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DISCOURSED 
 
 ON 
 
 THE DEPRAVITY OF THE HUMAN FAMILY ; 
 
 PARTICULARLY APPLIED TO 
 
 THIS NATION AND THESE TIMES 
 
 UWI)£K HIS DIVIKE MASTER t 
 
 SACRED HISTORICAL PAINTER, AUTHOR OF "THE MESSIAH," A POEM, 
 AND " THE soul's AID," &C. 
 
 " Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faitli prove your ownselves.— 
 Know ye not your ownselves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be repro- 
 bates 1" 
 
 [2d Coi. 13th chap., 5th verse. 
 
 HARRISBURG, Pa. 
 
 PRINTED BY R. S. ELLIOTT & CO* 
 
 1S39. 
 
To the numerous descendants of Adam, who fell from 
 his high and holy estate, even from the Image of God his 
 Father, and thus brought the curse upon all posterity ; as in 
 him, all are subject to death, so in Christ, whom we preach, 
 all may hve. Therefore, to all who have immortal souls to 
 save these pages are respectfully submitted. 
 
 By the Author. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 DISCOURSE I. 
 
 Examine yourselves whether ye be in the faith; prove your 
 ownselves; Know ye not your ownselves, how that Jesus 
 Christ IS in you, except ye be reprobates? 
 
 [2(1 Cor., 1 3th chap., 6th verse. 
 
 DISCOURSE II. 
 
 Faith cometh by hearing, and liearing by tlie word of God. 
 
 [Romans, 10th chap., 17th verse. 
 
 DISCOURSE III. 
 
 Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from 
 Heaven, saying: 1 have both glorified it, and will glorify 
 it again. 
 
 [John, 12th chap., 28th verse. 
 
 DISCOURSE IV. 
 
 And we are his witnesses of these things ; and so is also the 
 Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to tliem that they obey 
 him. 
 
 When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took 
 counsel to slay them, 
 
 [Acts, oth chap., 32d & 33d verses. 
 
 DISCOURSE V. 
 
 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever. 
 Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines ; for 
 
 it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace ; 
 
 not with meats, which have not profited them that have 
 
 been occupied therein. 
 
 [Hebrews, 13th chap., 8th &. 9th verses. 
 
 DISCOURSE VI. 
 
 If ye love me, keep my commandments ; 
 
 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another 
 Comforter, that he may abide with you forever ; 
 
 Eve7i the spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, 
 because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye 
 k.now^ him ; for he dwelleth with you and shall be in you.. 
 [John, 14th chap., 15th, 16th & 17th verses*. 
 
,v CONTENTS. 
 
 DISCOURSE VII. 
 
 As it 19 written, there is none righteous, no, not one : 
 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh 
 
 after God. 
 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become 
 
 unprofitable ; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 
 [Romans, 3d chap., 10th, llth & 12th verses. 
 
 DISCOURSE VIII. 
 
 Then, said he, to the multitude that came forth to be bapti" 
 sed of him, O generation of vipers! who hath warned you 
 to flee from the wrath to come ? 
 
 Bring forth, therefore, fruits worthy of repentance, and be- 
 gin not to say witlun yourselves, We have Abraham to 
 our Father ; for 1 say unto you, That God is able of these 
 stones to raise up children unto Abraham. 
 
 And now, also, the axe is laid unto the root of the trees ? 
 every tree, therefore, which bringeth not forth good fruity 
 is hewn down and cast into the fire. 
 
 [LAike, 3d chap., 7th, 8th &l 9th verses. 
 
 DISCOURSE IX. 
 
 Jesus Christ has become to us righteousness, wisdom, sane- 
 tification and redemption. 
 
 [1st Cor., 1st chap., 30th verse. 
 
 DISCOURSE X. 
 
 On the first resurrection and thousand years reign of Christ 
 with his saints upon earth. 
 
 [Revelation, 19 chap. 
 
 DISCOURSE XI. 
 
 The Judgment Morning. 
 
 DISCOURSE XIL 
 
 The New Heavens and Earth. 
 
PEIHGfiTOH 
 
 THE0L,0GI01.L 
 P R E F A ^^B^limx^^^t^^ 
 
 It may aot be encroaching too much on the reader's time^ 
 nor altogether unedifying, by prefacing these Discourses with 
 a brief outline or sketch of my life, and the dealings of my 
 Heavenly Father with me; by the order of whose Provi- 
 dence I was born o» the 1 5th of October, in the year of our 
 Lord, 1 805, in the county of Dauphin, one mile from Hum- 
 melstown and about ten from Harrisburg, the Capital of 
 Penns3dvania. The farm-house stands about three-fourths 
 of a mile Irom the romantic stream called the " Swatara, " 
 the land bordering on the same, on which is a cave^ its spa- 
 cious entrance or expanded mouth within a few yards of the 
 flowing stream, which has been visited by many of the 
 surrounding country, and travellers from distant climes, as 
 one of ihs curiosities of nature, but formed probably by 
 the Almighty for higher and more useful purposes, to the 
 bodies and souls of men, than to be viewed as a mere show, 
 as in former times it sheltered nature's children, the untutored 
 heathen, from the ruthless wintry blasts and pelting storms, 
 and may yet answer a similar purpose. It contains several 
 apartments of various magnitude, thirty feet or upwards in 
 height ; a purling rill glides along the side of one of them, 
 with many other things worthy of note to the admirers of our 
 gracious God and bis works, such as icicles or fluted columns 
 of congealed water, many feet in height, and as hard as rock; 
 others somewhat in the shape of a human being, &c. &c, 
 A description may be fouad in one of the modern Geogra- 
 phies, published some years since. 
 
 My parents belonged to the Lutheran denomination: of 
 my mother I know but little, as she was called hence when 
 I was but about six years old ; but 1 hope she ended her 
 course with joy, and was received to the right hand of the 
 Majesty on High, through our beloved Saviour, to sing with 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 the Angels and all the redeemed of the Lord, the song of 
 Moses and the Lamb, forever and ever. 
 
 My Father u^as beloved by his neighbors as an honest and 
 upright man ; his removal to another place of residence a few 
 years before his death, caused a general grief among his 
 nearest neighbors, althougii of different persuasions, some 
 of whom said they would never again have such a true 
 friend lo reside among them. He was a lover of and adhered 
 strictly to the truth ; his word was his bond in all matters of 
 importance. 
 
 He was at church whenever there v/as preaching, nor 
 scarcely ever missed; and I aui induced to believe, had great 
 refreshings from the presence of the Lord at sacramental 
 communions, which he attended regularly, and always 
 seemed to be renewed in the inner man ; which that divine 
 instituted feast of the dying love of our blessed Lord and 
 Saviour will so eminently impart, when partook of worthily, 
 in a proper state of heart, mind and soul, according to the 
 words of our dear Redeemer, and his Apostles. My Father 
 loved to read the bible and meditate ou the word of God, 
 and delighted to converse with his fi lends on the same 
 subject ; which 1 frequently listened to for hours with edifi- 
 tion. He was, doubtlesi, divinely supported under great 
 personal and family afflictioas, when laboring under partial 
 blindness, and during two separate operations, confined in a 
 dark room, which resulted, although nearly blind, in tolera- 
 ble perf'-ction of sight, under Divine Providence, by some 
 skill of the physician as a means. Probably, however, more 
 ia answer to fervent prayer, as he was a man of prayer; and 
 our blessed Father says, " when thou art in trouble call 
 upon me and T will deliver thee and thou shalt glorify me." 
 
 Yes, he was a man of prayer, that blessed grace of the 
 true christian, which wafts the soul aloft to hold sweet com- 
 munion with our Holy Father, and brings his blessings down 
 upon our heads ; renovates the old man ; changes the heart ; 
 ■casts out thedevil and his filthiness, and brings in Christ, with 
 the Father and Spirit, according to St. John, 14th chapter 
 
PREFACE. Vlt 
 
 and 23d verse; and thus we become the temple of the Holy 
 Ghost. I speak of true, upright, ppiriiuai and well-directed 
 prayer; it will do all this. '' God is a spirit, and they that 
 worship, must worship hinri in spirit and in truth." 
 
 1 often heard my deceased father pray aloud, wrestle with 
 God on his knees in his chamber ; "when ye pray enter into 
 your closets and shut the door, and pray to your Father 
 which is in secret, and your Father which seeth in secret 
 will reward you openly;" which was also visibly fulfilled. 
 At meals he would always lift up his heart to the bountiful 
 §iver o( every good and perfect gift. He did not use family 
 worship according to method, but instructed his children 
 in Godhness; taught the oldest to pray, and made it their 
 duty when retiring to rest, to instrucL those younger in the 
 same exercise. He unfolded to ns the plan of salvation by 
 repentance to God, and through faith in a crucified Redeem- 
 er, and the consequent joys to be shared with the Holy 
 Angels in the kingdom of heaven. 
 
 He would suffer no sin upon any of his children, that is, to 
 live in a habit contrary to die word of God, but would re- 
 prove, and his words had to be obeyed ; there was firmness 
 of character about him, blended with mildness and affection. 
 His children were regularly schooled, according to the cus- 
 tom of the place, although he himself had but one month's 
 schooling; yet he could write, cast up accounts, keep his 
 own books, and read well; which shows what may be ac- 
 complished by application, in Leu of idling away the time in. 
 dissipation and wickedness, which an all-wise and gracious 
 God measures out for higher and nobler purposes. In due 
 time his children were disciplined in Godliness, according to 
 the rules of the church to which he belonged, instructed in 
 her catechism and according to scripture, to deny the world, 
 the flesh, and the devil; and live godly, sober, righteous and 
 holy lives; and to believe in Jesus the only Saviour and Me- 
 diator, and iSame given whereby sinners can become recon^ 
 ciled to God, and finally live with him in all joy, glory, felici- 
 ty, and happiness, forever and ever. 
 
VIII PREFACE. 
 
 I have been thus lengthy in memorialising on the character 
 of my father, for a good and virtuous man\« life will bear 
 examining, and is worthy of record, for the imitation of his 
 fellow creatures sojourning in this vale of tears. If his 
 children are not saved through Christ, the blame will not at- 
 tach to him, for he was certainly an enemy to the devil and 
 all his works, and dared to make his sentiments k nown for 
 the benefit of his family, and others also. He might have 
 had faults, but they were few, not living in any confirmed 
 sin, to my knowledge. And above all, 1 am persuaded in 
 my mind that he triumphed in the last scene, through re- 
 deeming love ; 1 was not present when his spirit took flight, 
 but had visited him at intervals during his combat with the 
 enemy of the souls of men, and therefore have every reason 
 to believe that he attained the victory ; that he even triumph- 
 ed through Jesus Christ our Lord ; for 1 heard him say that 
 our Heavenly Father permitted Satan to throw his fiery 
 darts at him, but that his hope was good and his confidence 
 sure ; he was much refieshed during his trial, by having the 
 scripture promises and similar hymns read to him, and which 
 aided also in repelling the devil's artillery levelled against 
 him. To the attending physicians he said, that he was not 
 afraid to die, for he had hope of a better life beyond the grave; 
 probably meditating on the words of our blessed Saviour, "I 
 am the resurrection and the life, he that belie veth on me 
 though he were dead yet shall he live ; and he that liveth and 
 believeth in me shall never die." The evening before the 
 day his soul took its departure, he told my brother to open 
 the shutters that he might behold the glory of the Sun for the 
 last time, as though he had a presentiment that his departure 
 was near — and was probably comparing his glory with the 
 glory of the Greater Sun of Righteousness, and the lustre 
 and effulgence of the Deity. The next day about one 
 o'clock his soul took its vleparture to another and a better 
 world, to sing with the holy hosts on high praises and Halle- 
 lujahs to our God and Saviour, through the countless ages of 
 eternity. 
 
PREFACE. IX 
 
 1 come now to say more about myself. And why should I 
 write about myself, who am but dust and ashes, but to make 
 known to dying sinners the love of a crucified Redeemer; 
 to set myself forth as a living witness of the divine mercy ; to 
 testify that there is plenteous salvation through faith in Jesus, 
 and also to induce others to close in with the gracious over- 
 tures of mercy ere it be forever too late ; ere their earthly 
 course is ended, and they find themselves in the place assign- 
 ed to all apostate spirits, and those that die outoKJhrist> 
 that die under the law ; that die in their sins. 
 
 1 was the seventh child of my parents according to the 
 order of Providence, which some would consider in itself as 
 an omen of good •, but whether it is worthy of any faith, I 
 very much doubt, for with God all things are possible. 1 
 sometimes of late, have had it impressed on my mind, that as 
 Jeremiah, the good Lord had separate J me from my mother's 
 womb for useful purposes under Him, to my fellow beings ; 
 to suffer for them in His name and to glorify Him. 
 
 My disposition from childhood was sedate and retiring, and 
 somewhat romantic ; imbibed probably from the wild scenery 
 along the before-mentioned stream, on the banks of which 1 
 would often perambulate alone, and with others, and in ca- 
 noes on the water, one of which, by foolishness, was upset 
 at one time and the whole party, consisting of four, were 
 plunged into the water, from which, after struggling awhile* 
 the good Lord delivered us all, after having been repeatedly 
 called upon, *' God 1" " God !" whenever my head was 
 above water ; which circumstance I find thus in a verse of a 
 brief poem of my life : 
 
 " Thy love to me with shepherd^s care, 
 In childhood in thine arms did'st bare, 
 And smile upon this humble frame ; 
 As years advanced, thou still the same, 
 A God of Love and ever nigh, 
 To hear my moan and louder cry ; 
 " God ! God ! !" thou wast near to save, 
 And rescue me from a wat'ry grave." 
 
 Thus in mercy 1 was spared; had it been otherwise,! 
 
X PREFACE. 
 
 might not have fared as well as 1 am now certain of doing 
 when the Lord pleases to call nie from this earthly stage ; 
 as 1 had no assurance of acceptance through the "beloved," 
 and consequently, would have perished body and soul. O, 
 the need of being at all times prepared, from even the cradle 
 to the grave, for an exit out of this world! May I ever be 
 thankful to my Holy Father for this deliverance, with all 
 previous, and those since: for His encompassing me with His 
 everlasting arms, both by sea and by land ; but above all, 
 for salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord. 
 
 My education was that of a common country school ; 
 reading, writing and arithmetic, all of which 1 could man- 
 age with considerable ease ; particularly the latter, in which 
 1 was considered an adept; having mastered two books by 
 different authors, together with Boneycasile's mensuration, 
 surveying and guaging. My genius developed itself in this 
 way, and also in drawing with pencil and pen and ink, 
 figures of various kinds ; the gift of painting, which I have 
 since brought to great perfection, was therefore, inherent 
 from childhood, and 1 may say I was born a painter, poet, 
 and man of genius. Endowed by nature, or more properly 
 intrusted by my Heavenly Father, with these brightest of 
 talents, if wisely employed — therefore, I am also more re* 
 sponsible than many others, for "to whom much is given, from 
 him shall be much requu'ed ;" as per the ten talents to one, 
 five to another, and one to a third, and their reward by the 
 Lord accordingly. No one is, therefore, excusable for bury- 
 ing His precious gift, much less for misemploying it — the 
 soul constitutes the man, yet every one need not be a paint- 
 er or a poet to be a man^ to be of elevated mind and refined 
 soul, but by having delight in the exalted things from above 
 and not ia those from Satan, contrary to holiness, which he 
 is required to shun and abhor. 
 
 As I hinted at already, at about the age of fifteen 1 attended 
 the village church with many others, to be catechised ; during 
 this period my mind was more serious, more abstracted from 
 
PREFACE. XI 
 
 things below, more wrought upon and exercised in those of 
 a boundless elerniiy; of the Divinity; of Heaven's awful 
 hohness. I felt my heart elevated in love to the Saviour^ who 
 had undergone so much in I )ve to mankind — to me, yes to me, 
 one of the least ; yet notwithstanding, I felt the efficacy of his 
 love in the salvation of my soul, and had much peace, joy 
 and happiness in believing, comfort in prayer and sweet- 
 ness in meditation ; but nothing to what 1 now experience. 
 With delight and facility I could commit to memory the 
 portion from time to time assigned me, which caused our 
 minister to have a particular regard for me, and induced 
 him to speak frequently to my lather and others of my 
 abilities, and the delight 1 took in the exalted things of 
 Heaven ; which created a desire in one of my sisters that 1 
 should study for the ministry— at whose knees I was often, 
 in previous years, enraptured at the glowing picture she 
 would draw of the joy and delight of H»'aven, of Paradise, 
 of the Holy Angels and ol the Saints, the redeemed of the 
 Lord ; and while expatiating on the benevolence of our 
 blessed Saviour, the love which he bore toward us, which 
 constrained him to sojourn here below, which caused his 
 passion in Gethsemane and his death on Mount Calvary, of 
 his resurrection, appearance to his disciples, ascension and 
 second coming in transcendent glory with all the holy hosts 
 from on high, and that he would then raise our bodies and 
 glorify them, like unto the Angels, to live with and enjoy' 
 Him in the New Heavens and Earth forever and ever; in 
 short, she would expound the meaning of the New Testament 
 to me, and some times show me engravings of our blessed Sa- 
 viour and of Holy Angels, which aided to elevate my soul 
 and cause it to soar on high on Angels' wings; be charmed 
 and enraptured with the bh-ssedness of Heaven; the holi- 
 ness and divine glory of our God and Father. May all 
 young ladies do likewise, who have younger sisters and 
 brothers ; "as the twig is bent, the tree's inclined." Verily, it 
 is the duty of all parents to instruct and have their children 
 
XII PREFACE, 
 
 instructed in godliness ; in that which pertains to their eter- 
 nal welfare, everlasting life and happiness. But then some- 
 times they are called out of this world of trouble, as my 
 mother, when some of their children are yet ni tender years, 
 the very time to receive holy and lasting impressions ; then 
 the duty devolves more directly upon the older members of 
 the family ; and O how lovely ! how beautiful and Angelic!! 
 virtue and holiness combined in the female character. At 
 these seasons, at times when alone and looking over the 
 fields, I could almost see with my natural eyes, the Saviour 
 with His disciples passing along, my faith being so vivid, 
 which caused my heart to leap within, and be filled with 
 such heavenly emotions impossible to describe. The min- 
 ister looked about to find one to pray in public on the day 
 of confirmation, and selected me as the most suitable ; the 
 prayer, however, was not extempore, but committed to 
 memory out of a book — in which duty I succeeded pretty 
 well. I was confirmed with the others ; denied the world, 
 the devil, the lusts of the flesh ; took the sacrament, and thus 
 became a member of the Lutheran church ; 1 had true com- 
 fort and sweet peaci through Christ in God, but not such en- 
 raptured joy and rejoicing as I have experienced since, 
 within late years ; and probably not the perfect love which 
 casts out all fear of death and judgment ; " there is therefore 
 now no condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus." I 
 had now for some time much serenity of soul and peace af 
 conscience, but by degrees it wore off and 1 became more 
 worldly ; the passions within became more turbulent and 
 ungovernable, so that by the time of the next sacrament I 
 absented myself, under the fear of not being able to discern 
 the Lord's body, and thus drink damnation to myself; and so 
 it was the time following. 1 did not live or indulge in any gross 
 sin, but yet 1 would not deny myself to the extent 1 promis- 
 ed at confimation, and therefore knew myself unworthy. 
 
 The time now arrived that I was to enter on a trade, and 
 as the ministry, as 1 thought, required too much sdf-denial ; 
 for J had a high and an exalted opinion of the ambassadors 
 
PREFACE. XIII 
 
 of Christ — those that are true shepherds ; so much so that 
 I shrunk whenever they broached the subject, on account of 
 the loftiness and responsibility of the office ; nevertheless, 
 to free my mind, 1 consulted the minister, v^ho would not 
 advise me either way, to undertake it or not ; but said it was 
 a high and desirable calling, and I should do according to 
 the dictates of my conscience ^ pray to and obey the will of 
 the Lord. 1 left him and went home, deeply exercised on 
 the subject, revolving and re-revolving the matter in my 
 mind, but could not at any time come to the conclusion that 
 1 could become qualified to discharge the duties of a faithful 
 preacher ; no doubt, lacking faith in Him who is the head of 
 the Church, with whom all things are possible, and who 
 could have been a mouth to me as he was to Moses. I 
 have mentioned already that I was of a sedate and retired 
 disposition, and therefore, as may be expected, of few words, 
 or one who tells things briefly and not fond of a multitude of 
 words without meaning ; this might have been in my favor^ 
 as appropriate to a minister ; as an approach even to Christ 
 himself; but the devil made it a great stumbling-block, to- 
 gether with other things of more or less consequence ; and 
 I remained undecided whether the blessed Lord had really 
 called me or not, and began to think of some other occupa- 
 tion, consulted with some of my relations, and concluded to 
 stud)' the art of printing. I went myself to Harrisburg and 
 made an engagement with Mr. Wyeth, who agreed to take 
 me on trial for a few months to see whether I liked the 
 business, &c.; if so, I was to serve to the age of twenty-one, 
 I, therefore, in the beginning of the winter of 1822-3, began 
 my career with him, and after a short time was articled to 
 stay until I was of age. The first day it was late when I got 
 there, but I learned the cases and composed nearly half a 
 column of matter, long primer, for the paper ; thus 1 pro- 
 gressed rapidly in the profession — and he used to say I vs'as 
 a very good boy, and when my father wanted to purchase 
 a bible for me he gave me one as a present — he hid a large 
 book-store in connection with the printing establishment. — 
 
XIV PREFACE. 
 
 Here was a young man who had but about a year to serve, 
 belonging to the Presbyterian church ; he attended to the 
 reading of his bible, and prayed thrice or oftener daily, with 
 other spiritual exercises, such as reading the bible, medita- 
 tions and singing, &c.; went to church regularly twice or 
 thrice on Sundays, and occasionally at night during the 
 w^eek. His name was Richard Cole; by his example and 
 conversation I was much edified and benefited, and took 
 likewise to prayer thrice a day on the loft, where he used to 
 retire to. I read the bible with more attention and profit 
 than I had for some time before; 1 also attended church and 
 prayer meetings regularly, and made more progress in the 
 divine life. I now again took the sacrament once or twice, 
 and had some relreshings from the presence of the Lord ; 
 for a while this new mode of lifo continued, but it gradually 
 wore off again, and from my having been a strict observer 
 of the Sabbat-li, I became a Sabbath-breaker ; and for money 
 would work all Sunday until night on the bills of the Senate, 
 which Mr. VVyeth had engaged to print. O, that the Legis- 
 lature would put a stop to having so much of their printing 
 executed on the hallowed day of the Lord! They must cer- 
 tainly be aware that a great amount of work is done, and 
 therefore, many hands employed on the Sabbath, who 
 might, and surely ought to be more usefully engaged, even 
 in the salvation of their immortal souls, and worshipping 
 and honoring the Lord of the Sabbath. " Thoy that honor 
 me 1 will honor, but they that despise me shall be lightly 
 esteemed," says the Lord of Hosts. There was no excuse 
 for me, as I had my free will ; only being enticed, I pre- 
 sume, by the devil, and not sufficiently confirmed and watch- 
 ful unto Godliness, 1 consented for filthy lucre's sake, but to 
 my shame and sorrow whenever I think of it, as my bad 
 example induced Mr. Cole also to take up his composing 
 stick and desecrate the sanctified day of rest. O, how 
 watchful young christians ought to be, lest the adversary 
 gains some advantage over themj and although they may 
 
PREFACE. XV 
 
 repent and be forgiven afterwards, yet will cause them, at 
 times, sorrowful moments hours and days, all their lives. 
 
 The summer following the beginning of my apprentice- 
 ship, the holy L^ord laid his hand upon me and brought me 
 to the gates of death ; " whom the Lord loveth, he chasten- 
 eth/' I was taken by a fever and lay about four weeks ; 
 it set in with violence at the Ftart, but not without a pros- 
 pect of success to the attending physician, but towards the 
 four weeks he thought it might cause me to sink under it and 
 go the way of all flesh. All this while I was in a terrible state 
 of mind ; there was no peace for my poor miserable soul ; 
 Heaven seemed to be as brass, at least I could not now real- 
 ize its joys and happiness through a crucified Saviour, which 
 surpass everything here below, and consequently I was not 
 willing to launch forth; my soul clave to the earth and I want- 
 ed to live and enjoy the life of this world, and was, therefore, 
 in a dreadful way. O, to be always prepared for the dissolu- 
 tion of the body, to make a happy exit and ascend triumphant- 
 ly to the realms of glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord. I 
 made many a good resolution and vowed to live a holier life 
 should it please the good Lord in mercy to spare me, and 
 others also lelt concerned, and held prayer meetings in the 
 house, and sent for the minister of the church to which I be- 
 longed ; he kindly attended several times and prayed for me. 
 The blessed Lord was pleased to raise me up agairj at about 
 the end of four weeks, so that I could accompany my father 
 home 3 miles in a gig ; where 1 continued in a weak state, just 
 able to walk about the house, for nearly six weeks longer, 
 when 1 felt sufficiently recovered, blessed be God, to enter on 
 my engagement again. The scene is also described in the 
 poem alluded to, thus : 
 
 " And when this frame press'd with sickness, 
 
 Sore disease and deep distress ; 
 
 The groan of anguish thou did'st hear, 
 
 And lend'st thyself a willing ear ; 
 
 To defeat the grave of its prey, 
 
 Did'st thy Almighty power display , 
 
 To health again for to restore, 
 
 That I might know thee more and more." 
 
XVI PREFACE. 
 
 I now enjoyed pretty good health as long as I stayed with 
 IVlr. Wyeth, vviiich was until within six months of the end of 
 my contract. As he had but httle work to do that summer, 
 and hands sufficient, I compromised and paid him for the 
 unexpired term. A few weeks after I became a partner 
 in one of the first Jackson papers in the State, printed at 
 Reading, where 1 was concerned about six months, then 
 sold my interest, and visited Philadelphia and New York, 
 where T worked some weeks ; after which 1 returned to Har- 
 risburg, where, and at Lancaster, York and Liverpool, and 
 in divers visits to the different cities, my time was consumed 
 until I left for Europe in 1833. The greatest part of the 
 time 1 passed at Harrisburg, where 1 had much success in 
 business. Previous to this i studied medicine for about six 
 months at Liverpool, with an eminent physician, who of- 
 ten said that I would make a good physician ; but the 
 practical part was not congenial to my feelings, and there- 
 fore I left him with a good prospect of doing well in the bro- 
 kerage business, wherein 1 also had considerable success, 
 and accumulated a small fortune in a few years. xMy sole 
 object now was to make money — get wealthy — until 1 began 
 to study the divine art of painting, in the spring of 1 830. The 
 way this precious gift or blossom was brought to bud and 
 expand, is this : two traveling painters of a little home repu- 
 tation, from Marietta, came to town and took up their lodg- 
 ings at the house where I boarded. Now 1 frequently be- 
 fore had a hankering to know how the effect was produced — 
 a desire to see a portrait taken ; I was therefore, persuaded to 
 have mine taken, and to encourage them and get them into 
 business ; the delineations were made, but the finish did not 
 come up to nature ; 1 however, paid him, thinking he might 
 improve in time. In the meantime his partner arrived, who 
 also found it faulty, and after a week or so persuaded me to 
 let him tiy his hand, to which 1 also consented; he succeeded 
 somewhat better. 1 had been exercising in nr^y office with a 
 lead pencil, as 1 had done on many former occasions. Well? 
 
PREFACE. XVII 
 
 seeing him one day copying from an engraving a landscape, 
 1 looked on awhile, then intimated that I thought I could 
 imitate it ; upon which some conversation followed in rela- 
 tion to drawing, &c. He requested me to show him one of 
 my pencil sketches. I did so ; it was a very correct copy of a 
 print of Gen. Jackson. As soon as he saw it, he said 1 
 would make a painter, and advised me to study the art. 1 
 agreed with him for fifty dollars, to give me some insight 
 in the mixing and use of colors, wiiich he did as per his abil- 
 ities, as he was merely medium in the profession. During 
 the two weeks he remained from this time, I was chiefly in 
 his room, and copied a few portraits that he had painted from 
 nature, and also one from nature, a lady, which was a toler- 
 able likeness. I now felt enraptured with this pleasing 
 study, and purchased very expensive works treating on this 
 accomplished art, for one of which, in two vols. 1 paid g28r, 
 another one vol. gl1,50; another one vol. $6,50, &c. &c., 
 and in the purchase of engravings I spent a considerable sum, 
 being determined to excel in this exalted profession ; partic- 
 ularly when the painter, Raphael-like, chooses the most 
 sublime subjects, such as abound in the Old and New Tes- 
 taments. 1 therefore visited Philadelphia, New York, BaN 
 timore and Washington at different times, to examine the 
 best pictures from the Italian Masters to be seen in this coun- 
 try ; and also those of West, and other modern artists. — 
 Thus I imbibed new views and principles, and my genius 
 expanded more and more. 1 was now better able to proceed 
 with the vast design of Christ Preaching and Healing Dis- 
 eases; which] began the fall following 1 first used paint, and 
 was my fifteenth production; the preceding ones being only 
 single portraits, small things. I made a tolerable finish ot it 
 and had it exhibited in Philadelphia the succeeding summer; 
 it was favorably noticed in some of the papers, as " forcibly 
 illustrating the passages from which it was designed ; that 
 many of the heads were finely executed, and that it indicated 
 
 2 
 
XVIII PREFACEo 
 
 an indubitable and high order of genius," &c. This pro- 
 duction was burned in the Lutheran Church of Harrisburg, 
 in October, 1838, when that building was consumed. I am 
 sorry for it ; it was my first production in the historic de- 
 partment, and had caused me a great deal of meditation and 
 study, but not in vain; although the painting is no more, it 
 caused my soul to be refreshed, to be nearer Christ than be- 
 lore, while engaged on it ; and it afforded me some comfort 
 to know that others who called to see it were likewise more 
 or less affected, particularly an old lady, who said, while tears 
 trickled down her cheeks, that from all the sermons she ever 
 heard, she was not made so sensible, or impressed so forcibly 
 with the divine goodness of our blessed Redeemer, and that 
 she often read and heard of his meritorious acts of mercy, 
 but now she saw them. She was really deeply affected, 
 and T hope that it was as seed sown upon good ground and 
 brought forth perfect love to our " Beloved^''^ whose serene, 
 divine, and heavenly appearance she so much admired; with 
 his acts of benevolence to the blind, the lame, the deaf, the 
 dumb, and to the possessed of devils, in restoring ther^i to 
 their right mind. It was a complex and great achievement, 
 not, however, handled and finished as I could now, had I 
 the same design under way. L executed a small one from 
 recollection of the same subject, with some variations for the 
 better ; less in figures, however, by fifteen or twenty. On 
 the large one were upwards of a hundred, on this not a hun- 
 dred. After this I designed another at Harrisburg, subject 
 "the head of John the Baptist," containing six or seven 
 figures, size of life^ length below the knees, besides the head 
 of John, which one of the executioners is handing in a 
 charger to the damsel. 1 afterwards finished it in London, 
 and it was exhibited in the Royal exhibition. Pall Mall. 
 The next design was the battle of New Orleans, an enor- 
 mous subject, which 1 arranged different from any other I 
 ever saw ; the canvass is 14 by 22 feet ; figures the size of 
 life ; the painting T could finish so as to be worth, consider- 
 
PREFACE, XIX 
 
 able, but my time is of more value in this degenerate age, 
 when sinners are indulging in the most abominable vices, 
 and perishing all around. As that picture would show forth 
 the deeds of men, and consequently in these times they 
 would receive praise of men beyond their due, as the God of 
 batdes has given the victory, and caused this as yet to re- 
 main a separate nation ; therefore to Him belongs all the 
 glory. My next work was St. Peter's release by an Angel, 
 while sleeping between two guards ; figures size of life ; de- 
 signed in Philadelphia; which I also took along to London. 
 Another, Ezra the scribe, readmg the law of Moses to the 
 children of Israel, in Jerusalem, containing a number of fig- 
 ures size of life, but not v^ell executed ; there is, however, 
 something tolerable in the buildings and perspective — with 
 others of minor import; all previous to going to Europe. 
 
 During these five or six years the gracious Lord used his 
 rod frequently upon me, in love it was, I know, thanks to his 
 Holy name. One Sabbath morning I was dressed in an en- 
 tire new suit, with new boots ; it was in my head to go some 
 twelve miles down the country, which you all know was 
 contrary to the fourth commandment ; and to my shame 1 
 was not obedient according to the vows I had made while 
 sick, as stated already. " When thou vovvest unto the Lord, 
 pay thy vpws, for the Lord has no pleasure in fools." I hired 
 a horse hitched in a sulkey, got into it, and before I was prop- 
 erly seated the horse ran at a terrible rate down the street, 
 and in turning the corner of the square, the sulkey upset and 
 threw me against the curb stone ; the horse continued run- 
 ning with the vehicle upside-down. I got up and would 
 have been unhurt, had it not been that the heel or offset of 
 my boot caught someway or other, which 1 never could com- 
 prehend, and twisted my knee, not quite out of joint, but 
 disarranged it so as to cause me to be confined to , bed for 
 two weeks, and afterwards to go on a crutch for a few weeks . 
 longer. I felt the effects of it for some months. Thus the 
 devil stung my heel, as Sabbath-breaking and all wickedness-. 
 
XX PREFACE. 
 
 is from him ; but through God 1 am bruising his head noW. 
 In the fall of 1830, while engaged on the large painting of 
 " Christ Healing Diseases," 1 was taken by the small pox, 
 and confined to bed, where 1 lay very sick for some weeks ; 
 during which time I had much joy meditating on the love of 
 Christ, which the above subject revived to my mind. I 
 thought 1 once saw the blessed Saviour standing at the head 
 of the bed, and also that I would die in peace ; but it pleased 
 the blessed physician and head of the church to restore me 
 to health ; having still greater work under his divine Provi- 
 dence for me to do. For change of air 1 went to Lancaster 
 and Columbia; between these places the linch pin came 
 out, one of the wheels flew off, and the stage went down; 
 in aiding to raise it up to replace the wheel, being weak, 1 
 sprained or rather prolongated the muscles of my right shoul- 
 der, which i deemed too trifling to notice at the time ; but 
 in returnirg from Columbia to Lancaster the same night, the 
 axle-tree broke down, and we had to take to a waggon, the 
 jolting of which was terrible, and reclining on the elbow of 
 my right arm, not aware of the injury I had received before, 
 by the time we arrived at Lancaster, was very bad, so 
 that the bone stood nearly straight out. I then returned 
 to Harrisburg and had to bandage all winter, and was pre- 
 vented from studying my picture. 
 
 As 1 had it in contemplation for some years, the time at 
 last arrived for my departure to Europe. 1 therefore left 
 Philadelphia the latter part of July, 18S3, for New York, 
 where I embarked on the 1st of August for Liverpool; trust- 
 ing that my Heavenly Father, who had until then supported 
 and delivered me, would still be with me, and b}' the work- 
 ings of his Providence, would enable me to land safely at the 
 latter place; notwithstanding the insinuation of my oldest 
 brother, sometime previous, " that 1 would never get there ;'' 
 to whom I replied, " that if it was God's will 1 should. " I 
 merely relate this to show that although not unblameable 
 and holy enough, 1 still had some christian principle and 
 
PREFACE. XXI 
 
 Ikith in my God and Saviour; '* cast all your care upon the 
 Lord for he oareth for you;"" thus, as before, He was with 
 me still. " If 1 take the wings of the morning and fly to the 
 uttermost parts of the sea. Thou art there, thy rod and thy 
 staff they comfort me." At times we were visited by gales 
 of wind, when the sea would roar, lash the vessel's side, leap 
 on board, and together with the wind would cause the ship 
 to groan, masts creak, spars fly, and the sails rend and flap 
 in the storm, and cause confusion and consternation among 
 the passengers and crew. At such times 1 would retire, cast 
 myself upon my knees before the throne of Him whom 
 the winds and the waves obey, and at whose words, " Peace, 
 be still," there follows a great calm. 1 implored my Fath- 
 er's protection, and if he permitted my body to descend into 
 the deep, to cause my soul to ascend through Jesus to his 
 own right hand ; and 1 felt his presence near, and great com- 
 fort, joy and peace, and a great calm within my soul, not- 
 withstanding the raging of the elements without. My Iwpes 
 and expectations were reahzed, after the exercise of much 
 patience, during a voyage of 42 days, by stepping, through 
 the goodness of God, on Brittania's luxuriant shore. 1 spent 
 a few days at Liverpool, then took stage for London, through 
 Birmingham and the most fertile part of the country. In 
 London, that great metropolis^ I located myself in the Wes- 
 tern part, where the streets are broad, cleanliness observed, 
 and where there are parks and promenades, conducing to the 
 health of the inhabitants. Here 1 pursued the study of my 
 profession and succeeded very well, as I have stated al- 
 ready. 1 had access to some of the best collections of paint- 
 ings belonging to this great nation, and thereby improved 
 myself, and made strides in this divine art towards perfec- 
 tion accordingly. Yet one thing 1 regret exceedingly when- 
 ever 1 think thereon, that is, of not having lived near enough 
 to God, asl sho^ild have done for his goodness to me; and as 
 I might have done, through a crucified Redeemer, and privi- 
 leged to do. Oh ! the abuse men make of this exalted 
 
XXII PREFAX::«E. 
 
 privilege, and therefore remain strangers to all the blessings 
 and sweets thereof. I was not prayerful enough, although 1 
 prayed night and morning ; neither watchful enough to keep 
 out of my heart, and conquer at all times the enemy of my 
 soul, through the Captain of our Salvation, which is the duty 
 enjoined upon every christian. My affections were there- 
 fore, unhallowed and misplaced. I did not love God with 
 all my heart, and by consequence my eye was not single to 
 his glory. I was as a stray sheep wandering from the fold 
 of Jesus, whose compassionate bowels yearned for my return; 
 and somehow or other 1 became deprived of my personal 
 liberty, if not by the order, by the permission of my Heavenly 
 Father, " whom he loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth 
 every one that he receiveth ;'' and who graciously overruled 
 all for my benefit and his glory. As 1 had committed no 
 crime against the law of the land, 1 did not suffer as an evil 
 doer, but innocently. 1 therefore warn all to clear their skirts, 
 ere it be too late, who made themselves guilty of my blood, 
 either directly or indirectly, aiding and abetting in ihe 
 dark, mysterious, and hellish plot, which 1 never could com- 
 prehend, but which shall be made manifest on the Judgment 
 day, when every work shall be rewarded by the Eternal 
 Judge, my Father. 1 may, and do forgive them, but without 
 repentance my Father will not forgive them. " It needs be 
 that offences come, but woe to him from whom they do come; 
 it were bettc that he had a millstone about his neck and were 
 cast into the depths of the sea ;" and this also applies to 
 those who now persecute me. Let all, therefore, speedily 
 repent lest they find themselves in a place of torment surpas- 
 sing all that men and devils ever invented, or can possibly 
 invent; even in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone, 
 where there shall be weeping and wa.iling and gnashing of 
 teeth forever. 
 
 With the inspired writer, I thank my God that I ever 
 have been afflicted; it learned me to know the foolishness of 
 loving the world and the vain things thereof, and to be rooted 
 
PREFACE. xxul 
 
 and grounded through love in tlie tree of life ; to deny the 
 devil and all his filthiness, and love God with all the heart. 
 This perfect blessing of salvation 1 expeiienced shortly after 
 I v^^as imprisoned, and the great God supported me miracu- 
 lously during my confinement, and gave me, through the 
 instrumentality of the Holy Spirit, the indubitable assurance 
 of being through Christ born again, adopted a son and an 
 heir of Glory, joint heir v^'ith the blessed Jesus ; and of 
 having my sins washed away by his precious blood, which 
 cleanses from all sins, and my name written in the Lamb's 
 book of life, enabled to cry Abba, Abba, Father ; which 
 caused my heart to leap for joy, and 1 was all life, light, 
 love, joy, peace and happiness in Jehovah, my God and 
 Saviour. And 1 also trust that my faith, confidence and 
 patience under my sufferings, and perfect love to Him who 
 is essentially love; which casteth out all fear, may have 
 worked much good to my neighbors; my enemies and per- 
 secutors; it would afford me much joy were I aware that 
 it was so ; I shall know, however, for the day of the Lord 
 will reveal it. 1 was, at times, greatly harrassed by the 
 devil, and deprived of bodily comfort by his agents, his 
 children ; but thanks be to God, his word was not bound, 
 but had free course to rejoice my heart and glorify him ; to 
 impart that " peace which passeth all understanding, which 
 the w^orld cannot give or take away, and which shall endure 
 and increase evermore, eternal in the heavens ;" thus 1 was 
 happy in God, although I had tribulation in the world.— 
 " These things 1 have spoken unto you, that in me," saith 
 the blessed Christ, " ye might have peace. In the world ye 
 shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer ; I have over- 
 come the world." At times, thank the Lord, I had more 
 kindness shown me, when I would read and write hymns, of 
 which I have upwards of 200 yet unpublished. 1 also com- 
 posed the latter part of the poem of the '^Messiah^^'' that is, 
 from the 77th verse, " Lo ! the Lord, the Lord of Glory," &a 
 
XXIV PREFACE. 
 
 In this way it wrought for my good, my Father's glory, arid 
 if not for the welfare of men's souls, it will be their own 
 fault — be their blood upon them ; be my hands clean. 
 
 In all these complex trials the blessed Lord was with me. 
 1 grew in the divine and holy life ; Christ dwelled in me the 
 hope of glory, and I lived and moved in him ; in short, I was 
 emphatically the temple of the mystic Trinity — Father, Son 
 and Holy Spirit, according to St. John, Hth chapter. 
 
 Two years were fully passed in confinement, as were 
 also Vv'ith Joseph and St. Paul — my blessed Father arose in 
 his majesty to confound all hell and darkness ; the devil and 
 all his legions; spiritual and in the flesh, and with his Om- 
 nipotent Arm achieved my deliverance, and I came forth 
 from the furnace as gold seven times refined. Glory be to 
 his great name, who is perfect in glory and holiness, and 
 saith, " when thou cometh into trouble, call upon me and I 
 will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me," which I know 
 I have done, am doing, and desire to do to the end, so that, 
 through my blessed Saviour, Jesus Christ, I may also reign 
 with Him in all joy, glory, happiness, felicity and bliss, for 
 ever and ever. 
 
 Incomprehensible Deity, thou art so highly exalted above 
 puny men, thy throne in the heavens is so far above the 
 earth, thy footstool, that thy ways are "altogether past 
 finding out ; but this we know, that thy promises are all yea 
 and amen to the believer in Jesus. O enable me ever to 
 adore thy long suffering mercy to me, and to praise and bless 
 thy ever blessed and holy name in time, and at thy right 
 hand in eternity, through Jesus Christ my beloved Lord and 
 Saviour. Amen. 
 
 Yes, the Lord's ways are above our ways, and his thoughts 
 far, far above our thoughts; therefore, as respects my two 
 years confinement, it will be fully manifest at his second 
 coming ; which in his own words, "will be speedily." Even 
 50 come, Lord Jesus. Amen. 
 
PREFACE. XXV 
 
 The object of my being thus lengthy is to edify my read- 
 ers, to give some idea of the dealing of my Father with his 
 annointed ; to convince those, particularly, who deny his 
 intercession and guardian care and government of the uni- 
 verse ; and that if any of my readers should ever meet with 
 similar trials not to despair, but call upon the same Lord, 
 who is Almighty to save and deliver to the uttermost. 
 
 Wonderfully and divinely supported by my heavenly Fath- 
 er, I was enabled to embark from London, in iVIarch, 1836, 
 who upheld me by his Arm of Righteousness and Almighty 
 power, by grace through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord. — 
 Nothing very particular occurred during the voyage. We 
 had some gales and much head wind, even for weeks ; one 
 morning, after some weeks of this untoward weather, and 
 having been out about seven weeks already, a^ 1 came on 
 deck one of the passengers entered into conversation with 
 me, during which he informed me that the provision was be- 
 coming scarce on board, and if the wind should continue 
 ahead, he knew not what might be the consequence. 1 re- 
 flected a moment, then descended to my berth, to implore 
 Him with whom are the issues of life and death, and who 
 holds the reins of the winds in his fist, and can change them 
 in the twinkling of an eye, and so he did ; for I was but a 
 few minutes on my knees praying for the same, when I heard 
 them tacking about and putting the ship in nearly a direct 
 course for our harbor ; when I came on deck the wind was 
 nearly aft, and the same breeze drove us into New York 
 nearly two weeks after. My Father is still a prayer hear- 
 mg and answering God, if approached in uprightness; with 
 full purpose of heart to forsake evil and follow after that 
 which is good ; know ye this ye double-minded who desire to 
 serve two masters, your prayer is an abomination, and there- 
 fore, not answered, and ye remain unconverted and in your 
 sins. Above all, God delights to hear his saints pray and to 
 answer their prayers, for his honor dwelleth with them, and 
 
XXVI PREFACE. 
 
 he is glorified in them; therefore let us pray without ceasing; 
 in everything give thanks; bless his name and sing his praise; 
 Hallelujah, praise the Lord. 
 
 1 expected that as soon as I landed on the American shore 
 I should be free from persecution; but alas! I found it far 
 otherwise, the powers of darkness pervading all classes, and 
 I soon found that the land was mourning for the abomination 
 thereof; and alas! thought I, for my country; the just judg- 
 ments of the Most High are pressing thee sore. In travel- 
 ing along 1 discovered that the fields were almost barren as 
 the road; my heart was heavy, mourned within jue, and groan* 
 ed with the earth. I thought of ?s'oah's time, and of Sodom 
 and Gomorrah, and other mighty nations, which prosperity, 
 fulness of bread, and success in arms, had inflated so that 
 they becamp lifted up and went a whoring after their own in- 
 ventions, neither fearing nor acknowledging the sovereignty of 
 Jehovah, nor seeking to honor him, but rather by their filthy 
 actions to dishonor him, and that continually; at last God to 
 humble them brought them even low as hell, by an utter ex- 
 termination, to wit : the plains of Sodom and Gomorrah, &c. 
 
 When abroad I would often think if 1 once got back to my 
 brother, I w^ouid also find a brother in spirit and in truth and 
 in the spirit of Christ. But after landing I began to doubt of 
 it, and when I got there I found him contrary; his hand be- 
 ing against me; not having my Lord and Master, Christ's 
 mark on his forehead, but the adversary's, consequently there 
 was a great gulph between us, and which 1 am sorry to think 
 remains unto this day; and so it is with all my relations and 
 acquaintances, and strangers among whom I have sojourned 
 since; but yet notwithstanding the Lord may have some, be- 
 side myself, whose hands are free from the blood of all men, 
 either by persecution or otherwise, and who abstain from this 
 levelling abomination and wickedness, upon which I have 
 enlarged in the following discourses. 
 
 Having lived since my return in May, 1836, within four or 
 
PREFACE. xxvii 
 
 five miles of this place, where I pursued my studies as histori- 
 cal painter, and occasionally composing hymns, and where 1 
 wrote the first part of my poem, the ^^ Messiah,'''' up to verse 
 77. Here I met with many trials and buffetings from Satan, 
 and persecutions from his children, but my God and Sa- 
 viour, my brother Jesus was constantly with me, and through 
 him I triumphed over them all, and know that I shall endure 
 unto the end and inherit all things, and with the Holy An- 
 gels and the redeemed from the earth, enjoy the Eternal 
 Father everlastingly. 
 
 Last March I came to this place, (Chambersburg,) and 
 have met with consideral)le success, which enabled me to 
 publish during the summer the " Messiah^''^ for the welfare 
 of my fellow beings, particularly their immortal soul's salva- 
 tion ; which work has "been welcomed and highly extolled, 
 by men of judgment, for which 1 feel thankful, as it may 
 draw the public to spend a trifle to possess it, and the amount 
 of good it may be the means, under God, of doing, will be 
 made manifest some future day ; in the meantime Glory be 
 to Jesus the King of Glory. The subject, the "Messiah," is 
 the most elevated and sublime that could be sung, and in my 
 humble opinion, the language is high, holy, and inspired ; 
 truly evangelical, and in keeping; harmonizing in every res- 
 pect to it. I have said before I published, and am still of the 
 same opinion, that parts of it have never to my knowledge, 
 been surpassed, if equalled ; but glory to whom glory belongs, 
 and may his blessing descend upon the readers thereof for 
 the salvation of their souls. 
 
 The painting of our blessed Saviour's appearance to his 
 disciples while they were praying in an upper room, the doors 
 being shut too, when and where he convinced unbelieving 
 Thomas^ St. John's gospel 20th chapter. It is a heaven- 
 born production; a superhuman serenity pervades the whole, 
 like the calm of the ocean after a breeze, its tiny waves skip- 
 ping and rejoicing; thus the terror of the disciples has subsid- 
 ed, and placidness taken its place with joy and rejoicing in 
 
XXVIII PREFACE. 
 
 the heart of every one. The Saviour is an admirable figure, 
 full six feet high, and well proportioned ; his countenance is 
 sweet, divinely benign, and persuasive ; his eyes are cast up- 
 on St. Thomas, who is kneeling before him, recovering from 
 his weakness and confusion, and exclaiming '^ My Lord and 
 my God." The light which emanates from the Saviour's 
 countenance is well managed, partly shading some of the 
 hindermost figures. The draperies are ample and flowing; 
 ever}^ part is in keeping and aids to combine the subject and 
 form a sweet and pleasing effect, such as to refresh and edi- 
 fy the soul, and calm a ruffled and angry temper by behold- 
 ing it. 
 
 This subject was selected during the few last months of 
 my confinement, and began on a convass of about 1 4 by 1 1 
 inches, which I brought from London here, and have now^ 
 enlarged it to the size of life on a suitable canvass, and more 
 to my satisfaction, and 1 trust to the benefit of mankind. It 
 must be seen in a proper room and light to be fully apprecia- 
 ted. Another began since; Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and 
 Mary the mother of James, with other women, seeking the 
 Saviour at the sepulchre. They went in and found him not, 
 and after coming out two Angels stood by them, informing 
 them that he had risen, &c. St. Luke, 24th chapter. Fig- 
 ures, seven women and two Angels, rather above the size of 
 life; it remains unfinished as yet. Another is a sweet pic- 
 ture of the Saviour, with Cleopas on one side and another 
 disciple on the other, progressing towards Emmaus; they 
 have just ascended to tiie top of a hill; the sun near sinking 
 behind the distant mountains, shines full in their faces and 
 casts long shadows down the hill from their bodies, and from 
 trees. A luxuriant and wide extended valley lays before 
 them, bounded by hills on one side, interspersed by buildings 
 and vineyards. The village of Emmaus lies a little to the 
 right, about a mile ahead; with towering mountains behind, 
 and extended country to the left for miles farther; the fields 
 
PREFACE. XXIX 
 
 are white to harvest, reapers are seen employed ; a plow- 
 man breaking up the fallow ground ; and shepherds watch- 
 ing their flocks on the hill, and the great shepherd and bishop 
 of souls, passes along with two of his flock, ploughing their 
 hearts, reclaiming his wandering followers to confirm their 
 faith, so that in due time he may gather them into hiS heaven- 
 ly fold. It must also be seen and understood to be benefi- 
 cial to the souls of men. Another is the nativity, on a smal 
 scale, &c. &:,c. 
 
 In the beginning of August last it pleased my Heavenly 
 Father to afflict or permit me to be afflicted with an out- 
 breaking on either leg; which prevented my painting almost 
 entirely for two months, during which time 1 wrote, through 
 the Holy Spirit's assistance, the following discourses, except 
 one which was written before, and another since, all which I 
 humbly submit to the serious and candid consideration of this 
 nation and people, for their temporal and eternal well-being. 
 Whether you will hear or forbear, I have endeavored to be 
 candid in pointing out the crimes committed in the dark: 
 pervading and levelling all classes, and for which the judg- 
 ments of the Almighty have been fell, as yet slightly; but if 
 not repented of, will end in the utter destruction of this na- 
 tion, and every soul estranged from God, for '* the soul that 
 sinneth it shall die;" therefore, repent as did Ninevah, and 
 be at peace v/ith your Maker; otherwise, if you persevere 
 in your rebellion you will find him an invincible enemy and 
 conqueror of all you can invent and achieve under Satan, and 
 dreadful will be your eternal state, if you fall singly or col- 
 lectively in the deviPs cause. This slight affliction may have 
 thus been overruled by divine Providence for incalculable 
 good to immortal souls, and his name may have likewise 
 been glorified, and may still be glorified in the conversion of 
 sinners. 1 have endeavored to cry aloud and spare not ; to 
 show you your sins and transgressions, and not suffer sin 
 by any means upon you. I trust my hands will thus 
 be cleared from the blood of all men, and may God add hip 
 
XXX PREFACE. 
 
 blessing upon my humble endeavor, and in due time receive 
 me into His glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom 
 with the Father and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, be all the 
 honor and glory, dominion, majesty, and power, W'ith thanks 
 and blessings, now, henceforth and forevermore. Amen. 
 
 P. S. Since writing the above, 1 had, blessed be God my 
 Holy Father for havmg chastened me, another severe trial 
 to encounter for my folly; by stooping to listen to the degra- 
 ded devil's suggestions. Yea, having descended from the 
 high and exalted place in Christ; through his righteousness 
 having been seated in high and heavenly places, from 
 which, by giving heed to Satan, I fell, and departed partially 
 from God my Saviour, who is over all blessed forevermore, 
 and worthy to be honored, loved, and adored, with heart, 
 mind, soul, spirit and strength, and to be worshipped in the 
 beauties of holiness through Jesus Christ our J ^ord; whom 
 the blessed God has exalted a Prince and a Saviour, and 
 likev^ise a judge over the devil and his children. 
 
 I was through the wiles of Satan, deceived and brought 
 to grieve the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, and offend my 
 Heavenly F'ather, Saviour, and Friend, and his rod for the 
 wicked, which shall not fall to the lot of the righteous, unless 
 they commit iniquity, was laid upon me, and the Good Lord 
 withdrew his countenance from me a little while and per- 
 mitted Satan to sift me as wheat, and I had much contention 
 and distress of soul for about four weeks. During this period 
 I was at times wonderfully and mysteriously supported by 
 Jehovah, at other times suffered to despond and to give heed 
 to the doctrine of devils, "that there is no God." At the 
 end of this time, however, the blessed Lord delivered me ful- 
 ly, so far as to be above all doubts as to His existence, omnis- 
 cience, and omnipotence, &:c. "Out of six troubles 1 will 
 deliver thee and in the seventh not forsake thee ;" saith my 
 Holy Father; which promise has been abundantly verified; 
 all thanks and blessings be to him, for having brought me 
 
PREFACE. XXXI 
 
 mysteriousjy out of this furnace also, more refined and puri- 
 fied than from all his former deliverences. Yet Satan has 
 power still to buffet me, as all shall suffer persecution who 
 will live Godly in Christ Jesus, for his holy name's sake, and 
 for the testimony of his word; though heaven and earth be 
 destroyed, his word shall endure. 
 
 If I had the tongue of Angels 1 could not sufficiently praise 
 my blessed and beloved P'ather for having again honored 
 me by taking me into his perfect favor, through Christ to be 
 more and more in Him in one allied and more firmly estab- 
 lished in holy love divine on the rock of ages. Being now 
 altogether reconciled to God, and as Moses able to esteem 
 the reproach of Christ ol greater riches than the treas- 
 ures, not only of a part, but the whole world; counting all 
 things duofr, that 1 may win Christ, who is now more than 
 ever in me the hope of glory. In him, thanks to Almig-hty 
 God, I live, and move, and have my being; and through 
 whom Jehovah has again raised up my head; and blessed be 
 his holy name, 1 liave now more faith and confidence in 
 Christ than I had before. He is truly my wisdom, righte- 
 ousness, sanctification and redemption; my all in all; wealth 
 in poverty; health in sickness; life in death; and shall be my 
 joy and rejoicing in heaven forevermore. Therefore I desire 
 to know nothing but Christ and him crucified, duriug my 
 pilgrimage here below. 
 
 The glorious Jehovah has thus again through me, verified 
 his words, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee;" and 
 also counfounded the devil and his filthy legions in the air; 
 and those co-working with them in high places; the workers 
 of the spiritual wickedness of this world, of hell and dark- 
 ness, mysteriously showing forth his power; for God has de- 
 signs, and for their accomplishment can bring all things into 
 subjection, and to subserve thereunto; which may now be 
 veiled in myster3% but when all things are revealed shall be 
 abundantly manifest. INqw vye know only in part, but then 
 
XXXII PREFACE. 
 
 we shall know more perfectly when this which is in part 
 shall be done away. 
 
 As the blessed Saviour's words to his disciples, so to me-. 
 '* Ye have not chosen me^ but I have chosen you, and or- 
 dained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that 
 your fruit should remain, and that none shall take you out of 
 my hands." "iVly sheep hear my voice and 1 am known of 
 them, and I know them, and give unto them eternal hfe." — 
 " I am the resurrection and the life, he that believeth in me 
 though he were dead yet shall he live, and he that liveth and 
 believeth in me shall never die." These are sweet, precious 
 and glorious to all true christians, and now particularly to 
 me in these degenerate limes. May the blessed Jehovah my 
 Holy Father support me under all trials, deliver and finally 
 bring me into his everlasting kingdom of glory, through Jesus 
 Christ my beloved Saviour, that I may have my portion with 
 the Holy Angels and all the redeemed from the earth, in all 
 joy, glory, happiness, felicity and bliss, forevermore. And 
 unto the Triune Father, be all honor, dominion, majesty and 
 power, with thanks and blessings, now, henceforth and for- 
 evermore. Amen and Amen. 
 
 JOHN LANDIS. 
 
l>I<!^€Ol]R8£ I. 
 
 ON FAITH. 
 
 Examine yourselves, whether ye he in the faith ; i^rom your 
 ownselves. Know ye not your ownselves, how that Jesus 
 Christ is in you except ye be reprobates ? 
 
 2<i. Corinthians, 1 3th Chap, 5th verse. 
 The words of our text were indited by the Holy Ghost 
 through St. Paul, one of the greatest of the Apostles, who was 
 regenerated by the same blessed spirit in so wonderful and 
 miraculous a manner as recorded in the 26th chapter of the 
 Acts, The Lord J(^sus appearing to him in such resplendent 
 glory as to ved the Sun in his meridian splendour; ordainmg 
 him a minister to preach the gospel to the people, and par- 
 ticularly to the Gentiles ; and was thus, as he expresses him- 
 self, born out of due time; who suffered such great peril and 
 hardship for Christ and the gospePs sake, and whose faith 
 was frequently tried to the uttermost, but was as often de- 
 livered by our gracious Lord, from all his troubles, who long 
 since received him into mansions of bliss. 1 shall take oc- 
 casion to refer to his writings as we proceed in our discourse* 
 Let us, therefore, consider the subject under the three follow- 
 ing heads : 
 
 \st. Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith, 
 ^nd. Prove your ownselves, and 
 
 3d. Know ye not your ownselves, how that Jesus Christ is in 
 you except ye be reprobates ? 
 
 First then, it has become the imperative duty of every in- 
 dividual, as soon as he may be accounted responsible to the 
 Great Father of the human family, for every thought, word, 
 and deed, to pry into the inmost recesses of his heart, and seek 
 to discover the rubbish there concealed, wrapt in unbelief, 
 
 3 
 
2 ON FAITH. 
 
 generating sinful thoughts, (which in too many has been ne- 
 glected, as they have been wilfully disobedient to the com- 
 mand to love God with all the heart, )which ripen to maturity, 
 explode, and inevitable dest^^uction is too often the conse- 
 quence; they are plunged into misery, hurried along by their 
 worldly passions, on the broad road leading to the chambers 
 of eternal death; their immortal souls plunged into the un- 
 fathomable abyss of outer darkness, the lake of fire and brim- 
 stone, where there shall be weepmg, and wailing, and gnash- 
 ing of. teeth. To avoid, therefore, this awful end, examine 
 yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; for. by grace are ye 
 saved through faith and not of works, or yourselves; it is the 
 gift of God obtained through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord. 
 Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. — 
 We therefore, preach the glorious life-giving gospel of our 
 Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, to turn you from the error of 
 your ways to the living God. Christ who was made a curse 
 for us; a sin offering was veiled under types and ordinances in 
 the Jewish dispensation, proclaimed by the ancient prophets, 
 those holy men as they were moved by the Holy Ghost; the 
 assurance of salvation was even made immediately after the 
 fall, when God said the se3ed of the woman shall bruise the 
 serpent's head; alluding to the Messiah. The patriarch Abra- 
 ham heard and believed, and it was accounted to him for 
 righteousness. The illustrious Saviour, obscured and veiled in 
 mystery, under the title of the "Branch," "Plant of Renown," 
 " The Lord our Righteousness," the prophet Isaiah styles, 
 and very justly too, " The Wonderful Counsellor, the iVJigh- 
 ty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace." In 
 due time the Virgin Mary received a visit from Gabriel, an 
 Angel of God, exclaiming, " Hail, thou that art highly favor- 
 ed, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women;" 
 perceiving her trouble of mind, he said unto her, " Fear not 
 Mary, for thou hast found favor with God," and that the 
 power of the Highest should overshadow her, and telling her 
 to name the child Jesus, and that he would be great, and 
 
ON FAITH. 3 
 
 would be called the son of the Highest; and that the Lord 
 God would give unto him the throne of his father David. — 
 As it was predicted, in due time the Glorious, Bright, and 
 Morning Star arose at Bethlehem, Judea, as it is written, 
 "Thou Bethlehem, though least among the thousands of 
 Judah, behold mighty works show themselves forth in thee." 
 Here then was the object of the christian's faith presented to 
 sight. His birth having been announced by an Angel of 
 the Lord to neighboring shepherds, no doubt to try their 
 faith, whose hearts were greatly elated by being thus 
 honored by those Holy beings, sent expressly as ambassa- 
 dors from the iMajesty on High, to inform them that the 
 long expected Messiah had appeared, commissioning them 
 to proceed thither, to worship the infant Jesus; the Alpha 
 and Omega, the beginning and the ending; he in whom they 
 lived, moved, and had" their being; the Eternal Father, iu 
 the character of his only begotten Son, Emanuel, veiled in 
 the human form, lying in a manger. O! what humility, mani- 
 fested by unbounded, boundless love. Nothing wavering, 
 but on the departure of the Celestial Host, the shepherds 
 left their flocks on the mountain side ami commenced their 
 journey to pay obeisance to the illustrious stranger, whom 
 they discovered wrapped in swadlii^g clothes, lying in a man- 
 ger; they fell down and worshipped Jesus, after which they 
 presented unto him gifts, gold, and frankincense and myrrh; 
 according to the custom of, the East, on the birth of great 
 persons. They then returned, praishig and glorifying God. 
 At the circumcising of the child, Simeon, to whom it had 
 been previously revealed by the Holy Ghost, was led by the 
 spirit into the temple, and testified that this was the Lord's 
 Christ; a light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of Israel. 
 Anna the prophetess coming in at the time, gave thanks 
 likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all who looked 
 for redemption in Jerusalem. Most certainly then, this was 
 he who was to bear our iniquity; to comfort the mourners; 
 to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning; the : 
 
4 ON FAITH. 
 
 garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness ; that they might 
 be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, 
 that he might be glorified. John the Baptist, the forerunner 
 of our Lord, when baptising the multitudes that came unto 
 him, being in expectation, and musing in their hearts wheth- 
 er he were the Christ, said unto them, "I indeed baptise 
 you with water, but one mightier than I conieth, the latches 
 of whose shoes 1 am not worthy to unloose ; he shall baptise 
 you with the Holy Ghost and with fire, for to enter into the 
 kingdom of Heaven^ ye miist all he born again jrom above with 
 water and the Holy Spirit-^ whose fan is in his hand and he 
 will thoroughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into 
 his garner, but will burn the chaff with fire unquenchable. 
 After which Jesus himself came unto John to be baptised of 
 him, and lol the heavens were opened, and the Holy Ghost 
 descended in the form of a dove and rested upon him, and a 
 voice came from heaven, saying, " This is my beloved son in 
 whom 1 am well pleased, hear ye him," As therefore, God 
 our Creator acknowledged him as his son and was pleased, 
 ought not we his creatures hear and believe in him 1 for in 
 him dwelt the Godhead bodily. Let us examine what he 
 says. After having been tempted foity days and nights of 
 Satan, he was at length taken upon the pinnacle of the tem- 
 ple by the devil, who said unto him, " If thou art the son of 
 God cast thyself down from hence." Jesus answered and 
 said, " thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.'" Here is 
 confirmed what I have been seeking to establish, that he was 
 the promised Messiah in his human nature; and in the divine 
 equal with God from all eternity, who said unto him, " Thy 
 throne, O God, is from everlasting to everlasting; a sceptre 
 of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom." It is also 
 said there are three that bear recoid in heaven, the Father, 
 the Son and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one. 
 
 Although in the sacred writings are many things hard to 
 be understood, and although we are unable to comprehend 
 the mystery of the Godhead, the ^J'rinity in the Unity, yet 
 
ON FAITH. 5 
 
 nevertheless, we are to receive and believe the truth thereof, 
 for thereon depends the salvation of our immortal souls. 
 " Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith.'' " He 
 that believeth and is baptised shall be saved, and he that be- 
 lieveth not shall be damned," are the words of our Lord, 
 delivered while tabernacling among men; going about heal- 
 ing the sick, raising the dead, and giving life to as many 
 as came unto him. " 1 am,'* says he, " the resurrection 
 and the life, he that believeth in me though he were dead 
 yet shall he live, and he that liveth and believeth in me shall 
 never die." O glorious truth, to live forever with our Belov- 
 ed in a world too unchangeable! free from heat and cold, sin, 
 sorrow, and sighing; in a heaven of holiness, illuminated 
 by the effulgent beams of the Sun of Righteousness; to see 
 God as he is, face to face; who shall wipe all tears from our 
 eyes, and exalt us from glory to glory, forevermore. They 
 that were wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, 
 and they that turned many to righteousness, as the stars 
 forever and ever. 
 
 While our Lord continued on earth, ministering to the 
 Saints, building them up in the most holy faith, he wrought 
 such stupendous miracles, and spake with such power, ac- 
 companied with the divine unction, that compelled many to 
 confess that he spake as never man spake, and that he was 
 of a truth the i\Jessiah, the Son of the living God. Jesus 
 Christ was not sent into the world to condemn the world, 
 but that the world through him might be saved. Now he 
 that believeth not is condemned already, because there is no 
 other name given whereby men can or mnst be saved. Will 
 you, whatever your prospects may be, will you, I repeat, 
 continue in this awful state of condemnation ? if not, then 
 grasp the promises through faith in the Lamb of God; whose 
 blood cleanseth from all sin, and purifies unto himself pecu- 
 liar people, zealous of good works. 
 
 During our Lord's sojourn, many had their sick restored to 
 health, yea even the dead were raised; the lame were healed, 
 
6 OIN FAITH. 
 
 and the blind restorod to sight; to the broken hearted balm 
 and oil were administered spiritually, and they were comfort- 
 ed, and the contrite spirits were revived. Thus he continued 
 dispensing his blessings, temporal and spiritual, although 
 contrary to the world and its ways; by which, notwithstand- 
 ing his great merit and virtue, righteousness and holiness, and 
 all that was advanced to prove that he was the Son of Godi 
 it rejected and would not believe on him; but persecute, 
 oppiess and revile him, and at length behold they crown 
 him with thorns, and scourge him; he is led forth to be 
 crucified! Tause, O sinners, and behold his suffering that 
 you might live! Yes, he is lead forth to be crucified : — 
 
 Lo ! the Lord, the Lord of Glory, 
 
 Behold him now on yonder road, 
 Leading to the hill of Calvary ; 
 
 The Lord, the Lord, Creation's God. 
 
 Surrounded by a ruffian band 
 
 Of soldiers, and miscellaneous crowd, 
 Who beset him on either hand, 
 
 Reviling and upbraiding loud. 
 
 Afar off are his -companions, 
 
 Lest they suffer for the same cause, 
 Of having been faithful -jhampions. 
 
 Under their Master, for the truth. 
 
 Forsaken by his intimate friends, betrayed by one and de- 
 serted by the others; it was the power of datkness. He was 
 nailed to the cross! became a spectacle to men and Angels, 
 heaven and earth. The enormous load of human guilt, be- 
 ing that of the whole world, for which he suffered, induced 
 God to withdraw as it were his countenance for awhile, 
 showing no signs that this was his son. During the suspen- 
 sion of the intercourse with the Father, in agony and agita- 
 tion of spirit, hi cried out: "My God! My God! why hast 
 thou forsaken me?" 
 
 Yet, notwithstanding liis great suffering he prayed for his 
 murderers, " Father forgive them, for they know not what 
 they do;" and to the women he said " weep not daughters of 
 
ON FAITH. 7 
 
 Jerusalem for me, but for yourselves and your children;" 
 knowing their unbelief and depravity, to whom he had said 
 on a former occasion, " ye bring up your children ten times 
 more the children of hell than ye are yourselves." 
 
 O v.diat an astonishing mystery! he wlio formed all worlds 
 of nothing. The Father of Infinity, in whom all things 
 move and have their being. The Kmg of Power Omnipo- 
 tent, who could have called the ht'avenly hosts to subdue 
 and put to flight all his foes; this mighty, glorious and holy 
 being — 
 
 Han^s between heaven and earth, 
 
 As if unworthy of either ; 
 Suffers an ignominious death, 
 
 As though oiily a form'd creature. 
 
 The air resounds with cries, 
 
 And noise, as of distant thunder; 
 Earth quakes, the pillars of the skies 
 
 Tremble, and rocks burst asunder. 
 
 The temple is rent to the bottom; 
 
 The Sun flies the indignant sight, 
 And draws his golden beams therefrom, 
 
 The whole earth lays in gloom as night. 
 
 Satan with his force in hell shout. 
 
 Darkness re-echoes hideous yells, 
 The Angels of light weep aldud, 
 
 And all heaven in sympathy mells. 
 
 By the convulsion of the earth, and shaking the expanse 
 of heaven, God, with awful majesty, who is strict in justice, 
 executing judgment, answered from his throne of glory amid 
 transcendant holiness; thus testifying that this was he who 
 was one with, and came out from him to be man with man, 
 for the fulfilment of his promise and to atone for the sins of 
 the world. The quaking of the firmament and the com- 
 mingling of sounds which struck terror into his murderers 
 and caused them to tremble, and some to exclaim, "Truly 
 this was the son of God." The holy victim soon after ex- 
 claimed, " It is finished; Father into thy hands I commend 
 
8 ON FAITH. 
 
 my spirit;" and bowed his sacred head and died. To one 
 of the thieves that was crucified with him, he said a little 
 before, " Verily, to-day thou shalt be with me in Paradise " 
 His faith saved him at the eleventh hour; the immortality 
 of the soul was thus again established. 
 
 Devout Joseph of Aramathea, and Nicodemus, with Pi- 
 late's consent, took our Lord from the cross, and laid him in 
 Joseph's own tomb, wherein never man had lain. His ene- 
 mies were on the alert, and as he had said he should rise 
 again in three days, they obtained Pilate's approbation to 
 secure the tomb with their seal and stationed a watch around 
 it. Every mind was in suspense, the Sun again resumed his 
 daily round through the heavealy expanse and sunk behind 
 the Western horizon; the sky all clear and serene, sprinkled 
 over by an innumerable host of stars; the moon coursed 
 between worlds and planets; day passed after day, night af- 
 ter night; death still held his sceptre over our Lord; still and 
 silent the hours passed on: his enemies exulted with one ac- 
 cord; his friends were sad and forlorn; the celestial hosts of 
 glory anxious to behold the event, and learn of the Almighty 
 how he would the mystery unfold. The guard stood at their 
 post, the rays of the midnight moon gleamed upon their hel- 
 mets and their spears; the Morning Star arose, and the East- 
 ern liorizon again resumed its resplendent hue; the golden 
 orb came apace, illumined and ushered in the dawn of the 
 third day. Lb! again the earth quaked, the powers of heav- 
 en shook, an angel of the Lord descended and rolled the 
 stone from the tomb; he seated himself upon it; his counte- 
 nance was like lightning, his raiment whiteassnow; the guards 
 were terrified, confounded, and fell to the ground. Lo! he 
 new comes forth from the tomb, the conqueror of sin, death, 
 hell and tiie devil. Who is this that comes from Edom 
 vvith dyed garments from Hozrah ? this that is glorious in his 
 apparel, traveling in the greatness of his strength; to which 
 the illustrious Saviour replied, " I that speak in very right- 
 eousness, mighty to save." He arose triumphantl3% the first 
 
ON FAITH. 9 
 
 fruit of nature's earthy womb, and subdued death of its 
 terror: — 
 
 Lo ! never was the creation, 
 
 Veil'd in splendour so glorious ; 
 Nor auspicious morn to ev'ry nation, 
 
 To inspire with hope and make righteous. 
 
 'Twas the Universe's jubilee, 
 
 Vallies and lawns lift up their voice, 
 There was melody 'mong the trees ; 
 
 The hills and mountains did rejoice. 
 
 The inhabitants of the air, 
 
 Were passing, warblmg to and fro, 
 The morning stars sang together, 
 
 And all God's sons shouted loud for joy. 
 
 The air resounded with songs of praise, 
 
 Re-echoed by the highest heaven, 
 Oe'r Oceans, deserts, and highways. 
 
 To our illustrious Prince of Zion. 
 
 Early in the morning came Mary Magdalene and the 
 other Mary, to see the sepulchre; the angel answered and 
 said, "Fear not ye, for 1 know^ that ye seek Jesus which 
 was crucified. He is not here, for he is risen as he said. — 
 Come see the place where the Lord lay." He then told 
 them to inform his disciples that Jesus had risen, and would 
 go before them into Gallilee. While returning with fear 
 and great joy, they met Christ, saying, " All Hail." They 
 fell down and worshipped him, who confirmed the words of 
 the Angel that he would go into Gallilee. He afterwards 
 appeared to Cleopas and another of the disciples on the road 
 leading to Enmiaus, their sight being held so as not to know 
 their former master; perceiving their grief, he inquired the 
 cause; they inform him of the crucifixion of Jesus and all 
 that had happened in Jerusalem, adding thai it was thought 
 he should have been Israel's redeemer; but it was the third 
 day since he died, and that certain women had seen a vi- 
 sion of Angels, who said he had risen. Jesus answered and 
 said, *' O fools, and slow of heart, to believe all that the 
 
10 ON FAITH. 
 
 pmpbets have spoken." He then expounded the scripture 
 unto them, beginning at Moses, through all the prophets; how 
 that Christ ought to have suffered for to enter into liis glory. 
 They arrived at the village, and the disciples constrained him 
 to stay with them; he went in, (being towards evening) and 
 while at meat took bread, blessed it, and gave to them, and 
 their eyes were opened, so that they knew him, and he van- 
 ished out of their sight. They immediately returned to Je- 
 rusalem, and meeting the disciples and others assembled 
 together, they made known what had occurred on the way, 
 and how Christ was known to them by breaking of bread. 
 While they yet spake, Jesus appeared hi their midst, saying, 
 " Peace be unto you," but they supposing him to be a spirit, 
 were terrified and affrighted; he said unto them, " Why are 
 ye troubled, and why -do thoughts arise in your hearts ?" he 
 added that a spirit had not flesh and bones as he had, and 
 showed them his hands and feet to convince them of their 
 unbelief; and while they yet doubted and wondered for joy, 
 he demanded whether they had any meat, and did eat be- 
 fore them. He then confirmed his former sayings, that all 
 things had to be fulfilled which was written in the law of 
 Moses, in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning him; 
 and he opened their understanding that they might know the 
 scriptures; that Christ would pour floods of light into every 
 benighted soul, this day illuminate every one so as to obtain 
 a living faith, that the word of God might have free course, 
 and be glorified, that sinners would no longer suffer Satan, 
 the great enemy of immortal souls, to take the word out 
 of their heaits, and deprive them of the comfort they might 
 otherwise enjoy, l)y bringing forth fruit an hundred fold, by 
 believing with the heart unto righteousness. Jesus also said 
 unto them, as it was written, so it l^ehoved Christ to suffer 
 and rise from the dead ihe third day, and that repentance and 
 remission of sins should be preached in his name among all 
 nations, beginning at Jerusalem. It appeared that one of the 
 twelve, named Thomas, was not with them when Jesus 
 
ON FAITH. 1 1 
 
 appeared to them-; ihey informed him of the fact, but his in- 
 credulity induced him to say, that unless he saw the print of 
 the nails and put his finger into them, and his hand into his 
 side, he would not believe. Eight da}s after, they were 
 again together, when Jesus appeared in the midst of them 
 saying, " Peace be unto you;" and to Thomas he said, reach 
 hither thy finger, and behold my har.ds; and reach hither thy 
 hand and thrust it into my side, and be not faithless but be- 
 lieve. Thomas then exclaimed, "My Lord, and my God!" 
 Jesus said unto him, Thomas, because thou hast sc en thou 
 believest; blessed are they that have not seen, and yet believe. 
 So shall it be to the end of time, as long as the earth re- 
 volves; the sun, moon, and stars continue in their courses in 
 the firmament, those that bt^heve shall be saved, and those 
 that believe not shall be damned. *^ Examine yourselves, 
 whether ye be in the faith." 
 
 Again Jesus showed himself to his disciples at the sea of 
 Tiberias, where Simon Peter, Thomas, and five others were 
 together fishing. Having toiled all night and taken nothing, 
 the darkness disappeared before the lustre of the morn, with 
 the Sun illuminating the surrounding scene, when a person 
 appeared on the shore, as if come from a Golden Beam, who 
 accosted them and said, cast thy net on the right hand side 
 of the ship; they therefore dropt it as he said, and were now 
 unable to draw it for the multitude of fishes. The disciple 
 whom Jesus loved, said unto Peter, it is Jesus the Lord. — 
 Peter immediately girt on his coat and threw himself into the 
 water, hastening to his adored; the others followed in the 
 ship, dragging the net. After landing ihey beheld a fire with 
 fish and bread thereon; they there dined with Jesus, who 
 gave them bread and fish; ministering unto them temporal, 
 as well as spiritual things; from whom, with the Father and 
 Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end, cometh every 
 good and perfect gift. There was such holy awe upon them 
 that none durst ask, " Who art thou ?" knowing he was the 
 Prince of Zion. He did not remain with his disciples as he 
 
12 ON FAITH. 
 
 was wont, but his visits were as those of an angel, at inter- 
 vals, to confirm, strengthen and perfect them in their most 
 holy faith, and to prepare them more fully for the ministry; 
 to be his witnesses wherever they should be sent by him, 
 ordaining them to teach all nations, and to baptise them in 
 the name of God the Father, and of God the Son, and of 
 God the Holy Ghost; teaching them to observe all things he 
 had commanded them, and he would be with them always, 
 even unto the end of the world. He was afterwards follow- 
 ed by them, together with many others, in number about five 
 hundred, to Bethany, where he lifted up his hands and bles- 
 sed them, and immediately a cloud received him out of their 
 sight, and carried him up into heaven; the company fell down 
 and worshipped him; and as they were looking after him, 
 towards heaven, two men in white apparel stood by them 
 saying, " Ye men of Gallilee, why stand ye gazing up into 
 heaven? this same Jesus which is taken up from you into 
 heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him 
 go into heaven." They then returned, praising and glorifying 
 God. 
 
 1 have now shown from scripture testimony, beyond the 
 power of contradiction, that Christ was bom; ministered here 
 on earth; accomplished his mission; and ascended up on high, 
 to assume his former greatness; and as mediator of the new 
 covenant which he has established, whom God hath also 
 highly exalted and given him a name above every other, that 
 at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in 
 heaven, and of things on earth, and of things under the earth; 
 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus is Lord, to 
 the glory of God the Father: and also exalted him a Prince 
 and a Saviour for to give repentance and remission of sins to 
 all that come unto him, believing that he is the Saviour, God, 
 and a rewarder of all who diligently seek him. 
 
 His apostles being endued with power from on high, and 
 fiUed with the Holy Ghost, spake with other tongues, testi- 
 fying to all these wonderful things, confounding the people 
 
ON FAITH. IS 
 
 who heard them, every one in his own dialect, from various 
 countries, that were journeying in Jerusalem, and who heard 
 them speak the woriderful works of God; they were amazed 
 and in doubt, saying one to another, " What meaneth this?" 
 others mocked, but Peter with the eleven became more bold 
 and labored with more zeal, and preached more fervently to 
 convince them of the truth stated above, relating to our 
 Emanuel, whom thay had slain, whose soul was not left in 
 hell, neither did his flesh see? corruption; and whom God 
 raised from the dead, and exalted to his own right hand, un- 
 til he should make all his foes his footstool; and he also as- 
 sured them that God had made this same Jesus whom they 
 had crucified, both Lord and Christ; which caused some to 
 tremble, and to be pricked in their hearts, crying out to the 
 Apostles, " x\]en and brethren what sliall we do ?" To which 
 Peter replied, " Kepent and be baptised every one of you in 
 the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye 
 shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost;" and with many 
 words did he testify and exhort, saying, save yourselves from 
 this untoward generation. As many as received these im- 
 portant truths, were baptised, and the same day were added 
 unto the church about three thousand souls, who remained 
 steadfast in the apostle's doctrine and fellowship, and ♦in 
 breaking of bread and in prayers. 
 
 As Peter and John were going into the temple at the time 
 of prayer, they were asked for aims by one who had been 
 impotent in his feet horn his mother's womb; who lay daily 
 at the gate called beautiful, to whom Peter said, silver or 
 gold have 1 none, but such asl have give 1 thee; in the name 
 of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk. Peter took 
 him by the hand, when he immediately received strength, 
 leaped and praised God. The multitude were again aston- 
 ished at w^hat they saw; Peter w ith his former firmness, among 
 other things, said unto them, ye have denied the Holy One 
 and the just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you, 
 and killed the Prince of Life, whom God hath raised from 
 
14 ON FAITH. 
 
 the dead, whiM-eof we are witriasse^i. And Me, through faith 
 in his name, h ith made the man strong, vvhoin they saw and 
 knew; yea the faith that is in him had given him that perfect 
 soundness in the presence of them all. We find that the 
 apostles continued to preach and persuade men to repent, 
 and confirmed their words by miracles, God bearing them 
 witness with signs and wonders, for whom they had the hon- 
 or to suffer persecution, and at different times imprisonment 
 for the benefit of men, and tlie salvation of souls; they pa- 
 tiently endured all things that their enemies might behokl 
 the wonderful mercy and goodness of God, manifested in 
 their behalf, who desireth not the death of a sinner, but 
 rather that all should repent and live. Out of all their per- 
 plexity and trouble the blessed L.ord delivered them, and 
 afterward received them to glory, according to the power of 
 faith which is in Christ Jesus^ '-Examine yourselves,, wheth- 
 er ye be in the faith.'' 
 
 Jesus Christ sayeth, "Not every one that shall say unto 
 me Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but 
 he that doeth the will of my father which is in heaven." A 
 loose, worldly faith, therefore, availeth. nothing, for even tlie 
 devils believe and tremble, knowing that there is no possi- 
 bpility for them to repent, and be accepted through the merit 
 and blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God, which was slain 
 for your sins, provided while you are yet in time, you attain 
 unto a lively faith; a faith which works by love and tempers 
 every unholy feeling to its own congenial nature; purifying 
 your affections, so that you may be able to love, reverence, 
 and honor God as you should; to warship him in spirit and 
 in truth and in the beauty of holiness; to delight mo^e and 
 more in God and every thing heavenly and divine; abhoring 
 at the same time all that has the least appearance of evil; 
 and to pant after the perfect love of God, as a hart panteth 
 after the water-brook; longing for it as for your daily foo^; 
 as it is written, the just shall live by faith, and whatsoever 
 is not of faith is sinful; you will then do all for the glory of 
 
ON FAITH. 15 
 
 God, and shun every thing that is opposed to vital Godliness 
 and the spreading of true Christianity over the whole earth; 
 you will no longer seek after earthly things doomed to perish 
 as the grass, nor your own glory, which passeth away as the 
 flower of the field; but after the things above, where also 
 Jesus has entered into the holy of holies; your conversation 
 will be in heaven; you will feast in love with the Father and 
 the Son, through the instrumentality of the Holy Ghost; fore- 
 taste of the immortal sweets which the holy hill of Sion 
 yields to the true believer, whose trust is in simplicity, in the 
 goodness and mercy of God, with sincerity and uprightness 
 of heart, humbly laying Iiold on the Omnipotent Arm of Je- 
 hovah, and pressing toward the mark of their high calling 
 which is in Christ Jesus; always zealously affected in a good 
 thing; fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; instant in prayer in 
 season and out of season; watching and supplicating to grow 
 in grace, in knowledge, wisdom and understanding, in heav- 
 enly-mindedness; to belike unto the Angels of God, pure and 
 holy; with whom you are certain if you endure unto the end, 
 to associate; you will therefore watch and pray, so that no 
 man take away yo u* crown; sing praises and make melody 
 in your heart unto God; whose temple you are, as our dear 
 Saviour saith, John, 14th chapter, 23d verse — " If a man 
 love me he will keep my words, and my Father will honor 
 him, and we will come unto him and make our abode with 
 him." You will also walk. in the spirit every day, so as not 
 (o fulfil the lusts of the flesh, for he that commiteth sin and 
 indulges in carnal pleasures to gratify his own passions, or 
 to please his neighbors, contniry to all revelation, and to the 
 will of God, is of the devil, who is the father of all evil, a liar 
 and murderer from tha beginning. I exhort you, young and 
 old, by all that should be most dear to you; by your immor- 
 tal souls, to dissolve all connection this day, with so foul and 
 cruel a master; no longer to be his slaves, remaining in bon- 
 dage to him, driven hither and thither in his abominable 
 cause; mark the result when persevered in — eternal death. 
 
16 ON FAITH. 
 
 and the torments of hell and outer darkness, prepared for him 
 and his angels, as a recompence of reward; O poor com- 
 pensation, yet there is none other promised to those dying in 
 his service, who will never have known true peace and com- 
 fort in time, to be enjoyed by a life of Godliness, and in eter- 
 nity, as we have stated, everlasting contempt and banishment 
 from the presence of God, the Lord Christ, the Holy Angels, 
 and the just made perfect; living in resplendent glory, surpas- 
 sing the lustre of the meridian Sun, unutterable bliss, and in- 
 describable holy happiness. 1 exhort you once more to break 
 all ties with Satan, as you cannot serve him and God; there- 
 fore, if you desire to be saved through the atonement of 
 Christ, the mighty chieftain of our salvation, break, I say, 
 break the bonds of Satan, by which you are held captive at 
 his will — through the power of faith working by love, which 
 you may obtain without money and without price, at the foot 
 of the cross. 
 
 We shall now proceed to the second part of our subject. 
 Secondly. Prove your ownselves : — 
 
 As each and every one, seperately and collectively, as a 
 body, is and are responsible for all that is done here in time, 
 to our great Parent, the Autlior of our being, and every good 
 and perfect gift, our bountiful benefactor, and merciful provi- 
 der; whose promises to all true believers, are yea and amen, 
 everlasting lite in Heaven to all holy; and outer darkness 
 prepared for the devil and his angels, where there shall be 
 weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth, to all unbeliev- 
 eis, the seed of the serpent forever. God through Christ, 
 the Almighty, the habitation of whose throne is Justice, and 
 Judgment goeth before him, will most assuredly fulfil his 
 words, although heaven and earth pass away, and doom ev- 
 ery impenitent sinner to eternal death: ah! were it a death 
 like unto the brute creation's, an annihilation forever, there 
 would be some excuse for sinners to live as they do, day after 
 day, and night after night, working iniquity with greediness; 
 but be it known to all you, that God, glory to his name, has 
 
ON FAITH. 17 
 
 honored us far above the animal creation, which 1 need not 
 inform you, neither speak nor understand to any perfection; 
 they are incapable of arranging ideas; they are void of com. l 
 prehension, and therefore, not accountable to their Creator 
 for their actions, as are men who possess immortal souls; yet 
 notwithstanding, by their demeanor they often give the blush 
 to some of the doings of men performed in the dark, and too 
 often in the open day, in the face of High Heaven, and Him 
 that sitteth oa the throne, who is perfect in holiness. O th^ 
 filthy odour ascending from the abominations committed on 
 the earth, instead of praises and blessings to mingle with the 
 heavenly strains of the celestial hosts, who unweariedly sing 
 " Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, who wast, and 
 art, and art to come; just and true are thy ways, thou King 
 of Saints." iVIen, I say again, are accountable for their ac- 
 tions, because Adam and Eve, our first parents, came pure 
 and holy from the hands of the Creator, in his own hkeness, 
 with immortal souls and faculties to reason and understand, 
 to commune and hold conversation together for the consum- 
 mation of their happiness; in which state they might have 
 remained, being free agents, but through the subtilty of Satan 
 they fell from their high and holy estate, and awful was the 
 consequence; disgrace upon themselves, and expulsion from 
 Paradise, and sin and misery upon all their posterity, whence 
 it comes that men are all born in sin and prone to evil. — 
 However, God, whose mercy endureth forever, came to our 
 relief and provided a remedy to heal the breach and open a 
 way to glory, as 1 have stated in the preceeding part of my 
 discourse : — " Behold I lay in Sion a stumbling stone and 
 rock of offence, that whosoever believeth on him shall be 
 saved, and whosoever believeth not shall be damned." Men 
 and brethren you are called upon to prove your ownselves, 
 whether ye are not offended at this stumbling stone, and rock 
 of offence; pry into the secrets of your hearts, and see if you 
 have any inclination to undervalue the merit of this holy 
 Being, who is often made an object of ridicule by little 
 
 4 
 
18 ON FAITH. 
 
 minds; or, do you openly profane and blaspheme his holy 
 name, as too many do, making light of divine things, taking 
 the holy name of God and his Christ into their polluted lips, 
 making puns upon them to amuse their hearers and appear 
 witty, not knowing that they are proving themselves desti- 
 tute of common sense; or are you building upon this founda- 
 tion, firm as eternal ages; are you through Christ purging 
 your conscience from dead works to serve the living God, 
 that will recommend you to the sight of all men. TaKe the 
 New Testament and prove your ownselves, whether your 
 hearts are right in the sight of God; be not deceived, for God 
 is not mocked; knowing his terrors we would fain persuade 
 you to turn fiom the error of your ways, turn, turn you, why 
 will ye die ? Vengeance belongeth to me, I will recompence 
 saith the Lord, the Holy one of Israel. And again, the Lord 
 will judge his people. Verily it is a fearful thing to fall into 
 the hands of the hving God. 
 Thirdly. Know ye not your ownselves^ how that Jesus Christ 
 
 is in you^ except ye be reprobates? 
 
 Now to know oneself is no small matter. The deprav- 
 ity and desperate wickedness of the human heart, who can 
 know it ? No one is sufficient of himself, without the aid of 
 the Holy Spirit, to attain to a knowledge of himself. The 
 deceitfulness of sin, and the subtle suggestions of Satan mix 
 with the corrupt nature almost imperceptibly, and those that 
 are not thoroughly awake, and under divine influence, will 
 be unable to discover the seed thus sown by the wicked one, 
 until they are overgrown with weeds and briars, thorns and 
 thistles, the pricking of which will at length rouse them from 
 their carnal sleep and unholy dreaming, when they will dis- 
 cover they have been deceived; but alas! for many it will 
 then be forever too late, having passed the rubicon of time to 
 appear before the inflexible bar of Christ. Would it not there- 
 fore, be infinitely better for every one to judge himself here, 
 and without delay, than to be judged beyond the grave; for 
 Christ saith, " He that judgeth himself shall not be judged," 
 
s ON FAITH. 19 
 
 SYieaniiig also of course, that he will depart from all iniquity, 
 and lead a new and holy life. But, say some, how can we 
 judge ourselves, without knowing that which is sin from that 
 which is holy ? True, you cannot, therefore, read and Be- 
 lieve the scriptures, for in them ye think ye have eternal life, 
 and they are they which testify of me, saith the Judge of all 
 the earth. Keep his words and commandments, which shall 
 judge you at the last day; to disregard them you are at once 
 guilty criminals in his sight, and his wrath abides upon you, 
 because you say in effect we will not have him to reign over 
 us. Who is he that should make laws for us ? It is indeed 
 lamentable to know that there are thousands, yea millions of 
 human beings in the world, called christians, who hve with- 
 out hope, and consequently a saving knowledge of God, and 
 trample his holy laws under foot with impunity, while at the 
 same time the commandments of men they will not presume 
 to violate! It is astonishing the hatred some bear towards 
 the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, with whose statutes 
 holy King David was so much delighted, declaring them to 
 be "just, and wise, and good;" and at another place he saySf 
 *^ Depart from me ye evil doers, for 1 will keep the command- 
 ments of my God." Who art thou O man, that darest to 
 magnify thyself and contemn the counsels of the Most Ingh? 
 to annul those laws that were given to Moses, the man of 
 God, with such terrible majesty, and awful solemnity on 
 Mount Sinai ? Read \t in Exodus, 20th chapter, when the 
 Lord descended in a cloud, wmd, fire, thunder lightning and 
 tempest, and the mighty soundings of the tmmpet; when the 
 Mount greatly quaked, the sight being so terrible that even 
 Moses said, " I exceedingly fear and quake;'' his whok^ host 
 trembled. Having been Ibrty days and nights with G' d on 
 the Mount, during which time he eat nothing, but received 
 and descended with the Divine Law of the Ten Command- 
 ments written upon stone by God himself, and which -r.re to 
 endure until time shall be no more; neither are they made 
 void by the new covenant which is by Jesus Christ. The 
 
2a ON FArrH. 
 
 great apostle saith by faith we do not annul but establish the 
 law. Remember all that is written in the law and the proph- 
 ets shall be fulfilled; consequently no idolator, nor swearer, 
 nor blasphemer, nor Sabbath breaker, nor despiser of parents, 
 nor murderer, nor adulterer, nor fornicator, nor false accuser, 
 nor covetou'=, nor whoremonger, nor abuser of himself with 
 mankind, nor drunkard, shall enter into the kingdom of God, 
 unless they labor to know themselves, and that their practi- 
 ces are an abomination in the sight of heaven, and repent 
 of their sins at the foot of the cross, through our Saviour and 
 Me.li;itor, Jesus Chi ist — the Way, the Truth, and the Life — 
 and put on the new man, which after him is created in righte- 
 ousness and true holiness. Know this, O hardened sinners, 
 that he is constantly interceeding with the Father in your be- 
 half, to stay his avenging rod, that he would dig about you, 
 that haply you may bring forth good fruit, if ye are not al- 
 ready given over to hardness of heart and reprobacy of mind? 
 if not, that you shoukl then be cut down as dead trees and as 
 euviiberers of the ground, and cast into the unquenchable 
 fire. 
 
 2d. How that Jesus Christ is in you except ye he reprobates? 
 All you that have been born again, as our Lord said to 
 Nichodemus, of water and of the spirit, regenerated, passed 
 from condemnation into hfe, by a lively faith in Jesus through 
 his merit and righteousness, and being purified by his most 
 prec ous and holy blood, which cleanses from all sins, and to 
 whom Christ has become wisdom, and righteousness, and 
 sanctification and redemption, are the temple of God, 
 " Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that th^ 
 spirit of God dwelleth in you;" 1st. Cor., 3d chap. IGth ver. 
 And if God, then Jesus Christ, who is God, dwelleth in you, 
 even the Mystic Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit; 
 pollute not therefore, so holy a tabernacle, by listening to 
 the Unholy suggestions of ^atan, to beguile you into your 
 old habits in which we used to walk, fulfilling the lusts o 
 the flesh, but out of which v\e have passed into the gJoriaus 
 
ON FAITH. n 
 
 liberty which is in Jesus Christ, our master and pattern, 
 through whom we have attained unto the fulness of his blessed 
 stature in holiness; let it not therefore, be once mentioned 
 among you, that you desired to indulge in any carnal pleas- 
 ure, and thus lower the dignity of true Saints, and bring into 
 disrepute vital Christianity at the same time, and above all 
 doing despite to the holy spirit of grace whose temple we are, 
 being reconciled unto God through faith in Jesus Christ, our 
 Lord, and enabled to cry Abba, Abba Father, in the lan- 
 guage of the New Testament, and privileged boldly to ap- 
 proach him and hold sweet communion with him, as a child 
 with his father, by prayer and supplications, singing and 
 meditations, and devotional exercises. W'e also enjoy the 
 blessing of the direct witness of the Holy Spirit, testifying 
 with our spirits, that we are born of God, and adopted sons 
 a^id heirs, and joint heirs w»th Christ; and by remciining 
 faithful, shall soon be with him in Paradise, where he is en- 
 throned in indescribable Glory; eye hath not seen, nor ear 
 heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man to con- 
 ceive the joys prepared for his saints and peculiar people, 
 zealous of good works; and to keep under our adversary th« 
 Prince of darkness, and his force, our spiritual enemies, or- 
 ganized under him, and going about as roaring Lions, and 
 Wolves in Sheep's clothing, seeking whom they may devour, 
 combined with men in the shape of ourselves, who have the 
 form of Godhness but deny the power, building for themselves 
 cisterns, broken cisterns which can hold no water; their case 
 is lamentable in the extreme, as many of them come under 
 the conclusion of our text. St. Paul also terms them "men 
 of corrupt minds, reprobates, concerning the faith; ever learn- 
 ing and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth;'' 
 creatures Vi^ho delight in pleasure: enemies to vital christian- 
 ty and holiness, consequently diametrically opposed to the 
 kingdom of heaven, and to God who dwelleth in the High 
 and Holy place, and saith, "Be ye holy as 1 am holy." Ex- 
 >amin€ and prove yourselves, your immortal souls are at 
 
22 ON FAITH. 
 
 stake; heaven or hell for a recompense; eternal blisSy or eter- 
 nal torment. The righteous will be most certainly received 
 into glory, to live in great joy and rejoicing forever; and the 
 wicked with all the nations that forget God, will as certainly 
 be turned into hell and tormented forever. It is high time to 
 be men in understanding, and resist the adversary, your old 
 ma'^ter, and tell him you will no longer submit to his yoke, 
 to be hewers of wood and drawers of water for him, or, in 
 other words, that you will no longer serve him, be his slaves, 
 or fulfil criminal indulgences, the lusts of the flesh in va- 
 rious ways; resist I repeat; the devil resolutely at the foot of 
 the cross, with full purpose of heart henceforth to serve the 
 true and living God, and Satan shall flee from you, for 
 Christ hath spoken it. O that you would become believing, 
 obedient children. O that you would consider your latter 
 end ere it be too late. Where would your immortal souls 
 be most happy ? I presume you all admit that you have 
 souls, or am I addressing infidels? there may be some among 
 us, however, may they by the grace of God, be roused from 
 their unholy dreaming ere they awake in hell. Where 
 would your immortal souls be now, had God — do you believe 
 there is a God, or do I address atheists ? if you believe in the 
 Divine Being, Omniscient, Omnipresent, and Omnipotent, 
 why do you dare to disobey his words and dishonor him, and 
 also despise the inestimable treasure, when properly cultiva- 
 ted, in your possession; that spark which is to live forever, 
 either in heaven or hell; that portion of the Deity, your im- 
 mortal souls — had God called or would now summon you to 
 give account at his bar, had death overtaken or would do so' 
 ere to morrow's Sun; remember the time and the seasons are 
 in J hovah's hands; how do you think you w^ould fare in eter- 
 nity? would this discourse also ha v<^ availed you nothing;: 
 been as good seed sown upon hard, dry, and unpioductive 
 ground; repelled by the adamantine texture of your hearts; 
 or snatched away by Satan your cruel enemy, who hitherto 
 held you in bondage and slavery, kept your souls in darkness. 
 
ON FAITH. 23 
 
 deluHing: you in various ways, making you believe that the 
 glorious gospel scheme of Salvation, through our blessed Lord 
 Jesus Christ, was all a chimera; and even succeeded in get- 
 ting some to believe there was no God, no heaven to gain 
 nor hell to shun, and that they had no immortal souls; level- 
 ling them, on this subject, to the brute creation, which neither 
 speak nor understand. I would fain caution you now to put 
 you on your guard foi the future; to beware of his subtilty; 
 he will keep you in his service forever, if you do not out gen- 
 eral him, through the merits of Jesus Christ, the King of Glo- 
 ry, and take refuge in the Rock of Ages, and repel him with 
 the christian's armor, with the shield of faith, the helmet of 
 hope, the breast-piate of righteousness, and the sword of the 
 Holy Spirit, which is also the word of God. Be therefore, 
 up and doing; work out your soul's salvation with fear and 
 trembling while it is day, ere the night comes upon you and 
 ye will then be unable so to do; if you persevere in your re- 
 bellion against God, instead of warring in his cause, for his 
 glory and also yours, as there is none other worth a straw, 
 you are liable to be given over, (having exhausted God's 
 mercy in your behalf) to hardness of heart and reprobateness 
 of mind, and thus come under the last clause of our text. — 
 Furthermore, they that have been often reproved and stiffen 
 their necks shall be cut off suddenly,and that without remedy, 
 and this may be to all of you. O self-secure, drowsy sinners, 
 in a few more revolving suns your bodies may be buried bej 
 neath the clods of the valley, or perhaps some with more 
 pomp and ceremony, in some temple or cathedral, with a 
 tablet over your mortal remains to secure your fame to 
 posterity, to live forever as the blind world calls it; while 
 your immortal souls may be in torments with the damned, 
 having been condemned at the bar of Jehovah, and dopmed 
 to a death that never, never ends. Now while it is yet this 
 side the grave, 1 would fain whisper it into every one of 
 your ears, yea, and also proclaim it upon the, house top» 
 that the only way to live forever, is through faith in Him 
 
24 ON FAITH. 
 
 who saith, " 1 am the resurrection and the life, he that be. 
 heveth in mc though he were dead yet shall he live, arid he 
 that liveth and believeth in me shall never die." May this 
 be the portion of us all, through Jesus Christ our Lord, to 
 whom with Father and Holy Spirit, be all the honor, glory, 
 dominion, majesty and power, now, henceforth, and forever- 
 more. Amen. 
 
DISCOURSE II. 
 
 ON FAITH. 
 
 Faith Cometh by hearings and hearing by the word of God, 
 Romans^ \Oth chapter,, 11 th verse. 
 
 These are the words of the great apostle to the Romans, 
 a people who had been, previous to his mission among them, 
 in a state of barbarism, worshipping strange Gods, birds, 
 beasts, and creeping things, and thus indulging in gross idol- 
 atries; they did notUke to retain the knowledge of the true 
 God in their minds, and consequently were given over by 
 the Ahuighty to commit all manner of filthy lewdness, to the 
 abusing their bodies between one another; even their women 
 left off the natural way and permitted themselves to be used 
 against nature and even savage decency, and if you allow 
 me the expression, civilization. He also describes them as 
 implacably unmerciful, full of eavy, hatred, malice, murder, 
 deceit, estranged from all natural affection and more akin to 
 the beasts, if not below them, than to say even a moral state 
 of human beings; and therefore, without doubt, worshippers 
 of devils, exercising themselves in their hellish inventions, 
 working in the black art with familiar spirits, with devils, 
 and committing all filthy abominations with these foul spirits, 
 and consequently stunk in the nostrils of Jehovah, as all have 
 done before them, and will to the end of time, that are so 
 far degenerated and sunk beneath the decency of swine and 
 dogs. When a nation becomes thus degraded, as mentioned 
 by our blessed Lord in his sermon on the mount, they may 
 expect little else than to be speedily judged from on high, 
 and that a holy God will avenge himself of such filthy, dis- 
 gusting creatures, and cleanse his nostrils of the stink; he 
 had done it in many instances before, and even the people 
 whom he chose to put iiis name upon did not escape his 
 
26 ON FAITH. 
 
 judgments and avenging rod. He bears an inveterate ha- 
 tred ngaiiist all that live in such abominable filthiness, even 
 individually, and how much more w^hen a nation disregards 
 his smiles and frowns, and in all their proceedings think to 
 vex him, and to stink more and more in his nostrils. Verily 
 their career is hastening to a speedy close, their days are 
 numbered, their destruction is hastening on apace, and as 
 holy David says, "They are turned into hell." And so it was 
 also with this nation, he brought their pride down to the 
 dung heap, and what are they now as a nation ? only for 
 people resorting thither from other nations, they would be un- 
 able to get a temporal livelihood. 
 
 Thus the Omniscient eye of the Lord of Hosts dodges 
 after the ways of the wicked, and his Omnipotent arm strikes 
 them to the ground. He is a God jealous of his own glory, 
 and will never give up the earth to the devil, as some may 
 vainly imagine, but will always have a holy nation of Kings 
 and Priests, among all nations of the earth, a peculiar people 
 whom he delights to honor : — 
 
 "He looks 'mid circumvolving spheres, 
 
 Complaisant on his ransom'd heirs, 
 More dear than all his works beside, 
 
 Blest souls for whom the Saviour died." 
 
 Yea verily, God does in his saints delight; they are the ap- 
 ple of his eye, and as trees planted by the rivers of waters? 
 bringing forth fruit of a sweet savour; their leaves also shall 
 not wither, and they shall flourish as the rose and the lilly 
 under the light of his countenance. " The ungodly are not 
 so, but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away." — 
 ' Therefore tha ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor 
 sinners in the congregation of the righteous." " For the 
 Lord knoweth the way of the righteous, but the way of the 
 ungodly shall perish." 
 
 I have been thus lengthy descanting on the prevailing sins 
 of the Romans, and for which also other nations were anni- 
 hilated, because I am among creatures of similar dispositions, 
 
ON FAITH. 27 
 
 a nation of evil-doers, which do away from before their eyes 
 the fear of the Holy and Omnipotent God, and revel in 
 abominations similar to their brethren, the Romans and oth- 
 ers, and like them glory in their shame; therefore ] am con- 
 strained, yea I am enjoined by my blessed master, the worthy 
 Judge Eternal, to warn you to flee from the wrath to come. 
 " Spare not, but cry aloud, show the people their transgres- 
 sions, and the house of Israel their sins." Son of man. — 
 "These men have set up tiieir idols in their heart, and put 
 the stumbling block of their iniquity before their face; should 
 1 be enquired of at all by them?" Therefore thus saith the 
 Lord God, " Repent and turn yourselves from your idols, 
 and turn away your faces from all your abominations." 
 " For every one which separateth himself from me, and set, 
 teth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumbling-block 
 of iniquity before his face, I will set my face against that 
 man, and will make him a sign and a proverb, and 1 will cut 
 him off from the midst of my people, and ye shall know that 
 I am the Lord." Son of man. " When the land sinneth 
 against me by tresspassing grievously, then will 1 stretch out 
 my hand upon it, and I will break the stafifof bread thereof, and 
 and will send famine ufjonit and cut off man and beast from it; 
 and if I brin^: a sword upon that land and say,sword go through 
 the land, so that I cut off man and beast from it; or if I send 
 a pestilence into that land and pour out my fury upon it in 
 blood, to cut off man and beast, though Noah, Daniel and 
 Job were in it, as I live saith the Lord God, they shall deliver 
 neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own 
 souls by their righteousness." [Read Ezekiel, 14th chap. 
 O how odius, abominable and disgusting a people can be- 
 come to a holy God, an utter abhorrence, and as dung in his 
 sight; so much so that in their general destruction his own 
 people are not always, through his mercy, spared from falling 
 in the overthrow, and should they even be as holy as JNoah» 
 Daniel and Job, yet however, their souls will be safe — will 
 be received into glory. 
 
28 ON FAITH. 
 
 Faith Cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of 
 God ; which, by him was put into the mouths of his proph 
 ets, apostles and true ambassadors, and they spake as they 
 were moved by the Holy Ghost, and these words are now 
 printed in a book which w^e call a " Bible," so that every 
 one that can read may discover his duty to himself, to the 
 nation he belongs, to the whole human family, and above 
 all to his God ; or however, He who ought to be his God ; 
 the God that governs the heavens and the earth, who sits in 
 the high and holy place, and sees all that passes in the uni- 
 verse. And they that cannot read may hear others read, 
 and thus likewise, be informed of their duty; and all may 
 have frequent opportunity to hear a true messenger, a holy 
 man of God, sent to deliver his words to rebellious sinners. 
 I must however confess, that there are very few of this pre- 
 cious sort now abroad ; those that officiate in the sanctuary, 
 have nearly, if not all, sunk in the general degradation, and 
 have their delight in the prevailing abomination, and there- 
 fore, 1 have also a message to them. 
 
 " Son of man, prophecy against the prophets of Israel that 
 prophecy out of their own hearts, hear ye the word of the 
 Lord: "Wo unto the foolish prophets, they are like the foxes 
 in the desert; they have not gone up into the gaps, neither 
 made up the hedge for the house of Israel, to stand in the 
 battle in the day of the Lord. They have seen vanity and 
 lying divinations, and they have made othei-s to hope that 
 they would confirm the word." Therefore, thus saith the 
 Lord God, " Because ye have spoken vanity, and seen lies, 
 therefore, behold, I am against you, saith the Lord God ; 
 and my hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and 
 that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of my 
 people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the 
 house of Israel, (the lambs book of life,) neither shall they 
 enter into the land of Israel, (the Paradise above,) and ye 
 shall know that I am the Lord God." " Because, even be- 
 cause they have seduced my people, saying; peace, and 
 
ON FAITH. 29 
 
 there was no peace; building up walls and daubing them with 
 untenipered mortar; say unto them which daub it with un- 
 tempered mortar, it shall fall ; so will 1 break down the wall 
 that ye have daubed with untempered mortar, and bring it 
 down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be 
 discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the 
 midst thereof; and ye shall know that 1 am the Lord. Thus 
 will 1 accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon them 
 that have daubed it with untempered mortar, and will say 
 unto you, the wall is no more, neither they that daubed it." 
 
 Thus will the Lord God avenge himself of his filthy ene- 
 mies, which have become stink in his nostrils, and that go 
 about glorying in their shame, when they ought to tremble 
 and quake and hide their dinnnislied heads. " Enter into 
 the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the Lord, and 
 for the glory of his majesty." Yea, they ought ever to be 
 ashamed before the Angels and Saints of Heaven, if they 
 are not so of those on earth, — because they are so very, very 
 few — in consequence of their misdoing in not watching over 
 the souls of those over whom they preside or presided, until 
 the devil made them confirmed children of hell ; now they 
 can partake of their sins, work their filthy abominations 
 together, and go in and out among their swinish brethren ; 
 vide sermon on the mount — and say the Lord is such a one 
 as I am: thus with one accord trample the precious and 
 holy blood of Christ under their feet, and make his words of 
 no effect ; and if ever they were converted unto God, through 
 the blood of our blessed High Priest, and ordained by the 
 Holy Ghost to preach the gospel, they cannot possibly be 
 so now — as the} do not walk with him, nor seek to please 
 and honor him, nor strive to save their souls, nor those of 
 their fellow men. They draw nigh to God with their lips, 
 while their hearts are far from him ; and unless they become 
 converted, their faith becomes a living faith in Jesus, and 
 their righteousness exceeds that of the Scribes and Phara- 
 sees: they shall never enter into Jehovah's kingdom ; into his 
 rest ; into the home of the saints. 
 
30 ON FAITH. 
 
 There may, however, be exceptions to the general de- 
 generacy of those that work among the holy things, but 
 where they are, God knows, 1 do not. Yea, verily, God 
 knows and standeth for his people who boldly fight un- 
 der the banner of Jesus, the captain of our salvation; 
 through him we shall overcome and bear off the prize. 
 He it is who treadeth down our enemies, although they 
 be as the sand of the sea, innumerable. Church, so cal- 
 led; no church out of Christ; in him is the true church, 
 whose head he is — church and state fighting against us, by 
 consequence fight against Christ, against God, the sovereign 
 creator and ruler of the universe; they cannot and shall not 
 endure when he speedily arises to shake terribly the earth. 
 " The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughti- 
 ness of man shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall 
 be exalted in that day." "In that day shall the branch of 
 the Lord be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth 
 shall be excellent and comely lor them that are escaped of 
 Israel." Yea, shall the Lord not arise to greater judgment 
 and avenge himself of a nation like this? O ye get:eration 
 of vipers, flee, flee from the wrath to come; repent ye, repent 
 of your sins and abominations, do away the evil from before 
 the holy eyes of the Lord; hear the words of life, *'confess 
 your sins with your mouth and believe in your heart unto 
 righteousness," even the righteousness of Jesus, that ye may 
 be able to stand in the judgment with the saints of God and 
 the Lamb. 
 
 As a nation hear ye the words of the Lord, not in vain but 
 to invite you to immediate action, the case will admit of no 
 delay — as also Ninevah heard and believed the words of Jo- 
 nah, and consequently immediately repented in sackcloth 
 and ashes, and the judgments of Jehovah were arrested, go 
 ye speedily and do likewise, that haply his judgments be 
 stayed and ye perish not in the gainsaying of Core; and be- 
 come an example to the rest of the world, like unto Sodam 
 and Gomorrah. " Wo unto them that call evil good and 
 
ON FAITH. 31 
 
 good evil ; that put darkness for light and light for darkness; 
 that put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter; which justify 
 the wicked for a reward, and take away the righteousness of 
 the righteous from him," therefore, "as the fire devoureth the 
 stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root 
 shall be rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust; 
 because they have cast away the law of the Lord of Hosts, 
 and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel." 
 
 These are terrible denunciations, even to individual sinners, 
 but when a nation becomes degraded in wickedness, wise in 
 their own conceit, proud, vain boasters, and exalt themselves 
 even to the very vault of heaven, and boast that through the 
 power which they act, (the devil's,) they would pluck even 
 God himself from his throne, if they could; it is something 
 that they recollect themselves a little and make this proviso. 
 Yes verily, but you will not succeed; you have seen lying 
 visions and they shall avail you nothing; but I say if ye will 
 not repent, but become more filthy and stiff-necked, then like 
 serpents "hide yourselves in the clefts of the rocks and in 
 the tops of the rugged rocks, for fear of the Lord, and for 
 the glory of his majesty, when he arises to shake terribly 
 the earth." Probably ye might thus escape so as to live on 
 the earth although dead, a little while longer, and kno'o good 
 between one another; (even good which ye esteem preferable 
 to that from above;) but surely at the general destruction on 
 the last day, when worlds shall be crushed and hurled to 
 atoms; nations be destroyed; churches obliterated; the earth 
 in a conflagration, and the very heavens passing away, rolled 
 together as a scroll; ye cannot escape by hiding in the dens 
 and caverns of the rocks and calling on the mountains to fall 
 upon you. No! my hearers, there are but few clefts that will 
 then avail, and those only who were wise and sought shelter 
 there betimes; these are the clefts of the Rock of Ages. He, 
 the ever blessed Jesus, will himself preside as judge, therefore 
 we who heard and believe his words to do them, to the sa- 
 ving of our souls, to the being found in him, through faith 
 
32 ON FAITH. 
 
 which worketh by love, shall live with our blessed Father 
 and King, God and Saviour, and the holy angels, in the new 
 heaven and earth forever and ever. And you who would 
 have none of his holiness, from whom cometh every good 
 and perfect gift, the blessedness of heaven on earth, with a 
 certain promise of a final heaven through all eternity, but 
 would have your good, as you esteemed it, among yourselves 
 and the devils, you shall also now be cast into the lake which 
 burneth with fire and brimstone, where there shall be weep- 
 ing and waihng and gnashing of teeth, prepared for the dev- 
 il, your father, and his angels, your brethren, and ye shall be 
 tormented through the endless ages of eternity. 
 
 Now that you are yet this side of that gulph of despair, 
 and as a nation, have your heads above water, (or brimstone,) 
 humble yourselves therefore, under the mighty hand of God ? 
 the words of Christ, which shall judge every one of you 
 on the last day. 1 address you individually and collec- 
 tiyely — 1 say again, have faith in Christ and his words, to 
 do them, to the saving of your souls; have faith and lay hold 
 on the Omnipotent Arm of Jehovah and make your peace 
 with him. Let every one of you consider and weigh this 
 matter seriously, and then conclude whether ye had not 
 better repent, believe the gospel and live holy and godly lives. 
 The domgs of every one of you contribute to make up the 
 sum total of this nation, whether of righteousness or wicked- 
 ness; righteousness exalteth a nation, but wickedness and 
 iniquity degradeth it, and is the cause of every evil and des- 
 truction at last. And therefore, why continue in this dread- 
 ful course of rebellion ? why not much rather repent one and 
 all, and be at peace with an offended God; and should you 
 even hold out as a nation a few years longer, hear the 
 words and believe, " It is given unto all men once to die and 
 after that the judgment." I refer you to what has been stated 
 on this subject. Therefore you may put away the thoughts 
 of death whenever they trouble and frighten you, but surely 
 when the messenger himself arrives you cannot compromise 
 
ON FAITH. 33 
 
 with him; you cannot put him off until some convenient 
 timr; do ye not see clearly ye are dying mortals, liable to be 
 turned to dust every moment, as your hvesarr^ in the hands 
 of an angry God; and hear this, "the wicked shall not live out 
 half their days;" and "the Lord will avenge him of his ene- 
 mies." His honor must be vindicated, his justice satisfied, 
 and his name glorified. 1 impress it on you again to repent, 
 believe the gospel, live holy lives; if ye value your s'>uls re- 
 pent; if you value your wives and children or any thing else 
 according to Godliness, repent; if you value this land, the in- 
 stitution- thereof, and (his nation, repent; and above all if 
 ye value the joys of heaven, repent and believe the gospel, 
 "for there is more joy in heaven among the holy angels of 
 God over one sinner that repenteth than over ninety and nine 
 just made perfect." And will ye not do something for the 
 joy of others, particularly such lovely beings, and at the same 
 time be bsnefited so greatly yourselves, be sucli infinite gain- 
 ers as to b'^ reinstated to the Rivor and exalted to the holy 
 imdge of our blessed Jehovah; and then the sweet peace which 
 ye shall have which passeth all understanding, which the 
 world cannot give nor take away, and which shall endure 
 and increase in heaven forever more. 
 
 If ye thus turn unto God through faith in our blessed Sa- 
 viour Jesus Christ, and put on the new man of holiness, 
 show respect and reverence to the Deity, he will return unto 
 you and honor you, and "set you on high because ye know 
 his name;" and ye shall have trus peace, joy, and happiness, 
 for out of God it is not to be found; this I know by experience^ 
 and many holy men have testified to the same before me, 
 even Solomon, the wisest of men, after having indulged him- 
 self in the pleasures of the table, wine and women, horses 
 and chariots, building of cities, and many other things to di- 
 veit the mind; ] say, after havmg experimented upon, and 
 proved the efficacy of almost every thing under the Sun to 
 aid the increase ot his happiness, he returns to God and 
 declares, that all that is contrary to a hfe of godliness is but 
 
 5 
 
34 ON FAITH. 
 
 vanity and vexation of spirit, and that to '•' Fear God and 
 keep his commandments, is the whole duty of man." " Kor 
 God shall bring every work into judgment with every secret 
 thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil." [Excles'. 
 last chapter ] And since then, my dear readers, how many 
 individuals, how many hundreds of persons that have lived 
 in sin and iniquity, have sought in a career of criminal in- 
 dulgences, peace and comfort for their poor souls, but that 
 were never able to obtani rest for their troubled Fpirits, until 
 they found it at the foot of the cross, until through the atone- 
 ment of Jesus, through faith in the Lamb of God and his 
 blood, they were purified from all "fillhniess of flesi) and 
 spirit;" were born again, renovated and thoroughly regener- 
 ated, enabled to lay oft" the old man of sm, and put on the 
 new man of righteousness and holiness; became froeiy jus- 
 tified and sanctified through faith in Him who, through His 
 boundless love to degraded man, became emphatically the 
 propitiation for the sms of the world, that the blessed God 
 *'-might be just and the jusliher of him that believeth in Jesus." 
 Thus thousands were through the forbearance, goodness and 
 mercy of God, and through our blessed Saviour, Jesus Christ, 
 reinstated to favor and the holy Image of our tieavenly 
 Father, became sons by adoption, and heirs of glory; even 
 joint heirs with Christ himself of inheritances incorruptible? 
 undefiled, and that never, no never fade away; eternal in the 
 heavens. Thus these peculiar, excentric, as the blind world 
 calls christians, people were endued from on high with the 
 blessings of salvation; love, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, 
 that peace that passeth all understanding, which is not to 
 be found in the world; which the carnal man is a stranger to, 
 and which confounds the worldly-wise in their wisdom, and 
 the fools in their vain imaginations, particularly those who 
 say in their hearts '*There is no God." 
 
 These holy champions of the cross, comprising a holy na- 
 tion, within maiiy nations; a royal priesthood, zealous of 
 good works, to glorify God their Saviour and King, and to 
 
ON FAITH. 35 
 
 benefit their fellow beings sojourning in tins vale of tears, on 
 the brink of eternity. They were therefore, emphatically 
 the salt of the earth, the excellent of the earth, the lights of 
 the world, and in their glory was manifest the image of Je- 
 hovah, and the world could take knowledge that they had 
 been with Jesus, for none can impart wit;dom and every 
 grace like He, neither did they love their lives, but rather 
 hated them for Christ's sake, so that they might keep them 
 throu^,hout the endless ages of eternity. 
 
 They were decided heroes under the Lord of Hosts — 
 uncomprom'sii)g patriots for the truth, who nobly stood in 
 the most exalted cause and fought manfully under the ban- 
 ner of their King; permitted their blood to flow in purple 
 streams for His glory, and the cause of truth, and their fellow 
 beings' eternal welfare, and to confound the powers of dark- 
 ness and hell; they could depart rejoicing, aud some could 
 triumphantly sing in the heat of the battle, with the apostle 
 could say, "for them to live was Christ, and to die was gain," 
 and that they would rather be absent from the body and 
 present with the Lord, they being filled with the blessedness 
 of heaven, could contribute to the glory of their Maker and 
 Saviour, and the establishment of the true Church of Christ, 
 vital Christianity upon the earth; and to depart like men and 
 not as fools die. 
 
 All ages have been thus blessed by the Most High, have 
 had some of these constellations sojourning among them, to 
 illuminate the dark places of the earth; who in the wisdom 
 and love of God through the salvation of Jesus, were as lights, 
 as beacons to the wayfaring man, to the wanderers out of 
 Sion, to direct their steps into the path of holiness by urging 
 them to repentance and admonishing them to believe in Jesus 
 for the saUation of their immortal souls. Consequently the 
 true church, the church of Christ, flourished to a greater or 
 less degree during every period from the foundation of the 
 world, and the blessed Lord had a people with whom his 
 honor dwelled, with whom his name abided; who were a joy. 
 
S6 ON FAITH. 
 
 a praise, and a ^lory to Him, and contributed to the joy of 
 the holy hosts of heaven; the glorious angels are not ashamed 
 to own the followers of Christ as their brethren, nor think 
 tliemselves degtaded by administering unto us, accoiding to 
 the will and commands of our Heavenly Father. " Are 
 they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them 
 who shall be heirs of salvation." [Heb. L 14. 
 
 Faith Cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God, 
 therefore as for tiiose that sit in " Moses^ seat," their words 
 are to be believed and examples imitated so far as they 
 agsee with the revealed will of God, w^ith the "word and 
 the testimony," and they in righteousness and holiness fol- 
 low Christ. As St. Paul admonishes, "Be ye followers of 
 me as I am also of Christ;" and also cautions Timothy to 
 bew are of men in sheep's clothing, wdiich should abound in 
 the latter days; his admonitory lessons are on this wise, "Now 
 the spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some 
 shall depart Irom the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits? 
 and doctrin'^^s of devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy, having 
 their conscience seared with an hot iron." And further, 
 "This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall 
 come. For men shall be lovers of their ownselves, covet- 
 ous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, 
 untiiankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers, 
 fal&e accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are 
 good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasure more 
 jthan lovers of God; having a form cf godliness, but denying 
 the power thereof; from such turn away." 
 
 [1st. & 2d. Timothy. 
 
 After all this estrangement and departure from the living 
 God, yet at the coming of the blessed Christ "will he find faith 
 on the earth." However small the number may be, yet 
 there will be some who will be the holy temples of Christ 
 and watch unto the coming of the Lord and desire the King 
 of heaven and earth to descend; " Even so come Lord Jesus." 
 Do not these times indicate that the period is near at hand, 
 
ON FAITH. 37 
 
 when all the wicked shall be destroyed from the face of the 
 earth, and "all the nations that forget God be turned into 
 hell." Kepent, repent, repent, therefore, for the kingdom of 
 heaven is at hand; repent and have faith in Jesus; hear the 
 words of the Lord to your edification and immortal souls sal- 
 vation; manifest your love and obedience by keeping the 
 commandments of God, and walking with him unbiameably, 
 in holiness; for without holiness none shall ever behold his 
 glorious majesty, or enter into his eternal kingdom of glory. 
 iVJay many yet in the eleventh hour, find remission of sins 
 through the merits of Jesus; be justified and sanctified by the 
 blessed God; through the Holy Ghost, become meet to be 
 made partakers of the inheritances of the Saints in light, and 
 to have th ir joy and rejoicing with God and his holy angels 
 forevermore. Now unto the Triune Father, be endless 
 praise, thanks and blessings, dominion, majesty and power. 
 Amen and A men. 
 
Di8corR8i: III. 
 
 THE GLORY OF GOD. 
 
 Father^ glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from 
 
 heaven^ sayings I have both glorified it, and will glorify it 
 
 again. 
 
 John, 12M Chap. 2Qth verse. 
 
 The preceding words of our text our bles-ed Lora spake 
 some time after his ministry, soon after Mary anointed his 
 feet, and his triumphant entry into Jerusalem, welcomed and 
 escorted by hosts of his saints and followers, who spread 
 their garments in the way, crying Hosanna! Hosanna'.I — 
 Blessed is the Kins^ of Israel that comcth in the name of 
 the Lord. Glory to God in the highest. 
 
 Aware of being near the end of his mission, when the 
 great object should be accomplished for which our blessed 
 Lord was made manifest in the flesh, suffered shame, per- 
 secution and distress, a man of sorrow and acquainted with 
 grief, who had committed no sin, neither was guile found in 
 his mouth, but for the glory of God and the salvation of sin- 
 ful men, had left his high and glorious abode to sojourn on 
 this distorted earlhly ball, subject to iieat and cold, earth- 
 quakes, storms and tempests, with no certain dwelling place 
 here below, and no place where to lay his devoted head; 
 hear himself on the subject: "The foxes have holes, and the 
 birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man hath not 
 where to lay his head." Which deprivation he endured 
 without a murmur, although his sou! was frequently in 
 trouble, as we see in the preceding verse and elsewhere, for 
 God had laid upon him the iniquity of us all, from the begin- 
 ning of the world to the end of time, that none might be lost, 
 but that all might obtain a knowledge of salvation through 
 bis obedience. 
 
THE GLORY OF GOD. 39 
 
 While the Eternal Father was looking abroad upon the 
 sons of njen, and unable to discover any o.ie with whom to 
 entrust this mighty work of redemption, lo! the Saviour 
 said, "I come to do thy will, O God;" and in due time 
 through the wisdom of the all-wise and ever blessed God, 
 became incarnate, when the sons of light again shouted for 
 joy and sang " Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace 
 and to men good will." And he grew up in wisdom and 
 stafure, and became emphatically the Prince of Peace and 
 the Saviour of the wojld. For at the age of twelve he began 
 to persuade men to leave their folly and endeavored to turn 
 the ignorant to the wisdom of tiie just. 
 
 Behold him with his holy band of twelve devoted cham- 
 pions, traversing deserts and through forests, wandering to 
 reclaim the lost sheep of the house of Israel and collect them 
 into his lold ; and when thousands upon ihousa.ids were 
 gathered together to hear his Angehc voice in strains celes- 
 tial meander through the dense multitude in sweetest ac- 
 cents of love and sympathy for the weal of lh(^-ir immortal 
 souls; and then when ihe blind, through his vntue, received 
 their sight, the broken and lame were made whole, the deaf 
 restoied, the devils cast out, and the sick healed, the toils of 
 several days ministraiion nearly over, lie commanded the 
 fatigued multitu(*e to be seated in companies upon the green 
 grass, he took a few loaves and two fishes, blessed and 
 brake and had them distributed through this vast congre- 
 gation, miraculously multiplying it uniil all were filled and 
 baskets full of fragments remained; many were roiivii»ced 
 of their unbelief, and constrained to exclaim, " Emmanuel, 
 God with us," 
 
 Thus the Lord of life and gloiy went abroad doing good 
 and ministering unto dying men, in a humihtating way, as 
 a servant among servants. O boundless love! O the depth 
 both of the rtches and grace of God, his ways are past find- 
 ing out. Truly he is every where in his glory, through 
 heaven, air, earth and oceans all, and when the tempest 
 
40 THE GLORY OF GOD. 
 
 hovv!s and the sea loars, threatening death and destruction 
 to puny man, vvilh the few words, "peace, be still," he siayS 
 the storm and cahns the sea; the winds steal away and the 
 waves which raged furiously, croucit beneath his ft et, and all 
 is still. 7'he same he efifects in the repenting sinner against 
 the devil's work in his soid, when he foams and rages furi- 
 ously, he casts him out and a sweet calm ensues, with joy 
 unspeakable and full of glory, with thanks and blessings to 
 God the Prince of Peace. Thus the works of the devil are 
 destroyed and the Lord God is glorified. 
 
 The whole career of our blessed Saviour on earth re- 
 dounded to the gloiy of his heavenly Father and the welfare 
 of human kij.d and also to the brute creation, for as men be- 
 come civilized, truly refined and exalted in holiness, they 
 are more merciful, because the blessed Christ incuh ates 
 mercy, ''be ye merciful as your F'ather in heaven is merci- 
 ful;' by consequence every living thing about a true christian 
 will fare the better, and thaiiks be to the Lord for it; for 
 where is the difference between savages, and even some mis- 
 called cfiri>.tians, and the wild beasts, unless it be on the side 
 of the latter, who scarcely ever destroy one another until 
 compelled by hunger. But not so with those whose hearis are 
 tlie habitation of devils, even legions of foul spirits, thirsting 
 for blood, whose cravings are never satisfied, tormenting and 
 inventing torments for their fellow beings that are not of their 
 abonjinable caste ; even their accomplices are not permitted 
 to escape, but they tear each other as dog?, with hellish 
 malice full; and then the iiinocent brutes will, at times, be 
 made partakers of their cruel mercies; surely there is no 
 peace for the wicked, as declared m holy writ. They know 
 not the Prince of Peace who dwells in the sons of light, and 
 causes all things to contribute to their happiness for time and 
 eternity; but are full of the evil one, whom Christ came to 
 biuise and destroy, and whom he bound in chains until the 
 
 11 >f the great day, when the wrath of God will be 
 revealed against him and his ungodly followers to doom 
 
THE GLORY OF GOD. 41 
 
 them to misery and torments, to blackness and darkness 
 forever. 
 
 As the ambassador of the high and holy God, I call upon 
 you through these pages, to make your peace with him ; to 
 be reconciled at the foot of the cross, through faith in Jesus 
 and his precious blood, which cleanses from all sin, and 
 which is yet offered as a purifier of the affections and lusts 
 of the flesh; all vile, unholy propensities ever at variance 
 with godliness, and the life of God in the soul, for the carnal 
 muid is at enmity with God, therefore cast ye out this bond- 
 man with all his filthiness and take m the fee ; be con- 
 verted, justified through faith in Jesus; persevere in prayer 
 to our heavenly P'ather through Jesus our Mediator, that ye 
 be sanctified and established in holiness, and may glorify God 
 in your souls and bodies, for they of right are his. 
 
 Every follower of Christ will thus contribute to the glory 
 of our Holy Father, whom Christ came to glorify, and did 
 gloiify in all his ways, among the children of men, as Jeho- 
 vah himself testified in our text, and that he would glorify 
 his name again; alluding, doubtless, to the further progress 
 and final triumph of our blessed Saviour's passion. 
 
 That to him belongeth all glory who is himself all glorious, 
 dwelling in transcendent glory, and being the King of Glory, 
 none of an enlightened understanding will, we presume, dare 
 to deny. O the mo.4 excellent glory, from whence cometh 
 every good and perfect gift ; every thing lovely, amiable and 
 deliohtful, for God is love, and they that dwell in God dwell 
 in love; in love unspeakable and full of glory, being the tem- 
 ple of the Holy Ghost, the comforter who instils into the 
 soul joys celeslial and full of bliss; joys of Angeis surround- 
 ing the glorious throne of the Majesty on High, to be par- 
 takers with them of the happiness of heaven while pilgrims 
 yet on earth ; thus Christ has glorified the name ol Jehovah, 
 and in his saints he is glorified. 
 
 The voice 1 have glorified and will glorify it again, came 
 from the same holy source as that heard by his devoted 
 
42 THE GLORY OF GOD. 
 
 disriples, when visited by Moses and Klijah in glorious 
 chariots from the celestial regions, and the blessed Jesus was 
 tra- sfigured and the holy trio shone in heaven's resplendent 
 gloiy. Will unbelievers still continue contrary and deny 
 that this was the Son of God, the promised Messiah, the Sa- 
 viour of the world, and not hear htrn and believe in him as 
 all are commanded, to the saving of their immortal souls; 
 for verily, there is no other name given whereby they can be 
 made partakeis of the joys of Angels in heaven; to inherit 
 with the saints, the mansions which he has prepared on high 
 for all that love him, and who anxiously watch unto prayer 
 unto his return. O' will ye forfeit the joys of heaven for 
 those on earth, uhich are no joys at all, for the wretched- 
 ness and misery attendant even in this life, of carnal desires 
 gratified, far over-balance the joy they afford ; and then the 
 dread of an eternity of banishment from every thing glorious 
 and holy, to a place of darkness, torment and despair, which 
 must inevitably be the burden of every soul alienated from a 
 life of holiness and godlmess, unless given over to hardness 
 of heart and reprobateness of mind, which is infimtel v worse, 
 to be able to commit the most filthy and horrid crimes with- 
 out repup^nance of conscience. 
 
 O what a magnificent and glorious place heaven is, the 
 New Jerusalen., Paradise, where the Holy God is enthroned 
 in effulgent glory, surrounded by innumerable hosts of Arch- 
 Angels and Angels, Cherubims and Seraphims, and Saints in 
 white, who are ever singing. Holy! Holy!! Holy!!! Lord 
 God Almighty, who wast and art, and art to come, thou King 
 of Saints. " Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hiith 
 it entered into the heart of man to conceive the joys there 
 pre])ared for those that love him." Now we see him with 
 a veil between, but then face to face, as he is, so shall we see 
 the bless'd God, enjoy him and commune with him with 
 greater pleasure and closer intimacy than even Moses did, 
 because all human and worldly thoughts and cares wil be 
 banished from our souls, and we shall be exalted and be like 
 
THE GLORY OF GOD. 43 
 
 unto the Angels, glorious and holy, reflecting the splendour 
 of our Eternal Father. If Moses lace shone, reflecting the 
 glory of the Deity, after having been only forty days and 
 nights uith God on the Mount, so that the children of Israel 
 could not behold his face without a veil between, O! how 
 much greater must have been the luster and glory of the 
 transfiguration of our blessed Saviour on the Mount, having 
 this same Moses who had been for thousands of years ia 
 the presence of the Majesty on High, serving God in his 
 Holy Temple, on the one side, and the indefatigable, holy 
 and faithful Elijah, who walked with God until it pleased the 
 Lord to end his ministration and send his chariot and horses 
 of fire, all glorious as the resplendent sun, to convey him to 
 the court of his Eternal H9rmess, where he has been exalted 
 for hundreds of years on the other side. Ol what a trio of 
 luminaries, even obscuring the Sun in his meridian splendor. 
 No wonder then that this combination of glory would over- 
 power and cause the three favorite disciples, although divine- 
 ly taught, but inhabiting earthly forms, to fall prostrate to 
 the ground. 
 
 Thus have we been trying to present to your minds a 
 glimpse of the beatific glory of the Majesty on High, where 
 none can enter without holiness, for the King who reigns 
 there Omnipotent in power, commnnds, " be ye Holy as T 
 am Holy," and swears in his wrath that none other shall enter 
 into his rest. It is therefore, absolutely necessary to be 
 inured in a life of godliness to be paitakers of the bliss of 
 Angels, which shall never retrograde but progress through 
 endless ages ; as so limited a degree of glory as shone in the 
 face of Moses, or even at the transfiguration on the Mount 
 was overpowering; how much more would the perfection 
 then^of in the courts of God be to the carnal and earthly 
 minded, who never through faith in Jesus beheld through a 
 veil his glory, nor been exercised in the paths of virtue and 
 holiness, but been all their lives averse thereunto, hating 
 God and serving the devil ; dishonoring their creator and 
 
44 THE GLORY OF GOD. 
 
 bountiful benefjictor instead of contributing to his glory; 
 they sHbII never enter into his kingdom without being regen- 
 erated, for our God, to all such is a consuming fire. 
 
 ''' 1 will glorify it again f alluding no doubt to our blessed 
 Lord's passion in Getlisemane and triumph on Calvary, as 
 the name of the Father had ber^n glorified hitherto by the 
 humble and obedient course of our blessed Saviour ; his 
 victory when permitted to be tempted t)y satan ; the mira- 
 cles he wrought by the power of God, upon the souls and 
 bodies of men; surely the spirit of God was in an abundant 
 degree upon him, to preach the gospel to the poor, cheer the 
 broken hearted and set the captives free, and bre?k every 
 band of the devil which held them in misory and wretched- 
 ness, and fear and torment; the torment of death and the 
 fear to appear before a just and offended Judge, and of hav- 
 ing to meet their doom in hell, where there is no rest, but 
 despair and torment forever and ever. Beware all ye sin- 
 ners how ye mispend in the service of satan, the tmie allot- 
 ted you here; to the dishonor of God and the neglect of 
 your soul's salvation, for verily there is a day of retribution 
 near at hand to every one of you ; may your blood be upon 
 your own heuds if you continue in your sinful course of 
 wickedness ; disregard the warning voice of Christ and his 
 true embassadors, and die in your sins, when you should 
 have w^orked out your souls salvation through Jesus the 
 Redeemer, the author and finisher of faith; who has glori- 
 fied God through obedience to death, even the death of the 
 cross, to achieve salvation for sinful creatures — but you do 
 despite and dishonor his holy spirit by your apostate lives : 
 O why will ye die, ye wretched sinners. 
 
 The name of the glorious and holy God will again be glo- 
 rified at the utter destruction of the works of the devil, when 
 the old beast will be chained and cast into hell and all his 
 followers with him, to their dismay and confusion, and 
 gnashing of teeth forever; and when King Jesus will take 
 
THE GLORY OF GOD. 45 
 
 the kingdom to himself, descend with the New Jerusalem, 
 and reign with his holy saints on earth a thousand years. 
 
 J'inaJly, when the blessed God will judge the earth by that 
 man whom he has ordained; when the Son of Man shall 
 come in his glory and all the Holy Angels with 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 left. For the fearful, and unbelieving, and the 
 murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolators, 
 and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth 
 with fire and brimstone. Then shall the King say unto 
 them on his right hand, come ye blessed of My Father, in- 
 herit the Kingdom prepared (or you from the foundation of 
 the world, and we shad inherit the J\ew Heaven and Earth, 
 and Glorify God for ever and ever. Amen. 
 
BISCOUKSE IV. 
 CHRIST'S WITNESSES. 
 
 And we are Ms ivitnesses of these things, and so is also the 
 
 Holy Ghost whom God hath given to them that chey him. 
 When they heard that^ they were cut to the heart, and took 
 
 counsel to slay them, 
 
 [Acts, 5th chop., 32d ^ 33d, verse. 
 
 Our blessed Saviour did not sojouin on (^arth in dark or 
 obscure places, as infidels would have us believe; yea they 
 v/ould even have us deny thit there ever was such a person 
 as the Son of God; who left his father's throne to be born of 
 a Virgin, rocked in a cradle, sheltered from the dampness of 
 the season by the roof of a stable at a cosiimon Inn. It is 
 scarcely to be wondered at, by viewing the folly of the world 
 through all ages down to this present time, which has ever 
 been inflated with vanity and pride, indulging in luxuries of 
 all description, as at this day, that many would thus cojijec- 
 ture, and aid in the delusion of their souls by their greatest 
 enemy, contrary to the prophecy of an infinitely wise and 
 holy God, who saw proper and was graciously pleased thus 
 to ordain, and in due time to fulfil his revelation in the above 
 described manner. Thou Bethlehem though least among 
 the thousands of Judea, yet out of thee shall the sceptre 
 arise. Hundreds and thousands knew the predictions of our 
 Lord's coming, and there was a general expectation ar the 
 time the Moroing Star arose in Bethlehem, to enlighten 
 them that sit in darkness and give glory to his church. 
 
 Holy Simeon testified that he was the I^ord's Christ, when 
 he prayed that he might now depart in peace, for says he "I 
 have seen thy salvation."" It was revealed unto him that 
 he should remain until his eyes were thus Hessed. Anna 
 the prophetess, likewise testified and spake of him to all 
 that looked for redemption in Israel. These w^ere under 
 
CHRIST'S WITNESSES 47 
 
 the influence of the Holy Ghost, a^; recorded in our text, as 
 well as those precreding who walked with God, in love and 
 ohedience, and who saw the glory of tiie only begotten of 
 the Feather afar off; and rejoiced in the light of the glory of 
 the Sun of Kighieousness, which was to illuminate the earth 
 in a future day. Through him they ended their course with 
 joy, and departed to be with him whom their souls loved. 
 
 It does therefore fully appear that the blessed Jesus was not 
 without witnesses from almost the beginning of the world, 
 until his manifestation in the flesh. The career of his 
 apostles from thence to the present time, nor shall be to the 
 consummation of all things, and his coming to judge the 
 world in righteousness, — " many shall wax cold, and fall off 
 yet at the coming of the Son of Man shall he find faith on 
 the earth."" From these words we infer that he will always 
 have a name on the earth— a church — a few followers and 
 true witnesses, however corrupt the rest of mankind may be; 
 yea, they shall even be as at the time of Noah, and the des- 
 truction of Sodom and Gomorrah. iVJy readers, ye can dis- 
 cern the face of the sky, can ye discern the signs of liiese 
 present times? 
 
 The apostles from an humble occupation, were chosen to 
 be initiated and instructed, to walk with their Lord in the 
 same path of holiness, yet not with the same mountain's 
 burden as the iniquity of the whole world presents to our 
 view, upon their souls. Jesus was truly the Lamb of God; 
 an offering for sinners in one sense of the wo^d, yet not to 
 the extent of the Universalist's creed — iiood, bad and indif- 
 erent, to live with him through eternity; a miscellaneous and 
 congruous mass, like unto the one which he came to purify 
 and sift; the wheat to be gathered into his garner and the 
 chaff to be burned with fire unquenchable. Has his word 
 then fallen to the ground, or been wiihdrawn? Impossible! 
 firm as the throne of God they remain. Hear the Saviour, 
 Judge, himself, " Heaven and Earth shall pass away, but 
 my words shall not pass away." 
 
48 CHRIST'S WITNESSES. 
 
 These privileged men were constantly about our Lord. 
 When the multitudes had been dismissed and gone to their 
 homrs, these were found to tarry in deserts and on mountains, 
 to minister unto then' master; listening to his instructive les- 
 sons, and drinking deep into the fountain of holiness. I^hey 
 were acquainted with his oppression, travail and gnef; the 
 shame he endured, his agony in Gethsemane, and his death 
 on Mount Calvary; his buri;il, the caution taken to prevent 
 his resurrection. jNotwithstanding he arose, they saw him 
 after his resurrection, spake with him, received further in- 
 struction from him, were confirmed in their faith, instructed 
 to preach the gospel to all nations, "And lo' I am with you 
 always even unto the end of the world," was the promise of 
 the blessed Saviour to all his peculiar people, his true follow- 
 ers. They finally accompanied and surrounded him at 
 Bethany, where they received his blessing and saw him as- 
 cendifjg to heaven from out of the midst of them. With the 
 assurance of his return in due time, the apostles returned to 
 Jerusalem glorifying and praising God. 
 
 They continued in prayer and watching day and night 
 until peniecost was come, when they were fully ordain- 
 ed by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, the promised com- 
 forter, divine guide and instructor; speaking in different lan- 
 guages, all Jesusalem was astonished; some mocked, and 
 accused them of intemperance, but Peter arose with the 
 eleven and boldly vindicated his honor with those of his com- 
 panions, and showed from scripture that the piophecies were 
 now fulfilling before their eyes, and that Christ whom they 
 had crucified and slew, God had raised from the dead, for he 
 would not suffer his Holy One to see corruption, but exalted 
 him to his own right hand, until he would make all his foes 
 his footstool. Many felt the weight of these words and be- 
 came concerned about their eternal welfare, inquiring, "what 
 must we do to be saved;" and many were added unto the 
 church, continuing in the apostles doctrine and fellowship, in 
 breaking of bread and prayers; their number increased daily 
 
CHRIST^S WITNESSES. 49 
 
 in consequence of their importunity and power to heal the 
 sick, cause the lame to leap for joy, and to praise God. 
 
 These holy additions to the church alarmed the powers of 
 hell and darkness, which slew their master, whose words 
 were now fulfilled, *' If they have persecuted me, they will 
 persecute you, if they have kept my sayings they will keep 
 yours also." So it was, they laid hands upon them and put 
 them into the hold until the next day*, when the High Priest 
 with all his household were assembled, they were brought 
 before them and questioned concerning the power by which 
 they wrought. Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, again jus- 
 tified their doings, and that thmugh Jesus of Nazareth whom 
 they crucified, but whom God raised from the dead. The 
 man stood whole before them; it was the impotent man that 
 formerly begged at the beautiful gate of the temple, whom 
 Peter and John had healed, which provoked this ado among 
 the rulers and Satan their master; they however, took knowl- 
 edge that the apostles had been with Jesus; they were per- 
 suaded in their minds that a higher power than that belong- 
 ing to man operated through them, and confessed to one 
 another that they could not deny but that a notable miracle 
 had been done, and that it spread no further, commanded 
 them to speak to no man in the name of Jesus. The apos- 
 tles departed unmindful of the threats of their enemies, to 
 obey God rather than these wretched men; they triumphed 
 and rejoiced in their God and Saviour, laboring with more 
 eeal in his vineyard and for his glory, signs and wonders 
 following them. The good work of the Lord continued, so 
 that it was sufficient for only the shadow of Peter to pass 
 over the sick lo restore them to health; this again inflamed 
 with anger the High Priest and Rulers, seeing such multi- 
 tudes coming from all cities, bringing their sick with them. — 
 They confined the disciples in the common prison, but the 
 Angel of the Lord that night delived them, and told them to 
 "go stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words 
 of life;'' which they did accordingly, and were found there 
 
 6 
 
so CHRIST^S WITNESSES 
 
 teaching in the morning by their persecutors, after having 
 searched the prison house in vain for them; the captains and 
 officers brought them before their superiors without violence, 
 for they feared the people lest they be stoned by them — they 
 were set before the council and reminded by the High Priest 
 that they weie told previously not to speak in that name, and 
 "behold," he exclaimed, "ye have filled Jerusalem with your 
 doctrine, and intend to brmg this man's blood upon us." — 
 Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, "We 
 ought to obey God rather than men." "The God of our 
 fathers raised up Jesus whom ye slew and hanged on a tree* 
 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and 
 a Saviou!, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of 
 sins." Here follow the words of our text, "And we are 
 his witnesses of thes'^ things," &c. 
 
 The rulers would fain have cleared themselves of the in- 
 nocent blood which stained their garments and clave to their 
 souls, but this was impossible: the deed was done, in mad- 
 ness they had slain the Lamb of God, and were justly accu- 
 sed of their crime, which cut them to the heart; "a guilty 
 conscience who can bear?" They gnashed their teeth upon 
 the apostles, and took counsel to slay them, thinking no 
 doubt, by putting them out ol the way they would quiet the 
 matter, and ease their minds of the shame and guilt which 
 haunted their wretched souls; but in this rash act they were 
 opposed by one Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, who was of 
 a more elevated spirit, who reasoned with them on the pro- 
 priety of desisting from their hellish design; to refrain, and to 
 let these men alone; sf their work was of men it would come 
 to nought, but if it was of God they could not overthrow it — 
 and would put themselves in a hostile attitude, be found fight- 
 ing against God; the awful and inevitable consequence v\hich 
 would be the result, if their rage continued and they murder- 
 ed these men, he could easily anticipate from the justice of 
 God, and the history of former limes. " Touch not mire 
 annointed and do my children no harm, saith the Lord." 
 
CHRIST'S WITNESSES. 51 
 
 Surely the wicked cannot stand against God, for he will turn 
 them with all the nations that forget him into hell; or can 
 they really fight against him who is Omnipotent? can they 
 thunder with a voice hke his? can they invent torments like 
 those he has prepared for his enemies? are they versed in 
 destruction? He who sitteth in the heavens, the High and 
 Holy One who inhabiteth eternity, laugheth them to scorn; 
 yea the Lord of Hosts holdeth them in derision. 
 
 God, however, permitted them to abuse his disciples fur- 
 ther ; after hearing Gamaliel, they agreed among themselves 
 to beat the apostles and charge them henceforth not to speak 
 in the name of the Lord Jesus; which they accordingly did, 
 and then suffered them to depart. The disciples hastened 
 out from among them rejoicing that they were accounted 
 worthy to suffer shame and be persecuted for Christ's name; 
 doubtless remembering his words, "great shall be your re- 
 ward in heaven, for so persecuted they the prophets that were 
 before you." And probably, " Be not afraid, be not afraid 
 of their terror, which is to them a sure sign of perdition, but 
 to you of salvation and that of God; for to you it is not only 
 given to believe on Christ, but also to suffer for his name's 
 sake, so that when his glory is revealed from above ye may 
 likewise rejoice with him in glory, for the spirit of Christ and 
 of glory is upon you. On their part he is evil spoken of, on 
 your part he is glorified." 
 
 These gracious words must have been a sweet balm and 
 at the same time a powerful stimulous to remain faithful and 
 devoted followers of their master, and obey him rather than 
 men; for we are informed that straightway they were again in 
 the temple teaching the people, and preaching Jesus Christ 
 with increased zeal, for the glory of him whom they delighted 
 to serve and honor, and for the welfare of their fellow beings. 
 They extended their mission from house to house; taught, 
 preached, and alleviated the miserable and wretched; healed 
 their souls and bodies in the name of the Lord Jesus. The 
 church increased and believers were multiplied; hundreds 
 
52 CHRIST'S WITNESSES, 
 
 and thousands rejoiced in the knowledge of the remission 
 of their sins, of being born again, of having the witness of 
 the Holy Spirit to testify with their spirits that they were 
 sons and heirs of God, joint heirs with Christ, and could 
 bear indubitable testimony of the salvation which is through 
 him, and also that Christ was he which was to come, the 
 Messiah. That God had raised him from the dead and ex- 
 alted him to his right hand a Prince and a Saviour, to give 
 repentance and forgiveness of sins; now the word ol the 
 Lord had free course and was glorified. The enemies of the 
 cross being somewhat conquered, the saints went on their 
 way rejoicing, this was but a momentary respite; he who 
 was cast out from the presence of the Holy God, the prince 
 of darkness, could not suffer his children to remain inactive, 
 for verily the word of God is against them. " There is no 
 rest for the wicked," saith our God. Still the children of 
 light, the followers of the Prince of Peace, had abundance 
 of peace amid sufferings and persecutions: read the words of 
 the Lord, "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me 
 ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation, 
 but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." But for 
 the children of darkness there is no peace even in the w@rld, 
 which ihey take for their portion; while permitted to creep on 
 the dunghill of iniquity, commit all lewdness and abomina- 
 tion with greediness, to be bastards on the earth and a stink 
 in the nose of holiness, until God's mercy is exhausted, jus" 
 tice vindicated, and his judgments doom them to endless per- 
 dition and misery in hell!! There is no peace for devils, or 
 men which have become such. 
 
 Rejoice therefore, lift up your heads and leap for joy, all 
 ye sons of God, even in the fiery furnace of persecution, for 
 your redemption draweth nigh; when ye are wading in the 
 waters, when the floods come nigh your souls, be not dismay- 
 ed, your God is about your path, he will uphold you with 
 the right hand of his majesty, and when ye walk in the fire 
 it shall not burn unto your souls, "for 1 am your God, 1 have 
 
CHRIST'S WITNESSES. 53 
 
 called you by your name, ye are mine; 1 will deliver and 
 honor you and ye shall glorify me." O what glorious, sweet 
 and heavenly words are these! What love to poor mortals! 
 What condescension, what kindness! Although cast out as 
 evil-doers, and killed all the day long by our fellow-men; 
 hunted as sheep by wolves, but yet not destroyed nor forsa- 
 ken by our Heavenly Father; no! now is the time he arises 
 to plead our cause against our enemies, to hurl their pre- 
 sumption to the ground, and make them before him as the 
 chaff of the midsummer's threshing floor. O the value of 
 such a friend, to stop the mouths of Lions, to beat down our 
 enemies, and finally bring us into the haven of eternal rest 
 and felicity. O that we could love him better, honor and 
 glorify him more and more. 
 
 My dear brethren, ye who walk in the spirit of God, being 
 the temples of the Holy Ghost, be not weary in well-doing; 
 keep your reins tight, that ye give not freedom to your natu- 
 ral affections and passions which are lying dormant in your 
 bodies, having been conquered through the captain of our 
 salvation, the conqueror of devils, sin, death and hell. Be 
 therefore not enticed or provoked by these powers to do evil; 
 they will beset you on either hand, and when they find you 
 inflexible will revile and upbraid you —disregard all these 
 trifles as our brethren the apostles did; neither turn to the 
 right hand nor the left, but keep straight on your way, with 
 your faces Zion-ward. Be dilligent in watching, fasting, and 
 above all, prayer, that ye fall not into temptation, and when 
 permitted to be tempted that ye come off innocent and v\ith 
 honor, as our Lord and Master also did, who was permitted 
 to be thus assaulted — and like him let not the frowns nor 
 smiles of the world influence you against the discharge oi 
 your duty to God, and should they be even permitted to exe- 
 cute their threats, ye all know what St. Paul saith, "For me 
 to live is Christ and to die is gain." Be ye therefore of the 
 same mind, for death is in the catalogue of the blessings of 
 the saints of the Most High; every one is not privileged thus 
 
54 CHRIST'S WITNESSES. 
 
 to glorify our God and Saviour and wear a martyr s crown 
 in the courts above. 1 urge you finally my brethren, pray, 
 pray without ceasing, pray day and night that your faith be 
 confirmed and your confidence increased ; that you may 
 grow in the knowledge of our blessed God, m his wisdom, 
 understanding and holiness; that when it pleases him, and 
 in such a manner as he may deem proper, to call you from 
 this tottering world, ye may be found perfect, wanting noth- 
 ing, end your course with joy, and your immortal souls be 
 wafted by Holy Angels into the realms of eternal glory> 
 there to join them with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and all 
 the patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and saints of the Lamb, in 
 singing praises and hallelujahs to the Father, Son and Holy 
 Ghost, the Everlasting Triune Deity, forever and ever. 
 Amen. 
 
DISCOURSE T. 
 
 THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 
 
 Jesus Christy the same yesttrday^ and to-day ^ and forever. 
 Be not carried about loith divers and strange doctrines^ for it 
 is a good thing that the heart he established with grace, not 
 with meats, jchich have not profited them that have been oc- 
 cupied therein, 
 
 Hebrews, 1 3/A chapter, Sth S^ 9th verses. 
 From Everlasting to Everlasting Thou art God ; God ovet 
 all and blessed forevermore ; Thou ineffable, infallibie Po- 
 tentate ; Thou King of King's and Lord of Lord's ; be Thou 
 alone worshipped, and adored ; be Thou by Thy great name 
 Jehovah feared, reverenced, and honored ; be Thou alone 
 praised; be Thou praised by Thy glorious Angels in heaven 
 and by their brethren, the holy saints and martyrs on the 
 earth ; be Thou praised by the whole creation ; be Thou 
 alone praised, O Lord ; to Thee, O God, be all the worship 
 and praise forevermore. Amen. 
 
 Jesus our blessed Redeemer, while here below, sojourning 
 among creatures of the dust, who, although vile, sensual and 
 develishjhad under their Satanic master, clothed themselves 
 in self-righteousness and a ficticious garb of holiness ; exalt- 
 ed themselves above all that was of God or Godfy, were 
 consequently dreadfully averse to " The Lord our Right- 
 eousness," and diametrically opposed to his holiness ; who 
 bad set up their idols in their hearts, and were under the 
 influence of him who is the father of all iniquity, abomina- 
 tion and crime, and who has great delight to seat himself in 
 the temple of God as though he were God, and to get fools 
 to cringe to him, worship and bestow that honor upon him 
 which alone belongs to the Eternal Father of life and glory, 
 the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the same yesterday^ and to- 
 day, and forever. 
 
56 THE E'llERNlTY OF CHRIST. 
 
 Yea, verily, Jesus Christ is the Alpha and Omega, the Be- 
 ginning and the Ending ; He in whom all things hve, move, 
 and have their being; the power Omnipotent, who by His word 
 spoke into being the whole universe ; the Holy of Holies, 
 where his Glory is man. lest to perfection, where the Cheru- 
 bims and Seraphims worship the mystic lieity in the beau- 
 ties of Holiness ; in the effulgence of His Glory, veil their 
 faces with their wings and cry, "Holyl Holy!U Holyl'.l 
 Lord God Almighty! which was, and is, and is to come-y 
 Great and marvelous are Thy works, just and true are thy 
 ways Thou Kmg of Saints;" Hosanna! Hosanna!! Halle- 
 lujah!!! Hallelujah!!! Amen, Amen; "Blessing, and glory, 
 and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honor, and power, and 
 might, be unto our God, forever and ever. Amen! Amen!l 
 
 " Who shall not fear Thee, O i^ord, and Glorify Thy 
 name? for 77zgz/ only ar^ Holy : for all nations shall come 
 and worship be lore Thee ; for Thy judgments are made man- 
 ifest.*' "Hallelujah! Hallelujah!! Salvation, and glory, and 
 honor, and powder, unto tlie Lord our God," forever and ever, 
 Amen; Hallelujah! Amen!! Amen!!! Amen!!!! 
 
 And when Jesus, the Everlasting Father said, " let there 
 be light," the resplendant sun slept into the firmanent, all 
 glorious in appearance, reflecting partially, the Creator's 
 Glory, followed by the milder moon, comets, planets and 
 stars innumerable, all contributing to their Maker's praise:. 
 
 God, all-wise, great and infinite, 
 
 We behold Thee on Thy glor'ous throne,, 
 
 The Sun, thy great representative^ 
 Traverses the a3rial doome. 
 
 Diffuses a gold'n bloom, 
 
 Drives on the nightly gloom. 
 
 The moon leads on the nocturnal van^ 
 
 Planets and comets, all display, 
 The eth'real, aeriel fan, 
 
 And circumvolving, sing Thy lay;, 
 The stars, the chorus array, 
 Sweetly thro' the milky way. 
 
THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 57 
 
 The train' passes thro' the Heaven; 
 
 'Gain the golden orb comes in glory, 
 Darkness from the earth is driven, 
 
 All nature live and adore Thee, 
 In fragrant gloom and beauty, 
 And songs and melody. 
 
 The earth also, which we inhabit, was created of nothing 
 by His Almighty power; the mountains and the oceans ; the 
 bills and the rivers; the rocks and the limped streams; the 
 vast treasures of gold and silver, and of other minerals, &c. 
 &c. All living creatures moving thereupon, the blessed 
 God created of the dust, and imparted life temporal, and to 
 man eternal, to whom he conferred dominion over all the 
 other animals, reptiles, and creeping things, in all the waters 
 and moving on the face of all the earth. " For by him were 
 all things created that are in heaven, and that are on earth, 
 visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, 
 or principalities, or powers ; all things were created by him, 
 and for him; and he is before all things, and by him all 
 thinj^s consist." Christ is therefore, the true and ever living 
 God, who upholds the universe by the word of his power; 
 the Father of light, from whom comes every good and per- 
 fect gift, and with whom there is no variableness, neither 
 shadow of turning, "Who is the same yesterday, and to-day? 
 and forever." 
 
 Jesus Christ, the mysterious, the Eternal 1 AM, the won- 
 derful, Councellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, 
 the Prince of Peace, the self-existing Jehovah, who weigh- 
 eth the hills in a balance and the mountains in scales — who 
 comprehendeth the dust of the earth in a measure, and me- 
 teth out the heavens with a span, and the waters in the hollow 
 of his hand — who stretcheth out the north over the empty 
 place and hangs the earth upon nothing — who sets bounds 
 to the sea, saying, " thus far shall thy waters rage, and here 
 thy proud waves be stayed." " Before whom all nations 
 are as dust, the small dust of the balance ; they are even 
 lighter than vanity, and are as nothing before Him." Christ 
 
58 THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 
 
 is the Lord of Hosts and the God of battles; and woe be to 
 them that strive with Him, and woe be to all nations that 
 disregard his smiles and his frowns, and depart from his 
 counsel, and that put away the fear of Him from before their 
 eyes ; that set up the stumbhng block of iniquity in their 
 hearts; that go a whoring after strange gods; that have 
 their pleasure in serving the devil in all manner of abom- 
 inations, pride, vain glory and worldly ambition, murders, 
 adulteries, fornications, witch-crafts, and all manner of filthy 
 lewdness, and have the impudence to glory in their shame, as 
 though there was no heaven of holiness nor Holy God in all 
 the universe.' Dearth! earth!! earth!!! hear the word of the 
 Lord, " I, Jehovah, 1 am the Lord God, I am Holy, the high 
 and lofty one who inhabits eternity, and there is no God else 
 besides me ; a just God and a Saviour ; there is none besides 
 me. LiOok unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the 
 earth ; for I am God, and there is none else. 1 have sworn 
 by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, 
 and shall not return, that unto me every knee shall bow, every 
 tongue shall swear." "And my name alone shall be glorifi- 
 ed." "He that believeth and is baptised, shall be saved, and 
 he that believeth not shall be damned." " Turn ye, turn ye, 
 for why will ye die!" " Heaven and earth shall pass away, 
 but my words shall not pass away." "From dust ye are, and 
 to dust ye shall return " " All flesh is as grass and the glory of 
 man as the flower thereof, the grass withers, the flower thereof 
 fadeth away, but the word of the Lord endureth forever." 
 
 Emmanuel, in this character Jesus Christ sojourned upon 
 earth to become the Saviour of the world, a propitiation for 
 sinful men ; his God-like love was made abundantly mani- 
 fest during his ministration of mercy here below, in innumer- 
 able instances in Gethsemane, before Pilate, and on Mount 
 Calvary, where in love to us he laid down his life, and after- 
 wards took it again. " I have power to lay down my life, 
 and 1 have power to take it again." Christ arose victorious, 
 conquered the devil, all hell and darkness ; triumphed over 
 all principalities and powers, overthrew them and made an 
 
THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 59 
 
 open show of them. " Who is this that cometh from Edom 
 with dyed garments from Bozrah? This that is glorious in 
 His apparel, travehng in the greatness of His strength?" 
 " I that speak in righteousness, Mighty to save." " Where- 
 fore art thou red in thy apparel, and thy garments like him 
 that treadeth in the wine fat?" " I have trodden the wme 
 press alone, and of the people there was none with me ; for 
 1 will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my 
 fury ; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, 
 and f will stain all my raiment : For the day of vengeance 
 is in my heart, and the year of my redeemed is come." "And 
 I looked, and there was none to help ; and I wondered that 
 there was none to uphold ; therefore, mine own arm brought 
 salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me." "Jesus 
 Christ is the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever." 
 
 Jesus Christ is the Rock of our Salvation, the exalted 
 Prince and Saviour, who gives repentance and remission of 
 sins. He all day long holds out his wounded hands and in- 
 vites sinners to come to him and be saved. 
 
 Come, come, you all unto me, 
 
 That weary and heavy laden are, 
 I will set you forever free, 
 
 And joys eternal you shall share. 
 
 Take my yoke upon you all, 
 
 And learn of me, for I am meek, 
 O be obedient to my call, 
 
 Your endless happiness I seek. 
 
 From captivity I would fain 
 
 Release you all, O then have faith ; 
 And with me you shall ever reign, 
 
 And see Jehovah face to face. 
 
 In high heaven's eternal day, 
 
 'Mid cherubims and seraphims, 
 Who their holy powers display, 
 
 In perpetual songs and hymns. 
 
 With them exalted you shall be, 
 
 And shme as the firmanent bright, 
 Infeverlasting feUcity, 
 
 In Paradise walk with me in white. 
 
60 THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 
 
 E This sweet invitation, breathed forth in mercy and love to 
 apostate, rebellious sinners, who are all their lives held m 
 chains of slavery and darkness, misery and wretchedness, 
 by the devil, subject to inevitable death and eternal torment, 
 if not liberated through Christ the Lord of life and Glory, 
 who is mighty to save to the uttermost, all that come unto 
 him, " Come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden, 
 take my yoke upon you and learn of me for I am meek, and 
 ye shall have rest unto your souls, for my yoke is easy and my 
 burden is light." O you simple ones how long will you suf- 
 fer Satan to deceive you? how long will you remain the 
 slaves of sin? how long will you procrastinate with the 
 time allotted you to work out your salvation? O that you 
 would mend your hearts ; that you would humble your- 
 selves into the dust before Christ, so that through his great 
 salvation, which is alone in him, you may be exalted 
 unto holiness ; for he that humbles himself shall be exalted ; 
 shall find grace in the sight of God ; shall have forgiveness 
 of sins ; shall be re-instated to the holy image of Jehovah, 
 and finally, live with him in Eternal Glory. But not so with 
 the proud, with those that harden their hearts and stiffen 
 their necks ; all such the Lord knows a-far off, and visits 
 them in their abominations from on high by his Omnipo- 
 tence, and will bring their pride down to the dung hill, and 
 themselves, with their father the devil, into hell. And alas I 
 this sin, with many others, pervades this nation to an awful 
 degree, and if the example of Ninevah, at the preaching of 
 Jonah, is not followed, the judgments of the Most High God 
 will sooner or later come down to the uttermost, and who 
 can tell the issues of the destruction, of the extirpation, 
 after Divine wrath is appeased: but O how little people are 
 concerned in preventing the suspended judgments from com- 
 ing down ; in preventing the vials of the wrath of Jehovah 
 from being poured out to the dregs upon them. The light 
 judgments which were sent in mercy to warn you to flee 
 from the wrath to come, you seem to despise, and remain 
 dead in trespasses and sins, and if ever the words of our 
 
THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 61 
 
 blessed Lord, " let the dead bury the dead," were applicable 
 to any people, it is to this now — and are their hearts rent ; will 
 they begin to turn in love to Go 1 ; in love to Him that smites 
 them? alas, no! Will they then in fear cease from their 
 abominations, lest his Almighty arm smites them with seve- 
 rerjudgments? alas! the contrary, as daily experience and 
 observations show. When tle4ntends the many judgments 
 which he is sending on this land for blessings, ihey are a 
 curse to this ungodly people, for they really seem to harden 
 their hearts and stiffen their necks accordingly, and exhibit 
 the rage and enmity of the old serpent, with which they deal 
 so extensively and familiarly; the handmaid to their abom- 
 ination : high and low, rich and poor, are wallowing thus 
 together in the mire; and' should it be, therefore, any wonder 
 if the holy God, who is over all blessed forevermore, should 
 speedily send more and heavier judgments upon the world, 
 until it becomes entirely depopulated and desolate. The land 
 would then enjoy her Sabbalhs ; inhale purer air, and from 
 it would ascend sweeter odours to the holy God on High, 
 with whom is no valuableness, neither shadow of turning, 
 but who is the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever. 
 
 " Liet the potsherds strive with the potsherds of the earth, 
 but wo! be to hmi that striveth with his maker." There 
 may be some little reason at times in striving with one 
 another, and of nations conquering one another, and of 
 gaining something by the conquest; extension of territory, 
 or what is worth more, freedom from oppresriion and liberty 
 of conscience, to worship God without restraint or perse 
 cution; which was the case of our forefathers, for whom 
 God, by his Divine Providence, broke every foreign yoke, 
 and set them free in this land flowing with milk and honey; 
 that they might love Him, worship and honor him in spirit 
 and in truth, and walk with him, unblamably, in holiness ; 
 which many, no doubt, for a time, did, and had inward peace 
 and joy through faith in our God and Saviour, and success- 
 fully fought, as they now had leisure, the greater battles of 
 
62 THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 
 
 the s^ul with the powers of hell and darkness, and in due 
 time triumphed over all their adversaries, ended their course 
 with joy, and are now inheriting brighter and more lasting 
 mansions in the happy Canaan above, where they can never 
 be oppressed by Satan and his children, but rejoice in the 
 liberty of all the Angels of God ; and this greater than sun- 
 shine is, not only for a time, but an eternal day of glory. — 
 Earthly things fade and decay ; men, the most honorable, 
 wither as the grass* and the glory of nations disappears as 
 the floWers of the field, under the displeasure and wrath 
 of the Almighty; wo! therefore, to them that strive agaiast 
 their Maker. Where is Pharoh, Scenesherib and Nebuchad- 
 nezzer ; where are their valient hosts, and where is their glo- 
 ry; fallen! fallen!! are the mighty, and their glory is gone as 
 the vapor from the mountain's top. And so it came to pass to 
 many who since moved in earthly splendor and had a radia of 
 timely glory encircling them ; they are no more : the car of 
 time rolls speedily towards the verge of eternity ; others are 
 now on the stage of action, but must soon pass away ; others 
 may again follow, but will soon disappear, as the misty clouds 
 of the morning, and time will be no more: yea, the very heav- 
 ens and the earth depart, but Jesus Christ endures; he is 
 the same yesterday, and to-day, and foreveri 
 
 Be not carried about ivith divers and strange doctrines, 
 &c. Behold! how from the very beginning Satan worked 
 in his servants, telling smooth and strange things pleasing 
 to flesh and blood, to please the ears of the innocent and 
 unwary, and to impart his hellish doctrines. Even the very 
 first pair, Adam and Eve, who were pure and holy, were 
 thus assaulted by him through his servant the serpent, and 
 how far he succeeded you may read in the 2d Chapter of 
 Genesis; through his subtilty, the awful consequences entail- 
 ed upon mankind to the latest generation ; who have ever 
 since been groaning and travailing in pain together; and not 
 only they, but the whole living creation has been and is sub- 
 ject to the same, and to return together to dust again, save 
 
THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 6S 
 
 wicked, rebellious sinners, who, although endowed with 
 reason, choose not only temporal, but eternal deaths in the 
 error of their ways, the dreadful doom pronounced against 
 all such beings in consequence of Adam's fall, in whom all 
 are dead and meet for hell, until in Christ, the second Adam, 
 we live and are meet for heaven. 
 
 1 say that sinners choose death in the error of their way, 
 because they believe not the words of our blessed Lord and 
 Saviour Jesus Christ, which set life and death before them, 
 but give heed to the seducing doctrines of devils, of which 
 the scriptures particularly caution us to beware ; as many 
 false prophets and lying spirits shall be abroad in these last 
 days, which shall deceive if possible the "very elect." From 
 hence we may infer that Satan, who has been powerful 
 enough to deceive and ensnare multitudes of every genera- 
 tion hitherto, has been permitted to replenish his force : men 
 ought, also therefore, be more vigilent and zealous in the 
 good cause, the cause of their own soul's salvation, through 
 faith in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, in whom remains 
 still plentious redemption, notwithstanding the increase of 
 Satan's force ; it is now only more absolutely necessary to 
 listen and hold to sound doctrine, " the doctrine which was 
 once dehvered to the Saints;" how that Jesus Christ was 
 born, lived and ministered upon earth ; was crucified, died, 
 arose fiom the dead, ascended to heaven ; whom God has 
 exalted to his own right hand a Prince and a Saviour, to 
 give repentance and remission of sins. Through his death 
 he has become a propitiation for the sins of the world, that 
 all that believe in him should not die but live through all 
 eternity; and also, that God might be just, and the justifier of 
 those that believe in Jesus. 
 
 The signs of the times show how dreadful a fabric these 
 lying devils and seducing spirits have erected ; how wide 
 they have extended it ; and how high they have reared it : 
 they are ever busy as ants on a mole hill, and when the 
 general crash takes place, language will fail to describe ; 
 
G4 THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 
 
 and the painter's pencil to depict the thou«?anth part of the 
 wreck of matter, and the destruction of soul's to the bottom- 
 less pit. Yes, the devil has not been idle, but has been 
 awfully at work through his servants, some of the principal 
 ones were Voltair, Paine, and Hume, still further to diffuse 
 his poison over poor fallen nature, and infuse in into the 
 hearts of the weak and unwary to destroy their souls. These 
 champions of infidelity, so pernicious and murderous, have, 
 therefore, not merely a few discjples but millions are lulled 
 asleep as respects their soul's salvation, but awake to gain 
 more converts — by their smooth, flesh pleasing, but strange 
 and hell securing doctrines, which together with hypocrisy, 
 pervade all societies, high and low, rich and poor, and are 
 without doubt, greatly the cause of the pi evading sins of this 
 age, and under which this land is groaning. 
 
 For it is a good thing that the, heart be established with 
 grace, not with meats, which have not profited them that 
 have been occnjiied therein. O that ye were wise, that ye 
 would seek this blessing with all your might, that your hearts 
 might know salvation and be established in him from whom 
 this greatest oi blessings flows; which brings sweet peace 
 and holy love and joy to the soul, and fills the heart with un- 
 utterable comfort and bliss, and causes it to leap with joy 
 unspeakable and full of glory, and rejoice in Jesus Christ 
 our God and Saviour, crying, "Abba, Abba, F'ather." The 
 highest privilege to the christian on earth, is to know himself 
 a child of God, an adopted son, and an heir of the mansions 
 of bliss and glory, reserved eternal in the heavens for all them 
 that love our blessed Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, and 
 that wait with desire his coming from above, to be glorified in 
 his saints, and admired in all them that believe. " By grace 
 are we saved through faith — not of works, it is the gift of 
 God — lest an} man should boast." O that ye would then 
 go directly to God for this blessing, that ye would seek it 
 Irom him through a crucified Saviour, with all your might; he 
 is ever willing to satiate the longing desire of a soul thirsting 
 
THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST, 65 
 
 for salvation; that ye would therefore long after him as a 
 hart panteth after a water brook; that ye would be constrain- 
 ed to come to him who so condesceniiingly invites, and in 
 kindness would fain persuade you to partake of the greatest 
 of blessings, without money and without price. O hear for 
 your eternal well-being, his pressing invitation, "And the 
 Spirit and the Bride say come. And let him that heaieth 
 say come. And let him that is athirst come, and whosoever 
 will let him take the water of life freely." 
 
 Rev. last chap., ITthvor. 
 
 Othat ye would no longer be dazzled by these foul pools 
 of infidelity and inhale the miasma arising therefrom and 
 wafted on the breeze by the lying spirits of darkness, to con- 
 taminate your immortal souls, and cause them to die — 
 " The death that never, never dies ! " 
 
 O how dreadful and awful it is that so many pass contin- 
 ually over the verge separating timo from eternity, and in 
 this terrible state are ushered into the presence of tiie Holy 
 Judge. 
 
 Equally pernicious is the result to those which are lulled 
 asleep by the smooth sayings and example of those which 
 feign to wear the prophet's mantel, and to administer in the 
 things of God, but hate the cross of Christ and walk not in 
 the paths of holiness; preaching the word of God while they 
 themselves are the servants of Satan, and mislead the un- 
 wary by portions of scripture to glaze over the horrid defor- 
 mity of their souls and hide tiieir iniquity; preaching peace, 
 peace, when there is no peace, but a curse still suspended 
 over iheir heads; which is the case of every one that lives in 
 a carnal state, that is not reconciled unto God, that has not 
 a saving interest in the atoning blood of ChrisL; to Christ 
 therefore flee, flee imniediately, flee without delay to him 
 who so graciously invites you; cast yourselves at his dear 
 feet, behold the blood flowing from them and his hands and 
 side; implore the cleansing, the efficacious merit of t'lat pre- 
 cious blood, that ye may come forth as the infirm and lepers 
 
 7 
 
86 THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 
 
 out of the pool of Siloam, clean, and in a sound stale of re- 
 ligion, salvation, and faith. Then ye will be new creatures 
 in Chnst Jesus, and ^o on your way rejoicing, and mock at 
 dauber ni^h, saying "for us to hve is Christ and to die is gain;" 
 and also triumph in «!eath, and glorify God, and fall sweetly 
 aslef p in Jesus to live with him in another and a better 
 world. 
 
 Have your hearts therefore established in grace and not in 
 viPats, which have not prof ted them that have been occu- 
 pied (hfreiiu No verdy, the righteousness of God does not 
 consist in eating, drniking and merriment, but in faith, peace 
 and joy in the Holy Ghost; man does not live by bread alone 
 but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God* 
 But "Behold, joy and gladness, slaying oxen and killing 
 sheep, eating flesh and drmking wine; let us eat and drink 
 for to-morrow we die." Isatah, 23(i chap. 13th verse. Bel- 
 shazzarwas not spared untd to-morrow, but died the self- 
 same night he v\ as feasting, and so have many others since. 
 If they were not all Kings and rulers they all had immortal 
 souls to be saved for heaven or doomed to hell; and may it not 
 be likely from appearances — ^ye can discern the face of the 
 sky, buti:an ye not as well discern the signs of the times? — 
 that Mene 7>/(t7, stand opposite this nation. Tekel applying 
 to the principal rulers thereof; lighteousness exalteth a 
 nation, but sin and shame cause the downfall thereof; there- 
 fore, while ye are not yet entirely consumed, for it will not 
 take the Almighty long to do it when he brings sword, fa- 
 mine and pestih nee upon you — surrender yourselves to him^ 
 make a treaty with him, yea above all ye do or intend doing, 
 make your peace with Jehovah; exercise wisdom, be speed- 
 ily at peace with the eternal God of Hosts, or else ye may 
 very soon be domg but very litlle as a nation. Ye know how 
 others have fared, down to the present, which had departed 
 from the true and living God, and he is the same immutable 
 — as proven in the first part of this discourse — as he was then 
 so will he lemain from Everlasting to Everlasting. 
 
THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST. 67 
 
 " Woe to them that sit at ease in Zion, that eat the choice 
 of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stalls; 
 drink wine in bowls, and dance to the tabret and harp, and 
 are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph!" The true church 
 of Christ in tliis country, has been and is yet, greatly afflict- 
 ed and persecuted; professors and non -professors are truly 
 yoke-fellows in this work of trampling down the Lord's vine- 
 yard; and noue lay it to heart, or are afflicted, and therefore 
 the above woe may be justly applied to them. They delight 
 in the good things of this life, eating and drinking and the 
 refined — as they please to call them — amusements of this age 
 of degenerateness and abominations and crimes; notwith- 
 standing all the outward show, which cannot stand the test 
 of Him whose eyes are as a flame of fire. There are none 
 that really wish to come out of the world, leave off all its 
 sinful amusements, and take up the yoke of Jesus and attach 
 themselves to a few true, but persecuted followers of the 
 Lamb. But their religion seems to consist altogether in 
 hypocrisy and deception; a form of godliness while they know 
 nothing of the power; and woe will be their end and eternal 
 destiny, if they die thus in their sins. But ye my brethren 
 who have your delight in God and the beauties of holiness, 
 whom he has seated in high and heavenly places in Christ 
 Jesus, remain steadfast, immoveable, always abounding in 
 sound doctrine, and every good work of the Lord, rejoice 
 evermore, and pray without ceasing, that we be found at his 
 coming, perfect, wanting nothing, and be welcomed into the 
 kingdom of our Lord, to live with him and all the Holy An- 
 gels and Saints, in all joy, glory, felicity and happiness, forever 
 and ever. Now unto the King Eternal, Immortal, Immuta- 
 ble, Invisible, the only wise God, be all honor and glory, 
 forever and ever. Amen. 
 
BIISCOIJR8E VI. 
 
 THE LOVE OF GOD. 
 
 If yd. love me keep my commandments : 
 
 And I will pray the Father^ and he shall give you another 
 
 Comforter^ that he may abide with you forever', 
 Even the Spirit of trtith^ whom the world cannot receive 
 because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him, but ye know 
 him, for he dwelleth with you and shall be in you. 
 
 l^St. John, \Uh chap. 1 5th, I6th, Sf llth verses. 
 These words of our blessed Lord are some of the most 
 pathetic and consoling to his disciples, in the New Testa- 
 ment. Indeed the whole chapter, and the two following, 
 abound in affectionate promises, full of consolation to his 
 sorrowing companions, his disciples whom he had just made 
 acquainted with his passion, which was to separate them for 
 awhile, in the interval however, the comforter should take 
 his piace, and also to abide forever. He was thus instructing 
 them in their duty to him, and one another, and the whole 
 church of God. The strains of admonitions, of persuasions, 
 desires, and promises, are lovely, sweet, and most precious; 
 then comes his fervent, holy, heart-strengthening and soul- 
 relreshing prayer, (in the 17th chap.) for his devoted disciples 
 and faithful followers, and all them that would believe on 
 him through their word; in short for his true church on earth. 
 This inimitable prayer, so full of heavenly love and divinity, 
 and the importunity that the blessing supplicated for might 
 not be withheld, but conferred upon his disciples and ail true 
 believers; it likewise shows how indefatigable he was in his 
 exertions, and how full his soul was, yea to overflowing, to 
 accomplish the work he was engaged in to perfection. *'A 
 man (he was God-man) will lay down his life for his friends; 
 ye are my friends if ye do whatsoever I command you." — 
 
THE LOVE OF GOD 69 
 
 " If ye love me keep my commandments." 
 
 O how sweet, how beautiful, amiable, and delightful are 
 the affections when they are all congenial and harmonize in 
 love; love to the Supreme being, and love to our fellow-men; 
 for the very first commandment enjoins love to God and love 
 to our neighbors; and surely therefore, no one can please him 
 who is of a contrary disposition; who is disobedient, self-wil- 
 led, full of pride, hatred, malice and revenge: these qualities 
 are not of God, for God is Love, and also a consuming fire, 
 to consume all such characters, if they end their probationary 
 state thus, with fire unquenchable in the gulph of despair, 
 provided for the devil and his angels. No my readers, these 
 tempers are earthly, sensual and devilish, and the more any 
 one delights and lives in these wicked passions, the more he is 
 under the influence and control of Satan; and yet if he sliould 
 say an hundred times "I love God," these, his deeds, would 
 cause his words to rebound and seal the lie upon him; there- 
 fore also Christ saith, " If ye love me keep my command- 
 ments." 
 
 How strenuous our blessed Lord was with Peter on ac- 
 count of his weakness before Pilate, by denying his master; 
 he asked him thrice whether he loved him, and Peter twice 
 replied, yea Lord; and the third time, " Thou knowest all 
 things, thou knowest that 1 love thee." He then command- 
 ed him to feed his sheep, to feed his lambs, which is likewise 
 the duty of every lover of God and his neighbor, less or more, 
 if not to the extent of Peter, yet in some measure as oppor- 
 tunity offers, to engage in the holy cause, to lift up the hands 
 that hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees, through 
 the power of God working in us, and convince our Lord by 
 obedience, holy affections and tempers, by fruits of righte- 
 ousness and godliness, that we now in reality love him, what- 
 ever our misconduct and infidelity might have been previous- 
 ly; that we have now become converted and have returned 
 to him to serve him in holiness and righteousness all our 
 days. 
 
70 THE LOVE OF GOD. 
 
 *' Beloved let us love one another, for love is of God, and 
 every one that loveth is born of God, and know^eth God." 
 "He that iovelh not knoweth not God, for God is love." — 
 [Isi General Epistle of John, 4th chap., 7th & 8th ver. 
 
 How amiable, O how full this disciple was of that holy- 
 attribute of God, and all deserving of the appropriate title, 
 '''' Beloved.'*'* His sweetness and heavenly dispositions pro- 
 cured for him a place in the bosom of our blessed Lord, so 
 as at meals to lean on his master's breast, while his brethren 
 were not thus highly favored, although perhaps equally be- 
 loved by the Lord; as we have some proof, for instance, 
 Christ's charge to Peter; and in othe»- places we are infor- 
 med that God is no respecter of persons; all are accepted of 
 him that love him and work righteousness, but they ihat hate 
 him shall be lightly esteemed, because they are on the side 
 of the enemy, on the side of the devil, and devils cannot love; 
 consequently they are diametrically opposed to this high and 
 holy attribute of the Deity, and at variance with his church 
 and people. In this awful state are all unregenerate persons, 
 and whatever their ideas of love and affection may be, they 
 are all a lie, and so it is with all hypocrites and deceivers, as 
 it is also written in this epistle, 2d chap. 4th verse : " He that 
 saith I know- him and keepeth not his commandments is a 
 liar and the truth is not in him," Be ye therefore admonish- 
 ed from the same source, chapter eleventh, 8th & 9th verses: 
 " Little children, let no man deceive you; he that doeth righte- 
 ousness is righteous even as he is righteous. He that com- 
 milteth sin is of the devil, for the devil sinneth from the 
 beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, 
 that he might destroy the works of the devil. Whosoever 
 IS born of God doth not commit sin, for his seed remaineth 
 in him, and he cannot sin, for he is born of God. In this the 
 children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil; 
 whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he 
 that loveth not his brother." From hence we may know by 
 examining ourselves whether we are born of and are in God 
 
THE LOVE OF GOD. 71 
 
 and he in us: for this purpose also our blessed Saviour says, 
 ** If ye love me keep my commaudineiit^." 
 
 This thing of professing love to God, so peculiar to this 
 generation, as it also was to the Pharisees in the time of our 
 blessed Saviour; but unbelief and haired tJ his son an I his 
 true followers, his annointed and peculiar people, \^ a total 
 contradiction and gross perversion of the truth; at variance 
 with and tramples under the holy designs of Jehovah to effect 
 the salvation of their souls, as they remain in their old state 
 of sin and iniquity; notwithstanding the accomplishment of 
 salvation on Mount Calvary, through the love and obedience 
 of his son, whose blood, 1 say, is trampled upon by them and 
 they crucify the son of God anew. " Saul! Saul 'I why per- 
 secutest thou me? I am Jesus whom thou persecutest." O 
 that they would but behold him whom they pierced and nailed 
 to the cross on Calvary, hear amid his dying groans the 
 prayers ascend that his murderers might be forgiven. O that 
 they would behold his bleeding hands and feet, his precious 
 blood trickling to the ground and cease trampling it under; 
 but use it through faith, for the purifying themselves withal, 
 for his blood cleanseth from all sins. O that they would re- 
 flect that it was not for any worldly consideration that men 
 could bestow upon him, for God ownetli the heavens and the 
 earth and the fulness thereof — nor for his own guilt that he 
 came to suffer upon earth, to die on the cross, to become a 
 propitiation for the sms of the world, "that God might be 
 Just and the justifier of them that believe in Jesus.'' O that 
 they w^ould but be constrained and persuaded to love him 
 who first loved us, and be conformed to the image of his son; 
 put on the new man of love, which after him is created in 
 righteousnes and J rue holiness, so that they might love him 
 who is worthy of the love of their hearts, minds, souls, 
 spirits and strength; a id be free from fear and the bondage 
 of the Wicked One, in which they have been kept all 
 their lives; for fear I ath torment, but perfect love casteth 
 out fear. " JLove not the world, neither the things that are m 
 
72 THE LOVE OF GOD. 
 
 the world. If any man lovo the world, the love of the Fath- 
 er is not in him. For all that is in the world; the lust of the 
 flesh, and the lusts of the eye, and the pride of life, is not of 
 the Father but is of the world. And the world passeib 
 away, and the lusts thereof, but he that doelh the will ol 
 God abideth forever.*" [St. John's 1st epistle, 2d chapter.} 
 if we have become perfectly loosened from the world and 
 these murdering things, and have a delight in God and his 
 words to do them, then the following portion of scripture 
 will apply to us and will be most sweet and precious to our 
 souls: ''He that hath my commandments and keepeth 
 them, he it is that loveth me, and he that loveth me will be 
 loved of my Father, and 1 will love him, and we will come 
 onto him and make our abode with him."— Consequently 
 the next portion of our text : — 
 
 Qd. And I loili pray the Father and he shall give you an- 
 other comforter^ that he may abide mth you forever: 
 The time of our blessed Lord's sojourn upon earth was 
 hastening to a close; it was striding apacsto the period when 
 his sufferings should be brought to an end and he be taken 
 away from his dear disciples and followers, to a dearer father 
 in heaven — his bowels yearned in love and compassion for 
 them, while he prepared their hearts and souls to withstand- 
 and endure the great shock which would necessarily be given 
 to their faith, and to console them he tells them that he would 
 pray the Father to give them another comforter, and also 
 that it was expedient for them that he did go away; for if he 
 did not go away the comforter would not come unto them, 
 but if he depaiied he would send him unto them. He thus?- 
 as the great physician, administered sweet balm, precious 
 promises, to alleviate their sorrows and ccHisole their discon- 
 solate hearts; and well knowing the persecution which they 
 would meet with, he makes it known to them in language like 
 to the following, — The servant is not greater than his Lord; 
 if they have persecuted me they will persecute you; if they 
 
THE LOVE OF GOD. 73 
 
 have kept my sayings they will keep yours also. These 
 words must have had the desired effect upon the hearts of 
 his disciples, that since he, their Lord and Master was per- 
 secuted and reviled, and bore it with patience, it became 
 them not to think too highly of themselves, to place them- 
 selves above their master, but to prepare their minds in hu- 
 mility to endure similar or even greater scoffs and persecu- 
 tions through love to him, and for his name's sake, and the 
 reward attending their obedience, to inherit the mansions 
 which he was going to prepare, eternal in the heavens. 
 
 The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, proceedeth 
 from the Father and the Son, moved on the face of the wa- 
 ters at the foundation of the earth, and was soon to descend 
 and move in the souls of the spiritual foundation of Christ's 
 church, to build it up to a higher state of perfection; to excite 
 the followers of Jesus to persevere in holiness, to perform 
 the duties of their high and holy calling, to adorn the doc- 
 trine of God their Saviour in all things; to enable them to 
 rejoice on their pilgrimage among a sinful and adulterous 
 generation, which were destitute of the love of God in their 
 hearts, and at enmity with his high and holy purpose of sa- 
 ving their souls through the atonement of Christ. The 
 spirit of God was therefore of all importance to his disciples, 
 to increase their hope and confidence, and confirm their faith 
 in their Divine Master, amid this gainsaying, crooked, and 
 perverse people, so that they might be as lights, shining and 
 reflecting the love and glory of the Sun of Righteousness out 
 of dark places, yea the dark places of the earth, where the 
 beast has his habitations and workings of abomination, to 
 deceive the souls of the unwary, of men, yea, ihe very elect 
 if possible; but God in his wisdom, has erected a standard 
 against the powers of darkness, in his Son, the King of 
 Saints, the conqueror of sin, death, hell and the devil; thro' 
 faith in him, through faith in Jesus, his saints shall overcome, 
 quench every fiery dart of their enemies, and come off in 
 
74 THE LOVE OF GOD. 
 
 triumph and rejoicing: and this faith which removes moun- 
 tains and overcomes all opposition, is fanned into a flame by 
 the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, to the destruction of all the 
 works of Satan in the soul, and cause it to shine with increas- 
 ed luster and glory, to the honor of the King of Glory. — 
 VVe shall now consider the last part of our discourse : — 
 Even the spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive^ be- 
 cause it seeth him not, neither knoweth him, hut ye know 
 him, for he dwelleth with you and shall he in you. 
 
 The Holy Ghost is emphatically the spirit of truth, for 
 he Cometh from the God of truth, and his Son, who is the 
 Way, the Truth, and the Life, and applies and urges the 
 offers of salvation upon the soul, continues the work therein, 
 by aiding to combat the lying suggestions of Satan to nullify 
 his desception, by referring the soul to the ti uth of the scrip- 
 ture, to certain texts or portions suitable for the occasion 
 to bruise the serpent's head. That scripture which was also 
 indited by the Almighty through his instrumentality, dwelling 
 in his prophets, who spake as they were moved by him, and 
 whose words therefore always bore the impress of truth, and 
 have nearly all been fulfilled: for instance, the prophecies 
 concerning our blessed Saviour have been chiefly fulfilled, 
 that is those in the Old Testament in relation to him; and how 
 many thousands have been fulfilled and are daily before our 
 eyes, such as relate to sinners and their relationship to God, 
 and the judgments visited upon them. How remarkable was 
 his influence in the prophet Elijah and his successor iVJiciah 
 to detect the lying spirit in four hundred men who liad proph- 
 ecied lies unto Ahab, and how sudden and exact were his 
 words fulfilled upon the King. Abraham had much of this 
 blessed spirit lo confirm his faith and build him up in holiness, 
 and David the Psalmist possessed him in an eminent degree, 
 as his psalms abundantly testify; and Isaiah to be prompt 
 with King Hezekiah in his sickness, to acquaint him with 
 the will of the Lord concerning his health and prolongation 
 
THE LOVE OF GOD. 75- 
 
 of life, and to waft on his holy pinions the sonl of the proph- 
 et to I he regions of glory, to acquaint him more fully of the 
 designs of God concerning his people Israel; and to present 
 the same to them in language the most beautiful and sublime. 
 His peculiar workings in Daniel, excite also our admiration. 
 The interpreting of dreams, which the contrary powers were 
 unable to do, and fortify him against the threats of the King; 
 to obey his God rather than man— and of peculiar dreams 
 which he dreamed, and visions which he beheld; the same 
 with Ezra, and many others that might be named, who 
 were all shining constellations in the spiritual hemisphere, 
 pervaded and illuminated by the light and presence of this 
 blessed spirit of Glory. 
 
 ]n due time, after their master had left them, had been 
 exalted a Prince and a Saviour at the right hand of the ma- 
 jesty on high, the promised Comforter was sent down upon 
 his disciples, and sat upon them as cloven tongues of fire; and 
 they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak 
 w^ith other tongues as the spirit gave them utterance, [read 
 Acts, 2d chapter.] which confounded the world, and induced 
 them to rail upon the Apostles, as it is written they could not 
 receive him, because they saw him not neither knew him; 
 they knew that he was far above the spirit they were in the 
 habit of seeing, and had familiarity with; therefore, they were 
 enraged, and because he was from above and of godly origin, 
 railed upon the disciples; some mocked, others accused them 
 of drunkenness; but by the boldness of Peter, by his fearless 
 language in accusing them of the murder of his Master, 
 whom they slew and hung on a tree, and that God had rais- 
 ed his Holy One that he should not see corruption, and seated 
 him at his own right hand eternal in the heavens— and that 
 through him was this shed abroad into their hearts and souls, 
 the effects they saw, bat could not comprehend, and no mar- 
 vel, since many were utter strangers to God, and ignorant 
 of the many means he makes use of to bruise Satan under 
 the feet of the Saints; many however, were pricked in their 
 
76 THE LOVE OF GOD. 
 
 hearts and exclaimed, " What must we do to be saved." — 
 But ihe greater part coniinued in the slavery of the devil, 
 their father; working, and conjuring and whoring with his 
 filthy spirits, which they, knew and could see, being akin to 
 them; which has been one of the grossest prevailing sins of 
 almost every generation from the commencement of the 
 world; and of kindling the anger of God against them, and 
 destroying myriads of miserable wretches from the face of 
 the earth, as unworthy of the ground which bear them; to 
 wit : at the flood, Sodom and Gomorrah; for the same offence, 
 together with their filthy abominable lewdness, of working 
 one with another, men with men, that which is a shame 
 even to think of, and also using their women in the same 
 way, against nature, the most hellish and disgusting crime 
 for which people were ever punished; under the law of Mo- 
 ses such filthy creatures were to be stoned to death, immedi- 
 ately, under two witnesses. These bloody, stinking Sodom 
 ites wanted even to know in that way, in preference to holy 
 Lot's daughters, two Virgins — two of our, that is Christ's 
 saint's brethren— two holy angels, directly from the courts 
 of heaven, whom Almighty God sent to inquire particularly 
 into the case of these filthy creatures, whether the report of 
 their abominations was true, which had reached heaven — 
 they were thus set upon by these filthy revellers, and God to 
 cleanse his nostrils of these stinking beasts, sent fire and 
 brimstone from heaven in ihe morning and consumed them 
 with every thing belonging to them, from out of his sight, 
 from off the face of the earth, and cursed the ground, that no 
 one iihould walk over it and live forever. Since then one 
 of the tribes of Israel was destroyed, save a few hundred — 
 for a similar ciime, when a Levite, a sojourner with his con- 
 cubine, came into one of their towns to lodge, and was shel- 
 tered by an humble, but God-fearing man — similar filthy 
 devils in human shape, made an attack upon him at night, 
 and wanted, right or wrong, lost to all decency, shame and 
 fear of God this old Levite to know him, (as they termed 
 
THE LOVE OF GOD. 77 
 
 it,) and could scarcely be put off by the offer of his wife or 
 concubine, or even the man's daughter, a virgin, where he 
 lodged; however, at last, when they found they could not 
 succeed on account of a higher power in opposition to their 
 puny carcasses and fihhy spirits of hell, they were contented 
 to take the concubine, and did take her and use her about 
 town ail night; in the morning she was dead, & that in a more 
 filthy and beastly way than dogs, puppies, or swine would 
 have intercourse with those of their own species; which were 
 never known to do against nature or be so dirty, although 
 their season is but once a year — at least i have never heard 
 or read of it; 1 beheve 1 may safely defy the leaders under 
 the devil, of this abomination, to sliow satisfactorily, that 
 swme or dogs, or any other of God's animals, or creeping 
 things on the face of the earth, are so infernal dirty, and 
 abominably fiUhy; they cannot do it, I defy them befoie God 
 and Christ, the judge before whom they luust appear shortly. 
 The light judgments which the Lord God sert upon the earth 
 from time to time, only excited the hatred and malice of men 
 and caused them, if possible, to be more dirty and abomina- 
 ble, more filthy in his nose, and caused the land to mourn on 
 account of their slink, their abusing each others bodies, — 
 he-dog with hedog. Undoubtedly they were, and still are, 
 those doing so, the very swine and dogs mentioned in our 
 Lord, the Judge's sermon on the Mount, because they tram- 
 ple his blood and the holy things under, and have the biasCs 
 mark upon their foreheads; and therefore, no wonder they 
 know not Christ nor his blessed spirit, dwelling in his saints, 
 of whom, thank God my Saviour, 1 am one; and should 1 be 
 the only one in this wicked nation, (as some of them at times 
 intimate) despised and persecuted — as also my master was, 
 by the powers of darkness and hell — for his righteousness 
 and holy name's sake, they may know, (if it affords them any 
 comfort,) that 1 shall remain firm and faithful to my Lord 
 and Master, and as heretofore, yea even to a greater degree, 
 rejoice m him, serve him in holiness and righteousness all my 
 
78 THE LOVE OF GOD. 
 
 days here on earth, and then in heaven 1 will do it to still 
 greaier perfection forever and ever, where no devil and such 
 filthy creatures combined, can vex the saints of the Most 
 Hi^h by their cursed filthiness; and may this also confirm 
 my brethren, they that follow Christ in holiness, if there are 
 any surh, that when these rebellious creatures say unto them 
 "S-ek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards 
 that peep and that mutter." They may answer, *'should 
 not a people seek unto their God for the living to the dead." 
 [Isaiah, 8th chap. 1 9th verse.] They may also bring to their 
 minds the parts above and hundreds of others, of the des- 
 truction of such characters, if it will afford them any com- 
 fort, since they seem to thir.st after hell, to become as dung 
 upon the earth. This and every other nation, proud and up- 
 lift td as they are, shall be brought down to the ground— i^ 
 they continue in abominable idolatry, sorcery, &c. — they 
 shall ail be brought even into hell, where there is wailing and 
 gnashing of teeih forever and ever; without any thing to eat 
 or drink, or cool the scorched blasphemous tongues of her 
 inmates, where there is no rest day nor night, no Sabbath to 
 pollute by their wickedness, but where the devil and all his 
 filthy legions have their polluted, bloody carcasses and souls 
 tormented with fire and briiTistone forever and ever; they will 
 there receive due reward for their stinking like dung in Christ's 
 and his saint's noses, and delighting in their filthiness. Be- 
 ware my brethren that ye partake not of their sins; let our 
 hands be clean, let their blood be upon their own heads that 
 we come not with them into that place of torment. We 
 know in whom we believe, and we know his spirit also which 
 keepeth our hearts in that peace which passeth all under, 
 standing, which the world cannot give nor take from us, and 
 which shall endure and increase in heaven forevermore. Be 
 not deceived by these lying and conjuring spirits of devils, of 
 which the earth is full; this Anti-Chnst,of the last days; this 
 universal wickedness as at the time of the destruction of the 
 ungodly by the flood, and Sodom and Gomorrah with fire 
 
THE LOVE OF GOD. 79 
 
 and brimstone. Stand aloof, and cr}^ woe unto all that do 
 these things. "Wo unto the rebellious children, saith the 
 Lord, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with* 
 a coveritig, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to 
 sin." [Isaiah, 30th chap. 10th ver. Wo!! Wo!!! Wo!!!! 
 to all that put the Lord God out of their hearts, and will 
 have none of his holiness, that will not flee from the wrath 
 to come, for the day of Jehovah is near at hand. He is 
 coming! He is coming to judge the earth; in righteousness he 
 will judge the world. Then shall he say unto his Saints 
 and Annointed enter into the joy of your Lord, inherit the 
 kingdom prepared for you from the commencement of the 
 world. A nd to them that never sought or cared to know him 
 or his spirit, that they might be saved — Depart from me ye 
 cursed into the fire and torments prepared for the devil and 
 his angels, from the foundation of the world. Amen. 
 
DISCOURSE VII. 
 
 ON RIGHTEOUSNESS. 
 
 ^5 it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one: 
 
 There is none that under standeth, there is none that seeketh 
 
 after God. 
 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become un- 
 
 profitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 
 
 Romans, 3d chapter, lOth, Wth ^^ \'2th verses. 
 
 I have shown in former discourses the impossibility of 
 pleasing God without hoUness, for he expressly says, be ye 
 as 1 am, ''Holy;''' and as for any other righteousness than the 
 righteousness of Chript, it is all a fable; diametrically oppo- 
 sed to the tenor of Divine Revelation, as respects honor 
 and worship to God, hateful to him who is a pure and holy 
 Being, worthy of all adoration and praise, and cannot, there- 
 fore, be reverenced and worshipped contraiy to his known 
 will and express declaration, which is, through the righte- 
 ousness in Christ, " Even the righteousness of God, which is 
 by faith of Jesus Christ unto all, and upon all them that be- 
 lieve; for there is no difference; for all have sinned, and 
 come short of the Glory of God." God is no respecter of 
 persons, but every soul that sir.neth it shall die; but now 
 there is a remedy provided in the righteousness of Christ, 
 that every soul that sinneth may live, by timely repentance 
 unto God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. God has in- 
 cluded all under sin, in consequence of Adam's transgres- 
 sion — that the whole world might become guilty before 
 Him. Therefore, by self-righteousness and the deeds of the 
 law — no one even does'lhem — shall no flesh be justified 
 in his sight ; for by the law is the knowledge of sin. " But 
 now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, 
 
ON RIGHTEOUSNESS. 81 
 
 being witnessed by the law and the prophets. Although 
 hundreds may think themselves good and moral men, be- 
 cause they attend to some outward things enjoined upon all 
 as (ar as may be in their power, such as to hear the word of 
 God on the Sabbaths, giving a trifle to the poor, and many 
 other minor things which they attend to even with strict- 
 ness ; but at the same time pass over the weightier matter 
 of their soul's justification before God, through the righteous- 
 ness which is in Christ ; because they commit no gross out- 
 ward sin, they are induced to rely on their own morality, 
 consisting in deeds of charity and formality in religion ; flat- 
 tering their souPs with the hope that they may even stand 
 before Christ in the judgment, contrary to the word of God, 
 "there is none righteous, no, not one." 
 
 In these dreadful times of degeneration, of mere formality 
 in the church, without the spirit and power of godliness, bat 
 amalgamation with the spirit of the infidelity of the world. 
 It may not be amiss to dwell on this fundamental doctrine, 
 '* the righteousness of Christ," which is so Ireely promised 
 to justify the truly repenting sinner before God; when he 
 loaihes himself, and abhors sin, and accounts himself un- 
 worthy with all his deeds and self-righteousness to appear 
 before so holy and pure a Being, in comparison of whom he 
 is as filthy as dung; when he thus knows himself to be vile 
 and undone, a child of hell, and under the wrath of the 
 Almighty, to be sent thither at his option or spared by his 
 mercy ; he casts himself, in humility, in the dust before his 
 Maker, and implores his divine clemency; confesses as just 
 mentioned, his sms, filthiness, and undone state, cries inces- 
 santly for mercy! mercy!! pardon! pardon!! and for forgive- 
 ness of sins for Jesus' sake; pleading his merit, and righte- 
 ousness, and the virtue of his precious blood, to be cleansed 
 from all sins and iniquity ; purified unto God one of his pe- 
 culiar people ; fully justified, and the righteousness of Christ 
 imputed unto him. Then he will find himself a new crea- 
 ture 5 one who has put off the old man and put on the new, 
 
 8 
 
82 ON RIGGTEOUSNESS. 
 
 whicli after God, through Christ, is created in righteousness 
 and true holiness. 
 
 The sinner thus renovated, regenerated and justified be- 
 fore God, will find himself agreeably relieved from the 
 mountain load of iniquity and guilt which before pressed 
 his wretched soul and caused him to groan under it. He 
 moves, as it were, in a holier atmosphere, breathing a sweet- 
 er air — and as the sky-lark in the morning sun — breaks forth 
 in singing the high praises of God his Saviour, in the light 
 of the Sun of Righteousness shining in his heart and illumin- 
 ating his soul ; and through faith in the Son of God he beholds 
 the luster and glory of heaven, of the holy of holies, with all 
 his brethren, the sons of light surrounding the throne of Je- 
 hovah. Yes, verily, he can now claim kindred to the Holy 
 Angels and Saints on high; being born and adopted into the 
 household of God, a son and an heir of glory. His delight 
 is in the things pertaining to eternal life and profitable unto 
 godliness, and his conversation is in heaven, where also his 
 treasure is, an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and that 
 never, never fades away. 
 
 Thus you see the unspeakable advantage the true chris- 
 tion has over the sinner and the infidel ; he is at once sure 
 of the "hfe that now is and of that which is to come ;" and 
 stands unmoved at the occurrences which make the unbe- 
 lievers tremble and quake by beholding : he knows that he 
 who has the destiny of the earth, world, of the universe, 
 at the wink of his eye, is his brother, is his Father, and 
 therelore, nothing can harm him. The untoward appearance 
 of every thing will be over-ruled by his Almighty friend to 
 work for him a '' far more exceednig and eternal weight of 
 glory, whilst he looks not at the things that are seen, but at 
 the things that are not seen ; for the things that are seen are 
 temporal, but the things that are not seen are eternal." 
 
 As it is with one individual, so with a whole community, 
 and likewise so with a whole nation, who after having put 
 away the fear and reverence of God, disliking to keep him 
 
ON RIGHTEOUSNESS S3 
 
 in remembrance until they become utterly estranged from 
 him, and confirmed in their unbelief and wickedness, God 
 sees proper to send judgments upon them to turn them from 
 the error of their ways; and if then they humble themselves 
 individually, as stated already, or collectively as a commu- 
 nity or nation, they may be blessed with the same pardon 
 and justification through our blessed Saviotir Jesus Christ, 
 and be re- instated to the favor and holy image of God, and 
 flourish in the light of his countenance, and walk with him 
 in righteousness and holiness, and have the same interest in 
 Him ; and therefore, as little to fear at the commotion of 
 other nations when the Lord sends war, pestilence and fam- 
 ine to shake terribly the earth, " because they have made the 
 Lord their refuge, and the most High their habitation." 
 
 The true christian can always triumph and rejoice on his 
 pilgrimage here below ; following in the foot steps of his 
 Divine Master: led on by the holy spirit of God, conquering 
 and to conquer He will now^ have |more fighting to do 
 than he ever had in his Me before — against his spiritual ene- 
 mies, however, which will be all arrayed against him; led on 
 by Satan, the Prince of hell and darkness, in whose train fol- 
 low all that are not born from above — a vast number in these 
 times ot infidelity and ungodliness of eighteen hundred and 
 thirty-nine, three hundred years after the reformation, when 
 bibles and testaments are so abundant, two or three to be 
 found in almost every family ; yet, where are the Saints? 
 where are the men after God's own heart? where are they 
 that delight in God and hate Satan, that are grieved at the 
 wickedness of the age, and walk with God in holiness, and 
 seek to do all for his glory, and to extend the Kedeemer's 
 church and kingdom over the whole earth ? There are 
 some surh, but the probability is the number is very small. 
 Has then the word of God lost its healing and saving effi- 
 cacy, and the costly, the holy blood of Jesus, its virtue, its 
 power to cleanse from all iniquity? Ah, no! It is yet as pow- 
 erful as at the very beginning when it was sounded forth, 
 
^4 ON RrGHTEOTJSNESU 
 
 ''LET THERE BE LIGHT! ' and there was LIGHTS 
 and since then unto the present time hundreds and thou- 
 sands, yea millions have been by it, applied by the holy 
 spirit, called out of the spiritual darkness into this marvel- 
 lous light, 'Uke light of the gospel ^''^ to know their sins for- 
 given through Jesus and his righteousness, and that he was 
 their Saviour, and beside him there is none other ; and they 
 eould exclaim, " My Lord and My Godl" And thanks be 
 to my blessed God and Saviour, so can some now, even 
 now; but as mentioned before, they are undoubtedly very 
 few. But why now so few? Because Satan always had some 
 champions in the field, and in these latter days they have 
 made dreadful work by sowing tares among the wheat, and 
 as the Lord gathered some of the slieaves of wheat into his 
 garner, but the tares remained — as there shall only be a final 
 separation on the last day— the general ingathering of the 
 Lord's own — and have multiplied awfully since, so that the 
 wheat is now scattered, and not so many in sheaves as there 
 have been at times ; but that which now remains, some how- 
 ever, is of the firmest quality, having been tried as by fire and 
 water, and it still endures, and what is more, it improves in 
 quality ; a sure proof that the word of the {food Lord is 
 as efficacious and powerful as ever. Now therefore, my 
 brethren, if there be any in Christ, be undismayed, be firm 
 and persevering in the hfe of Godliness, and the blessed 
 spirit will perfect you by sanctificalion and all the blessings 
 of the redemption of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. 
 And if any shall or have just set out — have put their hands 
 to the plough, let them not look back that they be unworthy 
 of the Lord, but be your course onward under the banner 
 of Jesus, and in the strength of the Almighty, ye shall do 
 valiently» He it is that subdues our enemies, internal as 
 well as external ; by creating within us holy tempers from 
 time to time by his holy spirit, enabling us to progress con- 
 tinually in holiness, and to love him with a perfect heart 
 find bring every affection into the obedience of Christ, so 
 
ON RIGHTEOUSNESS. S$ 
 
 msto be crucified with him unto the world, but aUve unto God. 
 And being thus estabhshed, strengthened and fortified by the 
 everlasting arms, we are secure as to the outward enemies, 
 whose threats fall harmless at our feet; and should they be 
 even permittei to persecute us wi!h vigor, with hellish ma- 
 lice full; even to the extent of depriving us of an earihly 
 existence " Fear not him that has power only to destroy 
 the body and can do no more; but continue to fear him 
 who, when he has destroyed, has power to cast into hell ; 
 yea, I say unto you, fear him." says our blessed Master, to 
 warn us not to faint by the way at such trifles. If our love 
 should become low, perfect love casts out all fear, persecu- 
 tion has a tendency to fan it into a flame to burn more fer- 
 vently, so that our hearts desire will rather be, to be absent 
 from the body, and to be present with the Lord ; who dwel- 
 ling in us, will enable us to exult and rejoice that we are 
 accounted worthy to suffer for his name's sake and to glorify 
 him; and we shall t'iumph even in death itself, and holy 
 Angels shall escort our redeemed souls into the regions of 
 light, life, and bliss, to live with our Holy Father in heaven 
 forevermore. 
 
 " There is none that under standeth^ there is none that seeketk 
 after God.'''' The all-wise, beneficent Creator and Ruler of 
 the universe, when he formed man of the dust of the earthy 
 he endowed him with faculties far above the most intelligent 
 of his earthly creatures, and after breathing into his nostrils 
 the breath of life, man became a living soul ; an immortal 
 spirit; an intelligent being to hold sweet converse with his 
 Maker, with his Father, which was a privdege the other 
 creatures were not blessed with, but were subordinate to 
 him, and he reigned over them as their Lord and Master, 
 and called them by name in his wisdom and understanding, 
 well pleasing to his Creator. He was holy and intelligent, 
 and flourished in the sun-shine and glory of his Almighty 
 Father ; and while he thus continued to exercise his supe- 
 rior intellect to the obedience of God, he remained in his 
 
86 ON RIGHTEOUSNESS. 
 
 favor and was altogether holy and happy ; but as soon as he 
 failed in this his duty, he fell ; his understanding became 
 confused, and he becauje degraded below the perfect, holy 
 Iniage of God, whom to know, to love, and to obey with all 
 the heart, and to depart from all iniquity, is true wisdom 
 and understanding — ^which ho now found himself unable to 
 do, but prone to do evd, and that continually ; the conse- 
 quence of which was, his expulsion out of Paradise ; yes, 
 God drove him out of his presence, and entailed a curse 
 upon him to the latest posterity. In mercy, he however, 
 also ordained ways and means through which, by the exer- 
 cise of his understanding he might again return to God; be 
 re-instated to his favor and holy Image, and finally, be re- 
 ceived into a Paradise, even greater than the one he had 
 forfeited ; which privilege was also extended to his descend- 
 ants to the latest posterity. 
 
 As in Adam all die, so in Christ are all made alive. "F'of 
 God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, 
 that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have 
 everlasting life." Yea, Jesus has become the propitiation 
 that through faith in Him we may live in an eternal Para- 
 dise with Him, be even more blessed then Adam was ere 
 the fall, because we shall be in the immediate presence cf 
 our P'ather with the holy Angels, surrounding him in his 
 glory ; play on golden harps and lyres, and sing HosannasI 
 and Hallelujahs!! unto God and the Liamb forever and ever. 
 
 I have been reviewing the present state of mankind in 
 my former discourses, apj^lying some portions of scripture, 
 as my blessed Father aided me by his holy spirit, for their 
 instruction and benefit ; and may my labor noi be altogeth- 
 er in vain in the Lord to excite this people, this nation, to a 
 right course of action to save themselves singly and com- 
 bined from disgrace and ruin — not only temporal but eternal. 
 How is it that none understand, that none seek after God ? 
 Is it because understanding consists in love, fear, holiness 
 and obedience unto God? and ye are prone to evil and delight 
 
ON RIGHTEOUSNESS. 87 
 
 in inquity, and will not have him to reign over you because 
 your deeds are evil — ye love darkness rather than light, and 
 will not come to the light lest your deeds of darkness will 
 be reproved, made manifest, and ye might become convict- 
 ed of your abominable crimes ; made ashamed, yea, ye 
 might become converted, and Christ might heal you ; and if 
 so, would this be a great disparagement to your poor miser- 
 able souls, to be thus snatched as brands from everlasting 
 burnings ; "h'om hell, which hath enlarged herself, and opened 
 her mouth without measure; and their glory, and their multi- 
 tude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend 
 into it." — Isaiah. Because the blessed God is all light, and 
 there is no darkness at all in him, ye must needs hate himi 
 persecute him in his followers ; and serve Satan with all 
 your might — who has been the cause of all the misery and 
 wretchedness the whole creation has been groaning under 
 ever since he succeeded m deceiving our first parents in 
 Paradise. Are ye therefore reasonable in doing so? Cer- 
 tainly not. Ye abuse the intellectual faculties inherent in 
 you, and awful will be your predicament when the Lord the 
 Judge, will summons you to give account for the talent he 
 had vested in you — he will be unable to invite you into the 
 joy of our Lord with those that improved their talent to his 
 glory ; but will be compelled to command that you be as 
 wicked and slothful servants, " cast into outer darkness, 
 where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." 
 
 God is no respecter of persons ; the soul that sinneth it 
 shall die. But now there is a remedy through our blessed 
 Saviour Jesus Christ, which is on this wise — the soul that 
 believes it shall live ; that is not as devils believe, for it 
 makes them tremble — but a lively faith in him that he is the 
 only and the all-sufficient Saviour of mankind ; that his 
 blood cleanses from all sin ; a faith which works by love 
 and casts out all fear ; because through him is a deadness 
 to sin and perfect reconciliation with God, and they that 
 
88 ON RIGHTEOUSNESS. 
 
 have him as their friend and Father, have not much to be 
 afraid of neither in time nor in eternity. 
 
 " Through w^isdom is a house builded ; and by under- 
 standing it is established; and by knowledge shall the 
 chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches." — 
 (Prov., 24th chap., 3d & 4th verses.) Now this nation may 
 be likened unto a house, being divided into states, answer- 
 ing to the chambers thereof. Therefore, let every slate 
 learn its duty from these words of Solomon, and aid in' 
 building up this house, this nation, which is on the decline 
 and must be re-established, or it will totter until it finally 
 falls, and its destruction be complete. And now if any man 
 lacks wisdom, according to the Apostle, ''let him ask of 
 God, who gives liberally and upbraideth not." This, there- 
 fore, and understanding, are the two articles or qualities 
 absolutely necessary to save this house, this nation from 
 utter, trom eternal ruin. And as " the fear of the Lord is 
 wisdom, and to depart fiom iniquity is understanding"-^- 
 why not speedily attend to these things? Why not cease 
 trampling your own laws under foot? applied to every state 
 in the nation. But, awful 1 awful!! the laws of the Omnip- 
 otent, holy God, and the precious blood of Jesus — which was 
 shed for the remission of your sins — but which you thus 
 dispose of, and glory in your shame ; you may rest assured 
 the Almighty does not wink at your dreadful course of 
 wickedness — of having put him out of your remembrance 
 and bowing to strange gods, unto Baal. There is no other 
 alternative but for you to repent, and humble yourselves 
 under the mighty arm of God. Implore the clemency of the 
 King of Kings, that he may mercifully and graciously spare 
 you and teach you true wisdom, understanding and knowl- 
 edge, that ye may endure; be firmly established on the Rock 
 of Ages ; and that your chambers (sub-divided into every 
 heart of each state,) may be filled with the truly precious 
 and pleasant riches ; the knowledge of salvation in the re- 
 mission of your sins, through the riches of the redemption of 
 
ON RIGHTEOUSNESS. 89 
 
 our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and the fruits thereof; 
 faith, love, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. 
 
 ^''They are all gone out of the way^ they are together become 
 unprofitable'^ there^s none that doeth good^ no, not one.'''' Jesus 
 Christ our blessed Saviour declares,"! am the Way, the 
 Truth, and the Life." Therefore, to love him, believe in him, 
 keep his words and commandments, is to walk in the \vB,y 
 to eternal life and felicity ; but to deny him, disregard his 
 words and commands and be ungrateful for the salvation 
 he accomplished on Mount Calvary ; live in a course of sin 
 and iniquity, is certainly a gross departure out of the true 
 way as laid down and pointed out in Holy Writ; which 
 is a way of holiness, and its paths are peace, and lead into 
 the Paradise of God, described in such glowing language, 
 the reality of the beauties of which enrapture us, but are far 
 above our comprehension, to conceive them with anything 
 like perfection; wherein also is the *' Holy of Holies," where 
 the Mystic Deity is enthroned in Gloiy, surrounded by the 
 sons of light, reflecting his transcendent lustre, and with 
 golden harps cause the etherial dome to resound with his 
 praise. Here in this hallowed and sanctified expanse is the 
 eternal home of all the redeempd of the Lord, the Saints of 
 God, which have come thither by the true way and entered 
 in at the straight gate, which is our Lord and Saviour, Jesus 
 Christ. To be contrary and deny him, as 1 slated before, is 
 to be far, far out of the way, and on the broad road leading 
 into the dark and horrible gulph of despair, where Sataa 
 the infernal demon, has his abode, surrounded by his legions 
 of dark spirits, and all that wander on this dangerous way, 
 until ushered over the verge of time, and plunged inio this 
 pit of fire and brimstone, this home of devils where there is 
 no rest day nor night, forever and ever. 
 
 They are altogether become unprofitable; Even the most 
 holy, zealous, and faithful christians, by walking with God 
 unblameably, do nothing more than that which is enjoined 
 upon them and their duty, and are but little more than un- 
 
90 ON RIGHTEOUSNESS. 
 
 profitable servants; they are however welcomed into the joy 
 of our Lord, not because of their works, but through faith 
 in Jesus, who is the true and only way to glory, and if they 
 who have his righteousness imputed unto them are scarcely 
 saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinners appear? who 
 abuse the talents he committed unto them; they not only sup- 
 press them or cause them to lay obscure; without doing good 
 to the Lord for the extension of his kingdom throughout the 
 earth, but they employ them in the cause of his adversary, 
 and their own decided, bitter, and cruel enemy, the murder- 
 er of their souls; they serve him day and night with all their 
 might; and this is so general throughout the land, that the 
 words are very appropriate, "they are together become un- 
 profitable, there is none that doeth good, no, not one." And 
 therefore I do not marvel at the slight judgments of famine* 
 or at least half-crops for the last five or six years; so that year 
 before last hundreds and tliousands were fed by the Almigh- 
 ty with the production of other countries; which in itself 
 ought to humble the pride of this nation and every one be- 
 longing to it. What the merciful Lord (his mercy spared 
 you thus) will farther do, a few years will reveal; certain it 
 is that he is not yet satisfied w ith you, and never can be un- 
 til you repent. 
 
 Let me, who wishes you well, for your soul's sake, unde- 
 ceive you by informing you of these things, and that you 
 cannot deceive Him who, although invisible, is present 
 everywhere, and knows all things in heaven and on earth, 
 even "your heat ts afar off;" and that tiie thoughts of them 
 are evil and that continually, and that there is no good in 
 you. Therefore your cold, formal worship, and cry of re- 
 vival here and revival there, will avail you nothing, but 
 increase your damnation which slumbers not; for if ye have 
 made the trees ^ood how comes it that they bear evil and 
 pernicious fruit? Be not deceived, God is not mocked; these 
 things may do to deceive at a distance, and serve the devil a 
 good turn, which may be your object, but you will not quite 
 
ON RIGHTEOUSNESS. 91 
 
 deceive the "very elect," much less their Father, to whose 
 further mercj 1 must now again commend you, and pray 
 that through the merit which is in and througli Jesus Christ 
 our Lord, as Saviour and Mediator, ye may j^et be spared — 
 awhile at least — and if not all, hundreds and thousands, yea 
 millions may find through Him, salvation and joy, and peace, 
 and a final rest for their souls in the Paradise ol God. — 
 To whom be the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, 
 forever and ever. Amen, Amen. 
 
DISCOURSE VIII. 
 
 ON REPENTANCE. 
 
 Then said he to the multitude that came forth to be baptised 
 of him^ O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to 
 fee from the wrath to come ? 
 
 Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin 
 not to say within yourselves, we have Abraham to our 
 Father', for I say untoyou^ That God is able of these stones 
 to raise up children unto Abraham, 
 
 And now also the axe is laid at the root of the trees, every tree 
 therefore, that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down 
 and cast into the f re. [Luke, 3d Chapter, 
 
 John, the forerunner of our blessed Lord, by the providence 
 of God, was born some months prior to the Prince of life, 
 and hke him, his parents had to leave Judea to save his life 
 in consequence of the decree of King Herod, for the des- 
 truction of all the male population of two years an 1 under. 
 After his parent's death he continued his sojourn in the des- 
 ert, subsisting upon locusts and wild honey, his raiment being 
 of camel's hair with a leathern girdle about his loins accord- 
 ing to custom — some writers, however, affirm that he was 
 miraculously fed and clothed by the angels ol the Lord, that 
 they were his companions and administered unto him. Be 
 that as it may, the blessed God supported and matured him, 
 by his divine providence, for a great v*^ork and to suffer in 
 his cause; and we also know, because the word of the God 
 of truth informs us — " That the Holy Angels are minister- 
 ing spirits sent forth to minister unto them that shall be heirs 
 of salvation:" and that they personally, visibly and vision- 
 arily appeared to some of the patriarchs, prophets and apos- 
 tles, and many holy men of the true church of Christ, and 
 
ON REPENTANCE. 9$ 
 
 those that were earnestly and faithfully seeking to become 
 such; and we know that they befriend in errands of mercy, 
 if not visibly, invisibly, those who truly seek conversion, and 
 every one walking already in the path of holiness. 
 
 God in due time sent this burning and shining light to 
 preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, 
 and to inform the people that the kingdom of heaven was at 
 hand. He came forth as one fully vested with power and 
 authority from the Majesty on High, but in humilit3% and as 
 a light shining in darkness, and as Isaiah saitb, " The voice 
 of one crying in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the 
 Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, 
 and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the 
 crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places shall be 
 made smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God." 
 
 The Baptist, although a pilgrim and instructed in the wil- 
 derness, was well aware of the utter neglect and abuse of 
 vital Christianity among his countrymen, and particularly 
 among certain sects that pervaded the land, which were in- 
 flated with pride, and self-conceit of their superior holiness, 
 when at the same time they were destitute of the saving 
 grace and influences of the Holy Spirit, alienated from, and 
 without a knowledge of God in their hearts. Multitudes 
 from Jerusalem, Judea and the surrounding country, went 
 to the preaching of John and to be baptised of him, and he 
 exhorted the people to righteousness, mercy, and judgment; 
 to be good citizens, contented in their seveial callings, and to 
 contribute to the poor according to their respective abilities; 
 and many were also baptised by him. But when many of 
 the Pharisees and Sadducees came to his baptism -^as St. 
 Luke relates it— he said " O generation of vipers, who 
 hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?" It ap- 
 pears, therefore, that he applied our text more particularly 
 to these self-righteous and austere combinations, who knew 
 not God, but were full of mischief and subtlety, given to 
 adultery and their slavish passions; in fact the devil was their 
 
94 ON EEPENTANCE. 
 
 father, and they were his children, their hearts were therefore 
 full of filthy qualities of the old serpent, which was a deceiv- 
 er, liar, and murderer from the beginning. Such being their 
 disposition they went in and out in their own righteousness, 
 and would have the world believe they were the '''■peciiliar 
 ;fewf^ they seated themselves into Moses' seat, and there- 
 fore presumptiously laid heavy burdens — too heavy to bear — 
 upon men's shoulders, when they themselves would not touch 
 them with one of their fingers. Thus they pretended to lead 
 the blind while they themselves were far Jrom the true way, 
 bewildered in darkness, and therefore justly called "bhnd 
 leaders of the blind." 
 
 John, through the infallible spirit of God, could see into 
 their hearts, and from their high pretensions to holiness and 
 teachers in Israel knew them to be hypocrites, which indu- 
 ced him to exclaim, " O generation of vipers, who hath 
 warned you to flee from the wrath to come?" He well 
 knew that our blessed Lord had not yet entered upon his 
 ministry, and that no prophet of the Lord had preached un- 
 to them, he therefore asked them "who had warned them;" 
 because they came not to him v^^ith the necessary prepera- 
 tion for baptism, a broken heart and contrite spirit; sorrow 
 on account of their sins, a loathing of themselves and a de- 
 sire after the righteousness which is from above, and to be 
 "washed and made clenn," and freed from an evil heart of 
 unbelief, and be inured in the paths of holiness and godli- 
 ness — but they came just as they were, in their self-iighte- 
 ous state; with all the pollution and leprosy of sin upon them^ 
 delighting in iniquity, and as swine to wallow in the mire, 
 and about as fit to be baptised; therefore the Baptist, instead 
 of washing them, commanded them to bring forth fruits 
 worthy of repentance, such we presume as we have stated 
 they were destitute of when they presented themselves; an 
 upbraiding of heart with "unclean, unclean," an utter ab- 
 horrence of their former course of iniquity, a knowledge of 
 
ON REPENTANCE. 96 
 
 being altogether polluted and sick and in want of a physi- 
 cian. Had they come thus prepared to receive the blessing 
 of salvation, the balm might have been applied by the agent 
 of the great physician of souls and bodies, and they might 
 have been cleansed, as Naaman the Syrian, from their sin 
 and unrighteousness. 
 
 Their glorying in Abraham and thinking within them- 
 selves "We have Abraham for our Father," was to be an 
 antidote to the words of John, and a balm to heal their 
 wounded pride and self-conceit, but he soon stript them of 
 this resource and exposed them in their filthiness and of their 
 unfitness of the privilege which they claimed, and to shelter 
 under his wing, by saying, " God is able of these stones to 
 raise up children unto Abraham." Their claim of being 
 kindred to Abraham was fallaceous and of no avail to their 
 proud hearts, for they knew him not, were entirely destitute 
 of the living faith, the faith working by love, which Abra- 
 ham so eminently possessed, and also of his long suffering, 
 humility, and heavenly-mindedness; consequently they could 
 not be his children; none can claim kindred to Abraham 
 or any other member of Christ's church, without being in 
 the same faith and holiness, and through the spirit of Christ 
 in him, in one allied. They were therefore as far from being 
 the children of faithful Abraham, as heaven is from hell, 
 because through Christ was his life hid in God; he dwelled 
 in God and God in him; and the}'^ were vipers, and the devil 
 was their father. 
 
 Dreadfully hardened and corrupt were the hearts of the 
 Pharise 's; full of hypocrisy and deception, making broad 
 their phylacteries and long prayers at the corners of the 
 streets and in the markets, to be seen and heard of men, as 
 our blt'ssed Saviour assures them — whose coming, John, in 
 the spirit of Elijah was sent to announce to them. As it is 
 written in the prophets, " Behold 1 send my messenger be- 
 fore thy face which shall prepare thy way before thee; he 
 shall turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the 
 
m ON REPENTANCE. 
 
 disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a peo- 
 ple prepared for the Lord. " But notwithstanding this proph- 
 ecy, and the preaching of John the Baptist, they remained 
 in their old state of unbehef and self-righteousness, yea if 
 anything they grew worse and became more hardened, and 
 began with more zeal to persecute the holy messengers of 
 the Lord; particularly the Messiah, who soon after entered 
 on his ministry. They would not recognize him asthean- 
 nointed of the Lord, sent to deliver them that sat in darkness 
 and in the shadow of death; to set the captives free, and 
 preach the acceptable year of the Lord; to accomplish sal- 
 vation, to become the Saviour of the world; him they follow- 
 ed from place to place, not indeed to become convinced of 
 the error of their ways and converted through faith in him, 
 as the Messiah, unto God, but with all hatred, malice, and 
 revenge; full of subtlety to ensnare him in his preaching and 
 conversation, to have wherewith to accuse him before the 
 civil tribunal. 
 
 While the blessed Jesus endeavored to liberate them from 
 the bondage of sin and death, they trampled all his holy 
 efforts under their feet and boasted in having Abraham for 
 their father, and of never having been in bondage to any 
 man; and yet he said "ye shall be made free." Jesus replied 
 "verily, verily I say unto you, whosoever committeth sin is 
 the servant of sin," and that the servant could not abide in 
 the house forever, but that the Son abideth forever. He ad- 
 mitted that they were the seed of Abraham, but that they 
 sought to kill him because his words had no place in them. 
 What he meant by saying they were the seed of Abraham 
 must be considered in a natural way; they were his children 
 by nature; as God had told Abraham "from thy loins shall 
 come forth a people, in multitude as sand on the sea-shore, 
 innumerable." They thus had a claim to Abraham as their 
 father, but in the spiritual way they were of the bond-wo- 
 man; were altogether estranged from him, they knew him 
 not as a spiritual father, as all the faithful do who are set at 
 
ON REPENTANCE, 97 
 
 liberty through Christ, who also told them if they were 
 children of Abraham they would do his works; but because 
 they were not of Abraham, but of the devil they sought to 
 kill him; which they soon after effected by nailing him to the 
 cross and thus confirmed the words of John, and proved 
 themselves a generation of vipers. 
 
 Let us consider the part we have gone through before we 
 proceed to the last portion of the text. All infidels and un- 
 believers; all that delight themselves m the lusts of the flesh, 
 the pride of life, and wordly ambition, the wisdom which is 
 not from above, but which is of the serpent; all hypocrites, 
 and hoards of modern pharisees, and self-righteous dema- 
 gogues, and abusers of themselves with mankind, which a 
 person might think was not applicable to any in these times 
 of Bible, Tract, and Missionary Societies, and when Bibles 
 and Testaments are so plenty, found in every house, and 
 when churches are so numerous and almost daily building 
 throughout the country; m this age of preteipsions to such a 
 high state of civilization and refinement. I say a person 
 would scarcely think that it could be possible, when it really 
 is one of the prevailing sins of the land and causes it to groan 
 and mourn under it. Where have we got to? the lowest 
 depth of degradation and heathenism, or the middle ages of 
 darkness, infidelity and corruption? yea even to a worse 
 case in relation to God for his great mercies and blessings 
 abused. O earth! earth!! earth!!! mourn and be astonished 
 at the shamelessness and degeneratedness of thy children. — 
 O ye generation of vipers, how long do you think God will 
 bear with you? Be warned, be warned speedily to flee from 
 the wrath to come; see ye not the awful judgments which the 
 Almighty is bringing upon you for your filthy abominations; 
 will ye remain blind to them until ye are crushed into hell. 
 O that ye were wise, that ye saw the judgments of our 
 Father ushering so many of your fellows into eternity, to their 
 own home, that you understood this, that ye would consider 
 your latter end. 
 
 9 
 
98 ON REPENTANCE. 
 
 And say not within your hearts that ye have Abrahim for 
 your father, "for God is able of these stones to rais-* up 
 better children unto Abraham;" neither say ye are of Pnul 
 or of Appollos, or of Luther, or of Calvin, or of Wesley; 
 the usefulness and piety, the holiness and devotedness to 
 God, of these men can avad you nothing, if ye remain yet 
 in your sins and abominations. If ye value your souls, bring 
 forth therefore fruits meet for repentance, and through Christ 
 who is the Way, the Truth and the Life, be ye converted 
 unto God. Christ is the foundation and way of salvation — 
 and there is no other name given whereby ye can be saved, 
 and escape the wrath to come, which has even already com- 
 menced. Remember the flood upon the uiigodly, remember 
 Sodom and Gomorrah, and remember other nations uhich 
 had not the fear of God before then' eyes; they were c;ist as 
 dung upon the earth, removed out of the sight and nostrils 
 of Jehovah, and where do you think they are in eternity? ah 
 that you knew; that you would believe when you are infor- 
 med by Him who is enthroned in the Holy Place, when he 
 swears in his wrath that all that do these things, shall not 
 enter into his rest, and that all the wicked and the nauons 
 that forget him shall be turned into hell. And therefore the 
 conclusion of our text ;-— 
 
 Amd now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees, 
 every tree therefore which hringeth not forth good fruity is 
 heion down and cast into the fire. Johns*' exposing their 
 wickedness, and preaching the baptism of repentance ior the 
 remission of sins; offering the terms of life and laying the 
 articles of death before them; thus was the axe laid unto 
 the root of the trees, they were thefefore to choose whether 
 they would serve God or mammon, and bring forth fruits ac- 
 cordingly, so as to be known by their fruits, and if they bore 
 evil fruit they were to be cut down and cast into the fire, as 
 they no doubt were all that died or were cut down in their 
 sins, for to heaven they could not psssibly come without 
 holiness, without having beea trees of righteousness, the 
 planting of the Lord that he might be glorified. 
 
ON REPENTANCE. 99 
 
 Soon after this preaching and warning of John, they 
 exhibited by their fruits what sort of trees they were, by 
 crucifying the Lord of Life and Glory, and further, by con- 
 tinuing in their national unbelief despising all the promises, 
 and disregarding all the threats of the Almighty, and perse- 
 cuting the messengers of the Most High ; their works were 
 only evil continually, and an abomination in the sight of 
 God; he therefore, visited them with awful judgments; cut 
 them down as cumberers of the ground ; destroyed them as 
 a nation, and scattered them abroad upon the face of the 
 earth. 
 
 I would now also apply it to this nation which indulges 
 so grossly in this pollution, this filthy abomination in the 
 sight of the Omnipotent, Holy God, for which the land has 
 been mourning and groaning for some years, on account of 
 his displeasure, and the judgments which he sent upon it to 
 teach you wisdom and cause you to follow the example of 
 Ninevah, to repent and do away the evil from before his eyes. 
 And have you so repented and amended your ways as to 
 walk more humbly and upright with God? alas, no! if any- 
 thing ye are plunged deeper into the mire, and continue a 
 hardened, at)ominable and stiff-necked people, from whom 
 the wrath of an angry God will not be averted until ye re- 
 pent and do away the evil, or until he chastise you to the 
 uttermost, even to the destroying you as a nation from the 
 face of the earth; and at this I am greatly astonished, that it 
 has not been done already; but then when I remember how 
 merciful Jesus the Saviour and Intercessor is, who probably 
 interceded that the barren tree inighi be spared yet a little 
 while. Ye are not only a barren tree as respects the fruit ye 
 should bear so as to glorify God, and be his delight; but ye 
 are a polluted tree, your fruit is abominable, and ye are a 
 dishonor to God, and he abhors you, and must of necessity 
 for he is holy and cannot possibly delight in such as ye are, 
 for ye are filthy; and therefore 1 forewarn you to flee from the 
 wrath to come. 
 
100 ON REPENTANCE. 
 
 A word to the wise, if there be any such, that are heartily 
 tired and loath this beast of abominations, and wish to come 
 out from amongst them, do so with all possible speed that ye 
 partake not of their sins. Jesus, the Lamb of God, whose 
 blood cleanseth from all sins, stands ready to receive yoUc 
 " Come unto me, all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and 
 1 will give you rest: take my yoke upon you and learn of me, 
 for I am meek and lowly, and ye shall have rest unto your 
 souls; for my yoke is easy and my burden is light." O what 
 precious words are these of our blessed Saviour, to miserable 
 sinners, that have even fought against him, lived in gross 
 sins and persecuted Christ in his people; but have seen their 
 folly and madness in time, and are sensible of the awful 
 state they are in, the wretchedness and misery of a life of 
 sin and debauchery, and abhor themselves on account of 
 their iniquity, and long after peace and rest for their souls. — 
 Jesus yet mercifully invites all such in those gracious w®rds 
 of love and many others. *' Knock and it shall be opened, 
 seek and ye shall find;" ''believe and ye shall be saved," as 
 the apostle also saith, "with the heart men believe unto 
 righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto 
 salvation; therefore repent ye and believe the gospel; believe 
 in Jesus the author and finisher of faith and salvation, that 
 ye may be hid under his Almighty wings when the general 
 destruction takes place, and finally live with him forever in 
 heaven, in glory. 
 
 To my brethren, the faithful, the holy, who are truly the 
 children of faithful Abraham, because we do his works and 
 delight therein, therefore are we his spiritual children, and 
 we know God through the same faith that he also knew him 
 and walked with him, through Jesus Christ our Lord. I 
 would say to them, my brethren, be not weary in well-doing, 
 be faithful to the end, watch, fast and pray without ceasing, 
 that ye may abound in grace, in love, peace and joy in the 
 Holy Ghost; and that ye be not enticed to do evil, but be 
 enabled to disregard the smiles and frowns of the world, its 
 
ON REPENTANCE. 101 
 
 promises and threats, malice, hatred, and revenge; for ye are 
 a peculiar people, the chosen of the Lord, a holy nation 
 within many nations, a royal priesthood; great is our high and 
 holy privilege, let us not abuse it, but keep the devil the old 
 beast with all his filthiness under our feet, and should he 
 rage with ten thousand times more fury in the air, and in 
 his filthy children, my beloved be nothing dismayed, which 
 is to them a sure sign of destruction, but to us of salvation 
 and that of God. For to us is given not only to believe in 
 Christ, but also to suffer for his name's sake; rejoice therefore 
 and be exceeding glad, we shall also reign with Christ when 
 he in his glory is revealed from above, and have an entrance 
 administered unto us abundantly into his everlasting king- 
 dom of glory, to reign with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and 
 all the Holy Angels, with our blessed Father in the New 
 Jerusalem, in Paradise, and finally in the New Heavens and 
 New Earth, in all joy, glory, felicity, happiness and bliss, 
 forever and ever. Amen. 
 
DISCOCR^E IX. 
 
 THE MERIT OF CHRIST. 
 
 Jesus Christ has become to us Wisdom^ Righteousness^ 
 Sanctijication^ and Redemption, 
 
 [\st Corinthians^ ]st chap., 30th ver» 
 
 Christ our Wisdom. 
 
 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with 
 God, and the Word was God; and the same was in the be- 
 ginning with God. Ail things were made by him, and with- 
 out him was not any thing made that was made." [St. John, 
 1st, Chap.] Jesus was therefore mysteriously and incompre- 
 hensibly, One with the Father from all eternity. By him 
 w^ere the heavens ordained and the foundations of the earth 
 kid, and the light spoke into being; the waters divided and 
 the dry land made to appear; clothed with verdure, the herb 
 yielding seed, and the tree yielding fruit after his kind; the 
 Sun, Moon and Stars placed in the fiman<^ni; the Sun to 
 rule the day, and the iVloon and Stars to give light by night; 
 the seas he filled with fish, and created birds to fly in the air 
 in the midst of heaven, and also the beast after his kind, and 
 the cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth up- 
 on the earth, afier his kind; beholding these things God in his 
 w^isdom, pronounced them all good Then God said, "Let 
 us make man in our own image," in His image therefore, 
 created he him, and gave him dominion over all the fishes of 
 the sea, fowls of the air, and beasts of the field, and every 
 living thing that creepeth upon the earth. God formed a 
 help-meet to the man whom he had formed from the dust of 
 the earth, and into whom he breathed the breath of life, so 
 that he became a living soul, and he brought every living 
 thmg on the face of the earth to be named by him, and Adam 
 
THE MERIT OF CHRIST. 103 
 
 distinguished them by diflerent appellations to the entire ap- 
 probation of his Father, who deemed it rij^ht that their names 
 shculd j-o »emain. In whose wisdom did Adam thus perfect- 
 ly name the living creation? Certainly in the wisdow of 
 Chii^t. For being the first and only human being upon the 
 face of the whole earth he could have had no visible instruc- 
 tor, and to have been prompted by an apostate spirit he would 
 have faltered in his stupendous task, and could not possibly 
 havr pleased God. It is iherefore self-evident that the Holy 
 Ghost was his instructor, proceeding from the Father and 
 the Snn, through the Mystic Trinity. In Christ's wisdom 
 then (hd he act, 
 
 Afier this God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, 
 and while he slept, he opened his side and took therefrom a 
 rib and formed it into a partner for the man, and brought her 
 to him, whom Adam, in the aforesaid wisdom, called Wo- 
 man, being bone of his bones and flesh of his flesh, being 
 taken out of man; and God placed them both mto the garden 
 of Eden and gave them pern)ission to eat of every tree there- 
 in, save the one in the midst of the garden, of the knowledge 
 of ^ood and evi) — now they were perfect, innocent, and 
 holy, and walked with God in wisdom and through their 
 obedi«M)ce every thing went on well, until the devil, that 
 arch apostate, who had previously fallen from an Ai'gel's 
 exalted state in heaven, and consequently brought upon liim- 
 self the wrath of God, and he together with all the rebel- 
 lious spirits under him, were cast out from the presence of 
 the blessed and Holy God, into the earth, where they are 
 held in chains of darkness unto the judgment of the great 
 day, when the wrath of Almighty Gud shall be more fully 
 revealed against him, with all his ungodly followers and after 
 havnig been judged by Saints and Angels, and heard their 
 sentence pronounced by Jesus Christ, the Judge, will be all 
 immediately cast into hell, to be tormented with fire and 
 brimstone forever and ever. 
 
 This foul spirit being exasperated at his expulsion from 
 
104 THE MERIT OF CHRIST. 
 
 heaven, and an impossibility of returning thither, set to work 
 to destroy the innocence, peace and happiness of this holy 
 pair, and through his subtlety, entered the serpent — which 
 was more cunning than any other of the creatures which 
 God created on all the earth, and by a tact of lying — of 
 which he is the Father, and wisdom of deception, he indu- 
 ced them to take and persuaded them to eat of the forbidden 
 fruit, the consequence was their immediate fall from the ho- 
 liness of God and his wisdom, into ignorance and corruption 
 of soul and body. The anger of God was kindled against 
 them and they were driven out of Paradise, to obtain a liv- 
 ing by their ow^n hands, and to eat their bread by the sweat 
 of their brow. But God, who is love, had pity and compas- 
 sion upon them, and provided a remedy, thai through Christ 
 they and their seed might again return to him, be restored to 
 his holy image, and walk with him in wisdom and holiness. 
 
 They now knew good from evil — that there was a wisdom 
 that is from God, and one so called, that is from the devil ; 
 and their hearts were hardened. God saw that iniquity grew 
 upon them, and he therefore framed and gave laws to them, 
 that were " holy, just and good," and commandments that 
 were also good ; that by the observing of these, they might 
 live together in peace, and end their course with joy, and re- 
 turn to his, our Father's home and rest. 
 
 But, O! bow recklessly and depraved have men lived since 
 then, in all ages of the world. In putting aside the wisdom 
 of God ; they have hewn out cisterns ; broken cisterns that 
 can hold no water; their foolish hearts were darkened, and 
 their delight was in the inventions of Satan, which all lead 
 to destruction and death, and the endless torments of hell ; 
 and how applicable is this to the present generation! God 
 at first created man upright, but they have sought out many 
 inventions; but in the face of this from the godly wise-men, to 
 justify themselves, and quiet their consciences, many of the 
 fools say in their hearts " there is no God ;" can it be possible 
 that ihey are so hardened and blinded by ignorance and Sa- 
 tan, that they cannot see the finger of God in every thing 
 
THE MERIT OB^ CHRIST. 105 
 
 teeming with life around them ; their own bodies, bones and 
 muscles; fibres, tendons and nerves, &c.; the curiously 
 wrought ear and eye ; the blood circulating through the sys- 
 tem to sustain the whole ; and by beholding over their heads 
 the stupendous expanse of glittering luminaries ; the won- 
 derful and sublime arch of suns, moons, and blazing stars, 
 circumvolving in their course with such beautiful harmony 
 and nice exactness — can they really not behold in all these 
 things, superior wisdom to their own ; stand astonishec), and 
 exclaim with the child that was shut up in a dark dungeon 
 until manhood, "who has placed those things there ?".and 
 be informed through the inspired page, and instructed by 
 those who are in the wisdom of Christ, of the true source 
 from whence every blessing emanates, aad be convinced of 
 the fallaciousness of their reasoning, and utter groundlessness 
 of their wisdom — for this wisdom is not of God, but is earth- 
 ly, sensual and devilish, and the wretched and unchangeable 
 state their infidelity will finally bring them to, if they are not 
 arrested in their madness, and persuaded from their delusion, 
 and converted unto God through our Lord and Saviour Jesus 
 Christ. " But the bible and our preaching is to them that 
 perish foolishnes; to us that are saved, the power of God 
 and the wisdom of God.'* " For it is written, I will destroy 
 the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the under- 
 standing of the prudent." " Where is the wise? where is the 
 scribe ? where is the disputer of this world ? has not God 
 made foolishness the wisdom of this world ?" " For after 
 that in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not 
 God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save 
 them that believe." [1st Cor. 1st Chap, verses 19, 20, and 
 21.] Be ye therefore constrained by one who loves your souls 
 no longer to live in darkness, vanity, and the foolishness of 
 this world; but be as honest to yourselves, as the Corint lians 
 to whom St. Paul preached; Many also of them which used 
 curious arts brought their books together, and burned them 
 before all men.''' [Acts, 19c. 19v.] Thus they showed to the 
 
106 THE MERIT OF CHRIST. 
 
 world that theirviews w^re changed and thoy dreaded the aw- 
 ful consequences of a life spent in vice and iniquity, and hence- 
 forth they would walk in the righteousness and wisdom of 
 God. (/! that every sinner would go and do likewise. "For 
 the fear of the Lord that is wisdom ; and to depart from ini- 
 quity that is understanding." 
 Chiist our Bighteo?/sness. 
 
 It is very deplorable to know that thousands, yea millions 
 of those that have the name of being christians, and that 
 belong to some visible church on earth, among whom are 
 many ministers, are utterly at variance with this grt^at grace 
 and blessing, and are going about to establish in the face of 
 it, their own righteousness; every one in his respective calling; 
 preaching, going to church, alms deeds, and in many differ- 
 ent v\ ays; they arrogate to themselves praise far above that 
 which is due to unregenerate persons, because they do thes3 
 things with eye service and not to the glory of God, and then 
 assume much comfort and ease, and on the strength of these 
 things thirik themselves at liberty to indulge even in gross 
 sins — building on a slippery foundation, while fiery billows 
 roll beneath; erect a fabric that may be blown away almost 
 by a breath. V\ hat need of a Saviour if men can save 
 their own souls in their respective ways? — the impossibility 
 of which will however appear to every candid, reflecting mind 
 as God is the source of every good and perfect gift, by con- 
 sequence Salvation, that great blessing is from him, and Christ 
 through liis obedience, merit and righteousness has become 
 the Saviour, and wliere his righteousness is not imputed, 
 there is no salvation and men remain still in their sins. 
 
 " The Lord our righteousnesss," from Jeremiah, 23d ch. 
 6th ver., comports with this part of our subject; the inspired 
 writer while predicting the coming of our blessed Saviour, 
 honors him with the preceeding title, and instructs his hear- 
 ers and the world in the way of Salvation; all the redeemed 
 from all nations, through all ages are saved through the mer- 
 it of his blood, through his righteousness; all other righteous- 
 ness is but as filthy rags, but where that of Christ is imputed 
 
THE MERIT OF CHRIST. 107 
 
 every good fruit is apparent, such as have been mentioned 
 already, done in a different temper than when the person 
 was in a natural state, and calculated the bearing of these 
 things according to his ambitioii in regard to his siiualion 
 in this life, and the influence they might exercise upon the 
 views of the world, to his own aggrandisement. The natu- 
 ral state is not congenial to the holy attributes of God, which 
 require truth in the innermost parts; and a holy purpose that 
 whatever we do may redound to his glory, and heighten the 
 joy of the Ang(^ls in heaven, who know our trials here be- 
 low, and are either sorrowful or abound in joy according to 
 our triumph over the old Adam, and progress in the new; 
 repentance, therefore is the first meritorions act, and the first 
 step towards a sinner's conversion, lo break up the fallow 
 ground; then comes the miry clay, the broken heart, the 
 wounded spirit, the deep anguish and agony of a distressed 
 soul; the cries for mercy, mercy, pleading with God for 
 forgiveness of sins for Jesus' sake, for what he had done and 
 suffered, through his most precious blood, through his death, 
 resurrection and ascension, and through his mediatorial pow 
 er at the right hand of the Father. 
 
 This weight of anguish and sorrow of soul, this travail 
 and agonizing to be delivered from the load of sin and cor- 
 ruption which so severely presses the soul, and causes the 
 body to sink under it; yea it even causes in some the very 
 bones to partake of the general prostration, and to ache as 
 though they had been bruised by some natural pressure; as 
 also David, the King, complained when in affliction, saying, 
 "my bones cleave to my skin," and that his soul loathed to 
 eat bread; here is proof from scripture authority, and many 
 since were abie to testify that the whole man must become 
 sick and in want of a physician; then, and not till then will 
 he inquire, ''is there no balm in Gilead, is there no physician 
 there?" And having become acquainted with his wants, and 
 having made application to the Great Physician of Souls, 
 to Jesus — who came not to call the righteous but sinners to 
 
108 THE MERIT OF CHRIST. 
 
 repentance — in the foregoing language of humility and sin- 
 cerity, and if the night of doubt and darkness continues long; 
 if ye cannot immediately behold him when ye wish, be ye 
 not therefore tempted to give over the struggle, for Satan 
 will persuade you to it if possible; listen not to his lies — but 
 contmue your importunate prayers and supplications for sal- 
 vation, so as not to let the blessed God go until he blesses 
 you, and you may rest assured that sooner or later he will 
 pay attention to your unuttered groans and louder cries. — 
 Head the following texts for your comfort, "He that plant- 
 ed the ear shall he not hear? he that formed the eye shall he 
 not see?" A bruised reed will he not break? smoking flax 
 will he not quench, until he send forth judgment unto victo- 
 ry?" " Knock and it shall be opened, seek and ye shall find." 
 These are all precious and refreshing promises to every re- 
 penting soul after a night of trouble, the day-spring appears 
 and the Sun of Righteousness arises in your hearts and souls; 
 then ye have fought and attained the victory in the first battle 
 of the good fight — now the mist and darkness has disappear- 
 ed, your blindness has been taken away, and your sins par- 
 doned; your names recorded in the Lamb's book of life; now 
 also you have received this blessing of our Lord. " I am 
 come to give to them that mourn in Zion; to give them beau- 
 ty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise 
 for the spirit of heaviness, that they might be called trees of 
 righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be 
 glorified." Your souls therefore now rejoice in the righteous- 
 ness of your God and Saviour, your hearts leap for joy, and 
 are full of thanks and praise to him who has done this thing 
 for you, and ready to shout with Isaiah — ''Sing O ye heavens 
 for the Lord has done it; shout ye lower parts of the earth; 
 break forth into singing ye mountains, O forests and every 
 tree therein, for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified 
 himself in Israel." 
 
 Christ has become the end of the law, for righteousness 
 unto you, because of your living faith, and you are now un- 
 der the covenant of his grace. Manifest therefore, by holy 
 
THE MERIT OF CHRIST. 109 
 
 tempers and Godliness, that ye are passed from death unto 
 life, have put off the old man, and have put on the new man, 
 which after God is created in righteousness and true holi- 
 ness; that the world may take knowledge that ye have been 
 with Jesus, and have his righteousness imputed to you; by 
 your hatred of Satan and all his unrighteous inventions and 
 deeds, and by your love to God and every thing heavenly and 
 that may contribute to his glory, by your delight in whatso- 
 ever things are true, whatsot^ver things are honest, whatso- 
 ever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever 
 things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; and 
 by your delight to serve and honor our blessed Father, and 
 keep yourselves pure and unspotted from the world, and at 
 all times being holy and acceptable sacrifices unto God, 
 which is your most reasonable service; thus your confidence 
 will increase, your faith be confirmed, and you will grow in 
 the knowledge of God, in his righteousness, p^ace and joy 
 in the Holy Ghost, to the fulness of the stature of Christ. 
 Christ our Sanctification and Redemption: 
 In the righteousness of Christ you will, by remaining faith- 
 ful, and persevering, grow in the knowledge of God, even to 
 the fullness of the stature of Christ, and as justification, or 
 his wisdom and imputed righteousness goes before sanctifi- 
 cation, you may have forgiveness of sin, and peace with God, 
 yet this latter blessing may be withheld for a time, in the 
 wisdom best known to hinxself; but as even this is to work 
 together for good to them that love and fear God, the young 
 christian has nothing to cause him to dispair, but to strive 
 in his duty for this blessing also, and no doubt it will be 
 granted; in due time, the operations of the Holy Spiiit will 
 be more clear and sensible to your undei standings and souls, 
 and ye will freely cry Abba, Abba, Father, and have a near- 
 er intercourse with God, and your joy will more and more 
 abound; your souls will be as watered gardens, by the re- 
 freshings from the presence of the Lord, the great Fountain 
 
no THE MERIT OF CHRIST. 
 
 of love and goodness, and they will be as rivers meandering 
 and shining in the oc< an of his love, »eflectiug the beams of 
 the glorious Sun of Righteousness. All now is peace, love 
 and gladness within your heaits, and your spirits are hfted 
 up and your souls sing for joy. And well may ye rejoice, 
 seated in high and heavenly places — the abode of Holy An- 
 gels— ihough Christ Jesus, the author, finisher, sanctifier and 
 rewarder of our faith, whose promises are sanctified to your 
 souls and his words are no longer a terror, as they are to 
 to the unconverted ; no, his words and commands are your 
 delight, and with Holy King David you can say, "Lord, your 
 commands are holy, just and good, and the rejoicing of my 
 heart;" you will delight in often walking in this gaiden of 
 Eden, to meditate in the inspired pages, to be refreshed and 
 pluck the flowers— promises to christians — to cheer you on 
 your pilgrimage through this desert world, to brighten 
 your souls to contemplate the beauties of Paradise, and soar 
 to the regions of glory, to behold our brethren the sanctified 
 and redeemed of the Lord, blooming in the efiulgent glory of 
 God, and reflecting the beatific Deity, and listen to the An- 
 gelic chorus singing the song of Moses and the Lamb, and giv- 
 ing vent to their praise in their most divine and holy strains, 
 crying Holy! Holy'l Holy!!' Lord God Almi^^hty, Jehovah, 
 Thou King of Saints, Hallelujah ! Hallelujah ! ! the Lord 
 God Omnipotent reigneth.'" 
 
 Such is the life of God in the soul, the having Christ for wis- 
 dom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption, to walk 
 with God in holiness; in his holy temple, where his honor 
 dwelleth ; to be the children whom he delights to honor and 
 bless with every choice blessing from Mount Zion; " Because 
 he hath set his love upon me, therefore will 1 deliver him, 1 
 will set him on high, because he has known My name, he 
 shall call upon me and 1 will {\nswer him, 1 will be with 
 him in trouble, 1 will deliver and honer him. With long 
 life will T satisfy him, and shew him my salvation." 
 
 O; but these are precious promises to the sanctified and 
 redeemed of the Lord, who ever beholds us from his high 
 
THE MERIT OF CHRIST. Ul 
 
 and holy throne; supplies our wants and blesses us vvitli love, 
 peace and joy in the Hloy Ghost. Yea, God doth in his 
 Saints delight: 
 
 " He looks mid circumvolving spheres, 
 
 Complaisant on his ransom'd heirs, 
 More dear than all his works beside, 
 
 Bless'd souls for whom the Saviour died." 
 
 We have considered the creation to behold the wisdom of 
 God displayed, and were astonished at the stupendous inag- 
 nificence presented to the natural eye, and his goodiioss to 
 man in the productions and fruits of the earth, and the unlim- 
 ited power over every other creature conferred upon him. But 
 in the work of redemption we view him far above the work 
 of creation. O his love manifested through his condescen- 
 sion to appear in human form on ihis earthly ball, to become 
 a sacrificial Lamb, to atone for the sins and iniquity of an 
 urgrateful, miserable and wretched human beings. Tinough 
 Emmanuel, God with us, did he out of love to our souls ac- 
 complish this, so great a work on Calvary, then bruised the 
 serpent's head and took away the sting of death, and tri- 
 umphed over the grave; now may all the redeemed of the 
 Lord sing and rejoice in our God and Saviour, and say to 
 death, "O death where is thy sting? O grave where is thy 
 victory? thanks be to God which giveth us the victory through 
 our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ." Yea our blerised 
 Father will redeem our souls from the power of the grave; 
 therefore with the psalmist David we may exult and ex- 
 claim, " Our hearts are glad, and our glory rejoiceih; our 
 flesh also shall rest in hope, for we know that our Redeemer 
 liveth, and that he shall stand on the latter day upon the 
 earth." Yea verily, the blessed Jesus is coming again, He 
 is coming! He is coming 1! arrayed in glory and majesty, 
 and power; in his own glory and the glory of the Father, 
 surrounded by all the shining, holy, heavenly hosts, of Angels 
 and his redeemed Saints, when He will hold a general res- 
 urrection; and we, his saints, shall have our bodies redeemed 
 
112 THE MERIT OF CHRIST. 
 
 and glorified like unto his jolorious body, and then shall the 
 love of Jehovah and the glorious work of redemption be re- 
 plete in gracious relief to the manifestation of both parties; 
 the redeemed and holy, and to the unsanctified and unholy; 
 when all the w^orld from beginning to end shall stand before 
 Him; the redeemed with the Holy Angels sing with joy un- 
 speakable and full of glory; and rejoice in their God and 
 Saviour, but the rest, those who slightrd his Jove and would 
 have none of his redemption and holiness, are, with their 
 fathrr the devil .sentenced to wretchedness, and will be 
 cast by the King of Saints and of Glory, into endless tor- 
 ments, into hell, where the worm dieth not and the fire is 
 not quenched. Then also shall the redeemed, with the holy 
 angels, inherit the new heavens and the new earth, and sing 
 praises and hallelujahs, unto the Father and unto the Lamb 
 forever and ever. Amen 
 
BI8COIJR8E X. 
 
 TFIE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT. 
 
 Therefore said thry vnto him, How were thine eyes opened^ 
 He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus, made clay 
 and anointed mine eyes, and said nnto me, Go to the poo! 
 X)f Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, afid I re* 
 ceived sight, [John, 9th Chap. lOth Sf I Uh verses, 
 
 O how numerous and lamentable are the afiflictions of the 
 human family in consequence of the wrath of God, entail- 
 ed upon the same, on the disobedence of our first parents. 
 Dreadful are the issues flowmg from the vials, even in this 
 life, but how much more terrible and awful to those who 
 neglect the salvation of their immortal souls, who die in 
 their sins, in that which is to come; in that of endless dura- 
 tion, where the worm dielh not and the fire is not quenched. 
 jVlan, created at the beginning innocent and holy, like unto 
 the Angels of Heaven, without those concomitant evils to 
 which he is heir to now, and has been throughout all ages of 
 the world, from the time Jehovah pronounced the curse, "in 
 the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat thy bread;" and also, 
 " dust thou art and unto dust shall thou return." From 
 this period the whole creation has been travailing in pain 
 together until now; the earth bringing forth thorns and this- 
 tles, and groaning and languishing on account of the mis- 
 deeds of her inhabitants, who in the goodness and mercy of 
 God, were, and are btill visited by severe judgments; burdens 
 of gracious plagues and sores are laid upon the children of 
 men, which in the wisdom and providence of God, are to 
 redound to their temporal and eternal welfare, and also to 
 the glory of the Most High; for God, who is over all and 
 blessed forevermore. is a jealous God and will never permit 
 his glory to pass from him, neither will he give it to anotbei*. 
 
 10 
 
114 THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT. 
 
 In rorisequpiJce thereforp, of His Omnipotence, the devil, his 
 advpisaiy, ran never rob hinn — alihongh be is a robber and 
 murderer — but wiH alwa3S b • confounded, ovc rthrovvn, and 
 tran^pl-d under as be was when in the ^lory of Heaven he 
 esayed lobe as the Most Hi^h, when bn became the vilest 
 of all creation; the father of li 's, sin, and iniquity, and alt 
 abomination and crime; and the Lord God bound him in 
 chains of ignorance and darkness, and cast him out into the 
 earth, and l»ere on earth he has been the cause of all this es- 
 trangement from our heavenly Father, contempt of his w-ord, 
 and consequently, misery and wretchedness of poor, frail 
 hunmn nature; darkness and bhndness, and death temporal^ 
 as v\ellas spnituai and eternal. 
 
 O how much more awful would have been the state of our 
 forefathers and also ours, had not our blessed God piomised 
 a Naviour immediately alter the fall' had he not sent Him 
 to our relief in due time as predicted; had not Jesus passed 
 to and fro among us, as a physician, to alleviate our misery, 
 lo cleanse us from the leprosy of sin and iniquity; for when 
 we were dead in tresspasser and crime, the blessed Lord ap- 
 peared among us to prepare a balm to heal our wounds; to 
 cause the blinil to see, the lame to walk, the possessed of dev- 
 ils to rejoice in God, and to raise the dead to life. Christ 
 was emphatically the light of the world; the day-spring from 
 on High, lo those who satin the shadow of death; the glori- 
 ous Sun of Righteousness to illuminate the dark places of 
 the earth; to shine into the hearts where cruel devils had their 
 habitation, and cause them to flee belore his presence; then 
 imparted hi? miraculous grace, illuminated the souls and un- 
 derstandings, and erected his temple of holiness in their 
 hearts, and shrine of praise in their bu asls, and sinners coidd 
 }eap, rejoice ar.d praise God; who were before blind, lame, 
 impotent, and deaf and dumb. 
 
 As by one man sin entered int'^ the world, and death by sin, 
 so by one man, Christ Jesus came also salvation; righteous- 
 ness ana holiness, love, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost; 
 
THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT. 115 
 
 eternal life; the promise of the lile that now is, and of that 
 wh'n h is to come; through faith in Him as a Prince and a 
 Saviour, in whom alor^e is remission of sins, jusiifi' alion, 
 sanctification, Rud rverlasttvg hfe : who is indubHably "the 
 Way, the Truth and the Lile;" hikI none can ever come inUo 
 the Father but by him, for our blessed God sent him invo the 
 world to become a pntpitialion thereof, so that *'He might 
 be just and the Justifier of him that believelh in Jesus " 
 
 It is evident that by faith we are made vvLoli', eNen saved 
 from our sins; to live and move and have our being in holi- 
 ness in Christ, '* Who is the re^urreciiou and the life, and 
 whosoever believeth in Him though lie wer« dead yet shall 
 he live, and whosoever iiveth and believeth on Him shall 
 never die." As therefore faith, and only faith, l)rings the 
 blessings fiom above, the astonishing miracles which Christ 
 wrought, were thus awarded to those who had confidence ia 
 and believingly came unto Him, craving the boon which 
 they stood in need of to inci^ase then- comlort in this life, 
 and some for their eternal well-being, and none that ev er 
 came thus were ever sent empty away by the blessed i^m- 
 manuel, but had their wishes gratified, and thus this blinJ 
 man received his sight : 
 
 Stupendous miracles are wrought, 
 
 And water into wine does flow; 
 At the Omnipotence of his word 
 
 The lame are lieal'd in soundness go. 
 
 Behold the blind their sight receive, 
 
 The lepers cleans' d and freed from stain, 
 The possess'd of devils does relieve, 
 
 And deaf to hear restores again. 
 
 The sick and the dying he heals, 
 
 And to life again the dead does call, 
 Thus his power divine reveals, 
 
 And with compassion looks on all. 
 
 O mark his virtue at the tomb, 
 
 Of him with whom he was intimate, 
 Overpower'd and weeping, cries, "comei'* 
 
 Behold dead Lazarus' whole made. 
 
ne THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT. 
 
 The blessed J^aviour constrained by Infinite love, s(yjourR' 
 ed as a stranger and pilgrim on the earth to befriond poor, 
 wretched sinners, to do them good; lo become their Redeem- 
 er, and also to glorify God the Father, in whom the works 
 which he did were wrought; as he informed his disciples, 
 that his doings might be made ntanrfest, and that for this 
 purpose this man was born blind, and that it was not on ac- 
 count of the sins of his parent?, althougii sin and iniquity 
 are the pnmary cause of all blindness, distortion, di.-ease, 
 and death. 
 
 It appears that our blessed Lord made an ointment of clay 
 moistened by his spittle, and put it on the eyes of the blind 
 man and commanded him to go and wash in the pool of Si- 
 loam; he went as he was bid by the Lord, washed m the 
 pvol and came seeing. His neighbors were greatly astonish- 
 ed, knowing that he had been blind from his birth. *'There- 
 fore said they unto him, How were thine eyes opened?"— 
 Pie informed them by saying that, "A man that is called 
 Jesus, made clay and anointed n.ine eyes, and said unto me, 
 Go to the pool of >iloam, and wash, and 1 went and washed, 
 and ] received sight." 
 
 Jesus after having anointed his eyes, passed on his way to 
 administer to others, progressing in bis mission towards its fi- 
 nal accomplishment, when he should bruise the devd's filthy 
 head, break the chains of hell, and set the captives free; when 
 he should acconjpfish full salvation, by his atonement on 
 Calvarv, by satisfying divine justice on the cross; behold him 
 on Calvary's heights, his tender hands and feet pierced by 
 rugged nails; thus pinioned to the accursed tree, he hangs be- 
 tween heaven and earth amid the vilest of the vile- amid mur- 
 derers — and he himself accused as viler still, although inno- 
 cent and holy, and without auile in his mouth; with love, pity, 
 and compassion, he looks down upon his enemies; his perse- 
 cutors, blasphemers, and his murderers, and prays, '^Father 
 forgive them for (hey know not what they do." O that you 
 would contemplate the sufferings he endured, that you would 
 
THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT. 117 
 
 behold the groat change in his countenance in consequence 
 of th(^ ag;ony he is in for your sins; yea for your sins he then ag- 
 onises and groans inspirit. O the awful, the terrible death he 
 endures for you ;0 shall his unbounded, boundless love, his 
 dying love, avaii Frothing with you miserable wreched sinners 
 just on the brink of hell, ready to drop into the pit prepared 
 for the devil and the damned, from the foundation of the 
 world? Shall 1 repeat, has h«s holy, angelic, god-like, dying 
 love, which induced him to come to your relief so that you 
 might not die, but live, avail you nothing? will you remain 
 in your hard, impenitent state, your dreadful aversion of ho- 
 liness; of a life of Godliness, your very hatred of God and 
 his words, while he dc^es all for your conversion, for your de- 
 liverance from the bondage of the d-evil ami his filthiness, 
 and from death and hell; will you still continue to resist the 
 blessed God in his merciful and indescribable efforts to save 
 you fiojii b 'ing cast into the lake of fire and brimstone; do 
 despite to his holy spirit of grace, to apply the blood of Je- 
 sus, to cleansi^ you hom your sins; behold how it flows in 
 healing streams from his hands and side, and feet and head. 
 O how precious it is to cleanse from all sins, as all know 
 who walk in holiness with God; and O will you, O wretched 
 creatures, will you trample this holy, this sanctified blood of 
 the Lauib of God under foot, and like stubborn swine and 
 dogs run headlong into hell! O how can you be so ungrate- 
 ful to yourselves, your poor dying souls, and your Maker's 
 love, who also wishes to be your Saviour, to pluck you as 
 brands from everlasting burnings! How^ can you be thus 
 unfeeling? ^our hearts be like the nether millstone, against 
 the love, the mercy, and the goodness of our beloved God; 
 not kno vvi.ig that his goodness has a tendency to lead you to 
 repentance, but go on in your folly and madness, unt>l like 
 Dives, you are brought to feel for your poor souls in hell, al- 
 though you never could this side of it. 
 
 God is essentially Love, as is abundantly manifest thro"* 
 this, his atonement on calvary, in the character of his only 
 
118 THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT. 
 
 begotten Son Emnianud, and also in many works wrought 
 previous, and since, to convince sinners that he had no de- 
 light in their death, hut rather that they would repent and 
 live. "Turn ye, Turn ye, for why wdl ye die," is the Jan- 
 guHge of Jehovah, constiained by Divine Love, and made 
 manifest to poor dying sinners, to warn you to flee froai the 
 wrath to come; to work out your souPs salvation ere death 
 puts a period to your mortal beingvere you are cut down as 
 the grass, and your glory perishes as the flower thereof; ere 
 you are summoned out of time into a never, no never ending 
 eternit\; ere you are called to the bar of Christ, the Judge 
 of all the earth, so that you be not doomed by him to end- 
 less perdition; be expelled from the presence of His glory 
 and Majesty forever and e\'er, into the place prepared for 
 foul spirits, for devils, where neither love nor peace can pos- 
 sibly exist, for devils cannot love, neither is there any peace 
 for them nor the wicked, says Almi^iity God; for those who' 
 have their delight in all manner of abominations, who d ink 
 down iniquity as an ox diiuks dow,n water; wlio revel in 
 darkness and things pertaining to death; who commit the 
 grossest crimes, and are not sorry for their hellish deeds, but 
 liavp the effrontery a. id impudence to glory in their shame, 
 presumptiously mock God in his glory, and mouthe the very 
 heavens; chikiren of darkness who shun the light like the 
 owl, lest their robberies, their murdrrs, their whoredoms? 
 their witchcrafts, thfir workings with familiar spirits, their 
 drunkenness, their abusing each others bodies by the hellish 
 abominations and infernal inventions of filthy devils, their 
 adulteries, their fornications, their extortion, and other crimes. 
 1 say who shun the light lest their doings of darkness and 
 death be made manifest and reproved, and who harden their 
 hearts and stiffen their necks, lest they become converted 
 and Christ should heal them; who love darkness rather than 
 light because their deeds are evil; whose consciences are 
 seared as with an hot iron; to whom blindness has happened 
 and who wallow in filth as svvintf in the mire; the odours of 
 
THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT, 119 
 
 their abominations ascends up continually unto the throne 
 of the Eternal, and o(feniis the nostrils of Jehovah; in con- 
 sequence of whose wrath —for God is angry with the wic^ked 
 every day — "their destruction lingercth not, and their dam- 
 nation slumbereth not/'' Such a people as above pervaded 
 the earth at the time of our blessed Saviour, ihey hardened 
 their hearts, stiffened their necks, and shut their eyes — (hat 
 is blinded their understanding, lest they should Ije brouglit 
 to a knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus, whom they per 
 secuted from city to city, and would have none fJ his re- 
 proofs, nor admonitions, denying that he was the predi< ted 
 Emmanuel — God with us — and his prerogative of the \les- 
 siahship; his exalte.! commission from the Majesty on High, 
 from Jehovah, "to heal the broken-hearted, liberate the cap- 
 tives, set the prisoners free, proclaim the acceptable year of 
 the Lord, and comfort the mourners in Sion; to give them 
 beauty for ashes, the o»l of joy lor mourning, the garment of 
 praise for the spirit of heaviness, that they might be called 
 trees of Kighteousness, the plantmg of the Lord, that he 
 might l>e glorified. Notwithstanding all the exertions of our 
 ado able Lord to enlio;hten the peo[>le, for saith he, " As 
 long as I am in the world I am the light of the world." — 
 Darkness ren\ained covering the earth, and gross darkness 
 the people— inflated with pride and anrbition, the leaders 
 were ever busy inflaming by their conveisalion t :h 
 multitude to acts of ungratefulness against the giver of 
 every good and perfect gift; who now sojourned among them 
 in human form, although iJivine in his nature, to effect the 
 salvation of the world. Stupendous miracles were wrought 
 to alleviate the v^ retchedness of men; it was also apparent 
 from ail his works that they were from above, and no one 
 could open the eyes of the blind unless be was from God; 
 but they denied the Divinity of Christ, *' Therefore said they 
 unto him, How^ were thine eyes opened?'" 
 
 Jesus having finished his course; having ended his mission 
 on earth; having accomplished salvation for the world, and 
 
120 THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT, 
 
 having assumed his Eternal Glory in Heaven, from wh^re he 
 rules the Universe and from whence he dispenses blessings 
 temporal and spiritual, salvation and remission of sins to all 
 that come unto him; a^d from w^hence he calls upon all men 
 every where to repent, to do away all evil from before his 
 glorious eyes, to work out their souls sanation wh^le it is day 
 ere eternal darkness and death comes upon tnem, ere they 
 are turned into hell, to make their calling and election sure, 
 so as to escape the evil which shall come upon all the earth 
 to try men's souls; when thf^ righteous shall be received into 
 the joy of our Lord, and the wicked destroyed by his fury 
 from the earth and the presence of hia glory 
 
 "O ye blind straining at a gnat and swallowing a camel;" 
 "ye blind leaders of the blind," why will ye not turn ere ye 
 all fall into the ditch? why will ye not repent and live? Turn 
 ye. Turn ye, for wijy will ye die? Repent, repent, the king- 
 dom of heaven is at hand! " How were thine eyes opened?" 
 is a question which the spiritual Wind would do well to ask 
 of those who had tlieir understandings, their souls, through 
 Jesus illuminated by the sanctifying influences of the Holy 
 Spirit, applying his merit and righteousness for our regener- 
 ation, sanctification, and redemption; of us who have been 
 thus reconciled to God and his holy image, and now have 
 the mark of Christ upon our foreheads^ give evidence that 
 we have been with Jesus, been taught of him; have Christ 
 in us the hope of glory, and are not ashamed to suffer re- 
 proach and persecution for his Name's sake. They would 
 do well to ask, " What must we do to be saved?" and all 
 the Saints of the Most High God will admonish them to re- 
 pent of all their sins and to believe in Jesus, so that the day- 
 star arise in their hearts, and the day spring to give light to 
 them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to 
 cause the mist and the darkness to disappear, and their un- 
 derstandings to become enlightened, so that the glorious Sua 
 of Righteousness may illuminate their pathway, and they be 
 brouglit to see clearly that they have beea fools and slaves 
 
THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT. 121 
 
 of hell all their lives, and now have foiinrl life, light, love, joy 
 and peace in him of whom the prophets spake, even in Je- 
 sus (he author, finisher and rewarder of faith. 
 ffe answered and said, A man that is called Jpsi/s, made clay, 
 
 and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me. Go to the pool of 
 
 Siloam and wash: and I uent and washed, and I received 
 
 sight. 
 
 Now, this man Jesus, spoken of by this poor man that 
 had been blind, has opf-ned a fountain from whenco flow re- 
 pentance and forgiveness of sins, a fountain much more effi- 
 cacious than the pool of >iloam was at the moving of the 
 waters by the Angel of the Lord, which descended at certain 
 seasons for that purpose, so that he that first stepped into the 
 water was healed of whatsoever disease or plague he was 
 opp essed with. But the atonement of Jesus, the fountain 
 of ever-living waters, is not only possessed of healing virtues 
 at certain seasons, but at all times the restoring qualities are 
 apparent, and sinners aie invited to plunge into the purple 
 stream and be purified from all iniquity; that is, repent to 
 God, and have faith in Jesus Christ and his blood, which 
 cleanses from all sin. 
 
 Perfect salvation is therefore attainable, and sinners may 
 escape damnation if they will apply the remedy. God and 
 his true ambassadors will clear themselves of their blood; if 
 they die in their sins be their blood upon their own heads. — 
 God has done his part to all nations from the beginning of 
 the world, and will do so to the end of time, and swears 
 " As I live, 1 have no pleasure in the death of sinners, but 
 rather that they repent and live." J<hovah therefore, calls 
 upon all men, everywhere, to niake their peace with him; ''to 
 come and reason with him, and their sins, though they were 
 as scarlet, shall become white as snow; and though they are 
 as crimson, shall become white as wool." I, as the ambas- 
 sador of the High and Holy God, make these things known 
 unto you, and warn you to flee from the wrath to come, "for 
 your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your 
 
122 THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT. 
 
 agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing 
 scourge shall pas^ through, then ye shall be trodden down 
 by it; for the Lord shall rise up as in xMount Peraznn; he 
 shail bj wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do 
 his work, his stiange work, and bring to pass his acts, his 
 strange acts. Now therefore be ye not mockers, lest your 
 bands be made strong; for I have heard from the Lord God 
 of Hosts, a consumption, even determined upon the whole 
 earth." [Isaiah, 27th. chap. 
 
 The Lord Jesus made an ointment of clay and command- 
 ed the blind to go and wash; he did so and received his sight. 
 Jesus has also acconiplished salvation for the whole world; 
 there is therefore now a balm in Gilead, there is a physician 
 there, and all are also commanded to cnme to him to be 
 healed, that they may see, hear, understand, be holy, a;id 
 live. But say some, if Christ died for the sins of the whole 
 world, then all will be saved, and there is no more condem- 
 nation to the wicked, and all vvdl enter through the sirait 
 gate into heaven — swine and dogs along with the holy saints, 
 these infidels would have it. i\ay verily, but you are aw- 
 fully deceived by your Father the devil, whose habitation 
 you are; he speaks through you. Impossible! what! the ha- 
 ters of God and the persecutors of his dear children, his 
 bfaints, from city to city, until their lif^^'s blood is worried 
 out of them, live together in a never-endmg eternity! impos- 
 sible! in a place too where all righteousness, holiness, and 
 glory abound, where the Holy God, Jehovah, is enthroned, 
 who can never, no never bear iniquity, and where holy an- 
 gels minister unto him in His courts of Glory; worshipping 
 andptaising, and before whose effulgence the Cherubims 
 and Seraphims veil their fac es, worshipping and singing, Ho- 
 ly, Holy, Holy, Art thou Lord God Almighty, who was, and 
 is to come; great and marvellous are thy works, just and true 
 are thy ways, thou King of Saints; Hallelujah, the Lord 
 God Omnipotent reigneth. Agaai, I repeat it, impossible 
 that the vile, the abominable, the unbeliever, the scoffer at 
 
THE BLIND RESTOR 'D TO SIGHT. 123 
 
 God's word, the adulterer, the fornicator, the whoremonger, 
 and the more filthy than swine, the beastly buggurer^ the mur- 
 derer, the robber, the drunkard, the extortioner, the witch- 
 craft workers, the dealer with lamiliar spirit-:, with devils, 
 which were cast out of heaven; to ihe end of the listol evil 
 doers of one class or another. Never! no never!! But 
 they shall all be destroyed with an everlasting destruction, 
 from the face of the whole earth, and with their Father the 
 devil, and all the apostate spirits, be cast into the lake of fire 
 and brimstone, where the worm dieth not and the fire is nev- 
 er quenched, and where there shall be weeping and wailing, 
 and gnashing of teeth forever and ever. 
 
 How dreadfully dark and benighted the understandings of 
 the people are all ovei the world in this present century; 
 averse to all that has a tendency to impart true wisdom and 
 understanduig, refinement and exaltation of soul, are given 
 to all filthy lewdness. Even this nation, the most highly 
 favored under heaven, has become, on account of the abom- 
 inations of the people, a stink in Jehovah''s nostiils, a huge 
 dunghill of iniquity, therefore the following texts are very 
 applicable to them, " Wherefore the Lord said. Forasmuch 
 as this people d.'-aw near me with their mouth, with their 
 lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, 
 and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men — 
 Therefore behold I will proceed to do a marvellous work and 
 a wonder; for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and 
 the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid. VVo 
 unto them ihat seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord, 
 and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth 
 us? and who knoweth us? Surely your turnmg of things up- 
 side down shall be esteemed as the potter's clay; for shall the 
 work say of him that made it, He made me not! or shall the 
 thing framed say of him that framed it. He had no under- 
 standing.'' And while the Lord calls for mourning and repent- 
 ance, the following texts apply pretty closely, " Behold joy, 
 and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh and 
 
124 THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT. 
 
 drinking wine; let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we shall 
 die. And it was revealed in mine ears by the Lord of hosts, 
 surfly this iniquity shall not be purged from you till ye die, 
 saith the Lord of Hosts." [Isaiah.] 
 
 *'i^et the potsherds strive with the potsherds of the earth, 
 but woe unto him thntstriveth with his maker." Thus saith 
 the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, the Mighty One of Israel; ''Ah 
 1 will ease me of mine adversaries, and avenge me of mine 
 eiiemi(^s." 
 
 The salvation of Jesus avails nothing to those who are the 
 enemies of his cross, who are the rebellious (children, ever 
 learning and never abl » to come to the knowledge of the 
 truth, speaking evil of vital Christianity, and the powers of 
 true Godliness, which are a mystery to them; but what they 
 know naturally as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt 
 themselves. *'Woe unto them, for they have gone in the 
 way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Baalam for 
 reward, and perished in the gainsaying of C^re. Raging 
 waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering 
 stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever." 
 Nay verily, all they that trample underfoot the words and 
 blood of our dear Saviour, cannot reasonably expect to be 
 cleansed from their filth. Suppose you were sick — as you 
 really all are that are unconverted — according to the gosp^*l, 
 "impotent, lame and blind, and naked;" and a ctlt-brated 
 physician had a remedy that might, under the blessing of 
 God, restore you to s:>undness, but for hatred against the 
 physician, or some other cause, you will not call upon him 
 for his cureall, you will not knock at his door to be relieved 
 from your malady, and when he brings the medicine, or sends 
 it to you, you trample it under foot instead of applying it as 
 per his directions, you cannot certainly expect to be bene- 
 fitted by It in restoring you to health; exactly so it is in the 
 case o( your salvation, you are diseased sinners, you are all 
 dying mortals, and the blessed Christ is continually calling 
 upon you to have faith in him, to knock at his merciful door 
 
THE BLIND RESTORED TO SIGHT. 125 
 
 and it should be opened, to ask and you should receive free 
 salvation, without money and price; be restored to soundness 
 of niind and soul, so as to enjoy the blessedness of heaven, 
 sweet communion with our blessed. Heavenly Father, and 
 thus partly experience the peace and bliss of our brethren, 
 the Holy Angels, and in due time be numbrred with them m 
 Jehovah's Glory, to serve, adore and praise hrni forever and 
 ever. The bhnd man had to go as he was bid and wash; he 
 did so and received his sight, and so will every one receive 
 remission of sins that humbles himself, and does according 
 to the words of Christ, and his true ambassadors. Proud Na- 
 man,aslongas he remained stubborn, as long as he stiffened 
 his neck, his leprosy remained upon him, but when he hum- 
 bh»d himself and did as he was counnanded he became pu- 
 rified, free from his disease; but had he not obeyed, he would 
 have died in his filth; and so shall it be with every one of 
 you; repent and live; disregard the call and you perish ever- 
 lastingly, and be doomed into the lake of fire and brimstone. 
 O, I therefore now warn you to be wiic, to flee to the out- 
 stretched arms of mercy, extended by Jesus whose Hood 
 cleanses from all sins; to make your peace speedily with 
 God, who wishes you well, who desires that you should be 
 saved through the bloody sweat and agony of Jesus; which 
 his boundless love caused him to endure for your soul's sal- 
 vation, and who has no pleasure in your death, but rather 
 that you would repent to God, have a vital faith in him 
 and live. May hundreds and thousands yet in the eleventh 
 hour, find forgiveness of sins, and be saved through Je^ius. — 
 and may all my brethren in Christ find abundance of re- 
 freshings from the presence of the Lord, whose "grace, may 
 it be sufficient for our day," and "his strength be made per- 
 fect in our weakness;" and we may thus glorify his name, 
 and depart rejoicing in our God and Saviour; have part in 
 the first resurrection, and after the judgment morning inherit 
 the i\ew Heavens and New Earth, with the Holy Angels, 
 and all the Redeemed from the earth, to worship God in his 
 glory, sing his praise forever and ever. Amen and Amen. 
 
DiscorRSE :ki. 
 
 ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 
 
 No man, when he hath lighted a candle, covereth it with a ves- 
 sel, or p-utteth it under a bed ; but setteth it on a candle&tick, 
 that ihey which enter in may see the light. 
 
 For nothing is secret that shall not be made manifest ', neither 
 anything hid that shall not be known, and come abroad. 
 
 Take heed therefore, how ye hear : for whosoever hath, to him 
 shall be given ; avd whosoever hath not, from him shall be 
 takm even that which he seemeth to have. 
 
 [Luke, Sth Chap, \eth,\'7th §" ^Sth verses. 
 
 In this world of sin and darkness, where day and night 
 reign ahernately, artificial lights are absolutely necessary, 
 for the convenience of man, and for the comfort and happi- 
 ness ol society ; our blessed Saviour, therefore, refers to the 
 lighting of a candle, and of placing it upon a candlestick, 
 not hiding it under a bed, that those entering in may see the 
 light. 1-1 ow much more miserable would the state of the 
 human family be, were it not for this blessing from Him, from 
 whom comes every good and perfect gift, the Father of light 
 and giory. In Lapland, and other parts of the world, the 
 people would be in almost total darkness — the sun shining 
 upon them only a few hours a day, while darkness reigns 
 predominant — the melancholy and forlorn state of the in- 
 habitants dwelling in those regions may be easily imagined, 
 even with the means and use of artificial light, their condi- 
 tion must be wretched in the extreme ; and to add to this 
 tempoial, external night, the internal, the spiritual darkness 
 of their souls, without a ray of light from the Eternal re- 
 gions of Glory — as was the case until lately — to brighten up 
 the prospects of a more glorious state after this was ended. 
 
ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. |27 
 
 But within late years the glorious gospel light dawned upon 
 those benighted people, and the Day Spring from on High, 
 to enlighten them that sit in the shadow of dt^ath ; conse- 
 quently, the Day Star arose in many hearts, and illuminated 
 many understandings, so that they now have joy and rejoic- 
 ing in the glorious Sun ol Kighteousness, our blessed Lord 
 and Saviour Jesus Christ, in the knowledge of the remission 
 of sins through him, in being reconciled to the holy Image 
 of Jehovah, who is not ashamed to be their F'ather, and 
 honor them even above many of christian nations — so called 
 — who, while they have the light will not walk therein, that 
 they may be children of light, but love darkness rather than 
 light because of their evil deeds; their abominations and 
 crime. 
 
 Christ, in whom shone the glory of our Heavenly Father, 
 " was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh 
 into the world ;" yea verily, for there is no other light than 
 his in the whole Universe: when he said, " let their be light," 
 while in the act of creating all things, and darkness held do- 
 minion, immediately, the resplendent Sun reflected his glory, 
 wilh the n)ilder moon ; planets, and comets, and stars inim- 
 mr-rable ; all dazzling in splendor and brilliancy, exhibiting 
 the effulgent glory and sinjjing the praise of their great Cre- 
 ator, v.'ho is all *" l/ight, and in Him there is no darkness 
 at all ;" in the perfection of His glory in heaven, no gloom 
 or darkness can possibly exist ; the glorious Ch» rubims and 
 Seraphims veil their fares, while worshipping in Jehovah's 
 glory, and the Holy Angels are all glorious as suns and stars; 
 and as lor human bein^^s, they could not behold with their 
 eyes of flesh the one thousandth part thereof, for none can 
 behold God, as he is, and live. 
 
 'j'he blessed Christ, when here below, was emphatically 
 the light of the world; for says he himself, " Vv hih^ I am in 
 the world 1 am the light of the world;" 1 therefore, forwarn 
 you all to beware of false lights, whether directly from the 
 devil, the old beast and infernal conjurur, through his magic 
 
128 ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 
 
 and witchcraft-workings, or whether by men, who pretend to 
 reflpct the light and glory o? the Deity, but are wolves in 
 sheep's clothing ; by scrutinizing them a Utile you will easily 
 discern their hypocrasy, for they cannot bear to be examin- 
 ed closely, particularly by the chosen of the Lord, because 
 of the perniciousness of their fruit, " for," as it is written, 
 " by their fruits ye shall know them ;" be ye, therefore, not 
 deceived, 1 caution you, be ye not deceived by them, for the 
 scripture says expressly that in the last days there shall be 
 many surh abroad, and that if possible, they would deceive 
 the " very elect ;" by looking at men and things liow do you 
 conclude as respects the indication of the present times ; 
 earthquakes, famines, pestilences, wars and rumors of wars ; 
 men's hearts failitig them for fear, and by beholding the 
 things that are coming upon the earth -, there shall be a great 
 falling off in the church, and it shall be as at the time of 
 Noah and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorah ; and are 
 not these signs predominent now, and the abominations and 
 crimes perpetrated by the people like unto those of the old 
 world, and particularly of Sodom and Gomorah. 
 
 Our adorable Saviour while going about doing good to 
 the children of men, healing their sick, restoring their blind, 
 cleant^ing their leapers, liberating their possessed of devils, 
 thus setting the captives free, preachmg the acceptable year 
 of I he Lord and urging men to repentance, to a holy walk 
 and conver.=aiion, to have faith in him as the true Messiah 
 and only Saviour, thus have the promise of the life that now 
 is and that which is to come, for says he, " None cometh 
 unto the Father but by me." "In him," therefore, "was 
 Life, and the Life was the Light of men;" and the light 
 shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not." 
 Yea, verily, darkness covered the earth and gross darkness 
 the people, who indulged in all manner of idolatries, were 
 given to bigotry and superstition ; ahenau d from a life of 
 godliness ; living without hope and without God in the 
 woild; who were strangers to the covenant of promise ; 
 
ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 129 
 
 self willed, perverse and stiff necked ; whose hearts were as 
 adamant or the " nether millstone ;" who went about estab- 
 lishing their own righteousness in the face of ths glorious 
 Sun of Righteousness, who was now sojourning upon and 
 illuminating the earth ; but these deluded creatures of dark- 
 ness could not comprehend nor understand the wisdom of 
 God in the face of our Lord Jesus Christ ; O the riches both 
 of the love and wisdom of God, in sending his only begotten 
 Son to atone for the sins of the world. 
 
 Notwithstanding his miraculous deeds, his heavenly les- 
 sons, his instructions in the way of life, enlightening the dark 
 souls of men which sat in the region and shadow of death ; 
 his deeds thus wrought in God reflecting his glory produced 
 a fame which could not be suppressed, but spread into all 
 lands. Notwithstanding 1 repeat, all his virtues thus made 
 manifest, the world knew him not^ and "He came unto his 
 own and his own received him not." " But as many as 
 received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of 
 God, even to them that believe on his name." 
 
 All christians are compared to lights : "ye are the lights 
 of the world," says our blessed Saviour, and " let your light 
 so shine before men that they may see your good works 
 and glorify your Father which is in heaven." Some chris- 
 tians may be compared to suns, others to stars of greater or 
 less magnitude, shining and reflecting the glory of their God 
 and Saviour, in love to him and our fellow men, in keeping 
 his commandments, and worshipping Jehovah in the b auiies 
 of holiness, attributing all the praise to him, who is God over 
 all, blessed forevermore ; in bringing forth fruit unto holi- 
 ness, thirty, Mxty and an hundred fold. We are likewise, 
 " the excellent o( the earth and the salt of the earth ;" let 
 us, therefore, walk worthy of our high and holy calling, re- 
 deeming the time for the days are evil, not minding the 
 things of time, which are perishable, but those more endu- 
 ring which pertain to eternal life. "For all flesh is as grass 
 and all the glory thereof as the flower of the field, the grass 
 
 11 
 
130 ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 
 
 withers, tiie flower thereof fadeth away, but the word of the 
 Lord endureth forever." O that we may always have a 
 living faith in our blessed God, the Rock of our Salvation, 
 and tremble to disobey his words and commandments, but by 
 keeping them, evince our love to our Heavenly Father, as 
 our blessed Saviour says : "Fie that hath my comnmnd- 
 ments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me; and he 
 that loveth me, shall be loved of my Faiher, and I will I've 
 him, and will manifest myself to him," St. John, 14th chap. 
 We are, therefore, the temples of the Holy Ghost, let us 
 walk unblamably in holiness with God as our brethren be- 
 fore us also did, Enoch, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; Kljah 
 and David and all »he other prophets and glorious Apostles 
 of the Lamb, and the noble company of Saints and Marlyrs 
 who suffered for his name's sake and testified to the truth 
 as it is in Jesus, and who ended their course with joy and 
 are now rejoicing in the blessedness of heaven. O that we 
 may tread the paths of peace and holiness, that our delight 
 be more and moie in God, and to meditate in his word to 
 be, through faith in Jesus, refreshed from his immediate 
 presence, so that by the accompanying duties of fastings, 
 prayer and praise, our souls may always be as watered gar- 
 dens; as cities on hills and lights that cannot be hid, eleva- 
 ted through Jesus, into high and heavenly places, reflecting 
 at all times and in all places the glory of our dear Saviour; 
 that the language of our hearts may be at all times like 
 unto our brother St. PauPs : " for us to live is Christ and to 
 die is gain," and " that we would rather be absent from the 
 body and present with the Lord," and finally, " that we have 
 fought the good fight, have finished our course, have kept the 
 faith." " Henceforth there is laid up for us a crown of 
 righteousness, which the Lord, ihe righteous Judge, shall 
 give us at that day : and not to us only, but unto all them 
 also that love his appearing." iVlay we be thus prepared 
 with the loins of our minds girded, our lamps with oil sup- 
 phed, trimmed and ready to meet our glorious Heavenly 
 
ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT, 131 
 
 Bridegroom, to enter wiih the Holy Angels and all the re- 
 deenjed Sainls, into the marriage supper of the Lamb, and 
 sing with them the high praises of our blessed God and 
 Saviour, forever and ever. 
 
 I'he above refers to individual members of Christ's churcfr, 
 descriptions of the lummaries contributing to her glory, and 
 are the real glory of nations, that wtnch is esteejned and 
 appreciated in the courts of light on high, by the King of 
 Glory, Jehovah, who is all glorious and attended by mujis- 
 ters reflectmg his splendor; their heaven is the perfection 
 of grandeur, pomp and dignity, majesty and glory, where no 
 darkness at all exists, but inde-cribable dazzling brilliancy; 
 righteousness, holiness and eternal glory; therefore the earth- 
 ly glory ol nations is nothing, less then vanity in comparison 
 to the perfection ot beauty displayed in the third heavens 
 where the Deity is perfect, where the King of Kings is en- 
 throned and holds his ievees; where the God of battles has 
 his shining hosts all in glorious array, where the Cherubims 
 and Seraphims, Angels and A rch-Angels, together with hosts 
 ol Sainls and Martyrs, are attending on Jehovah in his re- 
 splendent glory; the nearer the nations of the world approach 
 the splendor on high the more exalted they are, as the Most 
 High is all light, lustre and glory, and apnit from Him is all 
 darkness; the sun, moon and stars which illuminate the earth 
 reflect only part of the blessed God's glory, and was n, not 
 for this we should be in utter darkness, therefore all the na- 
 tions of the earth rombined cannot compete with the glory 
 of the Lord God, they are absolutely insignificant and can- 
 not possibly pretend thereunto, except only by practicing 
 righteousness and holiness, for all their other gaudiness, 
 show, and trappings are perishable as the fading leaf of 
 autumn and their glory disappears as the misty cloud of 
 the morning, their fleshly bodies turn to corruption and their 
 never dying souls descend into the never ending gulph of 
 despair and torment, where darkness reigns supreme and 
 foul demons have their habitation. 
 
132 QN SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 
 
 Thus the lying vanities of earthly nations are disposed of 
 by Jehovah — who reigns supreme — from the presence of his 
 glo.y; the souls and bodies of Kings and Queens, Lords, 
 high Captains and mighty men; high and low, rich and poor 
 indiscnminately into the bottomless pit, for God is liO res. 
 pecterof persons; *'the soul that sinneth it shall die.'' The 
 greater number of true christians, the lights of the world, 
 an)ong the nations of the earth, the greater also the heaven- 
 ly radia, and therefore by consequence the nation havmg the 
 the largest number of the most dexoted and zealous men in 
 the cause of Christ, of the most righteous and holy champi- 
 ons for the truth; heroes to fight the battle.^ of the Lord; — 
 "Curse ye, curse ye bitterly the inhabiters of Vleroz, because 
 thf'y come not up to fight the battles ol the Lord;— the bat- 
 tles of the Lord against the Mighty." Christ, our blessed 
 Saviour, inculcates mercy and that we should pray for our 
 enemies; I introduce theiefore, the above curse not to bear 
 particularly upon this nation, but to put persons in mind 
 that the battles of their souls and for the glory of our blessed 
 Heavenly Father are the most impoitant. I'he nation 
 oui numbering in this respect, has some cause to boast 
 of and to glory and recei\e the approbation of the Lord 
 of Hosts; while those that make earthly things their pride, 
 glory in tb ir shame and are an abomination in the sight of 
 heaven, and less than the small dust of the ballance, and 
 lighter than vanity. 
 
 The champions of the cross, the true hghts of this nations, 
 seem to be very few in number, and far, very far apart, al- 
 though the land is full of churches, and churchgoing people, 
 but when you examine them closely you will find the greatest 
 number to be like unto the Jack-o-lanthorn, or mysterious 
 lights arising from marshes,all deception, and whose glory em- 
 anates from the bottomless pit: the real fact is, they have none 
 are under the control of the old deceiver, Satan, and conse- 
 quently hate the Feather of light and glory, from whom com- 
 elh every good and perfect gift; because of their evil deeds 
 and works of darkness, they ever shun the light, lest theiff 
 
ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 13S 
 
 deeds should be made manifest and reproved; therefore, per- 
 sons at a distance are often misled, and made to beheve that 
 this and timt nation are truly refined and exalted, when 
 alas, their righteousness and hohness is but too much like 
 the chaff of the mid-summer's threshing floor, w lich the 
 wind drives away ; it is all a fictiiious fabrication, like unto 
 filthy rays, akin to theirs who slew the ''Lord ourRighteous- 
 ness," and can never be approved of by him who is altogeth- 
 er Holy, and commands all men every where to repent 
 and be Holy as he is Holy, and whose eyes are as flames of 
 fire; it is therefore impossible to mock or deceive him with 
 a foreign article, with self-righteouness, and finally enter his 
 kingdom by saying, " Lord, Loid, we have prophesied in thy 
 name, we have cast out devils in thy name, and done many 
 wonderful works," when he shall reply and say, "1 never 
 knew you, depart from me all ye workers of iniquity, into 
 the lake of fire and brimstone prepared for the devil and his 
 angels, from the loundation of the world." 
 
 For nothing is secret that shall not be made manifest ; neither 
 anything hid, that shall not be known and come abroad. 
 The disgraceful deeds, the humiliating acts, to human 
 nature, which filthy sinners have the baseness to commit 
 with one another in the dark, although apart "from the ex- 
 cellent of the earth,'' and obscured from mortal sight, from 
 those that are " the lights of the world ;" yet they are sur- 
 veyed by the Eye o( Omniscience, by the Eye of Him with 
 whom we have to do, and who seeth into th** dark cham- 
 bers of the earth, who is every where present; yea, the Holy- 
 God beholds the midnight murderer with his bands imbued 
 in blood, and hears th(? screams of the innocent victim that 
 fell his prey; the brutish drunkard in his night reveilings at 
 some brothel, while his wife and children are neglected and 
 in want, he only too often spends their hard earmngs togeth- 
 er with his own, and then insults and beats them about like 
 a foul demon; the yet more beastly buggurer at his dirty work, 
 
134 ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 
 
 disgracing human nature by his low, filthy operations ; drs- 
 gusiing the nostrils of Jehovah who is every where present, 
 aiid although he may thnik no one kriows it or sees him, yet 
 hiS abomination shall be made manifest ; to all these, w^rse 
 than bi'astly creatures, 1 would say, yet not 1 but the Lord 
 in uif', remember Sodom and Gomorrah \ the unprincipled 
 adulterei, destroyer of domestic peace, family comlort and 
 happiness, by defiling his neighbour's wife, who was esteenied 
 sacied to him before God and man; the fornicator and vile 
 S' du'er of virgin innocence, by his sly artifices ruining for 
 life the fair prospects of many a one, who like a lovely fiow- 
 ei , auii;ible and sweet as the lilley, and that might have been 
 th<^ joy of her parents and afi()ided many happy hours of An- 
 gt'lic bliss to a kind husband, is thus blasted in her early 
 bloom and d()on)ed to wither and d(^cay, and end her days 
 in despair, surely a just God will speedily biing such wretch- 
 es to account ; the roi)ber and the thief, who too lazy to earn 
 an honest livelihood, rob the sojourning stranger and plunder 
 thi ii neighbour's houses ; the gambler at his midnight board, 
 surrounded by his brethren, think they have excluded them- 
 sef es Irom all eyes, not reflecting that there is one which 
 scans the nethermost parts of the earth and hell, which they 
 camiot possibly escape, for God looks throughout all worlds 
 and beholds the minutest objects in the most distait part of 
 the Universe, let them dread his vengeance ; the oppressor ; 
 the extortioner; the spoiler of widows and orphans; the pro- 
 fane swearer and Sabbath-breaker, with many other abomi- 
 nable crimes which men commit openly and in secret, they 
 •shall all be made manifest, for the mouth of the Lord hath 
 spoken it. And last though not least, but of enormous mag- 
 nitude, the witchcraft worker and dealer with familiar spirits^ 
 who IS in direct intercourse with the spirits of hell and 
 darkness, in league with the devil, the greatest enemy of his 
 soul, yet he puts himself upon a level with him, and has con- 
 tinual communion with these foul spirits to annoy and tor- 
 ment his fellow-beings, and commit ali manner of filty lewd- 
 
ON SPIRITUAL LTGHr. 135 
 
 ness, abominations and whoredoms, and thinks he is secure 
 in 8t'( retly co-vvorkmg with the.- e infernal demons, yet his 
 works of darkness shall be known, and his nasty deeds shall 
 come abroad. 
 
 But when a nation is thus degraded that this last crime 
 is considered as wisdom, and est(emed rather an accom- 
 phshment than otherwise, so that the children of parents are 
 instructed in this hellish '''black art,''' and the whole country 
 is t^nshrined in its infernal and pernicous influences, v\hen a 
 nation has become thus beastly, like unto ihe Sodomites lost 
 to al' decency and sliame, committing iniquity with greedi- 
 ness, and glorying in their shame, having put the lear of Uod 
 awHv from before them, from out of their hearts, trample 
 under his holy words and commandments, and the laws of 
 their own country, which no doubt good men, under the in- 
 flux nee of the Holy God, have framed for the punishment 
 of evil-doers, and preservaiion o( tlx* peace, comfort, and 
 hapi)iness of the people it requir( s but little sagacity to be 
 convinced that their downfall is near at hand, and a just God 
 will avenge himself upon a iiation like this. The following 
 therefore may not b^^ much amiss, ^'Wherefore hear the 
 word of the Lord, ye scornful men, that rule this people, 
 because ye have said. We have made a covenant with 
 deaiii, and with hell are we at agreement; when the over- 
 flowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto 
 us: for we have made him our refuge, and under falsehood 
 have we hid ourselves; and your covenant with death shall 
 be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; 
 when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye 
 shall be trodden down by it. From the time that it goeth 
 forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass 
 over; by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to 
 understand the report.'' [Isaiah, 28th chap.] 
 
136 ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 
 
 Take heed therefore how ye hear] for whosoever hath, to him 
 shall be given-, and whosoever hath not^ from him shall be 
 taken even that ijjhich he seemeth to have. 
 As in ihe beginning part of this discourse, so here again, i 
 caution you to beware of " fals^ hghts :" for all men havt^ not 
 a living faith in Jesus Christ, our Lord, Saviour, and Media- 
 tor, but give heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils, 
 according to the written word of our dear Lord, that so it 
 should be in the last days ; it is stamped upon the features 
 of the times, and their indication is, that verily we are in 
 them now, and that this is ihe period to try men''ssui(ls — I ord 
 Jesus be merciful — when all the world have gone astray, 
 have gone a whoreing, with strange inventions — with famdiar 
 spnits — are therefore on the ssde of the devil, in league w ith 
 legions of these wicked spirits, and in open rebellion and war 
 against the Lord of Hosts, who will, in due time, bring all 
 their pride, ihf ir pomp and their glory, unto the dung-heai ; 
 and " the abomination and the mouse shall be destroyed to- 
 gether;" he.l from beneath, is opening wide her mouth, and 
 all the wicked, with the nations that forget God, with their 
 Father the devil, and all his leg'.ons in the air, shall de- 
 scend into it forever and ever. Tdke heed therfore how ijt 
 hear. " Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word 
 of God," very many are fonH of novelty, in these times, have 
 an ambi ion to create a fame lor themselves and families at 
 the hazard of then- souls, and the ill effects upon society, 
 upon their fellow beings, who suffer themselves to be lead 
 about by them, whirh it is to be feared too many do, having 
 itchmg ears for something new ; tt> all such the text applies 
 particularly, " Take heed how ye hear," keep yourselves to 
 sound doctrine ; the doctrine once delivered to the ^'aints, 
 and if they speak not according to the " word and the testi- 
 mony" reject them, and let the spirit ofour Heavenly Father 
 speaking in the Bible, particularly in the testament, teach 
 you •, and if any man teach any other doctrine than that 
 taught in that holy volume of inspitation, "let him be ac- 
 cursed." Therefore, be ye aware how ye hear, compare the 
 
ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 137 
 
 language of men with the word of the hlessed God and de- 
 cide accordingly, lay hold on eternal life through faith in 
 Jesus Christ, " for by grace are we saved through faith, and 
 not of ourselves, it is the gift of God lest any man should 
 boast," repent, therefore, repent spt^edily to God and b<l;eve 
 in Jesus, and do his commandments, thus manifest your 
 love to our God and Saviour, and lay up for yourselves treas- 
 ures in heaven, " where moths cannot corrupt nor thieves 
 break through and steal," but where, in the joy o* our Dear 
 Lord and Father, it shall endure asd increase foreverm're. 
 For ichosoever hath, to him sh dl he givnij and whosoever hath 
 
 not, from him shall be taken even that which ht seemeth to 
 
 have. 
 
 in temporals as well as spirituals we are commanded by 
 our heavenly Father to be libeial to our f How bein^is so- 
 journing with us towards eternity ; the rich are particularly 
 admonished to practice humility and charity, tod«stribine to 
 the poor, to minister to the sick and afflicted such things as 
 they may want, to relieve them in their disiressed states, and 
 add to their comfort and happiness in this world, so that 
 their hearts may beconje lifted up, inspired with gfatitude, 
 love, reverence and praise lo their heaveidy Feather, the au- 
 thor of every good and perfect gift; who supplies the waists 
 of all living creatures, and " not a sparrow fallelh to the 
 ground without his knowledge ;" the earth is his, and the 
 fulness thereof, the gold and the sdver and the cattle on a 
 thousand hills. The Lord of Life and Glory, therrfore. has 
 a right to command and expect worsliip and obedience iVom 
 all his subjects, whom he assures that they shall be re[)aid 
 with an increase, *'with good measure, pressed down, heaped 
 up and running over ;" and that they that " cast their bn ad 
 upon the wa'ers shall find i( agaiii after many days;" these 
 promises, fraught with such condescension and kindness 
 from Jehovah, who is abundantly able to reward, in time 
 and eternitv, every one would do well to heed, for when- 
 ever h- pleasi s he can send leanness upon the earth, into 
 the soms of the children of men, and whenever he pleas- 
 
138 ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 
 
 es ran cause the earth to abound, and also the souls of the 
 children of men, spiritually, from .Viount Sion, with love, 
 psaise, and joy in the Holy Ghost; with wisdom, lighteous- 
 ness, sancttfication and redeniption; yea verily, with (ull sal- 
 vation, if they apply properly for the blessing, by repentance 
 to our blessed God and by believing in Jesus Christ, mani- 
 festing love unfained, by keeping his words and command- 
 ments, and walking unblamably with him in holiness; an 
 increase of grace shall be given to all such, for the mouth of 
 the Lord hath spoken it, and by enduring to the end eternal 
 life and felicity, in Jehovah's kingdom of glory. 
 
 The Almighty Father blesses all his children more or less 
 with earthly substance, with treasure to be sure, that is per- 
 ishable, and doomed to decay as the grass of the field, but 
 th^'U for a season, for timely use, it is very desirable for the 
 preservation of the life that now is, for the comfort and hap- 
 piness of the human family; therefore, those that have much 
 are commanded to be libejal to those that have none, for the 
 Good Lord delights in the cheerful giver; as for instance, 
 the Widc^w's mite, who with a cheerful heart threw into the 
 treasury all her living, and thus manifested her love to God 
 and her neighbors, and laid up treasure in heaven. "He 
 that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver, nor he that 
 loveth abundance; the earth is for all; the king hijnse/f\s served 
 by the field." It i^, therefore, wisdom not to over value the 
 things of time, the riches of this world, for they are not last- 
 ing treasures like unto those from above ; the salvation of the 
 soul through the exercise of faith in Jesus Christ our L.ord, for 
 by our faith we overcome the world, its riches, pleasures, 
 pomp and vanity, and quench every fiery dart of Satan. Let 
 us always covet the best gifts, read and hear the word under- 
 standingly, so that we may aboufid and have increase of 
 knowledge, wisdom and understanding ; faith, hope, peace* 
 love and joy in the Holy Ghost ; thus employ our talents to 
 the very best advantage ; " for whosoever hath to him shall 
 be given" — according to our text, shall we have greater and 
 continual blessings flowing to us from our Heavenly Father, 
 
ON SPIRITUAL LIGHT. 139 
 
 the Most High God, while those who bury their talents, or 
 make use of ihem hypocritical ;y, despising the true gtlis of 
 God, although they may seeni to have, yei are they but as 
 " Sfujnding brass and a tinkling cyml)a ," " and whosoever 
 hath not, from iiim shall be 'aken even that which he seemeth 
 to have." Hear! Hear!! O ye dying mortals, hear the words 
 of the Lord, " 1 am the resurrection, and the life: he that 
 believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live : and 
 whosoever livelh, and believeth in me, shall never die." 
 "Turn ye, therefore,Turn ye, for why will ye ilie," "He that 
 believeth not shall be damned ;" Surely no one, according to 
 reason, ought to desire damnation in preference to the bles- 
 sings of salvation ; theiefore abstain fium all the works of 
 the former and flee from the wrath to come, "for it shall be a 
 vexation only to understanding the leport," when Jehovah 
 arises to shake terribly the earth : P'lee, theiefore, flee from 
 the wrath near at hand; be reconciled to the Lord God, 
 make, speedily make your peace with the Almighty, so that 
 shortly, when he coir^es to make up his jewels, ye may, with 
 all the redeemed of the Land, have an entrance admimster- 
 ed abundantly, into his everlasting kingdom of Glory, through 
 Jesus Christ our blessed- Lord and Saviour, there with Abra- 
 ham, Isaac, and Jacob, and all the Holy Angels, and redeem- 
 ed Saints and Marty is, unite in songs of praise to our (ilori- 
 ous Eternal Father, to whom be aL worship, thanks and ad" 
 oration, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen* 
 Amen. 
 
DI«>^€OVR8E XII. 
 
 ON OBEDIENCE. 
 
 See that ye refuse not him that speaketL For if they es- 
 caped not who refused him that spake on earth\ much wore 
 shall not ive escape^ if we turn away f om him that speuketh 
 from heaven. 
 
 Whose voice then shook the earth-, but now he hath promised 
 sayings Yet once more I shake not the earth only^ but also 
 heaven, [Hebrews, \2th, chap. '25th ^ 26th ver. 
 
 Our blessed Father mercilully befriended our first parents 
 immediately after their sinful transgression, although he drove 
 them out of Paradise, and deemed it necessary to lay a curse 
 upon them and their posterity to the end of time; yet never- 
 theless his Almighty love constramed him graciously to con- 
 descend to acts of kindness and mercy for their comfort and 
 happiness here below, and giving them laws which were 
 "good, and just and holy;" so that by the observing of them, 
 they might again return to our blessed God, and know him 
 as a reconciled Father, be fully reinstated to his H0I3 Im- 
 age, to love and enjoy him in the beauties of holiness and 
 worship him in spirit and in truth, by reverence and obedience 
 draw down the blessings of the Most High upon themselves 
 and their offspring, whom they were commanded by the 
 Lord to instruct in the path of wisdom and understanding; 
 when they sat in their houses, when they walked by the way, 
 when they laid themselves down, and when they arose up; 
 their mouths were to talk of the love of their Heavenly 
 Father, make known to their children his mandates and 
 train them up to repeat the word of the Lord, fear, honor, 
 love, and reverence the Deity, so that prosperity might at- 
 tend them, and they might have peace in their borders, and 
 
ON OBEDIENCE. 141 
 
 their ij;ates might be praise, and at the destruction of the 
 wicked they might take refuge in the Hock of their salva- 
 tion. Thus Abraham instructed his son Isaac, and Isaac 
 taught Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs, and they 
 their offspring, and every good and wise man his children, 
 so that the rod of the wicked may not come nigh them, when 
 the wrath of the Lord God of Hosts is kisidled to destroy 
 the seed of the serpent. 
 
 See that ye refuse not him that speaketh, Pharoah the 
 proud, the haughty and uplifted monarch of Egypt, whose 
 grievous oppressions of the children of Israel, the dear peo- 
 ple of the Lord of Hosts, his perseverance therein, and lay- 
 ing even heavier burdens upon their shoulders, too heavy to 
 be borne, after Moses the n\aM of God reproved him for his 
 rebellion against bis maker and preserver, he disregarded the 
 words of Moses, and went on in his hardened and stififi»eck- 
 ed course, sinning and drinking down iniquity as an ox 
 drinks down water, and thus became more and more obnox- 
 ious in the eyes of Jehovah, who deemed it therefore neces- 
 sary from time to time to admonish him by sendmg Moses 
 and Aaron to desire him to let tlie children of Israel depart 
 out of his country, to serve the Lord their God, to sacrifice 
 unto Him and worship and praise Him as they were com- 
 manded; but none of the words of Moses and Aaron were 
 heeded by the stubborn Pharoah, consequently the judg- 
 ments of the Almighty descended upon him and his people, 
 and he was dreadfully tormented, and his people were pres- 
 sed sore by different plagues, until at length he consented to 
 their departure, but soon followed them with his hosts, when 
 all were overthrown and perished in the Red Sea; their poor 
 souls thus descended and found an asylum in hell; and so it 
 was with the Sodomites who disregarded all the words of 
 holy Lot, and fire and brimstone was sent down by the 
 Lord God out of heaven and devoured them, and thus they 
 went to their own home; and so also many proud, cruel, 
 wicked and filthy Sovereigns, nations, and peoplesince,among 
 
142 ON OBEDIENCE. 
 
 whom was the worse than beastly Nero. O Lord God Al- 
 mighty, deliver us speedily from such abominable creatures. 
 And also the Ron>ans, akin in their infernal work to the 
 Sodomites, and the devils in hell, who were therefore their 
 brethren, and they shall likewise have one home, the lake of 
 fire and brimstone forever and ever, with all others that lead 
 similar abominable lives, and disregard the warning voice, 
 flee!! flee I!! flee!!'! from the wrath to come. 
 
 For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earthy 
 much ii'ore shall not we escape^ if we turn away from him that 
 speakelh from heaven, Jehovaii, when he speaks let all the 
 insignificant nations of the earth stand in awe, and if it is 
 not in love, but rather in wrath on account of the departure 
 of the people from him, the only true, living, and everlasting 
 God, let them bow, let them fall down before their Maker. 
 
 " Before Jehovah's awful throne, 
 
 Ye nations bow with sacred awe ; 
 Know that the Lord is God alone, 
 
 He can create and He destroy." 
 
 Yea, verily, when the word of the King Eternal, Immor- 
 tal and Invisible is against them, then let them fall down and 
 howl on account of their abominations, let them lay their 
 mouths in the dust, rend their hearts and clothe themselves in 
 sacloih and ashes, and repent them of all their filthy abom- 
 inations and crime; let them weep, be afflicted, and distress- 
 ed for their sins of enormous magnitude; f^r their abomina- 
 ble, hell-deserving iniquity; let them speeddy follow the ex- 
 ample of Ninevah, and roll themselves in the dust and be 
 sorrowful, weep, and lament for their mis-doings, for their 
 mad rebellion against the Most High. " Enter into the 
 rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the Lord, and for 
 the glory of his majesty. The lofty looks of man shall be 
 humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, 
 and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day." The times 
 at present indicate that the period is near at hand, wdien Je- 
 hovah will arise in his strength to plead the cause of his cho- 
 
ON OBEDIENCE. 143 
 
 sen— of his peculiar people, royal priesthood, and Holy Na 
 tion, which includes all those who love God, have a living 
 failh in Jej-us, keep his words and commandments, work 
 righteousness, are the temples of the Holy Ghost, worship 
 our blessed Father in spirit and in the beauties of holiness; 
 have their delight in "whatsoever things are true, whatsoev- 
 er things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever 
 things are lovely, whatsoever thmgs are of good report ac- 
 cordmg to Godhness, and which contribute to the virtue and 
 refinement of the human family, to the exaUation, through 
 Jesus Christ, of the souls of the children of men; for their 
 comfort and happiness here in time, and felicity and bliss in 
 heaven for ever and ever. 
 
 Much more shall not we escape^ if we turn away from him 
 that spraketh from, heaven. The Almighty is ever jealous of 
 his glory, and will never give it to another. He alone is the 
 Lord God, and besides him there is none else; therefore v\ hen 
 he thunders with his voice, let all the people quake, let them 
 tremble and fear to do evil; let them stand aloof and sin not, 
 let their idle talk be turned into seriousness; let their merri- 
 ment and mad rejoicing be turned into sorrow and mourn- 
 ing; for when the whole earth commit all manner of ini- 
 quity, abomination, and crime, and glory in their shame, 
 then the Lord God will make it barren, "For thus saith the 
 Lord God; When the whole earth rejoiceth, I will make tiiee 
 desolate." 
 
 Be ye not deceived, for our blessed God is not mocked in 
 these times of degenerateness, of tramplii g under fool the 
 word of the Lord, and of leagueing with the devil against 
 the kiwgdom of heaven, against the JVJost High God, for 
 verily, indue time the Lord God will "ease himself of his 
 adversaries, and avenge himself of his enemies." It is self- 
 evident thai Jehovah has a controversy with all the nations 
 of the earth, that his wrath is kindled and ready to consume 
 to the uttermost, to tread them down as the mire of the 
 streets; "for it is in his heart to destroy, and cut off nations 
 
144 ON OBEDIENCE. 
 
 not a few;" " How can ye escape if ye neglect so great 
 salvation." "If the righteous scarcely are saved, where will 
 the ungodly and the sinners appear?" but in the flames of 
 hell, in the lake of fire and brimstone prepared for all 
 devils from the founation of the world. 
 
 I\!uch more shall not we escape if we turn away from him 
 that speaketh from hravea, "Wo to the rebellious children, 
 saith the Lord, that take counsel, but not of me; and that 
 cover with a covering, but not of my Spirit, that they may 
 add sin to sin. Now go, write it before them in a table, and 
 note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ev- 
 er and ever, that this is a rebellious people; lying children, 
 that will not hear the law of the Lord; which say to their 
 seers. See not; and to the propheis; Prophecy not unto us 
 right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophecy deceits; 
 get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the 
 Holy One of l-rael to cease from before us." [Is.iiah, 30th 
 chap.] O the dreadftd darkness of soul when there is a 
 general aversion to the blessed God, to his words, to his 
 great salvation; when "darkness covers the earth, and gross 
 darkness the people," as it seems to be the case at present 
 all the earth abroad; awfijl and disgraceful to humanity as 
 such rebellions to the Almighty are, the fact of a general 
 degradedness and depravity pervading at times all classes, 
 high and low, rich and poor, free and bond, is well establish- 
 ed, and however painful the thought may be to the truly re- 
 fined, good, and virtuous, it is nevertheless true, for at the 
 time of the flood there were but eight persons after our be- 
 loved Heavenly Father's heart, righteous Noah and family, 
 and the waters deluged the w hole earth and destroyed all 
 the wicked, together with all fiving things, save those that 
 were m the ark with the venerable Patriarch; and so with 
 Sodom and Gonorrah, and ihe surromiding plains, upon 
 which the Lord God shook down fire and brimstone, delu- 
 ged the country over, and destroyed the worse than beastly 
 people from out of his sight, from ofT the face of the earth, 
 
ON OBEDIENCE. 145 
 
 except holy Lot and family, whom God found just and holy, 
 averse to the abominable lewdness of their filthy neighbors. 
 Since then the nations of Canaan, the tribe of Benjamin, 
 besides many other nations, kindreds, and people, for their 
 departure from HIM who spcaketh from Heaven, JEHO- 
 VAH, for having put away the fear of him from before their 
 eyes, and set up the stumbling block of iniquity in their 
 hearts, so that their foolish hearts became darkened, their 
 souls benighted, and their spirits degraded to a level, if not 
 beneath the four-footed animals, so that they could delight 
 themselves in the works of darkness and damnation, revel 
 with devils in all manner of abominations, working with 
 familiar spirits, the works pertaining to death, "the death 
 that never, never dies." And where are they now? but m 
 yonder gulph of despair, where foul demons have their habi- 
 tation; where the worm dieth not and where the fire is never 
 quenched. 
 
 fVhose voice then shook the earth* Jehovah the Eternal 
 God, when he thunders with his Almighty voice, causes the 
 earth to tremble and shake to the centre, and the people, 
 poor, puny creatures, to be dreadfully dismayed and fright- 
 ened, so that they would flee and hide themseb'es in dens 
 and the caverns of rock, from his presence, from the sound of 
 his voice; for who can stand before the Omnipotent God of 
 Hosts, when his wrath is fully kindled and he arises to plead 
 his own cause, "to shake terribly the earth." At the giving 
 of the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai, Jeho- 
 vah descended in awlul majesty, amid thunders and light- 
 nings, and the mighty soundings of a trumpet; so that the 
 Mount quaked; the people trembled greatly, even Moses — 
 the man of God himself said, "1 exceedingly fear and 
 quake." Then and thus the Lord God spake from heaven 
 to the children of Israel, his chosen people, who were dear 
 to him as the apple to the eye, and to whom he manifested 
 his love in innumerable instances, and to a degree above all 
 other nations of the earth; his presence encamped about 
 
 12 
 
146 ON OBEDIENCE. 
 
 them as the God of Battles, he fought for them, and slew 
 their enemies, the first-born of Egypt, and then the remain- 
 ing hosts with Pharoah as in his glory, at their head, whom 
 he overthrew in the red sea, so that on the side of the Egyp- 
 tians none was left to tell it: no wonder therefore after 
 having seen this dreadful destruction of the Egyptians, that 
 the children of Israel, and even Moses himself, feared great- 
 ly, for they had previously rebelled and murmured about 
 the water, and also hankered after the flesh pots of Egypt; 
 even wished that they had died there when they had fulness 
 of bread; the Almighty God, in love for their temporal and 
 eternal welfare — but in severe majesty, descended from 
 heaven to commune with them, to furnish them with right, 
 just, and good laws, to contribute to their comfort and hap- 
 piness, exaltation and holiness, to their entire sanctification, 
 so that they might be always reconciled to their Father, 
 walk in the light of his countenance, and by loving him with 
 all the heart, partake of the joys of the Angels of Heaven; 
 for this purpose therefore, the Ten Commandments were 
 written by the finger of the blessed God himself during this 
 awful solemnity, which continued for forty days and nights, 
 while a vast cloud surrounded the mountain. Moses was 
 with Jehovah within, by whom he was miraculously sus- 
 tamed the whole period without food, and received the com- 
 mandments from the Altpighty, for the refinement of the 
 people withal, and which are still valid and not to be viola- 
 ted with impunity, although we are under the new cove- 
 nant of grace, through Jesus Christ, our dear Saviour and 
 •^lediator, at whose atonement on Mount Calvary, Jehovah 
 shook the earth again; brought darkness upon it; rent the 
 rocks, and the temple veil from top to bottom, opened the 
 graves and caused the dead bodies of Saints to appear to 
 many of the living. God thus testified thai Jesus was the 
 true Messiah, the Saviour of sinners, and also that there is 
 a resurrection of the dead, to take place according to our 
 blessed Saviour's words, " 1 am the resurrection and th 
 
ON OBEDIENCE. 147 
 
 life, he that believeth in me though he were dead, yet shall 
 he live, and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall nev- 
 er die;" shall, as St. Paul has it "fall sweetly asleep in Je- 
 sus," and have part in the first resurrection. "Blessed and 
 holy is he thai hath part in the first resuirection; on such the 
 secorjd death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God 
 and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years." 
 
 The promise of a part in the first resurrection of life and 
 happiness, is to all true christians, the chosen of the Lord, 
 w ho love and obey him, serve him in righteousness and holi- 
 ness, walk unblamably with God, onr Heavenly Father, as 
 Enoch also did with the Patriarchs, Prophets, and Apostles 
 and Saints and Martys of Jesus, who for the joy that was 
 set before them, endured the cross, despised the shame, and 
 are now seated in high heaven's eternal glory, in the efful- 
 gence of the Deity, singing with the holy hosts of Cheru- 
 bims and Seraphims, Angels and Arch- Angels, the high 
 praises of our blessed God and Saviour; Hallelujah! Halle- 
 lujah!! the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth, the King of 
 Saints. Therefore my brethren in Christ, as they only who 
 endure unto the end shall be saved, let me, in love to your 
 souls, admonish you to watch against the subtlety of Satan, 
 to watch and to pray, to pray in spirit and in truth, as only 
 such are heard by the hearer and answerer of prayer, our 
 heavenly P'ather, so that like unto holy David's, our love 
 may increase and be perfect. " I love the Lord because he 
 hath heard my voice and my supplications; because he hath 
 inclined his ear unto me, therefore will 1 call upon him as 
 long as I live." May our resolutions be similar, so that we 
 may be mindful of the things pertaining lo our peace, and 
 "press continually toward the mark of the prize of our high 
 calling in Christ Jesus," so that "no man take our crown ;' 
 and our souls be continually as watered gardens, the name 
 of the Lord our God glorified, and through our blessed Sa- 
 viour, Christ, w^e may be able to stand when " he shakes ter- 
 ribly the earth," and as the blessed of his Father, have an 
 
us ON OBEDIENCE. 
 
 entrance administered unto iis, abundantly into his everlas- 
 ting kingdom of glory, to sing with the celestial throng tl^ 
 high praises of our Holy Father lorever and ever. 
 
 Bvf now he hath piomised, saying, Yet once more I shake not 
 
 the earth only, but aho heaven. 
 
 The promises of Jehovah are all Yea and Amen, that is 
 they shall be positively fulfilled; "I have spoken and shall I 
 not do it? and he that hath my word, let him speak my word 
 faithfully : what is the chaff to ihe wheat? saith the I .ord. — 
 Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord; and like a 
 hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?'* O that it would 
 break the stony hearts of this people, and influence the in- 
 habitants of this tottering world to repent, and look at the 
 things conung upon tlie earth; 'Hhey can discern the face of 
 the sky, but why can they not discern the signs of the times?" 
 O that they would exeicise their superior faculties to scruti- 
 nize the appearances of the times and regulate their lives 
 accordingly. " Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon 
 theCs O inhabitant of the earth, And it shall come to pass^ 
 that he who fleelh from the noise of the fear sh:\ll fall into 
 the pit; and he that comcth up out of the midst of the pit, 
 shall be taken in the snare; for the windows from on high are 
 open, and the lonndat'tons of the earth do shake." O earth I 
 eartSi!! earth!", hear the words of the Lord, O you people 
 flee, fiee from the wrath to come; be reconciled to the Most 
 Hi^h God, for he is coming, he is coming to judge the earth, 
 to judge theeaith in righteousness and the people in equity. 
 Prej)are you all, prepare to meet your God, through Jesus 
 Christ ne may yet be found by you in the eleventh hour; he 
 may }et be willing to receive you as prodigals; after having 
 bec! (eedmg (;n the husks and wallowing as swine in the mire 
 of siii and iniquity, the blessed God may be yet willing to be 
 your Kather, to adopt you into his family of Kings and 
 Frit sis, and feed you with the bread of life; for the biood of 
 Jesjs Christ cleanses from all sins, and through faith in him 
 
ON OBEDIENCE. 149 
 
 ^nd love to God the true christians overcome the world, the 
 flesh and the devil, and beconie the temples of the Holy 
 Ghost, and consequently enabled to live sober, righteous, 
 and holy lives, to the honor and glory of our Eternal Kather, 
 and our immortal souPs pprfection in holiness, and final re- 
 ception into the mansions of the blessed, to enjoy the bliss of 
 heaven forevermore. 
 Yet once more 1 shake not the earth only^ hut also heaven. 
 
 The peri )d is near at hand when Jehovah will destroy the 
 whole Universe, which \\\ created in the short spa(ie of six 
 days, he can therefore destroy it in much less time; in the 
 twinkling of an eye our blessed God will consume the earth 
 with fire, with all its filthy inhabitants. 
 
 "And 1 beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and lo! 
 there was a great earthquake, and the Sun became bla<-k: as 
 Sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; and the 
 stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth 
 her untimely figs when she is shaken by a mighty wind.— 
 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rilled togeth- 
 er; and every mountain and island were moved out of their 
 places." Then shall there be distress, lamentation and woe 
 to the extent that never has been known before; then the 
 Kings, Chief-Captains, and the mighty men, and every bond- 
 man and every free-man shall be dismayed and terrified, and 
 fly to hide themselves in dens and in the rocks of the moun- 
 tains. "And say to the mountains and rocks. Fall 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?" 
 
 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the 
 Sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and 
 the stars shall fall from heave i, and the p wej s of the heav- 
 ens shall be shake-i; and then shall appear the sign of the 
 Son of man m heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the 
 ear h mourn, and they shall se-3 the on of man coming in 
 the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he 
 
150 ON OBEDIENCE. 
 
 shall send his Angels with a great sound of a trmnpet, and 
 they shall gather together his t'lect from the four winds, from 
 one end of heaven to the other." And then also shall the 
 King say to us, Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the 
 prepared kingdom and be crowned with gloty forever; but to 
 the wicked and all devils, he shall say. Depart from me for 
 1 never knew you, ye workers of iniquity, and will cast them 
 into the lake of fire and brimstone, prepared for the devil 
 and his angels from the foundation of the world, where there 
 is weeping and gnashing of teeth forever and ever. Then 
 the glorious God will immediately create a New Heaven and 
 a JXew Earth, which shall abide forevermore, where all right- 
 eousness, holiness and glory shall abound, wherein the glo- 
 rious Chevubims and Seraphims, Angels and Arch-angels^ 
 with all the redeemed of the Ljamb, shall minister unto Je- 
 hovah, and we shall worship in the Beauties of Holiness,^ 
 our glorious, holy Father, and adoringly sing his praise for- 
 ever and ever. Amen and Amen. 
 
 J\"ote. — The three preceedmg Discourses are not printed in the 
 table of contents, having been written since. The reader will oc- 
 casionally discover typographical errors throughout the work, u 
 
bi8€Ovri§e: xeii, 
 
 on the first resurrection. 
 
 On the first resurrection and thonsand years reign of Christ 
 with his Saints on earth. [Rev, I9th 4* 20//i Chaps. 
 
 John, the amiable and the beloved of the Lord ; the 
 holy, and the Divine; the Angelic Evangelist ; O how nna- 
 ture in holy tempers was this devoted disciple ; how perfect 
 did the love of God shine in his heart and soul, and was by 
 him reflected to the honor and glory of his Divine Master, as 
 manifested in his gospel and his epistles : and this last reve- 
 lation and conclusion of the Divine dispensation to mankind, 
 of FTim who was, and is, and is to come, the Almighty. How 
 highly was he also honored in this work of the Lord, who 
 appeared with Mystic figures unto him, and spake as it were 
 personally with him, explaining the meaning of the same — ► 
 then again he spake to them out of heaven, inviting him to 
 come up, and immediately he was wafted in the spirit into 
 these resplendant regions of glorv, and beheld the beauties 
 of heaven and Him who sitieth on the Throne. Thus he 
 was alternately in heaven and on the earth, to accomplish 
 this wonderful and sublime work, which excites our admira- 
 tion and influences our hopes and fears, according to our 
 state and relation with the Deity, O the blessed views he 
 had of the glorious New Jerusalem, and the shining liosts 
 surrounding the Most High in glory, and their happiness and 
 bliss ; \\ ith some of whom he had frequent intercourse and 
 conversation to accomplish this work, and never was any one 
 of earthly mould more worthy of the appellation of brother 
 from these Angelic holy Beings ; with whom he is now, in 
 this Paradise of God, in closer communion ; and shall be so 
 forever and ever. And so shall likewise all who follow him 
 
152 ON THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 
 
 as he followed Christ ; walked with God as he did ; as we 
 shall see as we proceed in this subject. 
 
 John informs us of the great Jubilee there was in heaven, 
 of the singing and rejoicing of Saints and Angels, saying 
 " Alleluia ; Salvation, and glory, and honor, and power, unto 
 the Lord our God :" For true and righteous are his judge- 
 ments ; for he hath judged the great whore, which did cor- 
 rupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the 
 blood of his servants at his hand." " And again they said 
 Alleluia. And her smoke rose up forever and ever." This 
 was the overflow of joy of the souls which had been under 
 the Altar — the martyrs of Jesus — and their brethren, the 
 holy Angels, in anticipation of the destruction of their ene- 
 mies, who persecuted them and shed their innocent blood ; 
 and also many of their brethren after them, up to this time 
 of retribution, as stated in chapter six* were pleading their 
 cause before the Judge, vsaying, " How long, O Lord, holy 
 and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them 
 that dwell on the earth ?" " And white robes were given 
 unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they 
 should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow-servants 
 also, and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, 
 should be fulfilled. " This period had now arrived, and a 
 voice was heard coming out of the throne saying, " Praise 
 our God, all ye his servants, and ye thai fear him, both small 
 and great," and the voice of multitudes, and the voice of 
 many waters, and the voice of mighty thunderings were heard 
 by our blessed brother John, saying, '^Alleluia; for the Lord 
 God Omnipotent reigneth." As the Holy Lord enjoined on 
 his followers and dear people, his Saints, not to return evil 
 for evil, but contrary wise, blessings, and has also said that 
 vengeance belonged to Him and that he would repay — we 
 are constrained in this, als-o, to obey; and indeed if we even 
 thought otherwise, and our zeal would hurry us — with Ptter 
 — to smite our enimies and cut off some ears, we should 
 make but little progress — with an arm of flesh — as there are 
 
ON THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 153 
 
 always millions against us, particularly now, many millions 
 against one true follower of the Lamb, who will strive law- 
 fully unto blood, persevere llirough fire and water, to get into 
 the wealtliy Holy Place, where we shall shortly, with the 
 holy throng assembled — lift up our voice and say, " Let us 
 be glad a5)d rejoice, and give honor to Him; for the marriage 
 of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready,' 
 and with them be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white ' 
 which is the righteousness of saints." Thus shall we be 
 blessed with all that are called unto the marriage supper 
 of the Lamb. 
 
 "And I saw heaven open, and beheld a white horse ; and 
 he that sat upon him called Faithful and True, and in right- 
 eousness he doth judge and make war." He comes forth 
 in dreadful array; in the majesty of the Almighty; with 
 eyes as flames of fire, and ma y crow is on his head ; 
 clothed with a vesture dipped in blood ; and his nam:*, is 
 called " the Word of God;" followed by the whole hosts 
 of heaven on white horses, clothed in fine Imen, white and 
 clean. And he will smite all nations with the word of his 
 mouth, and rule them with a rod of iron ; and he treads the 
 winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 
 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, 
 " KING OF KLNGS, AND LORD OF LORDS." 
 
 Let the earth stand amazed and in awe, and ponder the 
 things which must shortly come upon her; when the wicked 
 shall be overthrown with an everlasting destruction and all 
 the fowls be filled with their^flesh. " 1 saw an Angel stand- 
 ing in the sun ; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all 
 the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, come and gather 
 yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; "That 
 ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and 
 the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them 
 that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, 
 both small and great." 
 
 There will be, therefore, such a slaughter on the ea th 
 
154 ON THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 
 
 that \ as never approached before; as she drank the blood 
 of tlii baints of the Most Hi^h, so shall she drink in that of 
 their jnseculors and murderers, upon whom 'vill, mosi like- 
 ly, be found all the blood from rigliteous Abel to Za( hariah, 
 and fiOin him to the laiest saint ; even to this destruction. 
 This cleansing of the earth will be the evening preceeding 
 the daw n of the glorious Sabbath which the saints shall en- 
 joy with their L.ord on the earth; when the kid, the bear, 
 and ox shall feed together, and the lion lie down with the 
 lamb, and a little child shall lead them ; when there will be 
 no more v\ ar or fightings on the earth during this blessed 
 time. But the Prince of Peace will be Sovereign Ruler, 
 and all will acknowledge his sway; love, reverence, and 
 hono'* and adore him. 
 
 By all appearances the time is not far hence, when these 
 things will be accomplished. Some persons have placed it 
 even in this year, others the next; and again others the fol- 
 lowing, and several as far out as eighteen hundred and fifty, 
 when the millenial year is to commence, and all profess to 
 have examined the prophesies and calculated accordingly, 
 and concluded as stated ; others again say, " as soon as you 
 please you may have it" — addressing, 1 presume, all who are 
 desirous that this glorious era should commence — that is, 
 they say "convert all the heathens and you have it," Affec- 
 ting ignorance and bhndness to the dreadful course of wick- 
 edness, and all things considered, worse than heathen iniqui- 
 ty, in which nearly all revel that have the name of christians. 
 As it was in the beginning of Wesley's career, so it is 
 now, or if anything worsa ; who in writing that very likely 
 
 Mr. (a person who said he believed he had never seen 
 
 one,) would never see a true christian — intimating that they 
 were very scarce and far between — to use a familiar phrase; 
 and so it is at present, the plural will scarcely apply to the 
 true church of Christ on earth. However, I have or will 
 affect more charity — and indulge the hope that there are sev- 
 en thousand belonging to it, as at the time of Elijah. Then 
 
ON THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 155 
 
 according to the reasoning of this last class — these uncon- 
 vertr'd christians must likewise become converted, which 
 will b(^ an hercnlian ta^k, before we have the glorious dawn 
 of the millenial — lor it would be otherwise impossible that 
 the lion could lie down with the lamb, and persecution cease, 
 and love and peace pervade all — unite them in holiness — 
 from sea to sea and from the rivers unto the ends of the earth. 
 .No! this is not the way it is to be accomplished, lor as long 
 as Satan remains loose he will have his followers, and there 
 will be division, contention, strife and persecution. But how, 
 is he not to be chained ? He is, as 1 shall show you pres- 
 ently. 
 
 This Hiissionary work and preaching the word of life to the 
 heathen, is all, according to prophecy, to the design of Jeho- 
 vah, and praiseworthy to all who contribute to enlighten the 
 heathen, and effect their salvation; and a great reward to all 
 those who walked with God blameless, and thus hon- 
 ored him, and glorified his name, with their substance and 
 talents and souls, which arc all his ; and those who had 
 some worldly or other object in view, shall also be recom- 
 pensed accordingly. Doubtless many souls have been con- 
 verted, and have already entered into the joy of our Lord 
 to rejoice with the redeemed forever, and have thus escaped 
 the terrible times coming on, when all the seed of the ser- 
 pent shall be entirely destroyed over the whole earth, by Him 
 on the White Horse, followed by a flaming host. Whether 
 this is only figurative, and the Lord will destroy the wicked 
 by sword, pestilence and famine, or whether it will be effect- 
 ed something like the Angel passing at midnight over the 
 land of Egypt, and destroying as many as the Lord com- 
 missioned or empowered him, "even all the first born of man 
 and beast, belonging to the wicked Egyptians, 1 say whether 
 this way or that — he can do it many ways — it matters not to 
 the culprits which are to be destroyed for their crime of 
 serving Satan rather than God, and the heathens will also be 
 Llameable, because they had the words of life preached 
 
156 ON THK FIRST RESURRECTION. 
 
 unto them, which will testify against them; "the harvest will 
 be over, the summer ended, and they hkewise will not 
 have been saved." But the Lord has redeemed his promise 
 that the word of life should be preached to all nations, -^for 
 a testimony against them," that is, against all that will not 
 hear to the saving of their souls, by embracing the offers of 
 salvation thus made known unto them, but adhere to their 
 idolatry, iniquity and abomination, they shall then likewise 
 perish in their sins without further remedy. 
 
 As at the time of Noah and at the time of Sodom and 
 Gomorrah, so siiall it be at our blessed Lord's second advent. 
 Is there not t;ovv stampt on the face of the times forebodings 
 of a similar era of wickedness and abomination, and an 
 utter contempt of the blessed God? Has not the love of 
 many waxed cold, and has there not been a great falling off? 
 Certainly, every body knows it, and few are afflicted on ac- 
 count thereof, and therefore these are the very symptoms of 
 the approaching crisis, when Beelzebub with his followers 
 shall have their last struggle on the earth — until after the 
 thousand years — and they will not be able to fight with 
 success the royal cavalry from the celestial regions, under 
 the Lord of Hosts, the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. 
 Let us consider the issues of the battle a little further. St. 
 John says, "And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth 
 a Id their armies, gathered together to make war against him 
 that sat on the horse, and against his army. "And the beast 
 \ as taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought 
 miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had 
 received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped 
 his in age. They both were cast alive into a lake of fire 
 burning with brimstone; and the remnant were slain with 
 the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword pro- 
 c e ded out of his mouth; and all the fowls were filled with 
 their flesh.*" 
 
 Such a general devastation and utter destruction of all 
 the wicked upon the earth has never been known before, 
 
ON THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 1 57 
 
 save at the time of Noah; but that is not to be compared to 
 the terribleness of the result of this epoch. Therefore let me 
 for warn you, each and all, to flee from the wrath to come; 
 flee to the outstretched arms of mercy; make your peace 
 with Uod; through a crucified Saviour be reconciled to him; 
 be restored to his favor and holy image, that ye may be found 
 in holiness, and be hid under his wings, and thus escape the 
 doom of the wicked; for surely the rod of the wicked shall 
 not come unto the righteous as long as ihey walk faithful in 
 hohness with God. No! verily, now is the time our heads 
 will be elevated in gettmg this Sabbath and Jubilee for a 
 thousand years; the mom of which js near at hand. 1 con- 
 sider the six thousand years since the begummg of the world 
 nearly expired, and that ihe seveiith uill be this Sabbath — 
 accordmg to the Jev\ish dispensation — duiing which Christ 
 widi his Saints will reign on die eanh. Then^fore, (or the 
 etetnal welfare of your souls and bodies, be persuatled to 
 make your peace with this l^ince of Peace, ere he comes, 
 and yoti wdl find him in war as an araiy with banners; terri. 
 ble as an earthquake with thunder and hghtning; wlvn none 
 of you shall escape his vengeanct^ even your father the devil, 
 the prmce of darkness, shall be captured, with all his legions 
 of dark spirits, and be cast into hell; as we read from the 
 same authority. "And I saw an angel come down from 
 heaven, having the k*^y of the bottomless pit and a preat 
 chain in his hand; and he laid hold on the dragon, that old 
 serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a 
 thousand years, and cast him into the boitondess pit, and 
 shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive 
 the nations no more, till the thousand yeais should be fulfill- 
 ed; and after that he must be loosed a little season." 
 
 As 1 said before as long as ."^atan is loose ihere will be 
 iniquity on the eatth, and his followers, they that love dark- 
 ness rather than light, because their deeds are evd, and 
 therefore rather serve hnn than God, wdl always outnuml)er 
 the true christians — the sons of light and followers of the 
 
158 ON THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 
 
 Prince of Peace, until this general defeat takes place, and 
 he, the source of all evil, will be shut up. What foolishness! 
 yea vvtiat madness, to serve such a master, openly or secretly 
 — seeing he cannot save himself — much less those thai trust 
 in hiu), serve hmi, and dc^lighl in his filthiness. jNol they 
 shall be destroyed first on this day, and then the air shall be 
 purged of all devils, which siiall be cast into hell for a iliou- 
 sand years; where there is hunger and thirst, weeping, wail- 
 ing, and gnashing of teeth foiever, and where tiie worm dieth 
 not and the fire is not quenched. 
 
 Now the earth bemg cleansed from all fillhiness and de- 
 vils, the glorious Jubilee and Sabbath of a thousand years will 
 commence, when the Saints and all the Redeemed of the 
 jVJost tJigli will reign Kings and Priests, with our Liessed 
 and Divine Master, the Lord Jesus Christ, the King of glory. 
 According to John, "And 1 saw thrones, and they that sat 
 upon them, and judgment was given unto them; and 1 saw 
 the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Je- 
 sus, and for the word of God, and which had not v\oi ship- 
 ped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his 
 mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived 
 and reigned with Christ a thousand years.'' This will be a 
 glorious era for the Church of Christ upon earth, when per- 
 secution, contention and strife will rage no more against it; 
 when wai sand the evil consequences thereof shall not be 
 known during this period, no sin nor iniquity possibly 
 exist, consequently no need of the Judgments from the Al- 
 mighty, but in their stead will flow from the Holy of Holies 
 blessings in 
 
 Rivers refreshing all 
 On this terrestrial ball: 
 
 Of peace, love, joy, glory, happiness and bliss. We shall 
 then be filled with the holy qualities of Angels and sing in 
 divine strains the praise of our King Emmanuel, who will 
 be to us a crown of glory, and a diadem of beauty. O what 
 a glorious and happy company, all of one mind and soul in 
 
ON THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 159 
 
 Christ in one allied; these verses of holy King David will 
 apply so perfectly to this holy and peculiar nation, "Behold 
 how pleasant it is for brethren to dvv« II together in unity." — 
 It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down 
 upon ihe beard, even Aaron's beard, that went down lo the 
 skirts of his garmenis. As the dew of Hermon, and as the 
 dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion, for these 
 the Lord commanded the blessing, even life forevermore. — 
 And these also will be fulfilled, when every one will be em- 
 ployed singing praise, "Praise ye the Lord, praise ye the 
 name of the Lord, praise him, O ye servants of the Lord. — 
 Ye that stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the 
 house of our God; praise the Lord for it is good; sing praise 
 unto him for it is pleasant. For God has chosen Jacob unto 
 himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure. For 1 know 
 that the Lord is great, and that our Lord is above all gods." 
 Blessed is the Lord henceforth and forevermore. 1 shall 
 conclude with the following lines, which beautifully describe 
 the heavenly period : 
 
 Eternal Father, Prince of Peace, 
 
 Omnipotent thou art; 
 O may ihy love in us increase, 
 
 Reign thou in every heart: 
 All knees bow, and tongues proclaim 
 Thy high, exalted, holy Name. 
 
 Lord in thy peace the earth abound, 
 
 Exult in thee alone, 
 Sing thy praise and echoing round, 
 
 Does centre in thy throne; 
 All kindreds, tongues, and people sing 
 And worship thee Eternal King. 
 
 And all in mystic union join 
 
 In thee O God, below, 
 A perfect holiness combine, 
 
 And glory in thy glow: 
 All kindreds, tongues, and people sing 
 And worship thee Eternal King. 
 
160 ON THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 
 
 All now as Saints and Angels praise, 
 
 In holy strains divine, 
 And heaven and earth sing thy lays. 
 
 Submissive at thy shrine; 
 All kindreds, tongues, and people sing 
 And worship thee Eternal King. 
 
 Hallelujah'! Hallelujah!!! The Lord God Omnipotent 
 reigiieth. The King of Saints. Amen and Amen. 
 
mSCOURSE xtv. 
 
 THE JUDGMENT MORNING. 
 
 In my preceding discourses I have been showing the glo- 
 fious dawn of the millenium and the resurrection of the 
 Saints, the first resurrection — as it is termed — and the peace, 
 joy, and happiness we shall be blessed with during our reign 
 with Christ, our anointed Saviour, God and King. After 
 this holy, heavenly Jubilee and Sabbath of a thousand years 
 is ended, the Almighty Father will invite and receive to his 
 holy court all these terrestrial sons of light; and therefore, 
 by consequence we shall ail be wafted into the regions of 
 Eternal Light, and administered unto the Most High in the 
 Holy of Holies. 
 
 Alter this being accomplished Satan shall be liberated, ac- 
 cording to the words of inspiration, by the blessed St. John, 
 " And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be 
 loosed out of his prison." And quite likely with him those 
 apostate spirits that fell with him from their first estate, and 
 which were together with him cast into the earth, bound in 
 chains in darkness unto the judgment of the great day; and 
 which made such dreadful havoc among the children of men 
 alienating them from their iViaker and leading them into the 
 way of all sin, and iniquity, and abomination, so that in all 
 ages, with few exceptions, these was an apostate race, a 
 degraded people, delighting in committing depredation and 
 crime, and in their estrangement from the exalted Image in 
 which man was created, to be a praise and a glory to his 
 Maker. And instead of returning to him they severed the 
 ties that bound them yet further, and under the influence of 
 their satanic master, plunged at times into ocean depth of 
 iniquity, as at the flood, and at the time of Sodom and Go- 
 morrah, 
 
 IS 
 
162 THE JUDGMENT MORNING, 
 
 The devil has been the cause of all the evil from the be- 
 ginning of the world; of the wars, cruel fightings, persecu- 
 tions and bloodshed; of wrath, malice and hatred, of pride, 
 envy and revenge, and all contention and strife; not only by 
 exciting the passions of his followers to persecute and commit 
 these crimes upon the Saints of the Most High, but among 
 his own children, these crimes were always more or less de- 
 veloped, and put into practice; nation against nation, and 
 individual against individual; if not murder in every case, its 
 concomitant qualities were exercised, in almost every in- 
 stance, to traduce and defame one another. 
 
 Thus wretchedness and misery were the general inmates 
 of the abodes of men on the earth; peace had fled far from 
 their dwellings — verily it is a precious ingredient, not conge- 
 nial to the cause of depravity and ungodliness, and therefore 
 not attributed by the Prince of Peace to wicked men, but 
 the contrary is denounced, "there is no peace for the wicked, 
 saith our God." Our God, with the inspired writer, is *'^He 
 who inhabits Eternity, whose name is Holy, who dwelleth 
 in the High and Holy Place, also in the hearts of those who 
 are of broken hearts and contrite spirits, to bind up the bro- 
 ken hearts and to revive the contrite spirits." Thus, herein 
 is made manifest the source of the stream of peace, which 
 in all ages pervaded the saints of the Most High, and uni- 
 ted them in love and salvation, through Christ in Plim in one; 
 and thus they had peace, although in the world they had 
 tribulation; as the same beloved disciple, for our consolation, 
 informs us, in his gospel, in the words of our blessed Sa- 
 viour, "Peace 1 leave with you, my peace I give unto you, 
 not as the world giveth give I unto you. Let not your heart 
 be troubled, neither let it be afraid." And also, " These 
 things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have 
 peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation, but be of 
 good cheer, I have overcome the world " 
 
 In the Prince of Peace, therefore, all his followers had 
 peace and salvation from the beginning of the world to the 
 
THE JUDGMENT MORNING. 1 63 
 
 end of time; for he expressly says, "I am Alpha and Omega, 
 the beginning and the ending, and the first and the last;" by 
 consequence he is the Judge, and all will be judged and re- 
 warded according to their works by him; therefore be ye all 
 warned if ye value your souls and eternal welfare, to make 
 your peace with him, otherwise you will shortly be ushered 
 before him, and find in him, not the mild and easy-to-be-en- 
 treated Saviour— as he might have been to you — while in 
 time — but the inexorable judge, who will have you quickly 
 banished out of his presence, and cast into outer darkness, 
 where there shall be eternal torments, as I shall show \ou 
 more fully as I proceed. Abraham had peace in this glori- 
 ous Prince, he saw him afar off, and believed in him, which 
 was counted unto bim for righteousness; so had Moses, "who 
 choose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than 
 to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the re- 
 proach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt, 
 for he had respect unto the recompence of reward;" and so 
 had David, who sang so sweetly; Isaiah, who prophesied so 
 full and clear of his advent and mission, and final triumph 
 over the powers of darkness, and accomplishment of salva- 
 tion: these, together with all the Did and New Testament 
 Saiiits, rejoiced in him, and through the riches of his salva- 
 tion, ended their course with joy, and are now inheriting in 
 common with the Holy Angels, the mansions on high; and 
 likewise thousands since have been blessed through him, 
 with the same richness of grace, love, joy, peace, in short, 
 full salvation, and all the fruits of the spirit, and are now 
 likewise partaking of the same blessings with the blessed on 
 High; and we who remain by a retrograde faith, can behold, 
 wiih this amiable disciple, "his glory, the glory as of the on- 
 ly begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth," and 
 follow him the whole round of his obedient pilgrimage — for 
 we possess a chart where his way is laid down and described, 
 and are privileged far above the ancients, and by consequence 
 there will be less excuse for those that die in their sins; as 
 
IC4 THE JUDGMENT MORNING. 
 
 his words, which we have so abundantly, and which shall 
 judge every one on the last day, have been unheeded, his 
 blood trampled under foot, his love, his great love, wherewith 
 he loved us so as to lay down his life on Calvary, been 
 slighted, and despite done to his Holy Spirit; all that have 
 thus lived and thus died, have; nothing to expect from him in 
 the eternal world but his fiery indignation, which shall con- 
 sume his adversaries. "Ah, 1 will ease me of my adversa- 
 ries, and avenge me of mine enemies," sailh the Lord, the 
 Lord of Hosts, the Mighty One of Israel. Therefore I 
 would persuade you again be reconciled unto Jehovah; m 
 making of frienrls make liim your h'iend above all others, 
 he will be a friend in need, a friend in time, on the judgment 
 morning, and through all eternit> ; and verily a friend in word 
 and in deed, for his words and his deeds are all "Yea and 
 Amen." 
 
 Yes verily, we are favored far above the ancients in the 
 clearness of oit blessed Saviour's deeds, his sufferings, his 
 death, resurrection, ascension, and second coming to judge 
 the world in righteousness. We have his own words, which 
 spejik life and everything desirable that could contribute to 
 the happiness ef tnse believers in time and in eternity, and 
 aho his words which speak death aud excruciating torments 
 to the unbelievers forever ^nd ever. As the tree falls so it 
 lifs; as the sinner dies so he must appear before the judgment 
 seat of Christ. 
 
 "It is appointed unto all men once to die, and after that 
 the ju('gmeui;''' and as the uords of Christ shall judge all, 
 therefore v^ e whojudae ourselves by those words in time, 
 that i«, repent of all t)ur pins and ungodly deeds, which we 
 have ungodly romrintted, and love the Lord God with all 
 our hearts and walk with him through faith in Christ, in per- 
 fect holiness, thus die (jff from the old man and put on the 
 new, which after G( d is rieat('d in righteousness and true 
 holiness, become thus dead to the world, the lusts of the 
 ilesh, and the pride of life, and alive unto God; have our 
 
THE JUDGMENT MORNING. 165 
 
 names written in the Lamb's book of life; a part in the first 
 resurrection, on whom the second death hath no power, be- 
 cause we keep his words and commandments to do them; 
 thus we fulfill both laws, that of works, and that of faith 
 and love unto our God and Saviour, and shall therefore reign 
 with him as Kings and Priests, forever and ever. 
 
 "But the wicked shall be turned into hell, with all the 
 nations that forget God." F^or behold the Lord will come 
 with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render 
 his anger with fury, and his rebukes with flames of fire." He 
 is thus coming at the end of time, after Satan shall have- 
 gone forth "to deceive the nations in the four quarters of 
 the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, 
 the number of whom is as the sand of the sea." We may 
 well supnose that the devil will be raving mad— after being 
 liberated out of his dungeon — and will rush over the earth 
 as a foaming torrent, with redoubled violence and hatred 
 against God, and his peculiar people, which shall then be 
 pilgrims on earth, and not content by persecutmg the true 
 church of Christ, going about as a roaring Lion seeking 
 whom he may devour, he will even ascend with his slaves 
 "on the breadth of the earth, and compass the camp of the 
 Saints about, and beloved city; and fire shall come down 
 from God out of heaven and devour them." And the devil 
 that deceived them shall be cast into the lake of fire and 
 brimstone, where the beast and the false prophets are, and 
 shall be tormented day and night forever and ever." Thus 
 we find to the end that the God of the wicked is not our 
 God, JEHOVAH! as he shall be quickly overthrown and 
 cast back into hell with all his followers, shortly after to be 
 brought forth and judged by saints and angels, and Christ, 
 who is God over all, blessed forevermore. 
 
 Yes verily, the wheels of time are hastening on apace, are 
 rolling rapidly towards the verge of eternity, when the great 
 ^•Arch-Angel shall stand with one foot on the seaard the 
 other on the land, lift up his hand towards heaven, and swear 
 
166 THE JUDGMENT MORNING. 
 
 by Him who liveth forever and ever, that time shall be no 
 longer." Then the earth shall quake, be rent, and roll to and 
 fro, and the powers of heaven shall be shaken; the sun shall 
 become black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon as blood; 
 the stars of heaven shall be precipitated upon the earth, ''as 
 a fig tree casteth her untimely figs when she is shaken of a 
 mighty wind;" even the very heavens shall depart as a 
 scroll when it is roiled together; the whole firmament shall 
 be shaken to the centre; the mountains shall tremble, be 
 rent and tumble to the earth, and the islands be moved out 
 of their places. Then shall there be distress, lamentation? 
 and woe, such as has never been heard upon the earth be- 
 fore, "When the Kings of the earth, and the great men, and 
 the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, 
 and every bond-man, and every free-man, shall hide thenv 
 selves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains, and 
 say to the mountains and rocks fall 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?" Thanks be to 
 God, we shall be able to stand who have previously made 
 our peace with him; washed our robes and made them white 
 in the blood of the Lamb; and have "kept his command- 
 ments, therefore, we sha 1 have a right to the tree of Life 
 and enter in through the gates into the city: 
 
 *' The city so holy and clean, 
 
 No sorrow can breathe in the air; 
 No gloom of afilction or sin, 
 
 No shadow of evil is there ! 
 The Saints in His favor receive 
 
 Their great and eternal reward, 
 In Jesus, in heaven they live, 
 
 They reign in the smile of their Lord." 
 
 We therefore shall be able to endure and ever to rejoice, 
 because we have made God our refuge, through Christ the 
 Judge, who is now our friend, and saves us from standing in 
 the judgment with the wicked; yea he even first opens all 
 
THE JUDGMENT MORNING, l-G? 
 
 the graves of his Saints, trains and transforms us into An- 
 gels, and gathers us around his throne to pass testimony 
 against his enemies, our persecutors, who would have none 
 of our reproofs, nor the holmess of our Divine Master, and 
 consequently are thus overtaken and overw^helmed in con- 
 fusion and dismay, consternation and terror; running about 
 to hide themselves from his glorious appearing; when the 
 heavens shall disappear, and the elements melt with fervent 
 heat, the earth, the earth also be burned with fire. And 
 when the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the 
 holy angels with Him, then sliall He sit upon the throne of 
 His Glory. For the Lord Himself shall descend from 
 Heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Arch-angel, and 
 with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first. 
 Then we which are alive and remain, shall be caught up 
 together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, 
 who will say unto us, "Come ye blessed of my F'ather, in- 
 herit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of 
 the world. And so shall we be ever with the Lord because 
 we have overcome, be seated within his throne, while all the 
 wicked at the word of His power will be gathered before 
 us; the graves open, the dead come forth to stand before 
 Christ, the Judge, and the devil with all his legions from hell 
 shall be assembled before the Jehovah-judge and his Saints 
 and Angels, to hear their last doom pronounced upon them, 
 O what an enormous multitude will then be assembled; all 
 the hosts of heaven. Angels and Saints on etherial thrones 
 suspended around the King of Glory, the Judge of the wick- 
 ed, while the conflagration of the earth will be going on be- 
 neath, and the devils and all their co-workers, from Cain to 
 the very last of them in despair, trembling om the brink ot 
 fire and brimstone, the earth nearly dissolved; the judge will 
 seal their doom in words of thunder, "Depart from me ye 
 cursed into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his 
 Angels." And immediately they will all be cast together 
 into the furnace of fire, where there shall be weeping and 
 gnashing of teeth forever and ever. 
 
les THE JUDGMENT MORNING. 
 
 Hear also what St John says, "And 1 saw a great white- 
 throne and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and 
 the heavens fled away, and there was found no place for 
 them. And 1 saw the dead small and great stand before 
 God; and the books were opened, and another book was 
 opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged 
 out of those things which were written in the books accord- 
 ing to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which 
 were in it; and death and hell dehvered up the dead which 
 were in them, and they w^ere judged every man according 
 to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake 
 of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was 
 not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake 
 of fire.*" And thus these awful words of our Lord are made 
 manifest upon them, "They that worship the beast and his 
 image, and receive his mark in their foreheads or in their 
 bands, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, 
 which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his in- 
 dignation, and they shall be tormented with fire and brim- 
 stone in the presence of the Holy Angels, and in the pres- 
 ence of the Lamb; and the smoke of their torments ascend- 
 ethup forever and ever, and they have no rest day nor night, 
 who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever re- 
 ceiveth the mark of his name." Yea verily, these things 
 will all come to pass, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken 
 it, and the time is near at hand when 
 
 The blowing of the last trumpet, 
 Come to judgment to be judged! 
 Like thunder through the air abounds, 
 Amid the commingling of sounds 
 Of burning things and falling mounts. 
 
 The judge comes long way through clusters 
 Of worlds and planets whose lustres, 
 Dim'd by his superior glory, 
 And his celestial company, 
 All resplendent in briUiancy. 
 
THE JUDGMENT MORNING. 161> 
 
 While the trump continues sounding, 
 Are changing to immortality 
 All in the twinkling of an eye, 
 All the righteous that did not die, 
 And those from graves does glorify. 
 
 The Angels flying all about 
 
 To receive us up in the cloud, 
 
 * 'Welcome, welcome with our King go, 
 
 To the land where milk and honey flow, 
 
 And nothing but sweet pleasures know.'* 
 
 O ye gates swing apart, the most 
 The King of Glory comes with his host, 
 Who is the King of Glory? Who? 
 The God infinite that all foreknew, 
 Jesus, who worlds to atoms threw. 
 
 Let in, ye pearly gates! 'part swing. 
 The lovely train with Glory's King; 
 O who is Glory's King, O who? 
 The Word by whom all things came new, 
 Lord of Hosts and Holy One too. 
 
 And swings the gates and passes through. 
 The King of Glory with retinue; 
 Who is the King of Glory ? Who ? 
 The Almighty that all things can do. 
 All praise and blessings him are due. 
 
 Glory, honor, dominion and power, 
 To God our Omnipotent Father, 
 And our Prince of Peace Almighty; 
 With the Holy Ghost, O Glory! 
 Hallelujah!! to the One Three. 
 
 Holy !! Holy !!! Holy !!!! Holy !!!!! 
 Art Thou Glorious; 
 Hosanna! Hosanna!! Hosan'a!!! 
 Hallelujah!!! Hallelujah!!!! 
 Hallelujah ! ! ! ! Hallelujah ! ! ! ! ! 
 Amen ! Amen !! Amen !!! Amen !!!! 
 
 Ere the departure of the host, 
 Surround'ng the Lord of Canaan's coast, 
 On clouds all around suspended. 
 More solemn and shrill blasts the trumpet, 
 Arise! 'rise to be judged, judg'd. 
 
170 THE JUDGMENT MORNING. 
 
 Satan, and from the depths of hell 
 
 They come, with hideous looks and tremble, 
 
 And from the graves, caverns, and rocks, 
 
 And Oceans all, in woeful flocks. 
 
 To receive reward for their mocks. 
 
 The world, which was all their delight; 
 Burning falls before Jesus' might; 
 The King of Glory who was slain 
 For the world's guilt, is here again, 
 And will forever, ever reign. 
 
 The book of life does not contain, 
 Of the dejected crowd, a name; 
 Christ with justice imperative. 
 And solemn tone, His sentence give. 
 Ye cannot and ye shall not live. 
 
 Depart from me, I ne'er knew ye. 
 With the devils forever be; 
 To hell's blackness and darkness doom. 
 Amid burning sulphur'cus fume, 
 Solid night and eternal gloom. 
 
 Be forever driven to and fro. 
 With gnashing and weeping and woe. 
 And excruciating torment. 
 The frame unceasmgly rend, 
 And smoke perpetually ascend. 
 
DISCOURSE XV. 
 
 THE NEW HEAVEN AND NEW EARTH. 
 
 And I saw a new heaven and a new earthy for the first heaven 
 and the first earth were passed away^ and they were no 
 more. \_Rev.^\st chap. \st verse. 
 
 We frequently read in the Old Testament, in the language 
 of Jehovah, that at some future day the heavens and the 
 earth shall be destroyed with a complete, entire, and ever- 
 lasting destruction, so that not a vestige of the old fabric 
 should remain, wherein and whereupon Satan, ihe old beast, 
 practiced his abominations; the glorious heavens wh^re he 
 commenced his career of rebellion against the blessed God, 
 creator of the Universe, who called into being the glorious 
 Cherubims and Seraphims, Angels and Arch angels, all the 
 holy hosts, to attend his Omnipotent, Divine Majesty, lu the 
 Courts of his glory; here in heaven, in the holy of holies, in 
 the effulgence of the Most High, King of all worlds, this 
 spirit of the morning began his conjuring among his fellow 
 beings of light to undermine and overthrow if possibl<i^, the 
 throne of the eternal; but in this he failed, his subtle in- 
 ventions and plans were frustrated; although legions of an- 
 gels had been seduced by his artifice and were now under his 
 control. The eye of Omniscience however, saw through 
 the huge edifice they were erecting, traced it to the centre, 
 and discovered him who laid the foundation of this daring, 
 this monstrous abomination; and the finger of the Almighty 
 pointed him out in derision to his shining hosts, who kept 
 their first estate, adhered to him, and willingly and obediently 
 served their Master in love and holiness; remaining faithful 
 and honorable ambassadors to the King of Glory, who also 
 honored and exalted them in turn, while this foul spirit, this 
 
172 TEE NEW HEAVEN AND NEW EARTH. 
 
 devil, was looked upon with scorn and contempt, was a de- 
 graded wretch, and an abhorrence to all the innocent in the 
 Holy Place, and the Lord God bound him in chains of dark- 
 ness, with all his followers, and cast them out of his presence. 
 
 The devil with all the apostate spirits being cast out of 
 Jieaven, were permitted to take refuge in the earth until the 
 great and notable day of the Lord, then to be cast into 
 the Lake of fire and brimstone, prepared for them from 
 the foundation of the world. No sooner had the Almighty 
 created man to inhabit the earth, whom he created in 
 his own Image, innocent and holy as the angels in 
 heaven, than this arch fiend went to work to deface 
 this the fairest and most celestial of all the creatures 
 upon earth, and succeeded but too well, as all know who are 
 conversant with the revelations of God, who read and med- 
 itate on the word of truth as recorded in the Bible; and all 
 may also learn the awful consequences of the fall of our 
 first parents, the curse entailed by Jehovah upon them and 
 all their posterity to the end of time, and the dreadful de- 
 pravity which immediately ensued under this Satanic prince 
 of darkness; the crimes which were perpetrated under his 
 instigation; even the very first ofifspring of Adam and Eve 
 became a murderer under Beelzebub his father, who is dread- 
 fully averse to every thing holy and divine, and thus at the 
 very beginning gave vent to his malice against God and his 
 saints, and through Cain he slew Abel. 
 
 As the earth became more populous his bloody crimes 
 became more frequent, and sin and iniquity and abomination 
 to abound, so that man, whom the Lord God created for an 
 honor and a praise, became an abhorrence in his sight, and 
 it grieved the Lord that he had made him at all on the earth. 
 So it was at the flood when the Lord destroyed them all save 
 Noah and his family; if he did not destroy the earth upon 
 which they revelled — but kept it for a future day — he des- 
 troyed the whole world, that is, all the serpent's seed; so at 
 the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, with 
 
THE NEW HEAVEN AND NEW EARTH. 173 
 
 all the plains; and since then the terrible depopulating of 
 countries by the Ahiiighty. Overthrow of nations and des- 
 truction of people testify to the truth of his words: "The 
 wicked shall be destroyed with an everlasting destruction, 
 and all the nations that forget God shall be turned into hell/' 
 
 The earth, as in my last discourse, the earth shall posi- 
 tively be destroyed, for the mouth of Him who cannot lie, 
 the Lord, has spoken it. The heavens shall depart, and the 
 earth melt with fervent heat. Then the lofty looks of men 
 shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed 
 down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted;'^ and then also 
 shall vengeance be taken upon the devil, the old serpent, and 
 satan, and all his wicked and degraded folio *vers, which 
 shall all be cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, to be 
 tormented forever and ever. Consult Isaiah, 1 4th chapter, 
 for the following: How art thou conquered and destroyed 
 O Lucifer, how art thou cut down which didst weaken the 
 nations! ''for thou hast said in thy heart, I will ascend into 
 heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I 
 will sit also upon the mount in the congregation, in the sides 
 of the north; 1 will ascend above the heights of the clouds; 
 Twill be like the Most High;" and now art thou brought down 
 even into the pit, and Jehovah alone is elevated, worshi])ped, 
 and adored, and his nan.e glorified. 
 
 The heavens being disposed of wherein Satan first trans- 
 gressed, and the earth whereon he had his career of filthi- 
 ness, and which was saturated with blood, and the beast 
 was permitted to persecute the saints of the IVJost High, and 
 slay them as sheep, and whereon the wicked revelled, fought 
 and tore each other like wild beasts; robbed, oppressed, de- 
 frauded and murdered one another, revelled in adulteries, 
 fornications, and that which is almost a shame to mention — 
 abuse one another's bodies between themselves — he-dog 
 with he-dog, in acts that were unseemly and against nature. 
 O the stmk which used to ascend from their filthy abomina- 
 tions to offend the nostrils of Jehovah and all holiness, 
 
174 THE NEW HEAVEN AND NEW EARTH. 
 
 instead of holy praise, thanks and blessings. I marvel not 
 therefore that it grieved my blessed, holy father, that he had 
 made man upon the earth, since by tiieir filthy father, the 
 devil's mventions, they became debased below the most filthy 
 of all his other animals, and consequently a disgrace to the 
 upright stature in which they were created, and no wonder 
 that God who is altogether holy, and can never bear iniquity, 
 crushed the stinking wretches with their filthy father into 
 fire and brimstone, as a more suitable place than this earth, 
 to say nothing of heaven, where all glory abounds, and burnt 
 the earth upon which they wallowed in filthiness beneath 
 the swine. 
 
 Verily the Lord God has at length redeemed his pledge, 
 "Heaven and Earth shall pass away, but my words shall not 
 pass away until they are all fulfilled.*" The wicked with 
 their master, which had a desire to doubt that the Lord 
 could really destroy this (to them) so fair a fabric, by saying 
 "where is the promise of his commg, for the heavens were of 
 old and the earth stood out of the water and in the water!" 
 but now they can no more sneer at the words of Christ, for 
 are they not now overthrown and confounded, are they not 
 banished out of the glory of Christ? yea verily, Christ is now 
 also ashamed to own them, as they while in time, were asha- 
 med to follow him in the regeneration, believe in him, love 
 him, and keep his commandments to do them. O ye infidels 
 and criminal persons, where is now the earth whereon you 
 revelled and which you took for your portion? it has under 
 the curse of the Almighty, vanished as a vision, and your 
 career upon it will be remembered by you in sorrow and 
 despair, and cause unutterable pangs of anguish of soul, 
 cries and torment, throughout a never, no never-ending eter- 
 nity, and what will aid to increase your eternal hell of soul 
 will be the recollection of the joys you have wilfully and 
 madly forfeited; the joys and glory of the New Jerusalem; 
 the joys and blessedness of the saints and holy angels in Je- 
 hovah's glory, whom you will now behold above on a throne 
 
THE NEW HEAVEN AND NEW EARTH, 175 
 
 of dazzling splendour, surrounded by his Kings and Priests, 
 the Holy Angels and Saints, all shining and reflecting like 
 suns and stars the lustre and effulgence of the Deity; shed- 
 ding great glory all around, and into the pit, upon the devil 
 and you his poor, miserable and subdued legions, but for 
 which you would be in outer, in utter darkness; your eyes 
 of flesh will be dimmed by the resplendent, beatific vision, 
 and increased horror will fill your poor souls, and this will 
 be yet more and more heightened by the sweet, heavenly, 
 Angelic music from millions and millions of glorified Beings 
 celebrating the triumphs of our Glorious King; the vibrations 
 and resoundings of innumerable harps, lyres, and golden 
 instruments, set in motion by the most exquisite, superlative, 
 seraphic touches, accompanied by th^^ melodious singing of 
 the celestial Bride, rejoicing in her triumphant and glorious 
 Bridegroom. 
 
 Jehovah having completed his designs as respects the old 
 world and its inhabitants, the devil and his followers are 
 shut up and sealed in the lake of fire and brimstone forever. 
 By the word of the Omnipotent a new heavens and a new 
 earth will be immediately created for the Holy Angels and 
 Saints, all the redeemed from the earth, wherein all right- 
 eousness and holiness shall abound, and it shall differ 
 in other respects from the old heavens and earth, inasmuch 
 as there shall be neither sun, moon, nor stars, &c. for the 
 effulgent Glory of the Deity shall illuminate the same, nei- 
 ther shall there be darkness nor night, but one eternal noon. 
 "And I saw no temple therein, for the Lord God Almighty 
 and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no 
 need of the sun, neither of the moon to shine in it, for the 
 glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light there- 
 of. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in 
 the light of it. And there shall be no more curse, but the 
 throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and his ser- 
 vants shall serve him, and they shall see his face, and his name 
 shall be in their foreheads, and they shall reign forever and 
 
176 THE NEW HEAVEN AND NEW EARTH. 
 
 Eye hath not seen, neither hath ear heard the joys prepa- 
 red for those that love God, for those who were the called 
 and chosen according to his purpose, all the redeemed of 
 the Lamb, who washed and made themselves clean through 
 faith in his blood; we shall all be like unto the Holy Angels, 
 and together contribute the constellation of the New Heav- 
 ens and the New Earth. Yea verily, we shall all be burn- 
 ing luminaries, suns, and stars, reflecting the splendor o( Je- 
 hovah; forever behold his glorious lace and dwell in his glori- 
 ous presence, and minister unto him in the courts of his glory. 
 There shall be joy and rejoicing forevermore, the most exqui- 
 site, soul-exalting, and perfect music on innumerable harps, 
 lyres, and other golden instruments, accompanied by num- 
 berless millions of angelic voices, melodiously singing the 
 high praises of our God and Saviour; the whole expanse 
 shall resound with the adoration and praise, with the thanks 
 and blessings of the holy throng, to Jehovah, our God and 
 King, who alone shall be worshipped, and that by all in 
 spirit and in truth and in the beauties of holiness. He alone 
 shall reign supreme in the hearts of all the glorious inhabit- 
 ants of this Canaan and Celestial Paradise of superlative 
 holiness, happiness and bliss. Jehovah alone shall be sole 
 Monarch, and all shall love, honor, and obey him; manifest 
 their reverence and obedience in the fulfilling of his words 
 and commands; lauding, applauding, magnifying, and attrib- 
 uting all the glory to his name. A perfect bond of love, joy, 
 and peace shall pervade all, unite and combine them through 
 Christ and the Holy Spirit in God, our Holy Father, in one. 
 The praise and worship of all these glorious hosts shall com- 
 mingle in one harmonious whole, and everlastingly ascend 
 in oderiferous incense before the glorious Throne of Jeho- 
 vah: "And they shall sing the song of Moses the servant of 
 God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvel- 
 ous are thy works Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy 
 ways, thou King of Saints. Who shall not fear thee, O 
 Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy. And 
 
THE NEW HEAVEN AND NEW EARTH. . 177 
 
 cry with a loud voice saying, Salvation to our God which sit- 
 teth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb." And all the re- 
 deemed shall be about the throne and serve God in his holy 
 temple forevermore, in holiness and righteousness, worship- 
 ping and singing, crying, Holy! Holy!! Holy!!! Lord God 
 Almighty; Hosanna! Hosannal! Hallelujah! Hallelujah II 
 Hallelujah'.!! The Lord God Omnipotent, the King of Glory 
 reigneth; all blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiv- 
 ing, and honor, and power, and might, be unto our God for- 
 ever and ever. Amen. 
 
 Angels who are thy peculiar care, 
 
 Adore thee, and harps and lyres string, 
 Fill harmoniously the air, 
 
 Cause the etherial domes to ring, 
 Melodiously sing, 
 Jehovah, God and King. 
 
 Commingle all Celestial Choirs, 
 
 Emulate with divine powers. 
 With Angelic and Seraphic Lyres, 
 
 Continue 'neath Golden towers, 
 Thro' etherial bowers, 
 
 Heavenly fields and flowers. 
 
 Re-echoed by circling Jasper, 
 
 To our Alpha and Omega, 
 To whom be glory, thanks, dominion, 
 
 With Fath'r, Spirit, and JEHOVAH^ 
 Hosanna ! Hosanna !! 
 HaUelujah ! Hallelujah ! ! 
 
 THE END.