to request your attention h some remarks evidently
suggested by it, and having a practical bearing on the
work of the Christian Ministry. r ^

1 . Our first remark is— that the religion of the Gospel i# a
religion which seeks to benefit mankind especially by

1, save Jesas

meaiitt of the truth--aUacli(iiig comparativclt little weight
to positive rites, and fonnil observances.

Prom thQ representation given by Paul df his apostolic
mission, it is perfectly clear that he was ai far as possible
from regarding the rite of baptism as a thing of such para-
mount importance as it came to be reckoned in after ages,
and as it js by so many reckoned still. |t is manifest that
he recognized in , it no pepuliar virtue such as could
place it on a level of equality with the preaching of the
Gospel, still less siich as could elevate it to a position of
higher consideration^ And how could he have spoken of
it as he does if he had conceived it an indispensable pre-
requisite to salvation— enisuring to all made the subjects of
it, emancipation from the thraldom of Satan, admission
into the family of God, exemption from the coming wrath,
and an heritage in heaven .' X. .

Baptism is a sacred symbol, sind the importance of that
which thus it represents cannot be over-eslimatttd— namely,
the cleansing efficacy of the Redeemer's blood, the rege-
nerating grace of His Holy Spirit-— the grace which must
be experienced— ^the change which must be undergone, b]
asin|ierere he can enter into the kingdom of God. But
the administration of the rite determines nothing as to the
person to whom it is administered having pr not^hAving
experienced that ^ace i^od undergone ihatohai^. There
resideis in it no Inh^renttjiQwerJ^ooi^inunicateso precious
a benefit; neither is ther^ finy such connection established
between the outward sign knd the blessing which it dc-
'ISoles as that the redeption of^the former secures the bcr
stowal of the latter. It is a pledge, indeed, of the grace
signified to those for whom it is in sovereign 'mercy des-
tined, and in whom the conditions according to which it
is imparted are fulfilled. But in so far as it may be sup-

- iT.wH^Wi'"?-^, r— /"^Tl

r i

l'|fe

posed iitted, in itM own nature, to procure for any one
that grace, it is simply by means of the truth of which
it is emblematic — apprehended — believed ^-embraced ^-
truth much more clearly, fully and effectively — if not with
the same sensible accompaniment — presented in the
preaching of the Gospel.

The religion of Jesns is, in reality as little as may be,
a religion of positive rites and external forms. To view
it differently is to misconceive it in a manner as inexcusable
as it is apt to prove deadly. Its chief purpose, in regard to
sinners of mankind, is to achieve their salvation : and this
^purpose it aims at accomplishing by the instrumentality of
the truth, received by faith into the sinner's heart, and —
applied by the Holy Spirit- — moulding and governing his
character and life. Its sacraments, can, of themselves,
contribute to the desired result only as symbolic exhibi-
tions of the truth which makes wise unto salvation. To
impute to them— whether baptism or the Lord's Supper —
ail intrinsic saving virtue— distinct from the influence of
the truth which they^exttbddy— is * a senseless superstition
and a rnpst perilous delusion-^perilous, most of all, when
it is reported to, as so frequently it is, as a ground of con-
fidence ill the extremity of a dying hour.

Let those, therefore, who are appointed to preach thcjf
Gospel, a^ they would not neglect a solemn duty- — tb
which particular circumstances may lend a special force
of obligation — earnestly admonish their , hearers against
being misled by so fatal a deception ; instructing them, as
among the fij^t principles of the oracles of God, that by no,
• mystical efficacy of sacraments, by no mere outward ob-
servances, are the blessings of salvation to be obtained ;
but that, if they would be saved^ it must be by grace
through faith— the faith of the truth as it is in Jesus-r

" ^.

forming the boi^d of a living union bet\V;eett Him and the
believing 8ouI~^working by love, and purifying the heart

2. ,From what has just been advanced, twj are naturally
led, in continuation, to notice what the texl\ery evidently
further implies— namely, the surpassing impoWnce of the
preaching of the Gospel as the grand appointed instrn-
mentaf ity for the presentation of the truth to the minds of
men. ■ ■ ■ : ■ .- ' \ ' ■

Paul, it is easy to perceive, was disposed to m^ify
his office us a Gospel preacher, and with a proprietknot
»ito be questioned. To preach the Gospel had be, ab^ye
all, been diyinely sent ; and thus, mainly, were sinne
to be instructed in that truth, the knowledge of which was
essential to the salvation of their souls.

Not unfrcquently we have occasion to hear preaching
(that is, the public enunpiation of Gospel truth, in contra-
distinction from all diverse and more private methods %f
bringing that truth under the consideration of mankind,)
referred to in such terms as to indicate quite another and
lower estimate of it than had been formed by the great
apostle. Preaching, we are sometimes told, constitutes
but a small part of a minister's appropriate work ; and we
are le0to infer, if we are not expressly assured, that the
good thus to be effected is of inconsiderable account as
compared with that which maybe effected by dealing with
sepairate individuals or by family visitation.

That there is here a grave mistake, is not to be doubted ;
and the mischievous tendency of such representations, as
affpcting the obligations both of thoS^ who preach and
those who hear the Gospel, is apparent at a glance. It
would not be difficult, from the nature of the case, to shew
that to Gospel preaching pertain advantages such as be-
long to no other mode of inculcating the truth. It is

■

■■■'■'■ •: »

eoough, however, to observe, that, to such disparaging
catimates of that preaching as those to which we have
adverted, the Word of God gives no countenance whatever,
but, on the conftary, teaches us to regard it as the prin-
cipal means appointed by Christ for bringing the truthv
effectively to bear. on the souls of men. And here, as' ^
every where else, it will be found,: in |he final result, that
"the foolishness of God is wiser tKaii men, and the weak-
ness of God is stronger than penu^:#

Those, therefore, who have been put in trust with the
Gos|)el may warrantat)ly, after the example of the apostle
of the Gentiles, magnify their office as Gospel preachers,
and should be deeply cqncerned, in this particular, to
acquit themselves as " good ministers of Jesus Christ"—
" giving attendance to exhortation, to doctrine" — " studying
to shew themselves approved unto God, workmen who
need nbt to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of
truth" — endeavouring, "by manifestation of the truth^ to
commend themselves to every man's conscience in the sight
of God"-— while those who would undervalue and set
lightly by their preaching are to be warned, that in con-
temning it, they "despise not man," nor man's device, but
God and His ordinance«~-an ordinance, the dishonouring of
which must involve the more aggravated a culpability—
that it is one instituted in unspeakable mercy^ that thereby
they may be brought to the knowledge of the truth and
be saved. ' ■ ,-/~ ■--■•• ^■

3. We proceed to remark still further, that the great ele-
ment of power in the preaching of the Gospel— tjiat on
which its saving efficacy is mainly dependant— is it^ exlii-
bition of the cross of Christ. J*-

Therefore was Paul to preach the Gospel, not with wis-
dom of words, lest the influence of the cross shoiiiid be

■:,1 •

dlkNjtnicted ; or lent, by tiie ascription to other, causes o(
salutary effects justly attributable to it alone, it should fail
to receive the honour rightfully its due.'

The truth in relation to Christ crucified, Christ offered
on the cross as an atoning sacrifice, in the room, and on
behalf, of sinners of mankind— this constitutes the grand
distinguishing truth of the Gospel. Such is the place
which it occupies there, that all that i» strictly peculiar to
the Gospel system is dependant on it; so that supposing
it to be thence rejected, doctrine after doctrine must neces-
sarily follow till nothing properly characteristic of the
Gospel will remain. Contemplated under this aspect^ it
may be compared to the central orbs in the systems Qf||$^
mater|id universe which connect the various worlds revol^-
in^^/i^round them in harmonious and stable relations, and
whose annihilation invoilves the inevitable dissolution of the
whole scheme to which each respectively belongs. Or it
may be likened to the keystone which binds the arch in its
severai^parts into a compacit mass, but on the removal of
Which the fabric in which it served so essential a pu^ose,
being left without adequate support, falls in pieces.

Such being the position of the cross of Chrisi— -the doc-
trine of Christ crucified — in the Gospel system, whatever
influence the preaching of thie Gospel can exert must,
directly or indirectly, Ke^ferrible prir^^ly to , that
source. -'^^^ "^"^

The great design of the Gospel with reference to sinners
of our lost race— as we have more than once already inti-
mated — is to save them. And the truth concerning Christ
crucified is, by emphatic pre-eminence, the truth which is
mighty to save. It is the truth which, intelligently appre-
hended, and received by faith, and believingly contempla-
ted, justifies the sinner, tranquillizes his guilty conscience.

if-

brings him into a state of acceptance and peace with C^,
and draws forth his heart in gratitude and love to. the
Author of' his salvation, and wh;cb, operating in his soul
with the power of a new, a higher, a divine life, promotes
the sanctificatlon of his whole nature, and leads on to an
ultimate perfect assimilation to the Infinite Parity. With
this truth, therefore, distinguishing their preaching, f he min-
istering servants of Christ may go to all the world, and in
the Gospel so proclaimed to all nations, and kindreds, and
peoples, and tongues, they shall carry witff them a salvation
free to all and assured to every one who believcth. On the
other hand, this truth being abstracted from their preaching,
they cannot be the instruments of salvation to one solitary

soul.-:, .,■'■..;•.■■ .. t ■■ ■■ „-;" ; ' ^,.v' .■'

This i/is which imparts to the Gospel and its preaching
the might of a divinely adapted suitableness to the exigen-
cies of our spiritual condition — to' the urgent necessities
and wants of our fallen and degenerate nature. And the
history of the Redeemer's Church bears signal testimony to
the effective working of the power divine thence derived.
As tj)e records of4hat Church ymphatically demdn$tratc, it
is when Christ crucified has been the chief theme of
chriatian preaching — wlien the dross has been mo^t promi-
nently and conspicuonsly held (iprth — ^tbat the Gospel has
ever everted the gircfatest and happiest influence on man-
kind. We mf^ht refer, by- way of example, to the first age
of Christianity, when it was the highest boast of men, like
the apostle Paul, that they preached "a crucified Saviour,
glorying in thf^ cross ; and when the word preached grew
mightily and prevailed, being attended with a success that
has never since .been fully paralleled. We might also
refer to the time of the Reformation from Popery, when the
true dootrine of the oross^ after long gopcrotions, amid th« ?^

S!!-51^:«

all bat univ(>rfal corraptlons of which it had lain for the
most part concealed and disregarded, wan reproduced and
proclaimed anew, wiUi something like the primitive sim,
plioity and zeal, and when the word preached put forth a
large measure of its primitive ellioiency. And, once more,
we might refer to what has been accomplished in times
less remote in the field of missionary enterprizc — to Gospel
f* triumphs there achieved, serving impressively to demon-
strate that the cross can make its attractions felt, even
amid the deepest degradation of heathenism and idolatry,
and, when all other means have been found ineffectual,
can avail to soften and subdue the rudest and most stub-
bom naturc-^to melt the hardest and most depraved heart
—turning the heathen from his ** idots to serve the living
and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom
, He raised from the dead, even Jesus, who delivered us
from the wrath to come." >

In the preaching of the Gospel, then— the grand instru-
racntality appointed for the saving of sinners— the doctrine
of the cross, which reveals to men the way of salvation—
the sure but only way— ought to have that first pl^ce to-
which, by its unspeakable importance, it has so unques-
tionable a claim. And those who have been counted
faithful to be put into the ministry will best approve their
faithfulness. as Gospel preachers by giving that doctrine the
highest prominence. Herein imitating the example of
Paul, they should be able with him to say: " We preach
Christ crucified, unto the Jews a, 8tumbling-1>lock, and
unto the Greeks foolishness ; but unto them which are
called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God,
and the wisdom of God." And while those who preach'
the Go$peI, if they would minister grace, grace unto salva-
lioB, lu their heareis, are thus to preach IT; with regani to

:%1

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■■■'■«,■ - ■ / ■ ^

those who hear, it is in like manner to Christ cruciftpd thi
thny mnst, abov^ all, diroct their believing contemplation
if they would be saved. As ihere is no salvation for
sinneni but in Christ, so in Him there ia salvation only
** through faith in Mis blood'^ — only through cflficacy of His^
cross, by faith realized.

4. We have to remark once'more, that in the preaching of*
the Gus))cl human learninjpjpi grievously misapplied when
it is used in such a way M^might tend to counteract the

Inflaenco of the Redeemer's cross* _ _ „> ^

' This is a manifont deduction from the observations
immediately preceding ; not less manifestly is it implied in
the text. Not with wisdom of words— not in such a
manner as might bo sanctioned by the schools—would the
lipostie preach the' Gospel, lest the cross of Christ should'
be made of none effect. A ,j

Paul, we may feel well(||pHured,entertaiara
aH prejudices against learning generally ; imH^R to be
.conceived as undervaluing its legitimate applications. He
himself a man of learning) And ready, on fitting
to.avail himself of his attainments as suoh, But
yi^as t^inght in the schools of his age was a

^^^iSI9IF9'^ ^^' HM^^ could hardly be rated too low.
HefPp^^are, mareover, that even a genuine learning'
might be ipischievously employed ; and, knowing of what
infinite moment it was that the cross of Christ should exert
the full measure pf its appropriate influence, he felt con-
strained to reject every mode of preaching the Gospel by
which that influei)^ might be impaired. Certainly nothing
can be imagined from which he would have shrunk with '
greater abhorrence than the thought of throwing a shade
over the glory of the cross, in order that he might make a -
vain parade of his^ scholastic acqtiirismeiitB. -^ ^^ #

\^':f'

U if not requisite that we nhould ttlt«mpt formany to
L ^''how how desirable it is that those who proaoh th«» Oofi|)e)
should, as we have said the apostle was, be men of learn*
ing. Whatever oontrt)versy there might at one ttme be
with respect to this point, the advantage of snob qumlifioa-
tion is now universally admitted. Kvery true minigler of
Christ, however, whatever his erudition, will, litae the
apostle, hold all his acqoirenfients Nubtorvient to the influ-
ence of His. cross, and will assiduously seek that, in the
highest possible degree, they may contribute to the enhaitce-
ment of its attractions and the promotion of Hjs glory.

We have thus, as we proposed, adverted To Paul's ■c
<Jount of the great duty of his a|K>8tolic mission, and tbe
manner in which that duty was to be discharged, subjoin-
ing several observations, suggested by the text, having*
practical bearing on the work of the Christian Ministry.
Uik In conclusion,— let those who have been appointed t#
the office of ministers in the Church of Christ, be entreated
to cherish a deep sense of the unspeakable importance of
the chief function of their sacred office, namely, the preach-
ing of the Gospel, and of that method of salvation by di-
vine atoning sacrifice, irrespectively of which, their preach-
ing cm be productive of little benefit; and let them, with
all earnestness, endeavour to "make fi^ll proof of their
ministry," and faithfully to " keej) that which, has been
'icomndittcd to their trust ; avoidmg profane and vain bab-
blings and oppositions of science, falsely so called," "in
doctrine, showing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity, sound
speech, which cannot be condemned, that he who is of the
contrary part, may be asharfted having no evil thinjr to sav
of them." ■, ,. , . :-':\ ^:,,i,y ' '

.And let thdse to whom the Gospel is preached, be ex-
horted to lay to heart, the solemn responsibility connected

'^•^

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With the possession of this high privilege, and to taite heed
how they hear, remembering that if th0 Gospel avails not
to save them, it mast entail upon them q' more awful con-
demnation. Let thetnj, above eill^ beware of trusting fpr'^
salvatiqn to any otlielt, rnethod than that which the Gospel
eanction^the method of salvation, hy faith in Him who
baiHe our sins in I}is own body on the \j[ee, and died that
He might redeem us to God by His blood. " Now then,
we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech
you by us, we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled
to God) for He hath made Him to be sin for us who knew
no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in

Hiffl.

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