A
BOOK OF GEMS,

— OR —

Choice Selections

FROM THE WRITINGS OF

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN,

ARRANGED BY

J. A. HEADINGTON,

— AND —

JOSEPH FRANKLIN.

ST. LOUIS:

JOHN BURNS, Publisher.

1879.

Copyrighted by

JOHN BURNS,
1879.

Stereotyped by St. Louis Type Foundry.

INDEX TO SUBJECTS.

PREFACE.

The writings of no man among the Christian Brotherhood have been so universally popular as those of Benjamin Franklin, save the extended writings of Alexander Campbell. Franklin’s volumes of Sermons, Debates and Tracts, together with his miscellaneous writings, have for many years been in general demand, and have met with ready sale.

No excuse is offered for this volume, save that of public demand. The public demanded the volume, and it is, therefore, submitted.

None but the most choice selections, gathered from numerous valuable writings, have been allowed space in this volume. The book is what it purports to be, a collection of Gems that sparkle in the light of Heaven’s Truth as diamonds in the sky.

The reader, by referring to the Index, can easily turn and get the views of the Author on very many momentous subjects.

The volume will prove, as we trust, a monument to the memory of a great and good man, and a treasure to every Christian household.

The volume is sent forth with the prayer that the truth it contains may sanctify and make glad many, many hearts.

J. A. H.

[THE SHORTNESS OF HUMAN LIFE.]

NATION after nation rises, enters and occupies a place among the nations of the earth, falls, and is only known in the faithful records of history. Generation after generation comes forth, enters upon the great theatre of life, throngs the world for a little while, falls in death and passes into eternity. Upon an average, about once in thirty-three years, the whole of the inhabitants of the earth, or as many as are upon it at any one time, over one billion souls, are carried beyond the reach of all missionary effort—beyond the reach of all repentance—all gospel invitations, and so many as are not saved, beyond all possibility of salvation. During the same short period, the preachers, missionaries, writers and professors of religion of one generation are all born where no mistakes can be corrected, and no amendment for wrongs done, or time trifled away, can ever be made. Taking off from this time, eighteen years for childhood, only leaves about fifteen years for the vast work of personal preparation, for a state of boundless duration in the pure and holy society of just men made perfect, the angels of God, Jesus the mediator of the New Covenant, and God, the Judge of all. It also leaves about the same length of time for the good and virtuous, those with the love of God in their hearts, and lovers of mankind to make an effort to save our race. In this view of the subject—and no other can be justly taken—it will readily be perceived that what we do must be done quickly. Those who do anything for mankind, must engage in the work immediately and with energy. All who intend laying up a good foundation against the time to come—laying up treasure in heaven to which they can go, and upon which they can rely when their temporal supports shall all fail, must commence the work immediately, persevere in it, and abound during the short space afforded them. There must be no delay, for there is simply time enough to do what must be done immediately, if done at all. Those who have never prepared to meet God, have still greater reason to enter at once upon the examination of the subject. With them, everything to secure their eternal happiness, so far as their own action is concerned, is yet to be done.

How short the time, in view of the amount to be done; and how carefully every moment should be employed by every person who has not been reconciled to God. What vast multitudes, throng our streets, lanes and highways, who have never seriously thought upon, much less taken the elementary steps, to come to God, and who will remain in their present condition, unless arrested in their thoughtless career, by those who have already tested the good word of God, and felt the power of the world to come. What an everlasting reason we find here for a most energetic, persevering, and godly effort to rescue them and bring them to God.

[THE GRAND WORK BEFORE US.]

THE people God has raised up in the nineteenth century and founded upon the apostles and prophets, Jesus the Christ, the chief corner-stone, have not been raised up in vain. Only a small part of their work is in history yet. What has been done is only a drop to the bucket of the stupendous work to be accomplished. It is only a foretaste, an earnest of what is yet to come. It is only the incipient movement, the inauguration of the work, the entering wedge. The great body of the work lies in the future. Let no man become disheartened if a few faint-hearted do turn back and hanker after the flesh-pots of Egypt. In all great movements some of these have been found. They were in the camps of Moses and among the first followers of Jesus. They have been the timid, faithless time-servers, afraid of the people and lovers of the world. But these are only spots in the feast, mere blemishes, and no more to the great body than the spots in the sun compared with that wonderful body. These poor little souls that desire to be like the clergy, or to be actual clergymen themselves; that want titles, and the people to call them Dr., Rev.; that get on the white cravat, the priestly coat buttoned up to the chin; that drop on their knees and make a public private prayer, as they enter the “sacred desk,” and that teach the disciples to drop the head and offer a secret private public prayer before an assembly, are not the men whom God sends. They are the men who think the largest offer in money is the loudest call from God, and the call which they obey most implicitly. They can be bought and sold like sheep and oxen. God never calls such men as these. They are a burlesque on the religion of Jesus Christ; the plainness, simplicity and humility of our Lord. The idea has never entered into their heads to be servants of Jesus Christ. Their idea is to be masters. They are not thinking of obeying, unless to obey the men with the largest purses; but their idea is to be obeyed. They are not thinking of adoring, but of being adored. The third epistle of Peter is the one in which they find their likeness, and they are following the directions in that epistle. Some of these may be reformed, and others will go to their own place. They are not the men that run the world; the world runs them.

But there is another class, that do not worship at the same altar with these, nor are they of the same stripe. They do not draw their divinity from clerical titles or clerical attire, nor from public private prayers, from imitating Jewish rabbis, or sectarian rabbis, from imitating ancient or modern Pharisees or Sadducees, but from the living oracles of the living God. They are not under the thumbs of rich men, nor under the influence of high salaries; nor ancient nor modern priests. They cannot be bought and sold. They are the Lord’s free men. They have cut loose from the bondage of the world of sin, of sectarianism and the clergy. They belong to Christ. They get their gospel from him. They are his servants. They adore and worship him. They are men of faith and of prayer, too, but when they pray in secret, it is in secret, where none but Him who sees in secret sees them. They know their Bible and they are devoted to it. There is a grand army of these, we believe, as time as the needle to the pole. We cannot say that there are seven thousand in the field, public preachers, but we are astonished wherever we go to find such numbers of them, and to find their firmness and determination in the faith; and to learn, too, of the sacrifices they are making and the additional sacrifices they are determined and willing to make. They are many of them living almost as economically as we did thirty years ago, in our incipient work of opening the way.

When the British general found General Marion living on roots, and his men fighting without pay, he admitted that the prospect of overcoming such men was gloomy. So, when our opposers see the glorious army of which we speak, of faithful young men struggling with only a half support, and, in some instances, not that, and behold the love for the gospel, the Lord Jesus and their fellow-men that impels them on; and when they witness their determination, zeal and energy; that they cannot be discouraged, disheartened and turned back, they give up all idea of ever conquering them or withstanding them. Let not one word we are saying be construed into an excuse for any Christian who has the ability not sustaining these precious men whom God has raised and put into the field. Nor need any one wait for a “plan,” nor an “organization,” or “system.” Plans, organizations and systems give no money. Men and women must give the money, if it is given at all. No man who has the means, and refuses to do his part, according to the ability God has given, to aid in this glorious work, need flatter himself that he will be a partaker in the final reward. According as a man sows shall he also reap. We know that there are hard-hearted and sordid men in the church, that do nothing of consequence, and men of this sort that will never be any better. They have but one idea ingrained and imprinted on their entire being, and that is to hang on with a grasp like death itself to the goods of this world. But the good and the true, the men of faith, and love, and zeal; the men who have their eye on a kingdom not of this world, and who are devoted to saving men and women from ruin, will not stop for these, nor brood over them, but turn away from them as they do from other abandoned characters who are past feeling, and go on with their glorious work. God will be with them, and, though poor in this world, they will be rich in faith, and the Lord will hold them up.

But what has this great army of young preachers to do? Where is their work? There is work enough for them to do. The only fear we have is, that when they look and see the vastness of the work, they will think, like one of old, “There be more against us than for us.” We have a vast amount of worldliness and carnality to drive out of the Church; conformity to the world; love of pleasure more than love of God; the love of Christ to restore; the gospel and the true worship. Where the cause has gone back, it must be recovered; where the gospel has been lost and superseded by something else, it must be restored, and where the worship has been corrupted, it must be purified, and the right way of the Lord established. Men who do not love the gospel, the worship and the things of God, will slough off when everything is driven out that did not come from God; when the only things they loved are taken away. In a few instances entire congregations may be carried away with worldly policies and appliances; but the whole number thus lost will amount to but little, compared with the grand throng that will stand together for the faith once delivered to the saints, and that will go on. What remains for good men to do is, to go on; stand fast; be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might; put on the whole armor of God and fight the good fight of faith, and stand to the Bible and nothing else, and thus make the Bible a grand power in the earth. We have started with our Bible, and let us go on with it and carry it through the world. We have a book that nobody denies, except out and out skeptics, and one of supreme authority. Let us assert and maintain its authority, and carry it through the world. All the other books that in any way rival it, or are in anywise in the way of it, must be set aside and rendered a dead letter. There is not one particle of divine authority in anything that did not come out of the Bible. We must push all other books aside.

All the names not applied to the people and Church of God in the Scriptures must be repudiated and discarded, and we must determine to speak of the people and Church of God in the language of Scripture. This we can do; to this, no child of God can reasonably object. There will be no difficulty in this, when we shall have no other kind of people or Church but the people and Church of God. While we have other kinds of people and churches, we shall need other names for them. But we shall have no trouble about this, for they will select and give themselves other names, such as they think fitting and appropriate. All we have to do in the matter is to call them by the names they give themselves. If they will not permit the Lord to name them, but will call themselves by some name not given to the Lord’s people in the Bible, it is their own doing, not ours. There is no reason why the Lord’s people should follow their example, and not accept the designations found in Scripture, and use them exclusively. If we are the Lord’s people, we can be spoken of in the language of Scripture; if we are not, then we might have some other name.

[THE WORK OF CREATION.]

AFTER Moses states the wonderful fact that “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth,” without stating when it was, only that it was “in the beginning,” he proceeds to give a brief account of the state of things after this first fact, and before the work of the six days. He says: “The earth was without form, and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep.” This state of things was preceded by the creation of the heaven and the earth. The next thing in the successive acts was to operate on material created, brought into existence; to form or fashion it. What was the first thing? “The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” This was not bringing into existence, but operating on that which was in existence. “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.” Here we have the work of the first day. What was done on that day was not the same, no matter how we describe it, as the first act. It was forming, shaping, operating on material previously brought into existence.

Moses proceeds, “And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And he called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.” Here we have the work of the second day, like that of the first day, forming, fashioning and bringing order out of chaos. This “firmament,” that God made, and “called Heaven,” is not the same as mentioned in the first verse, but is included in the words: “The heavens and the earth.” This is the work of arrangement, ordering, etc.

Then follow the gathering together the waters into one place, and the bringing to view the dry land, the naming of the dry land, Earth, and the gathering together of the waters of the seas; the ordering of the grass, the herb, the fruit-tree upon the earth. This was the work of the third day. Then comes the ordering the heavenly bodies, the great lights for day and night, the dividing the light from the darkness, etc., the work of the fourth day. All this is fashioning, forming, arranging, ordering, and not creating from nothing. Then follows the ordering of the waters, to bring forth the fishes, the fowl, and all the inhabitants of the seas on the fifth day. This is followed by the ordering the earth to bring forth the cattle, the creeping thing, and all the lower orders of the inhabitants of the earth, and concludes the work of the sixth day by the creation of man, or forming him in the image of God.

We have both the words “made,” and “created,” used and applied to this work of the six days, where it is manifestly used in the sense of shaping, forming, fashioning, ordering, arranging, and not in the sense of the word “created” in the first sentence in the Bible, where it manifestly means creating from nothing or bringing into existence. This wonderful act of the Infinite One, of bringing into existence the heaven and the earth—this stupendous universe—may have been performed an indefinite period of time before the commencement of the work of the six days described by Moses. In this view there is no danger. It makes the work of the Creator none the less wonderful, glorious and overwhelming. It matters not how long before the work of the six days it was that “God created the heaven and the earth,” or brought the universe into existence. Nor need we be startled at this. The work of the six days, as described by Moses, is wonderful beyond all human imagination. We can comprehend but little of it. We may well exclaim, as Paul did, in view of a different matter: “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counselor? For of him, and through him, are all things; to whom be glory forever. Amen.”

[LOTTERIES.]

THE entire lottery scheme is gambling. The desire and intention in lotteries is to get money by a base method, or, in other words, dishonestly. The desire and intention is to get money without rendering an equivalent, or to get something for nothing. The man or company that conducts a lottery knows the precise per cent. that is made in selling out the tickets. If everything is conducted fairly; that is, what they call fairly; that is, to conduct according to their proposed rule, some few would draw prizes of much value and some larger number will draw small prizes, while the great body of them will draw nothing. They simply give their money to make up the prizes that others draw, and make a fine purse to run the establishment. Think of the following:

1. We do not profess to know, but probably if the green ones that buy lottery tickets would pay $100,000 for tickets, all the prizes they would all draw would not amount to more than $66,000, thus leaving $34,000 in the concern. This is swindle No. 1, to the tune of $34,000!

2. There can be but very few who can draw prizes of any considerable value, for there are but few of that kind in the concern. The purchasers of lottery tickets would be astonished to know how few could possibly draw a prize to the amount of $1,000, if enough would draw tickets to pay in $100,000.

3. They would be still more astonished to know how few can draw even small prizes, and most of all astonished to know how few can draw anything.

4. The concern proceeds on a principle of dishonesty on both sides—the principle of getting something for nothing. The man that studies how to do this, and tries to accomplish it, studies dishonesty and how to practice it. In its very nature it is corrupting, and must end in degrading a man. Young men ought to shun it as they would a viper.

[NO PREACHERS ON DANCING, ETC.]

NO man goes through the country delivering able and finely-prepared discourses advocating dancing, going to theatres, playing innocent games for amusement, etc., etc. These things, like the weeds in the garden, need no advocates, but come themselves, and that, too, in opposition to all moral feeling, restraints and entreaties. They are not cultivated fruit, but the spontaneous growth that must be removed before we can have the precious fruits of the Spirit. They are the fruits of the flesh, of the carnal mind. The man who builds up churches, maintains the spiritual devotions, order, purity, discipline, elevates and ennobles humanity, must work; war against the flesh and all the works of the flesh; cultivate, be faithful and watchful. He has something to do more than to inquire, what harm is it?

The Romish Church has reached the climax in the easy system. She makes her members chiefly of infants before they can make any successful resistance, and then never excludes except for heresy. In this way she has grown up to the enormous number of about two hundred million, or one-sixth of the inhabitants of the world. Dancing, drunkenness, or any other works of the flesh except heresy forfeit no membership in that carnal body. We do not want to go back toward that body.

There are more than seven thousand or seven times seven thousand, remaining, who have not consented to any departure, who are to-day as determined for the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, as A. Campbell was in the best days of the Christian Baptist, and the man who talks to them about any new departure under the name of progression, or any other name, is not only idling away his time and talent, but letting himself down in their estimation from the faith to sectarianism. They estimate a man, not by his learning, his talent or money, but by his love to the Lord Jesus the Christ. They judge of this love by his integrity to the Lord, as seen in a strict adherence to the gospel, the teaching of the Lord and his apostles; his example; his appointed worship; all he said and did; his devotion to the Lord in all respects; a settled and determined adherence to him in all things.

Men may turn away from him, and some will, as some did under the eyes of the apostles. Whole churches will turn away and go to nothing, and the names of some men will stand ingloriously connected with these ruins. The first churches the Lord established have long since been buried in ruins, but the men who spread the desolation will not be overlooked in the eternal judgment. They will there receive their last notoriety. The Lord has not raised the building now standing on the rock, in vain, but to stand the pillar and support of the truth. The main body understand that they have entered into covenant with God, and that they are bound by all the honor that is in them to maintain every inch of ground they have gained. There is, we believe, salt enough in this body to preserve it. It has the power and Spirit of God in it; and God will hold it up and perpetuate it when men who have it not will be forgotten. By the grace of God it will stand till the Lord comes. Let us labor to “present it to him a glorious church, without spot or wrinkle, or any such thing.”

[HARDENING PHARAOH’S HEART.]

THERE are two senses in which things are ascribed to God. 1. When he does things directly, as in the work of creation. 2. When he permits things to be done. In this latter sense God raised up and hardened Pharaoh. It is simply in the sense of permission—permitted him to rise up and be hardened. The hardening is also ascribed to Pharaoh. He hardened himself. This was the direct act. He did it. When the holy writer is looking at the providence of God, in permitting him to rise up into power, and assigning a reason for it, the explanation is made, that it was done to make known his power in all the earth. This is the sense in which God raises up kings and other rulers, that are bad, and uses them as vessels fitted for destruction. He permits them to rule and rule badly, do wickedly; oppress the people, as vessels of dishonor and wrath, making them examples to all the earth, in their overthrow and utter ruin, to teach other rulers and the people that they are all in the hands of the Lord.

The judgments of God have two different results on men, either, on the one hand, to subdue the heart and lead to repentance, or to harden the heart and lead to greater deeds of cruelty and oppression. When the holy writer speaks of it, in view of the case where men are hardened and become worse by it, he says, God hardened them. In the other case, where they are subdued and led to repentance by it, he says, God makes them “vessels of mercy,” leads them to repentance and saves them. The dealings of God are precisely alike in both cases, but the result is different. In one case it is a savor of life, in the other of death. The difference is not in the divine treatment, but in the patients. The one becomes a vessel of wrath, and the other a vessel of mercy. God is said to save the one and harden the other, because we have the two results from the same treatment. In that sense it is from God and ascribed to him, in both the hardening and saving. See the following:

“At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it; if that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil I thought to them.” See Jer. xviii. 7, 8. This assures us, that where a nation or a kingdom repent, the Lord turns away the threatened calamity. The Lord then states the case for a nation that shall turn away from the Lord:

“At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it; if it do evil in my sight, that it obey not my voice, then will I repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them.” See Jer. xviii. 9, 10. This sets forth the foundation of making vessels of honor and of wrath. God can make either the one, or the other. The ground of his doing this is their doing good and doing evil.

When God sent a judgment on Pharaoh, to subdue him and lead him to repentance, he promised to repent and let the children of Israel go; but then hardened his heart, broke his promise and refused to let them go. This was repeated ten times on him, and every time he broke his promise and he became still more hardened, and God permitted him thus to go on till his overthrow, thus making the power of God known in all the earth, and making the hardened monarch of Egypt an example to all the nations to follow. No doubt God hardens men now in the same sense as he did Pharaoh, subdues and leads others to repentance as he did the Ninevites, who repented at the preaching of Jonah.

[OUR CENSUS.]

IN an age when people compare themselves with their neighbors, look at the comparative size of their hymn books, the size, splendor and elegance of the temples in which they meet, the amount of money they raise, their church organs, festivals, choirs, popular preachers and numerical strength, the census is looked to with great concern; but where people are greatly devoted to the Lord, diligently striving to please him and be accepted of him in the great day, they are led to think of the piety of the people, their purity, their culture; their faith, and hope and love; their efforts to save men and build up the kingdom of God, and not to be troubled seriously about how they shall appear in the census. We are vastly more concerned about maintaining the purity of the gospel, the faithfulness of the preaching, the discipline and order of the church, the pure worship as prescribed in the law of God, than we are about the census. We are more concerned about how we appear before the Lord than we are how we appear before man.

We are perfectly contented and satisfied with the things of God as set forth in Scripture. We are contented and satisfied with the very words and forms of speech in which God speaks to man. We love the lowliness, simplicity and humility of Jesus. It is the manifestation of infinite wisdom and goodness. The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise that they are vain.” He takes the wise in their own craftiness.

[TRUE MISSIONARIES.]

THE early members in our great movement in this country were nearly all preachers. They read the Scriptures to and talked with their neighbors, explained matters to them, and, in many instances, when the preacher came they were already convinced and ready for baptism; or, if they had been baptized ready for uniting on the Bible. This accounts for our having such large success by preaching a few discourses. Much of the preaching was done before the preacher came, by private members and in private circles. These were missionary people in the true sense. They were in the work all the time. They did not need games of amusement for pastime. They had no time to spare. They were all busy, and all alive and at work. The love and spirit of God were in them, and the divine influence was shed all round. They did not have a little missionary spasm, pray a week for the spread of the gospel, give a few dollars and do no more for three months or a year, but they prayed for the spread of the gospel all the time; kept at the work of spreading it all the time. They had no trouble about plans, but kept at the work, and spread the gospel. It can be spread in the same way again, and is being thus spread largely now wherever it is spread at all. If we honestly desire to spread the gospel of the grace of God, to turn sinners to the Lord, free them from the manacles of sin and death, and save them, let us go to work and do it. There is nothing to hinder us, if we have the faith and love and zeal, from carrying it forward to any extent. The people are weary of sectarianism, and ready to hear something intelligible on the way of salvation.

[NO DEPARTURE FROM THE JERUSALEM CHURCH.]

IF we are to depart from the Jerusalem Church because it was in its infancy, and not reproduce the primitive church, we should like to know how far we are to depart from it, and in what. If the faith and practice, the precept and example of the primitive church may not be adopted now and followed; if in all things we should not now have the same faith and practice, precept and example they had, we should be pleased for some expounder of the new doctrine to explain to us in what the departure shall consist, and what rule we are to adopt now. If we let go of the rule that governed the first church, what rule shall we adopt? If we cut loose from the divine, shall we adopt a human rule? If so, what human rule? Some one of these already made? or shall we have the presumption and folly to think we can make a better one than these human rules already in use?

We are not ready to cut loose from the Jerusalem Church, its rule of faith and practice, its precept and example. We have more confidence in the old ground than ever, and have no idea of departing from the Jerusalem Church, its faith and practice, precepts and example. The men that will not stand on apostolic ground, the faith and practice of the first church, will not stand on anything long. We want something reliable, permanent, sure and steadfast—a kingdom that cannot be moved. In the old Bible, the old gospel and the old church, we find it. Here is something to lean upon living and dying, for this world and the world to come. If we leave this, all is uncertainty, darkness and night. Let us “hear what the Spirit says to the churches,” and not he of those who “depart from the faith,” giving heed to seducing spirits, and not listen to “unstable souls,” or those “ever learning and never able to the knowledge of the truth.”

[BORN OF WATER AND THE SPIRIT.]

THERE is but one birth mentioned or alluded to in the conversation with Nicodemus.

There is but one kingdom mentioned or alluded to in the conversation.

The conversation is about one birth and entering into one kingdom. The whole is in the phrase, “You must be born again,” or the previous phrase, “Except a man be born again he can not see the kingdom of God.” This figurative expression “born again,” is precisely the same, or includes the same as conversion. A man born again is a man converted. In being born again precisely the same agencies are employed, and the same thing is accomplished as when a man is converted. This is literally a man turned from darkness to light, from the world to God. This is not done by the agency of water without the agency of the Spirit. There is no such thing as a birth of water without the Spirit. A man is “born again,” not by water without the Spirit, nor by the Spirit without the water, but “born of water and of the Spirit,” no matter how many fine theories are spoiled. Nothing leads to more useless theories and speculations than attempts to build a theory on a figurative expression. The literal must always explain the figurative. The clear and unfigurative language of the commission has precisely the same in it as the phrase, “born of water and of the Spirit.” “He who believes and is immersed shall be saved.” Believes, in this passage, is literal. Born of the Spirit, or, which is the same, “begotten of the Spirit,” is figurative. The meaning is the same as, “I have begotten you by the gospel,” or made you believers by the gospel. Begotten of God is made a believer of God. Begotten of the Spirit is made a believer by the Spirit. It is in some instances ascribed to God in view of his being the Author of it. It is ascribed to Christ in view of it being through his mediation. It is ascribed to the Spirit in view of his inspiring the apostles or speaking in them, and thus making believers, and those thus made believers are said to be begotten of the Spirit, and, when immersed, said to be “born of water and of the Spirit.” This is precisely all there is in it.

There is nothing about the resurrection in it, the first resurrection or any other resurrection, unless it be a resurrection to a new life. Nor is anything in the resurrection ever called “a birth of the Spirit.” We are perfectly aware that the dead will be quickened by the Spirit, and that the Spirit of Christ will quicken their mortal bodies; that Christ was the “first-born from the dead,” the “first-born among many brethren,” and that the dead will be raised at the sound of the trumpet, but there is not one word about all this or an allusion to it in the conversation with Nicodemus. Nor is there one word about or allusion to the everlasting kingdom in that conversation. We must not make something out of that conversation that is not in it.

Nicodemus was standing on his birth-right, “born in thy house,” as expressed Gen. xvii. 13, for membership. The Lord sweeps this away in one sentence: “Except a man be born again he can not see the kingdom of God.” His being born in the house or family of Abraham availed nothing. “Flesh and blood can not inherit the kingdom of God.” No matter in whose family he was born nor whose blood coursed in his veins, a man must be born again, born from above, born of water and of the Spirit, or he cannot enjoy the kingdom of God. As the Spirit is the agent through whom the gospel is preached, and the gospel the instrument by which the Spirit makes believers, the agent is mentioned for the effect, which is belief—made believers by the Spirit and baptized into Christ, into one body. It is of God, of Christ, of the Spirit, of the apostles and by the word.

There is no such thing as the new birth without the Spirit, nor any such thing as entering into the kingdom of God or the body of Christ. The faith, the work of the Spirit in preaching the gospel, through the apostles, and baptism, or, figuratively, “born of water,” must be present. The man who believes the gospel with all his heart and is immersed into Christ is “born of water and of the Spirit” in the sense intended by the Savior.

[A HIGHER MORALITY REQUIRED.]

WE need a higher morality, a more pure and unadulterated piety and greater simplicity of benevolence. We do not want money extracted from the pockets of the people by the Church offering them sensual gratification, amusements and entertainments, to say nothing of the ball, the lottery and other gambling. Let us in the name of the Lord and of religion, in a manly way, come directly to the people for means to support religion and ask them to give from love to Christ, and no matter if we do not obtain one-fourth the amount it will do ten times as much good. The Lord needs no money made by lotteries, gambling, fairs, festivals, or any such appeals to the lust of the flesh, the human appetite, the love of fine companies, etc. He needs no money only that given to him through love and devotion to his cause. Those who appeal to entertainments, amusements, fine companies of men and women, the dance, lotteries, festivals, fairs, etc., etc., thus publish to the world their impression that there is more potency in these worldly and secular appliances than there is in the grace of God and the love of Christ, and we doubt not they find it to be so, in raising money in their assemblies. They have tried it and demonstrated it to be so. We care not if it be so; we care not if it has been demonstrated that the people will give more money for a monkey show than for the kingdom of God; we will not resort to the monkey show; nor do we care if they will give more money for revelling than for the holy cause for which Jesus died; we will not resort to the revelling. There are other matters aside from the question, how much money can we raise, that must be kept in view.

We must maintain our piety, devotion to the Lord, purity, and must not be conformed to this world, but transformed by the renewing of our mind. We have never consented to this modern element that will appeal to anything and everything that will raise money. It is not Godliness, nor the love of God, but sensual; it is devilish. Come directly to the children of God in the name of the Lord and appeal to them for his sake to give, to give freely and of a willing mind; that “it is more blessed to give than to receive,” and appreciate what is given in his name.

[POIMEEN—SHEPHERD—EVANGELIST—OVERSEER.]

WE will not go back to the Old Testament to find any office or officer in the kingdom of Christ. What currency, then, has the word “pastor” in the New Testament? The word is in the New Testament, in some translations, in one place. That is its entire currency in the new and everlasting covenant. But then the word “Easter” is found in one place in the common version. Is that authority for Easter? If it is in the New Testament in one place, rightfully, it is authority as much as if it were in fifty places. But how does it happen to be there in one place? If the translators had, in that one place, given us passover, as they have done in every other instance to represent the same original, we should have had no Easter in the New Testament. In the same way, if the translators had given us the word shepherds, Eph. iv. 11, as they have done in every other case to represent the same original word, we should have had no pastor in the New Testament. On this one variation from the rule, to translate poimeen, shepherd, hangs the “pastorate,” so called, the office for the pastor, and we might add, all the “installations,” etc. Probably it is Dr. Watts that exclaims, with other matters before him: “Great God! on what a brittle thread hangs eternal things!” On what a slender prop hangs the pastorate! Still, on this platform the pastors stand.

In one place and only one, in some translations, the original word for shepherd, and so translated in every other place in the New Testament, is translated pastors. When the common version appeared, King James issued a proclamation commanding the translation to be read as the word of God. If we obey this command we must read the Latin word pastor as the word of God, though the same translators give us shepherd as the English representative of the original word poimeen in every other occurrence of it in the New Testament. In this way we get divine authority in the word of God, and human authority from King James, not only for the unscriptural pastorate in the Church of England, but the equally unscriptural pastorate now trying to grow up among us, first under one plausible pretext and then under another.

Why translate poimeen, shepherd, in every other place, and cover up the word shepherd with the Latin word pastor in one place? Whatever idea the Lord and the apostles intended to convey in this matter, they deemed the one word sufficient. What reason can any man give for representing the original word poimeen by the word shepherd in every instance but one, and there using the Latin word pastor? Rome loves Latin. It is not the vulgar tongue. What reason is there for departing from the otherwise invariable rule and giving us pastor, Eph. iv. 11? Why not give us “Chief-Pastor,” or “Arch-Pastor,” and not “Chief-Shepherd?” Why not style the Lord “the Pastor of the sheep,” and not “Shepherd of the sheep?” Pastor would not read well as the correlative of sheep. We hear sermons on the offices of our Lord, as King, Priest, Prophet. Why not have a sermon on his office as Pastor? Then we might have a sermon on the office of the church as a flock, or the office of the members as sheep. Could we not say flock’s office, sheep’s office? The Lord has no such office as shepherd, or, in Latin, pastor. There is no such office as pastorate, nor officer as pastor. There is not one word in the New Covenant about the qualifications of a pastor, the election of one, the calling of one, or the installation of one. As the correlative of the word flock, when the church is figuratively called flock, the Lord who cares for the flock and has the oversight of it is figuratively called Shepherd, or, when the followers of the Lord are figuratively called sheep, the Lord is figuratively called “the Shepherd of the sheep.” When the Lord is called “the Chief-Shepherd,” or “Arch-Shepherd,” the church is in view as the flock of which he is Shepherd, and the overseers in the church are under shepherds, but there is no shepherd’s office, nor flock’s office. The bishops or overseers are as certainly bishops or overseers, when figuratively called shepherds, as if literally called overseers. No other office or work is meant.

Coming now to the practical matter, we desire Bible things and Bible names for them. We desire to preserve the church and everything in it as the Lord gave it. We desire, in the matter in hand, to prevent the creation of any new office in the church. There is nothing new or unscriptural in the idea of an overseer who devotes himself wholly to the word and teaching. There may be other overseers who do not give themselves wholly to the word and teaching. Then there is nothing unscriptural in an evangelist remaining with a church one, two or more years, to set in order things that are wanting, assist in qualifying the church to take care of itself, and preach the gospel to the community. In this capacity he is not a church officer at all, but doing the work of an evangelist. He is not with the church to “perform divine service” for it, to lord it over it, or as a ruler, nor permanently, but assisting the church in her infancy and enabling her to take care of herself.

Every preacher connected with any church is laboring in one of these two senses: as an overseer who labors in the word and teaching, or as an evangelist. In the former capacity he may be there permanently. In the latter capacity he is not there permanently, but setting in order the things wanting, with a view to qualifying themselves to every good word and work; to instruct and edify one another in love, but intending to go on to another place as soon as he has finished his work where he is. But the overseer who labors in the word and teaching is not to assume any airs of authority, or any great chair with his subordinates on more humble seats by his side. We abominate all these great chairs, pulpits and preferences for public men. If they are good men they do not want them, and if they are bad men they certainly should not be honored with them. Really great and good men are plain men—want no great chair nor great titles. They need no priestly robes, clerical coats nor titles. They make a record that tells the story for them. They do the work. Let us do the work, seek the simplicity of Jesus and the humility of children. While we sing, “Nearer, my God, to thee,” let us strive to live nearer to God and do our utmost to excel in understanding and practicing precisely what the Lord has laid before us in the Scriptures.

[CALL NO MAN REVEREND.]

WE will call no man Reverend. We make this a matter of conscience. There is no more reason or gospel for addressing a preacher differently from other men than there is for a preacher to be attired differently. If a man is not preacher enough to be known as a preacher, without the white necktie or the priestly coat, let him pass without being known. We like to treat a preacher, or even a Roman priest, with common civility, but we do all that when we treat him as any other gentleman. We want no preacher’s garb nor titles, and will recognize none of them. Many have those who have never been “born again;” who are not in the kingdom of God—not Christians.

[PREACHER DID NOT SUIT.]

WE must say a few things in the way of generals before we come to particulars. We visited a church some years since, and there was quite a general impression among the members that their preacher did not suit them—that he was not “the right man in the right place,” etc. Many fine things were said, as to the kind of a man they needed, etc., and the idea prevailed that they had better turn their preacher off and get another. We suggested to them in a circle one day that possibly they had not at all discovered the real malady; that possibly the main difficulty was not at all in reference to the kind of a preacher they needed, but to the kind of a church they needed; that possibly the change they needed could be effected by turning off the church and getting another and a better one.

[THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS.]

WE need a vast amount of instruction in regard to both the Old Testament and the New, not only in the sunday-school, but in the church, the family, and to individuals. We need some thorough work in this matter. Much of what is now passing for teaching both the Old Testament and New is in no proper sense teaching either the Old or New Testament. The general idea is, that the Old Testament embraces all the sacred writings or the books of the Bible, beginning with Genesis and ending with Malachi, and that the New Testament embraces all the sacred writings or books of the Bible, beginning with Matthew and ending with Revelation. Such is the sense in which these terms are now used. When it is said, the Old Testament is abolished, the idea generally received is that all the sacred writings, or the books of the Bible, from the beginning of Genesis to the end of Malachi, are set aside, of no use, and not to be studied. This is a very superficial view, and one that in no sense comprehends the matter.

The word “testament” means covenant, and the Old Testament is simply in the Bible sense the Old Covenant. This was made with the seed of Abraham, or fleshly Israel, and includes what Paul calls “the law.” This is what he calls “our pedagogue to bring us to Christ.” It is not “school-master” as the common version has it, but pedagogue. His office was different from that of school-teacher. It was to take charge of the children from the time they started from their homes till they reached the school-room and put under the teacher. This was the office of the law of Moses, to take charge of the seed of Abraham, Israel according to the flesh, and bring them to Christ the School-teacher. Paul does not say, as some quote him, “The law is our school-master to bring us to Christ,” but being a Jew, and speaking as such, he says, “The law was our pedagogue to bring us to Christ,” the School-teacher. This law, containing a full development of all that was in the covenant with the seed of Abraham, or fleshly Israel, is what was abolished, had waxed old, and was ready to vanish away in Paul’s day. This most certainly did not include the history in the five books of Moses, or any other history in the Old Book, commonly called the “Old Testament,” the book of Job, the Psalms, Proverbs, or the Prophecies. None of these are abolished, but are all of as much value to those under Christ, and as legitimate books for study, as they ever were to any people in any age of the world. They are not included in the law, or the covenant, or in what was abolished, but have a relation to the gospel, to those in the kingdom of Christ, and are of immense value.

By making ourselves well acquainted with the sacred writings, the dealings of God with man, and the portions of revelation given in various manners and at sundry times, we can see as we can in nature now that we have revelation through which to read it, that there was one Divine Mind before the beginning of time that looked down through the ages, and by the agency of men that did not understand him, carried out his wise and gracious counsels according to his eternal purpose. Going back to the early sacred writings found in the Old Book we look down through these writings to Christ, the kingdom of God, the gospel, as one looking through a telescope at objects in the distance; but, standing at the other end of revelation, we look up through the New Book containing the revelations given at later periods to the persons and events of the Old Book, as one who turns the telescope the other end foremost, and bring Moses and the prophets down near to us.

Christ is the soul of the Bible, the theme of the revelation from God to man. Turn the portions of revelation given at early periods, next to the eye and look down through the Bible, and through the ages to Christ, and then turn the last part of revelation to the eye, and look up through it to Christ, and we thus find that it all centers in Him “who is Head over all things to the church.”

It is not right in the church, family, or anywhere, to teach the Old Scriptures exclusively, or the New, but teach both, in their relation to each other. The New can not be thoroughly and successfully studied without the Old, nor the Old without the New.

The popular custom of memorizing and repeating verses in view of prizes to the most successful, or the study and answer of such questions, as who was the first man, who was the oldest man, who was the meekest man, etc., gives us no understanding of the Scriptures. Much of this is a mere exercise of the memory, and there is nothing in it to make a pious impression, or give any comprehension of the mind of God. It appears at times wonderful how many things can be taught, and correctly enough too, about the Bible, and at the same time keep out of view entirely the divine purpose, the very import and intention of the wonderful book professedly taught. The eternal purpose of God, running through the Bible from side to side, as it does through the works of nature, should be taught and kept in view, not to find any definite number that will certainly be saved or lost, but to find the Lord’s Anointed, his gospel and kingdom; a revelation of the mystery, an unfolding of the secret hid in God from before the beginning of time, but now made manifest, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God made known to all nations for the obedience of faith.

[WILL YOU ALSO GO AWAY.]

NO matter how many go the wrong way, nor how popular they are, nor how much money they have, the Lord is able to bring them to judgment, and he will most certainly do it. When the people went away from the temple and abandoned him, and only a few disciples remained with him, and he inquired of them: “Will you also go away?” the prospect looked dim, but the Lord did not change his course. When he expired on the cross the enemies exulted and triumphed; but their triumph did not last long. “He was quickened by the Spirit.” God raised him up. “He was justified by the Spirit.” The armies in heaven were with him. The upper world was in motion. God vindicated him, as he did all who will listen to him. When they burned Tyndale at the stake they thought they had put him down; but, while the names of his persecutors have, with few exceptions, gone into oblivion, the name of Tyndale is held in esteem by all good men. The name of Luther will live to the end of time, while the time-servers who opposed him are rapidly sinking into forgetfulness. The man that leads the people to God, to the Lord Jesus, by the gospel, and maintains the will of God, will abide forever; while the man that tries to catch the giddy throng with a little show of some human devices, and who may attract their attention for a time, will pass away and be forgotten forever.

We are for progress in the true sense in every department, but not for the progress backward. We are for the progress in the church that goes forward and converts sinners, and builds up churches; that infuses piety, devotion to God and to the right way of the Lord; but not for the progress that is nearly all money, and almost no work. We are for the progress that goes forward and not backward.

[THE GROUND OF UNION.]

“IN what are Christians to be united?”

They are to be united on Christ—on being Christians. This embraces the entire revelation from God to man, all the truth uttered, the commandments given and the promises made by our heavenly Father. The truth must all be believed, the commandments obeyed, and the promises must be hoped for. This includes the entire faith, obedience and hope of the gospel. In this we must be united.

II. “What are the essentials of Christianity which can not be compromised?”

Christianity itself, as a whole and in all its parts, is essential. All that is in it is essential, and all that is not in it is not essential. We are for christianity itself, not in part, but the whole of it, as it came from the infallible Spirit of all wisdom and all revelation. It is all essential. Nothing may be added to it or taken from it. The “doctrines and commandments of men,” the doctrines of “expediency,” of “deductions” and “inferences,” from principles, are not essential; but these are not christianity, nor any part of it. Nothing in christianity can be compromised except at our peril. The wisdom of God gives us no non-essentials. If the wisdom of man pronounces anything given by the wisdom of God, or, which is the same, any part of christianity, non-essential, such wisdom of man must be set aside as presumptuous.

What an idea for men to sit on the grave question of essentials and non-essentials, in the divine institution given by our Lord and confirmed by the most indubitable signs and wonders! What part of that which has been given by the wisdom of God is essential, and what part is not essential? It is all essential, or the wisdom of God would not have given it, and the authority of God would not have required it. The very circumstance that the infinite wisdom devised it and the infinite authority required it makes the whole of christianity binding. There is not a non-essential in it.

III. “How far is diversity to be tolerated?”

We are all required to “speak the same thing,” to “teach no other doctrine,” to “preach the word,” to preach no “other gospel,” to teach the things that become “sound doctrine,” and if we “speak not according to his word it is because there is no light in us.” In one word, we are not to have “all sorts of doctrine from all sorts of teachers,” but to “earnestly contend for the faith once for all delivered to the saints.”

IV. “How shall we reconcile the right of private judgment with the right of the Church to maintain the faith in its purity, and still preserve the unity of the faith which the word of God enjoins?”

The way we have done it for fifty years past. We have had the light of private judgment, and, at the same time, maintained the faith in its purity and preserved the unity of the faith as enjoined in Scripture. Demonstration is better than theory. We have brought the people from all parties, united them in the one faith, made them one in the unity of the Spirit, with the exception of a few erratic spirits, but we have not had more of these than they had in the time of the apostles. They and their mission were predicted in Scripture, and they have come and fulfilled the predictions of the Lord and the apostles without intending or knowing it, and thus furnished an additional evidence that the Scriptures are divinely inspired.

[IN SEASON AND OUT OF SEASON.]

THERE are times when general apathy prevails; when it appears impossible to rouse the people to anything like an appreciation of the things of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ; when the hearts of the people appear to be closed against all that can be said or done to save them. They frequently hear at such times, act as orderly as ever, and show as much respect to the gospel; but they do not have the heart and soul in it, and can not be moved to action. Their emotional nature appears to be utterly inaccessible. There are again times when the hearts of the people are open. They not only hear the truth, pay a decent respect to it and admire its beauties, but, with joy, they receive it into good and honest hearts, believe it to be the salvation of their souls. It melts them down, fills their hearts to overflowing and moves them to obedience. This much we know to be fact. We have tried to see the cause of this fact, but do not claim that we can see the cause, nor do we see any particular importance in seeing the cause, but we ought to turn the fact to account. How can this be done?

Paul has a period, or state of things, that he styles “in season,” and another that he styles “out of season.” There is a time to sow and a time to reap, a time to dress the vineyard and a time to gather the fruit. These periods, when the hearts of the people are open, are the harvest times—the time for gathering in the ripe grain ready for the harvest—for turning sinners to the Lord. No matter about the cause of it; there is the opportunity; and we should be ready and go into the harvest and gather precious souls into the fold of Christ. A door is now open and let no man waste his time about the cause of this opening, but while the way is open go up and possess the land. Never mind explaining how the Lord opened the heart of Lydia, that she attended to the words spoken by Paul, nor how the Lord now is opening the hearts of the people; it is enough for the man of God to find that the hearts of the people are open, and that they will attend to the word of the Lord when it is spoken. Go on and speak to them the word of the Lord—the words of everlasting life—turn them to God and save them.

[EATING THE LORD’S FLESH
AND DRINKING HIS BLOOD.]

JOHN vi. 48, we find the words of the Lord, “I am the bread of life.” The Lord adds the remark to the Jews, “Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.” It had no power to perpetuate life only for a short time; but he continues, verse 50, “This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof and not die.” It will be noticed that his flesh did not come down from heaven, and that bread which came down from heaven is that of which if a man shall eat he shall not die. Then he follows with the remark, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If any man eat of this bread” (which came down from heaven) “he shall live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” Here he uses the flesh, as that which they saw and dealt with in crucifying him metonymically, or a part for the whole. The Jews, however, understood him to mean his flesh literally, and so does the Romish church, and the Jews inquired, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” The Lord did not explain the matter to them, but added, verse 56, “Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, you have no life in you.”

They were looking at it in the literal sense, and did not see how they could eat his flesh, or how the eating of it could give life. The doctrine of transubstantiation had not yet been born, and the idea of the bread and wine being changed, in the ceremony of consecration, into the real flesh and blood, so that they could eat the flesh and drink his blood in the communion, had not yet entered into the minds of men. Nor did our Lord mean any such thing, but he himself, who came down from heaven, is that bread of life which if a man shall eat he shall never die. But the eating is not literal, any more than the bread is literal or the flesh. We partake of that bread, or of him who came down from heaven by hearing of him, believing on him, and being united with him. In becoming his disciples, learning of him and following him in all things, we eat or partake of that bread, or of him who is the way, and the truth and the life.

He proceeds, “He who eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, has eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” See verse 54. He who believes on him, receives him, follows him, loves him and obeys him, in the sense he intended, eats his flesh and drinks his blood; but not in the communion any more than in the other parts of his teaching, or other appointments. In coming to Christ, and becoming his disciples, we are made partakers of him, of “the divine nature,” and our salvation is in him. “My flesh is food indeed,” says he, “and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, dwells in me, and I in him.” Following him a little further on, verse 57, he says, “As the living Father has sent me, and I live by the Father, so he that eats me, even he shall live by me. This is the bread that came down from heaven; not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead; he who eats this bread shall live forever.” See verse 58. The eating is partaking of Christ, the bread that came down from heaven; this is done by faith, in receiving, following and obeying him; doing his commandments, that we may enter by the gates into the city, and have a right to the tree of life.

[CHURCH ORGANIZATION.]

MEN may talk of the power of those large combinations, governed by a few leading spirits or one leading spirit as the case may be, where office and not character or ability gives power; but while such an arrangement may create in its adherents a desire for office, to give them influence and authority, they will neglect the purity and excellence of good character and ability, which are the only things which should give any one respect and influence among the people of God. But, in the absence of such character and ability as will give a man influence and power among the followers of Jesus Christ, some may become enraged because we do not form some kind of an organization that will give the desired power by virtue of an office. Such a power as this we hope never to see established in the church of God. If men wish power and influence let them act in such a manner as will be worthy of, and command them; and then they will know how to use, and not abuse them.

Our present organization, little as some men seem to think of it, has maintained a general state of union, and has made a concentrated effort for the conversion of the world, unequalled by any body of people about us. While other religious bodies have been divided and distracted by the frivolous worldly questions of our times, we, as a people, stand firm and unshaken, under the guidance of Him who gave us both a natural and a religious being.

Some one will inquire, what do you plead for? or what do you vindicate? It will be said; it is of no use to be exciting fearful apprehensions, and at the same time setting forth nothing tangible. We will, therefore, make an effort to set out something definite and tangible.

1st. We do not want any general combination, in the form of an Association, Conference, Synod or Council, to govern the churches.

2d. We do not want any such body of men to decide who shall be our ministers, or how they shall be supported.

3d. We do not want any such body of men to decide who shall be our publishers.

4th. Every congregation properly organized, has the right to govern its own members, either in itself, or by calling to its assistance neighboring churches and evangelists.

5th. All letters of commendation, or sentences of condemnation, depend wholly for their authority and influence with those to whom they may be presented, upon the intelligence and moral worth of the body whence they emanated. Hence a minister “whose praise is in all the churches,” and who may be “chosen of the churches,” to perform any certain mission, must have more weight and influence among the people where he goes, than he who is destitute of such commendation.

6th. We want voluntary organizations for missionary purposes, the distribution of bibles, tracts, books, etc., etc., all of which we have a right to form in any way which we may conceive most conducive to the interests of the Redeemer’s cause.

[THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY.]

THE Church of Christ was not made for the preachers, but the preachers of Christ were made for the world and the church. The Church of Christ does not belong to the preachers of Christ—it is not their property—but they belong to the church—are its property. The church is not the servant of the preachers, but preachers of Christ are servants of the churches. The Church of Christ is not called and sent by preachers, but preachers are called and sent by the church. Preachers in the kingdom of Christ are no more dignitaries, kings, and priests, than any other members. They are the Lord’s instruments, put forth through the church to do his work, and mighty instruments too, while the Lord is with them, but the poorest, most useless and miserable creatures on this earth when forsaken of God. Or, in other words, when they are doing the Lord’s work, with an eye single to his glory, there are no such instruments for good among men; but when they become selfish, engage simply in their own work, or that which they can turn to their own personal aggrandizement, their usefulness ceases, and they are dead weights upon the cause. Our Lord’s own life is the model of all perfection in human character, both public and private. No community need look for any permanent good from any preacher who does not imitate the character of his Lord and Master. He may be much of a gentleman, very fine, pleasant and interesting to worldly-minded persons, and not do any thing or say any thing that would remind any one of the Savior of the world. But to come under the name of a preacher of Christ, a disciple of Christ, and not be like him, not make men think of him, love him, and desire to come to him, is a deception upon the church and the world.

[PROGRESSING BACKWARD.]

IF some of the movements now on foot are to be tolerated, there is no reason for our existence as a body. If we want organs, gorgeous temples, Catharine wheels, clerical orders, superior courts, organizations and numerous societies, aside from the local congregations of the Lord, the Pope can supply any demand for any or all of these. If there are “means of grace,” he is rich in means. He can furnish them an outlet for their overwhelming benevolence in the innumerable channels he has opened. If the great problem is how to reach the pockets of the people and build expensive temples, put up tall spires and chimes of bells, he has solved it. He has swarms of men, and women, too, doing his bidding and under fine pay, living on the fat of the land. He has a system, a plan, an organization, a grand one; the broadest one ever made by man. Here is the opening for men who long for something of that sort. There is no use in mincing the matter, nor in half-way measures. Why not at one bound go right up to the grand culmination of all this kind of progress? There is no use in trudging along behind the Pope, when a man can go to him and be received into his embrace at once.

What a farce for men to be talking of progress, going on to perfection, keeping up with the age, etc., etc., when they are giving up and retrograding from the grandest progress possible to men—the progress up to the ground consecrated by the feet of the apostles and first Christians. Talk of progress when going back to the feeble and exploded schemes of sectarians and patronizing their shallow devices! Progress, indeed, to turn away from the holy gospel, the power of God to salvation, and scheme to catch people and draw them in by the blandishments of fine houses, theatrical, musical shows and clerical pretentions! No, brethren, all this is empty and powerless for good, and yielding up to the influences of hardness of heart, and aiding on that overwhelming avalanche of unbelief now coming upon us. We must stand by our Lord and the simplicity of the gospel, its faith and practice, worship and discipline. We can defend and maintain the gracious system of mercy and grace given by our Lord, in its own native purity, but we can maintain nothing else. There must be no wedge of gold in the camp, no Achan. We must offer no strange fires on God’s altar. The Lord directs our minds and hearts and keep us in the love of Christ. We long to see those who trouble us cease to give pain to the hearts of the friends of the Lord; to learn to be happy themselves and make others happy.

[NO DIVISION CAN COME.]

NO general division can come. The main ground we occupy precludes the idea of any general division. A vain man, or a bad man, may occasionally scatter a flock, tear up a church and ruin it. But, then, such a man will soon find his level and come to nothing, or become surrounded by influences strong enough to control him. There is no machinery of which he can get hold to produce a general division, nor is there any place where an entering-wedge can be introduced to rive us asunder.

No man can depart from the doctrine sufficiently to produce a division, without losing his influence, so that he will have no power to do anything more than lead off an insignificant faction, such as will die out in a short time. Take any one of the elements now annoying us, and tell us how a general division can grow out of it. You will see that it can not be done. Take, for instance, the question about evangelizing and the different methods insisted on, and inquire how we can divide on it. One man is for this plan or that, and goes for it. Another man is not for this plan or that, and goes against it. The one for it, works for it, and the other does not. After a little space the difference will wear out, and they will fall into the same channel and work together. Different schemes will be tried, found inefficient and useless, and be abandoned. After the brethren have time to mature the matter they will come round to the right ground and go on in harmony. Unscriptural things will be discarded, impracticable things will prove failures, and shallow things will be treated with contempt. Men that are unlovely, of bad spirit, spiteful and revengeful, will soon develop themselves to the satisfaction of all. True men—men of faith and love and zeal—will go on and work where the Lord shall open the way for them; not for man, nor to please man, but for the Lord, and to please the Lord, and the work will go on. Men that will not work, that have no work in them, but want large pay, will seek fat places, and get them, if they can, and if they can not, croak about our lack of system, disorder, want of organization and the like, pine away and vanish out of sight.

But may we not have a general division about the organ? Not at all. We have none among us that will exclude us if we will not fellowship the organ. This is all the difficulty there is. Some of us will not worship with the organ nor fellowship it. Will not that divide us? Not at all. Those who would rather have their organ in their worship, than those who will not, and can not worship with it, will have it, and let those who can not worship with it, stay away. Those who can not worship with it will seek some place where they can worship without it, and worship as they know to be according to Scripture. They know this to be safe.

[SOME THINGS CAN NOT
BE SETTLED.]

WE once acted on a committee with several others, heard testimony and arguments for a week, and had the parties bound in writing to abide the decision of the committee. When the decision was made the parties acquiesced in it, shook hands over it, and we prayed over them and were all happy. But in a short time, we do not remember whether a week or a month, the whole matter was thrown aside and the parties stood as they did before. Our prayerful and patient work all went for nothing.

When brethren become alienated they frequently do not want to settle their difficulties, but to get an advantage over an opposing party. No court of appeal nor anything we can say will reconcile them. If we, in any part of the affair, agree with them, they there agree with us; but if we in any part of it differ from them they there differ from us. There the matter ends. Still, we will try and give a little attention to the matters in hand.

There are cases where nothing can be done. In other words, there are cases that can not be settled. Church members become like the man’s rails that had been in a crooked fence so long that they would not make a straight fence. Church-members sometimes have been crooked so long that they will not become straight. They continue in their alienation so long that it becomes a kind of habit with them and food for them. They can not do well without it.

If a church is about equally divided by a difficulty and can not settle the matter among themselves, and will not refer the matter to a committee, it simply can not be settled. A case that can not be settled must remain unsettled. We answer, that in that case nothing can be done. Some cases of difficulty will never be settled in this world, and will have to be referred to the last judgment for adjudication. It would be well, though, in such a case as stated, for the disaffected party to consider the matter well, and see to it that they have acted wisely and in the Spirit of the Lord in the whole matter. On the other hand, the church party should review the whole ground carefully, and see to it that all they can do to open the way for the disaffected party to become reconciled and brought into the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace be done. Let no stone remain unturned, no effort untried and nothing remain undone that might bring peace.

[OUTWARD APPEARANCE.]

WE have made a standing arrangement for paper this year, of which the present pamphlet is a sample, and we shall do our utmost to have the whole volume printed in a neat and legible manner. As to fine paper, covers, etc., they are like fine clothes only necessary to encase the bodies and souls which will not pass without them. You have, no doubt, seen the preacher wrapped in the finest broadcloth, and a golden chain for a watch-guard, who, after a labored effort for an hour would only prove that he was a human frame, finely clad, but no preacher. In clothing our thoughts in pamphlets, as in clothing our persons, the proper rule should be, to have the apparel just such as not to be noticed at all, and then the thoughts in the pamphlet or the man himself may be seen. Let the attire be neat enough not to be observed for its shabbiness, and plain enough not to be noticed for its fineness, that the person in the attire may be seen. It is true, it is desirable to have a paper printed plain and neat, but all this and fine paper into the bargain will never make it go, if there be not some life, spirit and power in the articles themselves.

Some men seem astonished that their publications do not circulate, seeing that they contain such a display of the most elegant literary taste, not seeming to be aware of the fact, that not one common reader out of fifty ever perceives the mighty effort at all. Yet there can be no objection to fine style. The difficulty in that class to which we refer, is not that they write in fine style, but that there is nothing but the style—neither soul, body, nor spirit.

[LITTLE MATTERS.]

IT may seem strange that a human body, weighing one hundred and fifty pounds, would be disturbed by a little thorn in it, not an eighth of an inch long! But, strange as it may appear, it is a fact. And you can not accustom the body to it by piercing the thorn in deeper and deeper, till the body will become easy and comfortable; but you can in that way produce irritation, then inflammation, then mortification, and then death. Death has been produced in this way many times. He is no friend to the body who continues to push the thorn in deeper and deeper, nor is he who would excuse him in so doing, or encourage him in it. There is but one remedy, and that is to remove the thorn. Even if you have to make the wound much larger than it is, the thorn must be removed, or the end will be death.

There are cases in which a thorn might be pierced into the flesh an inch, and produce no pain or irritation; but they are cases where there is no life in the flesh. A thorn pierced into a dead body will produce no pain or irritation. A dead body has no power to resist it, and will make no effort. This is the reason precisely that a thorn produces no irritation or pain when pierced into certain bodies. They are dead bodies. It is no indication that the body is not alive and in healthy condition, to find it resisting foreign matter, and making an effort to remove obstructions; but when it can not do this, the body must die. It can not live and the obstruction remain, at least, only for a short time. But who will permit even a little thorn to remain in his flesh? We care not how little it may be; it is foreign, it is irritating, and, unless removed, will produce death.

It was a little thing for Eve to partake of the forbidden fruit. Thomas Paine inquired, “What harm was there in eating an apple?” This is the watchword with all the unlawful things that people desire to do. “What harm is it?” When we worship according to Scripture we never inquire, “What harm is it?” It is not in doubt, and calls out no such inquiry. It is not under any suspicion. To worship according to Scripture is manifestly right. Why should we lag in anything in doubt, under suspicion, and repulsive to any portion of the body, when we have a divinely-prescribed worship held in no doubt?

It was a little thing for Achan to take a Babylonish garment, some silver, and a wedge of gold, and secrete them in his tent; but when he came to confess, it was not a little matter.

He said: “I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel.” On account of this little matter, three thousand men were defeated, and Israel disgraced. “Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us? the Lord shall trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones, and burned them with fire, after they had stoned them with stones.” Here is a fine sample of little matters, and of troubling the people of God with little matters. See Joshua vii. 19–26.

It was a little matter for Uzza to “put forth his hand to hold the ark;” but he fell dead on account of it. See 1 Chron. xiii. 9. He appeared to have been friendly to the ark, sincere, etc., but his touching the ark brought death. What harm was there in touching the ark? It did not injure it. It may be that he saved it from falling. But he violated the law of God. He incurred the anger of God.

What became of them who offered strange fire on God’s altar? See Lev. x.: “And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the Lord, which he commanded them not. And there went out fire from the Lord, and devoured them, and they died before the Lord.” That was a little matter; only slightly tampering with the worship; simply introducing a new element, which the Lord commanded them not, or did not command them. It is a fearful thing to tamper with the worship.

In one word: “If every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward,” in God’s dealings with men in former ages, how shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation? If God allowed no departures in the typical worship, why should we assume that he will permit it in the worship typified? If everything had to be done according to the patterns given to Moses in the typical dispensation, how can any man infer that we may depart from the substance? We had better take heed now. We may not add any thing, nor take any away from what the Lord gave. We may not preach any other gospel, or even pervert the gospel of Christ.

It was a little matter to charge that Jesus had “an unclean spirit,” but those who did it sinned against the Holy Spirit, and are in danger of “eternal damnation.”

It was a little matter for Ananias and Sapphira to lie about the price of their possessions, but it was soon followed by a judgment from the Lord.

It was a little matter for the Corinthians to get up a feast when they met to worship, but on account of it many were sickly, weakly, and some had died.

Some of the little matters now among us will be found sufficient to stop the ark of God, and cause more than three thousand to be defeated. If Moses were to address some of our men, he would say to them, as he did to Aaron, “What hath this people done to thee that thou hast brought so great a sin upon them?” or as Joshua said to Achan: “Why hast thou troubled us? The Lord shall trouble thee this day.” Let us hear and live.

[ONE IDEA ISM.]

WE are asked to define what we mean by one-idea ism, and explain to us how the universe is made up of atoms. With this request we will cheerfully comply. It is to be carried away with one idea. The idea may be a good one, or it may not; but one-ideaism, is giving an idea undue importance. A man addicted to one-ideaism, can no more cover it than a leopard can change his spots. If he attempts to pray, he will commence with something else as a stepping stone, regularly paving the way and unmistakably making his way to his favorite idea. When it is put forth and he is delivered of it he is relieved for the time being, especially, if he finds that it annoys some one. If you call on him for an exhortation, a sermon, or if he writes, he may wind round and round, trace back and forward, but it will, in spite of himself, in all his efforts to conceal it, be manifest to all, that he takes no interest in all he is saying, only as it subserves his purpose, in paving the way to the one idea, the center around which the whole man revolves, and to which his entire existence is subservient. If that one idea is not dragged in, the man is not relieved, his burden is still upon his soul, and he is in travail waiting to be relieved.

You will see this class of men at meetings, and conventions, both political and religious, without the most distant idea of promoting the objects of the meeting, convention, etc., as the case may be, but with no higher aim than introducing their idea to notice, making the meeting an engine, and men, met under other obligations, and with the ostensible object of the meeting before them, instruments to carry the pet idea on the high road to fame. Sometimes this class of men, because other men have other objects in view, are actually engaged in some good and great work, have not time, will not be annoyed nor turned aside to hear them nor dispute with them; or, if they do, give them but a passing notice—think all the world afraid of them. But they need have no fears on this score. An idea that has not force enough to burst its way forth in the world in defiance of all fogies and conservatives, would die a natural death, if the parent of it could get some one to bring it forth.

[MINISTERING ANGELS.]

WE have much in the present day on the spiritual care which the divine Father exercises over his creatures in this world. We consider it clear that God has angels who guard, protect, and take care of that portion of the human family which put their trust in him. That the first Christians believed that a good man had an angel, is clear, from Acts xii. 15. When the Apostle Peter was delivered from prison by a miracle, and his voice was heard at the gate, where several disciples were collected, they could not believe it was him, but said, “It is his angel.”

Speaking of his disciples, the Lord said, “In heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.” Mat. xviii. 10. This shows clearly that the disciples of Christ have angels. Paul says, “But to which of the angel said he at any time, sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool? Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?” The heirs of salvation then have ministering angels, who wait upon them continually, and at the same time behold the face of God in heaven.

Some men seem perplexed to see the use of prayer, unless God operates upon the hearts of christians by an abstract spirit; but if the ever blessed Father keeps ministering angels about them as a mighty wall, and thus guards, protects and preserves them, it would seem to involve the same necessity for prayer, that would be involved if he should do it any other way. Why should it not? With us, we consider ourselves under the same obligations, should God be pleased to preserve us in one way, that we would be, should he do it in another. Not only so, but the man of God ought to have confidence enough in God to believe he will answer any petition asked, according to his will, whether he has told us or not.

[NO SIDE STRUCTURE.]

WE can not recognize the side institution, nor the officers in it, as neither the one nor the other is known to the oracles of God, or to history for ages after the sacred canon was complete. What is the use to talk of a church of which there is not a trace in the volume of God, nor in anything written for hundreds of years after the apostles? There is not a trace of Romanism, of a pope, cardinal or archbishop in the Bible, except in the prophecies that foretell the apostasy, nor in any other writing of the first three centuries. Nor is there any account of any of the others we have mentioned for a much greater length of time.

We find “the body of Christ,” “the kingdom of God,” and “the Church of God,” spoken of in Scripture. The Lord says, “On this rock I will build my church.” Here is something clear and definite. We can bring this “body” before us, this “kingdom,” or “church,” be members of it, confine our minds and hearts to it; keep it and all its grand interest in view, and not some side structure, imitation or something like it.

The apostles and first evangelists, the overseers and deacons in the first church, were all ministers or servants in the grand work of the “one body,” or “the kingdom,” and not of any side structure. All who are really ministers or servants of Jesus now, are in this “one body,” “kingdom” or “church,” and devoted to its interests and growth, and not to the building up, extending or perpetuation of any side structure, under the pretext that it is like the original or any other, but for the original itself.

All these side structures, names and laws are usurpation, and the true ministers or servants of the kingdom, can but regard them as such, and labor to melt them all away and put all the good material there is in them into “God’s building,” “the temple of God,” and thus make this material useful and acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

As to clerical airs, the peculiar cut of the coat, the white necktie, and all other such “outward signs of inward grace,” they are the offspring of shallowness, weakness and folly, and wholly incompatible with the plainness, meekness and humility of Jesus and of good taste and sense.

[LIGHT WITHIN.]

ALL the perversions, innovations and corruptions of the pure and holy religion of Jesus Christ that have found way into it and disgraced it, have been introduced under some pretext of doing good—some plea of a supposed benevolent nature. In some form or other they have all claimed to have the good of the cause in view, and in some way have put up some kind of claim to divine authority. Some of them were introduced by good men, with good intentions, who saw not the evil that would follow, while others, no doubt, were introduced by “designing men.” George Fox was probably a good man, or a man of good intentions, and, when he talked of the “light within,” and tried to sustain his position by Scripture, he had no idea of the evil that would follow—much less did he design it. Though he quoted Scripture, it was not as a rule of faith and practice; not as a system of religion, nor as supreme authority, but merely to give currency to the theory he was laboring to introduce and support it in the minds of the people. The leading idea in the new theory was that the light within was the guide—the unerring rule; that it was from God, and that he who followed it was following the will of God, the influence of the Spirit. He certainly did not intend to turn the hearts of the people away from God and lead them to follow the imaginations of their own hearts. He clearly designed no such wickedness as this; but what has followed? Where has the “light within” led his followers? It has led some of them to neglect and forsake the word of God; to regard the Bible simply as a good book, a true history and guide to the people of its time, but not as an authority, a rule of faith and practice for us. It has led some of them into Spiritualism, others into Universalism, and some, more recently, into exciting revival, mourners’ bench-meetings, in which old members have been trying to “get religion,” as seekers do in Methodist and other revivals. Many of them have been led into out-and-out infidelity. This is where the “light within” has led them. Original Quakerism has virtually run out.

Numerous other bewildered people are seeking an evidence of pardon and acceptance with God directly from heaven. They are trying to find this evidence in their feelings, impressions, emotions, impulses, sensations, dreams, some sound or voice, and not in the promise of God. This direct or immediate evidence, in their view of it, is from the Spirit of God and perfectly reliable. The promise of God, with them, is the mere word, the bare word, the mere letter of Scripture. They are thus completely turned aside from the testimony of the Spirit of God, as confirmed by the most grand and awful displays of supernatural power, to their own imaginations, their own spirits, and as completely perverted as if they never had received any revelation from God.

There is no teaching of the Spirit of God among men only that found upon the pages of the Bible. Those led by the teaching of the Spirit of God spread on the pages of the Bible are led by the Spirit of God, but those not led by that teaching are not led by the Spirit of God at all. They may be led by their own spirits, desires, feelings, emotions, impressions, sensations; by men, or even the adversary, “captive at his will;” but they are not led by the Spirit nor under his influence at all. When they turn away from the teaching of the Spirit of God recorded in the Bible, it matters not much to what they turn, whether they profess to be led by the “light of nature,” so called, “the light of reason,” “the light of conscience,” the “light within,” impressions, feelings, emotions, sensations, by men, or the adversary, they turn away from God, from Christ and from the Holy Spirit. They are perfectly deluded, and, if they thus continue, they must come to ruin. God will eventually overthrow all who turn away from him, no matter to what they turn.

Men may claim to have the Spirit, to be led by the Spirit, talk about the Spirit, pray about the Spirit, sing about the Spirit, and at the same time despise the things of the Spirit, the things commanded by the Spirit, and do despite to the work of the Spirit. Such men manifestly have not the Spirit. All their claim to having the Spirit is an empty and idle pretense. They are not led by the Spirit at all, but are led in opposition to all the Spirit ever taught. Those led by the Spirit receive what the Spirit teaches, as found in Scripture, believe it and delight to follow it. It is idle for those who will not do this to be talking about the Spirit, or the influence of the Spirit.

If any man gets an immediate evidence of pardon, it is an evidence that comes not through the Mediator, for what comes through him is not immediate, but through him as a Medium, or Mediator. It is a direct revelation, not through Christ at all, and it is a new revelation. Are men receiving any new revelations now? The Mormons and Spiritualists think they are. Do others think so? We do not believe any new revelations are now being made from God. On this ground we reject all Mormon pretensions, as well as Romish pretensions and those of Spiritualists. Since the apostles died, and those on whom they laid their hands died, not a miracle has been done or a revelation from God been made. Every pretense to miracle or revelation from then till now is an empty and idle pretense—an imposition. Since John, the Apostle, closed the book of Revelation, with the declaration that, if any man shall add to it, the plagues of that book shall be added to him, there is an end of all revelation till time shall be no more.

Through Christ, God made a final revelation, to which nothing is to be added, and from which nothing is to be taken. The will of God is in that concerning man, and if we desire to know the mind of God we must consult that revelation. The restlessness of man is wonderful. He is not willing to be limited even to the revelation God has made, the testimony God has given concerning his Son, and the unfailing promise of God for assurance of acceptance with him. But this is the highest and the only assurance we have or can have, in this world. When God made the promise, that we might have strong consolation, he confirmed it by an oath. We come to God by faith and not by sight; we walk by faith and not by sight; enjoy God, and Christ and the Holy Spirit by faith and not by sight. So we enjoy the remission of sins and acceptance with God by faith and not by sight. “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved,” said the Lord, among the last words he uttered before he ascended to heaven. Men who will not rely on that promise—on the words shall be saved, or shall be pardoned—would not believe though one would rise from the dead. It is not baptism such need; it is faith. They are not fit subjects for baptism. They must remember the condition, “He that believeth.” They can not come to God without faith. “Without faith it is impossible to please him.”

[BE FIRM IN THE RIGHT.]

IF it is wiser to obey God than man, if an infallible law is better than a fallible, if a perfect law is better than an imperfect one, if a divine law is better than a human, if the authority of God is better than the authority of man, if the word of the Living God is better than a human creed, if the infallible teachings of inspiration are better than uninspired human creeds, if the teachings of the Holy Spirit of God are a safer guide to heaven than the teachings of erring men, if God should govern in preference to man, we are right, and our opposers wrong, on this transcendent point, and it is our duty to God and our fellow-creatures, that we maintain with manly zeal and fortitude that which is so manifestly and self-evidently the will of God. We never can falter. We have no ground to doubt or fear; but if we shrink or hesitate, it must be manifest indifference. While we hope, then, for the blessing of God upon us, and call upon God for his mercy, let us remember our fealty to him, and maintain our integrity to the day of his coming.

[THE BIBLE WILL SAVE THE WORLD.]

THE Bible contains the true religion, or there is none. There is light in the Bible to save the world, or the world is lost. Our only choice is between the Bible and nothing. Judaism is abolished. Mohammedanism has no claims in internal merit or external evidence. The fruits of all Paganism show that it is evil, and only evil, continually. Infidelity has nothing for the world. While it would take Christianity from us, it has nothing to propose. It is no system—no doctrine—teaches nothing and defends nothing. Its only province is to stand and deny. It finds fault with everything, starts doubts, destroys confidence, fills the world with fears, and spreads an eternal gloom over the prospects and hopes of all nations. Reason and the light of nature have been tried longer and more effectually than any system in the world. At least four thousand years have the pagan nations been trying what they could do for our race without a revelation from God. In all the experiments yet made, with no guide but reason and the light of nature, the tendency has been downward. Deterioration has been the universal result, without the light of the Bible. We then, cling to the Bible, and the religion it reveals, as the only hope of the world. If it fails, all must fail, and all must be lost. But it is folly of the most stupid order to speak of the Bible failing. Its Author is emphatically the friend of man. Its holy lessons are all for our good. All who have been led by it, are thankful they ever knew it. It has never deceived one or misled one. No one has ever lamented being led by it. The more solemn and affecting the circumstances around us, and the greater the trials in which we are placed, the more comforting and precious are its holy consolations to the soul. It encourages all that is good; discourages and condemns all that is evil. It is our guide and comfort through the journey of life; nor does it fail when we are sinking in death. No one who believed it before, in a dying hour denies and repudiates the Bible. But many determined infidels have recanted and repudiated their infidelity when sinking into the eternal state. That which they talked in health, that which dwelt upon their tongues in their mad career through life, they themselves condemned, in the most awful and solemn moments of life, and with their dying lips repudiated. How shameful and preposterous, that a man should live such a life of folly and inconsistency as to be compelled in his dying moments to condemn all his past life, with all the sentiments he had cherished and inculcated, and warn all men against them!

[NOT RECEIVING THE REFORMATION, BUT CHRIST.]

THE question is not whether men will receive us, our doctrines, our views, our church, or “the Reformation,” or “Reformation doctrines” but whether they will receive him whom the Father hath sent, love him, follow him, place themselves under him, obey him, and trust in him forever. He is the center of all union, all love, and all piety. Upon him, all who love him, have received him and desire to follow him, being led by his voice, may unite. Having received him, been identified with him, as a matter of course, we receive all who have been received by him, are united with and love them, as members of the same family. When we speak of union, the question is not about receiving men, nor their views, but whether we can agree upon a leader, head, lawgiver or king. Jesus is the true Light that enlightens every man that comes into the world. He is the only divinely authorized head, lawgiver and leader. The question we have to urge upon men, is whether they will come under him. If they will, they should proceed, like young Saul, to ascertain of him, what he requires of them, before they can be received, pardoned and saved by him. When they learn this of him, and come to him, in the way he has appointed, or by doing what he requires, they are received by him, united with him and with all that belong to him, and, as long as they continue to love and obey him, no adverse power can separate them from him. He is our rock, the rock of our salvation—the foundation which God has laid—for union in “one new man,” or one new church, one “building of God,” one “house of God,” in which dwells the “one spirit,” given by the “one Lord.”

Here upon the one rock—one foundation, which is Christ—in the one building or temple, in Christ, where all spiritual blessings are found, all the good, the pure and holy, may strike hands, unite, live in holy fellowship, while they continue in this world of sorrow and affliction, and after, be received up into glory, to dwell with their Lord and the holy society of the redeemed forever. Brethren, look at the vast numbers we have gathered into the one fold, and take fresh courage, and let us enter upon the work with spirit and might for another year.

[LIFTED ABOVE SECTS AND PARTIES.]

THE men who are meditating on union are now on trial, being put to the test, and will be compelled to show where they stand. Those who love union among christians more than denominationalism will sacrifice the denomination for union, but those who love denominationalism more than union will sacrifice union for the denomination. The union of the people of God is from heaven; the denomination is from man. The denomination is the party, sect, faction. The body of Christ, or kingdom of God, is no sect, party or denomination. It is as broad as the dominion of King Jesus. It is above all sects, parties and denominations. The man that rises so as to grasp the kingdom of God in his mind, ascends far above all sects, parties and denominations; up to the throne and Him who sits on the throne; to the Supreme Majesty of heaven and earth. He loves the King above all kings and potentates, and loves the kingdom of God above all the kingdoms and empires of the world, and supremely above all parties, sects or denominations. We love no denomination, nor denominationalism, but love the people involved in the denomination; and while we desire to see the denomination literally abolished, wiped out, we desire to save the kingdom of God, the union of the people of God, and the people themselves. This can be done if the people will have it so. But if they love the sect, party or denomination more than the Church of God, or the body of Christ, they will keep an eye to the sect, party or denomination; to their little side institutions of human device; every one of which originated with men, and without one scrap of divine authority; instead of rising to the grand and glorious institution ordained of God, with the Lord for its head, and the law of God for the rule of its faith and practice.

[MAKING THE BIBLE SUPPORT HUMAN SYSTEMS.]

THERE can be no apology for a man who knows what the truth is, what the doctrine of Christ is, what christianity is, who will use it merely as a proof to sustain, prove, and impose something else upon himself and others, for he might just as easily have received the truth, the doctrine of Christ, christianity itself, enjoyed it, and been saved by it, as to have trifled with it, in trying to prove something else by it. But if a man does not know what the truth is, the doctrine of Christ, christianity is, and adopts something else, he is simply guessing at it, and is not to be relied upon. He has no foundation.

We are as well convinced, as we are that there is a glorious heaven for the righteous, and a hell for the wicked, that no man now living, who knows what the Lord’s truth is, what the gospel of Christ is, what christianity is, and what the Bible is, and has appealed to it to sustain something else, and now continues so to appeal to it, could, if his life were at stake, give a good reason why he did not receive the truth itself, the gospel, christianity, the Bible itself, rely upon it as his only hope for life, his only guide, as the only divine system, the only divine institution, in the place of perverting its glorious influence and power to sustain and prop up something else. And we are equally certain, that no man can answer to God, when the actions of all men shall be spread out in the last judgment, for such a course. If christianity is a system, if it is a divine institution, if it is the religion of Jesus Christ, if it is from God, and now binding upon the human family, as almost all the religious parties of these times admit, and as can not be denied, the sin of departing from it is great enough; but to have the assurance to try to make it sanction any other system, to testify in support of any other, to try to divert its influence, power, and authority from its own work, to sustain and prop up some human system not mentioned in it, when it has expressly, under the most fearful and awful penalty, forbidden any perversion, addition, or subtraction, is a species of daring and aggression upon the institution of heaven and government of God, such as one would suppose no believer in the Bible would risk. Still it is done—almost daily done, in the pulpits all over the land; and those who will not do it, who condemn it, who receive the Bible, christianity, the gospel, the religion of Jesus Christ, all that God has revealed to man—all that has the name of God upon it, keep it distinct from every thing else, and will have nothing more, are opposed everywhere, sneered at and branded as heretics. Be it so. We look not to man for reward. We look not to sectarian parties to honor God, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Bible, christianity, or the gospel. We do not expect them, as parties, to come to the Bible, unless to draw support for their own schemes. But we regard not this; we know we are right; and it is not the great number that will stand, but those who are right. “Truth is mighty above all things, and will prevail.” Brethren, push on the war, on this great question. The Bible will prevail in the end. Its enemies will all fail.

[PIONEERS, SUPPORT, ETC.]

THE pioneer men in this country felled the trees, cleared away the forests, built their houses and barns, and made a living. Many of their sons can not make a living with the farm and all the balance fitted to their hand. In the same way, the first preachers went out at their own expense, turned the people to God and built up churches, and now the preachers, with their fine salaries, houses in which to meet, and everything prepared to hand, are not accomplishing as much, in proportion to their number and ability. Why is this? Is it because they can not? Not at all. It is because they are not as devoted. They are not as enterprising. They are not as industrious. They are not as self-sacrificing.

Those old preachers needed no “innocent amusements,” “innocent games,” “healthful exercises,” “pastime,” “social dance,” “croquet,” etc., etc. They knew nothing of torpid liver, indigestion, nervous prostration, etc., etc. Those afflictions were left for a later class. They obtained plenty of healthful exercise in clearing off, breaking and cultivating their new land, in their long rides on horseback, or trips on foot, and faithfully preaching, and the Lord blessed them. The results of their labor and sacrifices are seen all over this country. They looked after the children of God and cared for them; not with this new kind of care for money; not only the money of the living, but arranging to get the money of the dead; but they cared for men; watched for their souls, as those who shall give an account.

We do not want to say one word in this connection, nor any other, that shall be the means of cutting off one penny of support received by any good preacher who is faithfully doing the work of an evangelist, but would add to the support of many such men whose support is inadequate; and as to mercenary and avaricious men in the ministry, and we trust there are but few of them, we have learned better than to waste our ink on them. We are writing for the good of the cause, and we rejoice to believe that we have the men, an extended body of them, able ministers of the gospel, who are devoted to the work, and willing to do anything in their power to advance the cause. These are reading, studying, and ready to listen to anything that will advance the cause. To these men we must look, and on them, as the agents under God, we must depend; we must encourage their hearts, strengthen their hands and give them support. To these men we appeal and entreat them, in view of all that is dear to humanity; in view of the suffering Savior, and lost man; in view of their own children and the children of others, as well as the good of the world at large, to go into the field with a determination to preach the gospel of the grace of God; go everywhere, in the name of the Lord, where the people will listen to a discourse concerning Jesus and the resurrection, and preach the unsearchable riches of Christ; make all men see and turn them to God. Do not wait for a call, but go; do not wait for some certain promise of support, but trust to the promises of God; go in faith; trust in God; sow the good seed of the kingdom, the word of God, that it may fall into good and honest hearts and bring forth much fruit. Put in every sermon possible; preach to every one who will hear; preach because you love God and man, and desire to save man from ruin, and because you love to preach; because the Lord commands it, and the God of peace will be with you, care and provide for you.

[UNIVERSALISM.]

WE heard of a man who had heard Universalists occasionally, and gave them something when they were making contributions for their preachers. A preacher, who made one of his finest efforts to prove that all will be saved, inquired of him how he liked his argument. The man replied, “I did not like it at all.” The preacher, disappointed, said: “You believe our doctrine?” The man replied: “I do; but you tried to prove it by the Bible, and all intelligent people know that the Bible is against us from one side to the other. The way I prove it is this: I deny the Bible, and then prove it by reason.” This is certainly the more rational way. We care not who he is, nor where he comes from, nor what his attainments may be; but the man who attempts to prove Universalism by the Bible opposes the common sense of mankind and the clearest language ever written. The man who rejects the Bible out and out, and is wandering in the darkness of unbelief, in the vagaries of those who reject the wisdom of God, might, in his philosophical speculations, try to show that all men would be saved, with at least some show of plausibility possibly; but there is not only no plausibility in anything that can be adduced from the Bible to show that all men will be saved, but clear statements of the Bible can not be true and all men be saved. It cannot be true that those “who believe not the Son shall not see life,” and that all men shall be saved. It can not be true, as stated in Scripture, that “these” (the wicked) “shall go away into everlasting punishment,” and all men be saved.

The man who affirms that those who die in their sins shall be wholly and happy in heaven contradicts the clearest utterances of Scripture. When time shall end and God shall exclaim, “He that is filthy, let him be filthy still,” there will be no more repentance; yet some will be filthy—unsound.

Universalism had its day in this country; has run its course and is going by. There is not one-tenth as much of it in this country as there was thirty years ago. There is no argument of consequence about it any more. The only thing wanting to show what it is, will appear anywhere when they undertake to form churches, keep up Sunday-schools, keep up prayer-meetings, meet regularly on the first day of the week and worship. Let them undertake to enforce the clear requirements of Scripture on their people, and they will soon get a lesson. They will soon explain that all will be saved, and they will find that they will have no use for baptism, the Lord’s Supper, prayer-meetings, nor any regular worship.

It will not do to read, “He who believes not shall be saved;” “He who believes not the Son shall see life;” “The wrath of God shall not abide on him;” “If you believe not that I am he, you shall not die in your sins;” “Where I am you shall come;” “These” (the wicked) “shall not go away into everlasting punishment;” “The beast and the false prophets shall not be tormented day and night forever and ever;” “He who shall sin against the Holy Spirit shall not be in danger of eternal damnation,” etc., etc. The man who denies his Bible first, and then starts out to prove that all will be saved from some other source, is a much more sensible man than the man that undertakes to prove it from the Bible. Whatever the Bible may mean besides, it does not mean Universalism. The man who holds and undertakes to prove Universalism has no use for a Bible, unless it be to show his skill in getting round the clearest things ever written.

[SUPPORT WORKERS.]

THE brethren know that men cannot devote their lives to the work of evangelizing without support, and they will give the support, and do it much more freely where they can see the work done, than where they can see no work done. The preachers in the field doing the work are receiving the main support given, and ought to receive it. The men not in the field, and that will not go into the field, ought not to receive the support. The brethren are not in the way of sending it to them.

We hope the preachers generally will see what is being done by those in the work, go out and participate in the heavenly work, that they, too, when the Chief Shepherd shall appear, may have a crown of glory that fades not away. How can men with the love of God in them see their fellow-creatures perishing, and not be inspired with a zeal to go forth and gather them into the kingdom of God? Look at the tremendous cloud of darkness over the minds of the people, and then inquire can a man who has the light be excusable unless he uses the means the Lord has put in his power for the enlightenment of the world. No, we can not be excusable; the love of Christ constrains us; the value of the souls of men urges, and the example of all the ancient worthies impels us to go into the great harvest and help to reap it down.

[RECKLESS TWADDLE.]