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 EDITOR'S NOTICE. 
 
 In preparing for publication Day's Revival 
 Sermons, we have endeavored to preserve, as 
 much as possible, the Author's peculiar style 
 of expression, and great plainness of speech; 
 but in so doing, we have been under the 
 necessity of paying less regard to literary 
 taste and the usual theological phrases, and 
 more to the literature of the Bible and the 
 acumen of the Author. The thoughts in these 
 sermons are clothed in words that burn into 
 the very soul, when f reached; but it is impos- 
 sible to retain for the reader, the flashing eye, 
 the benign countenance, or the native elo- 
 quence of the preacher. If the reader has 
 been accustomed to hear from the pulpit lit- 
 erary performances without point in place of 
 plain Bible truths, or smooth and scholastic 
 essat/s in place of Gospel sermons, he is re- 
 quested to bring these sermons to the Bible, 
 
iv KDITOR'S NOTICE. 
 
 test, and compare them with the preaching 
 and teaching of Christ and his Apostles, be- 
 fore condemning them for either their man- 
 ner or matter. 
 
 That they are argumentative and logical, 
 as well as pungent and practical, has been 
 fully proved by the influence they have ex- 
 erted over some of the best minds in the 
 country, and the testimony of hundreds and 
 thousands who have been converted under 
 their delivery. 
 
 Tha't they are evangelical in doctrine and 
 catholic in spirit, is evident from the fact that 
 they have been preached among all evangel- 
 ical denominations of Christians, and followed 
 by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The 
 minor points, on which sects differ, give place 
 to the fundamental truths of Christianity, as 
 revealed in God's word, and as generally un-- 
 derstood by Congregationalists, Baptists, Meth- 
 odists, and others; consequently no objectioi^ 
 obtains to their, free circulation among all 
 denominations of evangelical Christians. Of 
 course they will be instrumental in doing 
 good, in proportion to the zeal of Christians 
 in circulating them. 
 
EDITOR'S NOTICE. V 
 
 Twenty-five years' experience as an evan- 
 gelist, and the success which has thus far at- 
 tended his preaching, has fairly entitled the 
 Author to the credit of having been instru- 
 mental in leading as many souls to the Sa- 
 viour as any other evangelist now in the 
 field, and the multitudes who have urged the 
 publication of his sermons, for the benefit of 
 their families, while at the same time they 
 would have the privilege of contributing to 
 the support of him and his family, are now 
 gratified. 
 
 J. W. ALDEN, Editor. 
 Boston, May 3, 1860. 
 
.GGiDA 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 I. PREPARE THE WAY • 9 
 
 1. Preparation on the Part of the Church 
 NECESSARY. 2. When made, a Revival sure to 
 follow. 
 
 n. LUKEWARMNESS 47 
 
 1. The three States of Heart, viz: 1. Cold. 
 
 2. Hot. 3. Lukewarm. 
 
 III. IDLENESS 73 
 
 1. Definition of Terms in the Text. 2. Idle- 
 ness inconsistent with Duty, and fraught 
 WITH Guilt. 3. Why we are idle. 4. Christ 
 demands a Reason for such Conduct. 
 
 IV. THE TITHES 117 
 
 1. The Duty taught in the Text. 2. The 
 Srength and Magnitude of the Promise. 
 
 V. PRAYER...:Jj!'<^!'%!<(.t^.f.Y.lS 145 
 
 1. Prayer a Duty. 2. An important Duty. 
 
 3. A high Privilege. 4. Ask, Seek, and 
 Knock. 5. How to prevail in Prayer. 
 
 VI. POWER FROM ON HIGH 218 
 
 1. Power spoken of in the Text. 2. What it 
 
 WILL accomplish. 3. How obtained. 4. Guilt 
 OP THE Church in not obtaining it. 
 
 Vn. THE CARELESS ONES 247 
 
 1. Cakeless about God. 2. Careless about 
 God's Law. 3. Cakeless about Christ. 
 
viii CONTENTS. 
 
 4. Careless about Death. 5. Careless 
 AiJOUT THE Judgment, Heavex, Hell, Eter- 
 nity, Salvation. 
 
 VIII. MORAL AGENCY 269 
 
 1. Attriuutes of a Moral Agent. 2. Proof 
 OF THE Doctrine. 
 
 IX. GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN 297 
 
 1. Definition of Government. 2. Two De- 
 partments IN the Universe avhich need 
 Governing. 3. Government supposes Pow- 
 er EXERCISED over EACH DEPARTMENT. 4, 
 
 But two kinds op Power used in Govern- 
 ment. 5. Moral Agents not governed by 
 Physical Power. 6. How far Physical 
 Power is connected with Moral Govern- 
 ment, and its Place. 7. The Necessity of 
 Moral Agents being under Government. 
 8. The Being best qualified ought to 
 Govern. 9. God the only Being quali- 
 fied. 10. God's Right and Duty to Gov- 
 ern. 
 
 X. THE .JUDGMENT DAY 329 
 
 1. Its Appointment. 2. Prs Objects. 3. Its 
 Magnitude and Results. 
 
PHINOBTOH 
 .ft£UOCTlfc5B2 
 
 SEKMONS. 
 
 L 
 
 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 Prepare ye the way of the Lord. — Matt. iii. 3. 
 
 1. PREPARATION ON THE PART OF THE CHURCH NECESSARY 
 2. WHEN MADE, A REVIVAL SURE TO FOLLOW. 
 
 John the Baptist, who uttered this text, was a 
 wonderful man. His ministry was short but very 
 effective. Few men ever moved the people so ex- 
 tensively in so short a time. His preaching seemed 
 to electrify and arouse the whole region. 
 
 All Jerusalem were in an uproar, and they turned 
 out in a mass to hear John preach, and were bap- 
 tized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. Nor 
 was this movement confined to Jerusalem. The 
 whole land of Judea was in a blaze, the work spread 
 on every side, and in the short space of six months 
 the inhabitants generally in that large region pro- 
 fessed faith in his doctrine. So the history affirms, 
 as the following language will show. 
 
10 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 " Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, 
 and all the region round about Jordan, and were 
 baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins." 
 
 The probable secret of John's wonderful power 
 over men, was the fact that he was filled with the 
 Holy Ghost. He had been filled with the Spirit 
 from a child up. His whole heart was in his work, 
 his spirit was aroused and he poured forth the truth 
 in great power upon the multitudes who flocked to 
 hear him. Listen to him for a moment. " The 
 kingdom of Heaven is at hand." It is now at your 
 doors. The King in Zion is born and in your midst. 
 He is about to enter upon his public work: Now, 
 ye sleepy Jews, wake up and repent. I am the voice 
 of one crying in the wilderness, sent before his face 
 to call upon you to prepare his way. Wake up, 
 wake up and make his paths straight. Set your 
 houses in order, put every abomination from your 
 hearts, and be in readiness for the ushering in of 
 this new kingdom, which is ultimately to demolish 
 all other kingdoms and to fill the whole world. 
 
 This text is figurative. To understand any por- 
 tion of the Bible, where there is imagery used, we 
 should adopt the following rule : — 
 
 We should first acquaint ourselves thoroughly 
 with the literal thing referred to, whatever it may be. 
 If it is an ancient custom we should learn what that 
 custom was, so that the literal thing shall be dis- 
 tinctly before the mind. Then, by consulting the 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 11 
 
 connection of the text, we can generally perceive the 
 thought which the Spirit intended to convey by the 
 use of the imagery. Or, in other words, we can get 
 into our minds the very thought in the mind of the 
 Spirit. When we get into our minds the exact 
 thought that was in the mind of the Spnit we have 
 the truth. And we have not the truth until that 
 is the fact. The object of the Bible is to convey 
 to us God's thought. It is a great storehouse of his 
 thoughts. We should read it for the purpose of 
 getting at those thoughts. The Bible contains his 
 thoughts concerning himself, man, heaven and hell ; 
 concerning the way of life and salvation, and all the 
 great things which are necessary for us to know to 
 fit us for usefulness here, and for heaven hereafter. 
 What a rich treasure ! How infinitely valuable to 
 man ! How purifying and elevating in its tendency ! 
 It expands the soul and moulds it all over into God 
 and heaven when it submits to be controlled by its 
 great principles. Let u's bring our hearts in warm 
 contact with its heavenly truths, if we Avould be- 
 come God-like. 
 
 But what is the custom referred to in this text ? 
 We reply, it was a custom frequently practised by 
 monarchs, in that eastern portion of the world, in 
 the days of John. As they were to pass into dif- 
 ferent portions of their dominions, they sent a mes- 
 senger before their face, to call upon the people to 
 prepare the roads. In some instances this was 
 
12 PREP ARK THE WAY. 
 
 done at great expense. New roads were cut 
 through entire ; large hills were dug down ; valleys 
 filled up ; the rough places were made smooth, and 
 the crooked were made straight. The* herald or 
 crier went before the monarch's face, to see if this 
 preparation for his reception was thoroughly done 
 up. Now for the application. Jesus Christ, who 
 is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, was about 
 to make his appearance in Judea. He sent before 
 his face his messenger, who was John the Baptist, 
 to call upon the Jewish people to prepare for his 
 reception. How this herald or forerunner of Christ 
 pressed the duty in my text, upon the hearts of the 
 Jews, everywhere. Hear him thunder all over Ju- 
 dea, " Prepare ye the way of the Lord ! " — 
 Wake up, one and all, shake off your stupidity, and 
 wake up at once ! The King of Kings is at hand! 
 Open your ears and listen to the rumbling of his 
 chariot- wheels in the distance ; open your eyes and 
 behold his royal approach. 
 
 The text, in its application to us, contains two 
 important practical truths. 
 
 I. Before Jesus Christ comes into any place to 
 revive his work, a preparation is necessary on the 
 part of the church. 
 
 H. In any place where and when the church will 
 make this preparation, Christ will come to that 
 people, and pour out his Spirit, and gather sinners 
 into the kingdom. 
 
PREPARE THE WAT. 13 
 
 Let US contemplate these truths for a few mo- 
 ments. 
 
 1. A PREPARATION IS NECESSARY ON THE PART 
 OF THE CHURCH, IF SHE WOULD HAVE ChRIST COME. 
 
 The text puts that matter at rest. God speaks 
 to every individual in this church in the language 
 of this passage. Hear him, my brethren, he is ad- 
 dressing you. Prepare ye the way of the Lord. 
 This is his. command to you. Here is a duty urged 
 and you have not the right to neglect it. What ! 
 neglect to act when God commands ! Have you a 
 right to resist his will ? For you to be indifferent 
 when he speaks is the very height of wickedness. 
 Hear him then and gird on your armor at once. 
 But this is not the only place in the Bible where 
 this truth is taught, and John is not the only teacher 
 Avho understood and enforced it. Let us hear Da- 
 vid for a moment. Ps. li. 12, 13 : " Restore unto 
 me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with 
 thy free Spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy 
 ivays, and sinners shall be converted unto thee.^^ 
 David here introduces the true Bible theory of re- 
 vivals. Did he fold up his arms and say " Let us 
 wait God's time." Did he comfort himself in a 
 wrong state of heart by saying " God's time to 
 favor Zion is not yet come." He administered no 
 such false comforts to his conscience. He knew 
 that God's time would come when the joys of 
 Jehovah's salvation are fully restored to his heart, 
 
14 ' PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 and he has prepared God's way. Where did David 
 propose to commence ? Did he say Lord I will 
 go out and teach transgressors thy ways, and then 
 you " restore unto me the joys of thy salvation " ? 
 Not one word of that. He knew his duty too well 
 to undertake to move in that form. Look now, 
 and look close, for here is a moral lesson to be 
 learned from this passage, of vast importance to 
 the ministry and the church. Where, then, did 
 David propose to commence the work of God ? I 
 answer, at his oivn heart, where every Christian, 
 and Christian minister on earth should always com- 
 mence if he would have success. Mark how he 
 cries out to God, " Restore unto me the joys of thy 
 salvation." Then, ah, yes, then will I teach trans- 
 gressors thy ways ; not mine, but thy ways. And 
 what shall be the result when the joys of God's 
 salvation are fully restored to his own heart ? Re- 
 sult ? Let David answer. But note his words. 
 Did he say, and perhaps sinners will be converted 
 unto God ? There is no perhaps in the case. How 
 confidently he affirms, " And sinners SHALL be 
 converted unto thee." David understood too 
 Avell the influence he would have over others, to 
 speak doubtingly, when his heart was full of God. 
 He knew full well that to fill the church with God's 
 Holy Ghost, the impenitent would feel her influ- 
 ence, and multitudes would flock to Christ. 
 
 Lt't this church begin where David proposed to 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 15 
 
 commence, and each member see to it that God's 
 salvation is fully, fully restored to his own heart, 
 and God will rock this whole community under 
 his awful footsteps. Sinners shall be converted 
 UNTO God. Will you do it ? Will you begin to- 
 day ? 
 
 Let us now listen to Christ for a moment, and 
 learn how he set men to work to promote a revival. 
 No one can doubt but that he fully understood this 
 matter, and if he has spoken let us hear him. Matt, 
 vii. 5 : " First cast out the beam out of thine own eye ; 
 and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote 
 out of thy brother's eye." How did the Saviour set his 
 followers to work to save men ? Did he say to them 
 Go out with a beam in thine own eye, and take the 
 mote from thy brother's eye? Particular attention 
 should be given to this imagery. How impressive ! 
 The word translated beam in the text, says Dr. A. 
 Clark, should have been rendered splinter. The eye, 
 we all know, is the most delicate part of the human 
 system. The least thing will affect it and put us 
 in pain in a moment. If a man is to deal with this 
 delicate organ, how important that his own vision 
 be cleared up, as clear as heaven. A little blun- 
 der, and the eye is utterly spoiled, and the sight 
 lost forever. Think of an individual, who, with a 
 splinter in his own eye, should undertake, with a 
 sharp instrument, to remove a mote from a brother's 
 eye. How blundering ! how foolish ! He will most 
 
16 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 assuredly spoil the eye of the individual he under- 
 takes to benefit. 
 
 Then again how hazardous ! What consequences 
 hang upon a little mistake ! What would, common 
 sense dictate under such circumstances ? • What 
 would duty demand ? Where should he com- 
 mence ? What hearer in this house hesitates for 
 a reply ? All, all exclaim, begin at home. Let 
 his own vision be cleared up and then he can 
 apply that instrument with skill and remove the 
 mote without harming the eye. How impressive 
 this imagery ! How full of common-sense instruc- 
 tion ! Think of the drunkard who would stand 
 reeling over his cups, lecturing men on the sub- 
 ject of temperance. Who would hear him ? 
 How quick you would say, Wipe your own mouth, 
 and break that decanter, before you lecture us. 
 Cast first the beam out of your own eye. That 
 thief gives an excellent lecture upon the subject 
 of honesty, but during his lecture he slyly picks 
 his neighbor's pocket who sits by his side. What 
 influence would his lecture have over his audience 
 think you ? What would they say ? I will not 
 hear such a fellow. Let him first repent and be- 
 come an honest man, and do works meet for re- 
 pentance, before he exhorts us. Begin the work 
 at his own heart and get that right, and then it 
 will be time for us to hear him. 
 
 Now I affirm that this same common-sense 
 
PREPARE THK WAY. 17 
 
 lesson is the very lesson the Saviour has given 
 the church, in the passage under consideration? 
 Let the church first set her own heart right, and 
 the obstacles in the way of God's blessing will be 
 removed ; and, moreover, by so doing, she commends 
 herself so perfectly to the conscience of every sin- 
 ner, that they will listen with profit to her warn- 
 ings, and invitations to come to Christ. She will 
 then be in a state where she has power with God, 
 and power over men, to move them to repent. 
 This is the point urged in my text, " Prepare ye 
 the way of the Lord." 
 
 If this church would have Christ come, she 
 must make this preparation. Will you do it ? 
 God calls for an answer. He puts the question 
 to you personally. Will you do it ? What does 
 your heart say ? Does it respond, I will ? If so, 
 God will come. Let us now look at the second 
 great truth taught in this text. 
 
 2. Whenever a church makes this prepara- 
 tion, Christ will visit that people, and a revi- 
 val WILL BE the certain RESULT. 
 
 In this matter there can be no failure. I fully 
 believe that the judgment will reveal one great 
 truth, that whenever and wherever any church has 
 sought God as he directed, he never failed them. 
 How can he ? He has committed himself, and he 
 would sooner let the heavens fall than suffer his 
 
18 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 word to fail. Look at a few things as evidence 
 on this point. 
 
 1. I present the text. Did the monarch send 
 his herald to call upon the people to prepare his 
 way, where he himself did not expect to come ? 
 "When they heard the proclamation of the herald, 
 they expected when the way was prepared to heai 
 the rumbling of his chariot-wheels. 
 
 Now I affirm that the great Monarch of heaven 
 and earth calls upon this church to prepare his 
 way. When you will do it, you shall hear the 
 sound of his going forth, in the tops of the mul- 
 berry-trees, and he will appear, to build up Zion 
 gloriously. He does not call upon you to pre- 
 pare his way for nought. He means something 
 by this demand, and when it is fully met on 
 your part, he will not disappoint your hopes 
 and expectations. The Messenger of the Cove- 
 nant will suddenly come to his temple, and you 
 shall learn by happy experience that you have not 
 sought the Lord in vain nor spent your strength 
 for nought. 
 
 2. I offer for proof the fact that God has given 
 direction in his Word how his people should seek 
 him for a blessing. Why give direction how he 
 should be sought, if he does not intend to bless. 
 Does he thus mock his people by raising their 
 expectations only to disappoint them ? 
 
 God plays no such deceptive game with his 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 19 
 
 children. He is a Being of infinite sincerity, and 
 as such he raises no expectations he does not in- 
 tend to meet, and none he will not meet, even 
 exceeding their highest anticipations, if they will 
 come into perfect union with him. 
 
 3. But look at a few promises on this point. 
 " Ask," says God, " and it shall be given, seek 
 and ye shall find, knock and it shall be opened 
 unto you." How absolute these promises. What 
 encouragement they afford to look to God with 
 the fullest confidence that he will come. Take 
 another : " Open thy mouth wide and / will fill 
 UP What a promise ! God does not wish us 
 satisfied with little things. He wishes to do great 
 things. Let your desires enlarge and become great, 
 and I will satisfy them. Repent, labor, and toil 
 for great things, and look to me for them, by faith, 
 and I will more than meet your expectations. 1 
 might multiply promises to any extent, for the 
 Bible is full of them. One more, however, shall 
 close this branch of the subject. " Ye shall seek 
 me and find me, when ye shall search for me 
 with all your heart." This promise specifies the 
 time when God will be found by any church, or 
 individual. Just when ye seek me* with all the 
 heart is my set time to favor Zion. 
 
 I have now given you God's testimony on this 
 point. He is ready to bless this people if they will 
 prepare the way of the Lord. Will you do it ? 
 
20 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 Keep in view, if you neglect this duty, God will 
 hold you responsible for every soul that would be 
 converted if you came up to his help. Will you 
 go up to the judgment, and have the blood of these 
 sinners on your hands, or will you repent and pre- 
 pare the way of the Lord ? What does your con- 
 science say, and what is your decision? 
 
 Do I hear one raising the question, " What can I 
 do to prepare the way of the Lord ? I am not will- 
 ing to meet the fearful responsibility of living as I 
 have done. I must awake. Tell me what I can 
 do ? " I would to God that every professing Chris- 
 tian in this place were ready to raise that question 
 honestly. With what delight I would answer it. 
 " What ! " says one, " can you show us how we can 
 secure a revival in this place ? " Most certainly 
 we can. That is our work as ministers, to show 
 men how they can secure God's blessing. Will 
 yon listen to me if 1 will undertake it? Does 
 your heart respond, " Yes, most gladly ; we will do 
 anything, if God will only come." Very well ; you 
 keep that promise, and make it good while I proceed, 
 and he will come. He will come to your heart and 
 your family, perhaps ; and oh ! how Heaven will 
 rejoice over the conversion of those children or that 
 husband or wife or neighbor. " But what can v\'e 
 do ? " I answer, — 
 
 1. You must be willing to be told of your faults. 
 
 This looks like a simple step to start with, but 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 21 
 
 much hangs upon it. God cannot and will not 
 bless you until you are willing to know your heart. 
 As a general thing, when men are in a wrong state 
 of mind, they are not willing to know their true 
 state. The Saviour affirmed concerning such, that 
 they hate the light, and neither come to the light, 
 lest their deeds should be reproved. 
 
 Men love to be flattered in their sins ; they do 
 not love that kind of preaching which lays open 
 their wrongs; and this 'is the state of things in 
 many of our churches at the present day. They 
 have their idol sins, and they are determined to 
 cling to them. They do not wish ministers to med- 
 dle with such matters. How liberal some men will 
 be to support ministers, if they will only be cau- 
 tious, and not probe their hearts with God's truth. 
 Preach the truth in general terms, so as not to hit 
 any particular sin or sinner, and that is the kind of 
 preaching that suits this age. Now mark, if this 
 church is in that state of mind, God will not bless, 
 unless you repent. You must be willing to know 
 your heart. Will you sit down here, and let me 
 point out your sins faithfully, as far as I know them, 
 and as I learn them from time to time ? Do not 
 deceive yourself on this point. It will cost you 
 an effort to become honest enough to be willing 
 to let the full blaze of truth in upon your hearts. 
 You will be patient, perhaps, while I point out 
 some of your sins ; but when I come to put my 
 
22 PREPARE THE WAY. . 
 
 hand on that idol so dear to you, how that heart 
 will rebel. 
 
 Remember, my brother, if you would have God's 
 blessing you must be willing to know your whole 
 heart. Think, for a moment, why should you be 
 unwilling? Are your wrongs a blessing, that you 
 should cling to them or cover them up ? Some men 
 seem to guard and fortify themselves in their wrongs, 
 as though their eternal life hung upon that course. 
 My dear hearer, pause for a moment and reflect. 
 Your wrongs are your only curse. They are the 
 cause of all your wretchedness, and they are the 
 things that will sink your soul deep in hell unless 
 you see and put them away. What separates be- 
 tween your soul and your Maker, and shuts his 
 blessing from your heart just now? God answers, 
 " Your iniquity." 
 
 What grieves the Holy Spirit from you, shuts 
 heaven's door in your face, and your poor spirit out 
 of heaven ? I answer, nothing but your unrepented 
 iniquities. This you cannot deny. With these ac- 
 knowledged facts, then, staring you in the face, will 
 you still persist in being unw^illing to know your 
 wrongs ? Will you call ministers hard, severe, and 
 unreasonable, who faithfully point them out ? Shall 
 I become your enemy if I tell you the truth, and 
 the whole truth ? I should be your enemy in 
 reality if I should cover up and hide from your 
 eye your wrongs. To do it, would be to take 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 23 
 
 the direct course to damn both your soul and my 
 own. 
 
 God declares that he will require the blood of the 
 lost at the hands of the unfaithful minister, who 
 has refused to show the people their sins, and warn 
 them of their danger. Let me ask, therefore, Do 
 you wish us, as ministers, to bring the curse of God 
 upon ourselves and the people to whom we minis- 
 ter ? Do you answer, no ? Then I ask. Will you 
 sit here and let us search you with great faithful- 
 aess, with God's ti'uth ? and while we do it, will 
 you cry out to God with an honest heart, " ' Search 
 me, O God, and try my ways.' Go to the bottom 
 of my heart, and make me to know the worst of 
 my case " ? 
 
 Coming into this honest state of mind is one 
 important step gained towards preparing the way 
 of the Lord. Keep this in view : If you begin to 
 fight, reject and cavil with God's truth, he will curse 
 you with barrenness and leanness of heart, and give 
 you over to pursue your own chosen way to hell. 
 
 2. If you would prepare the way of the Lord you 
 must make up your mind to reduce to practice, at 
 once, the instruction imparted from time to time, as 
 far as that instruction is in harmony with the Bible 
 
 I do not ask you to practise any instruction I 
 may impart, any farther than it harmonizes with 
 God's truth. But as far as it is in harmony with 
 the Bible, we have a right to ask you to practise it 
 
2-4 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 God demands it at your hands, and you have not 
 the right to refuse to do it. If we are what we 
 profess to be, we are ambassadors for Christ. We 
 come in his name to expound and enforce the 
 claims of God upon you. What right have you then 
 to reject and refuse to practise God's claims ? 
 
 Do you think you can prepare the way of the 
 Lord while you refuse to practise God's truth ? 
 What ! secure God's blessing while you refuse 
 obedience ? Think of it. What does any impeni-' 
 tent sinner do more than to refuse to obey his 
 Maker ? Nay, more, what does the Devil but dis- 
 obey ? Now if you put yourself on a level with the 
 Devil and impenitent men, do you expect you can 
 prepare the way of the Lord in that state of heart? 
 It is impossible ! Infinitely ridiculous to think you 
 can prepare God's way without giving yourself up 
 to practise his demands. Here lies the secret why 
 this community are not saved. It is not because 
 you have not had the Gospel. You come and go, 
 like the door upon its hinges, and hear the Gospel, 
 but you do not intend to practise it. God looks 
 down from heaven and proclaims " Be ye doers 
 OF the word, and not hearers onlyP Up to this 
 hour many of you have been hearers only. You 
 have made no calculation to practise the Gospel. 
 God demands practice, you withhold the practice 
 and then think it strange you do not have a 
 blessing. How many of you here to-day are ex- 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 25 
 
 pecting to practise what you hear ? Supposing I 
 should now request all in this congregation to stand 
 up, who would solemnly promise to reduce this ser- 
 mon to practice, how many do you suppose would 
 rise ? Do you reply " I do not want to promise." 
 Ah I that lets out the heart. When you are deter- 
 mined to do a thing, you are not afraid to promise. 
 Now keep before your minds this truth and think of 
 it as you go out and as you come in. God never 
 will bless you in that state of heart. You must 
 make up your minds to practise instructions. You 
 must come here to hear, to learn your duty and then 
 go out and do it. What is the object of preaching ? 
 What is the object of hearing? If you had Paul with 
 all his faithfulness, or an angel from heaven, they 
 could not benefit a man of you, unless you would 
 reduce their instructions to practice. What say 
 you ? Will you obey ? Will you begin now ? Now, 
 while on your seats, promise God ? Promise him 
 this moment you will give yourselves up to practise 
 the truth ? Do you do it ? If you say yes, keep in 
 view you give that pledge to God, not to me. Oh ! 
 may Heaven record, and help you to keep it. 
 
 3. If you would prepare the way -of the Lord you 
 must commence and pursue a rigid course of self- 
 examination. 
 
 Much depends upon this step. This duty neg- 
 lected and all is a failure. If I knew I could not 
 persuade one in this community to attend to this 
 
26 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 duty, I would leave forthwith. I should know I 
 could not do good here. No man ever repented of 
 his sins until he first saw himself to be a sinner, and 
 no man ever saw himself to be a sinner without self- 
 examination. The Spirit of God always carries the 
 mind through that process in producing conviction. 
 What is conviction ? I answer, it is your having a 
 clear view of the fact that you are wrong. How 
 can you obtain that? Only by comparing your 
 heart and life with some standard of right. The 
 Spirit of God convicts by carrying the mind through 
 that process. This, in some instances, is done very 
 quick, as the mind can act like lightning. 
 
 Now if you turn the eye of your mind from the 
 standard of right, and persevere in doing so, you 
 wiU not see your sins in a clear light, and of course 
 you will not repent. If you want a thorough re- 
 vival here, this church must be crushed down in the 
 dust under a sense of her guilt, her great guilt. 
 You have been a wicked church. How you have 
 lived here without a revival. Souls all around you 
 have been making fearful strides towards hell, and 
 hardly a warning voice have they heard from this 
 people. How the world has eaten out all your piety. 
 How little you have thought of God and the salva- 
 tion of men. Do you imagine you can jump right 
 into a revival state, without seeing this great guilt 
 and confessing it ? It is impossible. You must see 
 your heart. You nuist use the means to sec your 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 27 
 
 heart, if you would prepare God's way. Self-ex- 
 amination is the means. If you will attend to this 
 duty as you ought, God will show you your hearts. 
 He will be thorough with you. He will give you an 
 old-fashioned revival. A revival that will break up 
 the fallow ground of your heart. But in attending 
 to this duty of self-examination you must look to it 
 that you do not set up any false standards by which 
 to try yourself. 1. Do not compare yourself with 
 your creed. That is an uninspired standard and 
 may be imperfect. 2. Do not compare yourselves' 
 among yourselves, for Paul says of such, that they 
 are not wise. You may have as much piety as 
 many in the church, and yet be in a very bad state. 
 3. But take the Bible, that perfect standard, the 
 book by which you are to be judged at the last day, 
 and bring your heart and life in warm contact with 
 its searching truths. Avoid another thing, namely, 
 thinking you are right, because others think you a 
 Christian, and in a good state. Their opinion will 
 not settle the matter for you at the judgment. Then, 
 you must be tested by the Bible. Consequently you 
 should bring your life to that test now. 
 
 Begin with the Sermon on the Mount. Read it 
 carefully and prayerfully. Drop on your knees and 
 implore God to show you your sins in the light of its 
 truths. Then read every verse, and put the question 
 home to your heart, as you pass along, " Am I in the 
 state of heart described in this verse ? " " Have I 
 
28 rmiPAKE THE way. 
 
 done the duty it demands, or have I neglected to do 
 what it requires ? " If deficient, mark that down as 
 a sin, and then take the next verse, and the next, 
 until you get through the sermon. Be faithful to 
 yourself. Then take other portions of the Bible in 
 the same way, until your heart is overwhelmed with 
 your guilt. During this process keep this truth dis- 
 tinctly before your mind, that to neglect to do what 
 the Bible requires is sin, or to do what it prohibits is 
 sin. Now will you attend to this duty ? Will you 
 do it faithfully ? You cannot prepare the way of the 
 Lord and neglect it. Will you set apart a season 
 every day to attend to this work ? 
 
 Edwards and Payson and other men of God have 
 attended to it. That was what drove them to the 
 mercy-seat in such agony for help. They saw their 
 unworthiness and their sins in the light of God's 
 truth, and flew to Christ for pardon. The Redeemer 
 opened the windows of heaven over their spirits and 
 baptized them with the Holy Ghost. He will do so 
 by us, if we will walk in their footsteps. Doubtless 
 there are multitudes in the church who think they 
 are in the way to heaven, when they are in the way 
 to hell, simply because they never examine their 
 hearts to learn their condition. Oh ! what a fearful 
 day it will be to them when they open their eyes in 
 the eternal world and find themselves lost, in conse- 
 quence of neglecting this duty. How they will then 
 wish they had attended to this matter rigidly. 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 29 
 
 Will you do it ? Will you begin to-day ? Will 
 you make personal work of this matter ? No one 
 can do this work for you. If you will do it, soon we 
 shall find you on your faces crying for mercy. God's 
 way will be prepared, and the messenger of the cov- 
 enant will suddenly come to his temple. 
 
 4. The next step in order in attending to this work 
 is repentance. To see your sins is one thing, to 
 repent of them is another. John, in connection with 
 my text, pressed the conscience of the Jews with this 
 duty, and cried out to those mere formalists. Repent, 
 Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 
 They professed to be God's children and they attended 
 to the outward forms of religion more abundantly 
 than many in the church do now. Notwithstanding 
 all this, John declared they were exposed to the 
 wrath of God. He was a faithful servant of God. 
 He did not flatter men in their sins. Hear him ad- 
 dress the Pharisees and Sadducees as they approach 
 him to be baptized. " O generation of vipers, who 
 hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come ? " 
 What language! You would exclaim, — severity, 
 vulgarity, and refuse to hear such preaching, if min- 
 isters should be half as faithful at this day. 
 
 But the church need a John the Baptist to go 
 through the whole land now, to show her her sins and 
 press her to immediate repentance. She has become 
 worldly, proud, and formal in her religion. She does 
 not like the self-denying duties of the Gospel. She 
 
80 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 will become very restive and uneasy under the plain 
 truths of the Bible, such as John, Christ, and his 
 Apostles preached. She wants a kind of preaching 
 that is more scientific and refined, and better adapted 
 to the age in which we live. This is her plea. This 
 pressing men to repent now, and threatening them 
 with hell if they neglect to do it, is not the kind 
 of preaching she relishes. There is such a want of 
 refinement about it, says one, I cannot endure it. 
 
 My dear hearer, stop and think. When you have 
 become so wonderfully refined in your notions and 
 views of things that you cannot love or even bear 
 the plain naked truth of the Gospel, you may know 
 there is a cause for it. Your heart is so in love with 
 sin that you cannot bear the ti'uth. This is the secret 
 of the whole matter. What wonderfully refined 
 beings we have in this age. The naked truth is not 
 refined enough to suit such tastes. They are refined 
 enough for God, or he would have revealed different 
 ones. They are refined enough for angels, for they 
 are desirous to look into them. But for the wise 
 ones of this age they have no charms. What con- 
 summate folly ! How God will show up snch wis- 
 dom at another day. Have we forgotten that we are 
 indebted to the truths of the Bible for all the refine- 
 ment there is on earth? Is sin refinement? If so 
 the Devil is much more refined than we are. Sin is 
 debasing, degrading, mean, contemptible, and any- 
 thing but refining in its tendency. Understanding 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 31 
 
 the great principles and doctrines of the Bible, and 
 conforming the heart and life to them, is refinement 
 such as Heaven loves and adores. It is godlike and 
 noble. 
 
 Sanctify them through thy truth, prayed Christ 
 to his Father. That is, refine, ennoble and make 
 them godlike through thy truth, and fit them thus 
 to become, the companions of angels. Fit them 
 through the plain truths of the Gospel, to step 
 into the most refined society of the universe. Re- 
 pentance takes away a want of refinement and 
 brings the soul to the cross of Christ, where it is 
 purified and fitted for heaven. How quick it will 
 mate a sober man of the drunkard ; convert that 
 licentious man and bring him into a state of 
 purity. It arrested the bloody Saul of Tarsus in 
 the midst of his murderous work, and moulded 
 his heart all over into the very spirit and temper 
 of heaven, and made him a Paul and a herald 
 of salvation to thousands of his race. Let it be 
 exercised by every heart and it would uproot all 
 sin, sweep away every abomination, convert the hu- 
 man race into a state of purity and holines.s, and 
 make a heaven of this world. 
 
 This repentance God demands at the hands of 
 this church to prepare his way. He cannot con- 
 sistently come to your help without it. 
 
 " Repent ye, therefore," says Peter to the Jews, 
 " and be converted, that your sins may be blotted 
 
32 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 out, when the times of refreshing shall come from 
 the presence of the Lord." 
 
 This church has lived in a cold state for months, 
 while sinners all around you have been in the 
 way to hell. This you know. You know, more- 
 over, that you cannot thus neglect your duty to 
 God and man without guilt, — great guilt. God 
 demands of you to repent of this course of living 
 and return to him with all your heart, and he 
 will return to you, and the times of refreshing 
 shall come from the presence of the Lord. Shall 
 this step now be taken by every heart, or shall it 
 not ? You must decide it individually. What 
 say you ? 
 
 5. Again, if you would prepare the way of the 
 Lord you must advance one step beyond repent- 
 ance. You must take up the stumbling-blocks 
 you have thrown before the wicked, and your 
 brethren, by a humble broken-hearted confession. 
 
 Such is the conduct of professing Christians, in 
 many instances, that their lives become a stum- 
 bling-block to impenitent sinners. They are right 
 in the way of their salvation, and their friends, 
 perhaps, are in danger of stumbling into hell over 
 their conduct. 
 
 God speaks to such and presses them to this 
 duty. He says, " Take up the stumbling-blocks out 
 of the way of my people." Husband, wife, parent, 
 brother, sister, neighbor, friend, — do you hear God's 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 33 
 
 voice ? Go home and take up that stumbling-block. 
 Do it quick, or that relative or neighbor, perhaps, 
 will stumble into eternal ruin, over you. 
 
 " But how can I do it ? " says one. " Let me 
 know ; for I do not wish to stand in the way of 
 others." 
 
 I answer, There is but one way to take up a 
 stumbling-block, and that is by a hearty confes- 
 sion. This will be humiliating to you, and there 
 are many in the church too proud to do it. " If 
 I repent," says one, " is not that enough ? " 
 
 I answer, No, it is not enough. Take a case 
 as an illustration of this point. In a place where 
 I was preaching some years since, an old back- 
 slider repeiited one Sabbath evening, and conse- 
 crated himself anew to God. The next morning 
 I was in the shop of an impenitent man, and 
 while there, named the circumstance of this man's 
 speaking and praying in meeting the night pre- 
 vious. He exclaimed, " Well, I am glad I was not 
 there to hear him, for had I been present I would 
 have taken my hat and left the house forthwith." 
 I said to him, " Why so ? Are you not desirous to 
 have your neighbors repent?" "Repent, Sir," said 
 he, " yes, but I have no confidence in him, and I do 
 not wish to hear him pray." " But perhaps he has 
 repented, and if he is truly penitent, you ought 
 to be willing and even rejoice to hear him pray," 
 said I. " But," said he, " he has abused me wick- 
 
34 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 edly, and I must have some evidence of penitence 
 before I will hear him pray, unless he can run faster 
 than I can." 
 
 I left the shop, but business called me back there 
 again before night, when I found this man in a 
 different state of mind altogether. He came to me 
 in tears, and remarked, " Mr. Day, I can hear that 
 man pray now." " Ah ! " said I, " what has pro- 
 duced this change in your feelings?" "Oh!" said 
 he, " you had hardly left the shop, when he came 
 in, and in deep emotion took me by the hand, and 
 confessed his wrong and' besought me to forgive 
 him. He is honest," said he, " and I most freely 
 forgive all. I wish I was in as good a state of 
 mind as he is. Now," continued he, "•! want to 
 hear him pray." 
 
 Suppose now this brother had entered the shop 
 and commenced exhorting that sinner to repent. 
 What good w^ould it have done ? How quick he 
 would have felt, if he had not spoken it out, " Phy- 
 sician, heal thyself." He might have exhorted him 
 until the judgment should sit, and it would have 
 done no good. That sinner would have been per- 
 fectly fortified against all his exhortations, however 
 eloquent, and he could not have reached him. But 
 as he stept in and began by putting his finger on 
 his own w^rongs, by confession, and thus took that 
 stumbling-block out of the way, how quick it dis- 
 armed him, and tore away the breastwork that 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 35 
 
 shielded him, and the way of the Lord is prepared 
 for him to lead that soul to Christ. 
 
 Take another case. A professing Christian once 
 went through an entire neighborhood and confessed 
 his unfaithfulness to every family, and a revival 
 followed. Fifteen of the converts dated their first 
 impressions from that man's confessions. He pre- 
 pared the way of the Lord by taking up the 
 stumbling-blocks. Will you go and do likewise ? 
 Let this church be thorough in this matter, if 
 she would have God's way thoroughly prepared ; 
 confess to one another, to your families and neigh- 
 bors, and see how quick God will bless. He 
 will use even your confession to save the wick- 
 ed, and you shall soon see them flocking to 
 . Christ. 
 
 6. Purify your church by attending to all cases of 
 discipline. 
 
 You have covenanted together to watch over each 
 other. If a brother or a sister wanders from the path 
 of duty, you have engaged to reprove and rebuke, 
 if necessary, such a wanderer, and do all in your 
 power to reclaim him. This is one of the duties 
 of church relationship, and it cannot be neglected 
 without guilt. God demands it at the hands of 
 eveiy church. If a brother trespass, go and tell him 
 his fault, is Christ's solemn command. How the 
 churches neglect this duty. If a brother ti-espass, 
 we tell the fault to everybody else but him, and 
 
36 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 thus violate our covenant obligations, and the 
 solemn commands of Christ. This is common busi- 
 ness in the church, and yet she is amazed that she 
 is not blessed with a revival. Amazed I What 
 church can expect a revival under such circumstan- 
 ces? Why not expect a revival while the church 
 is ti'ampling any other command of God under her 
 feet? The God that commands you to be sober 
 and not get drunk ; to be honest and not steal ; to 
 be truthful and not lie ; commands you to go and 
 tell that trespassing brother his fault betwixt kim 
 
 and THEE ALONE. 
 
 Now if you neglect this duty you trample Divine 
 authority under your feet as much as if you should 
 lie, steal, or get drunk. It is a sin in the one case 
 as much as in the other. One is a popular sin in 
 consequence of its being common, and the other 
 an unpopular sin. But keep in view, its being 
 common does not whiten it into a virtue, nor take 
 away its guilt. 
 
 God has a controversy with the churches on this 
 point. How he rebuked some of the churches in 
 Asia for suffering certain characters to remain in 
 their midst. I have somewhat against thee, said 
 God, for neglecting to take steps to reclaim or re- 
 move such cases. We should remember that the 
 power of the whole Jewish camp was once para- 
 lyzed by harboring in her midst one wicked man. 
 God uttered his voice and declared, — There is an 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 37 
 
 abominable thing in your midst, which is the cause 
 of my forsaking you, and now you cannot stand in 
 the presence of your enemies. They were power- 
 less, and the enemy could vanquish them with in- 
 finite ease. But when they sanctified themselves, 
 by putting away their " Achan," how soon they 
 were triumphant. That scrap of history teaches 
 a very important lesson. It teaches the following 
 things: — 1. That the power of the church to reform 
 the world does not depend upon numbers, talent, 
 or wealth, but upon her being pure^ so as to keep 
 God with her. 2. If she harbors wicked men in her 
 midst, God will forsake her, and then she is shorn 
 of her strength to save the world, and the enemy 
 will triumph. 3. When she will repent and disci- 
 pline her members, in obedience to Christ's com- 
 mands, and remove all dead branches, by applying 
 the pruning-knife to those who refuse to be reclaim- 
 ed, then God will return to the church, and she will 
 be mighty, through Him, in reforming the world. 
 Now if this church is in fault here, will she prepare 
 the way of the Lord by attending to this duty? Go 
 at once and hunt up all your delinquent members, 
 and attend to this matter in the kindness and faith- 
 fulness of the Gospel, and see what God will do 
 for you. 
 
 7. Put away your party feeling. We have reason 
 to fear that many in the church and ministry have 
 mistaken party or sectarian zeal for true godliness.' 
 
38 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 Zeal for a party, or to build up a sect, is one thing, 
 and zeal for God and the salvation of the world, is 
 quite another thing. That many have made that 
 fatal mistake is evident from the fact that they 
 feel comparatively no interest in a revival unless it 
 is in their sect, or there is a strong probability that 
 it will give strength to their party. No matter 
 how many souls are converted, nor how much God 
 is honored in their salvation, they feel no interest. 
 Instead of lending a helping hand to advance the 
 work, they can look on with indifference, or stand 
 aloof from it, and perhaps exert an influence 
 ag-ainst it. 
 
 All heaven looks on with intense interest, and re- 
 joices if but one sinner is converted, whether it occur 
 among the Baptists, Congregationalists, Methodists, 
 or any other sect, and they do not wait to see where 
 they will join, before they take down their harps to 
 rejoice over their salvation. 
 
 This^is the spirit of Heaven, and if you are a child 
 of God, your heart will necessarily beat in unison 
 with hearts on high. I very much doubt that man's 
 piety who can be indiflercnt when he knows souls 
 around him are coming into the kingdom. Such 
 a state of heart among ministers and professed Chris- 
 tians will grieve the Spirit of God, and is in the way 
 of a revival. Paul gives it a correct name in 1 Cor. 
 iii. 4 : " For while one saith, I am of Paul ; and an- 
 other, I am of Apollos ; are ye not carnal ? " It is 
 
TRKPARE THE WAY. 39 
 
 the spirit of carnality or selfishness, and God ab- 
 hors it. 
 
 Christ prayed that all his disciples might be one, 
 as he and the Father are one. John xvii. 21. This 
 state of harmony among Christians is pleasing to 
 God, and where it exists, God will honor it with 
 his presence and blessing. Let all Christians there- 
 fore lay aside their party strife and sectarian preju- 
 dice, and come up unitedly to God's help, and we 
 will soon learn that the old maxim is true in reli- 
 gion as well as in other things, " That Union is 
 Strength." When Christians are of " one heart 
 and one soul," God's way will be prepared. 
 
 8. Be willing that God should send by whom he 
 will send. Sometimes church-members and minis- 
 ters are in a state of heart where they wish to dic- 
 tate to God in relation to his mode of working. 
 They would like a revival, but they want the privi- 
 lege of selecting the agents God shall use in carrying 
 on his work. ," Work by our church," says one, " for 
 we are the nearest right." " Work by me," says the 
 pastor, " for I cannot have a work here, if it must be 
 carried on by calling in foreign help. If I should 
 call in foreign aid, and God should bless it, my 
 church will think less of me and my preaching." 
 What a state of heart that must be! You had 
 rather sinners would go to hell, than that the 
 people should think less of you. That state of 
 feeling in the ministry is wicked. It is supremely 
 
40 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 selfish. God abhors it, and it grieves the Holy- 
 Ghost. 
 
 Look at this state of heart for a moment. " If 
 God works among my people by some other man, 
 what will become of my great name ? " says the 
 minister. When ministers become anxious about 
 their own great names instead of that of God, he 
 will not bless such a ministry to any great- extent. 
 When the ministry and church are anxious about 
 God's name and glory, and not their own, and when 
 they are willing that their names should be blotted 
 out and forgotten, if the people can be saved, and 
 God honored in their salvation, then God's way will 
 be prepared, and not before. The church and min- 
 istry must come into a state where they can offer to 
 God, honestly and from their heart of hearts, this 
 prayer: ^^ Send, Lord, by whom thou wilt; send, 
 only send ! " In that state, God will hear. In that 
 state, God will answer. What would you think of 
 Peter, if he had been in a state of heart which 
 would have prompted him to feel and say, " If 
 Paul should come and preach to this people, they 
 would probably think less of my preaching" ? What 
 had Peter to do with that matter, as long as Christ 
 had put Paul into the ministry, as well as himself? 
 Even if Paul could move a class of minds he could 
 not, how thankful he ought to be that God could 
 save those souls by the labors of any man ! 
 
 If, moreover, the love of souls moved Peter to his 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 41 
 
 work, as it does every true minister of Christ, that 
 will be true of him. His name will be a small mat- 
 ter in his estimation, if God's name can be honored, 
 and souls saved. That will be the great moving 
 principle of his heart and life, if he is a Christian. 
 9. You must put away your opposition to means 
 and measures which God owns to save men, in 
 order to obey the command in this text. Ypu must 
 not undertake to legislate for God about means, any 
 more than you do about men, if you would secure 
 God's blessing. God will not suffer you to dictate. 
 It is not your place to dictate him. God's place is 
 on the throne to direct, and ours is to submit, and 
 take his blessings in any way he may see fit to be- 
 stow them, and be thankful to have them in any 
 form. The human heart is always inclined to dic- 
 tate. That child wants its supper, but it will not 
 eat unless it can have it in its own way. " Very 
 well," says the father, (who sees it necessary to sub- 
 due that disposition in his child,) " go to bed with- 
 out, my child, if you cannot take it in my way." So 
 we dictate to God. We want a revival, but we want 
 it in our own way. We must have God give us a 
 revival by such and such means, or we do not want 
 it. " We must have it by the ordinary means of 
 grace," says one. " We must not depart from our 
 usual form, if the whole town go to hell. We must 
 have it in this way or not at all." " No," says an- 
 other, " we must have it by extra means ; we do not 
 
42 PREPARE THE WAY. 
 
 want it by the ordinary means." Now both are 
 wrong, and God will frown upon them. You must 
 stop dictating to God, and be willing to have it by 
 any means he shall see fit to bless. That kind of 
 dictation is feeling just like an impenitent sinner. 
 He wants to go to heaven, but he wants to go in 
 his own way. He must be willing to go God's way, 
 or not at all. So with us ; we must be willing to 
 have a revival in God's way, or not have it. Are 
 you willing God should come in his own way? 
 
 10. Finally, if you would obey this text, you must 
 feel your dependence upon the Spirit to bless and 
 'make the means effectual, while we use them to 
 save the world. 
 
 There are two errors against which the church 
 should be guarded, both of which are fatal to revi- 
 vals. 1. You teach the church that she is dependent 
 upon God for a revival, and she is strongly inclined 
 to fold up her arms and sit down in a state of idle- 
 ness, and neglect the means God has appointed to 
 be used to save the world. In that state, you urge 
 her to use means to promote a revival, and how 
 quick she will reply, " I do not believe in getting up 
 a revival. God gives revivals, and our place is to 
 wait God's time." Now, that God gives revivals I 
 have no doubt, but while that is true, he has ap- 
 pointed means to be used by the church and minis- 
 try to promote them, and for a church to expect a 
 revival while she lives in neglect of the means which 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 43 
 
 God has appointed, is wicked and absurd. The ex- 
 cuse that you do not believe in getting up revivals, 
 as you term it, is only an effort to cover up the sin 
 of idleness and keep your conscience still, while you 
 live at ease in Zion and refuse to come up to God's 
 help. You wickedly abuse the doctrine of depen- 
 dence when you make such use of it. You bring it 
 forward to cover up your wicked neglect of duty, 
 and God will call you to account for such conduct. 
 2. Another error lies here. If you teach the church 
 she has something to do in promoting a revival, she 
 is strongly inclined to forget her dependence on 
 God, and lean upon the means she is using, instead 
 of leaning upon God. 
 
 Both of these states are wrong. An angel could 
 not promote a revival without God's help. It takes 
 God's Holy Spirit to make the means effectual, but 
 the Spirit is not sent to do our duty, nor to work 
 without our using the means, but to bless and make 
 the means effectual when we use them. While 
 therefore we are in the use of all the means God 
 has appointed to save men, we should not lean upon 
 the means, but upon God, and cry to him by prayer 
 day and night to make the means effectual. 
 
 We are Avorkers together with God. You should 
 get up little praying circles all over the place, and 
 cry to God perseveringly for Divine aid. Give him 
 no rest until he establish and make Jerusalem a 
 praise in this community. Remember, a Paul might 
 
44 PREPARE TIIK WAY. 
 
 plant and an ApoUos water, but it took God to give 
 the increase. If those holy men could not succeed 
 without God, what miserable headway we shall 
 make without Divine assistance. 
 
 REMARKS. 
 
 1. God is ready for a revival. Prepare my way, 
 says God, and I am ready to come. Behold I stand 
 at the door and knock. God is at the door of this 
 church knocking. Will you hear his voice, open the 
 door, and let him in ? 
 
 2. God waits for the church to get ready, and not 
 the church for God. We frequently talk about 
 waiting for God, as though we were ready, but he 
 not. But the precise opposite is true. God is ready 
 and waiting for us, and will bless us, as soon as we 
 will repent and turn to him. To-day, he says, after 
 so long a time, if ye will hear my voice harden not 
 your hearts. Will you hear his voice to-day? He 
 waits to be gracious. What a long time you have 
 put him off, by refusing to come to your duty. Will 
 you put him off still ? 
 
 3. God cannot revive his work until the church 
 will repent and come up to his help, without alter- 
 ing his plan. God's plan is to combine human and 
 divine agency in saving the world. That is a work 
 he has appointed for the church and the ministry to 
 
PREPARE THE WAY. 45 
 
 do, and he never will do that for them, nor carry on 
 the work without them. I am not saying what he 
 could do, but what he does not and will not do. 
 He has put the Bible into the hands of the church, 
 and commanded her to give it to the world. That 
 work he never will do for her. She can let the world 
 live without it, but he will hold the church responsi- 
 ble for the neglect. He has commanded her to preach 
 the Gospel to the entire world, and he will not do 
 this work for her. She is to use means to convert 
 men, and promote a general revival throughout the 
 world, but he will not use those means for her. 
 When she will come up to his help and do her part 
 of the work, and look to him for help and to add his 
 blessing, he will do it. This is his plan and he will 
 not change it, nor work in any other way. If this 
 is not his plan, or if he would work without the 
 church, why does he not give revivals to the 
 heathen world, where there is no church and min- 
 istry ? He does not do it. But let the ministry and 
 church go there with the Bible to preach and pray 
 and exhort them to repent, and God will open the 
 windows of heaven and add his blessing, when 
 they will do their duty and throw themselves upon 
 his almighty arm for help. 
 
 This is the Gospel plan. God has seen fit in 
 infinite wisdom to adopt it, and he will not change 
 if. We may neglect our part of the work as we are 
 voluntary agents, but God will hold us accountable. 
 
4G I'RKl'ARK THE WAY. 
 
 4. If there is no revival in this place, the church 
 will be responsible for it. I have shown you that 
 God is ready to bless, if you as a church will repent 
 and do your duty. Now what do you intend to 
 do ? You cannot throw off this responsibility. It 
 is upon you. God has laid it there, and he will 
 hold you to it, at your last account. This church 
 may neglect her duty and live as she has done, but 
 God will hold you strictly accountable for every soul 
 that would be saved if you should come fully up 
 to his help. Will you repent and take hold of this 
 work, or will you sleep on and go to the judgment 
 covered ail over with the blood of the lost; with 
 the blood of that husband, wife, child, or neighbor 
 on your hands and garments ? How can you meet 
 them there and meet your judge ? What a mo- 
 ment that will be to your soul ! Will you go home 
 and get on your knees and tell God what you will 
 do ? If you say you will not repent, tell him so. 
 If you are determined to sleep on and go to the 
 judgment, and risk it, tell God so, on your knees. 
 If you say you will repent and come up to his 
 help, tell him so honestly and ask his help. How 
 God is watching around your hearts just now. 
 Watching for your decision. Will you come up 
 to his help ? Remember, as you leave this house, 
 God speaks to you in my text and says, " Prepare 
 
 YE TUE WAY OF TnE liORD." 
 
11. 
 
 LUKEVVAR^INESS. 
 
 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, 
 I will spew thee out of my mouth. — Rev. iii. 10. 
 
 I. TIIK THREE STATES OF HEART, VIZ: 1. COLD. 2. HOT. 
 3. LUKEWARM. 
 
 The Bible is a spiritual mirror into which the 
 human family may look and learn the true state of 
 their hearts. A correct knowledge of one's self is 
 vastly important. It is a preparation of heart that 
 is absolutely essential to fit an individual to come 
 to Christ ; no one ever comes to Christ without it ; 
 and notwithstanding this is true, how few seek or 
 even desire it. So far from seeking it, there are 
 multitudes in the church who will hate, fight, and 
 resist that kind of preaching whicfi is calculated to 
 give them a true knowledge of themselves. They 
 choose self-deception in preference to a correct 
 knowledge of their own hearts. These remarks 
 may look extravagant to some, but a thorough ac- 
 quaintance with men will convince any individual 
 of their truthfuhiess. Pause for a moment, my 
 liearer, and think. What an exhibition of tlie 
 wickedness of the human heart is here presented. 
 
48 LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 A being created in the image of God ; capable 
 of knowing, loving, and adoring him forever, in 
 which case he would be a fit companion of angels 
 and all the holy ones on high, not only deliberately 
 sins and renders his character detestable and loath- 
 some in the sight of all good beings, but then settles 
 down in a state of heart where he is unwilling to 
 know himself, unwilling to look at his own wicked- 
 ness, and unwilling to see it as it is. He will vol- 
 untarily close up every avenue of his soul against 
 all light that is calculated to give him a faithful 
 view of his dark heart and rush on to ruin. What 
 suicidal work ! How deliberately such a being 
 fights against his own best interest, and destroys 
 his own happiness! There are many in this con- 
 gregation, doubtless, who will be ready to exclaim, 
 that is not my case. Take care, my hearer, you 
 may be the very man God is describing in my text. 
 You think because you have not been guilty of this, 
 that, or the other outbreaking sin, and because you 
 do not resist and fight the light on such points, you 
 are about right. 
 
 You point to these great sinners, and you think 
 they are loathsome sure enough ; such beings ought 
 to be damned, in your estimation. Now, while you 
 are pointing to such sinners, and hating and pouring 
 forth your bitter denunciations of them, you may be 
 harboring in your breast a state of heart far more 
 hateful in the sight of God than all their abomina- 
 
LUKEWARMNESS. 4'J 
 
 tions. The text brings to light a state of heart that 
 God abhors above all others. So ho affirms. " I 
 would," says God, " that ye were cold or hot." The 
 men guilty of these outbreaking sins are the cold 
 ones, as we will soon show ; and God here affirms 
 that he prefers even that state to the liikeivurm state. 
 Lukewarm individuals are not guilty of outbreaking 
 sins. They have put away all such things, and are 
 peculiarly bitter against such sins. Thej are right, 
 in their own estimation, as the connection of my 
 text will show. Let us hear them give a? description 
 of their hearts. They may speak for themselves. 
 The very individuals to whom God addressed the 
 language of my text, bear the following testimony 
 in relation to their hearts : " Because thou sayest," 
 says God, " I am rich, and increased with goods, and 
 have need of nothing ; and knowesl not that thou art 
 wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and 
 nakedP 
 
 This is the testimony of lukewarm hearts concern- 
 ing their own state, and God has put it on record 
 that they may know themselves, if they will take 
 the pains to look into the perfect law of liberty that 
 exhibits all hearts in their true light. It reflects no 
 false view of man, it is a perfect mirror, and through 
 its teachings we may learn our true state, if we will. 
 But the lukewarm professor is the last being to 
 learn his true state. He is in imminent danger of 
 being spewed out of the mouth of God, and he 
 
50 LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 knows it not. He docs not wish to know it. Ho 
 will not look at the passages which describe his 
 heart ; or if he does, he will apply them to some 
 other person. I am rich and increased in goods, 
 is his language. / am right, I am doing my duty. 
 But those great sinners, how he hates and de- 
 nounces them. He would hurl them all to hell, if 
 he had it in his power. 
 
 Poor, loathsome, self-righteous wretch ! How God 
 abhors you, and is on the point of vomiting you up, 
 and you know it not ! Sin has strangely blinded 
 your eyes, so that you do not know yourself. Come, 
 you lukewarm church-member, wake up, wake up, 
 and look at yourself. Look quick, and upon your 
 knees, repent before your doom overtakes you. The 
 imagery in this text is impressive. Let us turn our 
 attention to it for a moment. 
 
 The literal thing referred to is water in three 
 stages : cold, hot, and lukewarm. If y.ou take water 
 into the stomach in a cold state, it will receive it 
 without loathing ; so also in a hot state. But if you 
 reduce it to a middle or lukewarm state, the stom- 
 ach will not receive it without loathing, and perhaps 
 vomiting. Now for the application of this impres- 
 sive imagery. As your stomach loathes lukewarm 
 water, says God, so my heart loathes and hates a 
 lukewarm professor in the church. As your stomach 
 vomits up or throws off the water, so, says God, I 
 will spew out of Miy mouth such a chinvii or church- 
 menibrr, unless he rc|n'nt. 
 
LUKEVVARMNESS. * 51 
 
 The text brings to light three distinct states of 
 religious feeling, one of which only is pleasing to 
 God. There is a state of feeling described by the 
 term cold, another by the term hot, and another by 
 the terra lukewarm. The state of feeling described 
 by the term cold, God hates; that described by the 
 term hot, he loves and admires. This is the temper- 
 ature of the hearts in heaven ; they are in the hot 
 state. Their hearts flow out in stipreme love to 
 God, and equal love to each other. But that state 
 of heart described by the terra lukewarm, God ab- 
 hors above all others. This is right. Who would 
 not abhor such a being ? Everybody despises a 
 fence-man. God wants beings to take ground some- 
 where, and every honest man will do it. This striv- 
 ing to strike hands with God and the Devil at the 
 same tirae, and being on good terms with both, God 
 cannot and will not endure. God has no fellowship 
 with the Devil, and he abhors those who will fellow- 
 ship him. If you want the Devil, says God, take 
 the Devil, and be open about it. But if you want 
 rne, take me ; but take me wdth all your heart. 
 " Choose you whom you will serve. If the Lord 
 be God, serve him ; if Baal, serve hlra." 
 
 I will now call your attentiou to these three dis- 
 tinct states of mind, to help you to ascertain your 
 true position. Will you be honest, look evidence 
 full in the face, and decide correctly? A wrong 
 decision, even under this sermon, may prove fatal to 
 
52 * LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 you. How important that you know your where- 
 abouts. God help you, by the Holy Ghost, to see 
 your heart as you will see it at the judgment. 
 
 I. We will commence avith the cold state. 
 
 Here are two opposite states of heart, or religious 
 feeling, forming a perfect contrast, — the one decid- 
 edly for God, the other as decidedly against him. 
 The cold state is that state of heart which leads the 
 individual to take decided ground against the Chris- 
 tian religion. We will notice a few developments 
 of his heart, that we may understand his true po- 
 sition. 
 
 1. Then I remark, that the individual in this state 
 of heart hates the Bible. He is not indifferent 
 about the Bible ; far from it. He is awake in rela- 
 tion' to that book. His whole heart comes out in 
 opposition to it. A single case, as it took place in 
 Vermont, will illustrate this state of mind. An in- 
 dividual who was under conviction, but whose heart 
 was still in open hostility to God, sat reading his 
 Bible in his room one day, and, while thus reading, 
 he became so offended with its truths that he hurled 
 it into the fire, sprang to his feet and exclaimed, " I 
 will not read such a book ! " Now the state of 
 heart that man was in, when he hurled the Bible 
 into the fire, was the cold state. This cold state 
 does not always manifest itself in such a violent fit 
 of rage, but the person in this state of heart has a 
 settled opposition to the Bible. He does not like 
 
LUKEWARMNESS. 53 
 
 its doctrines, nor its government. He dislikes the 
 God of the Bible, the Saviour of the Bible, the 
 whole system of salvation as there revealed ; and 
 he will manifest that opposition at times, and thus 
 hang out his heart, so that no one can mistake his 
 true position. 
 
 2. An individual in this cold state hates also the 
 preaching of the Gospel. He is not indifferent 
 about the preaching of the Gospel, any more than 
 he is about the Bible. When he hears the Gospel 
 he is awake, all awake. He will hate, fight, and 
 abuse the ministiy who preach it; perhaps leave 
 the house in a rage when it is faithfully presented, 
 and pour out his hostility and hatred of the Gos- 
 pel all over town. Nothing stirs up his whole heart 
 like a clear, faithful sermon. 
 
 3. A man in this cold state hates revivals. He is 
 not an idle spectator in times of the special out- 
 pouring of the Holy Spirit. He is aroused, and 
 bestirs himself, and you will hear from him. He 
 wishes to put down these excitements ; he does not 
 believe in them. The people are all going crazy. 
 It is a species of priestcraft, or a mere proselyting 
 course resorted to by the ministiy to make converts 
 to their sect. He cries out " excitement," when he 
 is more excited than anybody in the place, perhaps. 
 He will pitch into the ministry and the church, and 
 abuse them in unmeasured terms. Mark such indi- 
 viduals, and write " cold," in relation to religion, all 
 
54 LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 over them. I could multiply evidences and illustra- 
 tions of this state of heart ; but I forbear, and will 
 only add that they hate all the duties and require- 
 ments of religion. The more they see of it, and are 
 brought in contact with it, the more they hate it. 
 II. We will examine that state of religious 
 
 FEELING DESCRIBED BY THE TERM HOT. 
 
 This state of heart is pleasing to God, as we have 
 already remarked. All that is necessary to under- 
 stand this state of feeling, is to take the precise 
 opposite of the one we have examined. 
 
 1. The man in the cold state, I remarked, hates ■ 
 the Bible ; the one in the hot state loves it. It is 
 dearer to him than all other books on earth. He 
 can honestly exclaim, in the language of the Psalm- 
 ist, " Oh, how love I thy law ! Sweeter also than 
 honey and the honeycomb." He loves its doctrines 
 and he loves its duties. He loves its promises 
 and he loves its threatenings, because he believes 
 them just and right ; necessary to guard and pro- 
 tect God's authority and the rights of the uni- 
 verse. He loves the God it describes and the 
 Saviour it reveals. Its system of mercy captivates 
 and fires up his whole soul ; and, as he contemplates 
 its beauties, he is ready to join with the angels who 
 sung over the plains of Bethlehem, and cry " Glory 
 TO God in the Highest, Amen and amen!" He 
 does not receive the New Testament as of Divine 
 authority, and reject the Old, nor select this, that, or 
 
LUKEWARMNESS. 55 
 
 the other portion as Divinely inspired, and reject 
 other portions of it as not Divinely inspired. He is 
 no such an inconsistent, half-way, hbsurd infidel, for 
 such infidels ai'e the most inconsistent on earth. 
 The Old and New Testaments are so linked to- 
 gether that you cannot receive the one, and reject 
 the other, as every thinking man who has in- 
 vestigated that question very well knows. They 
 mutually prove each other, and must stand or fall 
 together. 
 
 The truth is, you must receive or reject the Bible 
 as a ivhole, and the man in the state of heart I am 
 now considering, receives it as a whole. He has no 
 wish to dispense with any part of it, not even with 
 one of its doctrines. He binds it to his heart as 
 God Almighty's lamp, put into his hands to guide 
 his feet through this dark world to heaven, and he 
 would suffer the loss of all things earthly, sooner 
 than be deprived of it. 
 
 2. The individual in this state of heart loves the 
 preaching of the Gospel. He, too, is not an indif- 
 ferent hearer of the Gospel ? He is moved by it. He 
 is all ear, all awake when he listens to the faithful 
 unfolding of this grand system of salvation. I have 
 frequently heard men in this state of mind exclaim, 
 " Oh, how I was delighted with that sermon I I 
 could have sat there all night, and heard that man 
 preach." It was not a captivating manner that de- 
 lighted him, but it was the bringing out, expound- 
 
56 LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 ing and unfolding the great but simple truths of the 
 Gospel, in a clear and forcible manner. This it was 
 that iirtd up his soul, and made it glow and burn 
 like the heart of an angel, for the time being. Do 
 such beings want the theatre, or some wonderful 
 scientific lecture to amuse them ? Give them the 
 Gospel, and they are captivated with it. It is food 
 to their souls. Give them the Gospel, and they can 
 dwell upon its truths endlessly. 
 
 All the theatres and scientific lectures on earth 
 cannot charm and delight them like the Gospel. 
 They love its duties. They love its terms, and 
 have no wish to alter them. They love it because 
 it is God's Gospel. It is his plan to save men. 
 They love it because it is right, and because it un- 
 folds in a striking light God's great heart of love 
 and compassion for this fallen world. 
 
 3. The individud in this state of mind loves revivals. 
 
 Revivals are the result of the outpouring of God's 
 Sphit, applying and making the Gospel effectual 
 upon the hearts of men. The Spirit convinces men 
 of sin, and leads them to cry out in bitterness of 
 soul, as on the day of Pentecost, " What must I do 
 to be saved ? " Under this convincing, moving, melt- 
 ing influence, the sinner flies to Christ for pardon 
 and salvation, and the Spirit renews and fits the 
 soul for heaven, and fills it with joy unutterable, in 
 many instances. This is the crowning work of the 
 Gospel. There is joy in heaven at such times. An- 
 
LUKEWARMNESS. 57 
 
 gels and saints above rejoice. Our Saviour informs 
 us that " there is joy in heaven over one sinner that 
 repenteth." The true saints on earth rejoice. " Wilt 
 thou not revive us again," says the Psalmist, "that 
 thy people may rejoice in thee ? " Hearts in this hot 
 state beat in unison with hearts on high. In heaven 
 they praise God when sinners are converted. Pro- 
 fessed Christians on earth, who have the spirit and 
 terriper of Heaven, will do the same. Let them but 
 learn that God is converting sinners around them, 
 and their souls are on fire, at once. They would 
 gladly unite with the angels in giving glory to God 
 for this grand exhibition of divine love. They are 
 moved at such times, but they move in harmony 
 with God and his angels. They are moved by just 
 the opposite spirit that moves the hearts of those 
 in a cold state. Cold hearts are moved to hate, de- 
 nounce and do all in their power to put down re- 
 vivals, while individuals in the hot state are moved 
 to love, rejoice in and do all they can to help for- 
 ward revivals. In a word, hearts in this state love 
 all the duties of the Christian religion, and are deeply 
 enlisted in the work of bringing the world to Christ. 
 III. We come now to consider the lukewarm 
 
 STATE. 
 
 There are multitudes at this day, in our churches, 
 who are in this state of mind. They know it not 
 because they will not examine their hearts and be 
 faithful to themselves. They are cases difficult to 
 
58 LUKEWARiMNESS. 
 
 be reached. They are in a dangerous state. They 
 will be damned unless they can be aroused. God 
 will spew them out of his mouth into hell, unless 
 they repent. They will wake vip amid its burning 
 embers, and feel the pangs of the second death, 
 while the smoke of their torment will 'ascend up on 
 high. You who are before me at this hour, and 
 whose ear I am addressing at this moment, and 
 who fill seats in this sanctuary from Sabbath to 
 Sabbath, may be the individuals whom God is ad- 
 dressing in this part of my subject. Unless you 
 can be awakened speedily, you may know, by sad 
 experience, the fearful import of these words, " I 
 
 WILL SPEW THEE OUT OF MY MOUTH." PaUSC, my 
 
 hearer, for this once ; be candid for a season, and put 
 the question home to your heart, Is this my state ? 
 Look close, weigh the evidence I will now present 
 of the lukewarm state, and decide your case in the 
 light of truth, and decide for eternity. 
 
 1. Then, I remark, one of the first steps into this 
 state of mind is a stationary, or stand-still state. 
 The very first step is, coming to a dead-stand in re- 
 ligious growth. To help you to understand what I 
 mean by this language, a few remarks in explana- 
 tion will be necessary. 
 
 The view the Bible gives of the living, faithful 
 child of God, who lives in the daily discharge of his 
 duty is this. He is always taking advanced ground 
 in piety. You do not find him to-day where he was 
 
LUKEWARMNESS. 59 
 
 yesterday, nor this week where he was last, but 
 advancing on the heavenly road. If he does his 
 whole duty, he will be rising higher and higher in 
 piety every hour. Take a few Bible illustrations 
 on this point. Prov. iv. 18 : " But the path of the 
 just is as the shining light, that shineth more and 
 more unto the perfect day." Let us dwell on this 
 passage for a moment. What is the literal thing 
 referred to ? It is the sun rising in the morning. 
 Most or all of you present, have been out in the 
 morning before daylight. As the sun was about 
 to make its appearance on this part of the earth, 
 where we reside, the first visible indication of the 
 fact was a little glimmering of light in the eastern 
 portion of the heavens. As you watched, you no- 
 ticed that that light increased and spread over the 
 whole heavens until the sun was fully visible, and 
 even then the light increased in power until it passed 
 on to the meridian. This is the literal thing, or the 
 shining light referred to. Now the path of the just 
 resembles this shining light. Where is the man 
 when he is first converted? The light in his soul 
 is like that little glimmering of light in the eastern 
 horizon, compared with what it will be, if he will 
 live so as not to grieve the Spirit, and drive God 
 away from his heart. His light will increase and 
 increase as he travels the whole length of the heav- 
 enly road, until he is caught up to the third heavens, 
 and stands basking under the full blaze of the light 
 
60 LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 of the Sun of Righteousness, around the throne of 
 God and the Lamb. 
 
 But let us take another view of this passage, 
 which perhaps will make this matter a little more 
 clear. " THE PATH OF THE JUST." Let 
 me suppose for a moment that the broad aisle 
 before me is the path of the just. On either side 
 is midnight darkness, while the broad aisle itself 
 is illuminated. At this end, however, the light is 
 dim compared with the other. From this to the 
 other, over every inch of ground you pass, the 
 light increases as you advance. Now let a man 
 start at this end where the light is dim, and keep 
 advancing with good eyes, wide open, what will be 
 the necessary result ? He will find the light in- 
 creasing as he advances. 
 
 Suppose he complains that he has no more light 
 now than he had a few moments ago. "What is 
 his position ? Why he is in the stand-still state. 
 
 You next hear him complaining that the light 
 is diminishing. Where is he now ? He is sliding 
 back ; or, to use the Bible term, backsliding. 
 
 At length he exclaims, " I am all in midnight 
 darkness." Where is he now ? He has wandered 
 entirely out of the path, on either side of which is 
 midnight. Now, my hearer, in the light of this 
 imagery, where are you? Can you look up to 
 God and say without hypocrisy, my light has 
 been constantly increasing ever since I was first 
 
LUKEWARMNESS. 61 
 
 converted ? If you should speak the honest truth 
 would you not be constrained to say, I have no 
 more light and love to God's cause than I had a 
 month, a year, or two years ago ? Or is your 
 case still worse and more alarming ? If you own 
 the whole truth, perhaps you would exclaim. Oh ! 
 that I loved God, the Sabbath, the Bible, the 
 prayer-meeting, and the souls of men as well as 
 I did when I was first converted. Now stop, my 
 hearer, and be honest for a moment. Is not this 
 last position precisely yours ? Look up to God 
 solemnly and deny it if you can. You dare not 
 do it. Oh, STOP, STOP, you are the man! "7 
 will spew thee out of my movth" says God. Think 
 of these awful words. They are not fulfilled yet. 
 God is merciful and long-suffering, which is the 
 reason we are not consumed. Use this moment 
 to confess this awful state of heart which God 
 hates, and fly to Christ for forgiveness at once. 
 
 2. Another evidence of a lukewarm state is this. 
 You keep up the form of prayer, but get no an- 
 swer. It is possible that there are some before 
 me who neglect even the form. That such are 
 in this fearful state of mind no sane man can 
 doubt. They may be so stupid that no sermon 
 can reach them; but remember, my precious friend, 
 the agonies of the second death will arouse you; — 
 but we will not stop with such here. The class 
 I am now describing keep up the form of prayer, 
 
62 LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 and satisfy themselves with the form. They re- 
 ceive no answer and do not expect it. They 
 would be amazed if God should answer their 
 prayers. They have lived for months and even 
 years, perhaps, without an answer to prayer. 
 Now I affirm that it is the privilege of the 
 living Christian, not only to pray, but to pray so 
 as to have God hear and answer his supplications. 
 This is his daily privilege, if he will live so as 
 not to grieve the Spirit. If an answer is withheld, 
 and we do not get access to God so as to be re- 
 freshed while we pray, the fault is ours and not 
 God's. The language of God to all in a right 
 state is this : " Every one that asketh receiveth, 
 and he that seeketh findeth. Whatsoever things 
 ye desire when ye pray, believe that ye receive 
 them and ye shall have them." These passages, 
 the living, spiritual child of God, believes. He 
 looks for and expects an answer, and is grieved 
 and distressed if it is withheld. If we have no 
 access to God, and an answer is withheld, the 
 fault is ours as I have remarked above. So God 
 affirms : " IVIine arm is not shortened that I cannot 
 save, neither is mine ear heavy that I cannot hear," 
 but " your iniquity has separated between you and 
 your God." Individuals in this loathsome, luke- 
 warm state grieve the Spirit, and God withdraws 
 from them. He will not hear the prayer offered 
 by a heart while in this state. It is a mere form 
 
LUKEWARMXESS. 63 
 
 of words with no unction, no soul in them. It 
 is a drawing nigh to God with the lips while the 
 heart is far from him. Now, my brother or sister, 
 how is it with you on this point ? Is this evi- 
 dence against you ? Look God in the face now 
 and answer this question honestly. He is here look- 
 ing into your heart. What do you say to your 
 Maker; are you guilty or not guilty? When did 
 you get an answer to prayer? When was your 
 last refreshing from the presence of the Lord, — 
 in that closet, at that family altar, or in the prayer- 
 meeting? Are the heavens brass over your head? 
 Is that soul full of darkness, barrenness and lean- 
 ness ? If so, that settles the question. Your luke- 
 warmness has separated between you and your 
 God. WiU you be honest and own all to God, 
 and repent? 
 
 3. A third evidence of a lukewarm state is 
 found in a class of individuals who satisfy their con- 
 sciences by barely praying for a revival, or for the 
 conversion of the world. They seldom speak to 
 a sinner personally about his salvation. ■ Now a 
 heart that prevails with God in prayer, and is 
 deeply in earnest for the salvation of men, will 
 not be satisfied with simply praying foi^ sinners. 
 His feeling will be so intense that he will wish 
 to lay hold of them and pull them out of the 
 fire. He will feel he must open his mouth for 
 God, and speak to the sinner and reason with 
 
64 ■ LUKEWAEMNESS. 
 
 and try to prevail upon him by argument and 
 entreaty to flee from the wrath to come. Sinners 
 expect this, if we believe them in danger, and they 
 have a right to expect it. Said a young lady to 
 me, where I was laboring in a revival, " I cannot 
 believe my father is a Christian, although he stands 
 high in this church." I replied, " Madam, what 
 makes you doubt your father's piety, we have great 
 confidence in him as a child of God." She re- 
 turned this answer at once: — " If my father was a 
 Christian, would he not speak to me about my 
 soul's salvation, and show me the way of life ? I 
 have been anxious for weeks, and have longed for 
 some one to speak to me and teach me how to 
 become a Christian." 
 
 In another place a prominent sinner was con- 
 verted, and almost the first prayer he offered for 
 the church, he besought of the Lord to cure the 
 church in that place of the lockjaw. " Lord," said 
 he, in addressing the Deity, '' this church have 
 the lockjaw so that they cannot speak to us poor 
 sinners and invite us to Christ." What a prayer! 
 How impressive, when we look at the state of 
 things in our churches ! 
 
 Now yhen Christians are awake and full of com- 
 passion for souls, they will not only pray in earnest 
 for the salvation of men but they will speak to them, 
 and urge them to repent and turn to God. You 
 cannot keep them still. The apostles and primitive 
 
LUKEWARMNESS. 65 
 
 Christians would speak, and you could not silence 
 them until you hushed their voices in death. All 
 the prisons on earth could not seal up their lips. 
 
 Now point me to a man who lives and asso- 
 ciates with sinners for months together, without a 
 word for Christ, and I will point you to a lukewarm 
 man. 
 
 4. Another evidence of lukewarmness is a man 
 who is all talk but prays but little. Give such an 
 one a chance to talk and he is on his feet. He 
 loves to talk. He thinks he is wise and fuU of elo- 
 quence, and he loves to give the world an exhibition 
 of it. Give him a chance to make a speech and he 
 is ready. But when his speech is ended his duty is 
 done, in his estimation. Now that is a lukewarm 
 man, and he knows it not. If he was not lukewarm 
 he would follow up his talk with agonizing prayer, 
 and he would be in distress until the talk was made 
 effectual by the accompanying influences of the 
 Spirit. 
 
 5. Another evidence of lukewarmness is want of 
 interest in revivals. The heart in this state will not 
 openly oppose a. revival perhaps, for it does not feel 
 interest enough about them for that, neither does it 
 feel interest enough to do much to promote them. 
 Such an individual may attend meeting when that 
 will not interfere too much with his worldly specula- 
 tions and business plans. He may be willing to see 
 the work go on, if it can be carried on by others. But 
 
66 LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 you call upon him to deny himself, break his heart 
 and enter fully into the work himself, and you will 
 soon see he has no heart for it. In his business 
 matters he is awake and full of interest. He will go 
 through any self-denial and hardship to accomplish 
 his ends in money-matters, but has no heart to labor 
 to save sinners. Our churches are filled up with 
 such worldlings. God has a controversy with them 
 for this want of interest in his cause, and he will 
 make short work with them, unless they repent. I 
 might multiply evidences of this state of heart yet 
 for another lengthy sermon, but I must not weary 
 your patience longer. I have already said enough 
 to convict many of you, if you have made a self- 
 application • of truth. If not, the sermon is lost 
 to you and the responsibility is on your soul and 
 you must meet it soon. 
 
 REMARKS. 
 
 1. This text represents CTod as hating the lukewarm 
 state even worse than that state of heart which is 
 denominated cold, as we have already shown. Now 
 there are good and sufficient reasons on the part of 
 God for this feeling. God is a benevolent being and 
 is seeking the highest good of his creatures. What- 
 ever stands in the way of his securing that end he 
 must hate. He would not be a good being if he did 
 
• • LUKEWAEMNESS. 07 
 
 not. That state of heart or course of conduct on 
 the part of man, which throws the greatest obstacle 
 in his way of securing this end, he must hate above 
 all others. 
 
 Now the only obstacles that can lie in the way of 
 God's securing the highest good of all is their sins. 
 He cannot secure their highest good unless he can 
 secure their holiness. When there is sin in the heart, 
 that sin must be removed, or the good of that indi- 
 vidual must be sacrificed. There is but one way to 
 remove sin. The individual must be led to see and 
 repent, and fly to Christ for its removal. That state 
 of heart therefore, which renders it the most difficult 
 to show an individual his sins and lead him to 
 Christ, is the worst possible state a person can be 
 in to endanger his highest good, and God must hate 
 it above all others. Now let us see if this is not 
 true of the lukewarm state. This state of heart is 
 peculiarly a delusive state, as we have already seen. 
 The individual in this state is resting on a false 
 hope. To save a man who is resting on a false 
 hope, you must tear away that hope, every vestige 
 of it, or you cannot save him. This is very difficult, 
 if he is in the state of heart we are now examining. 
 He is very confident he is right now. I am rich, he 
 says, and increased in goods. I am doing my duty. 
 I am in the way to heaven. In this he is very con- 
 fident. He is deceived in relation to his state of 
 heart. He is also deceived in relation to his future 
 
68 LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 prospects, and he knows it not. He is wrong and 
 still he thinks he is right. He is in the way to hell, 
 while he thinks he is in the way to heaven. 
 What state of heart can be nnore alarming. How 
 very, very difficult it is to reach such cases. Reached 
 however they must be and their delusion broken up, 
 or they cannot be saved. If they were guilty of 
 some outbreaking sin which they detest and abhor, 
 they could not maintain a hope for an hour. They 
 are in a state of heart still more alarming, and which 
 God abhors even more than the cold state, and yet 
 they will cling to a hope which will be their ruin, 
 and dream on in their delusion, doubtless, until the 
 flames of hell flash in their faces, and the fires of 
 the pit break up their dreams of heaven, and scatter 
 them to the winds, when it will be too late to repent. 
 Now what state of heart could be worse ? Why 
 should not God and every good being hate it above 
 all others? 
 
 Again, this state of heart stupefies the soul and 
 renders it unfeeling. The most interesting truth 
 and the most solemn appeals will not move such 
 hearts. They can sit in God's sanctuary, when the 
 Gospel is breaking upon their ears, and doze away 
 such precious moments ; or, if awake, they can, while 
 Mercy is speaking through the minister's lips and 
 calling them to repentance, be revolving over in their 
 minds their worldly speculations, and laying their 
 plans for the week, before the minister has closed 
 
LUKEWARMXESS. 69 
 
 another message for them to meet at God's bar, and 
 then pass from the place of worship without a con- 
 science to reprove, and hearts as unfeeling as mar- 
 ble. Such stupidity, such death, is always alarming. 
 Tiiat JBan who is aroused by truth, even if he fights 
 it, shows that he has some sensibility left, and there 
 is hope in his case. But this dead, unfeeling state, 
 where the truth cannot arouse up any feeling of any 
 kind, is the worst of all. This is the state about 
 which God is complaining in the text, — neither cold 
 nor hot. No feeling, no sensibility left. Can't be 
 moved. Why should not God abhor such a state, 
 if he loves the good of his creatures ? 
 
 Again, the influence and example of such individ- 
 uals lead more to hell than any other class. Fifty 
 sinners will fall into the wake of one such church- 
 member, sooner, in my estimation, than one will be 
 led astray by the example of an openly wicked man. 
 Such an example is just what the wicked would 
 demand. There are two antagonistic principles in 
 the breast of every sinner. The sinner has a con- 
 science that demands that he should have some kind 
 of religion. You cannot satisfy the demands of his 
 nature without it. He also has a heart that hates 
 true godliness. Now he wants a religion that will 
 compromise the matter between these two contend- 
 ing principles of his nature. Give him that and he 
 will go in for it. Offer that kind to the impenitent 
 world and how quick there will be a rush to embrace 
 
70 ^ LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 it. Now the example of the lukewarm man is just 
 the thing the sinner wants. He has a form of godli- 
 ness without the power. The form partially satisfies 
 his conscience while in health, and the power of god- 
 liness that offends his heart is left off. Theip, says 
 the sinner, is the Christian to suit me. He is a mem- 
 ber of the church, is a moral man, and doubtless is 
 in the way to heaven. If I imitate him, and do not 
 join the church, I shall be saved. Joining the church 
 is a mere form that does not amount to anything. 
 That man is not a fanatic. He keeps his religion 
 to himself. He is not always urging it upon others, 
 and troubling them with it. Let the church be filled 
 up with such men and we will not object to such a 
 religion. 
 
 Now multitudes wUl walk in the footsteps of 
 such church-members, indulging at the same time a 
 secret hope that they shall reach heaven by so doing. 
 You will frequently hear them exclaim, " After all, 
 "we do not see as there is much difference between 
 the church and the world." Of course there is not 
 mucii difference between such church-members and 
 the world. They are all travelling one road and that 
 is the road to hell. The main difference is this, — 
 the church-members are taking the lead, and, by their 
 example, leading the rest down to perdition. 
 
 Now remember, you lukewarm man in this churcli, 
 you are just in a position that gives you an influence 
 to lead men to destruction, and every moment you 
 
LUKKWAiniXESS. 71 
 
 live in this state of mind you are using it for tliat 
 end, whether you design it or not. This forms an- 
 other reason wh}'^ God abhors your state of heart. 
 It is doing such immense mischief to others, as well 
 as yourself, he must abhor it. What an account you 
 will have to render when these sinners, who are walii- 
 ing in your footsteps, meet you at God's gi-eat tribu- 
 nal. Now will you persist in this state of mind and 
 meet this fearful responsibility ? 
 
 Finally, let me remark, and draw this lengthy ser- 
 mon to a close, any individual in this congregation, 
 who is in this state of heart to-day, must repent or 
 be damned. 
 
 To hope for heaven in this state of mind is the 
 height of presumption. The liar, the thief, the drunk- 
 ard's prospects for heaven are just as good as yours. 
 The very language of the text settles that question. 
 The individual in this state of heart is so loathsome 
 that God cannot endure him in the church on earth. 
 Think you he will spew him out of his mouth, 
 and then take this loathsome being right into the 
 church triumphant, and give him a place among the 
 holy ones on high, to be an eternal loathing to them ? 
 The very thought is the height of absurdity. What 
 could he do there ? It would be no heaven to him. 
 The fire, the zeal, the burning, glowing love of those 
 iiearts on high, would annoy and make him all but 
 infinitely wretched. 
 
 There is no harmony between his state of heart 
 
72 LUKEWARMNESS. 
 
 and the state of things in that heavenly world. God, 
 angels, and the saints on high would all loathe him. 
 He would be a nuisance in heaven. He would loathe 
 himself amid its eternal flashes of light, that would 
 reveal to him the abominations of his heart. He 
 would long to leap from its lofty battlements into 
 the burning gulf of hell, and hide himself away amid 
 the smoke of the pit, rather than meet the gaze and 
 scorn of those holy ones, who would utterly detest 
 and hiss him from their presence. 
 
 Now, my brother, or sister, in the light of this ser- 
 mon, what say you ? Are you in this state of mind ? 
 Have you been honest in trying yourself by these 
 evidences ? Do they convict you ? If so, remem- 
 ber your hope of heaven is a delusion, unless you 
 repent. 
 
 I will repent some time ? Ah ! remember that reso- 
 lution has ruined thousands. Before sometime comes 
 you may be dead and damned. God does not 
 command you to repent sometime. He commands 
 you to repent NOW. Will you do it ? God help 
 you to do it at once. Do you say I will, I will. 
 Amen. 
 
III. 
 
 IDLENESS. 
 
 Why stand ye here all the day idle ? — Matt. xx. 6. 
 
 1. DEFINITION OF TERMS IN THE TEXT. 2. IDLENESS INCON- 
 SISTENT WITH DUTY, AND FRAUGHT WITH GUILT. 3. WHY 
 WE ARE IDLE. 4. CHRIST DEMANDS A REASON FOR SUCH 
 CONDUCT. 
 
 These words are taken from one of the parables 
 of our Saviour, all of which are designed to convey 
 some practical instruction to the mind. In discours- 
 ing from this portion of divine truth, it will be my 
 object to draw out the practical lesson it is designed 
 to communicate. The state of things condemned 
 and rebuked by this question is the idle or do-noth- 
 ing state. There are many in our churches in this 
 state, and still they maintain a comfortable hope of 
 heaven. They do nothing to save men, and they 
 never expect to. Many of them never led a soul to 
 Christ in their lives. They think that work belongs 
 mainly to ministers. They love to see the work go 
 on, they say; but call upon them *to break their 
 hearts and go out and weep on the pathway of the 
 sinner, and try and win him over to God, and they 
 have no heart for such work. 
 
74 IDLENESS. 
 
 Christ puts this question directly to the con- 
 sciences of such individuals : — " Why stand ye 
 here all the day idle ? " Why ? says Christ ; what 
 reason have you to offer for such neglect of your 
 duty? I converted you and sent you into this vine- 
 yard to work. You sit down in idleness and neg- 
 lect my work. Why, your Redeemer demands, 
 do I find this field, committed to your charge, 
 uncultivated ? I appointed you to attend to this 
 business. Now look, says he, at this rank growth 
 of the weeds of sin and error springing up all 
 around you, and not an effort on your part to sub- 
 due and uproot them. Why do you thus betray 
 your trust and the confidence reposed in you ? 
 What is your excuse for this neglect ? Have you 
 any ? If so, let us hear it. Are you dumb with 
 silence ? Does your conscience thunder " guilty " ? 
 Are you covered with shame ? Then repent, — con- 
 fess the past, — up and at the work. Redeem the 
 time, — work while the day lasts. Gird on your 
 armor, and fight the good fight until called home 
 to your reward. 
 
 In considering this truth further, let me, I. Define 
 one or two of the terms in the text. II. Show that 
 this idleness is inconsistent, and deeply fraught 
 ■with guilt. III. Call attention to the question why 
 we are idle. IV. Christ demands a reason for such 
 conduct. 
 
 I. Then I am to define two of the terms in 
 
IDLENESS. 76 
 
 THIS TEXT. 1. The term day. What are we to 
 understand by this term when we take its spiritual 
 application to us ? I remark, we are not to under- 
 stand by it the term of twenty-four hours. That is 
 not its spiritual, practical meaning here. By the 
 term day, we are to understand the day of our pro- 
 bation. Each man has a probationary day. The 
 Bible uses the term in this sense in some instances. 
 Take a case from John ix. 4 : " I must work the 
 works of him that sent me while it is day ; the night 
 cometh when no man can work." The meaning is 
 this : I must do up the work of him that sent me 
 during my lifetime or probationary day, for the night 
 cometh ; the night of death will overtake me, when 
 no man can work. No man can do the work that 
 was assigned him to do during his probation day 
 when death comes. The work of time must be 
 done in time, or not at all. Why, says Christ, let 
 all your probationary day run to waste ? There 
 is a work to be done during this day that is as 
 weighty and important as eternity. Your happiness 
 for the endless future that lies before you is sus- 
 pended upon your faithful performance of this work. 
 Why, then, idle it away ? Its moments are precious 
 and rapidly flying. Its last one will soon come. 
 Death stands before the door. Wake up, "shake ofT 
 this idleness, and improve these precious hours as 
 they pass. 
 
 2. What are we to understand by the term idle, 
 
76 IDLENESS. 
 
 when we take the spiritual application of this text 
 to us ? 1. We are not to understand by it that an 
 individual is destitute of a worldly employment. A 
 man may have a worldly avocation, and pursue it 
 with great diligence three hundred and sixty-five 
 days in the year, and still be an idler in the sense 
 this term is used here, when we take its spiritual 
 meaning. Wicked men generally have their busi- 
 ness plans and modes of making money, and they 
 pursue them with great zeal ; but still they are idlers, 
 all idlers. The work which this text demands they 
 have uniformly neglected. God has invited and 
 urged them to it from their childhood up, but they 
 have closed their ears against all his entreaties, 
 and persistently pursued their own chosen way. 
 They are determined to do their own work first, no 
 matter what becomes of God's; and as to liis de- 
 mands, they are determined to have their own way, 
 let the consequence be .what it will. 2. By an 
 individual being idle, then, we are to understand 
 this : Whenever you find a person, either in the 
 church or out of it, doing nothing, directly or indi- 
 rectly, to save his own soul or that of his fellow- 
 man, he is an idler. One word upon the thought 
 directly or indirectly, so that you will understand 
 my meaning. That merchant behind his counter, 
 that farmer following his plough, or that mechanic 
 in his shop, may be laboring indirectly to convert 
 the world to God. In pursuing their daily employ- 
 
IDLENESS. 77 
 
 merits, it is the purpose of their hearts to accumu- 
 late means to support their families, and train them 
 up for God, and, over and above that, to support the 
 Gospel at home and abroad, and help forward the 
 great benevolent movements of the day, which have 
 for their object the subduing of the world to Christ, 
 and filling it with the knowledge of salvation. A 
 brother at the West, who is now dead and gone to 
 heaven, remarked to me, when living, " I do busi- 
 ness not to accumulate wealth to lay up for my 
 family, but to secure means to spread the Gospel. I 
 cannot preach myself, but I will preach the Gospel 
 by proxy as extensively as possible. Its truths are 
 precious to me," said he, " and I wish I could give 
 them to the whole world." He labored indirectly to 
 save men. To labor directly to save men is to come 
 in direct contact with the sinner's mind ; to sit down 
 and instruct him about Christ and the way of sal- 
 vation ; to prevail upon him, if possible, by argu- 
 ment and entreaty, to turn to God and live. You 
 now have the meaning of this term. If there is an 
 individual in this church who is doing nothing, 
 directly or indirectly, to save his own soul or the 
 souls of his fellow-men, he is an idler. God speaks 
 from his throne to such, and says, " Why stand ye 
 here all the day idle ? " Do you hear him, my 
 brother? Hark! Oh, how he thunders this ques- 
 tion upon your guilty soul ! You idler, what have 
 you done the past year to lead men home to God ? 
 
78 IDLENESS. 
 
 Sinners all around are sinking to hell, and to whom 
 have you raised a warning voice ? What soul have 
 you led to Christ ? What soul have you tried to 
 lead to Christ ? Not one, do you reply ? Idler, 
 IDLER ! wake up and listen, while I proceed to show 
 you your guilt. 
 
 II. I AM TO SHOW THE GUILT AND INCONSISTENCY 
 OF THIS IDLENESS. 
 
 The guilt of doing nothing, or of inaction, is not 
 trifling but great. When you take upon yourself 
 the responsibility of refusing to act under certain 
 circumstances, you assume a responsibility that is 
 high and fearful. There is a neighbor's house 
 wrapped in flames. He and his family are in the 
 chambers asleep, and know not their danger. By 
 lifting up your warning voice and flying to their 
 relief, you can arouse and save them. But you 
 deliberately fold your arms in the street, look on, 
 see the building fall in over their heads and consume 
 them. You do nothing. You are idle. You just 
 refuse to act, that's all. Is there any guilt connected 
 with your conduct ? Can you plead innocence ? Is 
 not your guilt fearful ? You are a murderer. The 
 blood of that family is on your hands, and God and 
 every good being will hold you strictly accountable 
 for their death. You could have saved tliem, but 
 refused to do it. You are a wicked wretch. You 
 say, I did not know positively I could save tliem. 
 What has that to do with the matter? Did you 
 
IDLENESS. 79 
 
 try? No. Then the responsibility is upon you, 
 and you cannot shake it off. There is an assassin 
 yonder who has assaulted a man and is beating him 
 to death. Another stands by and sees him do up 
 that bloody work. He could take him off and save 
 the man's life, but he refused to do it. He looks on 
 and sees his fellow-being murdered without a warn- 
 ing or an effort to save. What would you say con- 
 cerning him ? What would the community say ? 
 What would the law say ? The law puts its hand 
 upon him at once and arraigns him as accessary to 
 the murder before the fact. Did he kill the man ? 
 No, he did nothing, he refused to act, he was an 
 idler. His guilt under such circumstances is great. 
 It is as visible as the light. The church seems to 
 think that the guilt of inaction or idleness is trifling. 
 But it is fearfully great. You are in this merciful 
 world where sinners all around you are deciding the 
 question whether they will be saved or damned. 
 That question they decide here. You can do much, 
 God helping you, towards prevailing upon them to 
 decide that question right. Their happiness for a 
 long eternity hangs upon their coming to a right 
 decision. Now to be idle and refuse to act under 
 such circumstances is wicked, supremely so. 
 
 Why stand ye here idle^ says God, in this merci- 
 ful world ? These sinners at your side will soon be 
 gnashing their teeth in hell, unless they repent. 
 Why not speak and be in earnest ? Work, says 
 
80 IDLENESS. 
 
 God, while the day lasts. Can you refuse to work 
 under such circumstances without guilt ? 
 
 But let us look at this guilt a little more in de- 
 tail. It is important that you have a clear view of 
 it, or you never will repent of this idleness as you 
 should. 
 
 1. Then, I remark, your guilt is apparent from 
 the fact, that your time, which you are wasting, was 
 purchased by the death of the cross. To make you 
 see the full force of this remark, let me have your 
 attention for a moment to the law under which our 
 first parents were placed, immediately after their 
 creation. God placed them in the garden of Eden, 
 under the following law. Gen. ii. 16, 17 : " And the 
 Lord God commanded the man, saying. Of every 
 tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat ; but of 
 the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt 
 not eat of it ; for in the day that thou eatest thereof, 
 thou shalt surely die." 
 
 Please observe the language of this law. It does 
 not say, if you eat of that prohibited fruit to-day, you 
 shall die next week or next year, or a thousand years 
 hence ; " but in the day thou eatest thereof thou 
 shalt surely die.''' Here the question arises, What is 
 meant by the death spoken of in this text? Was it 
 the death of the body ? I think not. The first you 
 hear of the death of the body, was after the promise 
 of a Saviour. It is in this language. Gen. iii. 19 : 
 " Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return." 
 
IDLENESS. 81 
 
 Deafh of the body was not introduced until after 
 the merciful dispensation was introduced. It is a 
 part of that dispensation, as I could show if I had 
 time. It was introduced with that dispensation and 
 will continue while it continues. Men, all men, 
 come to the grave under this dispensation, and will, 
 while it continues. When it closes up at the end 
 of time, then comes the resurrection, which counter- 
 acts this death, and restores^ to each individual his 
 body. 
 
 One thought settles the question with me, that 
 the death of the body was not a part of the penalty 
 of the moral law. The atonement of Christ opens 
 the way for the penalty of the moral law to be set 
 aside toward all who repent and comply with its 
 terms. If the death of the body was a part of the 
 penalty of the moral law, all who repent would be 
 pardoned, and in that case the penalty of the law 
 would not be executed, and their bodies would not 
 die. Now we know that a man may repent, and 
 stiU his body must go to the grave. The bodies of 
 the penitent as well as the impenitent must die, 
 which settles the question that it is not the penalty 
 for sin, or the moral law. Was the death threat- 
 ened upon our first parents spiritual death ? I think 
 not, for this reason : To make it spiritual death is to 
 confound the act of transgression and the penalty 
 for transgression, and make it one and the same 
 thing. What is it to die spiritually ? It is to die to 
 
82 IDLENESS. 
 
 holiness. The act of transgression was dyiifg to 
 holiness, or dying spiritually. God's threatening, 
 according to that notion, is this. 
 
 If you transgress my law, and thus die spiritual- 
 ly, says God, you shall die spiritually. Or, it would 
 be like this Government saying to the murderer, if 
 you transgress the law and become a murderer, you 
 shall be a murderer. Such nonsense is too glaring 
 to be embraced by any thinking mind. The death 
 threatened in the law under consideration, is a 
 death to be inflicted for dying spiritually. Man 
 had no right to die spiritually, and God threatens 
 him with another kind of death, if he does die 
 spiritually. 
 
 The question now returns, what is this death ? I 
 reply, it is the death of soul and body in hell, or eter- 
 nal death. Had God executed the penalty of the 
 law upon our first parents in the garden, he would 
 have sent them soul and body to hell, from that 
 hour. He would not have sent their bodies to the 
 grave, and their souls to hell. He would have thun- 
 dered the whole man to hell, soul and body. The 
 whole man was engaged in the transgression, and 
 the whole man would have suffered the penalty of 
 the law. So it will be at the judgment, when he 
 executes the penalty of the moral law upon the 
 finally impenitent. He will not send the body to 
 the grave and the soul to h(>ll. He will send the 
 soul and body, united, to hell, which will be the 
 
IDLENESS. 83 
 
 second death. Now this would have been true if 
 God had executed the penalty of the moral law 
 upon our first parents the day they sinned, accord- 
 ing to its threatenings. Here let it be distinctly 
 understood, that, at that hour, there was no pos- 
 terity. Had the law been executed then, there 
 would have been none. It is wholly inconsistent 
 to suppose that the original pair would have been 
 permitted to propagate their kind in the world of 
 woe. In that case, Adam and Eve would have 
 been the beginning, middle, and end of the hu.man 
 race. We should have had no existence. But the 
 penalty loas not executed, it was laid over, for the 
 time being, to introduce Mercy's dispensation, to 
 save rebellious man. Christ lays it over by his 
 death, and he places man on a new probationary 
 state under grace, where he regains the privilege of 
 propagating his species, which he had lost by the 
 fall, so that we get our very being through Christ. 
 We are indebted to him therefore for our existence. 
 Every moment we have on earth was purchased by 
 his death. Now can we take these moments w"hich 
 were bought with blood, — the precious blood of the 
 Son of God, — and waste them in idleness, without 
 guilt? The moments we spend here to-day, and 
 every moment of our lives, were purchased for us 
 by the agony of the cross. To spend and waste 
 them in idleness is to trifle with the blood of the 
 Son of God. How can we do it without guilt as 
 
84 IDLENESS. 
 
 high as heaven! Think of it, you idlers in this 
 church, — when you take your time to do your own 
 work instead of God's, you are trifling with Christ's 
 death. He bought your time with his blood, and 
 he demands of you to use it for him. 
 
 2. This idleness is inconsistent in the member of 
 a church, from the fact that, if he has ever been con- 
 verted, he has had a glimpse of the worth of a soul. 
 When you were under conviction, when the com- 
 mandment came home and sin revived, and you 
 saw yourself dead by the law, how infinitely val- 
 uable your soul seemed ! Had you been sole pro- 
 prietor of the globe, you would have given it all for 
 the assurance from your Maker, that your soul should 
 be finally saved. Now when you saw the worth of 
 your own soul, you saw the worth of the soul of 
 every man living. The soul of your neighbor is 
 equally valuable with your own, which forms the 
 reason why God commands us to love our neigh- 
 bor as ourselves. To sit down in idleness after we 
 have seen the worth of the soul, while we are in a 
 world where there are souls to be saved, is conduct 
 deeply inconsistent. This the sinner believes. Im- 
 penitent men have often declared to me, " If I be- 
 lieved what you professing Christians profess to 
 believe, I would not rest, nor give my neighbors rest 
 until they were in the kingdom." 
 
 3. Such conduct is inconsistent, from the fact that 
 wo liave declared publicly that we love God's ser- 
 
IDLENESS. 85 
 
 vice ; and that it is dearer to us than anything of an 
 earthly nature. After making such a declaration, to 
 sit down in idleness is to give our professions the 
 lie. " Actions speak louder than words." Our 
 words proclaim one thing and our actions contra- 
 dict it. The wicked look on and are confounded. 
 They know not what to believe. I hate to call in 
 question the sincerity and honesty of that church- 
 member, says the sinner, but he certainly manifests 
 more interest and zeal in almost anything else than 
 in the subject of religion, which he says lays so near 
 his heart. What shall I think, what must be my 
 conclusion, if I judge him by his fruits ? Such con- 
 duct on the part of church -members staggered me 
 beyond measure when I was an impenitent sin- 
 ner. It led me to doubt, very much, the reality of 
 experimental religion. I felt that the religion of the 
 church was a religion of the head and not of the 
 heart. Such conduct on the part of the church is 
 making infidels by thousands. All sceptical men 
 refer to it, and stumble at this stumbling-stone. 
 The things which the church professes to believe, 
 says the infidel, if true, are calculated to stir the 
 soul to its very depth, but where is the correspond- 
 ing zeal and action ? If I could see them as zealous 
 and as much in earnest in religion as they are in 
 politics or in making money, I should think them 
 sincere. But go into their meetings, says he; how 
 few there,- — how cold and formal in their worship. 
 
86 IDLENESS. 
 
 Is this the subject that is dearer to their hearts than 
 anything else? Who can believe such hypocritical 
 nonsense ? This idleness in the household of faith 
 places the church in just this unfavorable attitude 
 before the world. It is making sceptics by the 
 wholesale. It leads the world to doubt and call in 
 question the sincerity of the church, — cripples and 
 cuts off her influence for good over others, and 
 is doing immense evil. How such conduct dishon- 
 ors Christ ! How can we meet our account for it ? 
 If we persist in such idleness, we shall come up to 
 the final judgment covered all over with guilt and 
 shame. 
 
 4. Your guilt is seen again, from the fact that 
 you violate your own solemn pledges when you sit 
 down in idleness. My brother, what did you prom- 
 ise God when you became a Christian ? Did you 
 not consecrate your whole being to him ? Can a 
 man become a child of God without ? It is impos- 
 sible. God never accepts any half-way consecra- 
 tion. You promised to give yourself away, — wholly 
 away to him. But what does giving yourself away 
 imply? What did you mean by that act? Did 
 you mean by it that you gave yourself away to be 
 an idler? Did you give yourself away to do your 
 own work, and neglect his ? God commands you 
 to go into his vineyard, and work, — not yours. You 
 l)romised to do it. Now if you are an idler, you 
 have violated your own pledge. 
 
IDLENESS. 87 
 
 Have you no regard for your word ? What 
 would you think of a fellow-being who would prom- 
 ise you over and over again he would work for you, 
 and never redeem his pledge ? You would say he 
 is a man of no principle. He is not to be relied on. 
 A worthless fellow. I want nothing to do with him. 
 Now pause and think how many times you have 
 promised God, secretly in your hearts, that you 
 would wake up and be faithful ! You promised him 
 on your knees in prayer, and these pledges have all 
 been broken, if you are an idler. Can you thus for- 
 feit your own word, and take back your own conse- 
 cration without guilt! But look again at your 
 covenant when you joined the church. That was 
 a public act, — a solemn agreement made with your 
 Maker in the presence of witnesses. Please read 
 over that written agreement on your knees when 
 you get home. You stood up in God's house and 
 gave your assent to it, and bound yourself in the 
 most solemn manner to devote your whole being to 
 God. What did you say to God ? Read, my 
 brother, and think. What did you say ? "I do, 
 now, in the presence of this assembly, avouch the 
 . Lord Jehovah to be my God." What does that 
 mean ? To take God as your God, is to take him 
 as your king and lawgiver ; and you take your place 
 as a subject of his government, and fully commit 
 yourself to do all his will. That is as it should be ; 
 that was taking your right position. What more 
 
88 IDLENKSS. 
 
 did you promise God ? You promised, moreover, to 
 walk in all his commandments and ordinances blame- 
 less, until death. What can be more binding and 
 solemn than such a public consecration of yourself 
 to God ? How have you kept that pledge ; that 
 written agreement with God? Are you an idler? 
 If so, you have broken your covenant with your 
 Maker, and your guilt has gone up on high. You 
 covenanted with God not to be an idler, but to enter 
 his vineyard, and labor and toil for him faithfully 
 until death removed you to your seat above. What 
 guilt there must be here ! Your word forfeited, 
 your written agreement violated, and you hasten- 
 ing to the judgment to settle up your account with 
 God for this idleness ! How can you meet him ? 
 Before you step up to that great reckoning-day, 
 please read carefully Deut. xxviii. and see what God 
 says about covenant-breakers ; then cast your eye 
 into old Jerusalem and see him carrying those 
 threatenings into execution against that covenant- 
 breaking nation. Now if God thus hates covenant- 
 breaking, how can you escape his wrath unless you 
 repent ? If the guilt of the Jew was great, can 
 yours be less, with all the increase of light the Gos- 
 pel has shed upon your pathway ? Think, you 
 idlers in this church. This sin is upon you. You 
 cannot deny it. Go into your closet, drop on your 
 knees, raise your eyes to heaven, look God in the 
 face and say to him, if you can, that you are not a 
 
IDLENESS. 89 
 
 covenant-breaker. You cannot do it. Your con- 
 science thunders guilty, guilty. 
 
 5. Our guilt is manifest again from the fact that 
 we are in a land of liberty. When I say we are in 
 a land of liberty, do not misunderstand me. I am 
 not ignorant of the fact that the Governments of the 
 slave States are despotic; their liberty was dead and v' 
 buried years ago. One essential thing that goes to Y' 
 make up liberty is the liberty of speech and the / 
 press. Whatever may be my honest convictions of 
 truth. Libert y gives me the privilege of advocating • 
 those convictions with the tongue and pen, and also : 
 protects me, in doing it, from violence, imprison- 
 ment, and death. - ^ 
 She stands by and says, the only weapons that j 
 ^ shall assail you shall be argument to meet argu- 
 ment, speech to meet speech. Let intellect grapple 
 ■^.^ with intellect, truth with error, and if ti*ath or error 
 ^ ^ cannot stand such a conflict, such fair play, let them ^ 
 ) ^ be vanquished and driven out of the community. • ' 
 * -^ Now despotism and error do not like such fair play 
 ^ f for this intellectual warfare. When her arguments 
 ^ are exhausted she wants to resort to the fist, the pistol, 
 ^ the knife, the mob, the prison, and even death, if the o 
 tongue cannot be silenced without. J^v^ £^^Xi^-<v^ck ^ 
 
 (J s, 
 
 But, says one, you can go to the South and talk, j 
 if you will talk to suit the South. I can go to Rome 
 and talk upon such conditions, and to any other des- 
 potic government under the whole heavens. Despots 
 
90 IDLENESS. 
 
 love to have you talk, if you talk to please them. 
 They like your service of course. That is just the 
 liberty of the South, no more and no less. 
 
 When that is the fact, Liberty is dead and buried, 
 and mourners go about the streets. While this is 
 true in a portion of this nation, there are other por- 
 tions of it where we can preach, pray, print papers, 
 tracts, and other documents, and circulate them broad- 
 cast through the community, with none to molest or 
 make us afraid. What would the primitive ministry 
 and church have accomplished, with the privileges 
 we enjoy ? They exposed themselves to torture and 
 imprisonment, to persecution of the most malignant 
 kind, and death in its most horrid forms, in spreading 
 the Gospel and laboring to convert the world to God. 
 If this idleness could be excusable under any cir- 
 cumstances, it would be under those in which they 
 were placed. But had the church and ministry be- 
 come idle, even under those circumstances, it would 
 • have been at the expense of their piety. What! 
 Paul fold up his hands and become an idler ? He 
 w^ould have become a wretched backslider and for- 
 feited the smile and approbation of God by so doing. 
 Hear him exclaim, " Woe is unto me if I preach not 
 the Gospel.''^ Now if they would have been guilty 
 and lost the favor of God, to have sat down in idle- 
 ness, situated as they were, what must be our guilt, 
 situated as we are ? We can preach and hold meet- 
 ings over a vast tract of country, in this land, with 
 
IDLENESS. 91 
 
 none to harm us. To leave this field uncultivated, 
 to sit down in idleness under such circumstances, 
 our guilt and sin must be extremely aggravating in 
 the sight of God. It is not surprising that he hides 
 his face while this sin is unrepented of. 
 
 6. The guilt of this idleness is great from the fact 
 that our means and advantages for doing good are 
 great. 
 
 God holds men accountable according to the means 
 put into their hands for doing good. With this 
 thought before the mind, let us look at a few things. 
 1. Our conveniences for travelling from place to 
 place, to get access to the people, to give them the 
 Gospel. The Apostles, if they wished to visit differ- 
 ent cities and places by land, would start off on foot 
 and make their way over the countiy as best they 
 could. But how is it with us ? A minister can 
 preach in Cincinnati, Ohio, one evening, Columbus 
 the next, Cleveland the next, Buffalo, N. Y., the 
 next, Albany the next. New York City the next, then 
 on successive evenings in Boston, Mass., Rutland 
 and Burlington, Vt, and Montreal, Canada. Thus 
 we can almost fly through the midst of heaven, hav- 
 ing the everlasting Gospel to preach. If the efforts 
 now making to navigate the atmosphere should 
 prove successful, how that passage in Revelation 
 will be almost literally fulfilled ! 2. Look at your 
 telegi-aphic facilities. A sermon may be preached in 
 Boston to-day, and it will be in your next morning 
 
92 IDLENESS. 
 
 prints all over the country, and be read by thousands 
 and even millions in a few hours. So with prayer. 
 Our lips may utter a petition at the throne of the 
 Infinite One, and the lightning wing and the press 
 communicate it to a million of hearts in a few hours, 
 so that thousands of amens, added to that petition, 
 may come pouring into the ear of God from all parts 
 of the land. In a short time it doubtless will be true 
 that sermons delivered in this country on the Sab- 
 bath, can be read in London or Paris the next day. 
 What a day is this ! What opportunities to spread 
 light and say to the world, " Behold the Lamb of 
 God." 3. But look again at your printing presses 
 and your mails. Your presses can issue, daily, tons 
 of sermons, tracts, religious papers, and other matter, 
 which the mails can scatter through this whole land, 
 and, in a very brief period, across the rolling ocean 
 to other lands, and to the islands of the seas. Thus 
 you can speak to the nations, and make your influ- 
 ence felt in the remotest corner of the earth, in a 
 short time. Put the zeal and piety of Paul into the 
 ministry and church, with such means of doing good 
 in their hands, and how long do you think there 
 would be a spot on earth destitute of the Gospel? 
 How God is opening doors in all parts of the world 
 for this mighty work. 4. There is wealth enough 
 in the church to fill the world with the knowledge of 
 eternal life, if she will only consecrate it to that end. 
 With all this means of doing good in our possession, 
 
IDLENESS. 93 
 
 what must be the guilt of this idleness in the church, 
 which lets a great share of the world lie in dark- 
 ness, without being reached by the Gospel! What 
 responsibility there is here ! What guilt to meet the 
 professed Church of Christ at the great reckoning- 
 day ! 
 
 7. Such idleness is guilty from the fact that death 
 is dropping our friends by our side into eternity, and 
 what we do to bring them to Christ, we must do 
 quickly. 
 
 When we look around and behold the inroads 
 death is making in our own family connections, how 
 God in his providence is stirring us up to work ! A 
 few years since, I shook a father's hand, and left him 
 in health. I have not seen him since. He has gone 
 to his long home. I bade a brother good-by, — he 
 is no more. Three brothers-in-law,- — they are gone. 
 Two sisters sleep in the grave. I saw a niece 
 married on Thursday, and went to her death-bed 
 on the following Thursday. I left a blessed, sainted 
 
 - wife on the Sabbath, comparatively well, though 
 not able to attend church, and in the midst of my 
 prayer, was called from the sacred desk to the death- 
 bed scene, only in season to behold the clay tene- 
 ment from which the spirit had just taken its flight. 
 Now I put the question to myself: What does God 
 mean by all this ? Work, work. He speaks by 
 these providences. Work while the day lasts. If 
 
 ^ you have a word to say to that relative, utter it now. 
 
94 IDLENESS. 
 
 If you have a prayer to offer for them, offer it soon. 
 If you have a tear to shed upon their impenitent 
 pathway, shed it at once, ere they are dead and lost. 
 Now, my hearers, let me request that you look 
 into that family circle of yours. Are its ranks broken ? 
 Where is that father, mother, brother, sister, relative, 
 friend ? Are they missing ? What does God mean 
 by these providences ? " Why stand ye here all the 
 day idle," in this dying world? Your turn will come 
 soon. Speak while you can. Labor while you 
 have an opportunity. Death is doing up its work 
 all around us. Labor for the salvation of the dying 
 ones before they die. 
 
 III. I AM TO CALL YOUR ATTENTION TO THE QUES- 
 TION IN THE TEXT. 
 
 " W/iT/ ? " says Christ. He here demands a reason 
 for this conduct, an explanation, an excuse if you 
 have any to offer. 
 
 When he puts a question like this, he expects an 
 answer. To treat his questions with indifference, 
 or silence, is an insult. You set your servant about 
 a piece of work of vast importance to himself as 
 well as to you, and you rely upon his attending to 
 it. He wastes his time in idleness, or in attend- 
 ing to his own business when his time is lawfully 
 yours, and you call him to an account. You put 
 the question directly home to him. Why is this 
 work of mine neglected ? Is there any reasonable 
 excuse for it ? you demand. If there is, let us know 
 
IDLENESS. 95 
 
 it. He passes along and treats the question with 
 indifference. He gives you no answer, no satisfac- 
 tion whatever. How would you view his conduct ? 
 You would unhesitatingly pronounce it insulting 
 in the highest degree. You would say, such treat- 
 ment is unendurable. I will dismiss him from my 
 employment forthwith. 
 
 Now, here is a question from your Saviour. It 
 is put directly to you, and you must be cautious 
 how you treat it. He has sent you into his vine- 
 yard to work. -The work he requires you to perform 
 is of vast importance to yourself, to the interests of 
 his kingdom on earth. You have wasted your time 
 in idleness, and neglected this work. In this ques- 
 tion he demands a reason for this conduct. Why ? 
 says he; what have you to offer as an excuse ? Now 
 will you treat this question with indifference ? Will 
 you thus add to the sin of idleness the sin of insult- 
 ing your Redeemer ? What do you say ? Bring 
 on your strong reasons, if you have any. Christ is 
 ready to listen to any reasonable explanation. 
 
 1. I will now mention some things that you can- 
 not offer as reasons why you are idle. 
 
 2. I will then turn your attention to some things 
 which are the causes of this idleness, and urge you 
 to remove them, that Christ may no longer be grieved 
 by this state of things in this church. 
 
 1. What you cannot offer as consistent reasons. 
 You are not idle because there is no work to be 
 
96 IDLENESS. 
 
 done. You begin to press up to duty a class of 
 individuals in the church, and how quickly they 
 will turn upon you with the question, What can I 
 do ? I lament this state of things about us, but I 
 do not see as there is anything / can do to remedy 
 it. So you pretend to be idle because, you say, there 
 is nothing for you to do. Nothing for you to do ? 
 Stop, my brother or sister, and let me put a few^ 
 questions directly to your conscience. If you will 
 be candid and thoughtful, I am confident you will 
 come to the conclusion that there is work enough 
 for you to do. Let us begin with your heart. Is 
 the work all done up there ? Have you repented 
 and put away every sin ? Have you cultivated 
 diligently every Christian grace in that soul ? Do 
 not deceive yourself. Look close here. That wicked 
 heart will hide from your eye those sins, if you are 
 not on your guard. Remember you cannot hide 
 them from God's eye, and he will not forget or over- 
 look them at the judgment. Unless you repent, they 
 must come out there. Lift up your heart to God 
 now, and plead for the illuminating influences of 
 the Holy Spirit, to pour, light into all the dark cor- 
 ners of your soul, and help you to see it as it is. 
 Search now ; is there no sin there, no selfishness, 
 no pride, no self-conceit, no deception, no envy nor 
 jealousy, no love of the world nor dishonesty, no 
 disposition to draw money out of your neighbors 
 without rendering an honest equivalent, no want of 
 
IDLENESS. 97 
 
 truthfulness, no peevishness nor irritability there, no 
 want of interest in reading the Bible, and prayer? 
 Is the soul in full sympathy with Christ in his great 
 work of saving men ? Are you more anxious to 
 save men than to make money ? In a word, is that 
 soul of yours all ripe for heaven ? Are you ready 
 to die just as you are, without a moment to repent 
 of the past ? If not, there is work to be done in your 
 own heart, — work that must be done, or you are 
 lost, — work that no being can do for you. Do you 
 ask what can I do ? Do up the work in your heart, 
 and then I will point you to something further. 
 But let us suppose for a moment that the work is 
 all done up with you, and you are ready for heaven ; 
 could you then say, I am idle because there is noth- 
 ing to be done ? How is it with your family ? are 
 they all ready for heaven ? How many of them, 
 think you, would sing in glory, if God should take 
 them all to eternity, just as they are ? If one flash 
 of lightning should kill them all now, how many of 
 them would you expect to meet on high ? Do not 
 let your desire that they should be saved deceive 
 you here, and lead you to indulge a hope for them 
 when there is no ground for it. Look at the mattei 
 soberly ; are they ready for heaven ? If not, tliere is 
 work at your own hearthstone, — work that you should 
 not neglect. There may be some stumbling-blocks 
 you ought to remove before you or any other being 
 can lead that family to Christ. Have you prayed 
 
 VOL. I. 7 
 
98 IDLENESS. 
 
 with, and exhorted thein to come to the Saviour ? 
 Have you lived before them as you should ? If not, 
 that may be the reason why your minister here cannot 
 lead them into the kingdom. Will you go home 
 and begin that work ? Do not ask, what can I do ? 
 while there is work in your own house that you are 
 neglecting. But if all the work were done up in 
 your house, could you then say, I am idle because 
 there is no work to be done ? 
 
 Look through your neighborhood, and over the 
 community where you reside. Is there no work 
 here ? Are they all ready for heaven ? What por- 
 tion of them even profess to have hopes in Christ ? 
 What portion of that number have any just grounds 
 to hope ? The great mass here are in the road to 
 hell, and if ushered by an earthquake into God's 
 presence in twenty-four hours, how few would be 
 saved ! Look at the want of reverence for God and 
 his Gospel, and the general stupidity on the subject 
 of religion ! How few think of God and their eter- 
 nal interests! Surrounded by such a state of things, 
 and idle because there is no work to be done ! Here 
 is work which would interest an angel, and call forth 
 his whole heart to bring this people to Christ. 
 
 But we will suppose for a moment that this whole 
 community is safe ; that they are all sealed by the 
 Holy Spirit of promise and on their way to heaven ; 
 could you say even then, I am idle because there is 
 no work to be done? Glance your eye through thia 
 
IDLENESS. 99 
 
 county, state, and nation, what do you behold ? 
 Mark the Sabbath-breaking, the profanity, the drunk- 
 enness, licentiousness, rowdyism, theft, murders, 
 forgetfulness of God and everything of a serious 
 nature. See how atheism, infidelity, and error in 
 all its manifold forms, is lifting up its head and 
 stalking abroad to poison and destroy the souls of 
 men. L»eek--at-4h«~ slavery- !«—©»¥- 4ftfld ;-H>p«4i- yewr 
 ear— ^id lial (5 n t e~4he' groans of lour millions of 
 h44«»ft« heinirp who are robbed and spoiled evermore, 
 audvvho are literally heathenized by this professed"^ 
 Gkiisiian iiaTJun, They call for your sympathy aud 
 help to deliver them from this house of bondage. 
 
 Look at your public men ; see how they grasp at 
 the reins of government in this land. What un- 
 righteous means they will resort to, to secure the 
 high places in the nation. With a very large share 
 of them the question is not what is truth, what is 
 just, what will secure the highest good of all classes 
 in the nation; but what sentiments, if advocated, will 
 best please the North and South so as to secure for 
 me the greatest number of votes for president, sena- 
 tor, representative, governor, or judge ; or advance 
 me to some other station of power, where I can be 
 honored and get my hand into the public purse and 
 secure to myself a fat salary. How such men show 
 themselves utterly destitute of all principle, and de- 
 base themselves to secure an office ! This office-wor- 
 ship in our land at the present time is enough to dis- 
 
100 IDLENESS. 
 
 gust even the Devil. We have a class of individuals 
 at the present day who will sell soul and body, with 
 the interest of the whole nation, for office. How 
 amazingly patriotic such men will pretend to be ! 
 how ready to serve their country ! Ready to serve 
 their country? They are ready to serve themselves, 
 and make the whole country serve them if they can. 
 A man who is honestly anxious to serve his country, 
 simply for his country's good, will wait until his 
 country calls for his services. He will not be eter- 
 nally pushing himself into public notice, and elec- 
 tioneering all through the land to secure an office. 
 This whole brood of office-seekers, who are con- 
 stantly electioneering for themselves, should be 
 utterly discarded and rejected by the community as 
 wholly unfit for office. Their object is to serve 
 themselves and not their country. Selfishness is at 
 the bottom, and a selfish man is not fit for a public 
 station. A man to be fit for a public station should 
 be self-sacrificing, with an enlarged soul ; who at 
 heart seeks the highest good of all classes in the 
 nation. None other is fit for office. This lesson 
 the nation should learn, or it will be ruined by such 
 men. But look again, and see how such men will 
 stand up in the halls of the nation and defy God 
 and his authority. How they ridicule the idea that a 
 higher law can be binding upon the subjects of this 
 government. In their estimation, the authority of 
 congress is the supreme authority in the universe. 
 
IDLENESS. 101 
 
 or particularly of this people. They claim that their 
 authority is higher than that of God, for they demand 
 that the laws they enact must be obeyed, even if in 
 opposition to the express command of God. What 
 an important body congress has become ! From 
 what source, it would be well to inquire, did this 
 body derive such supreme authority ? Do you say, 
 from the people ? And from whence did the people 
 derive it ? This, I suppose, you call Protestantism ; 
 and if this is so, will you tell me what Romanism 
 is ? What more abominable doctrine did Rome ever 
 hold, than this ? Let some of your wise congress- 
 men, who are so ready to instruct us ministers, give 
 us a little light on this question if they can. Let 
 them show the distinction between such a doctrine 
 and Antichrist. Men holding such doctrines should 
 go over to Rome at once. Go over to Rome, did I 
 say ? They are already there, only they are hypo- 
 •critical, and are deceiving the nation by pretending 
 to be Protestants. 
 
 With all these abominations staring us in the 
 face, — not only in this land, but a great share of 
 the world yet unconverted, — can you affirm that 
 you are idle because there is no work to be done ? 
 Such an excuse you will never present at the bar of 
 God. Why, then, present it here ? Why ease off' 
 your conscience by such a falsehood ? The fact is, 
 every family, neighborhood, town, county, state, and 
 nation, under the whole heavens, is full of work. 
 
102 IDLENESS. 
 
 The sins and errors of all kinds, among high and 
 low, rich and poor, throughout the world, demand 
 our attention. Christ has commissioned the minis- 
 try and the church to set all these things right, and 
 there will be work to do as long as there is sin and 
 error in one solitary soul on earth. Men who are 
 ignorant of our high calling may think we are out 
 of our place when we meddle with this, that, or the 
 other sin and error ; but they only expose their own 
 narrow, contracted views of the work assigned the 
 church to perform. She is to war with sin, all sin, 
 — sin in the church and out of it ; sins of public 
 men and private men ; organic sins, whether of leg- 
 islative or other bodies. She is to labor and toil to 
 overthrow all iniquity, and bring the entire world 
 home to God ; and there is work enough for all until 
 this grand end is secured. 
 
 2. You are not idle because the work Christ de- 
 mands at your hands is not right and honorable. 
 
 Some men refuse to enlist in certain enterprises, 
 because, they say, the employment itself is unjust, 
 and would involve them in guilt. But you cannot 
 make this excuse in relation to Christ's work. The 
 thing which he demands is so completely righteous 
 that all your unrighteousness consists in neglecting 
 it. As to its being honorable, what employment can 
 be more so ? This work has called forth the admira- 
 tion of all good men on earth. It is the work in 
 which the good of every age have enlisted with all 
 
IDLENESS. 103 
 
 their souls. It enlists, moreover, the sympathy, the 
 cooperation, and admiration of all heaven. Nay 
 more, it is the work in which God himself is en- 
 gaged^ it is God's work ! God's work not honor- 
 able! Can God have a dishonorable thought, or 
 require a dishonorable thing of one of his creatures ? 
 To harbor such a thought of your Maker would be 
 a vile slander upon the pure and holy One. When 
 you take hold of this work, you enlist with God in 
 helping forward one of the grandest schemes of be- 
 nevolence ever devised by the Infinite Mind. 
 
 3. You are not idle because there -is a want of 
 ability to do the work which God requires. 
 
 I am aware that some men make this an excuse ; 
 but this is the only world where they will ever offer 
 it. They will not go up to the judgment with this 
 excuse upon their lips. God's commands are not 
 grievous. But a commandment requiring an impos- 
 sibility would be grievous in the extreme, and most 
 tyrannical, if you were to be sent to hell for not 
 obeying such a command. Again, Christ says, 
 " My yoke is easy and my burden is light." That 
 could not be true if Christ required an impossi- 
 bility. 
 
 The duties which God requires of his creatures 
 are always graduated by their ability to perform 
 them. How strikingly this appears in the distribu- 
 tion of the talents ! " And he gave to every man 
 according to their several ability." To the man who 
 
104 IDLENESS. 
 
 was capable of improving only one talent, did he 
 give five? or to the man who was capable of im- 
 proving five, did he give only one ? Nothing of this 
 kind. To the one who was capable of improving 
 five, he gave five ; and so to the one who was capa- 
 ble of improving only one, he gave one. Then, in 
 the reckoning, did he require of the man to whom 
 he had given but one to account for five ? Not at 
 all. He only required him to give an account for 
 what he had received, and a just improvement upon 
 that. How that parable of Christ perfectly annihi- 
 lates the doctrine of inability ! It is amazing to me 
 that any man could ever plead or believe such a 
 doctrine, who had ever read that parable. No, ray 
 brother ; God's work which he requires is reasonable, 
 for it requii-es no impossibilities. He requires of 
 you to use all the ability he has given you for him 
 at all times, and under all circumstances, — no more 
 and no less. 
 
 4. You are not idle because Christ has failed to 
 place before you inducements to prevail upon you 
 to enlist in this work. 
 
 What inducement do you want ? The very work 
 itself ouglit to move any heart that has any regard 
 for right. Christ calls upon you to enlist in the 
 noble work of promoting the holiness and happiness 
 of the human race, by prevailing upon them to love 
 God and one another, and travel together up to the 
 New Jerusalem. Such a work ought to be motive 
 
IDLENKSS. lOo 
 
 enough. To have the privilege to engage in such a 
 work ought to captivate and delight all your hearts. 
 But he has not left the matter here. Christ steps 
 upon the battlements of heaven, and waves before 
 the inhabitants of earth a crown of righteousness 
 that fadeth not away. " They that turn many to 
 righteousness," he proclaims, " shall shine as stars in 
 the kingdom of God forever." What higher induce- 
 ments do you want ? What higher inducements 
 can a God give ? A heaven of unspeakable bliss 
 and joy, a seat in the heavenly world among the 
 glorified ones, is to be the reward of the faithful in 
 his service.- 
 
 IV. I AM NOW TO TURN YOUR ATTENTION TO SOME 
 THINGS WHICH CONSTITUTE REASONS WHY YOU ARE 
 IDLE. 
 
 1. Then, I remark, one reason is this : You do 
 not take time to look at the work, — its extent, its 
 importance, and its rewards. You are so absorbed 
 with What shall I eat ? what shall I drink ? where- 
 withal shall I be clothed ? and how shall I make 
 money and become rich ? that you will not take 
 time to think. If you would take one half hour 
 each day, sit down and think seriously and intelli- 
 gently upon the infinite value of one soul, then look 
 around and see the multitudes who are in the way 
 to death, you would awake, if you are a Christian. 
 You would act, your tongue would be unloosed, 
 your voice would be heard pleading for Christ and 
 
106 IDLENESS. 
 
 the souls that are ready to perish. But now you 
 rush through one day and then another in pursuit 
 of earth and earthly things, without taking time to 
 look into eternity and dwell- upon what lies beyond 
 the tomb ; and of course you have no feeling, no 
 heart that yearns over dying men. Truth will not 
 produce an effect upon the heart only as the mind 
 dwells upon it, and views it in all its solemn reali- 
 ties. Topics upon w^hich the mind dwells will call 
 forth corresponding feeling. If your thoughts are 
 mainly absorbed with the riches, pleasures, and hon- 
 ors of earth, you will feel and act upon these sub- 
 jects. But let the mind contemplate God, heaven, 
 hell, the judgment, eternity, the value of the soul, 
 the beauty and claims of the divine government, the 
 great evil of sin and the value of holiness, the great 
 system of reform God has instituted to save men, 
 and a multitude of other great moving considerations 
 such as you find in the Bible, and how quick the soul 
 of the Christian is aroused, his stupidity is broken 
 up, his idleness is at once abandoned, he girds him- 
 self afresh for the fight, he sees distinctly and truly 
 that the fields are all ripe, ready for the harvest, and 
 he hastens into them without delay to gather souls 
 to Christ. Do you doubt in relation to the correct- 
 ness of this position, go and test it by experience, 
 and then you will be qualified to judge. 
 
 2. Another reason why you are idle is, because 
 you lose sight of the fact that, if you neglect your 
 
IDLENESS. 107 
 
 part of the work it will remain undone forever. 
 But, says one, if I neglect my part of the work, 
 will not God send some other being to do it ? No, 
 NEVER I There is no other being that can do it. 
 Every other being in the universe has all the work 
 assigned him to do that he is capable of performing, 
 let him work with his might through all the coming 
 ages of eternity. To turn aside to do your work, if 
 it were possible for him to do it, would be to neg- 
 lect his own and become a transgressor. He can 
 only do his own, if he does his best. But, says 
 another, if I neglect to warn and labor for the con- 
 version of that sinner, cannot God send some other 
 one to warn him ? Doubtless he can ; but when 
 that other man warns him, he is doing his own 
 work, not yours. God has now sent him to warn, 
 and he is doing his own duty, in obedience to God's 
 command. Your duty still remains neglected and 
 undone. Please sit down and contemplate this 
 truth and keep it before the mind. If I neglect my 
 duty, no other being can do it for me. It will re- 
 main a neglected duty forever, and the respon?;ibility 
 is on me. I cannot shake it off, and do my duty by 
 proxy. It must meet me at another day. 
 
 3. Another reason still is, because you lose sight 
 of the fact that you cannot do the work of the pres- 
 ent hour in the next. Present duty must be done in 
 present time, or not at all. Neglect it to-day, and 
 there is no point in all the future when you can 
 
108 IDLENESS. 
 
 attend to it. But, says an objector, if I neglect 
 to warn that sinner to-day, and we both live until 
 to-morrow, can I not warn him then ? No doubt 
 you can ; but when you warn him, are you doing 
 the work of yesterday or to-day? You are doing 
 the work of the present moment, and not of any 
 preceding one. The duty you neglected yesterday 
 is neglected still, and will be when you die and go 
 to the judgment, and never can be done through all 
 the coming future. Each moment as it comes is 
 loaded down with all the duty you can do, if you do 
 your best ; so that you cannot go back and take up 
 a duty you neglected yesterday. You have all you 
 can possibly do w^hich belongs to the present. Con- 
 sequently, when your duty is once neglected, you 
 can never afterwards make any amends or atone- 
 ment for it. If atonement is made, it must be 
 made by some other person or being, and not by 
 you. Now keep this truth before the mind, and if 
 you have any piety it will move your heart. Think, 
 when you are about to neglect present duty, if you 
 neglect it now it can never be done, and will forever 
 remain a neglected duty. 
 
 4. You forget or do not realize another truth 
 which is a reason why you are idle. That truth 
 is this. You will be held strictly accountable for all 
 the good you can do, whether you do it or not. 
 
 Who has any realizing sense of this truth ? What 
 multitudes in the church who hardly think of their 
 
IDLENESS. 109 
 
 usefulness to others ! Do they inquire, Can I do 
 good to-day, and if so, how ? If I engage in this, 
 that, or the other business, will it contribute to rny 
 usefulness to the world ? How and in what em- 
 ploynment can I best promote God's glory and the 
 highest good of man ? These are questions that 
 have but little influence over great multitudes in the 
 church. Now remember, that the life which leaves 
 usefulness out of the account, or makes it a second- 
 ary matter, is an impenitent life. The sinner lives 
 neither for the glory of God nor the good of man, 
 but for himself. When a professing Christian does 
 the same, he is an impenitent sinner, and not a 
 Christian. To lose sight of your usefulness is to 
 lose sight of the great end for which you were cre- 
 ated. God created you to glorify him and com- 
 municate good to others. He reigns to secure the 
 highest amount of good that can be secured to the 
 universe over which he presides. He demands of 
 all his creatures to cooperate with him, and labor for 
 the same great object. A true Christian will do it. 
 When he gave himself up to God, he gave himself 
 up to glorify his Maker and do good to others the 
 rest of his life. In the light of this truth, have you 
 ever been a true Christian ? If so, have you back- 
 slidden from that work, and become an idler ? Have 
 you forgotten that God will hold you accountable at 
 the judgment for all the good you can do, whether 
 you do it or not ? Not only for the good you f/o, 
 
110 IDLENESS. 
 
 but for all the good you are capable of doing. What 
 iuimense good this church could do, if each member 
 would give himself fully up to this work to-day, and 
 make it the great end for which he lives, the remain- 
 der of his life. If you would fly to God for tlie 
 Holy Spirit to fill your hearts, study and pray over 
 your Bibles, cultivate your intellectual powers, store 
 your minds with useful knowledge, and then com- 
 municate that knowledge to the world. What an 
 influence you would exert over this community I 
 Again, remember for every soul you could lead to 
 Christ, and for all the influence you could exert for 
 good over your families and others, you are to be 
 held solemnly accountable at God's bar. 
 
 If you would keep this truth constantly before the 
 mind, how could you be idle and be a Christian ? 
 Idle you would not be. You would be awake, all 
 awake. You would work with your might, and the 
 whole region would be aroused. Sinners would look 
 on and say, that looks like it. There is a church 
 that believes what she professes. God is with them, 
 and it is time for us to prepare for eternity. 
 
 5. Another reason why some are idle in the church, 
 is because they do not love the work God requires at 
 their hands. 
 
 They love wealth, and long to be rich. They are 
 full of zeal in every money-making scheme. They 
 love the honors of earth and will seek them. They 
 love to have their names before the world, and be 
 
IDLENESS. Ill 
 
 called of men, " Rabbi, Rabbi." They love earthly 
 pleasures and will pursue them. Their hearts are in 
 such things ; but God's work they do not love. Now 
 such beings may be in the church, but they are not 
 in the way to heaven. Such beings may vainly think 
 they are Christians, and pretend they are leading a 
 godly life ; and some of their neighbors may think 
 them so, but God knows better. What ! be a Chris- 
 tian and not love God's work ! What does the Devil 
 himself do more than hate God's work ? The very 
 thing which makes him the Devil is because he does 
 not love God's work. And can you be in the same 
 state of heart and be a Christian ? It is utterly im- 
 possible I A person who hopes he is a Christian in 
 such a state of heart, is resting upon a false hope 
 that will fail him in the day of trial. He is in the 
 way to hell, and will lie down in sorrow at last, being 
 dragged down to the pit under the delusive idea that 
 he is in the way to heaven. No, my precious friend, 
 if you are in the church and do not love God's work, 
 give up your hope, it will be your ruin. Go home 
 and repent ; get a good hope, and then you will love 
 God's work. It will be dearer to you than anything 
 else. It will break up your idleness effectually, and 
 you will become an active, laborious child of Jesus 
 Christ. 
 
 6. Another class in the church are idle, because 
 they are not willing to meet the self-denial which the 
 work demands. 
 
1 1 2 IDLENESS. 
 
 " If any man wall come after me," says Christ, 
 " let him deny himself and take up his cross and fol- 
 low me." Christ's whole life was one of self-denial. 
 He left heaven with all its joys, and came to this 
 wicked world to labor and toil, suffer and die for 
 man. What an example he has set us in this par- 
 ticular. He proclaims to al] the world, if any man 
 will come after me, let him deny himself. This 
 implies that no man can come after him without self- 
 denial. The life of the Christian is a life of self- 
 denial. The man who thinks he can live a Chris- 
 tian life without it, is laboring under a grand mistake. 
 It is impossible ! To be a Christian you must seek 
 not your own honor, but Christ's ! Not your ease, 
 but the highest good of the world, and be willing to 
 wear yourself out to secure that end I Not your 
 pleasure, but God's will, which is to govern and con- 
 trol your life. How many in the church falter here ? 
 They are not willing to meet this self-denial, and 
 consequently sit down in idleness. They want their 
 own way, and to attend to their own business to the 
 neglect of that of God. Consequently, they are 
 idlers so far as God's work is concerned, and are 
 hastening to the judgment in this state of mind. 
 
 REMARKS. 
 1. God never created any being to be idle. All 
 the intelligent beings he ever formed he created to 
 
IDLENESS. 113 
 
 be active, do good, and cooperate with him in pro- 
 moting the highest good of the universe. But, says 
 one, were not our first parents idle before the fail ? 
 Not at all. God had no sooner created them, than 
 he put them at once into active life. He put Adam 
 into the Garden of Eden, and commanded him to 
 dress and keep it. He called upon him to name the 
 beasts of the field, and the fowls of the air. Such 
 scraps of history show that Adam was not idle in 
 the state of holiness. He was active in doing God's 
 will and not his own. But, says another, if we ever 
 reach heaven, we shall have nothing to do but sit 
 down and enjoy it. Idle in heaven! Heaven is one 
 of the most active places in God's universe. How 
 he keeps his angels on the wing to do his bidding. 
 Look yonder, there are four standing on the four 
 corners of the earth with the winds of heaven under 
 their control. There is another ascending from the 
 East with the seal of the living God in his hand, and 
 he cries out to the four angels and demands of them 
 not to hurt the earth until he has sealed the servants 
 of God. There are seven others having seven trum- 
 pets to sound. Here are seven moi-e with the seven 
 last plagues to pour out upon the earth. There is 
 another on the wing with the everlasting Gospel to 
 preach, and still another flying through the heavens 
 crying " Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the 
 earth I " Yonder comes another with a rainbow 
 about his head, and he puts one foot upon the 
 
114 IDLENESS. 
 
 earth and the other upon the sea, and raises his 
 hand to heaven and closes up time. How these 
 descriptions show that heaven is awake, and all 
 activity ! The angels on high cooperate with God 
 in the affairs of earth, and in carrying out his great 
 designs in relation to this world. If you expect or 
 wish to go to an idle heaven, you must go to some 
 other than the one God has provided. 
 
 2. I remark, the true way to be happy is to work 
 not for self but for God. As man was created for 
 activity, and not for idleness, he cannot find happi- 
 ness in idleness. A man in this state not only fails 
 to answer the great end for which he was created, 
 but he fails to meet the demands of his nature. His 
 nature demands a useful station that will call forth 
 his intellectual and physical power and give them 
 employment. His moral nature demands that that 
 employment shall be calculated to secure good to 
 himself and otliers, and be honorable to his Maker 
 who conferred upon him these powers of usefulness. 
 To live therefore with no useful end in view, or 
 waste your time in idleness, cannot and will not 
 satisfy the mind. The soul is uneasy and unhappy. 
 
 The most unhappy beings on earth are the idle 
 loungers who are living with no good end in view. 
 The haj)piest men the world ever saw, are those 
 who have labored and worn themselves out for 
 God. Their peace has been like a river. They 
 could speak of a fulness of joy. How they have 
 
IDLEN^S. 115 
 
 triumphed in death and left the earth with a soul 
 full of Heaven I Your own experience, doubtless, has 
 taught you this lesson if you have watched your 
 own heart. Let a Christian go into the field and 
 labor and toil to save men, how quick his heart is 
 full ! Let him sit down in idleness and live for 
 other purposes and not to do good, how quick his 
 heart is lean ! If you w^ould be happy then, my 
 brother or sister, give your life up to be useful to 
 mankind. 
 
 3. You can see the cause of all the leanness of 
 heart among professing Christians. You are idle ; 
 that is your trouble. 
 
 4. A religion which does not make an active 
 Christian, is a delusion. Religion made Christ ac- 
 tive, the apostles active, and the primitive church, 
 Luther, Wesley, Whitfield, Edwards, and all men 
 in every age of the world, who have truly had it in 
 their hearts. You cannot keep a man from acting 
 for God and the good of man, whose soul is alive 
 with religion. The primitive church whose hearts 
 were fired up with this holy religion would die by 
 the thousand, rather than sit down in idleness. 
 Now remember, my brother, if you are an idler you 
 are not a Christian. If you are a Christian you 
 will act and labor and toil for the good of man 
 and for the honor of your Maker. Why dream 
 about being a Christian, when you are destitute 
 of the feeling and life of a Christian? 
 
116 IDLENESS. 
 
 5. Sinners in this congregation should hear God's 
 voice in this text, for it is addressed to them as well 
 as to us. " Why," says Christ to these sinners 
 before me, "stand ye here all the day idle ? " Your 
 soul is neglected. Not a step have you taken yet 
 to prepare to meet your God. You are wasting 
 your life. You can do good if you repent. You 
 may lead others to Christ. God wants you in his 
 vineyard, and will judge you for all the good you 
 can do. You are capable of doing good, and were 
 created to do good and not evil. You are now doing 
 evil, immense evil. Why, says Christ, persist in 
 your evil course ? Young man, he addresses you, 
 do you hear him speak ? He wants your life given 
 to him. Now is your time to commence a career 
 of usefulness. Why, why throw away that useful 
 life? Will you not come to him now and 
 consecrate your whole being to his service? How 
 honorable, how noble to give yourself up to do 
 good to the world. Young lady, he calls you 
 also ; open your ear and hear. In your station what 
 good you can do ! You can mould others for 
 heaven. Christ wants your affectionate heart con- 
 secrated to him and his service. Shall he have it, 
 or will you throw away that life, and lift up your 
 eyes in despair in another world and lament your 
 folly ? No, no ; come to Christ to-day and live for 
 him and all is safe. 
 
IV. 
 
 THE TITHES. 
 
 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may he 
 meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the 
 Lord of Hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, 
 and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room 
 enough to receive it. — J\fal. iii. 10. 
 
 I. THE DUTY TAUGHT IX THE TEXT. 2. THE STRENGTH 
 AND MAGNITUDE OP THE PROMISE. 
 
 What a text! What a God, who is the author 
 of such a rich portion of truth ! How this text un- 
 folds his heart, his great heart, his boundless benevo- 
 lence ! How he loves to do for his creatures ! He is 
 never satisfied with doing, he cannot do enough I 
 Can such a heart be satisfied with bestowing small 
 blessings ? No, never, never. It wishes to do great 
 things. Its treasures of Grace and Mercy are inex- 
 haustible ; and does it wish to hoard them up like a 
 selfish, covetous soul ? Nought of that mean, nig- 
 gardly disposition. Benevolence is an eternal stran- 
 ger to selfishness. She has no communion or fellow- 
 ship with such a state of heart. Her happiness 
 consists in doing, not in receiving. She loves to 
 distribute and scatter abroad; to fill a world with 
 
118 THE TITHES. 
 
 bliss ; to roll a tide of glory over all heaven and 
 make angels shout with joy inexpressible ; to send 
 out her light and 'her love to the uttermost corner of 
 the universe, and fill it with infinite delight, so that 
 every heart shall be full and still then not room 
 enough to receive it. Such is God's great heart. 
 Such are his infinite desires. With such a text on 
 record, why is it that there is a sinner found uncon- 
 verted where the Bible is read ? Why are they not 
 all saved, and their hearts fuU and overflowing with 
 God's boundless love and mercy ? The fault cannot 
 be with God. This he affirms in many parts of the 
 Bible. He is ready and willing to save, and waits 
 the opportunity. If he possesses the heart and dis- 
 position which this text unfolds and ascribes to him, 
 this must be true ; it cannot be otherwise. If he is 
 so desirous to bless, says an objector, why not bless ? 
 Why not open the windows on high and let the bless- 
 ing come, until there is not room enough to receive it? 
 There is one thing in the way. That thing is with 
 man, and man must remove it out of the way or the 
 blessing cannot be given. 
 
 You should remember, God is acting in the capac- 
 ity of a public lawgiver, and not in that of a private 
 individual. In dispensing his blessings he must do 
 it so as not to indorse iniquity or set his seal of ap- 
 probation to crime. His own character and the 
 good of the universe require that God should be 
 guarded and particular on this point. He must 
 
THE TrriiES. 119 
 
 make a distinction between right and wrong. He 
 should bestow his mercies so as to encourage the 
 one and discourage the other. To treat the rebel- 
 lious and obedient subjects of his government pre- 
 cisely alike, would be to say by a public act of his, 
 that he looked upon rebellion as meritorious as 
 obedience, or sin as deserving of his smile as holi- 
 ness. Such conduct on the part of God would not 
 only tarnish his character, but would do immense 
 mischief to the universe. 
 
 What would be the effect, if this Commonwealth 
 should treat the murderer the same as it treats the 
 man who has a sacred regard for human life, or the 
 thief the same as it treats the honest, upright citizen ? 
 Such a course would break down all the safeguards 
 thrown around society to protect it, and open wide 
 tiie floodgates of iniquity. It would break down 
 all government, all order, and the State would be 
 ruined. The life and property of every man would 
 be in jeopardy. Who would wish to live amid the 
 state of things that would soon follow. 
 
 So in God's kingdom, if he, by his public acts 
 should encourage sin, or cease to discourage it, who 
 could tell the result to the universe ? With all the 
 discouragements to sin which an infinite God has 
 hung out in his government, sin has entered the uni- 
 verse. It has ruined a large class of angels, it has 
 invaded our world and spread over the whole human 
 race. What other worlds it would destroy, and 
 
120 THE TITHES. 
 
 what would be the limits to its ravages, if God 
 should cease to discourage it, no mind but the Infi- 
 nite one can foresee. For aught we know the whole 
 universe might be ultimately ruined. How impor- 
 tant, therefore, that God in dispensing his blessings, 
 should do it so as not in the least to encourage sin. 
 He is particular here, for he has a most sacred regard 
 for right, and he would sooner let the whole world 
 go to hell than indorse their iniquity to save them. 
 For this reason he requires of all individuals, before 
 he will bless, to come into a right state of heart. 
 Then he is ready ; then the windows will be opened 
 and the blessing come. How clear this truth stands 
 out in my text. Here is a great and rich promise ; 
 a strong motive presented to encourage us to come 
 out and seek for great blessings. But here is a duty 
 presented in the front rank, and the promise lies in 
 the rear of the duty. " Bring in your tithes," says 
 God ; that is the duty. Then " I will open the win- 
 dows," &c. ; that is the promise. How many will try 
 to reach their hand around the duty to get hold of 
 the promise, if possible ! Your arm is too short, my 
 brother. There is no way of access to this promise 
 but to march up like an honest man and take up the 
 duty. The duty lies between you and the promise ; 
 and the duty must be met, or the promise is not yours. 
 How wicked hearts wish to reverse the order of 
 things here, and bring God to abandon his ground 
 and bless them on other terms I Let God first open 
 
THE TITHES. 121 
 
 the windows of heaven, says such a heart, and pour 
 out a blessing until there is not room enough to re- 
 ceive it, and then we will bring in the tithes. Won- 
 derful ! Let God bless you in a wrong and wicked 
 state of heart, and thus indorse your unrighteous- 
 ness, and then, — then what ? Oh, then we will do 
 our duty. No, you would not. That is false. You 
 would say. Well, I have obtained the blessing ; that 
 is all I wanted. God would not have blessed if we 
 were not about right, and we will live as we have 
 done. God will do no such thing ; he understands 
 your deceptive heart too well, and he wiU not be mis- 
 led by it. He has taken his position ; that position 
 is right, and he will not come over an inch, and he 
 ought not. Bring in your tithes, says God, all your 
 tithes, and then the blessing is yours ; but on no other 
 conditions can you have it. 
 
 Do you, as individuals, as a church, desire this 
 gi-eat blessing on these terms ? Do you say yes ? 
 Stop, my brother. Look again at these terms. Look 
 close. Bring all your tithes. One half, nine tenths, 
 ninety-nine one hundredths will not answer here. 
 That is not all. All your tithes. You will de- 
 sire to get off with a part. God will make no com- 
 promise with you. You must meet these terms ex- 
 actly, — with a willing, cheerful heart, and lay all on 
 his table ; and when everything is consecrated, then 
 the windows will be thrown wide open, and the 
 blessing will come. 
 
122 THE TITHES. 
 
 Now then, do you wish the blessing upon such 
 terms ? Do I hear you respond yes ? Very well, 
 then let me have your undivided attention while I 
 undertake to expound these terms in the text. 
 
 I. I will show what this duty implies. 
 
 II. Call your attention to the promise, — its 
 strength, — its greatness. 
 
 I. I AM TO SHOW WHAT THE DUTY IN THIS TEXT 
 IMPLIES. 
 
 The word tithes meant this, under the Jewish 
 dispensation : They were required to give one 
 tenth of all they possessed to God, to support the 
 Jewish religion. One tenth of their sheep, one tenth 
 of their oxen, one tenth of their grain, one tenth of 
 all they had was to be brought to God and pre- 
 sented to him. Another thing, in bringing this of- 
 fering to God, they must bring the best they had. 
 God would not accept the lame and sickly of the 
 flock. They must select the hale, the robust, the 
 best of the flock, or he would spurn their offering. 
 No selfishness was to be allowed in this matter; he 
 would not tolerate a little, niggardly spirit. He 
 wanted an offering made in righteousness, one that 
 came from a cheerful heart, a whole-souled offering. 
 
 But we are not under the Jewish dispensation, 
 says one. I admit it. But all these Jewish customs 
 teach, and were designed to teach, lessons of im- 
 portance to us. What does bringing in the tithes 
 under the Christian dispensation imply ? I answer, 
 
THE TITHES. 123 
 
 to meet God in his claims, all his claims, and sub- 
 mit to do them cheerfully. This was the spirit of 
 the passage in its application to the Jews. God 
 demanded one tenth. To meet God in that de- 
 mand, and obey him, was bringing in the tithes. 
 
 To bring in our tithes, all our tithes, is to meet 
 God in every claim he lays upon us, and submit in 
 obedience to those claims, cheerfully and with a full 
 heart. Under this general idea let me specify a few 
 things to make this duty simple and clear to all. 
 
 1. Then God says, son, daughter, give me thine 
 heart. This is God's first, this is among his most 
 important claims. This neglected and all is a fail- 
 ure. No other duty can be acceptable to God, if 
 the heart is withheld. " If I give my goods to feed 
 the poor, and my body to be burned," says Paul. 
 " and have not charity or love, I am nothing.'' All 
 is unacceptable without the heart. Give me thine 
 heart, says God. Do you hear him ? Bring in 
 your tithes. Will you obey God in this first de- 
 mand ? Or do you wish to back out from the 
 position that you wish this great blessing upon the 
 terms propounded in the text? Some one inquires, 
 perhaps, what is it to give the heart to God ? Do 
 you make that inquiry because you wish to give 
 God your heart, or as a mere matter of speculation? 
 If you wish to give up your heart and comply with 
 this demand, I will explain this duty so that all 
 may understand. Now mark the definition. 
 
124 THE TITHES. 
 
 The souVs heart is the mind's choice of an end for 
 which it lives. If it select a right end, and conse- 
 crates its whole being to secure that end, it has a 
 right or a good heart. If it selects a wrong end, 
 and consecrates its powers to secure that end, it has 
 a wicked or impenitent heart. Giving the heart to 
 God, then, is always an act of the will. It is the 
 mind's choice. It is the mind's choice of an end, — 
 the mind's choice of a right end. It is the mind's 
 choice of an end, to promote which she consecrates 
 all her powers. What, then, is the end which the 
 mind selects in giving the heart to God ? I answer, 
 it is Gods will. It selects Gods ivill as the end for 
 which it lives ; and to secure which, consecrates its 
 whole being. That is giving the heart to God. 
 That is something you can understand. That is 
 something you can do. 
 
 Will you do it? Will you meet this first claim 
 of God now ? Will you now say to God, whose 
 all-pervading spirit surrounds you. Here, Lord, is 
 my heart. I now, henceforth and forever, give vip 
 my whole being to do thy will. Not my will but 
 THINE be done ? Bring in your tithes ; you must 
 not fail here ; if you do, you fail of the blessing. 
 
 2. The second claim God levys upon you is upon 
 your bodies. 
 
 Says Paul : " I beseech of you by the mercies of 
 God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, 
 holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable 
 
THE TITHES. 125 
 
 service." Present your bodies to whom ? To God. 
 Present them a living sacrifice, not a dead one. 
 Present them holy, not sinful. This will be accep- 
 table to God. It is a reasonable service or demand, 
 says the Apostle. Thus God sets up a claim to 
 your body, as well as your heart. He demands that 
 you give it to him, and use it for him in his ser- 
 vice. God has a just and righteous claim upon your 
 body as well as upon your soul. He created the 
 body ; it is the workmanship of his hands ; it is his 
 lawful property, and he demands that you use it for 
 him. He claims the right to dictate in relation to 
 its use. He legislates as much over the body as he 
 does over the soul. He tells you how you shall use 
 it, and how you shall not. We get up a contro- 
 versy with God, about the use of the body. We 
 say we will use it as we please. No, says God, you 
 must use it as / please. Now while you keep up 
 this controversy he will not bless. You must stop 
 it and submit to his will, and let him dictate about 
 the body, and you obey. There is that hand, says 
 God. It is my hand, I created it. Use it for me 
 and not my adversary, the Devil. If the Devil 
 created it, use it for him. But the Devil did not 
 create it. I created it, use it therefore for me. 
 How can you use it for the Devil ? If you wish to 
 use it to please the Devil instead of God, use it to 
 knock your neighbor down, to stab or shoot him, or 
 harm him in some form. But if you wish to use it 
 
12G THE TITHES. 
 
 for God, use it to do your neighbor good. If he has 
 fallen yonder in the street, and needs iielp, use it to 
 lift him up, and ?idminister to his wants. If he is 
 hungry, use it to feed him. If he is sick, use it to 
 administer to his relief. If you must use it to de- 
 fend your neighbor, use it to defend the wronged 
 party, and not the party which is inflicting the 
 wrong. Use it to defend liberty and justice, not 
 oppression and sin. If the slaves at the South rise 
 and undertake to fight in defence of their inalienable 
 rights, as our fathers did, and you are sent there to 
 .put down the insurrection, when you use your 
 hands to handle your musket, be sure and not aim 
 at the head of the oppressed party. What ! fight in 
 defence of oppression ! No, sooner die than do it. 
 If you must fight at all, fight for liberty and justice, 
 and not for oppression and wrong. 
 
 Never take sides with a party that is inflicting a 
 wrong, but take your position with the wronged 
 party ; and if you have any defence to make, make 
 it for him. I am aware that slaveholders and their 
 sympathizers, will cry out that such a doctrine is 
 horrible. But why horrible ? I answer, simply be- 
 cause they want you and the nation to defend them 
 in their deviltry. That has always been the cry of 
 tyrants. It is horrible, in their estimation, to fight 
 for liberty and justice; but patriotic and noble to. 
 stand ready to fight to put down liberty, and in 
 favor of oppression. Such men think they are 
 
THE TITHES. 127 
 
 heroes, and that we ought to make presidents of 
 them while they live, and raise monuments over their 
 graves when they die. Now understand, I am not 
 saying it is your duty to fight in any case. That is 
 not a question for me to discuss here. I do say, 
 however, you have no right to use your hands to put 
 down liberty and defend oppression. That is not 
 using them for God, but for the Devil. You should 
 use them to bless the human race. 
 
 Then there is the tongue, another member of the 
 human body. God demands that you use it for 
 him, and not for the Devil. It is a little member, 
 but you can do immense evil or immense good with 
 it. If you wish to use it for the Devil instead of 
 God, use it to backbite and slander your neighbor ; 
 use it to swear away his liberty, his property, his 
 reputation, his life ; use it for profanity and to blas- 
 pheme God ; use it to ridicule and sneer at sacred 
 things ; use it to keep your neighbor from repenting 
 and turning to God ; use it to defend error, sin, 
 and wrong-doing ; use it to cheat and deceive your 
 neighbor, so as to draw money out of him, without 
 rendering an honest equivalent, and in a thousand 
 other ways we have not time to name. But if you 
 wish to use it for God, use it to pray to him, and 
 bless his holy name ; use it to preach his Gospel, 
 and defend his truth ; use it to prevail upon men 
 to turn to God, to repent, to be good, holy at heart, 
 and upright in all things ; use it to plead for the 
 
128 THE TITHES. 
 
 poor, the oppressed and down-trodden ; use it to 
 rebuke sin in all its forms, and in all men. 
 
 Thus give your tongue to God. This he demands. 
 He claims the right to dictate about the 'use of the 
 tongue. He legislates over it, and you must give 
 it up to be controlled by him, if you would give your 
 body to God. God legislates over your ears also, 
 and tells you how to use them ; over the appetites 
 and propensities of your bodies, and tells when and 
 how you may indulge them, and how not. These 
 were all placed in your bodies for good ends, but they 
 can all be abused, and turned to bad account. God 
 tells you how to use them, and you are to submit 
 to his dictation, if you would give the body to him. 
 Paul understood it, and you must follow his ex- 
 ample. " I keep under my body," says the Apostle, 
 "and bring it in subjection, lest after I have preached 
 to others, 1 myself should be a castaway." Bring 
 it in subjection to what ? To God's will, to God's 
 dictation. Now we must do as the Apostle did, and 
 thus give the body to God. Bring in your tithes. 
 Bring your bodies and present them to God. Will 
 you do it ? Do you do it ? Now, God looks on, 
 and knows whether you do it or not. Will you 
 meet God in this claim he makes upon your bodies? 
 If not, you are not bringing in all your tithes ; you 
 are keeping back part of the price^ and will fail of 
 the blessing. 
 
 3. The next thing God demands is your time. 
 
THE TITHKS. 129 
 
 This also belongs to God the author, who meas- 
 ures it out to you moment by moment. From whom 
 do you derive it ? It is God who imparts it. That 
 he claims it as his, is evident from the fact that he 
 njakes you sick and well as he sees fit. He numbers 
 your days here on earth, without consulting you or 
 your wishes, and he cuts short your time by death, 
 when he sees fit; all of which would be wrong in 
 God if your time were not lawfully and rightfully his. 
 That time is valuable. With a right use of it you can 
 do good, or with a wrong use of it you can do evil, 
 great evil. How one rash act of one man, perpe- 
 trated in a few moments, may plunge a whole nation 
 into war, and sacrifice tliousands of human lives, 
 sending mourning and lamentation into a million 
 of hearts perhaps ! Oh, how it sends those wretches 
 unbidden into the presence of a righteous God, 
 amid their blasphemies and their blood ! What an 
 awful moment to them ! How ill-prepared for such 
 a meeting I 
 
 On the other hand, a moment's time, rightly used,' 
 may turn the scale with that sinner, and bring him 
 over to Christ, who, after a career of usefulness on 
 earth, may be exalted to heaven to tread her most lofty 
 heights of bliss, and drink of her river of life through 
 all the coming ages of a boundless eternity. What 
 consequences hang upon the right use of time ! 
 How many sinners have been saved by listening to 
 one sermon, one prayer, or from receiving one invi- 
 
 VoL. I. t) 
 
130 TIIK TITIIKS. 
 
 tation to come to Christ ! As I came out of church 
 in Boston, a gentleman approached me, and re- 
 marked, tliat some twenty years ago, in Oliio, he was 
 invited to hear me preach one sermon. That sermon, 
 said he, arrested my attention, led me to Christ, and 
 I hope I am now on the way to heaven. How many 
 instances I have known in my ministry, where five 
 minutes' talk has brought a sinner over I The nail 
 was fastened in a sure place and clenched, and the 
 soul sealed for heaven. Oh, those moments, my 
 brother, my sister, how precious, how precious! 
 God wants them, Christ purchased them with his 
 blood. Will you give them to him ? Will you 
 now lay that time on God's altar, and give it to 
 God to do good to the world ? Bring in all your 
 tithes. Do not have a controversy with God about 
 your time here, if you want this rich blessing. If 
 you give it to God, you will inquire of him how you 
 can use it to the best advantage to build up his 
 kingdom on earth, and glorify his great name. How 
 much time you have wasted ! Repent of that. 
 How you have undervalued your time, and used it 
 for yourself, instead of God I Put away all that 
 iniquity. Redeem the time for the future, and 
 seek forgiveness for the past. 
 
 Dear sinner, God will put you at a future day 
 where you will see the worth of time. When you 
 lie down to die and look over into eternity, then how 
 precious time will look! Said a dying queen, as 
 
THE TITHES. 131 
 
 she was going into eternity, " Millions of money for 
 a moment's time!" Now you have time measured 
 out to you by your Maker. Improve it as it passes, 
 so that you can meet your account joyfully at 
 another day. 
 
 4. In bringing in your tithes, God also demands 
 your influence. Are you ready to reply, " I have no 
 influence ? " Individuals frequently make that re- 
 mark, but it is not true of any person living. Every 
 one has an influence, and all are exerting it for good 
 or for evil every day of their lives. You are not 
 aware of the amount, nor the constant influence you 
 exert over others. You hardly move, speak, or give 
 a look in the presence of others without exerting an 
 influence over them. You may change the whole 
 purpose of a man's soul, ruin him, and blot out his 
 happiness endlessly by a look. In a congregation 
 where I was preaching, and where there was a very 
 interesting state of things, one evening, at the close 
 of a sermon, I requested, all who would give their 
 hearts to God to kneel in the last prayer. Many 
 dropped down before God to do up this important 
 work. One man, in the very act of kneeling, caught 
 the eye of an old scofling companion, whose scorn- 
 ful look changed his purpose, and he resumed his 
 seat, where he remained till the close of the exercises, 
 as unmoved as a marble statue. The judgment will 
 probably reveal the fact that that look ruined that 
 soul and sent it to hell. A lady in my presence was 
 
132 THE TITHES. 
 
 about to close a trade with a man, when a friend 
 caught her eye and gave her a meaning look. She 
 changed her purpose in an instant, and concluded to 
 take a little more time for consideration. That look 
 did up the work. I name these instances to show 
 what can be done by a look. You may kill the in- 
 fluence of that good minister over the minds of your 
 children, and prevent his leading them to Christ, by 
 a very few remarks. " Father," says the child, " how 
 did you like that man to-day?" "Oh," says the 
 father, " what he said was well enough, but his 7nan- 
 ner — I dislike his manner." That child henceforth 
 goes to church to watch the minister's manner. It 
 loses sight of all the truth he utters, and goes home 
 to imitate the father in criticizing the manner of the 
 minister. There may be rich, weighty, and vastly 
 important truths in the sermon, which, if reduced to 
 practice, would save the soul. But the child goes 
 down to hell criticizing the manner of the ministers, 
 in imitation of the father. If the father had called 
 the attention of the child to those rich and weighty 
 truths, and said to the child, " Reduce that truth to 
 practice, and you are safe," what a different influ- 
 ence he would have exerted over the child. These 
 wonderfully wise ones, however, who are always 
 criticizing the manner of ministers, are not always 
 the best judges of manner. That manner which 
 produces the strongest and most lasting effect upon 
 an audience-; which chains and fixes attention; ab- 
 
THE TITHES. 133 
 
 sorbs the congregation in the subject discussed, so 
 as to make time seem half its length — that is the 
 manner God approves, and let those condemn it 
 who dare. The minister who possesses it has un- 
 common power over his hearers, and sends his con- 
 gregation home with the truth all cleared up and 
 fixed in the memory. That is the manner which 
 will produce a lasting effect. The hearer will refer to 
 that sermon in after years, and say " how clear and 
 conclusive that subject was handled. It settled the 
 question in my mind forever." But you should be 
 cautious how you turn off your own attention, and 
 the attention of your children and others, to the 
 manner, and thus divert the mind from the truth. It 
 is the truth that will save, and not the manner, any 
 further than the manner enforces the truth. 
 
 Again, the influence you exert by example will be 
 good or bad. You can give it to God or against 
 him. To show what example will do, take one case 
 out of many I might name. In a church where I 
 was holding a meeting, one of the members, a pray- 
 ing lady, had an impenitent husband She became 
 very anxious that he should attend the meeting and 
 hear the preaching. After much persuasion, she 
 finally prevailed upon him to come one afternoon. 
 They started; but just before they reached the place 
 of worship, he looked over into the field and saw 
 one of the leading members of the church at work 
 on his farm. He stopped his team instantly, and, 
 
134 thp: tithes. 
 
 putting the reins into the hands of his son, said, " If 
 that church-member can stay at home to work, so 
 can I, for his business is no more important than 
 mine." He went back to his farm, and his wife 
 could never start him out again. The influence 
 of that example may have been fatal to that sin- 
 ner. Take care my brother how you step. The 
 eyes of the world are upon you, your example may 
 ruin them. There is a question of reform before 
 the community ; truth and righteousness on the one 
 side, and error and sin on the other. Perhaps error 
 and sin are popular. The mass of the people are 
 in their favor, and you want to be on the popular 
 side, so you go against the reform. Pause now, for 
 you are giving your influence against God. God 
 is on the side of truth, and he wants you there. 
 Bring in your tithes, says God, I want your influ- 
 ence for truth. Here you hesitate ; you say, if I take 
 that stand, it will hurt my influence ; it will aflect 
 my business. But stop, my brother; that is the 
 devil's reasoning. Your inquiry should be, on 
 which side are truth and righteousness ? The an- 
 swer to that question should settle the question of 
 duty. God takes his stand for truth and right. 
 He wants all his people to do the same. You can- 
 not bring in all your tithes without giving your in- 
 fluence where God gives his. You say, then, I will 
 take neutral ground. That will not answer. That 
 will not be bringing in all the tithes. There is an 
 
THE TITHES. 135 
 
 influence you could exert for truth and the right, 
 
 but you withhold it. That is withholding the tithes, 
 
 and not bringing them in as the text demands, IIow 
 
 quick the church could kill out all the ! i ii » # ^ ^ iiieic 
 
 is in the land, if she would throw all her influence 
 
 against the system ! Let every member, in every 
 
 visible church in the nation, take his stand to put 
 
 down this evil, and be as immovable as the hills, 
 
 anu !*wneiar could not live in the nation ten years. 
 
 Let every pulpit in the land thunder against this 
 
 awful crime, and let the church walk up in a solid 
 
 column to the ballot-box, north. and south, and ,de- •!» 
 
 &bawn of 4.he cl«v// 
 
 posit their votes against this " "im-irrf Trh^iin-flr;;;'^;' 
 
 and, together with the influence they would thus 
 exert over others, they would kill si9H^«j> dead, and 
 bury it so deep that it would never have a resurrec- 
 tion until the last trumpet should call it up to the 
 final account. Now God wants this influence of 
 his church brought into his storehouse, and he would 
 open the windows of heaven and deluge the nation 
 with his mercy. What say you, my brother? Shall 
 your influence from this hour be given to God ? 
 Will you now dedicate it, and let it be henceforth 
 sanctified and consecrated to the great work of pro- 
 moting truth and righteousness, and the highest 
 good of man ? 
 
 5. In bringing in your tithes, God wants you to 
 bring your children, and give them up to him. 
 
 He not only wishes to save you, but he wants 
 
l''?G THE TITHES. 
 
 them saved. He desires not only your influence for 
 good, but theirs. He wants you to give them to 
 him, then insti'uct and train them w]} for him. Come 
 into a state of heart where you will be more anx- 
 ious that they should be useful, than to accumulate 
 wealth ; to suffer privation and hardship in God's 
 cause, than to be honored by man. How many 
 pretend to give their children to God, when it is 
 not heart-work. God, in after years, may wish to 
 convert and put them into the ministry, or send 
 them to the heathen, to lead them to Christ; but 
 how quick their hearts object and rise up in oppo- 
 sition. Why Qt)jie(*t, if you have truly given them 
 to Christ, and are willing he should use them to 
 the best advantage to build up his kingdom ? Are 
 they his or yours ? If they are his, it is his place 
 to dictate, and yours to submit and acquiesce. Un- 
 godly men will give up their children to fight and 
 sacrifice their lives in honor and defence of their 
 country, while you, a Christian, are unwilling to 
 give up yours to fight the good fight of faith, and 
 lead souls up to heaven. God wants them. He has 
 a work for them to do. Will you bring them to- 
 day and give them all up, and let him send them 
 where he pleases ? Will you pledge yourself that you 
 will do the best you can to train them up for him ? 
 Do you hesitate here ? Then God may take them 
 by death ; or suffer them to pursue the road to de- 
 struction ; to grow up to be a disgrace to themselves 
 
THE TITHES. " 137 
 
 and those who gave them birth, and lie down in 
 sorrow at last. Will you bring in these tithes ? 
 
 6. In bringing in your tithes, God claims your 
 property. 
 
 Hear him assert his rights on this point, for a 
 moment. " The silver is viine, and the gold is mine, 
 saith the Lord of hosts." Hag. ii. 8. " Every beast 
 of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand 
 hills. The world is mine and the fulness thereof. 
 Psalms 1. 10, 12." 
 
 In these passages, and in many other places in 
 the Bible, God lays claim to all the riches and 
 wealth of earth. He declares it is his, and he claims 
 the right to dictate to the world in relation to its 
 use. He legislates over your property as much as 
 he does over your soul or body. Look at his right 
 for a moment. It is a most sacred one. He 
 created you, and the earth on which you reside, 
 with all its gold and silver, the beasts of the field, 
 and the fowls of the mountains. " The earth and 
 the fulness thereof," which includes everything. 
 This he affirms, and upon this act of creation, he 
 bases his claim to the whole, and his right to con- 
 trol the whole. 
 
 The right of property which grows out of the act 
 of creation, is the highest possible right. It is the 
 original or foundation right. No other rigiit can 
 annul or set it aside. Here God sets up his claim, 
 and what court in the universe can set it aside ? It 
 
138 THE TITHES. 
 
 can and will be maintained against all other claims, 
 by whomsoever set up. God is a righteous being, 
 and would not claim this property if it were not 
 lawfully his own. But he knows it is ; he knows 
 his rights and how to maintain them at a future 
 day. God demands of you to take his property in 
 your possession, and dedicate it to him, to whom 
 it belongs. It belongs to God. Dedicate it to him. 
 Use it according to his wishes and dictation. Bring 
 in your tithes, says God. Under this command, 
 you will, perhaps, grow uneasy. Some of you may 
 turn away as sorrowful as the rich young man, who 
 turned away from Christ, when he told him to sell 
 all he possessed and give to the poor, and then fol- 
 low him. Riches were his idol, and he was unwill- 
 ing to have Christ dictate on that point. There 
 are men in the church, whose property is their God. 
 If you .touch the one, you certainly will the other. 
 They do not feel that even God himself has a right 
 to dictate in relation to their property. My prop- 
 erty is my own, they affirm, and I have a right to 
 use it as I please. That property is not yours, it 
 is God's. So he affirms, and you are under obli- 
 gation to use it as he pleases, and not as you please, 
 unless you agree with him. Take care how you 
 get up a contention with God on this point, if you 
 v\?ant a blessing. This was the point of difference 
 between God and the Jews. They undertook to 
 use God's property as they pleased, and not as he 
 
THE .TITHES. • 139 
 
 pleased. God demanded one tenth of their prop- 
 erty to be given up to the support of the Jewish 
 religion, or rather his religion among the Jews. 
 
 They refused to be dictated to by God, and with- 
 held this property from him, who charged tliem 
 with being a set of robbers. Says God in Mai. iii. 
 9 : " Ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. 
 Ye are cursed with a curse." As a consequence, 
 God withheld his blessing from them, because they 
 would not bring and dedicate to him their property, 
 according to his direction. Will you fail of a bless- 
 ing on the same ground ? You get up a contro- 
 versy with God here. 
 
 Think now, does this touch your idol ? Do you 
 say. This is carrying the matter too far ; we cannot 
 stand that ; I -do wish you ministers would let that 
 matter alone ? I presume you do. But we are not 
 at liberty to do so. If you have any fault to find 
 here, find it with God, for he commands us to cry 
 aloud and spare not, and your controversy is witli 
 him and not with us. We are only showing you 
 his claims and not ours. We are bound to press 
 all the claims we find in the Bible. We are com- 
 manded to do it " whether men will hear or forbear." 
 The Bible's claims are God's claims. This is a 
 Bible claim as here shown you, and if you wish to 
 feel uneasy under this claim, and contend with your 
 Maker, and shut this blessing from your heart, you 
 can do so. God demands that you dedicate that 
 
140 " THE TITHES. 
 
 property, which he says is his, to him, and use it for 
 his glory. You can refuse to do it, and he will 
 withhold the blessing, as he did from the Jews. 
 Now what will you do ? He waits for your answer. 
 Will you write holiness to the Lord on everything 
 you have, give up all to him, and take this great 
 blessing on those terms. Or does your heart rebel, 
 and do you say this is requiring too much ? What 
 say you ? Decide, and God will decide. 
 
 II. I AM TO CALL YOUR ATTENTION TO THE PROM- 
 ISE, ITS STRENGTH, ITS GREATNESS. 
 
 1. I remark it is a strong one ; one of the 
 strongest promises that can be couched in human 
 language. The promise is much stronger than it 
 would have been if God had said, bring in your 
 tithes and I will open the windows and pour you 
 out a blessing. God here challenges you to put 
 him to the proof. After such a challenge, do you 
 think he will fail on his part, if you test him ? 
 
 You have dealt with that neighbor for years. In 
 all instances you have fulfilled your part of all con- 
 tracts to the very letter. You are now about enter- 
 ing into another agreement with him. You say I 
 will do so, if you will do so. He looks you in the 
 face and replies. If I thought you sincere in that 
 proposition, — if I could believe you would do as 
 you promise, I would do it. Indeed, you reply, have 
 I not dealt with you many years ? Have I ever 
 failed in one instance ? Put me to the proof be- 
 
THE TITHES. 141 
 
 fore you call in question my word. What a chal- 
 lenge ! How it expresses the strongest possible de- 
 termination to fulfil, on your part, if brought to the 
 test ! 
 
 God, in the text, challenges you to bring in your 
 tithes and put him to the. proof. He could not 
 give you a stronger promise. He could not express 
 his determination to fulfil, on his part, in stronger 
 language. Test me, he says, by bringing in all 
 your tithes, and see what I will do. 
 
 2. I remark this is a great promise. 
 
 There is everything embodied here that is neces- 
 sary to save a world. God will pour out a blessing, 
 and fill up your cup to overflowing, which will flow 
 to the next heart, and then to the next, and the next, 
 until the town, county, state, nation, and world is 
 deluged with his mercy, and then there shall not be 
 room enough to receive it. God's resources and 
 blessings are infinite, and never can be exhausted. 
 What a rich promise, enough for each and all for- 
 evermore. Let all the world bring in their tithes, 
 and the whole earth shall know by happy expe- 
 rience the richness and extent of this promise. 
 
 REMARKS. 
 1. From this subject we learn why they had so 
 great a revival on the day of Pentecost. In that 
 upper chamber the hundred and twenty brought in 
 
142 THE TITHES. 
 
 all their tithes, and we learn how God opened the 
 windows of heaven, and sent down that power 
 from on high, the Holy Ghost, to fill all their hearts. 
 Then how the work spread like fire through the 
 city ! What multitudes were gathered into the 
 kingdom. Hard hearts were melted. Individuals 
 who, a few weeks previous, had been ready to join 
 in the cry, away with him, crucify him, crucify him, 
 were now found calling for mercy, and submitting to 
 his peaceful reign. Three thousand were gathered 
 into the church the first day ! Five thousand were 
 converted soon after. What a triumphant work I 
 How the city moved in the face of the most bitter 
 opposition, and thousands on thousands were added 
 unto the Lord. 
 
 2. We see why revivals are greater in some places 
 than in others. 
 
 In some places only a few bring in their tithes. 
 God opens the windows and gives them a few 
 mercy-drops. In another place the church generally 
 come up to the work, then how God shakes the 
 place ! How he subdues and converts some of the 
 most abandoned in it! He makes his power known 
 until there is not a dog to move his tongue in op- 
 position. 
 
 3. We see why revivals stop. At the commence- 
 ment the church came up heartily to the work, and 
 laid themselves on God's altar for a season with a 
 cheerful spirit. God's mercy came in great power. 
 
THE TITHES. 143 
 
 After a season she became weary of giving all to 
 God, and began to take from his table a part of her 
 offering. Then he began to shut the windows down. 
 At length one retires to his farm and another to his 
 merchandise, and there is a general declension. 
 God hides his face in consequence of their back- 
 sliding and iniquity ; withdraws his mercy ; curses 
 them with barrenness and leanness of soul ; and 
 leaves them to contend and strive and bury them- 
 selves up in the world more deeply, perhaps, than 
 ever. 
 
 "When a people have had a great blessing and 
 great light, and backslide from that light, what a 
 great curse will follow ! Look out for a fearful 
 state of things in that place. I will be with you 
 while you will be with me, says God ; but if you 
 depart from me I will depart from you. The church 
 always forsake God first, then he is under the neces- 
 sity of withdrawing his blessing, lest he should in- 
 dorse their iniquity. 
 
 4. I have now shown you how you can have a 
 revival ; how you can have a great revival. Will 
 you have it on these terms ? That question I want 
 you to settle now, before you leave this place. My 
 brother, my sister, will you do it ? I must test you 
 here. Think now, God looks into your heart. You 
 cannot deceive him. He will know if you keep 
 back part of the price. All in this congregation, 
 both saint and sinner, who will now consecrate 
 
144 THE TITHES, 
 
 everything to God, and bring in all their tithes, I 
 want to stand in the last prayer, and give yourselves 
 up anew to God. Give all, all to him. Think, 
 my brother, before prayer is offered. Do you give 
 up ALL ? God help you ! Amen. 
 
V. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Ask, and it shall be given you ; seek, and ye shall find ; knock, 
 and it shall be opened unto you. — Matt. vii. 7. 
 
 1. PRAYER A DUTY. 2. AN IMPORTANT DUTY. 3. A HIGH 
 PRIVILEGE. 4. ASK, SEEK, AND KNOCK. 5. HOW TO PRE- 
 VAIL IN PRAYER. 
 
 What promises, coming from such a high source ! 
 How absolute these assurances I No perhaps it 
 shall be given here. " It SHALL be given," is 
 the solemn pledge ! Then the connection, making it 
 still more forcible and striking. Adding to this the 
 weight of God's moral character, his holiness and 
 truthfulness, and who can doubt for a moment these 
 absolute assurances ? What encouragement to seek 
 him ; to knock loud at heaven's gate ; to come to 
 such a God with all our wants, and to plead earnestly 
 and confidently to have them all supplied ! Nothing 
 more delights the infinite heart of our Maker than 
 to have us fly to his arms for help, and lean upon 
 his Almighty strength to do for us more than we can 
 ask or think. We are dependent creatures; depend- 
 ent upon him for all temporal and spiiitual blessings 
 
 VOL. I. 10 
 
146 rUAYER. 
 
 to supply our present and future wants. Every 
 good and perfect gift comes down from the Father 
 of Lights. Our bodies and our souls are the work- 
 manship of his hand; and if their wants are sup- 
 plied, they are supplied from his great storehouse. 
 How befitting that such dependent creatures should 
 pray ! Prayer is the language of dependence. It is 
 a frank and full acknowledgment to God of our true 
 state. Such frankness is pleasing to him, as he 
 wishes all beings to see and acknowledge their con- 
 dition as it is. He can do for us all that we need. 
 He can supply our every want. In the text, he man- 
 ifests his willingness, and gives us the assurance that 
 he stands ready to do, upon the simple condition of 
 our asking. What easy and reasonable terms ! If 
 our wants are not supplied under such circumstances 
 who is to blame ? If we are too proud and haughty 
 to ask for help, we ought to suffer. If we perish, 
 the fault lies at our own door, and our Maker is 
 clear. Under the guidance of this truth, I will pro- 
 ceed to show, — 
 
 I. That prayer is a duty binding upon all men. 
 II. That it is a very important duty. 
 HI. That it is a high privilege. 
 
 IV. I will then examine the three terms in the 
 text separately, — ask, seek, and knock. 
 
 V. I will answer the question, What is it to pray 
 as the Bible directs, or how can we offer prevailing 
 prayer ? 
 
PRAYER. 147 
 
 I. I AM TO SHOAV THAT PRAYER IS A DUTY BIND- 
 ING UPON ALL MEN. 
 
 Look at .our condition and the relations that exist 
 between us and our Maker, and reason will teach us 
 that it is the duty of all men to pray. We are not 
 ignorant of the fact that sceptical men often affirm 
 That they can see no consistency in this duty. It is, 
 however, amazing that a thinking, reasoning man, 
 who has any enlightened or intelligent views of the 
 state of things that exist between us and God, could 
 come to such a conclusion. Prayer is one of the 
 most reasonable duties that can be performed by the 
 human heart. A prayerless life is a most unreason- 
 able one. I do not believe that the reason of any 
 man ever led him to the conclusion that it was not 
 his duty to pray. It is a wicked heart that hates 
 prayer, and has forced him to such a conclusion, and 
 not reason's voice. ^That heart which is deceitful 
 above all things and desperately wicked has palmed 
 off its own wishes for reason's voice, and made him 
 believe it. If his heart loved prayer, how differently 
 he would view this whole matter. But let us hear 
 reason speak for a moment upon this vital question. 
 Reason affirms that two things are due from a being 
 who is receiving blessings from the hand of another: 
 1. That he should cultivate a spirit of gratitude 
 towards his benefactor. 2. He should express his 
 grateful acknowledgment in a becoming manner, for 
 favors conferred, to the being who is the author of 
 
148 PRAYER. 
 
 the blessings. This is a plain dictate of reason. 
 How natural to man to say " thank you, sir," or 
 " much obliged," when others confer favors upon 
 him. It is so natural that they do it without stop- 
 ping to think or to reason upon the point at all. It 
 is the spontaneous outgushing of human nature. 
 
 Take an instance as an illustration of this feeling! 
 When multitudes were dying with starvation in Ire- 
 land, some years since, and America stretched out 
 her hand of relief and saved a large class from an 
 awful death, was it necessary to introduce an argu- 
 ment to prove to those who were snatched from an 
 untimely grave, that they should feel and express 
 their gratitude to those who had sent them relief in 
 this hour of peril and distress ? Argument ? Na- 
 ture would not wait for argument. The Irish heart 
 poured forth its gratitude in every form in which 
 human nature was capable of expression. Their 
 tears of joy, their shouts of thanksgiving to God 
 and the strangers who had sent them relief, and their 
 prayers to the Infinite One for a thousand blessings 
 upon the heads of the Americans, was but a faint 
 expression of what the heart felt within. This is 
 reason's voice in the soul. It is her utterance of 
 what is right and befitting under such circumstances. 
 One other thing is a dictate of reason, namely, 
 that the gratitude and thanksgiving should be in 
 proportion to the blessings received. Now, are we 
 correct in the above sentiments ? Probably no one 
 
PRAYER. 149 
 
 will call in question their correctness. If, therefore, 
 the above positions be correct, they settle the whole 
 question of the reasonableness, consistency, and duty 
 of prayer. They decide the fact that it is the duty 
 of all men to pray. There is not a being on earth 
 who is not receiving great and constant blessings 
 from the hand of his Maker, — greater, higher, and 
 more numerous by far than he receives from any 
 and all other beings in the universe. If, therefore, 
 man is under obligation to feel grateful for favors 
 conferred, and express that gratitude -to his benefac- 
 tor, then he is under obligation to pray. Thanks- 
 giving is one of the important branches of prayer. 
 Consequently, he should approach his Maker in 
 prayer, and pour forth his grateful acknowledgment 
 for the thousand mercies which have been scattered 
 in his pathway from the morning of his being. 
 Thus reason decides. 
 
 Now let us turn our attention to the Bible, and 
 listen to its teachings in relation to this duty. In 
 looking into that sacred volume we shall find this 
 duty urged in a variety of forms. 
 
 1. The fact that God has given promises to prayer 
 settles the question of duty. Promises to prayer are 
 designed to encourage men to pray. But will God 
 encourage men to do what it is not their duty to do ? 
 To harbor such a thought of God is insulting and 
 wicked. You would do well to look into the Bible 
 carefuDy, and search out its promises. The Bible is 
 
150 PRAYER. 
 
 full of promises to encourage men to pray. Look 
 at my text, " Ask, and it shall be given." Again, 
 " Whosoever calleth upon the name of the Lord shall 
 be saved." Again, " Whatsoever things ye desire 
 when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye 
 shall have them." We could greatly multiply prom- 
 ises under this head, but it is not necessary. 
 
 2. The duty of prayer is made manifest from such 
 passages as the following, — Prov. xv. 8 : " The 
 prayer of the upright is his delight." When we 
 learn that a given course of conduct is pleasing to 
 our Maker, that settles the question of duty. What- 
 ever is pleasing to God must be right, and the oppo- 
 site must be wrong. The Bible makes it the duty 
 of all men to please God and to avoid all things that 
 wiU displease him. The text under consideration, 
 afiirms that the prayer of the upright is his delight. 
 That is, it is highly pleasing to God. 
 
 From this text two things are manifest. 
 
 1. All men should have upright hearts. Why ? 
 Because it is pleasing to God. 
 
 2. They should pour forth such upright hearts in 
 prayer to their Maker, as that is in harmony with 
 his wishes. 
 
 Now such passages as the above, teach the duty 
 of prayer as explicitly as a solemn command. They 
 fully reveal God's will. God's will decides the duty 
 to all. 
 
 3. But God commands men to pray. Pray always 
 
PRAYER. 151 
 
 with all prayer. Pray with all prayer; what does 
 that mean ? Pray with all kinds of prayer. Pray 
 in your closet. If you have families, pray with tliem. 
 Build up that altar never to go down until you go 
 down into the dark valley. Pray in the social meet- 
 ing and in the public sanctuary. Pray when about 
 your business or on a journey. Pray always. Do 
 not begin a praying life and then give it up. PRAY 
 ALWAYS. 
 
 Again, pray without ceasing, is God's command. 
 Live so as to have a spirit of prayer at all times and 
 under all circumstances. Always be in a praying 
 state of heart. Secure the divine influence to make 
 intercession in your heart, which always begets a 
 spirit of prayer. Never grieve it away. For no 
 man can maintain a spirit of prayer who gi'ieves 
 away the Spirit. He may keep up the form, but it 
 will be a mere form with no God in it. Pray. Not 
 say your prayers, but pray. Live so that the soul 
 wOl take hold of God and his promises at all times 
 without ceasing. 
 
 Again, I would that men should pray everywhere, 
 lifting up holy hands without wrath and doubting. 
 Everywhere. That is, wherever there is a man let 
 him pray, — in any house, town, city, state, nation, 
 or island of the sea. Anywhere on this wide earth 
 where there is a man, let him pray. That is my 
 command. That is my will, says God. What! 
 All sorts of men pray ? All sorts of men, from the 
 
152 PRAYER. 
 
 emperor on his throne, down to the most forlorn 
 beggar. The liar, thief, profane man pray ? " / 
 
 would that ALL, ALL MEN SHOULD PRAY." So thlS 
 
 text affirms. Would you have the liar pray ? JNIost 
 certainly. What ! and continue his lying ? Cer- 
 tainly not. The lying part I would have him stop, 
 and become a truthful man, and pray for forgiveness 
 for the past. And the profane man, — would you 
 have him pray ? I most certainly would. And con- 
 tinue to swear? No. I would have him stop at 
 once the swearing part, and use his tongue to pray 
 instead of profaning God's name. Let him seek 
 forgiveness in prayer for the manner in which he has 
 used his ungodly tongue. But would you have men 
 pray with a wicked heart ? No. I would have men 
 give up their wicked hearts immediately, and pray 
 with right hearts. What business have you to have 
 a wicked heart? God never gave you the right to 
 have a wicked heart. He demands of you to have 
 a right heart. To plead your wicked heart as an 
 excuse for neglecting this duty, is to plead your sin 
 as an excuse for remaining sinful. It is like the liar 
 pleading his want of truthfulness as an excuse for 
 remaining a liar. Or like the drunkard pleading his 
 drunkenness as an excuse for remaining a drunkard. 
 Again, I demand what right have you to have a 
 praycrless, wicked heart ? God would have every 
 man on his knees giving up his wicked heart, in his 
 first prayer, as the publican did, and crying, " God 
 
PRAYER. 153 
 
 be merciful to me a sinner." No, sinner ; this com- 
 mand is upon you as much as it is upon Chris- 
 tians. God does not say I would that Christians 
 should pray everywhere ; but I would that men^ 
 ALL MEN, should pray everywhere. You are a 
 man, and God speaks to you, and this command 
 is binding upon you, and you cannot shake it off. 
 How many feel that because they are not Chris- 
 tians, they are not under obligations to do the duty 
 of Christians. God's Bible does not give a set 
 of rules to govern Christians simply. It legislates 
 over men. It lays down a set of rules to govern 
 men, all men. It demands of all to be Christians, 
 and to attend to all the duties of Christians. Your 
 wickedness consists in not being Christians, and in 
 neglecting the duties that are binding upon all men. 
 Now remember this text demands of all men to pray. 
 You cannot flee from this responsibility. You will 
 have to meet it in future. Every hour you neglect 
 this duty you violate this solemn command of God. 
 V/iil you pray? If you never have prayed, will you 
 begin now ? I think I have now sufficiently settled 
 the question, that it is the duty of all men to pray. 
 
 11. I AM TO SHOW THAT PRAYER IS A VERY IMPOR- 
 TANT DUTY. 
 
 For wise reasons God has seen fit to offer certain 
 blessings to man, and make the reception of those 
 blessings depend upon the condition of their pray- 
 ing for them. Why God has adopted this course 
 
154 PRAYER. 
 
 we know not. He has not given us all the reasons 
 why, but the fact is revealed. It is manifestly a 
 part of the economy of grace. So the good book 
 teaches, and in this matter we are wholly depend- 
 ent upon its light to guide us. Blot out the light 
 we derive from that quarter, and there is not a phi- 
 losopher on earth, that could ever decide whether 
 God would positively hear prayer or not. Much 
 less could he determine upon what condition he 
 would hear it. Why does such a man as Theodore 
 Parker pray ? What evidence has he that God will 
 hear prayer ? He has no light on that subject, ex- 
 cept what he has borrowed from the very book he 
 has rejected as an unsafe guide. 
 
 Will God hear a set of rebels against his govern- 
 ment pray ? Will he answer their petitions ? If 
 so, upon what conditions ? Sucli questions can 
 only be answered by a direct revelation from God. 
 That revelation such men reject, and of course must 
 be all afloat, and wholly in the dark upon such points. 
 But to the Christian, the Bible is God Almighty's 
 lamp to guide his footsteps to a throne of grace. It 
 reveals the great truth, that God is a prayer-hear- 
 ing God, — that he will hear those pray who have 
 sinned and broken his laws, — that there is mercy 
 and pardon for such. The condition upon which he 
 can be pardoned and saved, and his prayers find ac- 
 ceptance on high, are here all made known. 
 
 Why should not the Christian love such a book ? 
 
PRAYER. 155 
 
 He does. He would sooner part with all things 
 earthly, than be deprived of the light it imparts upon 
 this and kindred subjects. But let us return from 
 this little digression to the point under considera- 
 tion. 
 
 In the Bible, prayer is presented as a very impor- 
 tant duty, for the following reasons : — 
 
 1. It is made the condition upon which God will 
 bestow certain spiritual blessings upon man. Take 
 an instance from Ezekiel xxxvi. 25-37 : " Then will 
 I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be 
 clean ; from all your filthiness, and from all your 
 idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I 
 give you, and a new spirit will I put within you : 
 and I will take away the stony heart out of your 
 flesh, and I will give you an heart of flegh. And I 
 will put my spirit within you, and cause you to 
 walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judg- 
 ments, and do them. And ye shall dwell in the 
 land that I gave to your fathers ; and ye shall be 
 my people, and I will be your God. I will also save 
 you from all your uncleannesses : and I will call for 
 the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine 
 upon you. And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, 
 and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no 
 more reproach of famine, among the heathen. Then 
 shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your 
 doings that were not good, and shall loathe your- 
 selves in your own sight for your iniquities and for 
 
156 PRAYER. 
 
 your abominations. Not for your sakes do I this, 
 saith the Lord God, be it known unto you : be 
 ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O 
 house of Israel. Thus saith the Lord God ; In the 
 day that I shall have cleansed you from all your in- 
 iquities I will also cause you, to dwell in the cities, 
 and the wastes shall be builded. And the desolate 
 land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the 
 sight of all that passed by. And they shall say. This 
 land that was desolate is become like the Garden 
 of Eden ; and the waste and desolate and ruined 
 cities are become fenced, and are inhabited. Then 
 the heathen that are left round about you shall know 
 that I the Lord build the ruined places, and plant 
 that that was desolate : I the Lord have spoken 
 it, and I will do it. Thus saith the Lord God ; I 
 will yet for this be inquired of by the house of 
 Israel, to do it for them ; I will increase them with 
 men like a flock." 1. Notice in relation to this 
 passage. Here are great blessings promised to 
 God's wandering people. 2. These blessings, how- 
 ever, are not to be received unless they inquire of 
 the Lord to do these things for them. " Thus saith 
 the Lord ; I will yet for this be inquired of by the 
 house of Israel, to do it for them." These great bless- 
 ings, promised in the abo^e passages, were abso- 
 lutely essential to fit God's ancient people for heaven. 
 They could not enter heaven without this same prep- 
 aration of heart promised in this portion of truth. 
 
PEAYER. 157 
 
 Still the fulfilment of the promise hangs upon the 
 condition ^f their inquiring or praying to the Lord 
 to do these things for them. How important a 
 duty upon which such weighty consequences hang. 
 
 2. Take another case where salvation is offered 
 to man, suspended upon the duty of prayer. Acts 
 ii. 21 : " It shall come to pass, that whosoever shall 
 call on the name of the Lord shall be saved." Here, 
 so far as man is concerned, salvation hangs upon 
 the right performance of this duty. Call on the 
 name of the Lord and you shall be saved. Sinner, 
 life or death, heaven or hell hangs upon your calling 
 upon the name of the Lord as you should. Will 
 you refuse to pray ? Drop upon your knees and 
 cry out to God with every breath for salvation, and 
 give him no rest until you are saved. Do you ask, 
 how shall I pray? I answer, pray as the publican 
 did. Follow his example in earnest, and you will 
 find God's ear will be open to hear, and your soul 
 will be safe. How important a duty upon which 
 such eternal things hang! 
 
 3. The gift of the Spirit is represented as being 
 given in answer to prayer. Luke xi. 13 : " If ye 
 then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto 
 your children ; how much more shall your heavenly 
 Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him ? " 
 The gift of the Spirit is absolutely essential to make 
 the Gospel effectual in saving the world. It is neces- 
 sary to convince of sin ; to convert the soul ; to make 
 
158 PRAYER. 
 
 intercession for the saints ; to help underf=tand truth ; 
 to assist in hearing and preaching the Gospel, and to 
 finish up the great work of leading and helping the 
 soul on to heaven. It is the crowning work of the 
 system of grace. It is the Almighty Agent that 
 nerves up the ministry and the church, and makes 
 the weapons of their warfare mighty to the pulling 
 down the stronghold of sin. In this great gift is 
 embodied our only hope of success. 
 
 Now this gi-eat blessing, this blessing that is of 
 infinite worth, is given in answer to prayer. He is 
 more willing to give the Spirit to those ivho ask him. 
 He will give it, then, if we ask. Who will refuse to 
 pray for such a great gift ; a blessing of such infinite 
 moment ? A man deserves to be damned who will 
 haughtily turn away, and refuse to pray under such 
 circumstances. And shall we, who profess to be 
 Christians, be indifferent about, and neglect a duty 
 upon which such great things hang ? No. Let us 
 cry out to God for this great gift until the whole 
 region moves under its power. 
 
 4. And finally, the Gospel always produces effect 
 in any place, just in proportion as it is accompanied 
 by the prayer of faith. I have marked that, in my 
 labors in revivals, for years. When Christians begin 
 to have a deep spirit of prayer, that draws out the 
 whole heart to God. When they begin to pray in 
 the Holy Ghost, the Gospel will begin to cut its 
 way. Then sinners begin to tremble. Then they 
 
PRAYf:R. 159 
 
 begin to cry for mercy, and the slain of the Lord 
 will be many. I never knew it to fail, when there 
 was a deep, solemn, agonizing spirit of prayer, but 
 that salvation would come. 
 
 This being the fact, how important this duty! 
 What responsibility is resting upon the church ! 
 God is ready to give the spirit in answer to prayer. 
 Are you living without a spirit of prayer, so essential 
 to bring.salvation to the people ? How long have you 
 lived in that state ? Sinners all around you are in 
 the way to hell, and you with no spirit of prayer ? 
 Think of it, what a state of heart that must be! 
 Will you not repent at once, and fly to God for the 
 outpouring of his Spirit, and give him no rest until 
 you see displays of his power all over this region ? 
 Look up for great things. He loves to do great 
 things. 
 
 HI. I AM TO SHOW THAT PRAYER IS A HIGH PRIVI- 
 LEGE. 
 
 What a strange state of mind the human family 
 are in! How blind! How infinitely blind to their 
 own best interest ! How their lives demonstrate 
 the* truth of the assertion in the good Book, — Ecc. 
 ix. 3 : " Madness is in their heart while they live." 
 They act more like deranged beings than like 
 rational, accountable creatures. The things that 
 are calculated to promote their highest good for 
 time and eternity, are the things which they hate, 
 despise, and neglect. The things that are cal- 
 
160 . PRAYER. 
 
 culated to destroy their peace and happiness both 
 for this and a future world, are the things to which 
 they cling with all the tenacity of human demons. 
 
 Take the subject under consideration as an illus- 
 tration of their folly and inconsistency. Prayer. 
 How few view prayer as a privilege ! The great 
 mass of men view a praying life as the most 
 gloomy, unhappy life a man can live. To them 
 prayer is anything but a privilege. It may be a 
 duty, but talk about its being a privilege, that is 
 wholly out of the question. Still it is true that 
 prayer is one of the highest privileges ever bestowed 
 upon man. To come to God with the assurance 
 from him, that he is both able and willing to supply 
 all our wants ; to commune with the Infinite One ; 
 to hold converse with the most exalted being in the 
 universe ; to have the privilege of access to that 
 being before whom the master intellects that burn 
 in heaven bow with profound reverence, and cast 
 their crowns at his feet, and cry. Holy, Holy is the 
 Lord God Almighty ; to have access to such a being 
 is a privilege so high and noble, that the grovelling 
 heart of man cannot estimate it. Men as a general 
 thing are so wedded to earth and earthly things, 
 the mere trifles of a day, that they have no relish 
 for the high and holy work of communing with 
 God. 
 
 How sin has blinded their minds ! How it has led 
 them to view evil as good and good as evil ! But, 
 
PRAYER. 161 
 
 poor sinner, you who hate prayer to-day, you who 
 would consider yourself disgi'aced to bow the knee 
 in this house and call on the name of the Lord, the 
 day is approaching when you would give all the 
 world if you had it at your command, if you could 
 have the privilege of offering up one prayer and have 
 it heard on high. You may see that moment before 
 you step down into the dark valley. You may, 
 however, rush into eternity before you awake to 
 view this matter as it is. But mark ! Awake you 
 will. View it in its true light you must. If the 
 Bible and the means of grace cannot arouse you, 
 and bring you upon your knees to cry for help, the 
 agonies of hell and the pangs of the second death 
 will do it. 
 
 What think you the rich man, who lifted up his 
 eyes and called for water to cool his tongue, would 
 have given to have had the privilege of offering one 
 prayer and had it favorably heard and answered ? 
 He prayed, and you would do well to read his prayer 
 and ponder it long. What a prayer I Hear him for 
 a moment ! Hark ! " Father Abraham, have mercy 
 on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of 
 his finger in water, and cool my tongue ; for I am tor- 
 mented in this flame." Look at this prayer. Did 
 he ask to be delivered from hell ? No ; he knew 
 doubtless that such a prayer would be fruitless. Did 
 he pray, send Lazarus with a bucket of water ? No ; 
 note its language, — " That he may dip the tip of 
 
 VOL. I. 11 
 
162 PRAYER. 
 
 his finger in water, and cool my tongue." That 
 tongue which had been profane and abusive on earth, 
 perhaps. What anguish now ! Only a drop of 
 water hanging to the tip of the finger would be some 
 relief. But no, no. No prayer coming up from hell 
 can be heard. In that world they may call, but I 
 will not answer. Sinner, in hell you will see the 
 value of prayer, if you cannot be led to see it here 
 and fly to Christ. But why rush into the flames of 
 the pit to learn it ? Why not learn it in Mercy's 
 world where there is a Mediator between Gpd and 
 man, and where your prayers can be heard and an- 
 swered ? Why wait until you are forced by sad ex- 
 perience to learn the full import of those dread words: 
 " Then shall they call upon me,' but I will not answer ; 
 they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me : 
 for that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the 
 fear of the Lord ? " To illustrate this high privilege 
 let us suppose a case : 
 
 Here is a man of imrriense wealth. His treasures, 
 we will suppose, are inexhaustible. He sends abroad 
 to the wide world this promise and pledge : If any 
 man, from any part of the globe, will come and ask 
 for it, he shall have all the gold he desires. One 
 man comes and asks for a thousand dollars ; he hands 
 it over. Another ten thousand ; his wants are sup- 
 plied. Another ten millions; the more the better, 
 is the reply ; giving does not impoverish me ; it is 
 my delight to give. Not a man approaches, but his 
 
PRAYER. 1G3 
 
 wants are all supplied. What a privilege to pray 
 under such circumstances! Men would rush from 
 every part of our land and the wide world to pray to 
 such a being. I am not mistaken on this point. 
 When the news was fully confirmed that gold could 
 be washed from the sands, and dug from the moun- 
 tains, in California, what a rush from almost every 
 part of the earth ! Men sold their property to pro- 
 cure means to reach the land of promise. They left 
 their families, and were ready to brave all manner of 
 dangers and hardships, and even look death in the 
 face, to obtain riches. They were not sure when 
 they reached there, that they should obtain the de- 
 sired object. They only had high hopes they should 
 find a vast treasure. Now let it be settled and fully 
 believed, that all that was necessary was for men to 
 come to the city of Boston and ask for all the gold 
 they wished, and they would certainly receive it, and 
 what a rush there would be to the old Bay State! 
 Every vessel, steamboat, and railroad car would be 
 freighted with applicants. 
 
 Now mark ! God, the Infinite God, who cannot 
 lie, and who is both able and ready to redeem his 
 pledge, looks down fi*om heaven and proclaims to 
 the world, to all the inhabitants of earth : " Ask and 
 it shall be given." What shall be given ? gold ? No ; 
 something far more valuable than all the material 
 universe, if it were all one solid mass of gold, shall 
 be given. Eternal life shall be given. The forgive- 
 
1G4: PRAYER. 
 
 ness of all your sins shall be given. " An inheritance 
 incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, 
 reserved in heaven for you," shall be given. Here is 
 something substantial ; something that is lasting 
 and valuable as heaven, shall be given ; something 
 that will stand by when the sun is blown out, and 
 when earth and all the gold and wealth shall be con- 
 sumed with one breath of the Almighty. Now what 
 a privilege to pray if these are the blessings, — if these 
 are the rewards of prayer I Who can refuse to pray 
 with such promises breaking upon his ear, and with 
 such a God to back them up ? If they will slight 
 such promises, they ought to die. 
 
 DIVISION NO. II. 
 
 We have already shown, 1. Prayer a duty ; 2. An 
 important duty ; 3. A high privilege ; and now, 
 
 IV. I AM TO EXAMINE THE THREE LEADING TERMS 
 IN THE TEXT SEPARATELY : AsK. SeEK. KnOCK. 
 
 1. Ask. We have had many labored definitions 
 of prayer, perhaps too labored in some instances to 
 be easily understood. The most simple and literal 
 definitions, as a general thing, are the best ; always 
 literal, unless the connection of the text shows that 
 it will not bear a literal construction. The first 
 definition that Mr. Webster gives to the word pray, 
 is, the first word in my text, ask. To pray, accord- 
 
PRAYER. 1G5 
 
 ing to this definition, is, to ask. Prayer supposes 
 that there are blessings in the hand of another being 
 that we need, and we come to that being and ask 
 for them. One of the first lessons we ever learned 
 on earth was to pray. Understand, now, I do not 
 affirm that the first lesson we learned on earth was 
 to pray to God. We pray to other beings besides 
 God. We pray to one another. Children pray to 
 parents. Tliey are dependent upon their parents, 
 very dependent in the early stage of their history, 
 and they come and ask for things they need. That 
 is, they pray to them for such things. Children pray 
 before their infant tongues can pronounce a word. 
 How often I have seen such little fellows ask. And 
 there was an eloquence about their petitions that 
 would move a mother's or a father's heart. The 
 reaching up of that little hand for help, accompanied 
 by that wishful, imploring look, which expressed its 
 whole heart ; or that cry of distress, — how it would 
 go through a parent's soul, and move him to grant at 
 once, the relief or blessing sought ! If this definition 
 of prayer be correct, it fully disposes of the position 
 taken by some, that prayer consists simply in having 
 good desires. A man who thinks he is a praying 
 man, because he has good desires, is deluded and 
 deceived. Good desires are not prayer. We admit 
 there is no prayer without good desires. But the 
 good desires are one thing, and prayer is another. 
 Prayer consists in having good desires, and olTering 
 
1 1)0 PRAYER. 
 
 up those desires to God in the name of Christ, and 
 asking that they may be granted. Having the de- 
 sire in the heart, and leaving off the asking' part, is 
 not prayer. Why ? Simply because prayer is ask- 
 ing for things we need. But, says an objector, God 
 knows my desires ; he looks into my heart, and 
 knows my heart fully. Grant all that; but his 
 knowing your desires does not take away your 
 duty of asking, nor perform it for you. He has 
 made it your duty to ask, and he will not bestow 
 the blessing unless you ask. He has made that the 
 condition of your receiving the blessing, and he will 
 not alter it. Now why deceive yourself, and cheat 
 your soul out of the blessing you might receive, by 
 such cavils ? Why undertake to dodge this plain 
 duty? Why not meet it like a man? The terms 
 are simple and most reasonable, and your under- 
 taking to define, so as to dodge this duty, shows a 
 state of heart of which you ought to be ashamed, 
 and over which you ought to weep and repent. 
 
 But, says the objector again, do you pretend we 
 cannot pray without using the tongue ? No, cer- 
 tainly not. In communing with God, the mind 
 frequently dispenses with the use of the tongue. 
 But that does not settle the question that desire is 
 prayer. Far from it. In all such cases the desire 
 in the heart is one thing, and the mind's offering up 
 those desires to God, and asking that the desires 
 may be 'granted is another and distinct thing. The 
 
PRAYER. 1G7 
 
 mind asks and urges her suit before God, and does 
 it effectually in multitudes of instances, even when 
 the tongue is silent. 
 
 2. Seek. To illustrate this word let me suppose 
 a case. Here is an individual who steps into the 
 congregation and assures you that in a certain field 
 in this vicinity, which he describes, there is an im- 
 mense treasure deposited. He does not know pre- 
 cisely where in the field it is to be found, but the 
 fact that it is within the limits of that field, he does 
 know, and he makes every one believe it. The 
 treasure, when found, is enough to supply all your 
 wants; and now he assures you, if you will but go 
 and seek for it, you will find an abundance. In that 
 case you would understand the word seek. You 
 would go and hunt after it diligently and earnestly. 
 You would go there for months and seek, if you 
 knew for a certainty you could make yourself in- 
 dependently rich by so doing. You would look in 
 every corner, turn over every stone, tear up by the 
 roots every stump, and dig up the earth ten feet deep, 
 before you would fail of finding the treasure. Now 
 when you will search for God and his salvation, as 
 you search for hidden treasures, he will be found of 
 you. 
 
 Prov. ii. 3-6 : " Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, 
 and liftest up thy voice for understanding; if thou 
 seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for 
 hid treasures ; then shalt thou understand the fear 
 
168 TRAYER. 
 
 of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God." 
 Look at this promise for a moment. " K thou 
 criest after knowledge." What knowle'dge ? Knowl- 
 edge of God and his salvation. If you cry out to 
 God for it, be in earnest about it. If you lift up 
 your voice for understanding, to understand God, 
 to understand his government, his great system €i 
 grace, the way of life and salvation, lift up your 
 voice for this understanding, seek it of God ; seek 
 it as you would silver, with all the zeal, earnestness, 
 and perseverance that you hunt for hidden treasures; 
 search for this important knowledge in the Bible 
 and in the use of all other religious means within 
 your reach, and when thus in earnest, you shall 
 soon find the knowledge of the Lord. Seek thus 
 and you shall find. 
 
 3. Knock, and it shall be opened. To help you 
 to understand this part of the text let me resort 
 to a little more, imagery. I will suppose, then, that 
 an individual, living in the country some three or 
 four miles, comes in this evening to hear the ser- 
 mon. After the meeting, closes, he drives home and 
 enters his residence, when his wife thus addresses 
 him. " Husband, is the horse unhitched £rom the 
 carriage ? " " Yes," he replies ; " but what led you 
 to ask that question ? " as he discovers an anxious 
 look upon her countenance. " Because I wish you 
 to go for the doctor immediately. Our little son is 
 very ill, and I am fearful he will die before a phy- 
 
PEAYER. 1G9 
 
 sician can reach here. He is very stupid, and is 
 evidently sinking very fast." " What ! " says he, 
 " Charley sick I What is the matter ? " Picking 
 up the light from the stand, he steps to the bed 
 and looks at the little fellow as he lies there pale 
 and emaciated, wholly insensible at what is pass- 
 ing. " Sure enough," says the husband, " he is sick, 
 and I am fearful we shall lose him. How long 
 since was he taken thus ill, and what have you done 
 for him ? " Now I will suppose that, while they are 
 consulting in relation to what shall be done, an 
 angel makes his appearance at that bedside to 
 communicate an important fact to them in relation 
 to the child. I will suppose that the revelation 
 comes from an angel, so that it can be relied on. 
 He informs them that there is a physician residing 
 in this city, on such a street, at such a number, who 
 can save the life of the child, if they will procure 
 his services before morning. He is the only man 
 who can save him, and unless they secure him be- 
 fore morning the child must die. Now, With such a 
 revelation, Avhat will be done ? Done ? The father 
 rushes to the barn, and is soon in hi^ carriage, and 
 on his way to the city. In a short time his carriage 
 wheels make the city ring as he drives, Jehu-like, 
 through one street after another, until he arrives at 
 the door of the physician. How does he manage 
 now ? Does he step to the door and knock once 
 very cautiously, and if he gets no answer turn away 
 
170 PRAYER. 
 
 discouraged, to let his child die ? Not he. His 
 soul is in earnest. His heart palpitates, and he is in 
 agony. He knocks once, and if he gets no answer 
 he knocks again, and again. His anxiety increases 
 every time he knocks. Delay only increases his 
 earnestness ; and he thunders away at the door until 
 the doctor is aroused, in his carriage, and both 
 hastening with all possible despatch to the bedside 
 of his sick child, to save his life. 
 
 Now says Christ, " Knock, and it shall be opened." 
 Knock where ? At heaven's gate. Knock how ? 
 By prayer, by earnest prayer. But, says one, do 
 you intend, by your imagery, to represent Jesus 
 Christ as being indifferent to our prayers ? Not at 
 all. But I intend, by this synonyme, to represent 
 Christ just as the Bible docs. But, continues the 
 objector, do you intend to teach that we must pray 
 very loud, and make a great bluster about it? 
 Notliing of the kind ; for there can be a great 
 deal of noise and bluster when there is but little 
 praying. Prayer does not consist in making a noise. 
 It consists in having the heart enlisted, deeply en- 
 listed, and in having it drawn out to God in solemn 
 earnestness for the blessings we need. Let us turn to 
 the Bible on this point. " The effectual fervent prayer 
 of a righteous man availeth much." 1. It must be 
 the prayer of a rig-htcoiis man. 2. A fervent prayer; 
 not a cold, heartless, formal prayer. God will not 
 hear such. But a fervent prayer, one that enlists 
 
PRAYER. 171 
 
 and calls out the whole heart, God will hear. When 
 the whole soul knocks at heaven's gate, it shall be 
 opened. Take another case. Luke xviii. 1-8. 
 Christ illustrates and enforces, by his striking ima- 
 gery, the very point now under consideration. Hear 
 him : " And he spake a parable unto them to this 
 end, that men ought always to pray, and not to 
 faint ; saying, There was in a city a judge, which 
 feared not God, neither regarded man. And there 
 was a widow in that city; and she came unto him, 
 saying. Avenge me of mine adversary. And he 
 would not for a while : but afterward he said 
 within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard 
 man ; yet because this widow troubleth me, I will 
 avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary 
 me. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust 
 judge saith. And shall not God avenge his own 
 elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he 
 bear long with them ? I tell you that he will avenge 
 them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of man 
 comcth, shall he find faith on the earth? " 
 
 From this parable please notice the following 
 things : 1. It teaches that men should always pray. 
 2. That they should persevere in prayer, and hold 
 on until the object sought is obtained ; that they 
 should not faint if the blessing is not obtained the 
 first time asking, but importune at the throne of 
 grace. 3. That God will answer the prayer of his 
 o\^i elect who cry unto him day and night. Who 
 
172 PRAYER. 
 
 are his own elect? EQs own dear children who have 
 been born of the Spirit, and are faithful in his work. 
 Notice the terms the Saviour uses. They express 
 earnestness, deep earnestness. 1. They cry unto 
 him. This term expresses deep and intense feeling. 
 The soul cries out to God for help, from the living 
 God. 2. They cry to him day and night. The 
 heart is so enlisted that it cannot and will not let 
 go until the blessing comes. It pleads day and 
 night. Such passages teach conclusively that, when 
 we knock at heaven's gate, we must be in earnest 
 if we w(5iild be heard. As much so or more, if pos- 
 sible, than the man would be supposed to be at the 
 door of the doctor, under the circumstances I have 
 described. Then God will hear. 
 
 But, you reply, your imagery supposes danger, 
 imminent danger, and of course a man would be in 
 earnest under such circumstances. But pause for a 
 moment. Is not your child sick unto death ? Is it 
 a sinner ? If so, it has a disease far more fatal than 
 any that can be inflicted upon the body. The dis- 
 ease is certain death unless it is removed speedily. 
 And then the death., it is the death of the soul! 
 ENDLESS death! Now rcmcmbcr there is but one 
 Physician who can heal and save it. He thunders 
 upon your dull ear to-day. Knock and it shall be 
 opened. Knock now. Why, your child may be 
 dead and damned in a few hours ! Knock in 
 earnest. Here, heaven and eternal life arc at staRb. 
 
PRAYER. 173 
 
 Wake up and knock ! Christ says, knock. Do you 
 hear him ? Fly to heaven's gate by prayer, and 
 knock there until deliverance comes. 
 
 V. I AM TO ANSWER THE QUESTION, WhAT IS IT 
 TO PRAY AS THE BiBLE DIRECTS, OR HOW CAN WE 
 OFFER PREVAILING PRAYER ? 
 
 This question is of infinite moment to every man. 
 One object of praying is to secure an answer, — to 
 secure the blessing we need. Moreover, we cannot 
 be saved unless we can come to God, so that he 
 will hear and answer us. 
 
 God save a man whose prayers he cannot answer! 
 He never will. There are beings pointed out in the 
 Bible who call upon God, and he will not answer; 
 such are impenitent, and in the way to hell. "We 
 must come into a state, therefore, in which we can 
 approach God, and have him hear us, or we cannot 
 be saved. 
 
 The Bible teaches, that some ask and receive not, 
 because they ask amiss. They do not ask aright ; 
 consequently, God will not hear. There is a right 
 and a wrong way to pray. 
 
 The question now to come under consideration, 
 is, which is the right way ? The Bible is the book 
 that teaches us the way. How can we pray ac- 
 cording to its teachings so as to have God hear us ? 
 
 In reply to this question I remark : — 
 
 1. If we would offer prevailing prayer, we must 
 have correct views of the character of the God to \ 
 
174 PRAYER. 
 
 whom we pray. We must see to it that we do not 
 pray to a false God. We must be sure that we 
 pray to the God of the Bible. If you were to pray 
 to the sun as your God, you would not expect an 
 answer to prayer. Why ? Because in that case 
 you would not pray to the God of the Bible, but 
 to a false God. It is not necessary to hew out a 
 God and bow down to that to be guilty of idolatiy. 
 We can set up a false God in our imagination, and 
 pray to such a God, and be as guilty as we would 
 be to pray to an idol that we could see, or that our 
 own hands had formed. I believe there are many 
 such idolaters in this land at the present time. They 
 do not like the God of the Bible, and they have 
 formed a God in their imaginations to suit them- 
 selves. Some men have set reason to work to frame 
 for them a God. They want a God they can com- 
 prehend. Very well. If you have a God you can 
 comprehend, you will have a false God. The in- 
 finite God is not to be comprehended by any crea- 
 ture he ever formed. He is infinitely above the 
 comprehension of all creatures. What? A finite 
 mind comprehend an infinite ? It is a glaring con- 
 tradiction. Now^ the God to whom you are to pray 
 is an infinite God. You must approach such a God, 
 if you would secure an answer to prayer. Some 
 men pray to a God, they say, who will save all. 
 That is not the God of the Bible, for he declares he 
 will not save all men. He affirms that he shall 
 
PRAYER. 175 
 
 damn a class of men endlessly. Such a God, says 
 one, I do not like. I presume you don't. But 
 that is no new thing under the sun. The wicked 
 have always disliked the true God. The good Book 
 informs us that they do not like to retain him in their 
 knowledge. Well, says the objector, I will not love 
 and worship such a God. I presume you will not. 
 You can hate and reject him, and take the conse- 
 quences of such a course. You can take as a conse- 
 quence the very damnation you affirm never will 
 come. But, after all, the God that will punish some 
 men endlessly is the God who answers prayer. He 
 is the Bible God, and you must pray to him or get 
 no answer. 
 
 Once more. Some men want a God that is all 
 love, and no wrath in him. Such an one is not the 
 true God, or the Bible God. The Bible presents us 
 with a God of love ; at the same time it informs us 
 that he has wrath in reserve for the wicked. Rom. 
 1. 18 : " The wrath of God is revealed from heaven 
 against all ungodliness," &c. The wrath of God 
 revealed, when God has no wrath ? That is impos- 
 sible. Eph. V. 6 : " Because of these things cometh 
 the ivrntli of God upon the children of disobe- 
 dience." How^ can the wrath of God come upon 
 the children of disobedience if God has no wrath ? 
 In fact the Bible says almost as much about the 
 wrath of God as it does about his love. 
 
 There is a holy indignation and wrath, which is 
 
176 PRAYER. 
 
 right and just in God, and he would not be a perfect 
 being if he were destitute of it. And if you pray to 
 a God who has no wrath, you are not praying to the 
 true or Bible (xod. You must banish from your 
 mind all such Gods, and pray to the God the Bible 
 reveals. One great object of the Bible is to reveal 
 to us the true God. He knows himself, and can 
 give to man a correct revelation of himself. That 
 revelation he has given in the Bible. Now, if you 
 would offer prevailing prayer, you must come to the 
 God the Bible reveals. He is the hearer and an- 
 swerer of prayer. You must not be deceived or 
 misled here. If you are, it will be fatal. 
 
 Let me now name four things concerning God, 
 which you should have deeply impressed on your 
 mind, if you would secure a blessing when you 
 pray. 
 
 1. You should remember that God is everywhere. 
 Psalms, cxxxix. 7—10 : " Whither shall I go from 
 thy Spirit, or whither shall I flee from thy presence ? 
 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there. If I make 
 my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take 
 the wings of the morning, and dwell in the utter- 
 most parts of the sea ; even there shall thy hand lead 
 me, and thy right hand shall hold me." 
 
 What a view of God is here presented! How 
 wonderful I If you could fly into any corner of this 
 vast universe, you would be surrounded with God. 
 What a thought I How can we grapple with such 
 
PRAYER. 177 
 
 an iiflmense idea ? Pause before you pray, and 
 dwell upon it. I am surrounded with this great Be- 
 ing. He is searching my inmost heart. Not a sin 
 can be concealed from him, and now I am about to 
 address this great Being. Open your mouth, and 
 pray to him as a present God. Say not in your 
 heart, wlio shall ascend into heaven to bring him 
 down. He is here. He puts his ear down to your 
 very li))s to listen to the first breath of prayer. How 
 many feel, when they pray, that God is away up in 
 heaven, so far from them that they can hardly send 
 uj) a petition to his throne. Now such are not 
 praying to the true God. They are praying to' a 
 false God as much as if they were praying to the 
 sun. They are praying to a God shut up in a 
 local place, no nearer to them than tlie heaven of 
 heavens. That is not the true God. He is here as 
 well as in heaven. His presence fills the immensity 
 of space. NoM^ you never offer prevailing prayer in 
 that sfate of mind. Why? Because you are not 
 praying to the true God. Repent of that state of 
 heart, and pray to a present God. When a man pre- 
 vails with God in prayer, he always feels that God is 
 near him, and he can talk with him as did Moses, 
 face to face. Realizing that you are surrounded 
 with this great and awful God, that his holy eye is 
 upon your heart, and that yon cannot deceive him, 
 will have a tendency to fill you with that religious 
 awe and holy reverence, which is befitting as you 
 
 VOL. I. 12 
 
178 PRAYER. 
 
 attempt to spread your wants before this infinite 
 Being. In such a state of heart approach his mercy- 
 scat, and plead with him for the blessing you need. 
 To bring this truth of a present God home to your 
 mind, let me suppose that you are gathered around 
 your family altar, and after reading a portion of 
 truth from the Bible, you and your family have just 
 fallen upon your knees to make known your morn- 
 ing request. Just at this important moment Christ 
 steps into your midst, and spreads his holy hands 
 over your heads, and addresses you in the language 
 of my text : "Ask, and it shall be given you; 
 seek, and ye shall find ; knock, and it shall be opened 
 unto you." Now, it is truly Christ in your midst. 
 You look up into his holy face, — you see the prints 
 of the nails in his hands, — you hear his voice, you 
 listen to his promise. How would you feel under 
 such circumstances ? Could you not pray in ear- 
 nest ? Would you not confess to him all your 
 sins ? Would you not lay before him all- your 
 wants, and the wants of your entire family ? Would 
 you not take hold of his promises, just fallen upon 
 your ear, and plead them with great confidence and 
 earnestness until you had obtained the blessing that 
 you and your family need? How could you be 
 turned away, or let Christ depart, until you had re- 
 ceived the blessing ? You would feel, now is the 
 time, and we cannot be denied. Yes, says one, if I 
 could only see Christ, how I would order my speech 
 
PRAYER. 179 
 
 before him. Now attach this attribute to Christ, 
 and you have him with you. He is everywhere. 
 " Where two or three are gathered together in my 
 name, there am I." 
 
 This could not be true of him if he were not 
 everywhere. He is in heaven interceding, but he 
 is here also to hear us pray. Think then, when you 
 pray, Christ is here. You cannot see him, but he is 
 present to listen to your every desire, and to answer 
 your every prayer offered in faith. 
 
 2. Another thing in relation to God should be 
 distinctly before the mind when we pray, namely, 
 that our God is unchangeable. " He is the same 
 yesterday, to-day, and forever." " He is in one 
 mind, and who can turn him ? " This attribute of 
 the Deity lays the foundation for confidence in the 
 promises of the Bible. Tak^ the promise in my 
 text as an illustration of the thought I wish to com- 
 municate. Here is a proniise that fell from the lips 
 of Christ more than eighteen hundred years ago. If 
 Christ is changeable, who knows but he has changed 
 his mind since the promise was given ? He said, 
 eighteen hundred years ago, " Ask and it shall be 
 given you ; " but, perhaps, he feels differently now. 
 The promise was good then, but how can I know 
 that it is good for me to-day ? If he is a changeable . 
 Christ, he may have changed his mind in relation to 
 this promise, and in relation to prayers generally. Per- 
 haps he will not hear prayer, now, at all. lVIt)reover, 
 
180 PRAYER. 
 
 if this be true in relation to this promise, the same 
 mode of reasoning will apply to all the promises in 
 the Bible, and would undermine our confidence in 
 the whole of them. Under such circumstances we 
 never could know whether any of these promises 
 were good for us to-day, without a new revelation 
 direct from his throne at the present time. But, at- 
 tach the attribute under consideration to God, and 
 it makes this and other promises in the Bible just 
 as good as if God should speak from heaven now, 
 in an audible voice, and thunder these promises in 
 our ears, while we are here together. He said to 
 men on probationary ground, eighteen hundred years 
 ago, " Ask, and it shall be given you ; " and he is in 
 the same mind to-day. This attribute is God's fresh 
 indorsement of these promises. They were designed 
 for men, all men in mercy's world. They are part 
 of the Gospel system, and are good to men here on 
 the shores of time until the Gospel dispensation is 
 closed up and removed. The same unchangeable 
 GTO is on the throne that caused these" promises to 
 be proclaimed originally, and the same unchangeable 
 Mediator is yet before the throne to make interces- 
 sion for the transgressor. Consequently, we may 
 come with confidence to him to-day, and take hold 
 of these promises as ours ; and if we plead them by 
 faith we shall know by happy experience that he is 
 the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. What a 
 glorious attribute this is to the saint and to angels ! 
 
PRAYER. 181 
 
 They can look up to his throne, and behold it filled 
 with a Being 'who is unchangeable in his purposes, 
 and all his great plans, and all the minute parts that 
 go to make up his great plans. He sees the end 
 from the beginning. There can be no new or un- 
 foreseen event spring up to produce a change in his 
 infinite mind. They know that he loves holiness 
 to-day, and he will love it forever. Tlrey understand 
 that he arranges all things to promote and perfect 
 the happiness of the obedient subject of his govern- 
 ment now, and he will pursue the same unchang- 
 ing plan forever. Into the hands of such a Being 
 they can commit their cause with confidence, and 
 hang upon and plead his promises with unwavering 
 faith. 
 
 3. Another attribute of God, which we should ever 
 have before the mind, when we pray, is this : Our 
 God is an Almighty God. Losing sight of this 
 attribute may prevent our prevailing in prayer. If 
 we come to God feeling that he is a weak being, 
 something like ourselves, such a state of heart would 
 prevent our receiving the blessing. Taking such a 
 view of God is dishonorable to him, as it is a false 
 view, and would grieve the Spirit. Then, again, if 
 we think he is not able to do much, we shall not ask 
 for much ; we shall not have faith. How could we 
 have faith in such a being ? We want a God who 
 is able to do. Thank Heaven ! we have a God who 
 is able to do ; and we must not dishonor him by 
 
182 PRAYER. 
 
 having low and contracted views of his ability, if 
 we would receive a blessing, a great blessing. 
 
 Let us see how God has connected this attribute 
 of ability directly with tlie subject of asking. Hear 
 Paul for a moment, in Eph. iii. 20 : " Now unto him 
 that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that 
 we ask or think." How Paul connected the ability 
 of God directly with the subject we have under 
 consideration I Is he able to do as much as we ask, 
 as much as we think ? More than that ! How 
 much more ? a little more ? " Exceeding abun- 
 dantly above all that we ask or think." Not only a 
 little above, but abundantly above, exceeding abun- 
 dantly ABOVE I It would seem as though the Spirit 
 labored to throw terms together, here, to get out this 
 great thought vipon our minds, and impress us with 
 this idea as we approach the mercy-seat. Now, here 
 is where I believe Christians fail, in multitudes of 
 instances. They do not, at heart, believe God is 
 able to do much. Remember, I am not now talking 
 about what the tongue affirms. I am talking about 
 the utterances of the heart. God looks into your 
 hearts to see what is there. 
 
 I doubt not there are angels in heaven who have 
 more physical power than many in the church be- 
 lieve, at heart, God has. Take one or two Bible 
 specimens of the power of angels; 2 Kings xix. 35: 
 " And it came to pass that night, that the angel of 
 the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the 
 
PRAYER. 183 
 
 Assyrians an hundred four score and five thousand." 
 What messengers of death God .has at his com- 
 mand ! Look at it. One angel, in one nig'ht, walks 
 through the camp of the Assyrians, and 185,000 are 
 dead in the morning. He looks at them, and they 
 are pale in death. If God wished to vanquish all 
 the armies of earth, he would have to commission 
 and direct only one angel into the field, and he 
 would be more than a match for all the armies this 
 world could muster. What could all the nations of 
 the earth do in the presence of one angel ? Take 
 one specimen more : After Christ's death, the Jews 
 came to Pilate with a request. They remarked, that 
 this deceiver predicted, before his death, that on the 
 third day he should rise again ; and they request that 
 the sepulchre be made sure until after the third day, 
 lest his disciples should steal the body during the 
 night, and then report that he had risen from the 
 dead ; and the delusion, as they termed it, would 
 break out afresh. Pilate replied, " You have a watch ; 
 go and make it sure as you can." With this permis- 
 sion from the governor, they went and rolled a largo 
 stone upon the door of the sepulchre, sealed it, and 
 stationed a strong guard of soldiers to watch it un- 
 til after the specified day. On the third day God 
 sent down an angel to attend to that matter. He 
 just rolls back the stone, takes his seat upon it, 
 barely casts a look upon these armed fellows, and 
 they fall like-dead men at his feet. Did he put his 
 
184 PRAYER. 
 
 hand upon them ? No ; he barely turned an angel's 
 countenance upon them, and they are powerless in 
 an instant. What power ! Who can resist it ? 
 But this is only the power of an angel ; and if angels 
 have such immense power, what must be the power 
 of the God of angels, to whom we are to pray ? 
 When you pray, you should try to have the mind 
 impressed with this great truth. You should dwell 
 upon it until the soul is full and overwhelmed with it. 
 Look at the displays of power all around. Ponder 
 this great mass of matter on which we live and ride 
 in its career through the depths of space. Go back 
 to its creation, and hear our God speak and call it 
 into being. Did he exert all his power, and then 
 just be able to perform this mighty work? Mark 
 with what ease it is done. A purpose of his will, a 
 word of command, and it is done ! Hear him thun- 
 der, " Let there be light I " and how quick all is illu- 
 minated! Hear him again: '■'■ Let the ivaters under 
 the heaven be gathered together unto o?ie place, and 
 let the dry land appear ! " How quick the moun- 
 tains rear their heads, the vales arc depressed, and 
 the ocean begins to roll her mighty billows in her 
 appointed bed. All, all is done with infinite ease, 
 with a simple word of command. Then, once more, 
 one impulse from his mighty hand at that moment, 
 and this great mass of matter has pur^^ued its jour- 
 ney around the sun at the rate of 68,000 miles an 
 hour, from that moment to the preseirt time. But 
 
« PRAYEK. 185 
 
 what is this earth compared with the great universe 
 in which we reside ? Look abroad into the heavens 
 and behold the thousands of systems of worlds that 
 have been called into being by this same Almighty 
 hand, and mark how he upholds and governs them 
 all in harmony with his will and wishes. Now 
 remember, that it is to this Almighty God that we 
 pray. We may come with all our wants. He is 
 able to meet and supply every demand of the 
 soul. We may bring our families, and he can do 
 for them also. We may come and lay this city at 
 his feet, and he can rock it to its very centre under 
 his awful treading. We may come with our way- 
 ward and wicked land, and he can cause salvation, 
 like an overflowing flood, to roll a wave of mercy 
 over every part of it, sweeping away, in its power, 
 all its abominations. Nay, more. We may take 
 this wicked world in the arms of our faith, and fly 
 to the mercy-seat, and he can open the windows of 
 heaven and pour out a blessing until there is not 
 room to receive it, and then he has blessings enough 
 in reserve to supply the Avants of ten thousand such 
 worlds. Such is our God ; and why not let us open 
 our mouths wide, and look up for great things, and 
 expect great things ? 
 
 If the world is ever converted, this limiting God 
 with our wicked unbelief must cease, and we must 
 take the world in the arms of our faith and rush to 
 Christ with it, and expect he will subdue it by the 
 
18G PRAYER. « 
 
 power of his Gospel. Will you coine to this Al- 
 mighty God to-day ? Will you spread your wants 
 and the wants of this people before him, and press 
 your suit until you see great exhibitions of his power 
 in saving men ? 
 
 4. One thing more in relation to God, and then I 
 will leave this branch of our subject. When we 
 pray, we should have our minds deeply impressed 
 with the fact that God is infinite in his bene.volence. 
 We should feel that God's willingness to hear prayer 
 is equal to his ability. He is infinitely able, and he 
 is also infinitely willing when we approach him as 
 he directs. We lose sight of his willingness when 
 we pray, or our hearts call it in question, which 
 shuts out the blessing. God loves to hear and an- 
 swer prayer, if we are only in a right state of heart 
 to be blessed. He must not dispense his bless- 
 ings so as to sanction our wickedness, and he will 
 not, if we all go to hell. But when we take a 
 right position, then he is ready. God's willingness 
 is expressed in his promises. Every promise to 
 prayer in the Bible is absolute demonstration of his 
 willingness to hear. God was voluntary in giving 
 his promises ; he was under no compulsion when he 
 gave them. They were not extorted from him, nor 
 drawn out of him by some other being. They are 
 a full and free expression of his own choice. If he 
 is not willing to hear, why give them, or encourage 
 prayer at all ? But he has given them, and given 
 
TKAYER. 187 
 
 multitudes of them. The Bible is full of them, and 
 they forever settle the matter of his willingness. To 
 present his willingness in the clearest possible light 
 before our minds, God has appealed to one feeling 
 in the human heart that is stronger than all others- 
 He has appealed to parental love, parental care and 
 anxiety for children, parental willingness to do for 
 their offspring. Those in this congregation who are 
 not parents cannot understand me on this point, but 
 parents can. I was a stranger to this feeling until I 
 became a father. Since that time, I can understand 
 a thousand things that were said to me by my par- 
 ents, as I could not understand them before. My 
 mother's anxiety, — what a mystery it was ! It was 
 expressed in her every look, her every movement. 
 She would caution me about this thing, and express 
 anxiety about that ; and I thought it so unnecessary. 
 I would frequently say to my mother, " Mother, 
 why so anxious about me ? I can take care of my- 
 self. Do not make yourself unhappy about me." 
 Still she would have a mother's care and a mother's 
 anxiety ; it was as natural as her breath. Then her 
 willingness to do in sickness and in health was man- 
 ifest all through her life. That kind of feeling I did 
 not understand until I was a parent. Now I can 
 see why my parents felt thus. My anxiety for my 
 children is constant ; and to say no, when they come 
 witli a request for me to grant, is one of the most 
 unpleasant things of my life. I love to do for them ; 
 
188 PRAYER. 
 
 it is the delight of my heart to benefit them. Now 
 it is to this parental love that God makes his strong 
 appeal, to show his willingness to hear prayer. He 
 is more willing to give good things to them that ask 
 him, than we are to give good things to our children. 
 Hear him on this point : " If ye, then, being evil, 
 know how to give good gifts unto your children, 
 how much more shall your father which is in heaven 
 give good things to them that ask him ? " Now, 
 what stronger appeal could God make to show his 
 willingness to hear and answer prayer ? To enforce 
 this point, let me relate a little incident that took 
 place a few years since, west of this. I had this ac- 
 count for a fact ; but whether it was all literally true 
 or not makes no difl'erence, as it is a good illustra- 
 tion of the point under consideration. 
 
 In one of our western villages were parents who 
 had a lovely little boy, whose name we will call 
 Willie. He was a bright little fellow, an only child, 
 and the idol of his father's heart. His father was a 
 mechanic, whose shop was some little distance from 
 the house. Frequently when he became weary, he 
 would throw down his tools, run to the house, catch 
 up Willie, play with him a season, and then put 
 him down with the remark, " Now, my dearest, I 
 must go back to my work." The boy was old 
 enough to play about the house and yard, and occa- 
 sionally he would wander down to the shop to his 
 father. One day the father came running in, and 
 
PRAYER. 189 
 
 looked for his little pet, as he called him, but did not 
 find him. He finally turned to his wife, and said, 
 " My dear, where is Willie ? " "I know not," she re- 
 plied ; " I have not seen him for some time ; I sup- 
 posed he was at the shop with you." " No," said he, 
 " he has not been there." " Not been there ? " she 
 asked ; " then he must be looked up." Accordingly 
 they searched the house, yard, barn, and patch of 
 woods near by, calling to Willie, but could get no 
 answer. They ran to the neighbors and inquired, 
 but could obtain no tidings of the lost child. It was 
 growing late in the day ; night was coming on, and 
 their anxiety increased every moment. They rallied 
 the neighbors, and searched and inquired ; but night 
 closed in upon them, and the lost child was not 
 found. 
 
 The next day many of the neighbors turned out, 
 searched the whole village and vicinity for nearly 
 three days before he was found. On the third day, 
 a party of men, returning from a long search, dis- 
 covered the little fellow upon a lodge of rocks, one 
 of whom caught him up in his arms, and exclaimed, 
 '■'■ I have found him! I have found him!" With 
 cheerful and joyous hearts, they all humed to the 
 house, to convey the glad tidings to the broken- 
 hearted parents. The parents, with a few sympa- 
 thizing friends, were in the parlor when they entered 
 with the famishing child. The father, as he beheld 
 his lost pet, leaped from his seat and clasped him to 
 
190 PRAYER. 
 
 his bosom, weeping for joy. Recovering a little 
 from the first shock, the little fellow finding himself 
 once more in his father's arms, looked up implor- 
 ingly in his face, " Pa, I want a piece of bread." 
 What father's heart could refuse such a request under 
 such circumstances ? With what delight he would 
 feed that famishing child ! Now is God as willing 
 to feed our starving, dying souls, as that father was 
 to feed his starving child ? " He is more willing." 
 Can it be possible ? So he affirms. How much 
 more willing ? As much more as he is more holy 
 and benevolent than an earthly parent can be. Our 
 benevolence is but finite, his is infinite. But your 
 case is too strong, says one. Not at all, I reply ; 
 you cannot get one too strong. There was danger, 
 the child was starving. So are we in danger. Our 
 souls are starving for the bread of life, — the true 
 bread of life. " But the child would have died." 
 So shall we die eternally, unless we have help from 
 heaven, and our heavenly Father knows it. He is 
 not insensible to our danger, if we are, ourselves. 
 Let us believe what God says. He is more willing 
 to bless us than we are to feed and bless our chil- 
 dren. What stronger appeal could God make to 
 convince us of his willingness to hear prayer? But 
 our hearts are unbelieving, hence we do not believe 
 God is willing to hear us. This unbelief shuts out 
 the blessing. These important things in relation 
 to God should be deeply engraven upon our hearts. 
 
PRAYER. 191 
 
 The soul should dwell upon them until they become 
 living realities. Then, under a realizing sense of 
 this truth, we should approach the mercy-seat with 
 all our wants to be supplied. 
 
 2. To offer prevailing prayer, we must have a 
 correct view of ourselves. A connect knowledge of 
 one's self, is almost as essential as a correct knowl- 
 edge of God. You will not come to God for the 
 things you need unless you know yourself. There 
 may be sins which separate between you and God, 
 and if you are unacquainted with your own heart, 
 those sins will not be confessed and put away, con- 
 sequently God will not hear. 
 
 Tiiere are difficulties attending this part of the 
 matter. The heart is deceitful, and it will mislead 
 you here unless you are rigid with yourself. We 
 love to think well of ourselves, and we want others 
 to think well of us. It is painful to take sucji a 
 view of our lives as to loathe and detest them. 
 To avoid this unpleasant view, we will neglect to 
 search our hearts by God's truth. This state of 
 things will shut God away from our souls, and he 
 will not hear us. Keep in view, then, a most 
 thorough, honest course of self-examination is ab- 
 solutely essential to secure a spirit of prayer, or to 
 maintain it. A person who neglects it will not 
 ofler prevailing prayer. 
 
192 PRAYER. 
 
 _DIVISION NO. III. 
 
 In the first division of this discourse we considered 
 the subject of prayer, 1. as a duty ; 2. as an impor- 
 tant duty ; 3. as a high privilege. In the second 
 division we examined the terms, Ask, Seek, and 
 Knock, and then proceeded to answer the question 
 under the fifth head, How to oifer prevailing prayer. 
 We now continue the subject, and remark — 
 
 3. A spirit of forgiveness towards those who have 
 injured us in any form, is another thing that must 
 not be overlooked if we would offer prevailing 
 prayer. 
 
 The Bible is very clear and decided on this point. 
 Mark xi. 25, 26 : " And when ye stand praying, 
 forgive, if ye have aught against any ; that your 
 Father also which is in heaven may forgive you 
 your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither 
 will your Father which is in heaven forgive your 
 trespasses." 
 
 Please notice how this passage connects forgive- 
 ness with the subject we now have in hand. " When 
 ye stand praying, forgive." At the veiy time you 
 are praying and seeking forgiveness from God, for- 
 give those who have injured you. " That is a hard 
 lesson to learn," says one. " I cannot forgive certain 
 individuals." Very well, if that is true your doom 
 is fixed for eternity. You arc lost, in that case, 
 irrecoverably lost. God declares he will not forgive, 
 
PRAYER. 193 
 
 unless you forgive others, and of course you must go 
 to hell. " But how can I forgive that wrong, it was 
 so very aggravating? " Does that form a sufficient 
 reason why you should not forgive ? says God. If 
 so, then I cannot forgive any of your wrongs, for they 
 have all been very aggravating. They were com- 
 mitted against the best Being in the universe ; the 
 Being who has sought your highest good for time 
 and eternity ; against a perfect government, that if 
 obeyed by all, was calculated to secure the highest 
 good of the universe ; against an infinite Redeemer 
 who gave up his life to save you ; against an all- 
 sufficient Holy Ghost who is sent here to sanctify 
 and fit you for heaven ; and they have been repeated 
 so many times, that if very aggravating wrongs form 
 the reason why they should not be forgiven, then I 
 cannot forgive you, says God, and you must go to 
 hell. Do you wish God to let you stand or fall by 
 your own theory ? No, no, says one ; I want for- 
 giveness at the hand of my Maker. Very well, says 
 God ; when ye stand praying, forgive them, and then 
 I will forgive you. 
 
 But that was not an imaginary, but a real wrong, 
 and a very great one. Of course it was a real 
 wrong, for if it had only been an imaginary one, it 
 would need only an imaginary forgiveness. The 
 very idea of forgiveness supposes you have been 
 wronged. If you had not been wronged there 
 would be no ground of forgiveness. Well, says 
 
 VOL. I. 13 
 
194 PRAYER. 
 
 one, I think I can forgive all the members of our 
 church. Does God say, forgive all the mernbers of 
 your church and I will forgive ? The passage does 
 not read thus. That does not meet the conditions 
 of the text ; for you might forgive all the members of 
 your own church, and feel very wicked towards the 
 members of other churches, and particularly churches 
 of other denominations. God will not forgive while 
 there is any hardness in your heart towards any 
 Christian on earth. Well, I can forgive all the 
 Christians, but that sinner, that slanderous sinner, 
 or that hypocrite. Stop, stop, my brother; let us 
 look at this text critically, for eternal life hangs upon 
 complying with its conditions. Does it read, if ye 
 forgive all Christians I will forgive you ? " When 
 ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught against 
 any.'''' Now turn to Matt. vi. 14, 15, and that ex- 
 plains the term any : " For if ye forgive men their 
 trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive 
 you. But if ye forgive not men their ti-espasses, 
 neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." 
 This settles the whole matter. If you would be for- 
 given and offer prevailing prayer, when you pray 
 you must forgive men^ all men who have injured 
 you. Now remember, if you have an old grudge 
 in your heart towards any man living, when you 
 pray and do not forgive, God will not hear you. 
 You may as well stop praying as to pray. God's 
 ear is closed to all such prayers. Forgive, says 
 
PRAYER. 195 
 
 God, ijF you want I should hear, and I will forgive. 
 You say, I cannot forgive. Very well, God will 
 not forgive. Bring no more vain oblations, your 
 prayers are a smoke in my nostrils, says God ; I 
 will not hear until you forgive. But what • shall 
 I do ? says one ; I cannot give up praying, and I 
 cannot forgive. You may as well give up pray- 
 ing as to pray. God will not hear you, and he 
 will not save you unless you forgive. Some seem 
 to thinlv they can bring God over by teasing him for 
 a season. My brother, you mistake your Maker. 
 His terms are like himself, unchangeable. He would 
 sooner let the whole world go to hell, than change 
 them in the least. They are right as they are, and 
 they demand the state of heart, and the only state 
 in which you can be saved. God understands this 
 and he will not change. Now you must make up 
 your mind to come to these terms, and then you can 
 pray and God will come into your heart sweetly. 
 Will you forgive ? Settle that question here, and 
 bury that hatchet now, and then offer your petition, 
 and the answer is yours. 
 
 As this subject is important, let me detain you 
 with one other remark before I leave it. In the 
 little model prayer which Christ has left on record 
 to teach us how to approach our Maker, he puts this 
 petition into our lips : After this manner pray ye, 
 he says, " Forgive us our debts as we forgive our 
 debtors." The substance of this petition is this, — 
 
196 PRAYER. 
 
 Lord forgive as ive forgive. How many times we 
 offer this prayer ! Now, while you have an unfor- 
 giving spirit, we will suppose God answers it. What 
 would become of you ? You certainly would be 
 lost, in answer to your own prayer. Not to be for- 
 given of God, is to take the penalty of the law we 
 have violated, and be damned. You pray God to 
 forgive just as you do ; and you will not forgive, so 
 you ask God not to forgive you. Do you wish to 
 pray yourself down to perdition ? Can you not reach 
 there soon enough without asking God to send you 
 there ? Think of such a prayer ! God will answer 
 it at another day, if you persist in holding on to 
 your unforgiving spirit. 
 
 Note another thing. Christ says, pray " after this 
 mannerP He does not give you the privilege of 
 asking forgiveness on any other ground. You have 
 no right to even ask forgiveness on any other condi- 
 tions. Lord forgive as I forgive. So you are shut 
 up to these terras for eternal life. You must have 
 God's smile and blessing on these terms, or not at 
 all. Here is the difficulty why many in the church 
 have no spirit of prayer. They have hard and 
 wicked feelings towards those who have injured 
 them. They live in that state of mind for years, 
 and the heavens are brass over their heads. They 
 will not make the least move to have that matter 
 reconciled. God knows it, and he will not hear 
 them. If there is one such here to-day, let me be- 
 
PRAYER. 197 
 
 seech you, as you value your soul, put away that 
 wicked state of things, go and be reconciled to that 
 offending brother or fellow-being, and then come and 
 lay yourself on God's altar. He will hear, and pour 
 his mercy richly into your soul. May God move 
 you to do this work to-day ! 
 
 4. In John xv. 7, is another condition introduced, 
 with which we must comply to have access to God. 
 " If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye 
 shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto 
 you." How broad this promise I " Ye shall ask 
 what ye will, and it shall be done unto you." It 
 covers all our wants ; and if they are not supplied, 
 it is not because there is no promise that meets our 
 case. But note the conditions of this promise. We 
 must abide in Christ, and have Chrisfs words abide 
 in us. The word abide means to dwell or live in 
 a place. To abide in Christ is to dwell or live in 
 Christ by faith, and have his words live and dwell in 
 us. As the branch abides in the vine, and draws all 
 its life, nourishment, and strength from the vine, so 
 we are to abide in Christ, and draw our spiritual 
 life, strength, and nourishment from him. The 
 Christian can no more be in a healthy, living, flour- 
 ishing state, cut off from Christ, than the branch can 
 be in a living, healthy, flourishing state, when severed 
 from the vine. How quick the branch withers and 
 dies, when cut from the vine ! So we wither, faint, 
 and die, if cut off" from Christ. We are perfectly de- 
 
198 PRAYER. 
 
 pendent upon him for our spiritual life and strength. 
 Separate our hearts from liim, and we have no 
 strength. We are like Samson shorn of his strength. 
 We must come into Christ and abide in him, if we 
 would have access to God. What is it, therefore, 
 to abide in Christ? The Bible frequently defines 
 its own terms. When that is the case, we should 
 always take its definitions as the best that can be 
 given. God knows what he means by the phrase- 
 ology he has used to express his ideas ; and he is 
 competent to define for himself. Let us turn to 
 John's epistle, — John iii. 6, — and we have an an- 
 swer to this question. Now remember, I am to give 
 you John's answer, not mine. Hear him : " Who- 
 soever abideth in him sinneth not." This is John's 
 decision, and I suppose he understood this matter 
 better than all the theologians of this age. To offer 
 prevailing prayer, then, according to John, we must 
 come and lay down all, all our known sins at 
 Christ's feet, and give them up. On this same point 
 let us hear David speak, — a good, sound, old-fash- 
 ioned theologian, — Psalms bcvi. 18 : " If I regard 
 iniquity in )ny heart, the Lord will not hear me." 
 Isaiah is another of these old divines. Isa. lix. 2 ; 
 " But your iniquities have separated between you 
 and your God, and your sins have hid his face from 
 you, that he will not hear." I might multiply pas- 
 sages on this point, but these are enough. They set- 
 tle the question, that to abide in Christ, and approach 
 
PRAYER. 199 
 
 God so as to prevail in prayer, you must give up all 
 your known sins. This draws the line close, and is 
 where we shall stumble and falter. There is but little 
 prevailing prayer oflfered by the church, and why ? 
 Because she has so many sins she loves better than 
 she loves an answer to prayer. She clings to them so 
 that God will not hear. They are dearer to her than 
 life, and they cause God to hide his face and leave 
 her in a state of barrenness. Many of these sins 
 are popular sins ; and there are a class of individuals 
 who are not troubled if they commit sin, if it is only 
 popular. What a heart that must be ! God hear 
 such a being pray? He would hear the Devil as 
 soon. What regard has such a heart for God or his 
 authority ? The question of right has no control 
 over such beings, in any sense. All they desire is to 
 have the multitude on their side, and the approba- 
 tion of society around them, and they will commit 
 any abomination. Such hearts, of course, have 
 nothing but the form of prayer. 
 
 The dishonesty in trade at this day is a very com- 
 mon sin. How men will lie, deceive, and resort to 
 all manner of trickery to make a few dollars, and 
 then quiet their consciences with the thought that it 
 is a common thing in business transactions. What ! 
 quiet your conscience because it is common I You 
 will fmd it will be a very common thing for God to 
 reckon with men, at anotiier day, for such business 
 transactions. God is an honest God, and requires of 
 
200 TRAYER. 
 
 you to be honest, strictly lionest, in all your dealings 
 with your fellows. God hear that dishonest WTetch 
 pray ? No, he will indignantly spurn him from his 
 presence, until he shall repent and put away that 
 sin. Such a man in Christ ? Ridiculous ! God 
 would hear the thief pray as soon as he would hear 
 such a being. Why not ? The sin of dishonesty is 
 the worst kind of stealing. The dishonest man 
 takes away his neighbor's property without render- 
 ing an honest equivalent, just as much as the thief 
 does ; and then the thief has this advantage over 
 him, — he did not add lying and deception in many 
 instances to obtain it. But, you say, he had his 
 neighbor's consent to take the property, and the thief 
 had not. Admit it ; but how did he obtain it ? By 
 lying and deception ! He could not have obtained 
 his consent without deception, any more than the 
 thief could. There is something about the sin of 
 dishonesty that is mean, contemptible, and devilish. 
 God abhors it, and he will not hear the prayer of the 
 heart that practises it. Have you been guilty of 
 this sin, my brother ? You must stop it. You must 
 put away that iniquity. God will not hear you 
 while you regard it in your heart. 
 
 The sin practised in politics is another popular 
 sin, that shuts the soul away from God. What 
 underhanded, low trickery men resort to in politics ! 
 What lying! what intrigue is practised ! And church- 
 members are in it as deep as others in many in- 
 
PRAYER. 201 
 
 stances. When I think of it, my heart shudders, 
 and I dread to meet a presidential election. There 
 is lying enough in one such election to sink any 
 nation, if God were not infinite in his long-suffering. 
 Then see how our public men will falsify the truth 
 in their public speeches, and in their j^ublic docu- 
 ments, — men in high stations. Read the speeches 
 ma4e in congress, only for one session of our na- 
 tional legislature. How sickening! Many of those 
 speeches are but a tissue of falsehoods and mis- 
 representation of facts. Such speeches are called 
 great speeches, and those who deliver them great 
 statesmen. Great statesmen ! A man is not wor- 
 thy of the name of statesman, who will knowingly 
 falsify the truth on one single point of public in- 
 terest. A great statesmen is above it, nor will he 
 stoop to such meanness. What do such men think ? 
 Do they suppose that the people elect and send them 
 to Washington, and pay them for falsifying facts, 
 and trying to deceive the nation ? We, the people, 
 ought to inquire seriously. Will this nation prosper 
 under the influence and rule of sucji men ? Are we 
 not guilty for elevating them to stations of honor 
 and power ? Now those are sins, and great sins, 
 but they are popular sins. They are sins at which 
 the church wink, and many of her members partici- 
 pate in them. Others regard this iniquity in their 
 hearts, — that is, they approve of it. God looks on 
 and sees the whole, and remembers it when they 
 
202 PRAYER. 
 
 come to the mercy-seat. God will not hear until 
 they repent of such iniquity. You must become 
 honest and upright in all your political and other 
 movements. You must repent and put away pop- 
 ular and unpopular sins, as far as you know your 
 heart, and thus come into Christ and abide there. 
 
 Look close here, my brother. Here is your diffi- 
 culty, if you do not get access to God. Tliere is 
 some sin there. I have only referred to a few leading 
 sins. There are a multitude of sins that we call little 
 sins, which lurk in the heart, and shut us away from 
 God. The sins of covetousness, selfishness, peev- 
 ishness, and impatience ; the sin of deception, which 
 some persons practise almost constantly ; the sin of 
 lying politeli/, so as not to disturb your conscience. 
 This kind of lying consists in stating certain things 
 that are true, literally, but stated in such a manner 
 as to convey a falsehood to the mind of the hearer. 
 You withhold a part of the truth, enough to con- 
 vey a false impression. That was what you aimed 
 at. That you did, and you did it intentionally. 
 That was a lie. But you ease off your conscience 
 with the thought tliat what you said was literally 
 true. 
 
 But what was the impression you left on the mind 
 of the person addressed ? You conveyed a falsehood 
 to his mind, and you intended to do it. God always 
 judges you by your intentions, and he waites liar on 
 your soul in all such instances. Such kind of lying 
 
PRAYER. 203 
 
 is the meanest kind, for it is the most artful kind 
 of deception. The mind has to deliberate longer 
 in forming it, and of course it is the most delib- 
 erate mode of falsifying the truth. This sin is 
 practised by some people constantly, and can they 
 offer prevailing pray'er ? God will not hear such an 
 artful deceiver. Look close here, and come into 
 Christ by abandoning all sin, and let Christ's words 
 abide in you. Let his words be loved and cherished 
 in your hearts daily. Let all their demands be re- 
 duced to practice. Then you may ask what you 
 will, and it shall be done. 
 
 5. Let us turn our attention to yet another con- 
 dition that must be complied with, if we would 
 offer prevailing prayer. John xiv. 14 : " If ye shall 
 ask anything in my name, I will do it." How the 
 subject of asking is kept up in all these passages, 
 and each of them presents a new condition to be 
 complied with ! Christ intends to make the way to 
 the mercy-seat so clear, that all may understand, if 
 they will be governed by the teachings of the Bible. 
 To ask in Christ's name is the condition to be com- 
 plied with, in the passage now to come under consid- 
 eration. What is it to ask in Christ's name ? That 
 is an important question, and should receive a cor- 
 rect answer. The truth involved in the answer must 
 be reduced to practice, or our prayers will not be. 
 heard on high. This world is a rebellious province 
 in God's empire. The human family have sinned, 
 
204 PRAYER. 
 
 all sinned. They have trampled under their feet a 
 government which is perfect, pure, and good. They 
 have trampled upon infinite rights, for they have 
 trampled upon God's rights. Their sin is not a 
 trifle, but a great crime, deserving of the deepest 
 hell. They have forfeited all * right and title to 
 heaven. They deserve, from the hand of their 
 Maker, a curse, and nothing but a curse. If such 
 beings come to God for a blessing, and he deals 
 with them according to their deserts, he will look 
 them quick into hell. Strict justice would close 
 heaven's doors, and bolt and bar them forever 
 against all such beings, and against all their sup- 
 plications. Now the question arises how can such 
 beings approach their Maker, and have their prayers 
 heard. Jesus Christ, by his death and suffering for 
 man, has opened up a new and living way to God's 
 throne. This new way is the way for unworthy 
 sinners to come to God and be heard. Christ, by 
 the atonement he has made, has purchased back 
 for the human race all the blessings they forfeited 
 by the fall. They forfeited heaven and eternal life ; 
 they can have them back through Christ. They 
 forfeited the smile and approbation of God, but he 
 can now smile upon and justify them when' they 
 approach him through Christ. They, by transgres- 
 sion, have exposed themselves to the fearful penalty 
 of the divine law, and to all the agonies of the 
 second death. They can be saved from the vials 
 
PRAYER. 205 
 
 of its wrath by a free and fall pardon, when they 
 seek it through Christ. In a word, all that the soul 
 needs for time and eternity, to supply its wants in 
 this vale of tears and carry it triumphantly to heav- 
 en, exalt it high in glory, crown it with immortality 
 and eternal life, is all embodied in Christ. To ask in 
 his name, is to ask God to grant us these mercies, 
 not on the ground of our worthiness, for we have 
 none, but on the ground of his worthiness ; not on 
 the ground of our merit, for we have merited wrath, 
 but on the ground of his infinite merit ; not on the 
 ground of anything we have done or can do, but on 
 the ground of what he has done for us. It is to 
 ask God to bless and save us, not simply that we 
 may be blessed and made happy, and saved from 
 wrath, but that Christ, this exalted High Priest of 
 ours, may be honored, eternally honored in saving 
 and blessing such unworthy, hell-deserving rebels as 
 we have been. We base our plea wholly and en- 
 tirely on the ground of the atoning sacrifice he 
 has offered up in our behalf. When we offer pre- 
 vailing prayer, we approach the cross, and look up 
 and ask our heavenly Father to open his ears and 
 listen to the groans of Christ : to open his eyes and 
 behold the crimson tide poured out in our behalf, 
 and then for his sake to hear and answer and defer 
 not. 
 
 Now remember, any man who throws away the 
 vicarious atonement of Christ, throws away the last 
 hope, the only hope of this fallen world. 
 
206 TRAYER. 
 
 It is through that atonement alone that sinners 
 have access to God. It is through that alone they 
 can offer prevailing prayer. 
 
 The apostles and primitive Christians understood 
 this great truth, which accounts for the fact that they 
 hung their every hope upon the cross of Christ. 
 " Christ and his cross was all their theme." 
 
 1 Cor. ii. 2 : "I determined," says Paul, " not to 
 know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and 
 him crucified." Why this determination on the part 
 of Paul ? For the simple reason that he knew that 
 salvation by the meritorious death of Christ was the 
 only hope of man ; that it was the foundation- 
 stone of the Gospel, that it was the Gospel of God. He 
 understood full well that when the great truth of the 
 atoning death of Christ was rejected, God's Gospel 
 was thrown to the winds. And think you Paul 
 would know or acknowledge any other system to 
 have any saving power in it, or he have anything 
 to do with a system that rejected the chief corner- 
 stone of salvation, or he fellowship it in any form ? 
 He knew his duty too well. No, says Paul, I will 
 know or acknowledge nothing as Gospel that rejects 
 the cross of Christ. Take another passage from 
 Paul, and see how he exhalts the cross, or the atone- 
 ment of Christ; 1 Cor. i. 23, 24: " But we preach 
 Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling-block, 
 and unto the Greeks foolishness ; but unto them 
 which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the 
 power of God, and the ivisdovi of Godr 
 
PRAYER. 207 
 
 How many wise Greeks we have here in Massa- 
 chusetts ! The preaching of the cross, or the meri- 
 torious death of Christ, is to them foolishness. How 
 they ridicule the doctrine of the atonement ! They 
 expect to be saved by the law. They do not fear the 
 law. When they have broken it, they say they ex- 
 pect and are willing to suffer its penalty. But this 
 sacrificial religion they detest. So did the ancient 
 Greeks. To them such a religion was foolishness. 
 Paul here decides the character of all such beings, 
 both ancient and modern. They are not of the 
 called, or are not Christians. " But unto them which 
 are called, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom 
 of God." 
 
 To the real Christian, the preaching of the cross, 
 or salvation by the sacrificial death of Christ, is the 
 power of God, and the wisdom of God. He under- 
 stands his ill deserts too well to even hope for sal- 
 vation in any way except through the meritorious 
 death of Christ. He understands full well that if he 
 has access to God, it must be through Christ. You 
 must keep this truth distinctly before the mind when 
 you pray. You never will offer prevailing prayer 
 when you lose sight of it. Let us therefore come to 
 God through Christ, and ask in his name, and then 
 he will hear, and we shall find this promise richly 
 verified in our experience. 
 
 6. I will examine one condition more, and 
 draw this subject to a close. You will find it de- 
 
208 PRAYER. 
 
 scribed in James i. 5, 6 : " If any of you lack wis- 
 dom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men 
 liberally, and upbraideth not ; and it shall be given 
 him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering," 
 The subject of asking is still kept up in this text, 
 but a new condition is presented. " Let him ask in 
 faiths To approach God so as to be heard, we 
 must come in faith. What is faith ? It is credence 
 of testimony, or taking God at his word. Faith 
 takes hold of the promises of God, and expects God 
 will do as he has promised. The man of faith ex- 
 pects to be heard ; he looks for an answer. Take an 
 illustration from Elijah's praying; 1 Kings, xviii. 
 42-45 : He went up to the top of Carmel and cast 
 himself down upon the ground, and commenced 
 calling upon God. He sent his servant to look off 
 upon the sea and watch for the answer. The ser- 
 vant returned with the report that the heavens were 
 all bright, and there were no signs of an answer. 
 Did this discourage Elijah, and lead him to give up 
 the matter? Not at all. He expected an answer. 
 Go up until the seventh time, he replies. The 
 seventh time the servant returns with the report 
 that a little cloud, the bigness of a man's hand, had 
 made its appearance in the heavens. Did Elijah 
 reply now, — well, if that is all there is to be seen 
 after praying here seven times, we may as well give 
 it up ; it will not amount to much. This under- 
 taking to force things, says he, is not the correct 
 
PRAYER. 209 
 
 course. I believe in waiting God's time. What! 
 we undertake to get up a storm any time we take 
 it into our heads we need rain ? I do not believe in 
 such things. God will send us a rain in his own good 
 time. Come, he remarks to his servant, let us go 
 down and wait, and let God manage this matter. 
 Was this the reasoning of Elijah ? Not by any 
 means. He expected a blessing. He looked for an 
 answer to his prayers, and he knew it would come. 
 He expected the little cloud would spread over the 
 heavens, and that there would be a plentiful rain, in 
 which he was not disappointed. Now notice in this 
 case, as soon as this servant of God began to pray 
 he began to look for the answer ; he expected it. How 
 his faith held on and did not waver amid discour- 
 agements, nor would he give it up until the answer 
 came ! This is faith. It needs a whole sermon to 
 illustrate this point, but I must detain you here but 
 a short time. 
 
 Let me direct your attention to one thing. When 
 you go home, take up the New Testament and read 
 the history of Christ as given by Matthew. As you 
 pass along, observe how Christ, when on earth, 
 always met men just on the ground of their faith. 
 Take one or two instances as an illustration of this 
 point. As he came down from the mount, after 
 delivering that ever-memorable sermon, as recorded 
 in the fifth, sixth, and seventh chapters of Matthew, 
 a leprous man met and worshipped him, and said, 
 
 VOL. I. 14 
 
210 PRAYER. 
 
 " Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean." 
 Jesus rejDlied, " I will ; be thou clean ! " and he 
 was healed immediately. Please notice the faith of 
 this man, how it takes hold of his ability. " If thou 
 wilt, thou canst.'''' How Christ meets him right on 
 that point! "I will," says he, and the work is 
 done. Take another case : As Jesus entered Caper- 
 naum, a centurion met him, and said, " Lord, my 
 servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, and griev- 
 ously tormented." Christ replied, " I will come and 
 heal him." He objected.. Why object? Does he 
 not wish his servant healed? Let him, answer: I 
 am not worthy that such a holy personage should 
 come under my roof; but speak the word only, and 
 my servant shall be healed. Listen to his reason- 
 ing for a moment. How sensible ! How forcible ! 
 I am a man, a mere man, Lord, says he. You 
 are something more than a man. You are Lord; 
 you are God over all. I am a man under other 
 men ; I am a man under authority. A centurion 
 was an officer in the Roman army who had the 
 command of one hundred soldiers. He was not the 
 highest officer in the army ; he was a very inferior 
 officer, under other men. Now, Lord, says he, you 
 are not under authority ; you are at the head of all 
 things, und all things are under your control. But 
 in my condition, being a man under other men, I 
 can say to this man ^o, and he goeth, and to another 
 come, and he cometh. Now, says he, diseases are 
 
PRAYER. 211 
 
 but thy servants. Speak the word only, and my 
 servant will be healed. You need not come to 
 my house ; only command, and say to the palsy go, 
 and it will obey. Truly, says Christ, I have not 
 found so great faith in all Israel. If your faith says 
 a wo7'd can do it, go thy way, — a word shall do it. 
 And his servant was healed from that moment. See 
 how Christ met this man, just on the ground of his 
 faith ! Speak the word, he says, and it shall be 
 done. Go thy way, says Christ, a word has done it. 
 
 Now, look the history of Christ through, and you 
 will see that when on earth he always met men on 
 the ground of their faith. He never turned a soli- 
 tary individual away, who came to him in faith. 
 All he wanted was to have them bring along their 
 faith, and the blessing was theirs. 
 
 How much he complained of the unbelief of his 
 disciples ! There was hardly any sin that grieved 
 him more, and for which he reproved them more 
 sharply. O ye of little faith, he would exclaim, 
 how long shall I bear with you ? How long shall I 
 suffer you ? 
 
 The sin of unbelief is a very aggravating sin, as 
 it calls in question God's veracity. Everywhere in 
 the Bible God requires of us to have confidence in 
 him and his promises ; for without faith it is impos- 
 sible to please him. Here is our sin in this age ; we 
 are full of unbelief. This shuts out our prayers, and 
 God will not hear. Who of you before me to-day 
 
212 - PRAYER. 
 
 expects God will hear and answer your prayers daily ? 
 Do you look for an answer ? Would you not rather 
 be disappointed, if God should answer ? When you 
 arise from your knees, when you have been praying, 
 suppose you stop and put this question to yourself: 
 Now I have offered such and such petitions. Do I 
 expect Christ will answer those requests ? What 
 would be the answer of your heart ? Oh, you say, 
 I do not expect God will hear my prayers. That 
 settles the question for you, then. Your heart is fuU 
 of unbelief. Where there is faith, the person does 
 expect and look for a blessing. But why do you 
 pray, and insult God with such unbelieving prayers ? 
 Because he commands me to pray. He does not 
 command you to pray an unbelieving prayer, any 
 more than he commands- you to swear. An unbe- 
 lieving prayer is sinful. God command you to sin ? 
 But God commands me to pray. That is true ; 
 but he commands you to pray the prayer of faith, 
 and not an unbelieving prayer. A prayer coming 
 from a heart full of unbelief he will not accept. It 
 is wicked ; he abhors it. The prayer of faith he 
 loves to hear and answer ; but the prayer of unbe- 
 lief he hates, and will not answer. Now, why offer 
 up a prayer that God hates ? What would you 
 have me do ? stop praying ? No ; I would have 
 you stop your unbelief, and pray in faith. Then the 
 answer is yours. But I cannot exercise faith. I 
 am not to blame for not having faith. But does 
 
PRAYKR. 213 
 
 not God command you to have faith ? Yes, I 
 suppose he does. And you break a command of 
 God, and not be to blame ? If you can break one 
 command of God and not be to blame, perhaps you 
 can all of his commands ; and upon that theory you 
 are not to blame for being a sinner at all. Where 
 did you learn such a horrible theory as that ? What ! 
 break any of God's commands, when you know 
 they are his commands, and not be to blame ? It 
 is impossible. But faith is the gift of God. So 
 is every other Christian grace. What does the Bible 
 mean when it teaches that these graces are the gift 
 of God ? Does it mean that they are something 
 that God does for you without your agency ? That 
 is impossible, for this reason : These graces are 
 something that the Christian does. It is the Chris- 
 tian who repents, believes, and loves for himself, and 
 not God who repents, believes, and loves for him. 
 If it were so, it would be God's repentance, faith, 
 and love, and not that of the Christian. 
 
 These graces, therefore, being something which 
 the Christian does, Gud cannot do it for him with- 
 out his agency. To have these graces at all, he 
 must act. The question returns then, what is 
 meant by their being the gift of God ? This, 
 namely, that these graces are a something which 
 God's Spirit inclines, induces, or moves i/ou to do ; 
 not a something which the Spirit does for you, 
 nor a something which the Spirit compels you to 
 
214 PRAYER. 
 
 do, — for compulsion cannot be applied here, as you 
 are voluntary in the doing, — but it is a something 
 which the Spii'it inclines or moves you to do. 
 For this reason the graces are called the gift of 
 God, as you would never exercise them without 
 this divine persuasion. That moving influence you 
 have had more or less all your life, and resisted it. 
 The Spirit always acts in harmony with the Bible, 
 and the Bible demands them now. If we will stop 
 resisting the Spirit and give ourselves up to do what 
 the Bible demands, we shall soon find our hearts 
 adorned with these graces. Now faith is something 
 which God commands you to have. It is your 
 exercise, and you are to blame for not having it. 
 God condemns you for not having it; and when you 
 throw the blame of your not having it upon God, 
 and justify yourself in a state of unbelief by saying. 
 Oh ! faith is the gift of God ; he does not give me 
 faith, and I am not to blame, — that is horrible 
 wickedness. 
 
 Now then, will you repent of all this wickedness, 
 take the blame to yourself for being in a state of 
 unbelief, fly to Christ for pardon, and begin from to- 
 day to offer the prayer of faith ? If you will live in 
 that state of mind daily and habitually, God will 
 answer. 
 
 I could add many striking incidents of answers 
 to prayer, whicli I have witnessed in the revivals of^the 
 last twenty five years in our land, but as oiu- papers. 
 
PRAYER. 215 
 
 both political and religions, have been full of them, 
 it is not necessary. I will now close this subject 
 with a few 
 
 REMARKS. 
 
 1. What condescension on the part of our Maker to 
 listen to a prayer coming up from this guilty world ! 
 Yet he bends his gracious ear to hear all who ap- 
 proach him in harmony with the directions he has 
 given in his word. He is no respecter of persons. 
 He has one set of rules for all to comply with. The 
 high and the low, the rich and the poor, must come 
 upon one common level when they pray. He has 
 not one set of rules for the rich and another for the 
 poor. The emperor upon his throne, to be heard, 
 must stoop just as low as the beggar in the streets. 
 All, all have sinned, and all must approach him by 
 repentance of sin and faith in his Son. The man 
 who is too proud to stoop as low as the beggar, is 
 too proud to be saved, and in another world he may 
 see the beggar exalted to heaven, while he himself 
 is cast down to hell. God will subdue and take 
 away all pride, and bring down all high looks before 
 he will hear you pray. 
 
 2. We are indebted to the Lord Jesus Christ for 
 this privilege. We forfeited the privilege of access 
 to God when we sinned. This high privilege was 
 purchased for us by the death-groans on the cross. 
 How we ought to fall at Christ's feet, and pour forth 
 
216 PRAYER. 
 
 grateful hearts to him for opening a way by which 
 wc, poor sinners, may come to God and live ! Have 
 we sufficiently praised Christ for this great blessing ? 
 We are all guilty of ingratitude in this particular. 
 Let us come to Christ with this sin to-day, and con- 
 fess it and ask forgiyeness. Let us offer up to him 
 our united thanks for this unspeakable gift. 
 
 3. This subject will show us the difference be- 
 tween the true Christian, and a man who has never 
 been converted. The true Christian prays because 
 he loves to hold communion with God. It is the 
 delight of his heart. He approaches God so as to 
 secure an answer ; but the man who has never been 
 converted, if he prays at all, prays simply because he 
 thinks he cannot be saved without. He has no love 
 for prayer, but he wants to go to heaven ; or perhaps 
 he wishes to convince others that he is a Christian ; 
 or he is a little gifted in prayer so far as words are 
 concerned, and he wishes to show off; or he is resting 
 dn a false hope, which he wishes to maintain, and 
 his conscience would not permit it if he should neg- 
 lect the form of prayer ; or perhaps some other selfish 
 motive governs him. There is no true love for 
 prayer in his heart, and he has no access to God. 
 He draws nigh to him with the lips while the heart 
 is far from him. Not so with the true child of God. 
 His heart is in it. He has a spirit of prayer, and 
 prevails. He is a man of faith. 
 
 Look close here, my brother. Do not deceive 
 
PRAYER. 217 
 
 yourself. Do you have access to God ? If not, give 
 up your hope ; it is deceptive. Repent, and get a 
 good one. 
 
 4. Finally. I have now spread before you this 
 important subject. 1 have tried to show you how 
 to approach God, so as to be heard. If you will all 
 reduce these thoughts to practice, how God will 
 come to this place and region! 
 
 Will you do it ? No matter how plain the truth 
 is preached, it will not benefit you unless you prac- 
 tise it. The clearer it is presented the more it will 
 harden, if you resist it. These sermons will affect 
 you, and you are to decide how. If you practise 
 them, God will come in great power. If you reject 
 this truth, you will grieve his Spirit. Will you de- 
 cide the question now, what you will do ? If you 
 say, I will commence this work to-day, then throw 
 yourself upon the arm of the Spirit, and plead for his 
 presence until you arc richly baptized. Rely upon 
 it to make intercession in your hearts according to 
 the divine will, and look for a great blessing ; and if 
 you come by faith, God will roll a wave of salvation 
 over all this region. 
 
VI. 
 
 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 " But tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with 
 power from on high." — Luke xxiv. 49. 
 
 1. POWER SPOKEN OF IN THE TEXT. 2. WHAT IT AVILL AC- 
 COMPLISH. 3. HOW OBTAINED. 4. GUILT OF THE CHURCH 
 IN NOT OBTAINING IT. 
 
 Tarry in Jerusalem. What I in that bloody city 
 where they had put Christ to death ? Yes, in that 
 wicked city, the soil of \vhich had just drank in the 
 blood of the Son of God. Tarry there until you 
 receive power from on high. He will have his dis- 
 ciples commence the work there, and build the first 
 church under the gospel dispensation there, in spite 
 of the Jews. They imagined they had effectually 
 put down this new religion, that they had defeated 
 Christ in his mission, that they had perfectly tri- 
 umphed over him, when they nailed him to the 
 cross, laid his dead body in the tomb, and guarded 
 the sepulchre with a strong band of soldiers. 
 
 Their triumph, however, was but momentary. On 
 the third day he scattered all their hopes to the 
 winds. He came forth from the grave a trium- 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 219 
 
 phant conqueror, and commands his disciples to go 
 back and tarry in this unrighteous city ; to begin 
 and establish this new religion on the very spot 
 where they supposed they had subdued it. Is 
 Cln-ist to be defeated in his designs by a band of 
 murderers ? Not he. He will build up his cause 
 in Jerusalem, in spite of the rage of his enemies. 
 He will have a people to serve him even 'there. 
 The gospel shall begin its victorious work there, 
 and from Jerusalem it shall go forth to subdue 
 and conquer the nations. 
 
 Tarry in Jerusalem, says Christ, until you receive 
 power. Power from what source ? From man ? 
 No, from on high. I am about to ascend to my 
 Father and your Father, and I will send the prom- 
 ise of my Father upon you, which shall fit you for 
 the great work before you. You shall be clothed 
 with power that all your adversaries shall not be 
 able to gainsay or resist. The weapons of your 
 warfare shall not be carnal, but they shall be 
 mighty. This power from on high shall make them 
 mighty. They shall be mighty to bow stubborn 
 hearts, to subdue stubborn wills, and uproot sin 
 from the souls of men. Tarry in Jerusalem until 
 you receive this power. Do not presume to under- 
 take this work without it. Your power is all weak- 
 ness. This power from above is all-subduing; it is 
 the only hope of the church in building up Christ's 
 kingdom. With it you have certain victory, sure 
 
220 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 success. Without it, certain defeat ; all your efforts 
 arc a failure. 
 
 Now let me impress this truth upon this church. 
 We are sure of a good work in this place, if we 
 secure this power from on high. Unless we do 
 secure it, not a sinner w^ill be saved. W^hat ! Man 
 save sinners without this power ? No man on earth 
 ever did or ever can do it. An angel could not do 
 it. We must secure this power, or all go to hell. 
 Will you set your faces to seek for it until it comes ? 
 Let this be a united work until we are all filled with 
 this power, then how quick God will get to himself 
 a name in this place ! With your attention, I will 
 proceed to show, — 
 
 I. What is meant by the power spoken of in 
 this text. 
 
 II. What it will accomplish for the church, if 
 she receives it. 
 
 III. How it can be obtained. 
 
 IV. The guilt of the church in living without it. 
 I. Then I am to show what is meant by the 
 
 POWER SPOKEN OF IN THE TEXT. 
 
 The power referred to in this text is the Holy 
 Ghost, or the third person in the Trinity. The 
 whole verse from which the text is taken, reads 
 thus : " And, behold, I send the promise of my 
 Father upon you : but tarry ye in the city of Jeru- 
 salem, until ye be endued with power from on high." 
 That is, wait in Jerusalem until I send this promise 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 221 
 
 of my Father upon you. What was that promise ? 
 Turn to Acts ii. 33, and let Peter settle that ques- 
 tion : " Therefore being by the right hand of God 
 exalted," says Peter to the Jews " and having re- 
 ceived of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, 
 he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear." 
 The promise of the Father then, was the promise 
 of the Holy Ghost. This was the power for which 
 they were to wait in Jerusalem until they received it. 
 In obedience to this command of Christ, the Apos- 
 tles and others did tarry in Jerusalem until they re- 
 ceived this power, and then they went about God's 
 work in earnest, and with wonderful success. The 
 history informs us how they tarried. One hundred 
 and twenty of them gathered into an upper chamber, 
 and for ten days continued in prayer and supplica- 
 tion to God for the fulfilment of this promise. God, 
 in answer to their prayers, and through the interces- 
 sion of Christ, after he had arrived at the court of 
 heaven, shed down this poiver. They were all filled 
 with divine energy, and rushed out into the streets 
 of Jerusalem to preach salvation and gather souls 
 into the kingdom. Let us then imitate their exam- 
 ple. Let us unitedly continue in prayer for this 
 same power until ^ve receive it. Then we are 
 prepared for God's work. Then we can have suc- 
 cess in leading souls to Christ. Will you do it ? 
 WUl you begin to-day, and hold on until the 
 blessing comes ? 
 
222 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 11. I AM TO SHOW WHAT IT WILL ACCOMPLISH FOR 
 THE CHURCH, IF SHE RECEIVES IT. 
 
 1. It will cleanse your heart from impurities, 
 from wicked thoughts and vain desires, and fit it to 
 be a suitable temple for God to dwell in. " Know 
 ye not that ye are the temple of God ? " says Paul, 
 in 1 Cor. iii. 16. God will not dwell in a polluted 
 temple. He will first cleanse and purify it, and fit it 
 to be the abode of his Spirit. Then he will take 
 possession, and adorn it with every Christian grace. 
 
 2. He will take away your weak, vacillating 
 heart, and give you a strong one. See how he ac- 
 complished this work for Peter. Before the won- 
 derful refreshing on the day of Pentecost, Peter's 
 heart was weak, and would fail him in the mo- 
 ment of temptation. Take an instance : Before 
 Christ was arrested, he proclaimed to the Apos- 
 tles one truth which, at the time, they could not 
 believe. He declared that they would all forsake 
 him in his hour of trial. Peter asserted, in the most 
 positive manner, that if aU the rest should forsake 
 his master, he would stand by him to the last. He 
 would not forsake him, if he stood alone. He even 
 went so far as to affirm that he would sooner lay 
 down his life than forsake Christ. I have no doubt 
 that Peter, when he made this remark, was honest. 
 He was not hypocritical in his pretensions of attach- 
 ment to Christ. He did not, however, understand 
 the weakness of his own heart. Christ understood 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 223 
 
 it, and revealed to him the fact, that. that night he 
 would deny and forsake his Lord. Peter could not 
 believe it; but when the trial came, his life demon- 
 strated Christ's prediction to be true. Christ was 
 arrested and led away by the officer, to be put on 
 trial for his life. Peter fell in the rear, but followed 
 at a distance, to see the end of the matter. At 
 length he was charged with being one of his disci- 
 ples. He instantly denied it. " He is a stranger to 
 me," says Peter ; " I know not the man." What a 
 lie! Being pressed further, he denied with an oath. 
 He cursed and swore to save his own life. Peter, 
 Peter, poor Peter ! What a weak heart I How it 
 gives way and is overcome in the hour of tempta- 
 tion ! Now let us look at this same Peter after the 
 day of Pentecost, and after he received power from 
 on high. Every effort was made by the Jews and 
 others to lead him to-abandon Christ's cause. They 
 threaten, arrest. Imprison, and finally crucify him 
 with his head downwards ; but he is firm, and im- 
 movably fixed for Christ till his latest breath. What 
 a heart now ! How unchangeable ! This power 
 from on high has greatly strengthened his heart, and 
 made it strong for God, so that it could not be over- 
 came. How many in the church at this day have 
 weak and vacillating hearts ! How the hour of 
 temptation overcomes all their good resolutions ! 
 They sin and grieve the Spirit, and bring leanness 
 into their souls. How much they need this power 
 
224 POWKR FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 to strengthen their hearts, and make them strong for 
 the Lord. Tarry in Jerusalem, my brother, until 
 you receive this power, and you will become mighty 
 for Christ. How easy you will overcome tempta- 
 tion, then, instead of temptation overcoming you ! 
 Neither earth nor hell can lead you astray when 
 your heart is full of the Holy Ghost. 
 
 3. This power from on high will illuminate your 
 understandings, and greatly assist you in under- 
 standing the Scriptures. Sin has cast a veil over 
 the mind, and blinded the eyes of our understand- 
 ings so that we do not take hold of the truth with 
 ease. This power tears off this veil, pours light in 
 upon the soul, and helps it to take hold of the gi-eat 
 things of Christ. 
 
 Referring to this power of the Spirit, Christ says : 
 " When he is come he shall teach you all things, and 
 bring all things to your remembrance." " If any 
 man lack wisdom, let him ask of God." But why 
 ask of God, unless he can somehow impart wisdom 
 to the soul ? Look at its eifect upon the minds of 
 the Apostles. Up to the day of Pentecost, up to the 
 very time they received this power from on high, the 
 minds of the Apostles seem to have been all in the 
 dark in relation to Christ's spiritual kingdom. Thdy 
 were under the impression that Christ was to estab- 
 lish a temporal kingdom on earth, and that he was 
 to reign here as a temporal prince. He had fre- 
 quently said to them that his kingdom was not of 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 225 
 
 this world, and explained the matter over and over 
 again ; but still their minds were in the dark upon 
 this point. They would frequently dispute about 
 who should be greatest in Christ's kingdom. One 
 woman came to him with the request that her two 
 sons might sit, one on his right hand and the other 
 on his left, in his kingdom. He had frequently de- 
 clared that the Jews would put him to death, but 
 that he should rise again on the third day. 
 
 Notwithstanding all his teaching on this point, 
 when he was crucified and laid in the grave, the 
 last hope of his followers seems to have expired with 
 him. Instead of looking for his resuiTcction, they 
 made every preparation to embalm his body. How 
 dark their minds ! After his resurrection he fell in 
 and conversed with some of them on their way 
 to Emmaus. Not knowing who he was, they re- 
 mark, " but we trusted that it had been he which 
 should have redeemed " Israel." But alas ! as he 
 was dead they had given up all hope. Christ now 
 reveals himself to them, and they know for a cer- 
 tainty that he is risen from the dead. He associ- 
 ates with and instructs ■ them for forty days, and 
 then leads them out from Jerusalem to ascend up 
 to the throne of God, and they come to him again 
 with this old doctrine of a temporal kingdom. 
 They put the question, " Lord, wilt thou at this 
 time restore again the kingdom to Israel ? " How 
 their minds are still obscured in relation to the 
 
 VOL. t. 15 
 
226 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 ti'ue nature of his kingdom ! He sends them to 
 Jerusalem to wait for this power from on high. 
 After they receive it, that settles the whole matter. 
 Not another word do we ever hear about a tem- 
 poral kingdom. They understand the whole now. 
 All is clear as heaven. Why ? This power clears 
 up this whole question to their understandings, and 
 makes all simple. The Spirit imparted light they 
 had never received before. One part of its work 
 is to illuminate the soul, and help it to take hold 
 of God's truth. If you wi-sh a clear view of truth, 
 get near to God. Let your soul be baptized with 
 this power, and you will behold wondrous things out 
 of God's law. The mind will not only see the 
 truth, but the soul will love and feed upon it. Un- 
 der its influence you will grow up into Christ, and 
 become strong in the Lord and in the power of his 
 might. 
 
 4. This power, when received, will take away and 
 overcome in you the fear of man. Take Peter's 
 case again as an illustration. When Christ was 
 arrested, as we have before remarked, Peter and 
 all the rest of the Apostles fled. " The fear of 
 man bringeth a snare." How true this was in Pe- 
 ter's case. He thought, doubtless, that if he owned 
 Christ, he too should be arrested, and perhaps put 
 to death. To avoid this he lied, — denied Christ, 
 cursed and swore, — being influenced by the fear 
 of man. His courage and fortitude failed him 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 227 
 
 utterly; and, how timid he becomes in the pre- 
 sence of a female ! Now look at the same Peter 
 after he receives this power from Heaven. He then 
 stands up in the presence of thousands, and not only 
 owns Christ, but charges these very Jews, in a most 
 public manner, with murdering the Son of God. 
 How bold ! How courageous ! No timidity now. 
 Henceforth, every opportunity he has he will preach 
 Christ, even when he is before the highest tribunals 
 in the nation. What a change ! How is it brought 
 about ? This power has done up this wonderful 
 work. 
 
 If you are troubled with the fear of man, go to 
 Christ, and secure this divine influence, and how 
 quick it will vanish ! You can then meet any duty. 
 You can stand before a world to plead his cause. 
 What are kings or emperors to one filled with the 
 Holy Ghost! You can meet all the men on earth, 
 and all the devils in hell, and, looking them in the 
 eye, own your Lord, and defend his cause in the 
 presence of the whole of them. Such is the effect 
 of this power upon the souls of men. How it 
 nerved up the martyrs and made them strong in 
 the Lord, and in the power of his might ! It made 
 Luther bold and courageous to meet all his enemies, 
 and has imparted moral courage to God's people in 
 every age of the world. 
 
 5. This power, when it is received, will over- 
 come in you the love of the world. " Love not the 
 
228 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 world, neither the things that are in the world. If 
 any man love the world, the love of the Father 
 is not in him," says John. This love of the world 
 is eating out the very vitals of the church at this 
 day. What a desire some beings have to be rich ! 
 Riches is their God. See them sacrifice ease, 
 reputation, truth, honesty, and almost life itself to 
 make money. They care but little how they get it, 
 if they can only get it. Money, money, money, is 
 the great thing that absorbs all their thoughts, all 
 their time, and they will sell their eternal happiness, 
 even, to obtain it. This love of the world must be 
 broken up, or such souls will be lost. Such beings 
 Christians ? It is impossible ! They are not Chris- 
 tians. So John affirms. The world is their God, 
 and they will go down to perdition unless this love 
 of the world is broken up. What can do it ? This 
 power can do it. Nothing short of this ever will do 
 it. How it broke up the love of the world in the 
 hearts of the primitive Christians ! They sold out 
 their entire estates and laid the whole at the feet of 
 the Apostles, to promote and advance God's cause. 
 What was money to them compared with the inter- 
 ests of Christ's kingdom? His kingdom was first 
 and uppermost in their minds, and they were ready 
 to sacrifice every thing to advance it. Let the 
 church be baptized with the same power now, and 
 it will produce the same effect. It will effectually 
 break up this love of the world in the church, 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 229 
 
 and draw out the soul in supreme love to 
 God. 
 
 6. This power, when received, will clear up and 
 present the great moving considerations, or motives 
 of the Gospel, so strongly before the mind, that they 
 will have an all-commanding influence over the heart 
 and life. How it will make heaven stand out before 
 the soul ! How its glories will appear to the mind, 
 and how infinitely desirable ! How hell looks, how 
 awful and how much to be dreaded ! The mind's 
 eye can almost see the smoke of the pit, and hear 
 the wailings of the lost. It starts back from the 
 world of despair. Eternity I How the mind dwells 
 upon this great idea ! How infinitely valuable the 
 soul seems ! The judgment, the great white throne 
 is almost visible, and the individual feels as if he 
 was hastening up to his final account. In a word, 
 all the great truths of the Bible are made to stand 
 out in such bold relief, that they become solemn 
 realities, and move, melt, and subdue the heart un- 
 der their sanctifying influence, and cause it sweetly 
 to yield itself up to their control. 
 
 7. This power from on high, when it is received, 
 will fill the soul with unutterable desires for the 
 salvation of men. Paul, when under its influence, 
 declared he had great heaviness, and continual sor- 
 row in his heart for the Jews who rejected the 
 Gospel. It will make you feel most intensely for 
 others. It has always produced the same effect 
 
230 powi:r from on high. 
 
 in all hearts under its influence. A heart that has 
 no deep feeling for the salvation of sinners is not 
 under its influence. If it has ever had such feel- 
 ings, but has now lost them, it is because it has 
 grieved away the Spirit, and is now in a back- 
 slidden state. Such hearts should immediately- 
 repent, return to God and duty, and fly to the 
 mercy-seat for a fresh baptism of the Spirit, which 
 will restore to them this deep and ardent feeling 
 for the salvation of men. The soul must be full 
 of this deep feeling, to be successful in moving 
 hearts. A cold, formal religion seldom gets further 
 than the head, never reaches the heart. It is when 
 the soul is full of love, full of compassion for others, 
 that it moves and melts the heart of the sinner. 
 
 It is only when your heart is full of the Holy 
 Ghost, that you have this godlike compassion, this 
 compassion that has power in it. In times of re- 
 vivals there will be members of the church who will 
 be filled with it. Young converts will be filled with it. 
 Why ? Because at such times they have this power 
 from on high. Now let the church live so as to re- 
 tain this power with her constantly, and not grieve it 
 away by sin, and what outgushings of soul you 
 would see for the salvation of others ! 
 
 8. This power from on high, when you receive it, 
 will give you great power over men. Let a minister 
 be full of it, and how he will chain and fix the at- 
 tention of his hearers, and hold their minds to the 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 231 
 
 truth as if they were in the grasp of the Spirit. 
 Some of his liearers will become excited, and man- 
 ifest hatred towards him, and be ready to gnash 
 upon him with their teeth ; while others under 
 the same sermon will be melted all down, com- 
 pletely subdued, and led to Christ for forgiveness. 
 What power Peter had over his congregation on the 
 day of Pentecost ! How he held those murderers of 
 Christ perfectly spell-bound, while he charged home 
 upon them the blood of the Son of God I How they 
 quailed under his preaching, and cried out in deep 
 anguish of soul, " men and brethren, what shall we 
 do ? " Who was this Peter ? Was he some highly 
 educated man, — some wonderfully polished orator, 
 that gave him such power over men ? From 
 whence did he graduate ? From the fish-boat, some 
 three years previous. He never saw an academy, 
 college, or theological seminary. He was not blessed 
 with such privileges. But he had applied to a higher 
 source for wisdom : to the fountain head of all true 
 knowledge. He had firs't received power from the 
 heavens, and how the wicked were slain by its in- 
 fluence, and flocked in great multitudes to the Son 
 of God, whom they had just murdered, for forgive- 
 ness and salvation ! What power he had over men ! 
 
 This power is to be attributed, not to Peter, but 
 the God of Peter, who had shed down this divine 
 energy from the heavens. 
 
 What power Luther had over men ! How he 
 
232 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 would march into the presence of his enemies, who 
 were anxious to devour him the next moment, and 
 bear his testimony for Christ, — holding them as if 
 they were in the grasp of the Almighty ! What a 
 specimen at Worms ! How he moved the world 
 under his influence during his life ! Why such 
 power over men, and from whence did he derive it ? 
 From above, — from the Holy Ghost which worked 
 in him mightily. 
 
 But we are not all Luthers, says one. That is 
 true. But we can all have this power; and just in 
 proportion as we have it, we shall have power over 
 men for good. Just in proportion as the clmrch are 
 destitute of it, she will be powerless to lead the 
 world to Christ. 
 
 9. This power from on high, when you receive it, 
 will beget within you a spirit of deep and earnest 
 prayer. It will break up your formal praying, and 
 your soul will be solemnly in earnest w^hen you ap- 
 proach the mercy-seat. It will help the infirmities 
 of the flesh, and make intercession in your hearts 
 with groanings which cannot be uttered. It will 
 wake up iii your soul desires that will be holy, deep, 
 earnest desires, which will take possession of the 
 whole heart, and draw out the whole spirit to God 
 for help. It will make you feel that you must have 
 assistance from Him, and you will cling to the 
 mercy-seat and never give over until it comes. 
 How manifest this is in times of revivals ! What 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 233 
 
 praying then, what pleading, what wrestling with 
 God ! How the whole soul is then enlisted, and 
 feels that it cannot be turned away empty ! How 
 the closet will be visited, and hours spent in plead- 
 ing with God ! How men will bend over their family 
 altars, and with what fervor they will pray ! What 
 a rush to the prayer-meetings ! How the petitions 
 will be poured" in, and presented with united, fervent 
 prayer for help to the great God above I What faith ! 
 How prayer prevails ! Why this state of things ? 
 This power from on high is at work among the 
 people, and working up a spirit of prayer in their 
 souls. Will you have it here, my brother ? This 
 is what you need. This is what you must have if 
 there is anything done to save, that will produce any 
 good and lasting results. 
 
 10. This power from on high, if you receive it, 
 will give you a clear view of the great evil of sin. 
 You will no longer view sin as a trifle. You will 
 not say that it does not deserve to be punished end- 
 lessly. You will be amazed that you are out of an 
 endless hell ; that God could spare such a wretch 
 thus long, and hold him back from the fires of the 
 pit, which he so richly deserves. How distinctly 
 this power will lead you to discover that you have 
 trampled upon infinite authority ; that you have 
 broken a law that is holy, just, and good ; a law 
 if kept by all, would have secured the highest good 
 of all ; one that is as perfect as an infinitely wise 
 
234 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 God conld make it ; that, added to this wicked vio- 
 lation of the law, you have rejected the Redeemer 
 who died to save you ; that you have unrighteously 
 grieved away the Spirit that has been sent to your 
 heart to renew and fit it for heaven. 
 
 This power will present these things so clearly 
 before your minds, that you will have such a clear 
 view of the great evil of sin, as to see that it would 
 be just in God to send you to the deepest hell. 
 Christ declared that when this power came, it would 
 convince of sin. See how it led sinners to cry for 
 help on the day of Pentecost ! The same effect has 
 been produced in all ages of the world, when it has 
 been received. It has produced this same effect 
 in Ireland. What a sense of sin those have who 
 receive it ! This is what we need. We shall not 
 come to Christ without it. We shall be satis- 
 fied with the mere forms of godliness without the 
 power ; but when we have this clear view of sin, 
 nothing short of coming to Christ for a salvation 
 that can take away this abominable thing from the 
 heart, will satisfy such an individual. How sinners 
 will fly to the cross of Christ for deliverance under 
 this view of themselves! If you wish to see this 
 j)eople moved generally, and all prostrated before 
 God under a deep sense of their guilt, and all 
 crying for help, and for deliverance from sin, take 
 hold of this Divine help and plead until this power 
 comes, and see how God will shake the place. 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 235 
 
 III. I AM TO SHOW HOW YOU CAN OBTAIN THIS 
 POWER. 
 
 1. You must see and have a clear view of its 
 importance. You must labor to bring your heart 
 into that state. Stop and think here, how helpless 
 you are, and how you struggled in vain to overcome 
 your lusts and the influence of a wicked world over 
 you ; without it your resolutions fail, all fail, and the 
 world overcomes you, instead of your overcoming 
 the world. Your efforts to save your families and 
 others are fruitless without the Spirit. How hard 
 their hearts remain, notwithstanding all your care, 
 watchfulness and instruction ! Look at these things ; 
 let the mind dwell upon them ; God will make you 
 feel the importance of this gi-eat blessing before he 
 will bestow it. You would not value it when given, 
 unless he made you feel its importance. When you 
 see its infinite importance, then there is one point 
 gained towards your receiving it. In prayer ask 
 God to make you see the necessity of this great 
 blessing. 
 
 2. You must value this gift above everything 
 else. God will have you view this matter in its 
 true light before he will give you this power. To 
 be blessed with the gift of the Spirit, is one of the 
 richest blessings heaven has to bestow. When you 
 receive it, you receive a preparation for heaven. It 
 is the Holy Spirit which renews the heart and fits 
 it for the heavenly world. Without this renovation 
 
236 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 of heart, you are not fit to enjoy God, nor the so- 
 ciety of angels. All that Christ has done for you 
 is an utter failure without the Spirit, so far as your 
 salvation is concerned. The atonement will save 
 no one unless he sees his sins, repents, and has a 
 new heart. 
 
 To convince of sin, lead to repentance, and renew 
 the heart is the appropriate work of the Spirit. How 
 valuable then this gift of God, and how important! 
 You must prize it above everything else. If you 
 value earthly things more than you value this bless- 
 ing, God will withhold it. This is the trouble with 
 the church at this day, in my estimation. She 
 greatly undervalues this blessing. She prefers money 
 to this power, for sluiwill grieve the Spirit to obtain it 
 She prefers her own aggrandizement, her own gra- 
 tification to this blessing, for she will grieve the 
 Spirit to secure them. Now while you are* in this 
 state of heart, God will not give you this bless- 
 ing. He will bring you into a state where you will 
 value it above all earthly goods, before he will be- 
 stow it. 
 
 3. You must remember it is from God alone that 
 you can receive this great gift. You are shut up to 
 God here. This he will have you feel. Until you 
 do feel and acknowledge it, he will let you struggle 
 without it. To what other source can you look for 
 this power ? No other being has it, and conse- 
 quently no other being can bestow it. No, you 
 
POWER FR-OJI ON HIGH. 237 
 
 must fly to God, and rely upon him, and upon 
 him alone for it. 
 
 4. If you would obtain this power, you must feel 
 deep down in your heart that nothing can supply its 
 place. Here lies the diificulty of the church, in mul- 
 titudes of instances. She leans upon other things 
 to do the very work which this power was sent into 
 the world to perform. In some cases, she will lean 
 upon the minister, — his talent, his eloquence, his 
 learning, or his influence. When a church has se- 
 cured a man of her choice, then she is at rest. She 
 expects he will build her up. What can a minis- 
 ter do unless he has this power to work with him ? 
 K he is as talented and eloquent as Gabriel, not a 
 soul will be saved without this power. The church 
 must feel this, and be on her face and plead with 
 God for the Holy Ghost to work in and by him. If 
 the church substitutes the preaching and talent of 
 the minister, or leans upon them instead of this 
 power, God will withhold this blessing, and let the 
 church try it. Now, says God, lean upon and glo- 
 rify the minister if you wiU ; but the people will go 
 to hell, and I will hold you accountable. He give 
 this power to such a church ? They would give all 
 the glory to the minister, if he should. Again, the 
 church can lean upon a series of meetings to save 
 men. What can a series of meetings do, without 
 this power ? You may have meetings three hun- 
 dred and sixty-five days in every year, and not a 
 
238 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 soul will be saved, unless those meetings lead you to 
 lean upon and look to this power for salvation. 
 Again, you may lean upon prayer-meetings instead 
 of this power. There is danger of this just now. 
 These meetings have been wonderfully blessed in 
 leading souls to Christ for two years past. Why? 
 Because in them the church waited at the throne of 
 grace for this power. Now, if you begin to lean 
 upon these meetings instead of this power to save, 
 God will cease to bless. They will become mere 
 forms of godliness without the power, and the work 
 of conversion in these meetings will cease. 
 
 Again ; some seem to think if they can build a 
 splendid church, and get a fine organ, with the best 
 of singing, then these will draw the people under 
 the sound of the Gospel, and save them. But, not- 
 withstanding the churches in our cities have been 
 experimenting in this way for a series of years past, 
 the wicked have walked straight by our splendid 
 sanctuaries on the way to hell. At length, when the 
 church became alarmed at this state of things, and 
 fled to God for help, how quick he opened the win- 
 dows of heaven and shed down this power, moving 
 the people to flock to the house of God, to cry for 
 mercy and salvation. It takes this power from 
 heaven to fill up your sanctuaries. If you secure it 
 sufficiently, you will have to resort to the open field 
 for meetings, as they did in the days of Wesley and 
 Whitfield, and as they are • now doing in Ireland. 
 
rOWER FROM ON HIGH. 239 
 
 Why will not the church learn wisdom on this point, 
 and remember where her strength lies ? 
 
 Again, the church leans upon a liberal education 
 to fit ministers to preach, instead of this power, as 
 she should do. Do not understand me to speak 
 against an educated ministry. The more education 
 the better, if you do not substitute that for the prep- 
 aration which the Spirit alone can impart. If you 
 do, it will fail you, and the ministry will not be pre- 
 pared for their work. That young man has been 
 through his ten years' course of study, and he now 
 thinks, and the church feel, that he is prepared for 
 the ministry. Prepared for the ministry ! He is not 
 prepared until he is baptized with this power from 
 God. All the science this side of heaven cannot 
 prepare him for this holy work, without this power. 
 But let him be baptized with the Spirit, and he can 
 use his education to good advantage. Without it 
 he is powerless to save men. His preaching may 
 l)lease the ear, but it will not reach and move the 
 heart. If you would obtain this power, therefore, 
 remember you must cease to lean upon any of the 
 means of grace to save men. It takes this power 
 from on high to accompany these means, to make 
 them effectual in saving the world. This you must 
 feci and realize. When you do, and look to God for 
 it, then the Gospel will be made effectual to save the 
 world. 
 
 5. If you would obtain this power, you must feel 
 
240 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 your indebtedness to Christ for it. "We all forfeited 
 it by sin, and therefore have no just claim upon God 
 for it. If he should forever withhold it from us, it 
 would be treating us according to our deserts. But 
 Christ purchased it for us by his death. The Father 
 promised it to him, as the context shows. He says : 
 " Behold I send the promise of my Father upon 
 you." This he will bestow in answer to Christ's 
 intercession in our behalf. " I will pray the Father, 
 and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may 
 abide with you forever." One more : " But the 
 Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the 
 Father will send in my name." 
 
 These passages show that we are wholly in- 
 debted to Christ for this great gift. He purchased 
 it, and in his name and in answer to his prayer the 
 Father sends it. Therefore we must come to God 
 for it through Christ. We must feel that it is a free 
 gift of grace ; and if we receive it, we shall be eter- 
 nally indebted to Christ for it. Let us then look 
 up to the Father for it through the cross, and hang 
 our hope for it upon the cross, and he will hear. 
 Christ will plead in our behalf and the work is 
 done. 
 
 6. If you would receive it, you must be willing to 
 give up everything for it. You may have some sins 
 that are grieving the Spirit. If so, you mUst give 
 them up. If you love those sins better than you 
 love this great gift, God will not bestow it. You 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 241 
 
 must be willMig to be guided and governed in all 
 things by the Spirit. 
 
 7. You must seek it by prayer. Begin this work 
 to-day ; go to God in earnest for this blessing, and 
 never give it up, until he hears and sheds upon you 
 this power from on high. Will you do it? 
 
 IV. I AM TO SHOW THE GUILT OF THE CHURCH 
 THAT LIVES AVITHOUT THIS POWER. 
 
 1. She violates God's command, " Be filled with 
 the Spirit." — E[)h. v. 18. God demands it at the 
 hands of the church, that she should live so as 
 to be filled with this power. She violates this 
 command of God every hour she is destitute of 
 it. 
 
 2. The church throws away her usefulness while 
 she is destitute of the Spirit. She has a mere form 
 of Godliness without the poiver, which never results 
 in saving men. When she is full of the Holy Ghost 
 she will be useful, and you cannot prevent her doing 
 good. Souls will come to Christ in great numbers, 
 under her influence. How that wicked city of Jeru- 
 salem was moved under the influence of such a 
 chm-ch ! The primitive church swept all before it, 
 and subdued the nations in a short time. Nothing 
 could withstand her influence until she grieved away 
 this power. What an infiuence this church would 
 exert when filled with the power of the Holy Ghost! 
 Now then, for all the good you could do if in that 
 state, God will hold you strictly accountable. How 
 
 VOL. I. It) 
 
242 rOWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 will you meet it, my brethren ? Think of the enor- 
 mous guilt here. 
 
 3. You are guilty of living in the dark in relation 
 to God's truth. How minds are obscured in relation 
 to many parts of the Bible ! Some will undertake 
 to justify and defend the chattel slavery of this na- 
 tion, and many other sins, from that sacred Book. 
 Defend this system of abominations by the Bible! 
 Horrible ! It is an insult to Heaven. K God's laws 
 on slavery were carried into execution, you could not 
 have a slaveholder in the nation. The Bible would 
 put them all to death forthwith as unfit to live and 
 associate with human beings, and hurl them into 
 eternity. In Exod. xxi. 16, you have God's law on 
 this point. Hear him for a moment in relation to 
 this crime : _^ 
 
 " And he that stealeth a man, and sellcth him, or 
 if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to 
 death." 1. Here you have man-stealing, or the act 
 of reducing a man to slavery. 2. Holding him as a 
 slave if he be found in his hand. 3. Man-selling, or 
 speculating in man as an article of property. God 
 has put the whole upon one common level, and 
 hurls death as a penalty at the head of each. Carry 
 this Bible law into executionTand you would free the 
 whole land of slavery in a few short weeks. Such 
 a book in favor of slavery ! It is absurd and ridic- 
 ulous to suppose it. There is not a passage of all 
 the Bible, rightly construed, that looks toward de- 
 
 ^ .c^^ oX*>V| a f^ SK.-v|.^4 O^^ - 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 243 
 
 fending that system of abominations. It is a vile 
 slander on the God of the Bible to pretend it. Such 
 dark hearts not only loye sin and are determined to 
 practise it, but they wish to bring in the infinitely 
 pure and holy One to indorse, and even authorize 
 their crimes. That is the most aggravating part of 
 their wickedness, as he will show them at a future 
 day. Now the fact that we find men who pretend 
 to defend such wickedness by the Bible, shows how 
 much they need this illuminating power from above 
 to scatter the darkness which beclouds their minds. 
 While they live destitute of it they are guilty of 
 shutting out truth and light from their hearts, that 
 would do their souls good. There are other topics 
 of vast interest to the church, where she needs light 
 and would receive it, if she would but receive this 
 power. What a change it would make in the state 
 of things in the churches. Now, you have no right 
 to live without this light ; you are guilty while you 
 do it, and wrong yourself and the world. 
 
 4. You are guilty of destroying your own peace 
 of mind, while you live destitute of this power. 
 Your conscience will reprove while you are griev- 
 ing the Spirit. You know you. are not right. You 
 know there is something lacking. When you are 
 filled with this power, you will have joy in the Holy 
 Ghost. When Philip went to the city of Samaria 
 and preached, the Holy Ghost came down and 
 wrought wonders by him, and the good Book in- 
 
244 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 forms us, that " there was great joy in the city." 
 This holy power fills the soul with delight, and 
 causes it to joy and triumph in God. While it 
 feels intensely for the world, it at the same time 
 feels intensely happy in God. In times of the out- 
 pouring of the Spirit, how Christians rejoice ! When 
 the heart is full of this power it will be happy. You 
 may afflict the body with pain, but the soul will 
 triumph. It will " rejoice with joy unspeakable and 
 full of glory." Try it, my brother, and you will 
 know by experience the richness of this blessing. 
 
 REMARKS. 
 
 1. We learn why the gospel produces so little 
 effect. . Ministers and laymen do not secure this 
 power. They feel but little responsibility in rela- 
 tion to it. Let the minister cry out for it until his 
 heart is full. Let the church follow his example, 
 and how the wicked would be slain on every hand ! 
 
 2. We see why the church has so little power over 
 men. Her strength lies in having God with her. 
 This she forgets, and consequently she cannot stand 
 in the presence of her enemies. 
 
 3. We see how to obtain victory over the world, 
 the flesh, and the devil. Secure this power, and you 
 will come off conqueror, and more than conqueror. 
 All earth cannot allure you, all hell cannot harm 
 you. 
 
POWER FROM ON HIGH. 245 
 
 4. We see the only safety of converts. The Bible 
 informs us that they are kept by the power of God, 
 through faith unto salvation. 
 
 God's power is your only hope. Be filled with 
 this and you are safe. Be filled with this and you 
 will grow up rapidly into Christ, and become mighty 
 in the Scriptures, — - you will be strong men for God. 
 This age needs a race of such men, and then the 
 world would move under their influence. 
 
 5. We see how much our theological schools need 
 baptizing with this power. Until that takes place, 
 we shall have a weak, sickly ministry, who will 
 write and deliver, in a cold formal manner, little 
 pretty pointless essays, with neither edge nor power 
 in them to save the world. These young ministers 
 need to be baptized with this power, and after 
 having finished their education at the theological 
 seminary, should be further instructed in the lan- 
 guage of the text, — " tarry ye in the city of Jeru- 
 salem until ye be endued with power from on high." 
 Then they can enter their pulpits and bring out truths 
 that will burn. Hearts wiU be searched and moved 
 to their very depths, and there will be a shaking 
 among the dry bones of the sanctuary. 
 
 6. We see how hardhearted sinners can be reached 
 and saved. How they trembled in Jerusalem, and 
 cried out for mercy ! Let the church be filled with 
 this power aU over the world, and the nations would 
 move, and the world would soon come home to God. 
 
246 POWER FROM ON HIGH. 
 
 Now, then, will you have it in this place ? Will 
 you to-day begin in earnest to plead for it, and give 
 the Lord no rest until you receive it. Decide that 
 matter now, and put every obstacle out of the way 
 of your receiving it, and God will shake terribly this 
 whole region. 
 
INSTRUCTIONS TO THE WICKED. 
 
 VII. 
 
 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 Be troubled, ye careless ones. — Isaiah xxxii. 11. 
 
 1. CARELESS ABOUT GOD. 2. CARELESS ABOUT GOD'S LAW. 
 3. CARELESS ABOUT CHRIST. 4. CARELESS ABOUT DEATH. 
 5. CARELESS ABOUT THE JUDGMENT, HEAVEN, HELL, 
 ETERNITY, SALVATION. 
 
 The more I study my Bible, the more I am im- 
 pressed with the thought that it is a singular book. 
 It is totally unlike any other book I ever read. One 
 of its peculiarities shall be noticed here, and, for 
 want of time, only one. You take up any other 
 book, even when the wi'iter is undertaking to give 
 you a description of human character, and while he 
 may touch upon some of its leading prominent 
 traits, you will discover his picture is strangely defi- 
 cient. But when you turn your attention to the 
 Bible, you have a perfect delineation of every char- 
 acter that ever has, does now, or ever will exist. 
 There is not a development of human nature in this 
 state, nation, or the world, that the Bible does not 
 describe. Have you a thief in this community ? 
 The Bible describes him. Have you a liar, a covet- 
 ous man, a fornicator, a malicious man, a man full 
 
248 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity ; a whis- 
 perer, backbiter, hater of God, despiteful, proud, a 
 boaster, an inventor of evil things ; one disobedi- 
 ent to parents, without understanding, a covenant- 
 breaker, without natural affection, implacable, un- 
 merciful, a hypocrite, a profane swearer, a sabbath- 
 breaker, an atheist ? The Bible describes them all. 
 It affirms that the fool hath said in his heart, there is 
 no God. Have you a good man? The Bible de- 
 scribes him. It is a perfect mirror into which every 
 man may look, if he will, and see himself. He may ex- 
 amine his heart, and watch all its developments, and 
 then go to the Bible and find it all described.- There 
 is not a thought, purpose, desire of the heart, or an 
 act of the life, which is good, that the Bible does 
 not demand ; not a thought, purpose, desire of the 
 heart, or act of the life, which is evil, that the Bible 
 does not forbid or condemn. It covers the entire 
 ground of right, demanding every possible act that 
 the human soul can put forth that is good ; and it 
 also covers the entire ground of wrongdoing, forbid- 
 ding everything evil ; so that there is not and cannot 
 be anything done by any man, right or wrong, but 
 that the Bible describes it. This to me is one evi- 
 dence that the Bible never was and never could be 
 written by any man or men without divine help, 
 divine inspiration. Here is the very impress of God 
 upon this sacred volume, deny it who may. Think 
 of it. In the brief compass of this one volume I 
 
THE CARELESS ONES. 249 
 
 hold in .my hand, you have a complete, unerring pic- 
 ture of every character that ever will figure upon the 
 stage of this world's history. Such a book written 
 without divine aid, by a set of crafty priests, as infi- 
 dels affirm ? The thing was impossible, utterly im- 
 possible. When infidels make such charges, they 
 pay too high a compliment to the priests, as they 
 call them. They give them credit for an amount of 
 intellect and originality they never possessed. There 
 are things in the Bible that no human intellect ever 
 could have originated without divine assistance. Do 
 you ask for an instance ? Take the one under con- 
 sideration ; and when you have disposed of that I 
 will give you others. What finite mind can survey 
 the whole world, and give a complete description of 
 every human heart that ever will exist? It could 
 not be done by an angel. There is but one being, 
 — He who needeth not that any should testify of 
 man, because he knoweth him altogether, — who 
 could possibly perform such a task. It took a God 
 to do it, and here you have his impress upon that 
 book divine. There is a God here. Here is an infi- 
 nite intellect, that has seen fit to unfold the great 
 and glorious truths brought to light in that volume. 
 I am amazed that Deists, and their half-brothers who 
 talk so much about a liberal Christianity, the big- 
 otry and narrow-mindedness of the orthodox, should 
 not discover this fact. In their estimation, they are 
 the only wise ones of this age. They can investi- 
 
250 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 gate and think freely, they say, without being tram- 
 melled by a creed. If they have such mighty intel- 
 lects, let them account for this fact, if they can. It 
 is one thing to cry out bigotry and narrow-minded- 
 ness, but quite another thing to meet facts and argu- 
 ments, and meet them fairly. Let such men gird 
 themselves for such a work, before they boast too 
 much about their wonderful investigating powers. 
 Let them show their strength here, for there is an 
 ample field for it. Here is a book which has stood 
 the test of a most rigid investigation for centuries ; 
 and notwithstanding the boast of infidels, in years 
 gone by, that they would use it up, it still lives, and 
 has a stronger hold upon the consciences of the com- 
 munity than all the other books of earth.. Infidels 
 have never fairly met the arguments upon which 
 its inspiration rests, and they never can. There 
 is not one solitary objection raised by this class 
 of men that has not been completely annihilated 
 over and over again, and still the young brood who 
 are coming up at this day bring forward those old, 
 stale things, as though they never had been replied 
 to. I presume many of these modern objectors are 
 so consummately ignorant on this point that they 
 really think they have discovered some new diffi- 
 culty, or some objection that never has been met. I 
 would like to see some of the wise ones of this age 
 bring forward a new objection, if they can. Before 
 they boast too loud about their investigating powers, 
 
THE CARELESS ONES. 251 
 
 let them introduce one new argument against the 
 inspiration of the Bible. When they will do it, 
 they will probably find intellect in and among the 
 very class which they denounce as bigots and nar- 
 row-minded, to meet anything they may bring for- 
 ward: At any rate, infidelity has always found its 
 match among the defenders of the Bible, and I pre- 
 sume it always will. You cannot present me with 
 one solitary infidel writer who has not met with a 
 successful reply. The Bible does not stand in fear 
 of the most rigid investigation. It has stood this 
 test for ages, and it will not shrink from it at this late 
 day. It challenges investigation. One of its com- 
 mands is, " Prove all things." 
 
 It is not my object, however, in this sermon to 
 defend the inspiration of the Bible. It needs no 
 such defence. I only introduce the preceding ideas 
 to prepare the way for another. The Bible is not 
 only a singular book, but the trait of character 
 brought to light in my text is a singular one : 
 " Careless ones." 
 
 When we look at the state of things which sur- 
 rounds man in this life, how amazing this state of 
 heart! To impress you with this thought we will 
 suppose a case or two. Let an individual be taken 
 from this congregation to-day, and transported at 
 once to Heaven. He shall find himself upon its 
 most lofty heights, and his feet shall truly tread its 
 golden streets. He shall now be surrounded with 
 
252 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 all the hosts of that holy and upper temple. We 
 will suppose for a moment that he can there survey 
 each heart in that world of bliss, and see it just as 
 God docs. Among all the living ones on high, 
 would he find this trait of character ? What ! A 
 careless saint, a careless angel around the throne 
 of God ! Not one. In that, happy world, all are 
 awake. Every intellect is aroused and every heart 
 is on fire. They look abroad and see God unfold 
 his purity and holiness, and are lost in wonder and 
 astonishment. They sing, shout, and praise him for 
 his infinite excellence, and every soul is full of in- 
 terest. No careless ones there. We will now sup- 
 pose that the same being can enter at once into the 
 world of woe. He shall find himself enclosed within 
 the walls of that great prison-house of dark damna- 
 tion. He listens to the groans, the gnashing of 
 teeth, and the wailings of the lost. Here he can 
 look at once into their hearts as he surveyed those 
 in heaven. Wouli he find this trait of character 
 there? What! a careless one with his head upon 
 the pillow of the second death ! A careless one in 
 that world where their worm dieth not, and the fire is 
 not quenchedj A careless sinner in hell ! Was the 
 rich man in hell careless ? Every soul will be awake 
 there to its eternal interests when it is too late. 
 
 We will now suppose that he turns away from 
 this scene of despair, and travels over the entire 
 dominions of Jehovah, and surveys all worlds, and 
 
THE CARELESS ONES. 2")3 
 
 if they are all inhabited, probably not a solitary 
 careless one would he find until he comes back to 
 this earth. Here, where, as expressed by the poet, — 
 
 " Lo, on a narrow neck of land, 
 Betwixt two unbounded seas I stand, 
 Yet how insensible ! 
 A point of time, a moment's space. 
 Removes me to yon heavenly place, 
 Or shuts me up in hell." — 
 
 Here in this world, where, between the cradle and 
 the grave, the question is to be settled, eternally 
 settled, whether the soul is to be saved or lost, man 
 will settle down in a state of carelessness which is 
 amazing. They will be careless, as if they had no 
 souls ; as if there was no God, no heaven, no hell, 
 no eternal state ; as indiflferent as though nothing 
 was at stake. Think of it, you careless ones ! Here, 
 under the Gospel, you fix your state in heaven or 
 hell. Yet how insensible ! Ah, sinner ! you had 
 better be careless in any other world than this. 
 There would be more propriety in your being care- 
 less amid the shouts and glt)ries of heaven, or amid 
 the smoke of tlie pit and the lamentations of the 
 damned, than to be careless here. You had better 
 ■ step up to the judgment even, and stand under 
 the blazing eye of God, and be careless while 
 you are listening to your final sentence than to be 
 careless here. Remember, your destiny is not to be 
 decided at the judgment, but in this world, while 
 
254 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 under the Gospel. Come, you careless sinners, here, 
 to-day, pause, think, be candid for a season, and 
 look at this state of heart. See its wickedness; on 
 your knees, repent, shake off this indifference, and 
 henceforth be awake about your eternal interests. 
 May God arouse you now, and induce you to listen 
 with interest to a few truths, and cause them to stir 
 and move your inmost soul. 
 
 But, says one, do you call us careless sinners ? I 
 most certainly do. I lay that charge at your door, 
 and I will make it good, if you will hear me can- 
 didly. But, if we are careless, about what are we 
 cai-eless ? That is the very question to which I 
 invite your most serious attention while I name 
 some things of moment. The things about which 
 you are careless are the things about which no being 
 should be careless. 
 
 I. Then you are careless about God. 
 
 "What a state of heart that must be, — careless 
 about Jehovah ! Sinner, reflect here. Careless about 
 your Maker ! How such a being would look in 
 heaven, among that hapf)y throng who are full of in- 
 describable interest in relation to God ! How all 
 heaven would scorn such a wretch ! How heaven 
 would annoy such a soul ! Let God turn and fix; his 
 holy gaze upon such a heart, and it would writhe as 
 if under the agonies of the second death. What is it 
 that interests your soul, — is it God ? No. You know 
 better. Some of you are interested in business mat- 
 
THE CARELESS ONES. 255 
 
 ters, money speculations, &c. ; others in political 
 affairs; others still in balls, parties, theatres, gam- 
 bling hells, or some other place of amusement, where 
 they can have a good time. Introduce God to such 
 beings, how quick they are silent ! Upon that theme 
 they do not wish to converse; 
 
 Sinner, if you say you are not careless about God, 
 let me put a few questions directly to your con- 
 science, and you ponder them well. 
 
 1. How much do you think about God ? Such 
 are the laws of your being, that when you are in- 
 terested in any person or thing, that person or thing 
 will become a topic of thought ; it will occupy your 
 thoughts just in proportion to your interest. If you 
 are interested in money-making, you will think 
 about it. If you are interested in your wife, children, 
 or friends, you will think about them. If you are 
 interested in the gratification of any appetite, or 
 propensity of mind or body, you will think about it. 
 If you are interested in God, you will think about 
 God. How much do you think about HIM? When 
 you awake in the morning, is God the first thought 
 that occupies your mind ? Do you think of the 
 being who has kindly spread his wing over you dur- 
 ing the night, and shielded you from harm ? Does 
 your heart flow out to him in thanksgiving and 
 praise for his merciful care over you ? Is God in all 
 your thoughts ? What say you to these questions ? 
 Is it not true that you crowd the thought of God 
 
25f) THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 out of your mind ? Your mind is engrossed almost 
 entirely with earth's cares and pleasures, and you 
 live as though there were no God. Is this true ? I 
 appeal to your conscience. You know. Can you 
 deny it ? If not, can you pretend that you are not 
 careless about God ? 
 
 Again, how much time have you spent for six 
 months past in reading your Bible, to see what it 
 says about God, so that you may have a correct 
 knowledge of him ? Now understand my question. 
 The inquiry is not how much time you have spent 
 reading the Bible for six months past, but how much 
 time you have spent reading it to learn what it says 
 about God. One gi-eat object of the Bible is to give 
 us a true knowledge of God. Man, in consequence 
 of sin, had lost a correct knowledge of God, as the 
 whole heathen world demonstrates. Point me to 
 any portion of the globe, destitute of this book, 
 where they have any consistent knowledge of God ! 
 There is not such a spot on earth. Even the very 
 Deist is indebted to the Bible he rejects, for all the 
 correct views he has of God. The Deity understood 
 this state of things, and in the Bible he has revealed 
 himself to man. Now, how much time have you 
 spent, during the last six months, reading that book to 
 learn what it says about God ? Have you spent an 
 hour a week ? Have you spent an hour a month ? 
 I presume there are sinners before me to-day, who 
 have, not spent an hour for a year in reading the 
 
THE CARELESS ONES. 257 
 
 Bible for that object ; can you deny it, or will you 
 plead guilty. If you are guilty, will you, with this 
 fact staring you in the face, pretend you are not 
 careless about God ? What ! The only book which 
 gives you a correct knowledge of God cast aside 
 and neglected, and you not indifferent about him I 
 The thought is absurd. If you were not careless 
 about God, you would pore over its sacred pages, 
 with deep anxiety, to see what it says about your 
 Maker. You had better be careless about all the 
 other beings in the universe, than to be careless about 
 the Infinite One. Such a state of heart is wicked, 
 supremely wicked. It wholly unfits you for heaven. 
 No being can be saved in such a state of mind. 
 Some of you church-members may be in this state. 
 If so, remember you are not Christians. You are in 
 the gall of bitterness, and will be lost, unless you 
 repent. Oh, ye careless ones I careless about y©ur 
 Maker, — how can you be saved ? 
 
 II. Sinners are careless about God's law. 
 
 Were we not acquainted somewhat with the feel- 
 ing of an impenitent heart, we should think this as- 
 sertion almost incredible. We are all placed under 
 God's law, and we cannot help ourselves if we 
 would. God claims the right to enact laws to 
 govern the human family, and he has done so. He 
 is abundantly able £lnd determined to maintain that 
 right, and he will do it. He holds in his possession 
 the means of enforcing his authority, and he will 
 
 VOL. I. 17 
 
258 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 not neglect his duty. We may trample it under our 
 feet, but we must take the consequences. His au- 
 thority is of infinite worth to the universe. This he 
 understands, and he will not see it trifled with, and 
 trampled upon with impunity. We are perfectly in 
 his power. What can we do when his hand takes 
 hold on vengeance ? Under such a king, such a 
 ruler, will we trifle with his laws ? Can we be 
 careless about them ? Still, sinners are careless 
 about them. Sinner, what do you care about God's 
 authority, God's laws? Go and show that profane 
 young man, yonder, that God's law forbids his pro- 
 fanity. What does he care ? He is so hardened 
 he would almost look God right in the face and 
 swear. Show that business man that God's law 
 requires of him to love Him with all his heart, and 
 his neighbor as himself. Ask him if he is doing it; 
 he will throvy up his head with an air of indiffer- 
 ence, and reply, no, sir. Press him with another 
 question : Will you do it ? This is God's demand. 
 I am not prepared to decide any such question, 
 sir, he replies, — in a state of perfect indifference. 
 He is as cool about the matter as if it were a per- 
 fectly trifling affair to trample infinite authority 
 under his feet. 
 
 The human family will look at God's claims, 
 admit them to be his, and, with their eyes open, 
 they will go deliberately to the work of violating 
 them. They will do it without feeling. What 
 
THE CARELESS ONES. 259 
 
 hardened wretches ! What careless ones ! Let men 
 treat the laws of the land in the same way, how 
 quick they would be imprisoned or put to death ! 
 God is long-suffering and waits to be gracious, but 
 this carelessness cannot go unpunished, if persisted 
 in. 
 
 III. Sinners are careless about Christ. 
 
 How can any earthly being be careless about 
 Christ, the Saviour of the human race ? Look at 
 his character ; how excellent, how pure, holy, merci- 
 ful, and kind ! Look at what he has done for man : 
 He came to this earth, when he knew he should be 
 wickedly slandered by the human family, treated 
 with cold neglect, despised and rejected of men. 
 He knew he would be arrested, tried at man's bar, 
 condemned without evidence, and unrighteously put 
 to death by the very beings he came to save. With 
 his eyes open on this point, he came here and laid 
 down his life to open a way by which we poor sin- 
 ners could be saved. This you know ; this you 
 acknowledge. Now, sinners, how have you treated 
 him ? What do you care about Christ ? How in- 
 differently you have treated him ! When he calls 
 and invites you to come to him and live, you turn 
 away with indifference. You heed not his invita- 
 tions. If he should enter this congregation and 
 weep over sinners here to-day, and entreat you to 
 turn from your sins and live, you would probably 
 scorn his message, trifle with his tears, and persist 
 
260 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 in your iniquity. Do you say, no ? Think for a 
 moment. Is he not here, although you see him not? 
 Has he not poured out strong cries and tears for the 
 whole human family ? You sinners here were in- 
 cluded in that number. How indifferent you have 
 been about his agonies in your behalf up to this 
 hour! Here you are in God's sanctuary now, care- 
 less ones. Careless about Christ your Redeemer? 
 I will put the Life of Christ, as recorded by Matthew, 
 and the Life of Washington into your hands to-day, 
 and you will read the latter with tenfold more in- 
 terest than the Life of Christ. But you will reply, 
 Washington saved this nation. Saved this nation ? 
 Whom has Christ saved ? Christ is the Saviour of 
 the world. Then Avhere did you get your Wash- 
 ington ? Christ gave him to you, and gave him 
 his intellectual powers, all his wisdom, and all his 
 success. He watched around him on the field of 
 battle ; warded off the shafts of death ; protected 
 and carried him through all his trials. He is the 
 author of every good and perfect gift. He supplies 
 the wants of the whole human race. By his death 
 in man's behalf, he brought life and immortality to 
 light through the Gospel, so that all can be saved 
 who will repent and believe in his name. He has 
 gone up on high to prepare a heaven for you, and in- 
 vites you all to be saved. Now, how can you be care- 
 less about such a being? Careles§ ones, you know 
 you have treated Christ with perfect neglect all your 
 
THE CARELESS ONES. 2G1 
 
 lives. You are hastening to eternity in this state of 
 heart. After treating him with such neglect, how 
 can you look him in the face with any composure 
 at the judgment? But you must meet him, and 
 there look this matter full in the face under his 
 holy gaze. 
 
 IV. Men are careless about death. 
 
 There are several reasons why it would seem im- 
 possible that man could be careless about this event, 
 connected, as it is, with each one's history. 
 
 1. Its certainty. There is not an individual in 
 this congregation who can even hope that he shall 
 not die. Death is on your track. It will overtake, 
 arrest, and lay you low in the grave. The sentence, 
 " dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return," is 
 God's irrevocable decree. The high and the low, 
 the rich and the poor, must fall under its power. 
 Where are the generations that have preceded us ? 
 They are gone, all gone to the silent mansions of 
 the dead. Take what course in life you please, sur- 
 round yourself with the most skilful physicians the 
 world ever produced, exhaust all earth's remedies to 
 save life, and still death will enter your dwelling, or 
 arrest you by the way-side, or in the bustle of busi- 
 ness, and do up his relentless work of consigning 
 you to the charnel house of all the living. 
 
 2. Death closes up all your worldly affairs. It 
 closes your probationary state. Your plans of a 
 worldly nature may be ever so important, and de- 
 
262 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 mand your presence to see them executed success- 
 fully, and still death will snatch you from the whole. 
 You may be in the high places of the nation; public 
 interests may seem to demand that your life be 
 prolonged ; but if death calls, you must leave the 
 whole to other hands. Your political history will 
 then be ended, eternally closed up. When it calls, 
 you must be torn from the circle of your friends, 
 however dear to you, or however dear you may be 
 to them. A wife and helpless children may seem to 
 be dependent upon your daily labor to supply their 
 wants ; they may need your counsel, your watch, 
 care, and your helping hand ; but when death speaks, 
 you must heed its voice, and look upon them for the 
 last time in this world. When death comes, it closes 
 up your probationary state, takes you from under 
 the Gospel dispensation, and all the means of grace, 
 and sends you to eternity. You have now heard 
 your last sermon, listened to your last prayer, have 
 seen the inside of the sanctuary for the last time, 
 have received your last invitation to be reconciled to 
 God ; mercy's efforts to save are ended, and you go 
 to your last and final account. How can any mind 
 be careless about an event so important! 
 
 3. Not an individual in this house knows when he 
 shall die. What man in this congregation knows 
 he shall live a day or an hour? Sinner, do you 
 even know you will live to reach your home ? You 
 may die in this house, before this sermon ends. 
 
THE CARELESS ONES. 263 
 
 You may start for home and drop by the way-side. 
 Should you live to reach your home and retire in 
 health, your friends may find you dead in the morn- 
 ins^. You know neither the day nor the hour wlien 
 God will call you. So he affirms, so facts demon- 
 strate. The world is full of facts showing that per- 
 sons retire in health, and are found dead in the 
 morning. Ministers fall in the sacred desk, lawyers 
 in pleading at the bar, statesmen in the halls of 
 legislation, business men in their counting-rooms. 
 Men are killed on railroads, engulfed in the ocean 
 by the hundred, swallowed up by earthquakes, swept 
 into eternity by the tempest, struck down by light- 
 ning, and in a thousand other forms too numerous 
 to mention. There is not an individual who knows 
 when death will overtake him. It will come in an 
 unexpected horn*, and usher you into "the presence 
 of God. 
 
 But, says one, do you wish to frighten us ? If 
 looking at facts as tiiey daily transpire before the 
 eyes of the world will frighten, then you ought to be 
 frightened. Facts are facts, and you should look 
 them in the face ; and every candid, reflecting man is 
 willing to do it, and shape his life in view of them. 
 All men should contemplate this event. They 
 should do it daily. They should inquire often, am 
 I ready to die ? But the great multitude put it out 
 of their minds. They are careless about death. 
 The manner in which they talk about this event. 
 
264 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 their mode of living, settles that question. Would 
 that man swear, if he thought death was by his 
 side, ready to cut him down the next breath ? How 
 quick he would turn pale! Would those young 
 jieople dance if you should place their coffin in one 
 end of the hall, and hang their shroud in the other, 
 with the knowledge that some or all of them must 
 die at the close of the ball. Dance ? They would 
 say, this is no time to dance. Let death strike down 
 one victim in every dance you have on earth, and 
 how quick such amusements would be abandoned ! 
 The fact that men will spend their time in such 
 places of hilarity shows they are careless about 
 dying. 
 
 V. Men are careless about the Judgment, 
 Heaven, Hell, Eternity, Salvation. 
 
 They are careless, about everything that pertains 
 to another world ; careless about God's glory, his 
 wishes, his will. They are all interested in the tri- 
 fles of the day ; but the great end for which they are 
 created, and for which all should live and act, is neg- 
 lected and forgotten. The work of preparing for 
 eternity is the topic upon which they are unwilling 
 to dwell. They do not love to think about it or 
 hear upon that point. 
 
 I will show why sinners should be troubled : 
 1. You should be troubled about the state itself. 
 This state of heart is not only wicked, but it is 
 alarming. The heart that is careless to-day, the 
 
THE CAKELKSS ONES. 2o.3 
 
 strong probability is, will be more so a week or a 
 month hence. This stupidity or carelessness about 
 religious things generally increases with your age. 
 This is the reason why young hearts are easily 
 moved, while aged sinners are as hard and unfeeling 
 as marble. If you are careless to-day, that should 
 alarm you, and lead you to fly to God for his Spirit, 
 to break up your stupidity. 
 
 2. You should be troubled about this state of 
 heart, because it is so unbefitting your condition. 
 God has surrounded you with scenes and event^s 
 which ought to arouse a universe to the highest 
 pitch of interest. You may look at your stupidity 
 as an evidence of wisdom. An evidence of wis- 
 dom ? It is an evidence of all but infinite folly. 
 The greatest intellects in the universe are deeply in- 
 terested in the scenes that surround man. God is 
 awake. Angels desire to look into these things. 
 How they shouted when the Saviour was born, who 
 was to be your Redeemer ! The repentance of one 
 sinner here to-day would fill all heaven with accla- 
 mations of joy, such is the interest felt in the scenes 
 that surround man, by the master spirits in the uni- 
 verse. They are all interest, and you careless. Such 
 a thought should trouble you. How you would 
 look among such beings ! With such a heart, how 
 unfit to mingle in such society ! 
 
 3. You should be troubled about this state of 
 heart, because God so abhors it. God, in his word 
 
2G6 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 everywhere condemns this careless state. He con- 
 demns it in my text, and calls upon you in the most 
 solemn manner to be troubled about it. How he 
 condemns hardheartedness all through the Bible ! 
 God hates this state. He knows its wickedness ; 
 he knows how it endangers your eternal interests. 
 No sinner ever repented in this state, and none ever 
 will. Unless the Spirit can arouse you from this 
 state, you will go down to hell. Sinner, you will be 
 lost, if you persist in this state. You must lie down 
 in sorrow. 
 
 This carelessness must be broken up. If the Gos- 
 pel, the means of grace, and the striving of the Spirit 
 to break up this state of heart, are all resisted, God 
 will resort to sterner means at another day to bring 
 you to your senses. Death, if you have your 
 reason, will probably make you feel. You are un- 
 willing to contemplate it now. God calls u]:)on you 
 to prepare to die, but you put him oif. At length 
 he will bring you and death face to face. It will lay 
 its cold grasp upon you, and how you will shudder ! 
 Oh, how you will wake up when it places you in a 
 condition where you must look over into eternity! 
 You will then plead for time to prepare ; but it will 
 feel for that brittle thread, snap it, and you are 
 gone. 
 
 2. The judgment! oh, how it will break up your 
 carelessness! Take from the Bible one description 
 of the state of feeling there will be among such sin- 
 
THE CARELESS ONES. 267 
 
 ners, when that event takes place. Rev. vi. 15-17 : 
 " And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and 
 the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty 
 men, and every bondman, and every freeman, hid 
 themselves in the dens, and in the rocks of the moun- 
 tains : And said to the mountains and rocks. Fail 
 on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth 
 on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb : 
 For the great day of his wrath is come ; and who 
 shall be able to stand ? " What a description of 
 the mental anguish of the great and wise ones of 
 this earth when Christ shall come to judge them for 
 this carelessness! How their carelessness will be 
 crushed out at that hour, and their souls aroused 
 when too late to repent I How they dread to look 
 the Lamb in the face, after slighting and turning a 
 deaf ear to all his calls, and spending a life of stu- 
 pidity! How they tremble as they march up to his 
 throne! Careless ones must look him in the face 
 there. They must meet him, and render up their 
 account for this strange stupidity. What a day that 
 will be to you, careless sinner, when you will be com- 
 pelled to listen to your final doom from his stern lips! 
 3. And finally, the pangs of the second death, as 
 you lie down in hell's dark prison-house, will effect- 
 ually break up your carelessness for a long eternity. 
 Ages of unutterable anguish may roll away ; but in 
 the vast future that lies before you, your carelessness 
 will never return. 
 
268 THE CARELESS ONES. 
 
 REMARKS. 
 
 1. From this subject, we learn that the saints re- 
 ceive all their trouble in this life. In this world they 
 may have tribulation, but it is momentary. "When 
 the pang of death is over, their troubles are brought 
 to a perpetual end. All the future to them is peace 
 and joy. Life, eternal life is their final reward. 
 
 2. From this subject, we learn that the sinner will 
 receive all his consolation in this life. There will be 
 trouble enough for him in the future. What an 
 eternity, what an eternity, sinner I Poor sinner, 
 will you not awake and shake off this carelessness 
 to-day ? Do not wait for death, the judgment, and 
 hell, to break it up for you. Be troubled now about 
 your sins, about this great sin to which I have called 
 your attention in this sermon. Repent, and put 
 away all your transgressions, and come to Christ for 
 forgiveness ; and then, when you close up earth, you 
 shall spend an eternity at God's right hand, where 
 all is peace. 
 
VIII. 
 
 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I 
 have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing : there- 
 fore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live. — Deut. 
 XXX. 19. 
 
 1. ATTRIBUTES OF A MORAL AGENT. 2. PROOF OF THE 
 DOCTRINE. 
 
 MosBS here affirms that he had set before the 
 children of Israel life and death. The first inquiry 
 which grows out of this text is, what does he mean 
 by life and death ? Does it have reference to the 
 body ? I answer, no, from the fact that, let the Jews 
 pursue what course they would, their bodies must 
 die. The text takes it for granted that if they 
 obeyed God, they would escape the death here 
 threatened. But they might obey God in all things, 
 and still their bodies go to the grave. The sentence, 
 "dust thou art," has passed nipon all men, and that 
 sentence is not to be revoked. Obedience to God 
 will not set it aside. This settles the question that 
 the terms life and death, as used in the text, have no 
 reference to the body. To what then do they refer ? 
 I answer, that they refer to the life and death of the 
 soul. The soul's life is its holiness and happiness ; 
 its death is its sinfulness and misery. Its happiness 
 
270 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 is the fruit or result of its holiness, and its misery is 
 the fruit or result of its sinfulness. Now, says 
 Moses, I have set before you life and death. I have 
 pointed out to you the course which will secure you 
 holiness and happiness, if you pursue it, both here 
 and hereafter, and which is life, eternal life. Or I 
 have spread before you the course which, if you 
 pursue it, \vill be sinful and result in your deatJi, 
 eternal death. Now choose or decide which course 
 you will adopt. God's command is to choose life. 
 
 From this text it is manifest that there are two 
 agents active in deciding the destiny of man for 
 eternity. There are certain things which God de- 
 cides. His decision is already made up, and is as 
 unchangeable as his eternal throne. It is this : If 
 man will repent and obey all God's requirements, 
 and pursue a life of obedience and holiness, its re- 
 sults shall be life, eternal felicity. But if man will 
 disobey God's commandments and persist in a sin- 
 ful life, it shall result in death to happiness, his 
 eternal death. Thus far God decides. This is his 
 unalterable purpose. These facts being revealed, 
 God then submits this question to the choice of 
 man, and he must decide which course he will pur- 
 sue. His choice will now settle the matter and fix 
 his destiny for eternity. This responsibility is now 
 upon him. His fate is in his own hands, and God 
 will neither take it out of his hands himself, nor 
 suller any other being to do it. Mark the objects 
 
MORAL AGENCY. 271 
 
 of choice here presented. Will you lead a holy life, 
 knowing it will result in happiness and bliss, endless 
 bliss, or will you lead a sinful life, knowing it will 
 result in misery and death, eternal death ? Will you 
 obey God, or resolve to have your own way ? This 
 is the question to be settled. Which course will 
 you pursue ? One of these courses you must pur- 
 sue ; that you cannot avoid. There is no neuti-al 
 ground here. You cannot say, I will pursue nei- 
 ther. On that point you are not voluntary ; you 
 must pursue one course or the other. You are 
 voluntary only in saying which. Here you cannot 
 be forced. God will not force your decision either 
 way, nor will he suffer any other being to do it. 
 The question, which course of life you will pursue, 
 is submitted to yom* choice. That question you 
 must decide, and God will deal w^ith you accord- 
 ingly- 
 
 I will now draw from this text, and shall discuss 
 
 in this S(;rmon, the following 
 
 DOCTRINE : 
 
 MAN IS A MORAL AGENT. 
 
 I will examine this doctrine in the following order: 
 
 I. I will call your attention to the attributes of a 
 moral agent. 
 
 II. Prove the doctrine. 
 
 I. What, TUKN, ARE the Attributes of a Moral 
 Agent ? 
 
272 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 1. To be a moral agent a being must be intel- 
 ligent. He must have an intellect. We say heat is 
 a powerful agent. It produces an effect, a powerful 
 one, but there is no intelligence there. A moral 
 agent must have the power of thinking, taking in 
 the idea of God, seeing the relations which exist 
 between him and his Creator, capable of studying 
 his government, and laying hold of the gi'eat 
 thoughts there presented. 
 
 2. To be a moral agent a being must have a 
 conscience, or he must be capable of distinguishing 
 between right and wrong. Conscience is that fac- 
 ulty of the soul which will decide between right and 
 wrong, when you give it light. It cannot act with- 
 out moral light or instruction, any more than the 
 mind can see objects with the eye without natural 
 light. A man may have a perfect eye, but he can- 
 not perceive objects with it without light. The 
 light is as essential as the eye itself. When you 
 have both good eyes and light you can see. So 
 with conscience ; it wants moral light to be capable 
 of seeing duty or distinguishing between right and 
 wrong. It cannot decide duty without it. Con- 
 science may exist and be perfect without moral 
 light, as the eye may exist and be perfect without 
 natural light. But to act, to point you to your 
 duty, and bring in its decision in relation to your 
 conduct, it must have light. It exists independent 
 of light or instruction, as in the case of the infant. 
 
MORAL AGENCY. 273 
 
 The child has a conscience, but its faculties are not 
 yet so far developed as to be capable of receiving 
 moral light or instruction. As soon as it can receive 
 light, and in proportion as it receives it, conscience 
 says, this is the way, walk ye in it ; that is wroiig, 
 refrain from it. When you decide to take the wrong 
 course, conscience makes you feel guilty, — it con- 
 demns you. When you take the right course, it 
 approves and approbates your life. That faculty of 
 the soul which produces these effects, is the faculty I 
 am talking about. Such a faculty is essential to 
 constitute a being a moral agent. Where it does 
 not exist there is no moral agency. The brutes are 
 destitute of it, consequently are not moral agents, 
 and not accountable for their conduct. 
 
 3. To be a moral agent, a being must have sensi- 
 bility. He must be susceptible of pleasure or pain, 
 ©r capable of happiness or misery. To this faculty 
 motives can be addressed and the soul can be moved 
 to action. Through it hope can be aroused, — hope 
 for some good, — something that will advance hap- 
 piness. Fear can be awakened, — fear of some evil 
 that will produce pain. Through this faculty the 
 soul can be aroused and moved to action. 
 
 4. To be a moral agent, a being must have a will, 
 or the power of choice. The will is the monarch of 
 the soul. It is the governing, controlling faculty. Its 
 actions decide the whole destiny of man. It is its 
 action which renders the soul holy or sinful, virtuous 
 
 VOL. I. 18 
 
274 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 or vicious. Temptations can be presented to the 
 appetites or propensities of body or mind, but they 
 cannot be indulged without the consent of the will. 
 The sinfulness does not lie in the appetite, but in the 
 decision of the will to indulge it at the expense of 
 God's authority. The sin of Eve did not lie in her 
 appetite for fruit, nor in her temptation by the ser- 
 pent, but in the decision of the will to yield to the 
 temptation. The appetite in that and all other cases 
 was perfectly under the control of the will. Had she 
 purposed not to indulge that appetite, where God 
 had laid his prohibition, and had she remained.iirm 
 and unchangeable in that purpose, she would have 
 maintained her holiness, notwithstanding the appe- 
 tite and the temptation. This establishes the fact 
 that the sin consisted in the action or choice which 
 the will made, and not in the appetite or temptation, 
 so far as she was concerned. What was true in that 
 case, is equally true in all other cases. 
 
 A moral agent, then, must have the power of 
 choice. He must be capable of making a hoi// or 
 sinful choice, or of choosing between right and 
 wrong. What does such a choice imply ? 
 
 1. It implies two courses of life presented to the 
 eye of the mind ; the one holy or right, and the 
 other sinful or wrong. 
 
 2. It implies motives presented to influence to the 
 right com'se, and motives to influence to the wrong 
 course. 
 
MORAL AGENCY. 275 
 
 3. It implies power to resist all the motive that 
 can be presented to move the will to select one of 
 these courses in preference to the other. TWere is 
 not motive enough in the universe to compel the will 
 to make a holy or sinful choice. If there is, God 
 will not present it himself, nor suffer any other being 
 to do it ; and I affirm it cannot be done by any being. 
 It involves a contradiction in terms, and is a palpa- 
 ble absurdity ; for a choice, to be holy or sinful, must 
 be a voluntary choice. A forced act is neither holy 
 nor sinful in the being forced to put it forth. If you 
 array before the mind such a degree of motive that 
 the will is forced to choose as it does, then it is not 
 voluntary in its choice, and the act is neither sinful 
 nor holy. A virtuous or sinful choice, let it be re- 
 membered, must be a voluntary choice of the will. 
 If you apply an irresistible degree of motive, and 
 force the will to choose as it does, such a choice (if 
 you can call it a choice) is neither sinful nor holy. 
 The will is not capable of putting forth a sinful or 
 virtuous choice under an irresistible pressure of mo- 
 tive. 
 
 4. A virtuous act, then, implies the power to act 
 in two ways. An agent who can act only in one 
 way is not a moral, but a necessary agent. Water 
 can act in one way : it can run down hill, but it 
 lacks the power of turning about and running up 
 hill. It is a yiecessary, and not a moral agent. 
 
 A moral agent has power to act in two ways. He 
 
276 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 can do right or wrong. When he does right, it is 
 not because he lacks the power to do wrong. When 
 he pufs forth a wrong act, it is not because he lacks 
 the power to do right. He never can lose this power 
 of acting in two ways while he remains a moral 
 agent. Let him lose this power, and he would sink 
 down from a moral to a necessary agent, and would 
 no longer be capable of sin or holiness. The will, 
 then, in making a holy or sinful choice at the time 
 it puts forth such a choice, must have the power of 
 choosing otherwise, if it sees fit to do so. It is a 
 voluntary choice. The will cannot be forced in such 
 a choice by any being. In fact,- there is no choice 
 without voluntariness. The very idea of choice sup- 
 poses that the will cannot be forced in its decisions. 
 This perfect independence of the will, to yield to or 
 resist motive, to incline it in either direction, is abso- 
 lutely essential as an attribute of moral agency. 
 Without it, a being is controlled by irresistible 
 power, and is a mere machine, not capable of sin or 
 holiness. 
 
 Having submitted these remarks upon the attri- 
 butes of a moral agent, I now proceed to the second 
 proposition, which is as follows : — 
 
 II. Prove the Doctrine. 
 
 Under this head I present the following things : 
 
 1. Man possesses all the attributes of a moral agent. 
 How do we go to work to prove that Christ is God 
 as well as man ? We prove it by showing that he 
 
MORAL AGENCY. 277 
 
 possesses all the attributes of God, and we pronounce 
 such an argument sound. We say it cannot be suc- 
 cessfully answered. I here present the same mode 
 of reasoning to prove that man is a moral agent. 
 1. Man is an intelligent being. Look for a mo- 
 ment into the mechanical world. What a variety 
 of useful inventions man has devised ! What an 
 amount of intellectual labor ! Glance your eye over 
 the literature of the world, and mark the quantity of 
 books, papers, pamphlets, periodicals of all sorts and 
 kinds. What a world of thought! Then survey 
 the different governments of earth. Is there not an 
 abundance of evidence of intellect here ? Then 
 there are your schools, colleges, and other means of 
 education. Why all this machinery, if man is not 
 an intelligent being? The fact is, man can be edu- 
 cated, and there are no limits to the expansion of 
 his intellectual powers. They will expand endlessly, 
 without doubt. 2. Man has a conscience. How con- 
 stantly the human race are passing judgment upon 
 their own conduct, in relation to its being right or 
 wrong, and also judging their fellows upon the same 
 point ! It is an every-day occurrence. They talk 
 about justice and injustice, sin and holiness, right 
 and wrong. This has been true of all nations, how 
 much soever their minds have been beclouded with 
 darkness. Such conduct and talk settles the ques- 
 tion that man has a conscience. Were it not for this 
 fact, the idea of right and wrong would never iiave 
 
278 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 entered the breast of man. The beasts of the field 
 have no such ideas. The fact that such thoughts are 
 in the world, and all parts of the world, settles the 
 question that man has a conscience. 3. Man has 
 sensibility. He is capable of happiness or misery. 
 This is something he feels and experiences. All 
 men know this, and it is an idea out of Avhich you 
 cannot reason them. 4. Man has a will. He is 
 capable of choice. He is choosing between objects 
 every day of his life, and every hour in the day. 
 Man chooses his business, his wife, his agents to do 
 business for him, his goods, his horses and cattle, 
 his farm. He chooses between right and wrong, — 
 chooses this course of life because he thinks it right, 
 and rejects that because he thinks it wrong ; so that 
 man is in the constant exercise of this and all the 
 other attributes of a moral agent through his whole 
 life. This is true of all men in all parts of the 
 world. 
 
 I have now shown that man has all the attributes 
 of a moral agent, — which completely establishes the 
 truth of this doctrine. Man cannot have all these 
 attributes and not be a moral agent, any more than 
 the Deity can have all the attributes of God and not 
 be God. I might rest this controversy here, and wait 
 for the opponents of this doctrine to prove, if they 
 can, that man does not possess these attributes. 
 This they must prove, or this one argument is fatal 
 to their theory. I have, however, other proofs I wish 
 
Moral agency. 279 
 
 to present, for I intend to establish this doctrine be- 
 yond all successful controversy. 
 
 2. I present, in proof of this doctrine, the fact that 
 God believes man to be a moral agent. God every- 
 where treats and deals with him as a moral agent, 
 which would be wholly inconsistent in the Deity if 
 this doctrine were not true. God has placed man 
 under moral government, and by this act proclaims 
 to the universe that he knows him to be a moral 
 agent. If man is not a moral agent, he could not 
 be governed by moral laws any more than the plan- 
 etary system could be governed by moral laws. 
 What would you think of God if he should issue 
 a code of moral laws to govern the motion of the 
 heavenly bodies ? You would pronounce him desti- 
 tute of all wisdom, and lose confidence in him at 
 once. But why lose confidence ? Because, you say, 
 such laws are not adapted to the nature of the thing 
 to be governed ; the thing to be governed can only 
 be governed by the law of force. If man is not a 
 moral agent, he is not capable of being governed 
 but by the law of force. Upon that principle, he is 
 always governed by the law of force, and no other. 
 lie is in that case a necessary agent, and acts only 
 as he is acted on by force. If he is not a moral 
 agent, a moral government is no more adapted to his 
 nature than it is adapted to govern the planets. 
 God is not open to the charge of such folly. He 
 knows man's nature, and the government adapted 
 
280 MORAL AGENCY-. 
 
 to it. He knows full well that none but moral 
 agents can be governed by moral laws. By placing 
 man under moral government, therefore, he testified 
 to the universe, by actions which speak louder than 
 words, that he knows man is a moral agent. 
 
 Again, God praises and rewards man for doing 
 right, and condemns and punishes him for doing 
 wrong. Praise man for his action, if he is not volun- 
 tary ! Why not praise the sun for shining, and the 
 vegetables for growing ? In that case they are just 
 as voluntary as man is, and as deserving of praise. 
 Condemn and punish hitn for his conduct! Con- 
 demn him for what? For what he is forced to do 
 by an irresistible power? Why not condemn the 
 tempest for levelling the forest to the ground, and 
 the lightning for killing men ? How quick you 
 would charge God with folly, if he should do this ! 
 Why so ? Because, you say, they are not voluntary. 
 But are they not just as voluntary as man is, if he 
 is not a moral agent ? and is not the condemnation 
 just as appropriate in the one case as in the other? 
 Then punish man for doing wrong! Can a necessary 
 agent do wrong ? Can the earthquake do wrong ? 
 Can the volcano do wrong? Can the raging ocean, 
 which ingulfs that steamer freighted with human 
 life, do wrong ? Who believes such nonsense ? The 
 common sense of every man teaches him better. 
 
 But if man is not a moral agent, his acts are no 
 more deserving of punishment than the acts of the 
 
MORAL AGENCY. 281 
 
 earthquake, the volcano, or the raging ocean. In 
 that case he has no control over his action any more 
 than these agents have over theirs, and he is no more 
 deserving of punishment than they are. If there is 
 any being who deserves to be punished in this mat- 
 ter, it is the being who applies the irresistible force, 
 and not the being who is forced. Now, then, the 
 fact that God does punish men for their actions is 
 God's testimony, in the most convincing manner, 
 that he knows him to be a moral agent ; that he acts 
 voluntarily, and not necessarily ; that he might and 
 ought to have done differently from what he has 
 done ; that his doing was voluntary, and deserving 
 of punishment. Thus God testifies by his acts. 
 
 3. I present, as another evidence of the truthful- 
 ness of this doctrine, the fact that angels believe man 
 to be a moral agent. Angels are holy, and, as a con- 
 sequence, they cannot approve of any wrong" conduct 
 in any being. Angels are the constant observers of 
 the Divine conduct. They watch with intense in- 
 terest every movement of the Deity, particularly his 
 dealing with the inhabitants of this globe. The 
 Bible represents them as being desirous to look into 
 his conduct towards man. When God condemns 
 man for sin, and executes his judgments upon him for 
 his wickedness, angels look on with deep and thrill- 
 ing interest, and perfectly indorse and approve God's 
 conduct. Let us turn to Rev. xvi. 5-7, for one mo- 
 ment, and hear their testimony : " And I heard the 
 
282 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, 
 which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast 
 judged thus : For they have shed the blood of saints 
 and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to 
 drink ; for they are worthy. And I heard another 
 out of the altar say. Even so, Lord God Almighty, 
 true and righteous are thy judgments." In the con- 
 nection of this portion of truth, angels are repre- 
 sented as coming as messengers of God to execute 
 these judgments upon man. While they are doing 
 up the work of death, another class look on and pro- 
 claim, " Thou art righteous, O Lord, because thou 
 hast judged thus. True and righteous are thy judg- 
 ments." Here the conduct of God in executing 
 those judgments is approved and applauded by an- 
 gels in the most decisive language. 
 
 Now if man is a moral agent, and was voluntary 
 in the wrongs for which God was afflicting him, 
 then God was right in these judgments, as angels 
 affirm. The conduct of God, and the indorsement 
 of these angels upon that theory, is all consistent. 
 But if man is a necessary agent, and was forced by 
 his Maker to do just as he did do and he could not 
 help himself, do you think holy angels can look on 
 and pronounce the conduct of God just and right- 
 eous ? What ! force a being to do a thing, and then 
 punish him for doing it ! There is not a good being 
 in the universe who would pronounce such conduct 
 just, nor one who could approve of it. Just ! — such 
 
MOKAL AGENCY. 283 
 
 conduct on the part of any being would be the 
 height of injustice and cruelty, and all good beings 
 must condemn it. But angels do not condemn this 
 conduct on the part of God, they approve of it and 
 point to it as evidence of God's justice and right- 
 eousness. The fact that they do it, settles the ques- 
 tion, that angels know that man is a moral agent ; 
 that he was voluntary in his wrong-doing ; that he 
 might and ought to have acted differently ; that he 
 deserves to be punished for his crimes. Here then is 
 the full indorsement of angels to the truth of the 
 doctrine under consideration. 
 
 4. Another testimony in proof of this doctrine I 
 will take from the conduct of the Devil. He be- 
 lieves man to be a moral agent. When he tempts 
 man to sin, he most fully indorses the fact that he is 
 capable of sinning. He could not sin if he were not 
 a moral agent, any more than the sun could sin by 
 shining. The Devil is not such a fool as to present 
 temptations to the sun to sin. Why ? He knows it 
 is not voluntary in shining. It is not a moral agent, 
 and of course not capable of sinning. In tempting 
 man to sin he unwittingly indorsed the very doctrine 
 under consideration. Perhaps I ought to apologize 
 to his Satanic majesty for introducing him into com-t, 
 and extorting from him a testimony in favor of a 
 doctrine he would gladly have man disbelieve. But 
 we wiU make the whole intelligent universe testify 
 in favor of this doctrine before we have done. 
 
284 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 The Devil always uses moral means, and not 
 force, in moving man to sin. He uses argument, 
 persuasion, — motives which are applicable only to 
 moral agents. If man is not voluntary, why resort 
 to motive ? Force is the only power that can move 
 man, if he is not voluntary, and why not resort to it 
 at once ? Any being, therefore, who resorts to moral 
 means to move man to act, bears testimony by his 
 action that he believes the doctrine under consider^' 
 tion to be true. 
 
 5. Men believe each other to be moral agents. 
 I will introduce into court those who deny this 
 doctrine, and make them testify in its favor. In 
 many instances they condemn their own conduct. 
 How often they reproach themselves for many steps 
 in their lives! What a fool I was for taking this, 
 that, or the other step ! But why a fool ? If you are 
 not voluntary, you could not help yourself You 
 had no power to do differently, — why reproach 
 yourself? You do injustice to your own dear self 
 by such reproaches, if you are not voluntary. But 
 why this internal reproach? Take care, my dear 
 man, that is the utterance of your inner soul, in 
 proof of the very doctrine you deny. Thus your 
 soul speaks out after all your efforts to stifle her 
 voice. She knows you are a moral agent, and she 
 will testify in favor of this doctrine every day of 
 your life, in many forms. Let us hear her a little 
 further, for she is one of the most important wit- 
 
MORAL AGENCY. 285 
 
 iicsses we have on this point. Remember we are 
 now taking the testimony of an adversary. The 
 men who deny this doctrine in words, will praise 
 and condemn the conduct of their fellows as much 
 as other men. Watch their conversation for a 
 season, and you will hear them speak in the high- 
 est terms of praise and approbation of some men. 
 They will call it righteous, just, and holy. But 
 stop, my dear sir. Why do you praise that man 
 for his conduct ? Why do you not praise the 
 wind for blowing and fanning you with its gentle 
 breezes ? Why not pronounce it a holy and just 
 wind ? Do you ever do it ? Do you talk about a 
 virtuous or righteous wind ? Do you ever pay such 
 a compliment to the action of any necessary agent in 
 the universe ? You know you do not. But if man 
 is a necessary and not a moral agent, he is no more 
 praiseworthy for his action than the wind is for 
 blowing. The fact that you praise him and speak 
 of his acts as being virtuovis, settles the question 
 that you have an internal conviction of the truth of 
 this doctrine, and by your action you indorse it as 
 true. 
 
 Again, those who deny this doctrine are as much 
 inclined to censure and condemn the conduct of their 
 neighbors as other men. As a general thing, such 
 men have a peculiar dislike to those they term 
 priests and the church, and will denounce them as 
 hypocrites and deceivers. But why censure them if 
 
2S6 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 they are not voluntary ? They only act as they are 
 acted upon by an irresistible power. They are not 
 to blame, — they cannot help themselves. Why not 
 condemn and censure the wind for blowing? There 
 would be as much common sense in the one case as 
 in the other, on the supposition that man is not a 
 moral agent. To be consistent with your theory, 
 if a man meets you in the street and knocks you 
 down and forcibly takes your money, you should 
 reply, Well, poor creature, you are not to blame, you 
 cannot help it, you act only as you are acted upon, 
 you are only a machine, I will not pursue you. How 
 quick such men will abandon their own theory under 
 such circumstances ! They will not only condemn 
 such a man, but, with an officer, will pursue, appre- 
 hend, imprison, and punish him. But why condemn 
 or punish the poor fellow, if he is not voluntary ? it 
 would be unjust upon your own theory. 
 
 Now remember, every time you pass condemna- 
 tion upon any man for his conduct, you indorse the 
 doctrine that man is a moral agent. You may 
 deny it by word, but by deed you proclaim to all 
 men your belief in it. 
 
 It is evident that all men believe in this doc- 
 trine from the following considerations : All men 
 put their children under moral training. They put 
 them under moral government. They will lay down 
 rules to guide them, command them to do this and 
 forbid them to do that. They will praise them when 
 
MORAL AGENCY. 287 
 
 they do right and blame them when they do "wrong, 
 reward them for obedience and punish them for dis- 
 obedience. They resort to moral njeans to move 
 them to right and wrong action. This is the uni- 
 form conduct of all the families of the earth. Here 
 is testimony from every household, from all parts of 
 the world and from every age of the world in proof 
 of this doctrine. All families treat their children as 
 voluntary beings. 
 
 Here is the testimony of action, which speaks 
 louder than the tongue. It is the testimony of the 
 whole world, speaking out of the honest convictions 
 of the soul, and they all proclaim that they believe 
 in the doctrine of moral agency. Take one other 
 universal testimony from man. All the national 
 governments on the face of the globe proclaim the 
 truthfulness of the doctrine under consideration. 
 They all treat man as a moral agent. These gov- 
 ernments are moral governments. They all act 
 upon the great truth that man is voluntary in his 
 actions. Every law-making body under the whole 
 iicavens proclaims this fact, every court of justice 
 proclaims the same truth. Every political and 
 religious gathering, where moral means are resorted 
 to, to prevail upon man to act in harmony with 
 their wishes, indorses this truth. Some men who are 
 active in politics deny this doctrine in words, but, at 
 the same time, they testify by their actions that they 
 believe their own tongue uttered a lie when it de- 
 
288 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 nied the truthfulness of this doctrine. You have a 
 specimen in the case of Robert Dale Owen, in the 
 noted debate with Campbell in Cincinnati, a num- 
 ber of years since, on the subject of the Bible as a 
 divinely inspired book. He denied in that debate 
 that man was a moral agent. . He planted himself 
 on the doctrine of fatalism, as Deists do generally. 
 Some years after that, he was up before the com- 
 munity as a political man, and was elected to con- 
 gress. After reading one of his speeches made in 
 that body, I thought if I had access to his ear, I 
 would inquire of him for what purpose he was in 
 congress. He would doubtless reply, " To help make 
 laws to govern the nation." But what kind of 
 laws ? I would further ask. " Moral laws, to be 
 sure," would be his reply. Why make moral laws 
 to govern man, if he is not a moral agent? Why 
 not make moral laws to govern your horses and 
 cattle ? They are just as applicable to the one as 
 to the other, if man is not a moral being. Now, the 
 moment Mr. Owen had anything to do with politics, 
 and the subject of law-making, his actions as a law.- 
 maker on the floor of congress testified to the nation 
 and the world, that he believed what he said in Cin- 
 cinnati, on the subject of moral agency, was false. 
 Thus such men by their conduct deny the very doc- 
 trine they advocate with the tongue. Moreover they 
 treat their children as moral agents, by rearing them 
 under moral training. They treat the nation as 
 
MORAL AGENCY. 289 
 
 moral agents, by being active in politics, and help- 
 ing to enact moral laws to govern the people. In 
 fact, no man can or does act upon the theory, that 
 man is not a moral agent. All men, in their actions, 
 indorse the truthfulness of the doctrine under con- 
 sideration. 
 
 6. In proof of this doctrine I present your own 
 consciousness. This is the highest possible testi- 
 mony you can have on this point. I am just as 
 confident that I am a voluntary agent as I am that I 
 exist. I have the same evidence, — the testimony of 
 consciousness. When I sit at my table to write, I 
 know I could lay down my pen and stop writing if 
 I saw fit. When I preach, I do it voluntarily. I 
 know I could refuse, if I pleased. When you go to 
 church, you go voluntarily. You could arise from 
 your seats now and leave the house, if you felt so 
 disposed. This you know from your own conscious- 
 ness. All men are conscious they are voluntary. 
 They know it. You may theorize to the contrary 
 as much as you please, you have this internal con- 
 viction that you are a moral agent, and you cannot 
 resist it or act upon any other theory. 
 
 I have now shown that the whole intelligent uni- 
 verse believes that man is a moral agent, not even 
 excepting those who pretend, in words, to deny it. 
 ^od knows it, holy angels believe it, fallen angels oi 
 devils believe it, and all men without exception be- 
 lieve it. We have no account of any other thinking, 
 
 VOL. 1. 19 
 
290 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 intelligent beings in the universe but the classes 
 above named. Here is one uniform testimony from 
 the whole, that the doctrine is true. 
 
 I will now admit it to be false, for the sake of 
 argument, and look at its conclusions. 
 
 1. If it is not true, then all the intelligent universe 
 are deceived in relation to man's true character. 
 
 2. If God is deceived, then he is not infinite in 
 wisdom. Here is a point where he is laboring under 
 a mistake, and of course does not know all things. 
 
 3. If God is not deceived, then he knowingly pur- 
 sues a course which bears testimony to a false doc- 
 trine. In treating man as a moral agent, his action 
 testifies that he believes in this doctrine. If, there- 
 fore, it is false, God is a false witness, which would 
 militate against his moral character. 
 
 4. If man is not a moral agent, then the govern- 
 ment of God is not adapted to man's nature. A 
 moral government is adapted to govern moral 
 agents, and no others. If man is a necessary agent, 
 he is controlled by the laws of force, as much so as 
 is the material universe. In fact, in that case, there 
 is no other law adapted to his nature. So God, in 
 placing him under a moral government, has made a 
 great mistake. 
 
 5. If man is not a moral agent, then there is no 
 such thing as sin or holiness among men ; for non% 
 but moral agents can sin. So all this talk, in that 
 case, about right and wrong, justice and injustice 
 
MORAL AGENCY. 291 
 
 among men is all delusive. You might as well talk 
 about a sinful sun and moon, if this doctrine is 
 false. 
 
 6. If man is not a moral agent, then all family 
 and national governments should be thrown to the 
 winds. All moral laws to govern human beings 
 should be cast overboard. To be consistent with 
 such a theory, you should break up your national 
 council, throw away your courts of justice, tear 
 down your prisons, and cease all your punishments, 
 — stop your undertaking to punish man for what he 
 cannot help. If men lie, steal, get drunk, swear, 
 knock each other down, murder, and burn down 
 houses, and do every other thing we have been in 
 the habit of calling wrong, remember they are inno- 
 cent in the whole. They are forced to do it, and 
 are not to blame, any more than the wind for blow- 
 ing down your house. Now, are you prepared to 
 swallow down such absurdities ? If not, you must 
 fall back upon the theory that man is a moral agent. 
 There is no other way of avoiding these conclusions. 
 They are the legitimate inferences of the opposite 
 theory. These considerations, I think, sufficiently 
 settle the truthfulness of the doctrine I have drawn 
 from this text, and put it beyond all successful 
 controversy. A few remarks shall close this ser- 
 
292 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 REMARKS. 
 
 1. From this subject, we learn the nature of sin. 
 Sin is the abuse of the power of moral agency. It 
 lies in wrong action, or in disobedience to God. 
 
 2. We learn the nature of holiness. It' is the right 
 use of the power of moral agency. It is the volun- 
 tary conformity of the heart and life to God's law. 
 It consists in doing his will. 
 
 3. We learn that man cannot be forced to sin or 
 to be holy by any being. Cannot God force him to 
 sin ? asks one. I answer, no. The moment you 
 apply force, you take away his voluntariness. His 
 acts under the law of force would be necessary acts, 
 and would be neither sinful nor holy. An act, to be 
 sinful or holy, must be voluntary. It must be the 
 voluntary choice of the will, so that force cannot be 
 applied by any being. 
 
 4. We learn that OMNIPOTENT POWER 
 could not keep sin out of the universe, and at the 
 same time have a universe of moral agents. Moral 
 agents can sin, and force cannot prevent it. To be 
 a moral agent, one must have power to sin or be 
 holy, and this must be left to his choice. He must 
 have power to act in two ways, as we have seen 
 in this discourse. Take away the power to sin, and 
 we take away moral agency ; consequently, there is 
 no power that can force moral agents not to sin, and 
 they at the same time retain their moral agency. A 
 
MORAL AGKNCY. 293 
 
 universe of moral agents, therefore, can sin, and 
 Omnipotence cannot prevent it. God understood 
 this when he created moral agents. The question 
 to be settled by the Divine mind, before the act of 
 creation, was doubtless this : Shall I have a universe 
 of moral, responsible agents, — beings who are capa- 
 ble of understanding my character and government, 
 and voluntarily loving and adoring me, even if some 
 of them do sin, — or shall I create a universe with- 
 out such beings? The mind of the Infinite One 
 preferred a universe of moral agents, even if the evil 
 of sin was connected with it. He knew, when he 
 created such a universe, that some of them would 
 sin, and he could not prevent it ; but, on the whole, 
 it was best to call such a universe into existence. 
 
 5. We learn that God cannot convert men by 
 physical power. The Gospel is the power to. save, 
 Paul affirms. But the Gospel is made up of moral 
 power, — the power of motive, argument, and per- 
 suasion. The being to be converted is a moral 
 agent, and God does not suspend or take away his 
 moral agency in order to convert him. To convert 
 him, you must change the governing purpose of his 
 will. He now chooses to do his own will, and not 
 God's. He must choose to do God's will, and not 
 his own, to be converted. This change is brought 
 about by the Holy Ghost presenting the motives of 
 the Gospel so clearly before the mind, that the sinner 
 voluntarily gives up his own will, and chooses God's 
 
294 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 will as the governing, controlling principle for the rest 
 of his life ; and he consecrates his whole being to do 
 God's will henceforth and forever. The change is 
 brought about, not by physical power, but by the 
 Holy Ghost applying moral power. During this 
 change, the sinner is active. The change could not 
 be • produced without his action. He chooses ; he 
 yields his will to the will of God. He is voluntary 
 in the whole transaction, and could not be converted 
 without this voluntary act on his part. He acts, but 
 he acts under the constraining^ influences of the Holy 
 Spirit, but not under the influence or power of force. 
 6. We learn that sinners, being voluntary, can re- 
 sist all that God can do to convert them, and go 
 down to hell. God opens heaven, and spreads be- 
 fore you the glories of that bright world to allure. 
 He opens hell, and thunders -WTath in your ears if 
 you persist in sin. He sends his ministers to preach 
 and intreat you to flee from the -urrath to come ; his 
 saints, to pray, warn, and invite you to Christ. He 
 arranges his providences, and speaks through them. 
 He sends his Spirit to convince of sin and move you 
 to repentance. But all of these things you can re- 
 sist. He does not apply any irresistible power here. 
 He cannot do so, and permit you to remain a moral 
 agent. You must yield to these influences to be 
 saved, and you must do it firom choice. You can 
 resist the whole, and persevere in the way to death, 
 and reap your reward in eternity. 
 
MORAL AGENCY. 295 
 
 7. Where any one gives a construction to any 
 portion of the Bible that makes man a mere ma- 
 chine, you may know that that interpretation is 
 false. Man is a moral agent, as we have proved in 
 this sermon. The Bible was given to moral agents. 
 When rightly interpreted, it does not falsify man's 
 character. Here are two constructions to a passage, 
 or to certain doctrines of the Bible : one makes man 
 a machine, the other leaves him a free moral agent. 
 The interpretation in harmony with the doctrine of 
 moral agency is the correct one. 
 
 8. Sinner, you see from this. subject that you have 
 your destiny for eternity in your own hands, and you 
 can and will decide it for yourself. If you will re- 
 pent and obey God, you can be saved ; but if you 
 persist in your sins, you must be damned. What a 
 keen reflection it must be to you, if you lie down in 
 hell, that you brought all your misery upon yourself. 
 How it will pierce the soul through with ten thou- 
 sand sorrows and regrets. You cannot, then, throw 
 off' your guilt upon another. You will know and 
 feel, then, that it was your own voluntary conduct in 
 rejecting the Gospel, which has brought all this an- 
 guish upon you. Sinner^ sinner, will you go thus 
 madly down to ruin ? Will you deliberately leap 
 into the burning pool ? Dying man, be entreated to 
 turn to God to-day. Do you say a future time will 
 do ? That future time may find your fate sealed, and 
 your soul lost. Behold, now is the accepted time. 
 
296 MORAL AGENCY. 
 
 Let this day be a day of salvation to you. Before 
 you is life and death. Choose life, says God. Hark ! 
 Do your hear him speak ? Choose life, choose life, 
 says God. What say you ? Will you choose life ? 
 Will you do it now ? I pray God, as you go from 
 this house, that the Holy Spirit may pursue you with 
 these words: Choose life, choose life I 
 
IX. 
 
 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 And Pharaoh said, who is the Lord that I should obey his 
 voice '? — Exod. v. 2. 
 
 1. DEFINITION OF GOVERNMENT. 2. TWO DEPARTMENTS IN 
 THE UNIVERSE WHICH NEED GOVERNING. 3. GOVERN- 
 MENT SUPPOSES POWER EXERCISED OVER EACH DE- 
 PARTMENT. 4. BUT TWO KINDS OF POWER USED IN 
 GOVERNING. 5. MORAL AGENTS NOT GOVERNED BY 
 
 PHYSICAL POWER. 6. HOW FAR PHYSICAL POWER IS 
 CONNECTED WITH MORAL GOVERNMENT, AND ITS PLACE. 
 7. THE NECESSITY OF MORAL AGENTS BEING UNDER 
 GOVERNMENT. 8. THE BEING BEST QUALIFIED OUGHT 
 TO GOVERN. 9. GOD THE ONLY BEING QUALIFIED. 
 
 10. god's RIGHT AND DUTY TO GOVERN. 
 
 These words were the words of a proud, haughty 
 monarch, who was then occupying the throne of 
 Egypt. He was a wicked oppressor. He had 
 trampled the rights of God's ancient Israel under 
 his feet until they cried to God for help. He heard 
 them from on high, as his ear is always open to the 
 cry of the oppressed, and he came for their deliver- 
 ance. The prediction that they should be evil en- 
 treated four hundred years was nearly fulfilled, the 
 time was drawing to a close, and the day of de- 
 liverance was at hand. God appeared to Moses, 
 
298 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 and commissioned him to be their leader back to 
 the land of promise, from whence their fathers had 
 migrated several generations previous. God com- 
 manded him to go to Pharaoh, the then ruling 
 monarch of the nation, and demand of him to let 
 his people go, — in other words, to emancipate them 
 from the house of bondage. Moses and Aaron 
 gained access to his royal presence, and spread this 
 command of God before him. Hear them ; they 
 address him in the following language : " Thus saith 
 the Lord God of Israel, Let my people go, that they 
 may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness^ Now, 
 mark this haughty monarch's reply, — " Who is the 
 Lord, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go ? 
 I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go." 
 What an impotent rebel ! He did not believe in 
 the "higher law" theory. What! Set up divine 
 authority as superior to mine ? Am I not the law- 
 making power of this nation ? My authority is the 
 supreme authority of this land, and now you ap- 
 proach me with a " higher law^" Who is your Lord, 
 that I should submit to his dictation and authority ? 
 I know not yowc Lord, I acknowledge no higher 
 authority in governmental matters than my own. 
 I believe each nation and state has a right to regu- 
 late its own domestic institutions, without any ref- 
 erence to a higher-law theory. They have a right 
 to enact such laws as they please, and when enacted, 
 if ever so oppressive and wrong, I deny the right of 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 299 
 
 any other authority, high or low, to interfere. I 
 have my laws to govern this nation, and to govern 
 Israel. They are my domestic servants, and I have 
 a right to manage my own internal affairs in my 
 own way. Now you fanatics, Moses and Aaron, 
 come to me with your higher -law notions, and de- 
 mand of me to let Israel go. You come in the name 
 and by the authority of the High God, as you pre- 
 tend. I acknowledge no such authority, and I shall 
 not let Israel go. Then, you clergy undertake to 
 meddle with the affairs of government! What do 
 you know about government matters ? You should 
 keep about your " appropriate work " of preaching 
 the Go.spel, and not step out of your " appropriate 
 sphere " to dabble with politics. So reasoned the 
 ancient Egyptian Pharaoh, — and so some of our 
 modern American Pharaohs reason. But notwith- 
 standing the reasoning of both ancient and modern 
 Pharaohs, there is a higher tribunal than that of 
 man, and one to which they are amenable, and the 
 High God will make them feel it at a future day. 
 
 He is King of kings and Lord of lords. What 
 does that mean ? King of kings. What, king of 
 legislative bodies ? His authority higher than theirs ? 
 So he affirms, and so he will make them feel. He 
 is King to rule over kings — to rule over all legisla- 
 tive bodies on earth, however high. He claims the 
 right to dictate to them, to legislate over them ; and 
 when they call in question that right, they are un- 
 
300 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 godly rebels. But, says one, has not a state a right 
 to enact such laws as it pleases, to control its own 
 internal affairs ? If it pleases to enact laws in har- 
 mony with God's law, it has, — and not otherwise. 
 No state and no legislative body on earth has a 
 right to enact an oppressive or wrong law. God 
 allows no such right to any body of men. So, then, 
 your whole modern theory, vulgarly called squatter 
 sovereignty, is based upon a glaring falsehood. It 
 calls in question God's right to dictate to legislative 
 bodies, and is the very essence of Romanism. It 
 exalts itself above God, sets aside his authority, is 
 ruinous and corrupting in its tendency. If a state 
 may enact any law it pleases, and make it of bind- 
 ing authority, then it may enact a law forbidding 
 obedience to God under all circumstances, and the 
 people would be under obligation to obey it, and 
 wholly discard God and his authority. What a 
 doctrine to be advocated in a nation that professes 
 to be protestant in its faith ! 
 
 What ! A human tribunal with power, if it see 
 fit to exercise it, to repeal God's laws and cast his 
 authority overboard ! This is your popular sover- 
 eignty theory, — and what is it but the Devil's sover- 
 eignty? It is what he has advocated for years, and 
 what he would have all men embrace. This is the 
 doctrine he taught Eve : has God said, you shall 
 die if you eat of that forbidden fruit, or if you dis- 
 obey him ? God knows better, — I would pay no re- 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 301 
 
 gard to his authority. I would eat. I would man- 
 age my own affairs. What ! let God dictate you ? 
 Do not be such a silly fool, — be independent, — as- 
 sert your own rights, — have your own way without 
 any reference to God,- or his authority. This is the 
 Devil's sovereignty, and he would stir up all men 
 to believe and advocate it. If he can induce men to 
 advocate such doctrine in the halls of a nation, — all 
 the better, as it will give it the greatest possible 
 notoriety. This is the doctrine which some of our 
 wonderful statesmen are advocating in the councils 
 of the nation at the present time, for they deny the 
 right of any higher law to control them. This 
 was Pharaoh's doctrine. God undertook to dictate 
 him about the children of Israel, and he denied his 
 right at once, and refused to submit to it. This 
 is the very feeling of a carnal, impenitent heart. It 
 calls in question God's right to govern. Its lan- 
 guage is, — who is the Lord that I should obey his 
 voice ? 
 
 In considering this text, we shall endeavor to ex- 
 amine and establish God's right to sit at the head 
 of the universe, and dictate to all, high or low, — to 
 aU bodies of men, — and the corresponding duty of 
 all men to acknowledge and submit to that authority. 
 The topic of discussion, then, is GocVa rig'/U to gov- 
 ern. In considering it, I will — 
 
 I. Define the word government. 
 
 II. Show that there are two departments in the 
 
302 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 universe God has created, both of which need gov- 
 erning. 
 
 III. Show that government supposes power exer- 
 cised over each of these departments. 
 
 IV. Show that there are but two kinds of power 
 which can be exercised by God, or any other being, 
 in governing. 
 
 V. Show that moral agents cannot be controlled 
 by physical power, so far as their moral actions are 
 concerned. 
 
 VI. Show how far physical power is connected 
 with moral government, and its place. 
 
 VII. Show that it is necessary that moral agents 
 should be under government. 
 
 VIII. Show that we ought to have at the head of 
 the universe the being who is best qualified to fill 
 that station. 
 
 IX. Show that God is that being, and the only 
 being who is qualified to fill that station. 
 
 X. Show that it is not only God's right, but his 
 duty, to govern. 
 
 I. Then I am to define the word government. 
 
 Webster defines government thus : 1. " Direction ; 
 regulation. 2. Control; restraint. 3. The exercise 
 of authority ; direction and restraint exercised over 
 the actions of men in communities, societies, or 
 states ; the administration of public affairs." 
 
 Direction : The pilot at the helm of that steamer 
 directs its course. He regulates and governs it, so 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO (JOVERN. 303 
 
 as to run it into yonder port with safety. The con- 
 ductor of that train of cars controls it. He rings 
 his bell for it to stop ; the hands apply the breaks, 
 and it yields to their control. He rings again to 
 have it start ; the steam is applied, and off it goes ; — 
 he directs it ; he governs it. The parent governs 
 that child. He exercises authority over it; he marks 
 out its course of life by his commands and prohibi- 
 tions ; he enforces his authority, and restrains it 
 from wrongdoing by suitable rewards and punish- 
 ments, which serve as motives to control that little 
 mind. 
 
 The legislative bodies of different nations govern 
 the people by enacting laws to mark out their duty ; 
 and enforce their authority by suitable rewards and 
 punishments, to restrain them from vice, and to influ- 
 ence them to do right. This is restraint exercised 
 over the actions of men in communities, or in their 
 associated capacity in states or nations. This is 
 government. It is control or restraint exercised over 
 the thing governed. 
 
 II. I AM TO SHOW THAT THERE ARE TWO DEPART- 
 MENTS IN THE UNIVERSE GoD HAS CREATED, BOTH OP 
 WHICH NEED GOVERNING. 
 
 1. There is the material universe. Under this 
 head we include all matter, whether in an organized 
 or unorganized form ; this earth on which we live, 
 with all that pertains to it which is material; the 
 whole planetary system connected with this earth, 
 
304 GOD'S EIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 and the ten thousand times ten thousand suns and 
 worlds which roll on high ; all the matter God has 
 ever called into being; — all these need governing. 
 
 2. The universe of minds. Under this head we 
 include the whole race of man, holy angels, fallen 
 angels or devils. From what we can gather from 
 the Bible, we think the word angel covers all the dif- 
 ferent orders of intelligent beings besides man. That 
 there is an innumerable multitude of them is evident 
 from such passages as the following ; — Rev. v. 11 : 
 " And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels 
 round about the throne, and the beasts, and the 
 elders: and the number of them was ten thousand 
 times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands." 
 Such passages are not designed to point out a defi- 
 nite number, but an innumerable number. That 
 there is a variety of orders of these intelligences, and 
 that they inhabit the different worlds which journey 
 through the immensity of space, is very manifest to 
 me. This universe of thinking, rational, account- 
 able creatures all need governing. They all belong 
 to God's great kingdom. 
 
 3. That this great universe of mind and matter, 
 which has been planned and called into existence by 
 the wisdom and power of God, needs governing, is 
 evident from the fact that an infinitely wise Being 
 must have had some end, some great and glorious 
 end, in view in creating it. To believe that God 
 acted without an end to accomplish in this grand 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 305 
 
 display of power, is to believe that he acted foolishly. 
 If he had an end to accomplish, government is abso- 
 lutely essential to secure it. He sits at the head of 
 this great universe of mind and matter, superintends 
 all its parts, controls and regulates the whoje, to de- 
 velop the grand design of his heart. What confu- 
 sion there would be in the material universe if God 
 should exercise no controlling, regulating influence 
 over it! The immensity of the heavenly bodies is 
 such, and they fly through the depths of space with 
 such incomprehensible rapidity, that, let them come 
 in contact with each other, and what a work of ruin 
 there would be I Let world be hurled upon world, 
 and system dash against system ; what confusion, 
 what destruction, what a wreck of worlds ! But with 
 an Almighty God at the head of affairs, with his con- 
 stant, superintending care over the most minute par- 
 ticle of matter, each of which fills its appropriate 
 place, and each part moves in perfect harmony with 
 the great whole, all is order, all is right, all tends to 
 give us one great, grand, sublime idea of God. What 
 an exhibition of his wisdom, power, and goodness ! 
 III. Show that government supposes power 
 
 EXERCISED OVER EACH OF THESE DEPARTMENTS. 
 
 1. Define power. From Webster we have the 
 following definition : 1. " The faculty of doing or 
 performing anything. The faculty of moving or 
 producing a change in something ; ability or strength. 
 2. Force ; animal strength." 
 
 VOL. I. 20 
 
306 GOD'S EIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 1. That government supposes power exercised 
 over this department, is evident from the very defi- 
 nition of the term government. We have seen that 
 it is to direct and control. How do you regulate or 
 control a thing? It is by applying power to it of 
 some kind. 
 
 2. The exercise of power supposes a thinking, de- 
 signing being, who has an end to accomplish, a plan 
 to execute or carry into effect. The source of all 
 power resides in the mind, in the will of some think- 
 ing being. Take an illustration from man. He 
 wishes to erect a dwelling for his comfort as a place 
 of residence. He first forms his plan. He then 
 selects his materials. His will then calls into requi- 
 sition his own physical power, and combines with 
 that the intellectual and physical power of others, 
 the power of animals which he controls, together 
 with the power of machinery which mind has con- 
 trived and controls ; and by this combination of 
 power, the materials are moved on to the ground, 
 formed, fashioned, and put together to his liking. 
 Thus the building is erected by the application of 
 power, in the controlling, regulating, and governing 
 these materials. Government then is the applica- 
 tion of power of some kind, to control the thing to 
 be governed. 
 
 . IV. Show that there are but two kinds of 
 
 POWER, WHICH CAN BE EXERCISED BY GOD, OR ANY 
 OTHER BEING, IN GOVERNING. 
 
GOD'S KIGHT TO GOVERN. 307 
 
 1. Physical power or the power of force. This is 
 applicable to move, control, and govern matter. The 
 whole material universe is regulated and governed 
 by the application of this kind of power. God and 
 all other beings, when they wish to control matter, 
 use this kind of power and no other. All the mo- 
 tions and changes of the heavenly bodies are pro- 
 duced by the application of the law of force. Every 
 particle of matter is controlled by this law, and can- 
 not be controlled by any other. Matter is inert ; it 
 has no power in itself of acting or resisting action. 
 If moved or controlled it must be by force. It is 
 passive, — perfectly so in its nature. 
 
 2. Moral power, or the power of motive or in- 
 ducement. This is the power used to control mind, 
 or the will of moral agents. Mind is the opposite 
 of matter. To control it you must use another 
 kind of power. Moral agents have power to act. 
 They have power in themselves to resist power. To 
 control them then, so far as this power to resist 
 power is concerned, the consent of their wills, to be 
 controlled, must be secured. For wise reasons they 
 are constituted moral agents, and have the power 
 of choice. In a previous sermon on the subject of 
 moral agency, we have shown that in choosing be- 
 tween right and wrong, the will cannot be forced, — 
 the law of force not being applicable. To conti-ol 
 wills you must control them by moral power, or the 
 power of motive or inducement. These are the two 
 
308 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 kinds of power always used in governing. Each 
 has its appropriate place in God's government, and 
 in all other governments. 
 
 V. Show that moral agents cannot be con- 
 trolled BY physical power, SO FAR AS THEIR 
 MORAL ACTIONS ARE CONCERNED, 
 
 1. Actions to be moral must be the actions of free 
 will. They must be voluntary, as we have suffi- 
 ciently shown in the sermon on moral agency, — con- 
 sequently you cannot use iiTesistible power in this 
 case. This is not its place in government. 
 
 2. It is evident that they cannot be controlled by 
 physical power, from the fact that God does not 
 thus control them. If moral agents could be forced 
 not to sin, and forced to be holy, God would have 
 used force and prevented their sinning. The very 
 goodness of God would prompt him to do it, for he 
 hates sin and loves holiness. He loves the happi- 
 ness of his creatures and hates ' their misery. He 
 knows that nothing but holiness can secure their 
 happiness and prevent their misery. If by an act 
 of his he could shut out all sin, and at the same 
 time have a universe of moral agents, think you he 
 would refuse to put forth such an act? It is an im- 
 peachment of his goodness and sincerity to pretend 
 it. He professes to want all beings to be holy and 
 happy, and if, by a purpose of his will, he could ac- 
 complish that grand end, what becomes of his sin- 
 cerity while he withholds such an act ? If he could 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 309 
 
 secure the holiness and happiness of all, by physical 
 power, it would be done. But it is not done, — 
 which settles the question that it could not be ac- 
 complished in that way. Physical power cannot 
 force man to be holy. 
 
 VI. Show how far physical poaver is con- 
 nected WITH MORAL GOVERNMENT, AND ITS PLACE. 
 
 1, It can create moral agents and give them their 
 powers. There could be no moral government with- 
 out such beings. They are indebted to omnipotent 
 power for their existence, and for all their powers 
 and faculties. In receiving existence, man is passive, 
 — he has no control over that matter. In relation to 
 the powers and faculties of his nature, he had no 
 control over them. That is the work of Omnipotence. 
 
 2. Omnipotent power can sustain and uphold 
 moral agents after it has created them, and they 
 cannot help themselves. They cannot blot out of 
 being themselves or each other. They may kill the 
 body, but they cannot kill the moral agent. They 
 may wish themselves out of existence, and blame 
 tlieir Maker for creating them, but they cannot un- 
 oreate themselves. The same irresistible hand which 
 gave them being, can hold them in existence. They 
 may try to flee from existence by the doctrine of an- 
 nihilation, but God will not suffer it. His power 
 created, and the same power will hold them in 
 being endlessly. He upholds all things by the word 
 of his power. 
 
310 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 3. Physical power can fix their location and con- 
 fine them there. It has fixed man's location here on 
 earth, and holds him here by the law of force. He 
 may long to visit other portions of the universe, but 
 the law of force holds him here until it sees fit to lib- 
 erate him. By his inventions he may pass up a little 
 distance from the earth, through the atmosphere, 
 but the law of force brings him down again. 
 
 4. Omnipotent power determines when, how, and 
 where, man shall commence his existence. He causes 
 some to commence their existence in this age, some 
 in a previous one, some in America, some in Eng- 
 land, others in Ireland, France, Africa, and others 
 still in some other portion of the globe. This, 
 Omnipotence controls. The being himself has no 
 control over the place of his birth. How mean 
 and wicked, therefore, to be prejudiced against a 
 man because he was born in a particular locality. 
 Whether born in Ireland, Africa, America, or any 
 other place on earth, man has no control over that 
 matter, and to think any the less of an individual 
 on account of the place of his nativity, is all 
 wrong. 
 
 5. Omnipotence connects mind with matter, or 
 the soul with the body, and separates them at 
 pleasure. It can break up this connection at any 
 moment it sees fit, take the soul into another state 
 of existence, and locate it at pleasure. When it 
 wishes to do up this work, it waits not for the con- 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 311 
 
 sent of any man, — it does not even ask it. If the 
 being iiimself with all his friends are opposed to this 
 separation, it will make no difference. There is no 
 resisting or controlling this power in this work. It 
 strikes the stroke, and all the universe cannot resist 
 or counteract it. The separation must take place at 
 its bidding if it breaks a thousand hearts, and fills a 
 whole nation with lamentation and woe. Omnipo- 
 tence is not to be resisted, nor turned aside from its 
 work here. There is no dodging that event, — it 
 must come. 
 
 6. Omnipotence can control the circumstances 
 which surround our being here. It can give us 
 light or darkness, cold or heat, sickness or health. 
 It can give us fair weather or foul, seed-time and 
 harvest, or blast all our hopes. It can prosper us 
 in our plans, or overturn them in a thousand forms. 
 
 7. When law is violated. Omnipotence can an*est 
 and bring to trial, and execute penalty without any 
 fear of opposition. It can defend its own rights, 
 and the rights of the obedient subject of govern- 
 ment, as it will do at a future day. 
 
 8. It can create a heaven for the righteous, and 
 gather them into that happy world, and supply their 
 every want. 
 
 9. It can create a hell for the wicked, and confine 
 them there at pleasure. 
 
 10. But it cannot make beings holy. That is the 
 work of moral power, and not of physical. 
 
312 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 VII. Show that moral agents should be under 
 
 GOVERNMENT. ThE GOOD OF THE UNIVERSE DEMANDS 
 IT. 
 
 1. The end for which man was created calls for a 
 moral government to secure it. That end was to 
 glorify God and enjoy him forever. In creating 
 moral agents, God intended greatly to augment the 
 amount of happiness in the universe. All the bliss 
 they will enjoy endlessly will be so much real happi- 
 ness added, and which never would have been in the 
 universe, had not God called moral agents into being. 
 To promote his own glory, and greatly add to the 
 amount of happiness, were two great objects God 
 had in view in the act of creation. To secure these 
 objects, moral government is a necessity. Man needs 
 to be taught how to glorify God, he needs government 
 to teach him how, and moral law to point out the 
 way. To secure man's happiness, his holiness must 
 be secured. Holiness cannot be secured without 
 moral law. Holiness is the conformity of the heart 
 and life to God's will, or to moral law. He needs 
 the government to make known that will. He 
 needs God's law to define God's rights, his own 
 rights, and the rights of all other moral beings. 
 
 2. As man is a voluntary being, he needs all the 
 restraints of government thrown around him to 
 hold him in check from wrongdoing. Moral govern- 
 ment is the means calculated to secure the moral 
 order and harmony of moral beings. 
 
GOD'S EIGHT TO GOVERN. 313 
 
 3. Moral agents are capable of trampling upon 
 each other's rights, of wronging each other, and the 
 wronged party should have some tribunal to which 
 it can appeal for redress. Moral government pro- 
 vides this tribunal, where all differences and en- 
 croachments on the rights of others can, and will 
 be adjudicated, upon just principles, and the 
 wronged party have his rights defended. When 
 God has created a class of beings, and given them 
 power which, if wrongfully used, they can harm each 
 other, and trample upon each other's rights, justice 
 demands that he should make some provision, by 
 which and through which the wronged party can 
 have their rights asserted and defended. Moral gov- 
 ernment meets this demand of justice. Without 
 that, it could not be met. God understands this. 
 He knows his duty, and has consequently placed 
 moral agents under moral government. 
 
 4. Tlie nature of moral agents is adapted to moral 
 government, which shows its necessity. 
 
 5. In proof of its necessity, we have the experience 
 of all families and nations on earth. They all resort 
 to it, and thus bear testimony to its necessity. What 
 nation on earth would be willing to try the experi- 
 ment of dispensing with moral government? Not 
 one would risk it. They know its necessity. They 
 know public interest demands it, or why be willing 
 to pay the enormous sums they now pay to support 
 national governments ? 
 
314 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 6. The fact that God has placed the universe of 
 minds under moral government, settles the question 
 of its necessity. God is infinitely wise, and as a 
 consequence, he never takes an unnecessary step. 
 When he does a thing we know that it was abso- 
 lutely necessary that such a step should be taken, 
 or it would not have been taken. He knows per- 
 fectly the wants and necessities of moral agents, 
 and by placing them under moral government, and 
 subjecting them to moral training, we learn its abso- 
 lute necessity to secure their highest good. 
 
 VIII. We should have at the head of the 
 
 UNIVERSE, AS GOVERNOR, THE BEING BEST QUALIFIED 
 TO FILL THAT STATION. 
 
 Let me here give you the principle which should 
 govern men in selecting public rulers. What is it ? 
 Look close, for this is an important thought. This 
 nation, in selecting her rulers, is governed almost en- 
 tirely by false principles. What is the thought that 
 should control us in selecting our candidates for pub- 
 lic stations ? Should it be this, — does he belong to 
 my party ? That is the question which governs the 
 great mass of voters. But that has nothing to do 
 with the matter, and should not influence us in so 
 important a step. If that man is elected, will he 
 give me an office ? That thought controls the vote 
 and action of a great many in this nation. But a 
 man whose vote can be controlled by such selfish- 
 ness is wholly unfit to fill any oflice. While our 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 315 
 
 public stations are filled by such men, the nation 
 will be plundered and swindled, and the rights of 
 whole communities bartered away for office. What 
 do such miscreants care for the rights of men? Com- 
 mit public interests to the hands of such men ! You 
 might as well commit your money to the hands of a 
 thief for safe keeping. 
 
 Another class will be governed by this principle : 
 Is he a northern or southern, eastern or western 
 man ? What has that to do with the matter ? 
 That is not the question which should govern us. 
 What then is the principle ? I answer, it is this : 
 That man is the best qualified for the office, who 
 will best protect and promote public interests ; pro- 
 tect and defend the rights of all classes, high and 
 low, and promote the highest good of the governed. 
 To secure and promote the highest good of the 
 governed is the true and legitimate end of govern- 
 ment. In selecting rulers, therefore, we should se- 
 lect the men who are the best qualified to secure 
 this great end of government, and who will exert 
 all the power committed to their hands to carry out 
 this design. Such men are the men. The interests 
 of the nation can be safely intrusted to such hands. 
 This principle should govern and control our wishes 
 and desires in relation to the universe. 
 
 All moral agents should be interested in having 
 at the head of affairs, the being who is the best 
 qualified to fill tiiat high station. The vast in- 
 
316 GOD'S KIGIIT TO GOVERN. 
 
 terests at stake demand it. The interest of each 
 individual demands it. What a kingdom there 
 is here over which some master mind should pre- 
 side ! It is not a temporary kingdom, it is a 
 kingdom which is to be endless in duration. Here 
 are interests at stake that are eternal. How they 
 should be watched over and guarded with infinite 
 care! Look at the extent of this kingdom. It 
 is a government which extends not only over the 
 race of man, the whole race of man, but it ex- 
 tends over aU the intelligent creatures God ever has 
 or ever will call into being. It is a government 
 over all worlds. What mind can take in the vast- 
 ness of this kingdom ? To preside, then, over the 
 destinies of such an innumerable multitude for 
 eternity, needs the best talent in the universe. 
 All eyes should be turned to such a being, all 
 hearts should rejoice to see such a being ascend 
 the throne and hold the reins of government over 
 such a kingdom. Each heart should pay him hom- 
 age and crown him Lord of all. 
 
 IX. Show that God is the being who is 
 
 BEST qualified FOR THIS STATION, AND THE ONLY 
 BEING WHO IS FITTED AT ALL FOR THIS HIGH PO- 
 SITION. 
 
 1. He is infinite in knowledge. This is an essen- 
 tial qualification for this vastly important work. He 
 knows all hearts perfectly, and how to adapt his 
 government to meet the wants of each. No se- 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 317 
 
 cret plot against his government can be formed and 
 concealed from his notice. No new and unforeseen 
 event can spring up for which he is unprepared, for 
 he looks into the future and sees all that ever will or 
 is possible to transpire. Not an event ever can 
 take place, but that is now, and ever has been, 
 distinctly before his infinite mind. How this won- 
 derful knowledge perfectly fits him to be in readi- 
 ness for any event that can take place in any 
 world through all the coming ages of eternity! 
 This knowledge fits him to see unerringly the best 
 possible end to be secured by government, and the 
 best system of government to secure that end. He 
 can see distinctly, and define unerringly, his own 
 rights, and the rights of all his creatures from the 
 highest to the lowest. He can see and understand 
 the wants of all in all worlds, and the means neces- 
 sary to be used to supply them. What wisdom and 
 knowledge is here ! It is incomprehensible ! This 
 knowledge is underived ; it is in himself. He is not 
 dependent on, nor indebted to any other creature 
 for it. What other being possesses this knowledge, 
 and can bear comparison with God on this point ? 
 Not one. All other beings are limited in their 
 knowledge ; they are indebted to him for what 
 they have, and for all their intellectual powers. 
 We admire profound wisdom in a. statesman. In 
 God we have it in perfection, and in no other 
 being. 
 
318 GOD'S EIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 2. He is omnipresent. He is present in all worlds, 
 and in every part of the universe at the same instant. 
 This is true of him at all times. This is not true of 
 any other being. No created being could be in two 
 places at the same time. An angel cannot be here 
 and in heaven at the same moment. So, no being 
 in the universe can compare with God in this par- 
 ticular. How this attribute fits him for this impor- 
 tant station ! Being everywhere, he can preside over 
 every event in all worlds. He is present to witness 
 all that transpires. All things take place under his 
 eye, and under his special notice. He is present in 
 all parts of the universe to act at any moment and 
 to meet any emergency. 
 
 3. His power is infinite. This power is within 
 himself. It is not derived from others, and cannot 
 be taken away by others. We have some earthly 
 monarchs whom we call powerful rulers. Their 
 government we denominate a strong government. 
 But what makes it strong ? They manage to com- 
 bine the wisdom, skill, and physical strength of other 
 men with their own, to protect their thrones. But 
 man is a changeable being. The men who will pro- 
 tect a throne to-day, may turn their weapons against 
 it to-morrow, and drive its occupant into exile or 
 imprisonment, or even put him to death. His 
 power is not in himself. Moreover, aU the power 
 he and his subjects have is wholly derived from 
 God, and he can take it away any moment. With 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 319 
 
 one glance of his eye he can look tliem all into eter- 
 nity. God is not dependent upon any other being 
 for his power, for it is in himself, and no being or 
 combination of beings, however extensive, can take 
 it from him. He could instantly annihilate the whole 
 universe if they should rise up against him. How 
 important this attribute to govern this gi-eat king- 
 dom! No being could successfully sit at the head 
 of the universe without it, and no being possesses 
 it but God. How important to protect his throne 
 against all combinations ; to protect and defend the 
 rights of all his subjects ; when law is violated, to 
 arrest and bring to trial and execute the penalty 
 of a just law without fearing a rebellion that the 
 governing power cannot control! In many govern- 
 ments, law cannot be executed when violated, for 
 the want of strength in the government to control 
 the rebels. The rebellious party becomes the most 
 powerful, and overturns the government. Place any 
 being, therefore, at the head of the universe who 
 is not infinite in power, and it might, and doubtless 
 would be ruined. Rebellion might break out that 
 could not be controlled, and overrun all worlds, 
 working infinite mischief. But with God at the 
 head, all is safe, and no being would be safe with- 
 out it. Rebellion is already in the universe, but an 
 Almighty God will control it, and even cause the 
 wrath of the rebellious to praise him. That which 
 he cannot cause to praise him he will restrain. 
 
320 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 4. God is unchangeable. " He is in one mind and 
 none can turn him." A fickle government is always 
 unsafe. It advocates one thing as right to-day, and 
 condemns the same thing as wrong to-morrow. Such 
 a government unsettles the confidence of its subjects 
 in their rulers. How true this has been in this nation 
 for a few years past ! Its fruits none can fail to ob- 
 serve, who have watched our national affairs with any 
 interest. 
 
 God being infinite in wisdom, can and does see 
 the right. He takes his position for the right, and 
 against the wrong, and remains there unchangeably 
 for eternity. The subjects of government know 
 where to find him. They know what and where 
 his position will be a million years hence. Such a 
 government is stable and commands respect, as it is 
 unchangeably for right and against all wrong. No 
 other being possesses this attidbute. All other beings 
 are limited in their knowledge. As new things tran- 
 spire, a change in their views and feelings is pro- 
 duced, and they will change their conduct. God 
 knows all things, so there can be nothing new to his 
 mind to produce a change. All things are safe in 
 such hands. His position, once taken for holiness 
 and against sin, is eternally taken. Such a govern- 
 ment is like himself, unalterable. Let all beings 
 combine their inflaence to change his purposes and 
 it would be fruitless. 
 
 5. His moral character is perfection itself. While 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 321 
 
 he is infinite in his natural attributes, he is equally 
 so in his moral. He is infinite in justice, mercy, 
 truthfulness, goodness, and every other moral qual- 
 ification which renders his character infinitely right 
 and lovely. Is he all justice without mercy ? No. 
 Is he all mercy without justice ? No. Mercy has 
 its place in his government, and justice has its place, 
 and everything else that goes to make up perfection 
 in character. He is infinite in his loveliness, holi- 
 ness, and goodness. He is so perfect in his moral 
 character, that he is infinitely above all temptation 
 to wrongdoing. This is essential to sit at the head 
 of such a vast and sublime kingdom. Govern- 
 ment affords many temptations to wrongdoing, 
 temptations to injustice, oppression, and self-ag- 
 grandizement. These temptations lead to the sac- 
 rifice of public interests to promote private ends. 
 Men become intoxicated with power, haughty, and 
 overbearing. There is not a government on earth 
 that has not been led into oppressive and wicked 
 acts. Place any other being but God at the head 
 of the universe, and his goodness might be over- 
 come by temptation, and he might be led to wield 
 his power for the destruction of public interests, in- 
 stead of their promotion. But with him we are safe. 
 He is infinitely above all temptation to wrong. What 
 being but God is fit for this station ? Not one. Not 
 ONE. To him all eyes should be turned, and all hearts 
 should rejoice to place him on the throne and fall at 
 
 VOL. I. 21 
 
322 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 his feet, and with holy reverence pray, thy kingdom 
 COME, THY WILL BE DONE. 
 
 X. I AM TO SHOW THAT IT IS NOT ONLY God's 
 RIGHT, BUT HIS DUTY TO GOVERN. 
 
 1. He created this great universe, which gives him 
 the right. It was cqntrived and called into being by 
 his wisdom and power. All the material universe is 
 his in the highest possible sense, and he has a right 
 to dictate and control it. Every intelligent creature 
 in the universe is his. He created body and soul, 
 and gave them all their powers and faculties. They 
 are all his, and he has a right to dictate and control 
 them in the use of those powers. Can any other 
 being claim such a relation to the universe ? Not 
 one. Not one. This relation puts God lawfully 
 on the throne. No other being can advance any 
 such claim to the right to govern. This right is 
 legitimate and cannot be called in question. 
 
 2. This relation which God bears to the universe, 
 throws a responsibility upon him in relation to its 
 welfare that cannot rest upon any other being. He 
 was the cause of its having a being, and conse- 
 quently has an interest in its destiny which no other 
 being can have. This responsibility he cannot lay 
 off upon the shoulders of any other being, and he 
 has no wish to do so. 
 
 3. Public interest absolutely demands that God 
 should govern. If he neglects this duty, the in- 
 terests of this great commonwealth of worlds are 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 323 
 
 sacrificed. There is not another being in the uni- 
 verse fit for this high station, and not one who could 
 fill it if he would. There is not another one who has 
 powers adequate to the task. 
 
 If God should refuse to govern the universe, it 
 would be utterly ruined, and the fault would partly 
 lie at his door. In that case, such refusal on his 
 part would be wrong, infinitely wrong, and would 
 make him a sinner, an infinite sinner. Will he neg- 
 lect his duty to the universe ? No, never ! He 
 knows his duty too well, and is above temptation 
 to neglect it. 
 
 4. The fact that God does govern, settles the 
 question of his right and duty. He sits at the 
 head of the universe, and proclaims his laws to 
 govern both mind and matter. This he would not 
 do if it were not his place. He knows his place, 
 ■and he never will step out of it. He is so infinitely 
 right, he never will do anything except what duty 
 requires. The fact that he does it, is proof enough 
 that he knows it is his duty and place to govern ; 
 and, being infinite in knowledge, he cannot be de- 
 ceived. 
 
 The fact, therefore, that God does govern, settles 
 the question that it is both his right and duty. 
 
324 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 REMARKS. 
 
 1. With God at the head of the universe we have 
 the highest possible guarantee that we shall have a 
 wise and holy administration. Not a law will ever 
 emanate from his throne that will be oppressive and 
 wi'ong. The rights of all the subjects of his govern- 
 ment, from the highest to the lowest, will be most 
 sacredly guarded and protected. He understands 
 that one great object of government is to protect 
 the rights of all. He will not protect the rights of 
 some at the expense of the rights of others. Rights 
 are sacred in his eyes, and he will see that they are 
 sacredly guarded. 
 
 Individuals who are trampling on the rights of 
 any of his creatures in this world, will find them- 
 selves most wofully disappointed in the future, if 
 they think to escape with impunity. God knows 
 his duty to the subjects of his government, and he 
 is too upright to neglect it. His laws are, like him- 
 self, perfect, pure and holy. His government is the 
 result of infinite wisdom and goodness. 
 
 2. God's right to reign is universal. It extends 
 to all worlds and all beings. It pertains to every 
 moment of a man's history, in time and eternity. 
 It covers every condition in which a man can be 
 placed, every occupation or station he may fill, 
 from the emperor upon the throne, down to the 
 
GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 325 
 
 most degraded beggar. It covers men in an as- 
 sociated capacity, as well as in an individual ca- 
 pacity. Whatever may be their condition, state, 
 or employment, it is God's right to dictate and 
 control them. They may disbelieve or deny this 
 right, but God will hold them strictly accountable 
 to him for all their conduct. Some men seem to 
 imagine that when attending to political matters, 
 and when acting in the capacity of a law maker, 
 God has no right to dictate to them in such sta- 
 tions. 
 
 A little power in the hands of some men will 
 bloat them up, and make them feel that they are 
 above all dictation and control. This is nothing 
 new. So Pharaoh felt, as we have seen. So 
 other despots have felt, and God has been under 
 the necessity of resorting to severe measures to 
 teach them the higher-law doctrine. God drove 
 Nebuchadnezzar from his throne and turned him 
 out to grass for seven years, to teach and make 
 him acknowledge the higher-law doctrine. Hear 
 Daniel explain this matter to him; — Dan. iv. 25: 
 '• That they shall drive thee from men, and thy 
 dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, they 
 shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and they 
 shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven 
 times shall pass over thee, till thou know that the 
 Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth 
 it to whomsoever he willP 
 
326 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 These were severe measures to humble the pride 
 of a haughty monarch, but they were effectual and 
 brought him to his senses. Hear him, after this 
 course of discipline; — Dan. iv. 37: " Now I Nebu- 
 chadnezzar praise and extol and honor the King of 
 heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways 
 judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able 
 to abase." 
 
 Thus God humbled his heart, and made him 
 acknowledge his right to dictate to men in au- 
 thority. It would probably be a blessing to this 
 nation, if God should turn out to grass, not only 
 seven years, but during life, some of its lordly legis- 
 lators, unless they can learn that he has a right to 
 dictate, and that they are accountable to him for 
 every law they enact; that it is his place to rule 
 and dictate to legislative bodies, and their duty to 
 submit, and see to it, that they enact' no law 
 not in strict subjection and perfect harmony with 
 the law of God. 
 
 3. This right and duty of God to reign, carries 
 along with it a corresponding duty on the part of 
 all beings to submit to his authority and obey all 
 his requirements. We should study his word with 
 care, to know and understand all his claims, and 
 then make it the delight of our hearts to do his 
 will. To call in question his authority to govern, 
 is wicked ; to refuse to obey any one of his re- 
 quirements, is open rebellion. 
 
GOD'S KIGHT TO GOVERN. 327 
 
 4. Raising rebellion against this right of God to 
 reign, is sin. A sinful heart is not willing to let 
 God dictate ; it wants its own way, and is resolved 
 to have it. But remember God is upon the throne, 
 — he is rightfully and lawfully there, and you must 
 submit or take the consequences. 
 
 5. Sinner, remember you are under God's govern- 
 ment, and you cannot escape from his dominions. 
 He will hold you accountable for yom: conduct, 
 whether you like it or not. You oug-ht to like it. 
 You ought to love his reign. The highest interests 
 of the universe demand that he should reign. When 
 you oppose it at heart, you are opposed to the best 
 interests of the universe. How wicked such a state 
 of heart must be ! Stop ! look at yourself for a 
 moment. How little interest you have felt in 
 God's right to reign ! Perhaps you have been so 
 indifferent about it, you have not examined that 
 right in all your life. How indifferent you are to- 
 day ! How you trample upon his authority and 
 defy his power ! He will take you in hand at an- 
 other day ! In this state of rebellion and indif- 
 ference you are hastening to his bar. How you 
 will tremble when, at the judgment, he asserts and 
 defends his right to govern ! Will you not repent 
 of this wicked state of heart now ? Confess it 
 all to him and ask forgiveness, and henceforth 
 vote him upon the throne of your heart, give him 
 
328 GOD'S RIGHT TO GOVERN. 
 
 his place as King and Lawgiver, and take your place 
 at his feet. 
 
 What say you ; will you do it ? Let that soul 
 cry out to God now, " Tky kingdom come. Thy 
 king-do7n come in me. Thy will be done by me 
 henceforth and forever. Amen." 
 
X. 
 
 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 ■ When the son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy 
 angels Avith him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory : and 
 before him shall be gathered all nations : and he shall separate 
 them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the 
 goats : and he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats 
 on the lefb. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, 
 Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for 
 you from the foundation of the world : for I was an hungered, and 
 ye gave me meat : I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink : I was a 
 stranger, and ye took me in : naked, and ye clothed me : I was 
 sick, and ye visited me : I was in prison, and ye came unto me. 
 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we 
 thee an hungered, and fed thee ? or thirsty, and gave thee drink ? 
 when saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in ? or naked, and 
 clothed thee '? or when saw we thee sick, or in prison and came 
 unto thee ? And the King shall answer and say unto them, 
 Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of 
 the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. Then 
 shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye 
 cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels : 
 for I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat : I was thirsty, and 
 ye gave me no drink : I was a stranger, and ye took me not in : 
 naked, and ye clothed me not : sick, and in prison, and ye visited 
 me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying. Lord, when saw 
 we thee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, 
 
330 THE JUDGMENT-DAY, 
 
 or in prison, and did not minister to thee ? Then shall he answer 
 them, saying, Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye did it not to 
 one of the least of these, ye did it not unto me. And these shall 
 go away into everlasting punishment : but the righteous into life 
 eternal. — Matt. xxv. 31-46. 
 
 1. ITS APPOINTMEXT. 2. ITS OBJECTS. 3. ITS MAGNITUDE 
 AND RESULTS. 
 
 The theme of discourse suggested by this portion 
 of divine truth, is one of deep solemnity and impor- 
 tance. It calls our attention to one of the great 
 events connected with this world's history. This 
 event is yet future, but is clearly revealed in the 
 Bible, and made certain by the unalterable purpose 
 of Jehovah. 
 
 A day of retribution is a topic to which we often 
 refer in our conversation and intercourse with each 
 other ; and yet how few, if any, have a realizing 
 sense of the fearful things that hang on the decisions 
 of such an hour. The ushering in of this day will 
 be the closing up of time to earth, and the introduc- 
 tory scene to eternity. It is earth's reckoning-day. 
 The deeds of time must now be unfolded and re- 
 viewed by a scrutinizing God. His decision in rela- 
 tion to the merit or demerit of each heart will now 
 be made known, and fix the character and doom of 
 each and every individual forever. At this hour He 
 will call the universe together, and in their presence 
 give them such an exhibition of Himself, by unfold- 
 ing and defending the great principles of his govern- 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 331 
 
 ment, as will make heaven shout for joy and all 
 hell groan with unutterable anguish. To this sol- 
 emn hour we are all rapidly hastening, and yet how 
 careless in relation to its results ! Let us pause for 
 a season, and think. " Day of Judgment, Day of 
 Wonders I " Oh, what a day ! It is the day of 
 days. Sinner, sinner, think, oh, think ! You are in- 
 terested in that day, whether you believe it or not. 
 You must be there ; you cannot escape. God will 
 send his angel for you, and you must appear and 
 take your seat before your judge. But oh, you are 
 not prepared for that fearful moment ! You are a 
 condemned criminal. You have violated the law of 
 Him who will then be your judge. You have also 
 rejected his mercy, and despised all his reproof. Up 
 to this very hour, you have perseveringly refused 
 to be saved by the only system that can rescue a 
 sinner from the storm of divine wrath gathering 
 over the path you dare to tread. Stop, poor sinner ; 
 STOP AND THINK. Remember this short but infi- 
 nitely important sentence, Day of Judgment ! May 
 God your judge write it upon your inmost soul, and 
 never suffer you to lose sight of it until you repent 
 and prepare for that great event. To impress your 
 minds with the importance of this gi-eat theme, let 
 me have your undivided attention to the considera- 
 tion of the following propositions : — 
 
 I. I will show that God has appointed a day to 
 judge this world in righteousness. 
 
332 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 II. I will notice some of the objects to be accom- 
 plished by such an event. 
 
 III. I will call your attention to some things that 
 will transpire in connection with that day, which will 
 truly render it a great day. 
 
 I. First, then, I am to show that God has ap- 
 pointed A DAY TO JUDGE THE WORLD IN RIGHTEOUS- 
 NESS. 
 
 In proof of this truth, I submit the following 
 things: 1. A judgment-day is one of the necessary 
 elements of moral government. By a necessary ele- 
 ment of government, I mean there can be no moral 
 government without it. Look for a moment at what 
 such a government implies. Among other things, 
 it implies the following : 1. A moral governor. 
 2. Moral subjects to be governed. 3. Moral law 
 to govern such subjects. 4. A day set apart to call 
 criminals to an account, and to execute the penalty 
 of law upon transgressors. There can no more be 
 a moral government, that amounts to anything, with- 
 out a judgment-day, than there can be a moral gov- 
 ernment without law. One is just as essential as 
 the other. Take away your courts of justice from 
 this commonwealth, which are but judgment-days, 
 and let the people trample upon law without calling 
 them to an account, and what becomes of your gov- 
 ernment ? Every reflecting mind must see that you 
 have a government only in name, but not in reality. 
 AU your machinery for enacting and promulgating 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 333 
 
 law, under such circumstances, is a mere shatn. 
 What does law amount to, if the rebellious are 
 never called to an account ? Adopt such a course 
 of procedure, and the people are without govern- 
 ment. Now, what would be true as touching this 
 matter under a human government, would be equally 
 true under a divine. Consequently, the doctrine of 
 a day of judgment stands or falls with the doctrine 
 of a moral government. Those, therefore, who 
 would blot out this doctrine from the Bible would 
 strip the government of God of one of its necessary 
 attributes, and render it perfectly powerless to pro- 
 tect public interests. It is not surprising, however, 
 that sinners and hypocritical professors hate a day 
 of judgment, and would gladly overthrow this great 
 truth. They are violators of the divine law, and are 
 unwilling to believe they must be called to an ac- 
 count, and meet its fearful penalty. They feel, in 
 relation to God's government, as criminals feel in 
 relation to human government. There are multi- 
 tudes of criminals on earth, who would sweep from 
 the world every judicial tribunal, and hurl them all 
 to tlie winds, rather than submit to have their crimes 
 exposed, and be punished according to their deserts. 
 And the same spirit reigns in the breast of man 
 towards God's great reckoning day. This spirit 
 manifests itself in the efforts that some make to 
 reason themselves and others into the belief that the 
 judgment is past, or that the human family are now 
 
334 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 standing before all the judgment-seat there is. Poor, 
 deluded men ! How your hopes will vanish when 
 you start up from the grave, and behold Christ com- 
 ing in the clouds of heaven, and you compelled to 
 stand before that great white throne ! What a mo- 
 ment ! What a moment to the man whose delusion 
 will then be broken up in an instant by the blast of 
 the last trumpet! 
 
 2. A future judgment is evident from the fact that 
 God does not distribute rewards and punishments in 
 this life. God has seen fit, in infinite kindness, to 
 place the human family under a just and good law, 
 and to . hold them accountable for their conduct. 
 That law they have most wickedly violated. This, 
 none will pretend to call in question. Under such 
 circumstances the Ruler of the universe must call 
 rebellious man to an account in this world or in a 
 future state, or justice is sacrificed, and God's au- 
 thority is trampled upon with impunity. The ques- 
 tion therefore arises : Does God call men to an 
 account in this world, and deal with them in this 
 state of being according to the strict and stern de- 
 mands of law and justice ? If not, he most cer- 
 tainly will do it hereafter, unless they secure 
 pardon by the system of grace, and even then 
 they are not to escape the judgment. Is this state 
 of being then a state of rewards and punishments? 
 To this question I answer, unhesitatingly, no. And 
 with this simple denial I might suffer the point in 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 335 
 
 dispute to rest until those, who have the affirmative 
 of the question, present some proof to show that this 
 world is a state of retribution. But I will not leave 
 the matter in controversy here. I will call your at- 
 tention to some difficulties that should be well pon- 
 dered, before you embrace the absurd doctrine that 
 God is dealing out to men in this world their full 
 measure of justice. 
 
 First, then, I remark, that to me the Bible most 
 clearly teaches, that immediately after the fall God 
 introduced the Gospel system to save men. From 
 that hour the human race have been under a merci- 
 ful dispensation. The Gospel offers pardon, through 
 the death of Christ, to all who will repent and return 
 to obedience. It consequently lays over for this life 
 the execution of the penalty of a violated law. 
 Doubtless this is done to give the sinner .sufficient 
 time to think and make up his mind whether he 
 will comply with these most reasonable terms, and 
 be pardoned and savecl, or whether he will reject 
 this offer of grace, and throw himself back upon law 
 to take justice without mercy at the hand of his 
 Maker at a coming judgment. This suspension of 
 penalty is further designed to give God an o})por- 
 tunity to use all suitable means to induce the hu- 
 man race to repent and accept of this offer of grace. 
 To carry this, his noble purpose, into effect, he has 
 commissioned his ministers to proclaim pardon and 
 salvation through the death of his Son to all the na- 
 
336 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 tions of the earth, and this proclamation is to be 
 continued until the closing up of time. Now while 
 pardon is being offered, and the sinner is having a 
 day of grace to decide whether he will comply with 
 these terms and live, God is not at the same time 
 executing the penalty upon the criminal. This offer 
 of mercy necessarily holds back the execution of the 
 penalty until the offer is withdrawn. Therefore, 
 from the nature of the case, this world cannot be a 
 place of rewards and punishments. This is mercy's 
 world. It is the place where she has introduced her 
 most costly sacrifice to save man, and where she 
 exhausts every consistent means to reform and save 
 the human race. Then comes the judgment ; then 
 comes the day of righteous retribution. 
 
 The above constitutes one difficulty, which must 
 be removed before we can consistently believe that 
 God is dealing with men, here, according to their 
 deserts. 
 
 The second difficulty that lies in the way of our 
 belief of such a doctrine, is the following: The 
 Bible calls upon us to believe in a long-suffering 
 God. The long-suffering of the Deity is one of 
 those traits of character which stands out prominent 
 in every part of its sacred pages. Its exercise is a 
 noble exhibition of the great heart of Jehovah. 
 What would become of the human race if they 
 were deprived of such a God? In their condition 
 he is just the God they need. Now a doctrine that 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 337 
 
 takes from God this trait of character is a false 
 doctrine, or the Bible bears false testimony. A man 
 who believes in and worships a God who is not a 
 long-suffering God, is not worshipping the God of 
 the Bible. Let us look this matter fully in the face, 
 then, before we embrace a doctrine that strips the 
 Deity of this noble trait of character. Now I affirm 
 that the doctrine, which teaches that God punishes 
 men here according to their deserts, takes entirely 
 away the long-suffering of the Holy One. That 
 doctrine teaches that he smites the transgressor as 
 soon as he sins, and to the fullest desert of his 
 crimes. Now, admitting that to be true for a mo- 
 ment, I ask when and where and how in that case 
 does he exercise long-suffering towards one solitary 
 individual of the human race ? It is false and ab- 
 surd to pretend it. Consequently, the doctrine that 
 God punishes men to the full desert of their crimes 
 as they pass along through this life, and the doctrine 
 that God is long-suffering, are perfect antipodes. 
 They contradict each other, and cannot both be 
 true. Now it is for you to decide which doctrine 
 you will embrace, and whether you will love, rev- 
 erence, and worship the God of the Bible or an 
 anti-Bible God. A man whose object is truth will 
 not be long in making his selection. 
 
 The third difficulty in the way, that must be re- 
 moved before we can believe in the doctrine under 
 consideration, is the fact that it contradicts some 
 
 VOL. I. 22 
 
338 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 other plain declarations in the word of God. For 
 brevity's sake I will call your attention to two only. 
 Referring to the state of things in this world, Eccle- 
 siastes ix. 2, affirms : " All things come alike to 
 all : there is one event to the righteous, and to the 
 wicked ; to the good, and to the clean, and to the 
 unclean ; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that 
 sacrificeth not : as is the good, so is the sinner ; and 
 he that sweareth, as he that fcareth an oath." 
 
 Again, Ecclesiastes viii. 11 : " Because sentence 
 against an evil work is not executed speedily, there- 
 fore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them 
 to do evil." 
 
 These passages teach the three following things, 
 viz : — 
 
 1. All things come alike to all in this life, — that 
 is, that God is not, in this world under the merciful 
 dispensation, rewarding men according to their de- 
 serts. 
 
 2. That sentence against an evil worker, in other 
 words, the penalty of a violated law, is not speedily 
 executed, but is laid over for the time being. 
 
 3. In consequence of this delay, the wicked have 
 become bold, obstinate, and settled in their purpose 
 to do evil. They have abused this kindness and 
 mercy on the part of God, and perverted it to their 
 ruin. 
 
 These doctrines are plainly taught in the above 
 passages, and they most conclusively contradict the 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 339 
 
 whole theory, that this world is a state of retribu- 
 tion. If we embrace that theory we must disbelieve 
 this plain teaching of the word of God. 
 
 Now the question arises, which will you believe ? 
 The teachings of the Bible, or the theory that plainly 
 contradicts it ? That theory teaches that sentence 
 against an evil work is speedily executed. The 
 Bible declares it is not. Which will you adopt as 
 your faith ? Make your choice again. 
 
 Fourth. If we look at facts as they are daily spread 
 out before us in the history of this world, we find 
 another formidable objection to the theory that sin 
 is punished in this life, and that virtue is rewarded 
 this side the grave. Take one specimen from our 
 own beloved land, which we hold up to the world 
 as a land of liberty. Let us look in upon the do- 
 minions of slavery for a moment, where a man must 
 be a large slaveholder in order to be a first class 
 gentleman and rank high in society. Behold that 
 professed owner of human beings ! Mark how his 
 eyes stand out with fatness, and he has all that heart 
 can desire I Well may the Bible affirm concerning 
 such beings, "these are the ungodly, who prosper in 
 the world." They live at ease, journey at pleasure, 
 roll in the lap of luxury, riot in their wickedness, 
 and, in the language of Job, " They send forth their 
 little ones like a flock, and their children dance." 
 They hate God and everything that is good. But, 
 ah I look again. Behold that slave bending low at 
 
340 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 his couch, and cringing like a whipped spaniel at his 
 feet. He is a victim of his selfishness, tyranny, and 
 love of power. His lordly master has robbed him 
 of his liberty, his time, his right to be educated and 
 worship God according to the dictates of his own 
 conscience. He has torn from his embrace his wife 
 and children, his only remaining earthly comforts, and 
 sold them to the speculator in human flesh, and they 
 are now to be separated, no more to meet on earth. 
 Behold that downcast look, that agonizing counte- 
 nance, that beating heart and heaving breast, and 
 those streaming eyes, as he bids them a long and 
 final adieu, and turns away to weep out his life. 
 Truly he is a man of sorrows and acquainted with 
 grief. His whole life is rendered wretched by the 
 cruelty and injustice of a fellow-man. Now, is this 
 an overdrawn picture ? No one conversant with 
 facts will pretend to deny that we have thousands 
 of such cases in this land, which shouts Liberty ! 
 Liberty ! loud enough to be heard from centre to 
 circumference. The world is now and ever has been, 
 since the fall, full of such specimens. "Wickedness 
 has rioted, reigned, and triumphed here for more 
 than six thousand years. I would this were the 
 only land where such facts were to be found, but 
 alas ! this is not true ; villains have plotted to- 
 gether to grasp the reins of government in the 
 different nations of the earth, and have rode to 
 thrones and stations of power over the mangled 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 341 
 
 bodies, and amid the groans and anguish of their 
 dying fellow-men, whose lives they have wickedly 
 sacrificed to promote their own wealth, ambition, 
 and aggrandizement, and that of their families. 
 In fact such rascals have managed to crush out and 
 trample upon the rights of the great mass of human 
 beings in every age of the world, and they have used 
 their fellows as mere tools and beasts of burden to 
 promote their own ends. No man conversant with 
 history can call in question this position. 
 
 The good, the pious, the lovers of liberty and of 
 mankind, the praying ones of earth, have been be- 
 lied, abused, slandered, persecuted, imprisoned, tor- 
 tured, and put to death by the thousand, so that a 
 Paul could justly exclaim, " if in this life only we 
 have hope in Christ we are of all men most misera- 
 ble." Now in view of these facts I ask, where is an 
 avenging God if this is a state of retribution ? What 
 becomes of his justice ? No being could have con- 
 fidence in his administration for a moment, if he is 
 dealing with men here according to their deserts. 
 Now I believe the foregoing difficulties are perfectly 
 fatal to the theory that God punishes and rewards 
 men in this world. Consequently a future judgment 
 is necessary to set this matter right, and vindicate 
 his character as a just moral governor. 
 
 Thus far in this discussion I have been giving you 
 the testimony of reason upon this grave point. I 
 now call your attention to the direct testimony of 
 
342 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 the Bible in proof of a future day of judgment. 
 What saith the Scriptures upon this point ? To the 
 law and to the testimony, for if we speak not accord- 
 ing to them, it is because there is no light in us. 
 For the sake of brevity, I shall cite but a few out of 
 many passages that might be brought forward under 
 this head. 1. Then let us look at Rom. xiv. 10 : 
 " For we shall all stand before the judgment-seat 
 of Christ." But how stand before the judgment- 
 seat, if there is no judgment-day ? Here is the 
 solemn fact revealed, that there is a judgment-seat, 
 and that we must all stand at that great tribunal. 
 Notice the language. It does not read we do all 
 stand before the judgment-seat of Christ now, as 
 some would vainly have us believe. How the sin- 
 ner, who hates the doctrine of a future judgment, 
 would gladly think that he is now before all the 
 judgment-seat there is. Poor man, why so infinitely 
 foolish as to wish to deceive yourself on this grave 
 point ? 
 
 Read again, and may God write upon your in- 
 most soul, as with the pen of a diamond, these dread 
 words : " We shall all stand before the judg- 
 ment-seat OF Christ." Then remember that verse 
 12 gives you the object of this standing at the 
 judgment : So that every one of us shall give 
 account of himself to God. Here is the reckonins: 
 day for earth's conduct. Yes it will come. He 
 shall give an account of himself to God. Notice 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 343 
 
 the language, he shall give an account of himself io 
 God. Not for his neighbor, but for himself. He 
 could not control his neig-hbor^s conduct, but he 
 could control his own. Each shall give an account 
 for the influence he could have exerted for good, and 
 for the influence he did exeTt for evil, — which settles 
 the question of individual responsibility. Another 
 thing should be noticed. This account is to be 
 given to God. This reckoning is to be with your 
 Maker, the infinitely Holy One, against whom you 
 have so often sinned. 
 
 Remember he is not a being who can be deceived, 
 nor a man who can be bribed to connive at your 
 iniquity. Neither can you escape his judgment. 
 You must appear and answer to your name, and 
 receive your fearful doom. 
 
 2. Let us look at Acts xvii. 31 : " Because he hath 
 appointed a day, in the which he will judge the 
 world in righteousness by that man whom he hath 
 ordained." This passage teaches that a special day 
 has been set apart, by the particular appointment of 
 God, to try criminals who have sinned against their 
 Maker in this earthly state ; and this day is repre- 
 sented as being in the future, — which harmonizes 
 with other portions of truth which we have exam- 
 ined. Particular attention should be given to the 
 expression " In the which he will judge the 
 WORLD." On this eventful day the world are to 
 be assembled for trial. Such an assembling of the 
 
344 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 world never has taken place, and never can until the 
 last individual of the human family has commenced 
 his existence. Then the world can be assembled 
 for trial, and not before. How foolish therefore to 
 hope that such an event is past, when the very 
 phraseology of the passage under consideration 
 settles the question, that from the nature of the case 
 it must be future. 
 
 Another thought in the text should be observed : 
 " He is to judge the world in righteous?iess." Yes, 
 says the sinner, I am thankful I am to be judged 
 by a righteous being. You and all other beings 
 ought to rejoice in a fact so vastly important. But 
 you should remember, moreover, that that is a fearful 
 ti'uth for you. Pause for a moment and think, — you 
 have done what ? You have deliberately and volun- 
 tarily violated a law that is infinitely wise and good, 
 the penalty of which is now suspended over your 
 guilty head. God has opened a way by which you 
 can be safely and honorably pardoned, if you will 
 comply with the reasonable terms of the Gospel. 
 He has given you time to repent, and besought you 
 with all the compassion of a God, that you would 
 cease your rebellion against his good government, 
 and fly to Christ and live. Now, how have you 
 treated this kindness on the part of your Maker ? 
 You have deliberately rejected every overture of 
 mercy, and perseveringly refused to be saved by 
 grace. In this condition you are hastening to the 
 
THE JUDGiMENT-DAY. 345 
 
 judgment to be judged in righteousness. But re- 
 ujeniber, a righteous judgment will hurl your guilty 
 isoid into a deep and damning HELL, "-where their 
 worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." One 
 thought more and I will dismiss this passage. 
 
 He is to judge the world " by that man whom he 
 hath ordained,^'' And who is that man ? It is Christ, 
 your compassionate Redeemer. It is the same being 
 who spent his w^liole life in doing good to this un- 
 grateful world. It is that Christ who was wick- 
 edly arraigned at the bar of man, charged with 
 being an impostor, when he had given the world un- 
 answerable evidence that he was sent from God for 
 their special good. He was tried by man, con- 
 demned on false testimony, or rather without testi- 
 mony, and publicly executed as a malefactor. That 
 is the being who is to be your judge. It is not sur- 
 prising, therefore, that when he makes his appear- 
 ance, the Bible represents the wicked as crying to 
 the rocks and mountains to fall upon them, to hide 
 them from the face of this righteous being whom 
 they have so wickedly abused. How can they look 
 such a being in the face ? The thought that will 
 then rush into their minds, that they must now come 
 to his bar, while their destiny for a long eternity is 
 in his hands, would naturally fill them with the 
 greatest possible consternation. The being for 
 whose blood they had most unrighteously clamored, 
 and concerning whom they had cried out. Away 
 
346 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 with this fellow from the earth, " crucify him, cru- 
 cify HIM," is now to ascend the Throne. With 
 what trembling fear the sinner will approach the tri- 
 bunal of such a judge ! But is he not merciful ? 
 asks the sinner. He is, but that mercy you have 
 rejected, and refused to be saved by its terms. You 
 have thrown yourself back upon law, and he now 
 comes to deal with you according to law. His right- 
 eous decision will blot out your last hope, and con- 
 sign you over to the great prison-house of the 
 universe, for safe keeping during a long eternity. 
 One passage more, with but little comment, and 
 then I wiU hasten to another branch of this sub- 
 ject. Let us look at 2 Cor. v. 10 : " For we 
 must all appear before the judgment-seat of 
 Christ ; that every one may receive the things done 
 in his body, according to that he hath done, whether 
 it be good or bad." We must appear before this 
 high court of heaven. By earthly courts we fre- 
 quently have a process served upon us, commanding 
 us to appear at such a time and place, to answer to 
 such and such charges that have been preferred 
 against us by our fellows. Sinner, God, the mighty 
 God will soon send his officers to serve a process 
 upon you to appear at the supreme court of the uni- 
 verse, to meet the charge of rebellion against Jeho- 
 vah's laws, and rejecting the Gospel of his Son. 
 That command you must obey. That will be a 
 searching investigation, but we must all meet it. 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 347 
 
 Please observe that this passage affirms again that, 
 at that hour, you are to be dealt with and rewarded 
 for the things done in the body ; which confirms the 
 position previously taken, that you are not receiving 
 your reward for the things done in the body, while in 
 the body. You will notice that this text does not 
 read that we have all appeared before the judgment- 
 seat of Christ, nor that we are appearing there now^ 
 and are receiving now; but that we shall appear, 
 and shall receive, &c. O, sinner I you are not there 
 to-day, but you must meet this passage at another 
 day, and witness its fulfilment. Improve the present 
 moment to prepare to meet that solemn hour. With 
 these proofs, I now submit this part of the subject, 
 and hasten to the examination of the second propo- 
 sition in this discourse. 
 
 II. I AM TO NOTICE SOME OP THE OBJECTS TO BE 
 ACCOMPLISHED BY SUCH AN EVENT. 
 
 1. It is to defend God's authority, and cause it to 
 be respected. To command, is one thing ; to make 
 the subjects of government feel that, when a com- 
 mand is given, it must be obeyed, is altogether 
 another. To produce that state of feeling in the 
 hearts of the subjects of a moral government is of 
 infinite moment. The main strength of a govern- 
 ment to prevent crime lies in that one thing. What- 
 ever produces that state of feeling secures a real 
 good to the universe ; whatever diminishes it endan- 
 gers its happiness and its highest welfare. The 
 
348 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 goodness of God will therefore lead him to guard 
 that point most sacredly, and his wisdom will select 
 the best means to accomplish it. While God has 
 been exhibiting his mercy to the world in the intro- 
 duction of the Gospel system, and staying his wrath 
 to give sinners an opportunity to repent and live, the 
 world have been drawing false inferences from this 
 step on the part of God. They have abused, most 
 wickedly abused, this grand display of divine benev- 
 olence. Sinners have drawn this conclusion from 
 God's conduct : that sin, after all, is not so great an 
 evil ; that it is a mere trifle, if an evil at all ; to 
 trample upon God's authority is a small affair. In 
 consequence of God's not executing upon them at 
 once the just sentence for their crimes, their hearts 
 have become fully set to do evil. Respect for Jeho- 
 vah's authority is dying out under this merciful 
 dispensation. God saw it would be thus, and pro- 
 claimed it in his Word. But still, the ultimate good 
 of the universe demanded that this exhibition of 
 God's character should be given, even if sinners did 
 abuse it to their own destruction. But that feeling 
 must be checked. Its spread through 'the universe 
 would work infinite mischief. The question now 
 arises, How can it be done? I answer, the judg- 
 ment-day will do it. God will call the universe 
 together. He will try, condemn, and execute the 
 penalty of his law upon those who have trifled with 
 his authority, and rejected the mercy of his Son. 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAV. 349 
 
 Thus he will show that he hates sin, respects his 
 authority, and that he is able, willing, and deter- 
 mined to defend it. 
 
 Oh, guilty sinner, think! God, being a holy God, 
 must respect his authority. He knows its value to 
 the great commonwealth over which he presides. 
 You are a deluded man if you imagine he looks 
 on with indifference while you trample it under your 
 feet. Your doom at the judgment, which will then 
 fall from his stern lips, will break up that delusion 
 most effectually, and convince yon, and not only you, 
 but a gazing universe, that his authority must be 
 respected. 
 
 2. Another object of the judgment, will be to 
 defend the great principles of his government. 
 
 The Declaration of Independence, and the Con- 
 stitution of the United States, we Americans say, 
 contain great and noble principles which ought to 
 be defended. Our fathers pledged their, fortunes, 
 their lives, and their sacred honors in their defence, 
 and we honor them for it. Now, I affirm that there 
 are still greater and more noble principles in the 
 divine government that need defending. These 
 principles are of immense worth to his great em- 
 pire. They are embodied in the constitution he has 
 instituted to govern all worlds under his control. 
 They lie at the foundation of all good government. 
 They define most clearly, and guard most sacredly 
 the rights of all beings, from the highest to the lowest, 
 
350 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 throughout his jurisdiction. These principles, if re- 
 spected by all, and their lives conformed to their holy 
 dictates, would secure to his great kingdom the 
 highest possible degree of perfection, bliss, and pros- 
 perity. Such principles must be infinitely dear to 
 God. He could be neither wise nor good, if this 
 were not the fact. Can he look on and see such 
 principles disrespected and trampled upon, and never 
 come forward for their defence ? He would be un- 
 worthy the high station he occupies, if that could be 
 true. Angels and men would lose all respect for 
 him when that fact was known, and it would be 
 unavoidable. But happy is it for the universe that 
 such is not the fact. At the judgment, God will 
 show most convincingly to all worlds and all beings, 
 that these great principles of his government are 
 infinitely dear to his heart, that the least disrespect 
 for, or violation of them is not to pass unnoticed, 
 that he will sooner sacrifice a universe than see 
 them trampled upon with impunity, that he holds 
 in his possession the means for their defence, and 
 he will use that means in earnest. 
 
 3. Still another object of the judgment will be to 
 explain his providential dealings with men. 
 
 There are many things about the divine provi- 
 dences that are mysterious in this world. That is 
 to be expected. We are short-sighted creatures. 
 We see not as our Creator seeth. He sees the end 
 from the beginning. His government is over a vast 
 
THE JUDGJIENT-DAY. H'll 
 
 universe. He sees the bearing of every step, over 
 all minds, both in time and down through the dis- 
 tant ages of eternity, and arranges things accordingly. 
 Many of his steps, from the very nature of the ease, 
 will look mysterious to us in this world. 
 
 He does not see fit to stop here to explain the 
 whys and wherefores of all his great movements. 
 If he should, it could not be done half so effectually 
 here as it can be at the judgment. An event he per- 
 mits to-day, which looks to us mysterious, may pro- 
 duce an important effect in his empire an hundred 
 or a thousand years hence. That effect he can 
 make us see much clearer after it has taken place 
 than he could now if he should attempt it. He can 
 and will explain all at a future day, so that every 
 being will see that every step he has taken with any 
 of his creatures has been just right, and just such as 
 should have been taken under the circumstances, so 
 that then every mouth will be stopped, every cavil- 
 ling tongue perfectly silenced, and every objector to 
 his providential dealings utterly confounded and put 
 to shame and everlasting confusion. At the judg- 
 ment he will show the bearing of every step of his 
 providences upon the happiness of the universal 
 kingdom over which he presides, that those steps 
 have been dictated by infinite wisdom and goodness, 
 that the moral system he has chosen is the best on 
 the whole that could be selected, that he has done 
 everything consistent to be done to secure its highest 
 
.V)2 TTIH .IUDGMi:XT-DAY. 
 
 perfection and happiness, that the things which have 
 been done, have been done at the right time and in 
 the best manner. He will then show, doubtless, that, 
 if he had taken any other steps to save the world, or 
 to keep sin out of the universe, it would have been 
 inconsistent with the perfections of his nature, and 
 that some evil would have broken out in some por- 
 tion of his immense kingdom as the consequence, 
 which would have greatly overbalanced the good that 
 would have resulted from such steps. Consequently, 
 he will make it appear to all that he has selected, as 
 the great end for which he lives and reigns, the high- 
 est possible good that could, on the whole, be secured, 
 and that he has used the best and most effectual 
 means to secure that end. He will show, moreover, 
 that the sinner had no excuse for sinning, that he 
 has exhausted all consistent means to save him, all 
 of which has been refused, that now justice and the 
 ultimate good of the universe demand that he 
 should be shut up eternally in the great prison- 
 house of God's kingdom, to prevent his doing fur- 
 ther harm by his ungodly influence in running at 
 large. 
 
 The Bible plainly intimates that God will make 
 this point so clear, that every good being will most 
 heartily acquiesce in the execution of the law upon 
 the finally impenitent. They will rejoice, not in the 
 misery in itself considered, but in the fact that the 
 rights of the universe have been secured by the 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 353 
 
 execution of the penalty of a just law; and it will 
 be seen that they could not have been secured with- 
 out it. Thus God, by the exhibition he will give at 
 the judgment, will carry the conscience of the entire 
 universe with him. His whole character will then 
 be made to appear as it never has before. His wis- 
 dom, power, goodness, mercy, long-suffering, tender- 
 ness, truthfulness, faithfulness, and justice, will then 
 stand out as visible as the heavens, and that vast 
 assembly will be awe-struck and overwhelmed with 
 the outgnshing of holiness that will then and there 
 beam forth from every footstep of his providence. 
 He will challenge even a devil to put his finger on 
 the most minute step with any being in any world, 
 that has not been just as it should be. Oh I how he 
 will cover his enemies with eternal shame at that 
 hour, and how all his holy creatures will give one 
 long, unanimous, and spontaneous shout of " Glory 
 TO God in the highest," as they gaze upon his 
 infinite purity, as it will then shine forth ! As he 
 thunders forth from his throne that just sentence of 
 the law, upon the guilty heads of those who have 
 refused to be redeemed, " Depart, ye cursed, into 
 EVERLASTING FIRE," how they will drop upon their 
 faces and cry, " Amen, just and true are thy ways, 
 THOU King of Saints I " 
 
 4. Another object of the judgment will be to de- 
 fend the rights of those who have been trampled 
 upon in this life. The rights of all the subjects 
 
354 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 of a government are committed into the hands of 
 the governing power for protection. It is the duty 
 of those in authority to see that this work is most 
 sacredly performed. They cannot neglect this duty 
 without forfeiting the right to govern. Each subject 
 of the government has a just claim on it for protec- 
 tion. They have a right to look for it, and expect 
 it, nor has the government a right to withhold it. 
 The government that will look on with indifference, 
 and see the rights of any of its subjects trampled 
 on, high or low, rich or poor, learned or unlearned, 
 and not come forward for their defence, is not 
 worthy the name of a government. In fact it is 
 not a government. The end of government is lost 
 sight of entirely. In such a case it becomes most 
 unrighteous tyranny. The right to govern does not 
 include the right to oppress or take away rights. 
 Its appropriate business is to protect rights and not 
 take them away. No righteous government, there- 
 fore, is oppressive. It is tyranny that oppresses, and 
 not rightful government. Oppression is the abuse 
 of government. It is the perverting the great ends 
 of government, and making it an insti'ument of im- 
 men.se mischief and misery, when it should be an 
 instrument of good, and only good. It is absurd to 
 say that God has authorized man, in an associated 
 or individual capacity, to do wrong. If those who 
 hold the reins of government are so ignorant of the 
 object of government, that they have not yet learned 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 355 
 
 that'to protect the rights of all their subjects is their 
 appropriate duty, and a duty they have not the right 
 to neglect, they are most certainly too ignorant to 
 govern. If they do know their duty in this particu- 
 lar, and have not principle enough about them to do 
 it, they are too corrupt to govern, and the reins of 
 government should be taken from such hands forth- 
 with, and committed to hands that will do their 
 duty. To keep such villains in power is to defeat 
 the great ends of government, and put in jeopardy 
 the highest interests of the nation. To vote men 
 into olTiee who will lose sight of this great end of 
 government, is absolute wickedness. This is the 
 great curse of this nation at the present time. We 
 have committed the reins of government into the 
 hands of men who have no respect for the rights of 
 their fellows. This course persisted in a little longer, 
 and the nation is ruined. God thunders out of 
 heaven, and says : " thou shalt provide out of all the 
 people able men, such as ' fear God, men of truth, 
 hating covetousness, and place such over them to 
 be rulers" — Exod. xviii. 21. The church and min- 
 ister, instead of obeying God in this solemn com- 
 mand, vote for profane swearers, drunkards and 
 slaveholders, who enact laws which rob millions in 
 this land of their rights, instead of protecting them. 
 There is to be a reckoning-day for this fearful 
 wickedness, and I thank God for it. 
 
 The great lawgiver of the universe does not look 
 
356 THE JUDGMENT -DAY. 
 
 on with indifference and see one class in a com- 
 munity trample on the rights of another, and not 
 come to their defence. They are the subjects of his 
 government, and he knows his duty too well, as a 
 public ruler, not to listen to the cry of his abused 
 subjects. To his oppressed ones, he proclaims from 
 on high, " Vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the 
 Lord." Mark that pledge on the part of God, and 
 tremble, ye abusers of mankind. His throne is com- 
 mitted, and he knows how to do his duty, and he will 
 do it. Thank heaven there is a tribunal to which the 
 oppressed of this land and world can appeal, to have 
 their wrongs redressed, and be heard. The day of 
 retribution is at hand. God will bring the oppressor 
 before the great tribunal of the universe, and deal 
 out to him the reward for robbing his fellow-man of 
 his rights. The abused party will then have a pa- 
 tient hearing. The testimony, even of the colored 
 man, cannot then be thrown out of court. It will 
 be heard and weighed. There will be no suppression 
 of testimony, nor covering up of facts, permitted in 
 that high court. The slave's scarred back, and his 
 debased mind, debased and kept in ignorance by slave 
 laws, will then appear as a swift witness against the 
 master ; and for every tear he has wTung out of his 
 slave by abuse, and for every hour he has compelled 
 him to serve without wages, and for all the evils he 
 has inflicted on his moral and intellectual nature, 
 God will then and there deal out his just reward. 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 357 
 
 What a moment to the proud, haughty master, that 
 will be, when he will be compelled to see, perhaps, 
 the victim he has despised as a " nigger," exulted 
 high in heaven, while he, by a righteous and indig- 
 nant universe, will be hissed down to hell ! Oh ! you 
 wrongdoers of earth, who refuse to repent and let the 
 oppressed go free, you who fill high places in the gov- 
 ernment, and shut up your ears to the cry of the poor 
 and abused of this earth, the hour is coming when you 
 shall want help, and cry for it, but shall not find it. 
 " Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he 
 also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard." — Pro v. 
 xxi. 13. Your day of triumph, prosperity, and mis- 
 rule will be short ; your day of reckoning is at hand, 
 and your doom will be fearful. God is the avenger 
 of all the abused parties of earth, and that vengeance 
 you must meet, if you persist in your wrongdoing. 
 May God open your eyes and lead you to repent- 
 ance, before that fearful reckoning-day overtakes 
 you! 
 
 5. Another object of the judgment will be to ex- 
 hibit God's love of holiness, and his hatred of, and 
 opposition to sin. 
 
 What is holiness ? It is the voluntary conforming 
 of the heart and life to God's law. What is sin ? 
 It is the transgression of that law. No finite mind 
 can estimate the value of holiness to the universe. 
 Holiness is the means, and the only means, by which 
 the happiness of a moral agent can be secuied. It 
 
358 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 is worth to the universe, therefore, all the endless 
 bliss of every intelligent creature God has ever 
 formed. Universal holiness would secure the bliss, 
 the endless bliss of all. What finite mind can es- 
 timate the value of the happiness of even one being 
 for a never-ending eternity. Think of it, — endless 
 BLISS I You cannot take in the thought, as it in- 
 cludes the thought of eternity, which no finite mind 
 can comprehend. It takes God's mind to estimate 
 the value of the happiness of even one being. How 
 infinitely valuable, therefore, must be the happiness 
 of a universe of beings ! As holiness is the means, 
 and the only means which can secure this bliss, it 
 must be infinitely valuable. 
 
 Bat sin is the exact opposite of holiness, and 
 would produce just the opposite effect. Sin has 
 destroyed the happiness of every being who has 
 committed it. It is the cause of all the misery and 
 death of our world. Let it become universal, and 
 it would work infinite mischief in God's immense 
 kingdom. Universal sin would produce universal 
 misery, and endless sin, endless misery. What be- 
 ing can be happy and sin? It is impossible. A 
 moral agent was not created for sin, but for holiness ; 
 consequently he violates the laws of his being when 
 he sms, and misery is the necessary result. We 
 should keep in view, that the universe over which 
 God presides, is a universe of moral agents, conse- 
 quently they are all capable of sinning. Angels 
 
THE JUDGMEN'T-DAY. 359 
 
 have sinned, man has sinned. The tendency of 
 sin is to spread. One sinner can do immense mis- 
 chief. The devil led astray the whole human family. 
 Let this great enemy of the happiness of beinafs 
 overrun the universe, and its happiness is gone for- 
 ever. As, therefore, holiness would secure universal 
 bliss, and sin destroy it, God must, from his very 
 nature, be infinitely in favor of the one, and infinitely 
 opposed to the other. 
 
 That opposition to sin and love to holiness we 
 should naturally believe he would exhibit in his 
 government, if he is an honest being. God being 
 infinitely holy, he must, from the nature of the case, 
 be infinitely honest, frank, and open-hearted. His 
 government, therefore, is but an exhibition, or laying 
 open his great heart to the universe. 
 
 If God loves holiness with an everlasting love, we 
 should expect that he would require of all the sub- 
 jects of his government that they be perfectly holy, 
 at all times and under all circumstances, in thought, 
 word, and deed. This natural expectation we find 
 fully met in his government. If he hates sin with 
 an eternal hatred, as he must if he is a good God, 
 then we should expect, moreover, that in his govern- 
 ment he would forbid all sin in his subjects, at all 
 times and under all circumstances. This expecta- 
 tion, also, we find fully met in his government. 
 
 Again, if he thus loves holiness and hates sin, we 
 should expect him to do all he can, as a public law- 
 
360 THE JUDGMKNT-DAY. 
 
 giver, to encourage and promote the one and pre- 
 vent the other. His goodness will necessarily lead 
 him to do this. The question therefore arises, What 
 can God do? If the definition we have given of 
 holiness and sin be correct, we see that he cannot 
 force men to be holy, nor force them not to sin. 
 Men are moral agents, and their sin and holiness 
 lies in their voluntary actions. The moment you 
 apply force, you take away their free agency, and 
 then they are neither capable of sin nor holiness. 
 What God does, therefore, to secure the holiness of 
 moral beings, (and there are no others capable of 
 holiness or sin,) he must do by moral means, or by 
 the power of motive, influence, argument, and per- 
 suasion. This being the fact, his goodness would 
 prompt him to embody in his government the strong- 
 est possible degree of motive to influence the one 
 and to hold in check the other. Experience teaches 
 us that moral agents are capable of being very 
 strongly influenced by their hopes and fears, or love 
 of happiness and dread of misery. God's govern- 
 ment, to be a perfect one, must make the strongest 
 possible appeal to these tu^o great moving principles 
 in moral beings. Now if he has not done this, he 
 has not done all that could be done by the power of 
 motive to promote holiness and prevent sin. Wiiat is 
 the highest and strongest degree of motive that can 
 be presented to these two great moving principles 
 embodied in the constitution of all moral agents ? I 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 361 
 
 answer, a heaven of eternal bliss and joy on the one 
 hand, as a reward of holiness, and a hell of eternal 
 pain and anguish on the other hand, as a reward or 
 penalty for sin. Now turn your attention to my 
 text, and you have this view of the subject fully con- 
 firmed. " Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit 
 the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation 
 of the world," says God to the righteous. " Depart 
 from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for 
 the devil and his angels ; " " and these shall go away 
 into everlasting punishment : but the righteous into 
 life eternal." Here is the government and its mo- 
 tives, and here are its rewards. But in the face 
 of these greai moving considerations, men have 
 sinned and refused to be saved by the blood of 
 Christ. They have doubted God's word, and they 
 will not believe he ever intends to put in force 
 these plain declarations. It remains, therefore, for 
 him to show by his action that he means what he 
 says — that not one jot or one tittle of his word 
 shall fail until all be fulfilled. At the judgment, in 
 presence of an assembled universe, he will come 
 forth to this stern work of justice. To the saints, at 
 that hour, he will open wide the gates of bliss, and 
 welcome them to seats in that heavenly world where 
 their joys shall never end ; but the wicked he will 
 cast down to hell, — and thus by his action he will 
 place a distinction between sin and holiness that 
 shall be as wide as heaven and as deep as hell. The 
 
362 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 eternal songs of the righteous, as they rise high in 
 glory, shall proclaim to the universe his everlasting 
 love of holiness ; while the wailings of the lost, and 
 the smoke of their torment, ascending up unceas- 
 ingly in the presence of all worlds, shall be a nlonu- 
 ment of his eternal displeasure of sin. 
 
 DIVISION NO. II. 
 
 I have already endeavored to establish the first 
 proposition under our text, namely, that " God has 
 appointed a day to judge the world in righteous- 
 ness." Under the second head, I have noticed 
 " some of the objects to be accomplisked by such an 
 event." And now — 
 
 III. I AM TO CALL YOUR ATTENTION TO SOME 
 THINGS THAT WILL TRANSPIRE IX CONNECTION WITH 
 THAT DAY, WHICH WILL TRULY RENDER IT A GREAT 
 EVENT. 
 
 1. The human family will cease to multiply. The 
 last child ever to spring from the loins of old father 
 Adam will have been born and commenced his eter- 
 nal existence. The number of the human race will 
 now be completed ; the number of the elect will 
 have been gathered into his church, and God will 
 close up the system of propagation forever. The 
 cry of the infant shall no more be heard in all the 
 earth. The care, anxiety, and training of little ones 
 will have passed away, and all mothers must now 
 
THE JUDGMEXT-DAY. 303 
 
 hasten to the judgment, and there learn the good or 
 evil effects of their influence over their offspring, and 
 render up their account to Him who will reward 
 them for that influence according to its real deserts. 
 
 2. The probation of the earth under mercy's reign 
 will now be closed up. This earth has had two pro- 
 bations : one under law, and the other under grace. 
 The probation under law was very brief. Immedi- 
 ately after the creation of our first parents, God 
 placed them under law, and offered them life on 
 the condition of perfect and constant obedience. 
 They soon forfeited their right to life by transgres- 
 sion. God wound up that probation under law by 
 calling them to an account for their conduct, found 
 them guilty, but laid over the execution of the pen- 
 alty for the time being, for the purpose of introduc- 
 ing the merciful dispensation of his government. 
 This earth was to be the theatre where God was to 
 unfold one trait of his character, which had not been 
 fully developed to the mind of his creatures up to 
 this hour. Mercy's dispensation commenced imme- 
 diately after the fall, and is to continue down to the 
 judgment. God at once began to unfold this great 
 system of grace, and to prepare the way to introduce 
 his Son into the world, to die to redeem a race of 
 lost beings. He caused salvation to be published to 
 the world through this coming Redeemer, and par- 
 don to be offered in his name to all who would 
 repent and return to obedience. He brought the 
 
3G4 TIIK JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 earth under a curse, and introduced a class of re- 
 formatory providences, which are to be continued 
 down to the judgment, for the purpose of bringing 
 the human race to repentance. He commenced con- 
 verting and commissioning men to publish this sal- 
 vation through the death of his Son, thus using 
 reformed criminals to cooperate with him in spread- 
 ing this great scheme of redemption. In the fulness 
 of time, his Son made his appearance on earth, and 
 instructed the human family more fully in relation 
 to this noble system of reform. He gave up his life 
 as an atoning sacrifice for man, and was laid in the 
 grave. On the third day he arose, appeared to his dis- 
 ciples, commissioned them to publish this salvation 
 to an entire world, and ascended into the heavens, 
 where he is to make intercession for the transgressors 
 until mercy has done her utmost to reform the hu- 
 man family. This is the world of reform. In this 
 world, where Christ died, where the Gospel is 
 preached, and where the Spirit is poured out, mercy 
 is to do all she ever will do to reform man. When 
 Christ makes his appearance as a judge, he winds 
 up this great effort of reform, and closes up earth's 
 probation of grace forever. " Then shall they call, 
 but I will not answer." 
 
 Oh, what a moment to the world, when God shall 
 forever close up the reign of gi'ace ! Sinner, you 
 are not in a world of despair to-day ; you are in 
 Mercy's world. How you ought to drop on your 
 
THE JUDGMKNT-DAY. 36o 
 
 knees and thank and praise God that you are out 
 of hell! 
 
 3. Another thing that will render this event a 
 great one is the fact that the mediatorial throne at 
 that hour is to be given up. 1 Cor. xv. 24 : " Then 
 Cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the 
 kingdom to God, even the Father." The end re- 
 ferred to in this text evidently has reference to the 
 end of the reign of grace. The throne to be vacated 
 and given up at that hour is none other than the 
 mediatorial throne. That is the throne that Christ 
 occupies now, which he will then vacate. This me- 
 diatorial reign of Christ is a temporary reign, and is 
 not to last forever ; it lasts only while the merciful 
 or reformatory dispensation continues. When that 
 closes up, Christ will give up his mediatorial king- 
 dom forever. The vacation of an earthly throne 
 will, under certain circumstances, excite a whole na- 
 tion most intensely. Let the Queen of England pub- 
 lish to that nation that she will vacate her throne in 
 six months, who doubts that that whole nation would 
 be agitated to the very ends of its fingers. But what 
 is the vacation of a mere earthly throne compared 
 with the vacation of the mediatorial throne of the 
 Son of God over this lost world ? That step might 
 and would affect a small portion of the human fam- 
 ily temporally; but the step we are contemplating 
 will affect the whole human family eternally. Nay, 
 more ; its effects, I doubt not, will be felt by angels 
 
3GG THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 as well as men ; for they will not look on with indif- 
 ference, and witness this great transaction. This 
 one step, therefore, will truly render this day a great 
 day. 
 
 4. The Gospel will then cease to be preached to 
 the human race, and the ministers of Christ will all 
 be called from the walls of Zion to lay down their 
 commissions at Christ's feet. 
 
 One of the great instrumentalities God has seen 
 fit to use in reforming the world, is the preaching of 
 the Gospel by human lips. God understands full 
 well the laws of the human mind, and the power 
 one human being has over another, to move him to 
 action by argument and entreaty. This power is 
 acknowledged by all the political gatherings and 
 speeches made throughout the world. Why these 
 political gatherings all over our land at the time of 
 our elections, and why this putting forward certain 
 prominent men to make speeches to the rest ? It is 
 because the human family know, and thus acknowl- 
 edge, that human beings have great power over each 
 other, through the medium of speech, to move and 
 mould them according to their wishes. God under- 
 stands this power, and has called it into requisition 
 in the great economy of grace. In every age of the 
 world he has been raising up and qualifying men for 
 this holy work. He has commanded them to go 
 forth and expound and enforce the great principles 
 of his government ; to show the world their sins in 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 367 
 
 the light of those principles, and offer salvation, 
 through the death of his dear Son, to all who will 
 repent and obey the Gospel. What a work, to 
 offer salvation to fallen, sinful man, in God's name 
 and by God's authority I In this world, under this 
 proclamation of the Gospel, men decide their destiny 
 for eternity, and God intends they shall. Sinner, 
 think ! You fix your own state in heaven or hell, 
 by the decision you make while under the Gospel. 
 That minister preaches, and you decide under his ser- 
 mon not to obey now. You hear again and come 
 to the same conclusion, go through life thus, drop 
 into eternity, and God then saves or damns you in 
 harmony with your own decision. What a respon- 
 sible seat you occupy when under the sound of the 
 Gospel ! But will God continue the proclamation 
 of this Gospel to this world forever? The good 
 Book answers that question and puts it beyond all 
 controversy, to those who are willing to be guided 
 by its testimony. When the judgment shall sit, 
 every minister will be called from the Avails of Zion 
 to lay down his commission at Christ's feet, and 
 give up an account to God for his stewardship. 
 How solemn the moment, when the last note of 
 mercy ever to fall upon the ear of man has been 
 sounded, and the Gospel- trumpet has been laid 
 aside forever! This transaction, in connection with 
 others, will truly reiuler this a f^rcat day. 
 
 5. The resurrection of the body is also to take 
 
368 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 place at this hour. Rev. xx. 13 : " And the sea gave 
 up the dead which were in it ; and death and hell 
 delivered up the dead which were in them : and 
 they were judged every man according to their 
 works." In this passage the resurrection of the 
 body is connected with this great event. The sea 
 is represented as giving up the bodies of those who 
 have perished in its mighty waters ; and death, or the 
 grave, gives up the bodies of those who have been 
 entombed upon the land; and hell, or the unseen 
 world or world of spirits, delivers up the souls of the 
 human family, — when the soul and body, thus re- 
 united, comes to the judgment to receive its final 
 reward. 
 
 The doctrine of the resurrection of the body is 
 strictly a Bible doctrine. The question propounded 
 by Job, " If a man die shall he live again ? " cannot 
 be answered by all the philosophers on earth. 
 
 The God who has power to lay the body in the 
 grave, has power to hold it there eternally. If it is 
 raised, it is raised by his power alone. Whether he 
 will ever see fit to exert that power, can be made 
 known only by a direct revelation. That revelation, 
 blessed be God, we have in his word. I say blessed 
 be God for the simple reason, that to me and to 
 Christians generally, the doctrine of the resurrection 
 is a glorious doctrine. Mankind generally love their 
 bodies, and those of their friends. To see this noble 
 piece of God's workmanship decay and die, and 
 
THE JUDGMKNT-DAY. 369 
 
 return to earth, is a melancholy picture indeed. 
 This is evident from the care and anxiety of the 
 human family to preserve the life of the body, and 
 from the lamentations they make over it when they 
 lay it in the grave. But how that lamentation 
 would be intensified a thousand-fold, if the conviction 
 was forced home upon us, as we stand over the 
 grave's mouth to deposit the remains of those we 
 love, and as we lay them away in the bowels of the 
 earth, that they were to sleep there forever ! Who 
 could retire from such a scene of death without the 
 gloom of despair gathering over his spirit, to oppress 
 him beyond all description ? The grave would be 
 shrouded in eternal midnight. It would be a dark 
 night, with no morn beyond it. The sun of life 
 would set never to rise again. How thankful we 
 ought to be, that God has not left us thus without 
 hope. In the Gospel of his son, Christ is presented 
 as the resun-ection and the life. The resurrection 
 of the body had a prominent place in the preaching 
 of the apostles and primitive Christians. They 
 dwelt upon it with enthusiastic delight. The hope 
 of the resurrection was to them a glorious hope, 
 when connected with the salvation of their souls. 
 But at this day, how we forget or undervalue it ! 
 What a day that must be when God, by the voice 
 of his angel, in a moment of time, shall call into life 
 again the millions who now sleep in the dust of 
 earth, — when the sea and the dry land shall deliver 
 
370 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 up the bodies of men which they have long held 
 under their dominion, and all the sons of time find 
 themselves congregated in one vast assembly, and 
 march up to that great white throne to meet their 
 final account I Such a transaction, in connection 
 with this event, will truly, render it a momentous 
 one. 
 
 6. Another transaction connected with this event, 
 which will truly render it a great day, is the destruc- 
 tion of this earth by fire. 
 
 The great fire in the city of New York, several 
 years since, was so important, that it was a subject 
 of conversation in almost every part of this, and 
 even in other countries. The burning of the city 
 of Rome was another event of such magnitude as 
 to be recorded in history, and has been preserved 
 and handed down from generation to generation to 
 the present hour. But what would be the burning of 
 a thousand such cities, when compared with the de- 
 struction of this whole earth by fire ? Think of that 
 fearful moment when every city, village, and hamlet 
 on earth shall be in a blaze! — when the old ocean 
 itself shall burn like so much oil, and send up one 
 vast sheet of fire that will astonish the universe ! — 
 when every continent and island shall be wrapped 
 in flames! — when the solid mountains will melt like 
 so much wax, and the atmosphere which surrounds 
 this earth, shall burn like so much gas ! Think of 
 it for a moment. The whole world on fire ! Not a 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 371 
 
 city laid in ruins, but a WORLD wrapped in 
 flames ! How God can do up things on a large 
 scale ! What a spectacle to angels and men, as 
 they look on and see all the wealth of earth swept 
 away in one general conflagration ! — the labor and 
 toil of ages consumed with one breath from the 
 AJraighty ! How the alarm of fire, ushering in this 
 great scene, will be sounded through the universe ! 
 Look, says an angel, the EARTH on fire! LOOK! 
 LOOK QUICK ! ! Sure enough, says another ; and 
 with the velocity of light he flies, and cries out as he 
 flies, FIRE! FIRE! FIRE! The EARTH on 
 FIRE ! FIRE ! The different worlds catch the 
 alarm, and send forth one general shout of " FIRE ! " 
 that shall be heard in the most distant corner of 
 God's dominions. The inhabitants of aU worlds 
 wiU come forth, doubtless, to witness this grand dis- 
 play of God's displeasure at the sins and corruptions 
 of earth. How the universe will be amazed and 
 awe-stricken by this fearful event. Truly, this sub- 
 lime scene*wiU render this day a great day ! But, 
 says one, where is the evidence of such a scene ? 
 Turn to 2 Peter iii. 6-12, and you have God's word 
 for it : 
 
 " Whereby the world that then was, being over- 
 flowed with water, perished : but the heavens and the 
 earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in 
 store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment 
 and perdition of ungodly men. But, beloved, be not 
 
372 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the 
 Lord as a thousand years, and. a thousand years 
 as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his 
 promise, as some men count slackness ; but is long- 
 suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should 
 perish, but that all should come to repentance. But 
 the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the 
 night ; in the which the heavens shall pass away 
 with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with 
 fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are 
 therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all 
 these things shall be dissolved, what manner of per- 
 sons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and 
 godliness, looking for and hasting unto the com- 
 ing of the day of God, wherein the heavens being 
 on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt 
 with fervent heat ? " 
 
 7. The manner of Christ's approach to the world, 
 on this occasion, will render this event a great one. 
 
 In the formation of the human mind, God has 
 given it a power which we denominate the imagi- 
 nation. All the powers of the human soul wqre 
 given to be exercised, and the right use of them is 
 always justifiable. 
 
 The imagination, when under the illuminating 
 and controlling influence of truth, will greatly aid 
 us in taking hold of the gi-eat things revealed in the 
 Bible, and in bringing them home to the soul as 
 living and solemn realities. Under the guidance of 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 373 
 
 the good Book, therefore, let us give play to this fac- 
 ulty of our minds, for a season, in considering this 
 branch of oar subject. 
 
 Now come with me, for a moment, down to the 
 end of time. Let us take a position upon some lofty 
 eminence, which overlooks the earth. Now mark 
 that scenery which lies at your feet, — how delightful! 
 Notice that busy multitude, — how they rush hither 
 and thither for the pleasures of earth, her honors, 
 wealth, and places of power! How thoughtless, 
 how careless, and absorbed in earthly pursuits ! To- 
 morrow shall be as this day, is their general impres- 
 sion. Behold I come as a thief, is forgotten and out 
 of the mind of the mass of people. But time has 
 grown old and hoary, and her last hour has come. 
 Look yonder in mid-heaven, and behold the ap- 
 proach of that mighty angel. What a being ! He 
 is clothed with a cloud, and a rainbow is upon his 
 head, — reminding the earth that the God,* under 
 whose commission he acts, is a covenant keep- 
 ing God. His face ! Oh ! his face is like the sun, 
 and his feet are truly as pillars of fire. In his 
 hand he holds an open book, that guides his every 
 movement. Behold him as he places one foot upon 
 the great rolling ocean, and the other upon the solid 
 earth. How majestic ! One would truly think it 
 was God himself, were it not for the fact that 
 angel is written all over him, and had not John 
 given such a minute description of him in Rev. 10. 
 
374 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 But mark how he extends that hand up to heaven, 
 and then notice that solemn countenance, as he looks 
 up to the throne of tiie infinite One. His very posi- 
 tion and manner show that he feels the weight, the 
 full weight of the sentiment he is about to utter. 
 But listen. He speaks, he speaks. He swears by 
 Him that liveth forever and ever, who created earth 
 with all her inhabitants, THAT TIME SHALL 
 BE -NO LONGER! What an oath! What a 
 voice ! Those severe responsive peals of thunder ! 
 How they shake creation, and are heard to the re- 
 motest corner of earth ! The sun hides his face to 
 weep, and refuses to shine henceforth upon this 
 guilty earth ; the moon is obscured ; the stars of 
 heaven are blown out ; the history of the earth is 
 closed up forever, and her reckoning-day is now to 
 be ushered in. This is one of the scenes described 
 in the Bible, as connected with Christ's approach 
 to the world, that will render it a momentous 
 hour. 
 
 Let us take another scene, and then I will hasten 
 to another thought. When Christ comes to judge 
 the world, the Bible informs us that he will make 
 his approach to the earth upon the clouds of heaven. 
 At the time of his ascension, after his resurrection, 
 he took his disciples from Jerusalem to the Mount 
 of Olives, commissioned them to preach the Gospel 
 to all the world, gave them directions how and where 
 to commence, and then lifted up his hands and 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 375 
 
 blessed them for the last time. As he blessed he 
 rose up from the earth in their presence, passed up 
 through the atmosphere, took his seat upon the 
 clouds, and rode off, triumphantly, up to the throne 
 of God. His disciples watched him as he went up, 
 until he was completely out of sight ; and even then 
 they continued to look and gaze up into heaven, 
 hoping to get one more glimpse of that blessed one. 
 The object on which their supreme affections were 
 placed had gone up on high, and how could they 
 have their eyes turned off to any other object ? 
 While thus gazing into heaven, God sent down two 
 angels to comfort them by proclaiming a great truth. 
 Hear then' testimony for a moment : " This same 
 Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven" \\\ey 
 affirm, " shall so come IN LIKE MANNER as ye 
 have seen him go up into heaven." There are two 
 things in this testimony of these angels to which I 
 invite your particular attention. 1. They affirm that 
 " this same Jesus" who ascended in the presence of 
 these disciples, shall return again to this earth. 2. 
 When he returns, he shall come " upon the clouds 
 of heaven." This is evident from the following 
 words in their testimony : " He shall so come in like 
 manner as ye have seen him g-o vp into heaven." 
 
 Now the question arises. How did they see him 
 go into heaven ? He ascended upon the clouds. 
 When he returns to earth, therefore, he will return 
 upon the clouds. So the angels testify, and they 
 
376 THK JUDG.MENT-DAY. 
 
 arc competent and truthful witnesses. Now turn 
 your attention to Rev. i. 7, and you have another 
 testimony to the truthfuhiess of this position : " Be- 
 hold, he Cometh with clouds ; and every eye shall see 
 him, and they also which pierced him : and all kin- 
 dreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even 
 so. Amen." Please observe from this passage the 
 following things : 1. When Christ comes, as de- 
 scribed in this portion of truth, it will be a visible 
 appearing that can be tested by the senses of the 
 human family, — "AND EVERY EYE SHALL 
 SEE HIM." 2. That being the fact, it fully settles 
 the question that this coming of Christ is yet future. 
 I summon here the whole human race as witnesses 
 to the fact that their eyes have not yet seen Christ 
 come to this earth upon the clouds of heaven. 3. It 
 is evident that the resurrection of the bodies of men 
 must precede this coming, as all the kindreds of the 
 earth are to witness it, including his enemies who 
 pierced him. Now I affirm that this evidence suffi- 
 ciently establishes the fact, to all who are willing to 
 be convinced, that when Christ returns to earth he 
 will come upon the clouds. That thought I present 
 as one that will render this scene a g-reat one, as the 
 very manner of his coming will be truly sublime. 
 Let us suppose for a moment that we are in a posi- 
 tion to witness this great transaction. We look 
 abroad in the heavens, and behold Christ surrounded 
 with an innumerable multitude of the heavenly 
 
THE JUDGJIENT-DAY. 377 
 
 hosts, making his approach to this earth, the scene 
 of his sufferings and death. He takes his seat upon 
 the clouds, while the whole human family look up 
 and behold this declaration of God's Word fulfilled 
 in their presence. They wanted demonstration that 
 was irresistible to prove this fact, and now they 
 have it, and how the kindreds of the earth wail 
 under its influence ! They that pierced him now 
 look and gnash their teeth with anguish, but they 
 must approach his judgment-seat. He comes now 
 not to be despised and rejected of men, but he comes 
 in his glory. He comes clothed with the authority 
 of a God. He comes as a judge. Mark his coun- 
 tenance ; it is as the " sun shining in his strength." 
 " His eyes are as a flame of fire, and out of his 
 mouth goeth a sharp, two-edged sword." At his 
 side " hang the keys of death and hell," and he now 
 " opens and no man shuts, and shuts and no man 
 opens." Oh, look and listen, and see how he rides 
 triumphantly around the earth, amid the shouts and 
 triumphs of his officers of state ! 
 
 Such is the description the Bible gives of this 
 grand approach of Christ to our earth, when he 
 comes to judgment; and I submit that the very 
 manner of his coming will render it a great day. 
 
 8. The multitude that will meet on that occasion 
 is another thing that will render it a great event. 
 We have some days on earth which we call great 
 days, in consequence of the multitudes who come 
 
378 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 together. Some great political gathering, the cele- 
 bration of some great political event, or to do honor 
 to some prominent statesman ; the return from the 
 battle-field of a successful general who has led on his 
 fellow-soldiers to the fearful work of human slaughter, 
 the crowning or burial of some mighty monarch of 
 earth. On these occasions multitudes congi'egate, 
 and consequently we look back to them as great 
 days. 
 
 But what are all the gatherings of earth, when 
 compared to the innumerable multitudes who will 
 meet on this occasion ? They are but as a drop to 
 the ocean. Could you see all the inhabitants of this 
 nation assembled on some vast plain, — what a mul- 
 titude ! Add to that all the living sons of earth, and 
 you have only a small part of this vast assembly. 
 Call up from the grave all who have been swept 
 from the shores of time by death, and then add all 
 who are yet to be born of human kind, and you have 
 only one family of this immense assembly. We some- 
 times long for one family gathering. Our father, 
 Adam, will have one such gathering. He shall stand 
 at the head of his numerous progeny, and all the 
 children shall look each other and their venerable 
 sire in the face, and then part never more to meet. 
 In addition to this great number, Christ is to come 
 with all his HOLY ANGELS. The word angels, 
 as used in tiiis text, comprehends, doubtless, all the 
 holy intelligences in God's groat kingdom, aside 
 
THE JUDGJIENT-DAY. . 379 
 
 from man. That they exceed the number of human 
 beings, almost infinitely, I have no doubt. How can 
 we come to any other conclusion, when we look at 
 the vastness of God's works ? I see no inconsis- 
 tency in supposing that the human family bear a 
 similar proportion to the great whole, that our earth 
 does to the immensity of the material universe. I 
 think all these millions of worlds that roll on high 
 are but splendid mansions fitted up by the infi- 
 nite Hand, that created all things to be the eternal 
 abode of an innumerable multitude of intelligences, 
 which he has called into being to explore his works 
 and adore him eternally for his infinite perfections. 
 Upon this occasion they are all to be present to wit- 
 ness his reckoning with the human family. 
 
 Now add to this one other class of beings, termed 
 Devils, and you have the extent of this assembly. 
 The good Book informs us that these are fallen an- 
 gels, a great number of them, and that they are re- 
 served in chains unto the judgment. They are also 
 to be present at that day to receive their final doom. 
 What a multitude ! What a multitude of beings ! 
 What mind can comprehend them ! God will have 
 one great meeting with his creatures, that each may 
 know something of the extent of the kingdom over 
 which he presides, and give him an opportunity to 
 unfold some of the great plans he has devised and 
 carried into execution for the promotion of its high- 
 est good. 
 
380 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 9. The investigation of character, to take place at 
 that hour, will render it a great day. 
 
 When Professor Webster was put on trial, in 
 Boston, for the murder of Dr. Parkinan, he doubtless 
 considered that an eventful day in his history. Such 
 was the interest in that affair through the nation, 
 that all eyes were turned toward old Massachusetts. 
 Thousands waited, with intense anxiety, the result of 
 that investigation. But, sinner, think ! At the day 
 of judgment you will be on trial for life. Ah, yes, 
 ponder it well ! not one man on trial for life simply, 
 but a ivorld ! The whole human race arraigned at 
 God's bar ! and all on trial for life ! What a specta- 
 cle ! What interests are now at stake ! But, oh, 
 think again ! What is the life that will be pend- 
 ing then ? Not the life of the body, which is but a 
 vapor that passeth away, but it is the ETERNAL 
 LIFE of both soul and body that hangs upon 
 the investigation of that hour. Then think of the 
 development of hearts that will be made at that 
 day ! All the abominations of earth are then to 
 come out ! Every unholy thought, with every se- 
 cret iniquity. " For God shall bring every work 
 into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it 
 be good or whether it be evil." — Eccl. xii. 14. There 
 will be no covering up of crime at that hour. All 
 the pollutions of your heart will be laid open to the 
 gaze of the whole universe. What shame, — what 
 eternal shame will then mantle your guilty face, as all 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 381 
 
 your unrepented deeds are made to appear ! Oh, 
 who can abide the day of his coming ! Who can 
 stand when he appeareth ! 
 
 Think once more, — the history of the whole race 
 written in blood! Their lying, deception, murder, 
 robbery, profanity, cheating, slander, and hatiijg one 
 another ; their licentiousness, drunkenness, forgetful- 
 ness of God ; the murder of his Son ; the abuse of 
 his Bible ; the rejection of his Gospel, and the griev- 
 ing of his Spirit; — all, all must now be developed. 
 What a picture ! How angels will hiss at such 
 conduct, and the human race hang their heads, 
 covered with eternal disgrace ! What an eventful 
 day! 
 
 10. The solemn separation that will take place, is 
 another thing that will render it a great day. There 
 are separations in this life to which we look forward 
 with deep interest in many instances. That son or 
 daughter is to sail on a given day to a distant island 
 of the sea, as a missionary. Those parents and 
 friends have assembled in Boston to bid them adieu. 
 Now mark the distress of those aged parents as they 
 grasp their hands for the last time, and give them 
 that last parting blessing, and then turn away and 
 weep. 
 
 Look in upon that death-bed scene for a moment. 
 There is a dear relative or friend panting for breath. 
 With what intense interest those friends gather 
 around that dying couch, and gaze upon that pale 
 
382 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 face, those sunken cheeks, and those glassy eyes ! 
 With what eagerness they treasure up that last 
 word! and how their hearts gush out through their 
 eyes, as they listen to that faint but final adieu! 
 Oh ! how that last death-stare goes through them, 
 as th^ soul leaps from time into eternity ! Such 
 separations are painful, but they are not eternal. 
 We shall meet once more, and then comes the final 
 separation, which loill be eternal. 
 
 At the judgment, God shall separate that vast 
 assembly, the righteous from the wicked, " as a 
 shepherd divideth the sheep from the goats." This 
 separation will be final. Husbands and wives, 
 parents and children, brothers and sisters, neighbors 
 and friends then will part to meet no more. Oh! 
 that last look, that final adieu, as each takes his 
 place, the one at the right hand, and the other at 
 the left of the great judge of all the earth ! What 
 weeping and lamentation will be there on the part 
 of the wicked, as they fall back to the left hand of 
 the Judge ! 
 
 11. And finally. The fearful doom that will be 
 pronounced upon the wicked will render this a great 
 day. What deep solicitude was felt in Boston when 
 Professor Webster was brought into court to receive 
 his sentence, after he had been found guilty of mur- 
 der ! What a moment to him, when the judge arose 
 to deliver, in his hearing, the dreadful words of the 
 law, " You shall be taken to the gallows, and hung 
 
THE .HnxJMENT-DAY. 383 
 
 hy the neck until you are DEAD, DEAD, DEAD! " 
 How his. guilty soul must have felt, as they sank 
 down deep iiito his heart ! What horror shook his 
 whole frame as that listening multitude gazed ! 
 How his spirit writhed under that gaze, as he ex- 
 claimed, ''take me aivay, TAKE ME AWAY!" 
 
 But what was that doom when compared with 
 the one that will be pronounced at the judgment ? 
 The tribunal before which he was arraigned, was 
 man's tribunal. The sinner will stand before God's. 
 The death pronounced upon him was the death of 
 the body. The death that will be pronounced upon 
 the sinner, at that day, will involve both soul and 
 body in ruin. The pang of death which the law 
 inflicted on him was momentary. The sinner's will 
 be eternal. He met the indignation of man. The 
 sinner will meet the wrath and indignation of God. 
 Ah, guilty sinner ! God has seen fit to write out 
 your doom beforehand, and he has left it on^record 
 in my text, that you may ponder its awful import, 
 and decide whether you will escape its fearful de- 
 struction by flying to Christ for forgiveness and sal- 
 vation, while the door of hope is open before you. 
 Read it, oh read it ! " Depart ye cursed into ever- 
 lasting FiRB, prepared for the Devil and his an^elsP 
 What words, falling; from such lips I Coming from 
 such a tribunal, how they will blast all your future 
 prospects, blot out your last hope for a long eternity, 
 and draw over your mind the gloom of eternal de- 
 
384 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 spair. How you will gnash your teeth with anguish, 
 as they fall upon your ear at this great tribunal, and 
 a long eternity in hell explains to you their full 
 meaning ! Oh ! may God open wide your eyes to 
 your danger, and lead you at once to the only ark 
 of safety ! 
 
 REMARKS. 
 
 1. This subject affords encouragement to the 
 righteous to be patient under the trials and abuses 
 of this life. 
 
 Our trials in this state of being will soon be over. 
 Life is short, and when it closes up, we close up all 
 our troubles forever. Beyond this vale of tears there 
 is a rest for the people of God. They may be slan- 
 dered, abused, and robbed of their rights in this life, 
 but the judgment will set that matter all right; 
 and their light afflictions here will only work 
 out for them a weight of glory hereafter, — for all 
 things work together for good to those who love 
 God, and are called according to his purpose of 
 grace. 
 
 How patient we should be, therefore, under the 
 ills of this life, and wait for our reward until Christ 
 makes his appearance ! At that day the Christian 
 shall triumph over all his enemies. The cause he 
 has loved and advocated ; for which he has suffered, 
 perhaps, the loss of all things earthly ; the cause 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 385 
 
 which the wicked have ridiculed, and rendered un- 
 popular in this world, will then be exalted and 
 honored. God and all good beings will then indorse 
 it publicly. The despisers of Christ, his cause and 
 his children, shall then become the " byword " and 
 the " hissing " of every noble being in the universe. 
 How they then will be covered with eternal shame, 
 while the Christian will lift up his head and rejoice 
 with exceeding great joy, as he beholds Christ ap- 
 proaching upon the clouds with power and great 
 glory ! Who would not be patient, therefore, and 
 wait and watch for such a blessed day? 
 
 2. This great theme affords a strong motive to 
 influence the Christian to do with his might, what 
 his hands find to do for the salvation of the world. 
 Our friends and fellow-men are hastening to this 
 great reckoning-day. Unless they repent quick, they 
 will stand condemned at that fearful tribunal. Can 
 we endure the thought, to see them stand trembling 
 at the left hand of the judge ? In this world they 
 decide their fate for eternity ; and our life, prayers, 
 entreaties, and efforts will do much towards influ- 
 encing them to decide it aright. That being the 
 fact, how we should exhort and entreat with all long- 
 suffering and doctrine ! That father, mother, hus- 
 band, wife, son, daughter, brother, sister, friend, or 
 neighbor may be lost if you neglect your duty. 
 Speak quick, or they may be dead, and sealed over 
 to the judgment. Oh, speak ! SPEAK IN EAR- 
 
 VOL. I. 26 
 
386 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 NEST! WORK, WORK, WORK while the day 
 lasts. Time is rolling on, and the judgment is has- 
 tening apace. The angel will soon be in mid-heaven, 
 and the blast of his awful trumpet will burst upon 
 your ear! Oh ! awake, awake, ye sleepy Christians, 
 and look up ! Behold the judge standeth before the 
 door! Hark! He speaks and thunders, — Why 
 
 STAND YE HERE ALL THE DAY IDLE ? To yOUr pOSt, 
 
 to your post, until he calls you to the skies. 
 
 3. What a fearful event this will be to the unfaith- 
 ful minister, and those who have deceived the people 
 by preaching error! The responsibility of the min- 
 istry is fearful. They are moulding the souls of men 
 for eternity. If " they cry peace, peace, when there 
 is no peace to the wicked, saith my God ; " if they 
 preach error, and corrupt and pervert the Bible, and 
 lead men to think there is no danger when there is 
 danger ; if they are what the Bible terms " dumb 
 dogs that will not bark," unfaithful watchmen who 
 refuse to give the people warning, blind guides who 
 mislead the minds of their hearers, — what a fearful 
 reckoning they will have to meet at this hour ! How 
 they will come up to this high court, covered all 
 over with the blood of souls ! How the lost, whom 
 they have led to ruin, and an indignant universe, 
 will curse them for their murderous work ! If there 
 is a hell of hells, if there is a double damnation that 
 will fall upon the head of any being at this final 
 reckoning, it will fall upon the head of that man who 
 
THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 387 
 
 has used the ministry for his own personal aggran- 
 dizement, or merely as a support for himself and 
 family, while he has had no care or anxiety for the 
 salvation of the souls of the flock over which he has 
 been placed as a watchman. What a moment to 
 him, when he shall be compelled to behold the work 
 of death he has done up for himself and his fellow- 
 men! How the curses of the lost will pursue his 
 guilty soul, endlessly, through hell's dark dominions! 
 and how he will gnaw that murderous tongue with 
 eternal anguish, for the work of ruin it has done to 
 human beings. 
 
 4. And finally, this subject affords a sti'ong mo- 
 tive to induce sinners to repent without delay, lest 
 the great day of His wrath should come and find 
 them unprepared to meet their account. Sinner^ 
 Sinner, how thankful you ought to be that you are 
 not already sealed over to the judgment ! and that 
 you have a space to repent before you go up to meet 
 Christ in the clouds. 
 
 In these discourses, I have tried to settle your 
 minds in relation to the certainty of this event. I 
 have laid before you its objects. I have shown 
 you that it will be a great event. I have dealt 
 with you plainly, faithfully, and honestly, for the 
 purpose of showing you your danger. I have ap- 
 pealed to your reasoning powers, to your hopes, 
 and your fears. Now, before we go to our account, 
 let me beseech you once more, kindly and affection- 
 
388 THE JUDGMENT-DAY. 
 
 ately, to prepare for that event. You are under 
 God's government ; you cannot escape from his do- 
 minions. You must meet him ; you cannot disobey 
 the summons when he calls you to his bar. But 
 you are not prepared. No, NO ! Your conscience 
 bears me record that you are not ready for that hour. 
 How you would tremble to meet him in your present 
 state of mind! Dying man! Oh, judgment-bound 
 SINNER, be entreated! Stop! REPENT NOW! 
 REFLECT, DO REFLECT, upon this great 
 theme. Find some retired spot, and drop on your 
 knees before your judge, and confess to him your 
 sins. Tell him, honestly, you are sorry you ever 
 violated his law, rejected his Son, and grieved his 
 Spirit. Give yourself vip to him, and implore for- 
 giveness through a Mediator. Be in earnest. Why 
 should you not ? God is in earnest ; the whole 
 Trinity are awake for your salvation. Heaven, yes, 
 ALL HEAVEN is in earnest for your soul. Cry 
 with every breath to God ! Sue for pardon ; give 
 your Maker no rest until you are justified by grace, 
 and then you can meet him in peace. Why not do 
 up this work right here, before you leave your seat ? 
 When can you ever have a better moment ? 
 While Christians pray, let your heart flow out with 
 ours, that the Infinite One would forgive and save 
 you NOW. May God, by the Holy Ghost, help you 
 to do up this work here, before you leave this house. 
 Amen and AMEN.