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Tfo Scriptural Met&od of W0&

SERMON

BY REV. E. P. BARROWS

!U DfSON
1847.

The Scriptural Method of Reform.

SERMON,

BY E. P. BARROWS,
Professor of Sacred Literature in the Western Reserve Colleger

HUDSON:
OBSERVER PRESS.
1847.

SERMON.

MA.TTH. XXIII : 26.
Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and
platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
The allusion, in these words, is to the scrupulousness of the Jew*
in preserving their household vessels in a state of ceremonial purity,
while they were not careful to maintain moral purity in the manner
of gaining and using their contents. By the washings prescribed in
the Levitical law they made clean the outside of the cup and platter,
while within they were full of extortion and excess; that is, things
acquired by extortion and used with excess. Our Lord counsels them
to begin with making clean the contents of the cup and platter. By
this he means that they should begin by reforming the inward state
of their hearts as manifested in their manner of gaining and using
earthly possessions, and he intimates that if they will do this they
need not be afraid of outward defilements. That this is the true
meaning of these words appears from a comparison of the parallel
passage, Luke, 11: 41; "But rather give alms of such things as ye
have (perhaps more correctly thus, "Give the things within [the cup
and platter] as alms'5) and behold all things are clean unto you." —
Here we may aptly compare Titus 1: 15; "Unto the pure all things
are pure : but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing
pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled," where the ref
erence is also to ceremonial defilements.
In all ages of the world two opposite systems of religion have
prevailed. The one begins within. It seeks to purify the heart and
thus to make the outward conduct pure. This is the spiritual system
— the system contained in the gospel.
The other concerns itself mainly with the autwardfo rms of action.

4
It does not directly oppose itself to the spiritual duties of religion —
which would be too gross a method to gain currency even in this
World of ignorance and perverseness — but, by prescribing a multitude
of outward observances and placing in these the chief duty of man,
it throws the religion of the heart into the back-ground, and makes
it practically of little a'ccourit. This ifc the system of formalism, of
which the religion of the ancient Scribes and Pharisees may serve as
the representative. All their piety lay in outward ceremonies. They
made long prayers standing in the synagogues and in the corners of
the streets; made broad their phylacteries, and enlarged the borders of
their garments, paid tithe of mint, anise and cummin; built the
tombs of the prophets and garnished the sepulchres of the righteous;
and performed many more such works with the greatest scrupulous
ness and exactness; and in these lay all their religion. The weigh-*
tier matters of the law, judgment, mercy and faith, they omitted. — ¦
Their hearts were full of extortion and excess. They were whited
sepulchres, beautiful without, but within full of dead men's bones
and all uncleanness.
In opposition to this system of formality and hypocrisy our Savior,
in the text, inculcates the duty of making the purification of the heart
the first and chief concern; he teaches that, where this is neglected,
no outward works can be pure in God's sight; and that, where the
heart is cleansed from sin, the outward part of religion will naturally
and easily come right. Here then we have the SCRIPTURAL METHOD
OP REFORM — to begin with the inner man, and proceed thence to the
Outer. Upon this principle the Whole gospel plan of salvation is
founded. This may be best illustrated by considering the manner in
which it proceeds in the work of recovering man from sin to holi
ness. The first work of the gospel is to discover to men the whole truth
respecting their fallen and guilty state. It assumes, as its starting-
point, that they are all "carnal, sold under sin:" living "in the lusts
of the flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh;" "foolish, disobedient,
deceived,serving divers lusts and pelasures, living in malice and envy,
hateful and hating one another." It is not the outward form of their
actions alone that is wrong. All is wrong within, wholly and con
tinually wrong, Their hearts are alienated from God; they have no
/delight in his holy character and his most reasonable service. Pra

tically, God is not in all their thoughts. Not that the recollection of
their Maker's power and wrath does not sometimes come over .their
souls, like a dark cloud, to disturb them in their sinful pursuits, but
that they have no settled purpose to regulate their thoughts, affections
and actions by his law; but, on the contrary, lay out and pursue their
plans of life with reference to their own pleasure, giving their supreme
affections to the objects of time and sense., and feeling no warm in
terest in the service of God and the joys of his salvation. In a word,
they are under the unbroken dominion of worldly feelings, and this
so separates them from God that they can have no comfortable com
munion with him, but dread his holy presence, and prefer to live
^without God in the world."
These are unwelcome truths, Which every system of religion having
man for its author either boldly denies, or covertly explains away.
But the gospel boldly asserts them of every child of Adam, declaring
that, in respect to men's relation to God, "there is no difference; for
all have sinned and come short of the 'glory of God;" and it insists
also upon his making a hearty acknowledgement of them as the first
step towards his recovery to holiness and happiness.
The means which the Holy Spirit employs to bring home to men's
consciences the conviction of their inward corruption are extremely
simple. They consist in the revelation of a perfect standard of right,
the pure and spiritual law of God, and the application of this standard
to their character and conduct. Nothing more than this is needed to
produce the deepest conviction of sin. Let a man be clearly instructed
in the true character of God's law, as an all-comprehending spiritual
rule of conduct, extending to the inward springs of action, and
requiring not only that this should be in its outward form right, but
also that it should flow from right motives — let a man understand
this, and then let him retire into the recesses of his own soul, and
institute there an honest comparison between the state of his heart
and that required by God's law; and a flood of conviction will flow
in upon him. His sins will rise before him in dark and dreadful ar
ray, appearing, as they really are, infinite: rather, his whole life will
be seen to have been one continuous act of sinning — a tissue of in
gratitude, rebellion and abuse of mercies the most rich and varied.
In vain will he search for something that is good, good as compared
with the standard of God's perfect law. All will be found to be
¦"•only evil continually."

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And while the gospel thus reveals to men the extent of their inward
corruption, it sets before them, with equal plainness, the true desert
of sin. Here their pride and self-righteousness bring them ^into direct
collision with the sentence of Jehovah. They judge of the value of
God's law and the evil of violating it from their own perverse feel
ings. To them God's authority is of less account than the pleasures
of sin. In the pursuit of these they perpetually trample under foot
its precepts. No wonder, then, that, when they thus lightly esteem
the law itself, they should complain of its penalty as unjust. This is
what all transgressors do; for the very fact that one is a transgressor
of law proves that he has no abiding conviction of its excellence.
But God sees all things as they are. His judgment of the evil of
sin is truth unmixed with error. He understands the end from the
beginning, and beholds, in his law, the bond of perfectness which
binds together all parts of his everlasting kingdom in harmony and
happiness. In all sin he sees a blow aimed directly at the founda
tion of his government, and, by the penalty which he has annexed to
it, he declares its proper demerit. His sentence is, "The wages of
sin is death;" and his word teaches, in no doubtful language, what
this death is — "everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord
and from the glory of his power" — declaring that for every violation
of God's law men deserve eternal punishment in hell, and that, with
out repentance, what they deserve will certainly overtake them. Heirs
of eternal wrath, this is the posture in which the Bible places all men
without distinction, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the
world become guilty before God."
And, if the sinner inquires in what way he can make amends for
his past transgressions, the gospel answers that there is no way. It
cuts off at once all self-righteous attempts to justify himself before
God. It does not allow him to cherish the vain hope that he can, by
any good works whatever, or by any inward penitence, do any thing
towards meriting the forfeited favor of God. It has shown him that
he is deserving of eternal death, it further shows him that, so far as
his own works and deservings are concerned, he must forever remain
such. And then the gospel comes with the offer of free forgiveness through
the blood of Christ — forgiveness not on the ground of any good works
which the sinner has done or can do, but of the all-sufficient sacrifice
on Calvary. It offers him a salvation which is not part of works

7
and part of grace, but all of grace. It compels him to feel that no
part of the glory of it belongs to himself, but all to G od. Thus it
levels in the dust his pride and self-righteousness.
To the unhumbled heart this feature of the gospel is especially
offensive, for the last thing that men are willing to renounce is the
idea of their own merit. Every minister of the gospel has occasion
to witness the violent struggle that often takes place in the heart of
an awakened sinner between his pride on the one hand, and the con
victions of his conscience on the other; a struggle which he cannot but
watch with intense interest, knowing that upon its issue are suspend
ed life and death. His self-righteous spirit impels him to look around
for some other way of salvation less humbling than that which the gos
pel proposes, and such ways — the inventions of man — are ever at
hand,and often, too, diguised under the name of Christianity. He who
is resolved not to yield to the humbling terms of the gospel will,
sooner or later, strike off into one or another of these by-paths of hu
man merit, and perish miserably in it.
Even when the inquirer after salvation is so far enlightened as to
discern his need of Christ, to renounce, formally, all dependence on
his own good works, and to rest his hope of forgiveness only on the
ground of Christ's atoning sacrifice — even then he is not beyond the
reach of self-dependence, which follows men to the very door of the
kingdom of heaven, and cleaves to them as a part of their very
nature. Even then, instead of casting himself at once, in deep sin
cerity, upon the mercy of Christ, we often see him setting himself to
the work of elaborating in his soul some fitness to receive that mercy;
of working out there some right feelings which shall constitute the
ground of his acceptance with Christ. Instead of an exoteric, or
outward system of good works, like that of the ancient Scribes and
Pharisees, he has substituted in its place an esoteric, or inward sys
tem of good exercises and frames of mind, on which he as really
relies, as a preparation for being accepted by Christ, as they did on
their outward works for justification before God. Thus, without
knowing it, he brings into the gospel plan of justification by faith
the bad leaven of human merit, by which he corrupts it and makes it
void. He does not understand that a sinner can have no fitness to
receive Christ's mercy except simple willingness to receive it, (in
which is always included willingness to be controled and directed by
Christ in all things) and that this is a fitness which, in its very nature,

excludes all claim to mercy on the ground of merit. And as to those-
good exercises which he is endeavoring to work out in his soul, his
mistake lies in placing them before the justification of faith, as a prep
aration for it, instead of making them to flow from it, as their source.
But in whatever form, whether open or covert, self-righteousness
endeavors to thrust itself into the work of man's salvation, the gospel
steadfastly rejects it. Here it will yield nothing. "Not by works of
righteousness which you have done, but by the mercy of God through-
Christ are you saved'"— this is the language which from age to age it
holds to all men. Thus it secures, in all who sincerely embrace.it, a-
truly broken and contrite spirit.
And while the sinner thankfully accepts of pardon upon these
humbling terms, the gospel instructs him, with equal plainness, that
it comes, as a holy salvation, to save him from his sins, not in them.
It teaches him that all who will have an interest in Christ's mercy
must deny ungodliness and worldly lust, and live soberly, righteously
and godly in this present world. It forewarns him that the allowed'
indulgence of a single lust will shut him out of heaven. If he in
quires, "what sacrifices does Christ demand of me?" it answers,
"all sacrifices — every thing that you have and are." "Whosoever
he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my
disciple." Thus while, as we have seen, it cuts up by the roots the
spirit of pride, it also eradicates with it the spirit of worldliness,
making men at the same time humble and heavenly-minded.
But there is a further difficulty lying in the sinner's way. He is
utterly unable, of his own unassisted strength, to deliver himself from
the power of indwelling sin, and to raise himself up to a state of
holiness and communion with God. This inability lies not in the-
absence or defect of any of those faculties which are necessary to
qualify him to render to God's law perfect obedience, but wholly in
the strength of his sinful passions, which, contrary to the dictates of
his understanding and conscience, are continually hurrying him into
acts of sin, and snapping asunder his resolutions of amendment, like-
threads of flax in the fire. Iu yielding himself a servant of sin unto
death he is free, consciously free, and it is this that makes his case so
dreadful; for, were his sin necessitated, (if such a thing as necessita
ted sin could be supposed) he would be guiltless. But now his
understanding and conscience direct him one way, and his earthly

9
affections allure him in the'opposite direction, and he, of his own free-
choice, follows them to his destruction. The law is spiritual, but he-
is carnal, sold under sin. The Ethiopian will as soon change his skin,
or the leopard his spots, as he do good, without the help of divine
grace, who has all his life been accustomed to do evil. There is as
much hope that he will plant himself in the middle of the Niagara,
gather its foaming billows in his hands, and roll them back into the
blue expanse of Erie, as that he will, self-sustained, resist the torrent
of his corrupt affections, and recover himself to holiness. Alas ! the
mighty current will sweep him over the precipice to perdition. He
that attempts;, in a spirit of self-dependence to emancipate himself
from the fetters of sin, will soon make distressing discoveries of its
power over Mm. He will struggle on only losing ground, instead of
gaining it, till at last, in the bitterness of despair, he cries out, "O
wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this.
death!" Here the gospel, in the fulness of its grace, comes to his relief. It
offers him the all-sufficient help of the Holy Spirit to illuminate his.
dark mind, to cleanse his polluted soul from the defilements of sin„
and to give him the victory over the world. The Spirit of God teaches,
him his own weakness, not to drive him to despair, but to impel him
to lay hold of the proffered aid of heaven. He teaches him to de
spair only of himself, and this that he- may lead ham to repose1 full
confidence in the Redeemer of his soul.
By the clear apprehension and hearty reception of all these truths-
which have been now considered is the soul of the penitent sinner
prepared for that blessed union with Christ to which the gospel intro
duces him. He has been shown the depth of his inward pollution,
that he might go for cleansing to the laver of God's grace : he has
been made to see his guilt and desert of eternal death, that he might
betake himself for pardon to the atonement on Calvary: he has been
taught his weakness, that he might lay hold of Chrisf s strength; his
blindness, that he might earnestly seek illumination from God. With
each discovery of his emptiness there has been a corresponding dis
covery of the fulness of the Savior's grace. He has been emptied of
himself that he might be filled with all the fulness of God.
With the full and undivided confidence of his soul he casts himself
upon his Savior, and thus, through faith, enters into that inward
2

Iff
union of spirit with hiin, upon which the scriptures so' much insist
as the well-spring of the believer's life. A new world is now opened
to him: new objects of pursuit enlist his energies: new hopes and
desires take possession of his bosom: the realities- of eternity, coming
into his soul through the power of faith, crowd out the vanities of
time : the whole current of his thoughts, affections- and purposes is
turned into a new and nobler channel. He is not so much reformed
as changed — not so much made a better man as a new man. He has
put off the old man which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,
and been renewed in the spirit of his mind: he has put on the new
man which, after God, is created in- righteousness, and true holiness.
To sum up all, he is made a new creature in Christ, as it is written,.
"If any man be in Christ he is a new creature : old things are passed
away: behold all things are become new."
Such is the manner in which the gospel proceeds in the work of
reclaiming lost sinners. Its first and greatest work is an internal
work. It is within the soul that it begins to exert its illuminating
and sanctifying power. It cleanses the fountain, and thus makes the
streams which flow from it pure-.
The gospel accomplishes, indeed, such an outward work of refor
mation as no other means have ever been able to achieve. This, how
ever, it does, not by aimingmainly and directly at it, but by changing
the internal state of the soul. Its outward work is properly speak
ing directive. It consists in the application of the holy principles-
which it has generated in the believer's soul to the various relations
and circumstances in which, he is placed. Much of the labor of every
faithful pastor lies here. He must address himself to the different
classes of christians in his flock, and point out specifically the duties
which belong to each. The Epistles of the New Testament furnish
many specimens of this application of the general principles of the
gospel to particular cases. In imitation of these divine models, the
faithful pastor will diligently divide to every one in season a portion
¦ qf truth suited to his individual case. He will not content himself
with exhibiting abstractly the nature of faith and love, and humility,
and meekness, and all the other christian graces, but he will show the
application of these to the particular circumstances in which his hear
ers are placed. Have any of them been oppressors of their fellow
men, he will instruct them to let the oppressed go free, and to break
rmy yoke, not on the ground of a calculation of worldly profit and

11
os3, but of 'christian love. Have any of them been intemperate in
the indulgence of their bodily appetites, he will tell them to be tem
perate in all things, not solely or principally because this will be bet
ter than intemperance for their worldly estates, but because their
bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit and they are bought with a
price. Have any of them a quarrel with their brethren, he will ex
hort them to be kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one
another, even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven them. And so
of every other specific duty. He will make it the fruit of an inward
principle of life, which imparts life to it also, and totally separates it,
in its nature, from the same duty performed in a cold-hearted, phal-
isaical spirit.
If true religion has its seat in the inner man, and if the scriptural
method is to begin with first cleansing this from the power of sin,
¦and thus to make the outward conduct pure, it follows tliat all plans
of reform which adopt the contrary method, striking only at specific
overt sins without attempting to eradicate from the soul sthe princi
ple of all sin, a selfish spirit that seeks its own pleasure, irrespective
of God's glory and the welfare of his creatures — that all such plans
are utterly vain and will disappoint the hopes of those who put their
trust in them. No particular work of reform can be permanently
advanced any further than men's hearts are brought under the con
trol of the principle of inward faith and love, which, as we have seen
above, it is the province of the gospel alone to implant in the soul. —
This truth is so obvious that one would think the bare announcement
of it sufficient to gain the assent of all christians. And probably no
true christians can be found who do not receive it into their creed. —
But, in practice, multitudes deny it. Without attempting to bring
men's hearts under the enlightening, sanctifying and subduing power
of the gospel, they embark in zealous efforts to reform°their conduct
in respect to this or that particular sin, and they think to carry all
before them by the force of fheir arguments and the vehemence of
their denunciations. As this is one of the prominent delusions of
the present day, it deserves a serious consideration.
First, then, we remark concerning this method of reform that it is
false in theory. It is directly oppposed to the scriptural method,
which has the common sense of the world on its. side. It proceeds
"upon the assumption that men can be reclaimed from particular forms

12
<t>? sin 'while their hearts remain under the uncontroled dominion of
the principle of all sin, a selfish and worldly spirit. Most manifestly
this bad inward principle is the bitter fountain whence all the exter
nal streams of iniquity take their origin. These streams can neither
he dried up nor made sweet while the fountain itself continues to flow.
They may be indeed temporarily diverted from one channel into an
other, but they will be bitter streams still, desolating all before them.
The fountain itself must be healed by the salt of the gospel; then ali
its issues will be wholesome and fertilizing.
But, says the objector, the manner of the Apostles was to preach
against men's sins, and preaching against these is preaching the
gospel. To this it is obvious to reply that preaching against men's
sins (that is, the external forms of sin, as here understood by the
objector) was included in the work of the Apostles, but by no means
constituted their whole work, nor even the principal part of it. Their
first and greatest work was, as we have seen, to dethrone sin in the
heart by bringing into it the high and holy principle of faith in Christ,
and herein must we, if we would be successful reformers, tread in
their footsteps. Preaching the gospel involves preaching against
men's sins, but preaching against men's sins does not necessarily
involve preaching the gospel. The faithful minister of Christ, for
example, will apply the principles of the gospel to the particular sin
of intemperance. He will be a thorough-going and efficient 'temper
ance preacher. But an avowed infidel may advocate temperance upon
worldly principles. So it is with the cause of human freedom, and
with-every other question of a moral nature. It may be advocated on
-evangelical ground, or on the basis of worldly policy, and the result
will ever correspond with the means employed. If any good cause
is divorced from Christianity and placed on a mere worldly foundation,
worldly men may be greatly pleased with the separation, and (if the
question be of an exciting character) may perhaps enlist in it with
great energy, and seem about to press it forward to a triumphant
issue. But the final result will be a sad disappointment to all the
friends of true religion and sound morality. The vitality which the
cause brought with itself from its previous connection with Christian
ity may sustain it for a time, but, when this is spent, it will either die
of exhaustion, or (which is a result still more deplorable J unsancti-
fied human passion will come in to supply the place of christian

13
iprinciple: thus that which was the cause of righteousness will be so
perverted as to be made an engine of iniquity, and a fearful demon
stration will be given to the world the of truth of our Lord's maxim
that Satan does not cast out Satan.
If the principle of reform which we are considering is false in
theory, it is also, in the second place, most disastrous in its results as
•evinced by the experience of the churches. This shows that no per
manent advance in any work of reform is to be expected any further
than it is sustained by the power of the gospel operating in men's
hearts. Had it not been for the deep spirit of piety which pervaded
the community when the temperance reformation began, it could never
have achieved such triumphs as we are now permitted to record. —
Has any one the infatuation to suppose that such a movement could
have been commenoed and carried forward successfully in a heathen
•community, or even in our own country in a time of general religious
"declension? The temperance reformation has been sometimes called,
¦in reference to the revivals that followed it, a "John the Baptist," sent
to prepare the way before them. But it should not be forgotten that
it was preceded also by a series of pure and powerful revivals, by
which the religious sensibility of the public had been greatly quick
ened and strengthened, and a reservoir of religious feeling created,
which needed only to be directed into the right channel and guided by
enlightened piety. The early temperance reformers were men deeply
imbued with the spirit of the gospel. Their efforts were emphati
cally the fruit of christian love and sympathy. They had their origin
in the agony of closet prayer and meditation over the woes of the
drunkard, and his poor, abused, broken-hearted, starving family.
Although many persons engaged in it who were not themselves the
professed followers of Jesus, yet even these took their tone and spirit
from such leaders as Beecher, and Chapin, and Beman, and He wit,
and Edwards, and Humphrey, and a host more who constituted the
noble band of pioneers in this great work.
These men felt in their inmost soul that, in advocating the cause of
temperance, they were advocating that of Christ's church, and they
drew all their weapons from the armory of the gospel. It is only in
modern times that the attempt has been made by some to separate tem
perance from Christianity. The results of this are already most dis
astrous, and could those who wish for the separation succeed in their
'undertaking, the cause would be ruined.

14
And need it be said that the cause of human rights has been per
manently advanced only so far as it has been advocated upon chris
tian principles and in a christian spirit? Slavery had its origin in
selfishness, and by selfishness is it sustained. It feeds and cherishes
the natural disposition of man to domineer over his fellow beings, and
to use their souls and bodies for his own personal advantage. Its
fundamental principle, in direct opposition to that of the gospel, is
self-seeking and self-pleasing at the expense of the dearest rights of
others. It is, therefore, a system congenial to the natural heart. It
finds there a soil every way adapted to its growth, a soil in which it
shoots forth strong and vigorous roots, and strengthens itself against
all opposition from without. It is, moreover, a sin which intertwines
itself with the whole fabric of society, becoming a part of the body
politic, and bringing every institution and relation of society under
its debasing power. Thus, while it multiplies its evils on every side,
it multiplies, at the same time, the obstacles to its removal.
Upon what means, now, are we to rely for the overthrow of this
gigantic system of oppression, so thoroughly entrenched in the cita
del of human depravity?— this all-comprehending sin, which multi
plies on every side the fetters of the masters as well as of the slaves?
There is but one remedy, THE gospel of Christ. It was the
spirit of Christianity that first aroused the anti-slavery spirit in Eng
land and in the northern portion of the United States; and now,
after years of toil, this is our only hope. Wherever the gospel is
cordially received into the heart, it prepares the non-slave-holder
to advocate the cause of freedom in the spirit of meekness and love,
and, in the bosom of the slave-holder, it sets in operation principles
which are directly opposed to the dark and cruel system of slavery,
and which must eventually work its overthrow.
We say not that the gospel is simply to be left to its silent influ
ence, without any direct application of its principles to slavery. On
the contrary such an application will be found necessary and appro
priate. The truth now contended for is that christian principle, both
among Northern anti-slavery men and Southern slave-holders must
come first in order, and then the application of this principle to the
evil in question, and that it is only so far as there is christian princi
ple to direct the reformer - and move the man to be reformed, that
permanent success is to be expected. This is the true Bible method,

15
to which alone God will add his blessing.though not at present the most
popular method.
What a strange delusion is this that by heaping resolutions upon
resolutions on the subject of slavery, excommunicating all who hold
the relation of masters to slaves, without regard to their circumstan
ces, and denouncing as enemies to the cause of freedom those who
cannot be made to come into these measures, we are going to break
the fetters of southern slavery ! What has been gained by this
method of reform, unless divided counsels among brethren ; "strifes
of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings;"
and a fierce pharisaical spirit that occupies itself more with other
men's sins that its own, are gain?
Alas! we have not in our bosoms enough of the spirit of Christ to.
carry on any work of reform wisely and successfully. Like the Lao-
diceans we say that we are rich and increased in goods and have need
of nothing, and know not that we are wretched, and miserable, and
poor, and blind, and naked. What we need infinitely more than all
things else is the renovation of our faith and love. This is the good
fountain whence all the outward streams of good works flow. Pure
revivals of religion, carried forward under the influence of the great
doctrines of the gospel, independently of all the vexed questions of
the present day, would, by filling the hearts of christians with love
towards God and man, and bringing them into a meek, humble,
steadfast spirit, accomplish a thousand fold more for everv good en
terprise of reform, than conventions for debate and doubtful disputa
tion. These are important in their place, but they are not the princi
pal means of advancing the cause of freedom. They are of use only
so far as there is in the community christian principle to be operated
upon. Beyond the work of giving to this a right direction they can
effect nothing valuable. Now the point where the cause of human
rights, in common with every other good cause, labors, is in the feeble
influence which the gospel exerts on the community. Let men's
hearts be brought largely under its quickening, purifying and eleva
ting power, and every work of outward reform will go forward with
success. But, let the churches invert this order of procedure, and
put the anti-slavery reform, or any other reform, before the work of
establishing their own hearts in the faith of the gospel, and bringing
the hearts of their fellow men under its power, and the issue will
bs only contention, confusion, and every evil work. They have-

Iff
reversed the divine order, and cannot succeed. The sooner they dis
cover their error and retrace their steps, the better for themselves and
those whose good they seek.
Upon all his brethren in the ministry, the author would affection
ately urge the necessity of their earnest co-operation in setting forth
before the churches the scriptural principle of reform contended for
in the preceding discourse with all possible plainness and fidelity. —
You know, brethren, that it is the true principle, and the only one
which promises any real good to the cause of human rights. You
know, moreover, that it is not, at the present day, the most popular
principle: that an effort is made by worldly men, who pursue the
opposite method of reform, to overbear the churches, and, by denun
ciation and misrepresentation, to drive them into the adoption of their
unscriptural policy. In such a crisis you are set for the defense of
the truth on this great question which is agitating the nation, and
which must agitate it for many years to come. You cannot stead
fastly maintain the christian principle of reform, without encounter
ing the enmity and reproach of those who advocate the opposite prin
ciple. This is, at the present day, an important part of "the offense
of the cross," which your Master calls upon you to bear. Be willing
to bear it. You will have his presence and help, and may reasonably
hope that, by his blessing upon your labors, the churches will be saved
from the unspeakable calamity of sacrificing their christian indepen
dence to the demands of "men of perverse minds and destitute of the
truth," and adopting a policy which they must, sooner or later, with
many tears, retrace.

YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

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