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CHRISTIAN INDEYAND ERN BAPTIST. - k ■ - YOL. 46-NO. i A RELIGIOUS AND FAMILY PAPER, PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN ATLANTA, 3A. .f . ,T. TOON", Pro jrV ; i< FOR TERM* REFER TO SECOND PA< Hf. _ .L-LLLJJI!!!LLiiLB- ■ " - WmmmwftMtii “ Lights and Shades of Christianity.” BY REV. M. P. LOWRKV, - >. Skeptic. The Bible is to me a strange .booh. I have read it a great deal, and have -tried to read with care and with a desire to under stand and obey; but I have always read with some misgivings. Some questions have been continually arising in my mind that have never been settled to my satisfaction. , I be lieve my existence is perpetual; and whqn I .! eternity* I, can not feel v '' . Cijriktsjas. Indeed, it is n'6t Miyuige.that you eatunot/eel incoherent when f7>u thin'; of eternity r I can not see how any one can. Skeptic. Well, if what you Christians pro-* fess to believe is all true, it is strange to me.that the facts are not so clearly revealed that there could be no doubt about it—that all might see, understand and agree, and all the strife and confusion on the subject cea-e, so that all mankind might fall into ranks and march along to Heaven like a band of brethren., There is something wrong somewhere. Christiaij. Truly,there is something wrong somewhere; but that wrong is not in God, nor in the revelation that He has given us. The fault is in sinful man, who does not like to retain God in his heart, and whose stubborn unbelief is the main spring of his rebellion : for the “ hearts of all the sons of men are fully set in them to do evil.” Skeptic. I do not deny that I am a great sinner, and that I am slow to believe such wonderful things as you Christians profess not to doubt; but as I am interested in * ject and honest enough to confess my skeptic! cism, I hope you will not think it too gseat aj condescension to try to remove sofee of thA clouds from my darkened let in ip little of the light of truth, so tnkt I can «ny way clearly ; for, wicked a/ljiifi, I desire, to make safe work for eternity'; Tand if yos will show me the right path, and move the brush out of it, I think I will walk in it. these questions are unsettled with me: there a God ? If so, is the Bible a revelation from -Him ? And if so, will God ppniph eternally those who refuse to obey Him ?” Until these questions are settled, I am .like a mariner without hjs compass : I can pot take them for grant edits some do. ( Christian sits in a thoughtful mood.) _ Sinner. I have always taken these ques tions granted, y without investigation. This business world has always been so pressing me with its demands, that I could never find time to investigate these matters,or to think much about them. They have been investigated by many who were much more capable than myself, and mv understanding is, that all the investigations have resulted favorably to the Bible and the Christian religion. And if all the big guns of infidelity that have been brought into re quisition have failed to demolish the citadel of Christianity, 1 must conclude that her bul warks are pretty strong—too strong for any pop gun that I am capable of commanding. Another consideration that has had consider able weight with me is, that the men who have embraced Christianity, after thorough in vestigation, have generally been superior in intellect and moral worth, to those who have rejected it. Gallio. Yes ; Tom Paine was a fool by the side of black Bob, who used to black my boots * Bob thought the Devil would get him certain if he didn’t say his prayers twice a day ; and he had just sense enough to'make a good slave, ana not a bit more. But, accord ing to your reasoning, he could have beaten Tom Paine “ all-hollow ” writing an “ Age of Reason!” Sinner. Well, was Bob a good negro? Gallio. 0, yes! I never knew him to do wrong; he didn’t have sense enough to be tricky ; was too honest to steal, and was too superstitious to tell a lie or swear; for he thought that the Lord and the Devil both had their eyes on him always. Sinner. Well, I should say that he was a superior man to Tom Paine, then; not in in tellect, but in moral worth ; and while good morals are always commendable, a giant in tellect is a shame to a man if he uses it for bad purposes. But I have not assumed that all who embrace Christianity are superior in intellect to all those who have rejected it. 1 said: “ The men who have embraced Christian ity, after a thorough investigation, have gener ally been superior in intellect and moral worth to those who have rejected it;” and history will sustain me in the assertion. Gallio. Well, you can’t get an argument with me, for I have never bothered my brains about religion, and never expect to; and I guess 1 will come out about as well as those who go half crazy about their souls. I was brought into the world without my own agen cy, and I guess I’ll go out in the same way ; and if the good Lord that you talk about so much wants me in Heaven, l guess He will take me there; and ii 4 I couldn’t get in for all the good works that I could do. It there’s any good in this world, I intend to en joy it while I stay here; and I’ll die when I can’t help it. Skeptic. It is no light matter with me; and I can not either think or speak lightly of it. If there is a God, I desire to serve Him; if there Ts a hell, I want to shun it; if there is a Heaven, I wish to gain it. Men strive with all energy » and diligence for the pleasures, honors and wealth that endure as it were but a day; and all these are but trifling considerations when compared with an eternal duration of happi ness ; and if I know my own heart, I am will ing to receive the truth. Christian. Since you manifest so much earnestness about it, let us take under serious consideration the three propositions that you have spoken of as doubtful questions : 1. “Is ERANKUIN-PRINTING HOUSE, ATLANTA, GA., THURSDAY, FEBRUA r /28, 1867. there A G<Jd ? 2. If so i;i is a revela tion fmn Him ?. 3. If tl|jp be a God, -and the .Bible is A reyglation |om Him, will JvTle punish eternally tFoffc wife refuse to obey Him?” As to the firsfqriesjjlon—as we will see by a sftqrt jpycki^ktion-r --“There i&aGoC-all sitji>%sifcaks - - Through-ear®, aid air, Anil sea, and skies; See! Iron tjjs cloudS'Hte #s©% breaks, When beams of' morning rise. >. "■•fife rising (SJrenely bright, extended frame, Inscribes iiicbaraclers cif light, ills mijrhtj Maker's glbrious name. “Ye carious.minds wb© roam abroad, And trace o’er, Confess the tpotsteps of yrmr God— Bow gnu, andjjdore.” ihe freffcy.' /"> t< his subject in Index hasjL. Abinp tci»de^g(|jjfeffibt'e tin. y roßUtki! k • •■^*PPi^*** baptism. writers ikv-/ innova tion, jMpttjpfce'tg' avgumentsK baa .hitherto oply shown the strength of the vaH| which wjviroß this time-honored usage. Br|y%jLqwrey, in hi»well-written article, ject to the language, “ Telii while he contends for the me-iv expression as understood «the Baptists—viz, that applic;?*ts giv'Y•Satisfactory evidence of penitence and that the “ investigation ma; as ; before the congregation,’"either with “a few leading questions.” llfthis i.vn<|||&ri meaning of converts telling si Chris tiah/ itperience publicly, according toßap vjit |heolpgy,” some of us of Middle Georgia .understood Baptist technicalities, and uruv ill i ngl y followed the style of our es ''«efeed brother. Jt is probable that in some instances Uap !ji)iltj«g unscriptural tests and asking uiineces-. astfyfjquestrons. It is certain that converts • akbjirhave improper views of what is required an experience, and it tnerefore he .jswries the duty of pastors tdfpreSoh wjjaf tip? jjjp*thet*s in the ministry used to call experi- sermons; or, when “ the door of the jqlferch is opened,” to .make a- brief explani-. ctibh (when it is thought necessary) of Vvhtft is’expected of applicants. Yet I sell' no reax -sbn why the expression, Experience _pi - *grace,”—so significant and correct —should,be abandoned, unless we resolve to restrict our selves to scriptural language and even then; it would require, in some instances, a mote faithful version to express the inspired mean 'irjg than the one in common use, That applicants for church membership should be required to give evidence of repent ance toward God and faith in Christ, has not been controverted by Baptists—certainly not tby of-tbe imux: akd Rir> Tisr. It is also admitted that an examination of the candidate, or<applicant, is the most sat isfactory and practical method of carrying out the part of our Lord’s commission requi ring the baptism of believers. If, then, it is proper that the examination should be made at all, I hold it should be before the church and congregation. 1. It generally exerts a beneficial influence on the church members. 2. It is often blessed of God to the awaken ing and conversion of sinners. 3. It promotes fellowship by affording the best opportunity for each and every member to satisfy himself. If any do not hear, or are hot satisfied with the pastor’s questions, or rehearsal, it is their duty to speak, or forever hold their peace. 4. The scriptures enjoin on believers a pub licconfession of Christ before the world. Jesus Himself taught with authority that whoso ever “ shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father,” and the con verse, whosoever “shall be ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him, also, shall the Son of Man be ashamed,” etc. But why may we not ac knowledge Jesus as the Saviour of us sinners by actions without words? Simply because God, whose gift salvation is, has. seen fit to include words also, and to make the state ment so concise and specific that we may not evade the meaning of His revealed will. In Romans, tenth chapter, the apostle is speak ing of salvation through faith in a curcified Sa viour, and in the 10th verse says: “ With the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salva tion.” This scripture having been quoted by Mr. A. Campbell, is, therefore, none the less the word of God. It is altogether irrelevant to the question to say that this confession of the mouth is not essential in every imagina ble case to “ salvation,” since the same course of argument would abolish all the ordinances of the church and license believers to violate every command of the Decalogue. It is enough for us to know that it is the Lord’s revealed will and word, and they w'ho change that word do so at the peril of the soul’s damnation. What more suitable time to be gin this confession “ with the mouth ” “ be foremen,’’and before “an adulterous and sinful generation,” than when they are about to be baptized into the name of Christ, and thus by their actions make an open profession ? Other opportunities might occur through life or in death, or they might not. Our confession of Jesus, in my judgment, implies three things: 1. Our conviction that we are ruined sinners in need of Jesus—Saviour. 2. We unreserv edly trust in Him for forgiveness and “ salva tion.” 3. We obtain “peace with God” through justifying faith in Jesus. And I re gard these essential points in all Christian experience, and have yet to find the man or woman who gave any evidence of repentance and faith, too timid to submit to be ques tioned on these congregation. I mean those inclined to the Baptists. I, for one, as a minister of the gospel, am so thor oughly convinced on this point that until fur ther enlightened, l would not baptize any who positively refused public examination, even though the church should order it. A. E. Cloud. Jonesboro, Ga., Feb. \&th. Cloud-TVrapt Sages. There exists in some minds, which lay claim to high powers and evince no ordinary cul ture, an inveterate fondness for mystification. However plain, and even commonplace, may be the matter of which they write, they throw over it a garb which renders it unintel ligible to the mass of readers. It is indeed wonderful to observe how they can pour forth sentence after sentence which contains no meaning at all, or a meaning which none save those versed in their peculiar dialect can under hand. " Violent invasions which outrage gram mar and common sense are employed to give additional obscurity to their style. One needs both lexicon and glossary to understand or appreciate such iTliese obscure bcioKS, feji which), if .a thought jlqrdiscerned/it'all, it appears as a dim spec tral shadow j gigantic because exhibiting no definite Outlines—do sometimes obtain the reputation of being profound. Indeed, many people, on reading a book in which they .can discover no sense, instead of adopting the ob vious conclusion that it none, take it for granted, on the contrary, that it has a mean ing lying so deep that .their intellects are not i, acute enough for its discernment. This ex plains the fact that those who have put forth volumes of transcendental nonsense are count ed among the world’s sages, without ever hav ing written a sentence which a man of com mon sense could call wise. No subject has been so often a theme of discussion by these rnystifiers as the Bible and its religion. Every portion of it have they subjected to a criticism professedly searching, but really eager to find grounds on which in fidelity • may rest. Now the belief in mira cles is proved an absurd superstition, and then this or that gospel is shown to be spurious. Unless you have been long familiar with their peculiar phraseology, all their utterances, however replete they may*be with learning, and however keen their critical acumen, will be utterly incomprehensible to you: Should fe’ou continue to follow their Will o’-the-wisp f lQgic in its mazy windings, you will ere long find* yourself where you will have no belief •of-the Bible—no faith in God—no hope of He;y/jen." . . Nqwy we contend that these befogged wise mon'ar/ <#irse than valueless in their criti cisms jof the Divine record. That precious volume contains much that we may not -un derstand, and doubtless much which angels themselves vainly strive to comprehend; but, at the same tiflne, it contains much that is so Clear,'so-devoid of all mystery, that even a child may understand it. Each sentence is, indeed, worthy of profound study ; but it should be a study in its kind and in its results from That which Gorman critics would bestow up'on it. In the cruci ble of their le/oTirng, the Bible is refined -9 ■ V - . away, until nothing is lett. JJut we want a study which will infuse more and more of the Divine Spirit which every line of this Holy Volume breathes forth into the soul, and which will beget in the heart a richer growth of grace. That irreverence, so common at this day, which comes to the discussion of the Bible as it would to the writings of Hesiod or Thucyd ides, can not be too sternly rebuked. The bold, blasphemous, unblushing infidelity to which Voltaire gave the countenance of his lofty genius, has nearly disappeared. We have now to contend with a more subtle and more dangerous class. They are not Sauls warring with earnest zeal against a sect whose doctrines they believe false and pernicious, but Judases, who have entered the Christian camp merely that they may be able to strike more deadly blows at its existence. Their very obscurity is a chief element of their harmfulness. Would they but come out from the clouds, they might be resisted and over come ; but so long as they remain “ veiled prophets,” fighting them seems like beating against the air. D. Suggestions and Requests. Bro. Editor :—Being engaged in writing up the history of the Baptist Convention of the State of Georgia to date, I have discovered an error in the Minutes, to which I had as well call the attention of the officers and members of that body now, as it may not be in my power to do so hereafter. The session in Ala con last year, is numbered the “ forty third," whereas, it was rpally the “ forty-fourth.” Upon examining a file of Minutes in my hands, I discover that the anniversaries are numbered correctly up to the session at Wash ington, in 1854, which was the “ thirty-third. The next session, which was at Newnan, in 1855, is also numbered the “ thirty-third.” From that time the error has been perpetuat ed. The body was constituted at Powelton, Hancock county, in June, 1822, and was first called the “ General Association.” My new edition of the History of “ Geor gia Baptists” is nearly completed. About 200 pages will be added to the old edition. Exteuded sketches of John E. Dawson, Ja cob King, Joseph Polhill, J. S. Dennard, mis sionary to Africa, also, of the Washington High School, Baptist Female College of S. W.GslSrgia, Bethel Association, etc., have been recently prepared. It would add greatly to the interest of my work • if I could oltain sketches of the following ministers: James Carter, John Hendricks, Cyrus White, Hiram Powell, Joseph Gresham, George Cranberry, Radford Gunn, W. B. Steed, James Davis, David Ryals, J. W. Cooper, and others. Will not their friends furnish them, or furnish me the facts that 1 may prepare them? For in formation of any of our deceased ministers, of our associations and colleges or high schools, I shall be thankful: send it along without de lay, else it may be too late. I see very little prospect of publishing any time soon, unless it can be done by subscrip tion. If 500 subscribers can be obtained, I think I shall make the venture. Shall be glad to hear from brethren and friends on this sub ject. If brethren will interest themselves in obtaining subscribers, I shall be thankful. J. H. Campbell. ThomasvUU, Feb. 16, 1867. Suggestive Writingfgnd Preaching. BroffiefEditor : —Doi%aecuse me of flattery while I express a simplelruth that your lead er for February 7 thought, and con tributed to suggest the (‘UtTon of this scribble. God knows, too, that 1.-Mte any tendencies in my heart to harsh or bitter things, while I add that religious biog*®hies and biographi cal sketches even, (in Tfljie days the staple of our Sunday-school litercture,) too often usurp the license long since ciffceded to obituaries and opitgplHj^and of the felicitous severit^o^n-great essa jUt when he designa ted a celebrated Who, except the wrker.djever met with such precocious and pious Children as may be found by looking upon Ay shelf of any Sun day-school library? us speak the truth, even while w>aise of them that do well. Pardon the IJtofeljßption of this adden dum— gravitating: Iward the earth and the earthy—to ypur i article. It im plicates no one in esf*><P§. ProiV Meli’s serm ,jgfi£<Jud’s Providential- GovernmCr^Jn;it|g ,; .ojg^» : itli unusual success one of the Njyil nfs sublime truth, that MJod’s grJhd purpp.'wV U exclusive of any other, blit inclusiv#«MpT)ers, is the exhi bition of his as reflected from his creatures — hinted at in the words of the Apostle-—the intent that now . unto the principalities «xd powers in heavenly places might be iriaife *ftown by the church, the manifold grace M Cl’d.” llow cheering that the trials.of prud sMiildren, the disasters that befall people struj|f mg for all they hold dear on earth, often mfifc to make virtue and piety illustrious ! TfoUffireat truth has stim ulated, and will stimuli** l * the patriot Chris tian heart, though “ iieathen rage, and the people imagiue a vain ychg.” The high questions .iV- Mell often and suc cessfully discuss'-s, te|»Y to throw the heart humbled and o’ij^vrow e< l into the sea ot al mighty IcTe. Ok! fir-j I love to take the plague. Nothing so j/Vecious to the heart as God, Jehovah, Jesus ML I have just been V rin g Dr - Henderson bring the converging 3 °f multiform dis cussion to bear upoi.^v e truth, as illustrated in the humiliation, d«Jf and ascension of the “ lowly Galilean,” Jpg* l6 will always and certainly triumph. but one among a number of reflee! / a sermon, which I was ip a wxm.° receive and treasure. I have often bet. ipnished at the matter of-course, nonehat£V*anner with which in telligent (?) audienfttT ften receive the great est and most m.' truths, powerfully put, while cblnm handsomely de claimed, excite the attention. Bro. H. certainly comes *Tto-Aristotle’s idea of eloquence—he ought* 1 move his audience. It may.'be, that, ripe theologians and great thinkji|^^B-etimes forgets how inlfeof olernwK-n may be around Tau. Admission tl> Membership. Brother Toon : —I! see that the subject of the proper plan of Receiving members into churches is in agitation ; which has, probably will, call forth manly and various plans of men. Dr. Gill says : “ Admission to baptism lies solely in the breast of the administrator, who is the only judge of for it, and has the sole power <jf receiving to it, and re jecting from it.” There is neither example nor precept in the New Testament fork church’s sitting in judg ment on experiences to determine their eligi bility for membership. But in every instance Dr. Gill’s sentiments are attested. Then why not adopt our Lord’s plan ? Zaccheus. Rising Fawn, Dade county, Ga., Feb, 11, 1867. jP>lMfio«i. * The Three Types of Religion. Every one who has taken the trouble to think of it knows that there are three great tendencies of religious thought, according to which, rather than according to the popular denominational names, religion is logically separated into three systems.' And this, if more clearly apprehended, and more con stantly borne in mind, would serve to relieve the confusion of micd which arises from see ing this constant revival of old errors in the church, and the development of new errors bv way of remedy. Two of these tendencies are natural and human, the third only su pernatural and divine in its origin. The one of these is Ritualism, which seeks to relieve man’s conscious want of some sort of religion, by show and pomp to impress him through his sensesyind symbols to impress him through his imagination. The second is Rationalism, which seeks to relieve him by hiding from him his native depravity and sinfulness, and by diverting his conscience with nice reasonings of ethics. The third is Spiritualism, which seeks to relieve him by first expounding to him this inarticulate consciousness of sin, and so to convince him of his guilt and helplessness as to make him look away from himself to “ the Lord our righteousness.” The extreme form of the first is seen in fully developed Popery. The extreme form of the second, in Atheism and Pantheism. The extreme form of the third, if it can have an extreme, is seen in a thoroughly revived soul under the movings of the Spirit of God, as the Chris tians were, for instance, at Pentecost, or as the Brainardsand Henry Martyns of the church in later days. The true conception of the relations of these three theories is not represented,as many seem to assume, by a line, of which Ritualism and Rationalism are the two poles, and Spiritual ism the centre. The position of the three is rather triangular. Assuming the true spirit ual religion of the heart as the point of view, it will be found that the other two stand in antagonism to it, as well as, in antagonism to each other. The conflict of religion in the world i$ ever a triangular contest. The forces of evil come in from different directions upon lines which converge upon the “ truth as it is in Jesus.” And it often happens that both the hostile forces, though in antagonism to each other, are in active movement, at the same ! time, upon the truth. This three fold diversity of religion is not merely an incidental phenomenon, arising from the different circumstances of men, or even from their different mental constitution. It will be found inanifesting itself in every one of the constituent elements that go to make up a system of “religion. Beginniogs*ith the first question of all— the source whence men shall derive their no tions of religion, these systems are utterly diverse. In answer to the question—How shall we know what is true? What rule has God given to guide us ?—the Ritualist of every degree, though with more or less dis tinctness of expression, answers with the creed of Pius 4th. The rule is in the Apos tolical traditions of the church, and also the sacred Scriptures, in Che sense which the Holy mother Church puts upon them. The Ra tionalist answers—The rule given of God, to guide us in religion, is the light of nature, both the inner light of the soul, and the outer light from His works and government of the world ; and, to aid us in the use of the rule, the writ ings of certain pious men of old, in the Scrip tures. Spiritualism answers : “ The word of God contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, is the only rule to direct us ; and these Scriptures teach both what inan is to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man.” Thus the source of religion with ope, being man, with the other, nature, ;with the other, God—it is manifest that the systems flowing from sources so opposite, must be generally different. Accordingly the difference shows its*elf in whatever aspect we contemplate re ligion. Is it a theology in the scientific sense? Ritualism has no theology, cares fop none be yond its system of casuistry, or “ Moral Theol ogy,” applying the dicta of the Fathers and Doctors to the inner cases of' moral action in the life of men. The Rationalist has a the ology only in the sense of certain- human rea sons concerning God and His ethical govern ment of the world. The Spiritualist alone has the theology—a science gathering up its system of truths from the broad field of rev elation, as other sciences gather up their truths into a system from the broad field of nature. Is it religion as a practical life ? The Rit ualist conceives frf it as a life of uninquiring obedience w orders and rules prescribed by the great society—the Church—through her doctors. The Rationalist, as a discipline of the school—an intellectual esthetic or eth ical culture, under the guidance of wise, philo sophic masters. But the Spiritualist conceives of it as a life of God in the soul—the moving of a Divine Agent upon the soul through the revealed truth—taking the things of Christ and showing them unto us. And .a life of holy obedience to Christ’s laws, not from the motives of a hireling, working for pay, but of an affectionate child obeying from love to Him who first loved us. . f So, now, is religion contemplated as a wor ship ? The Ritualist seeks to affect the soul spiritually by impressions upon the imagina tion and the senses. Gorgeous architecture, vo luptuous music, dim religious light, symbols, scenic representations—man millinery of all sorts—these are his contrivances for affecting the soul. The Rationalist, on the other hand, worshipping as he does, “ he knows not what,” and even in of worship as simply a reverent sort of philosophy and ethical thought, needful, occasionally, as one of the elements of self-culture. The Spirit ualist conceives of public worship as the gathering of the people for communion and converse with the Great King-; a dialogue be tween Heaven and earth, in which God speaks in the reading and expounding of the word, and the soul answers back in the praise and- k r.evfls, therefore, to be impressive worship, is the consciousness that God is specially there uttering His own word, and hearing the soul’s utterance in response. Now, the great difficulty is that men do not recognize this fundamental diversity except in the extreme exhibition of it. These two ten dencies to Ritualism and Rationalism being native to the carnal mind, there is a con stant tendency to one or the other whenever the spiritual consciousness dies out in the re newed soul, Once Christ says of any one, “ Thou, hast left thy first love”—then we may certainly look for a defection from the true spiritual—either toward Ritualism in one di rection, or Rationalism in the other. So that not only among Papists and High Churchmen are we to look for Ritualism ; nor only among Unitarians of all grades look for Rationalism. The germs of both, in greater or less manifest development, are to be found in all Evangeli cal churches. Hence, when one or the other tendency becomes active, and the spiritual life is at a low ebb in the church, then the tenden cy is in the effort to do something to check the evil; to rush off in a different direction, indeed, by way of counteraction, but to an equally destructive error. Thus it comes that when Rationalism becomes active, in a lifeless church, Ritualism becomes active in order to counteract. And when, now, Ritualism be comes the active tendency, then Rationalism is awakened to corresponding activity. — Free Christian Commonwealth. Imitation of Christ. It is reported in Bohemian story that St. Wenceslaus, their king, one winter night, go ing to his devotions in a remote church, bare footed, in the snow and sharpness of unequal and pointed ice, his servant, Redivivus, who waited upon his master’s piety, and endeav ored to imitate his affections, began to faint through the violence of the snow and cold, till the king commanded him to follow him and set his feet in the same footsteps which his feet should mark for him. The servant did so, and either fancied a cure or found one, for he followed his prince, helped forward with shame and zeal to his imitation, and by the forming footsteps in the snow. In the same manner does the blessed Jesus; for since our way. is troublesome, obscure, full of objection and danger, apt to be mistaken, and to affright our industry, He commands us to mark his footsteps—to tread where his feet have stood ; and not only invites us forward by the argument of his example, but he hath trodden down much of the difficulty, and made the way easier and fit for our feet.— Jeremy Taylor. The Spirit’s Teaching. Bishop Jewell, in his defence of his Apolo gy, well observes—“ As the Scriptures were written by the Spirit of God, so must they be expounded by the same; for without the Spirit we have neither ears to hear, nor eyes to see. It is the Spirit that opens, and no man shuts; the same shuts, and no man opens. The same Spirit prepared and opened the heart of Lydia, that she should give ear to and consider the things that were spoken by Paul In respect of the Spirit, the prophet Isaiah says, ‘ They shall be all taught of God.’ ” Assaults of Infidelity. Dr. Alford, Dean of Canterbury, is report ed, by the London correspondent of the Watchman and Reflector, to have said before the Young Men’s Christian Association: “ I will say, with full knowledge of most of what has been done, both here and abroad, to at tack the Holy Scriptures, that, in my own view, each one of those attacks has but strengthened the position of the Christian be liever. I can not see that one of the defences has fallen.” The Dean is considered the first living critic of the New Testament belonging to the evangelical party in England. The Universe and its God. Who ever heard, save in the literature of fable and of fairy land, of lakes* of silver or seas of mercury ? Yet it appears, if we may trust the latest indications traced by scientific men upon the subject, that large portions of the surface of the moon are cdt'ered with molten silver, mercury, or other glittering metal in a condition of fluidity. Who has not thought that Swift reached the utmost limit of imaginative license wl/en he wrote of miniature men surrounded ay a scenery of miniature nature ? But science now tells us of miniature planets, Lilliputian worlds, re volving in their orbits like the greater globes. Not only are there asteroids of “ only three or four miles in diameter,” —what a charming realm for one of the dispossessed Serene Transparencies of Germany !—but others de scend to the size of “ a caunon ball, or even a pistol bullet.” And if, in these infant worlds, there existed fully developed vegetable and animal kingdoms, we can only say that the marvel would not be too great for the power of Him with whom all magnitude, colossal or microscopic, can be nothing more than the form in which he chooses to make his power and presence perceptible to the finite mind. It is a suggestive, it is almost an awful thought, that “ the further we penetrate into space, the more unlike to those we are ac quainted with become the objects of our ex amination, —sun, "planets, meteorites, earth similarly, though not identically constituted, stars differing from each other, and from our system, and nebulae more remote in space and differing more in their character and constitu tion.” It is now beyond question that light is a force. Like all other forces, it tends to ex haustion; or, to speak correctly, to be con verted into another form of force while in action. The light from a sun, or from a star, becomes gradually paler and more faint as it traverses immensity; and there may be— who can doubt that there are?—worlds so distant that their light dies utterly beffre it reaches our locality in space, and that are thus necessarily and eternally hid from us. It is our duty to rise, so far as the mind is capable of rising, to the sublimity of the conception thus opened up to us of Divine power. Why should that part of the universe which has come within the possible compass of human vision be so great as that which lies beyond it? Why should not that which can not pos sibly be seen by us transcend in extent that which we see, as much as the vision of God ti'anscends the vision of man ? Vanity in Ministers. I do not think a'minister dicidedly self sufficient and self conceited is the means of doing much good ; for there is something in such a character, which fails to win cordial affection and respect, and to give the Word power from his lips. I knew such a man, pos sessing a good deal of real ability, who was settled years and years over a large church, with very little success. His words seemed to fall to the ground, and his vain remarks were bandied about among the ungodly with contemptuous sneers. On one occasion, at the close of a discourse of some power, he paused, and, looking around him, said : “ What more can I say on this subject? What more could be said? If the angel Gabriel himself were to put his trump through yonder ceiling, what more could he say upon this subject?” A®*’r atrqiqipns Qfl’orts ujlon hi sown part, it being apparently the hefghtiof lfls he obtained the title of D.D. ; and thenceforth wrote upon all his papers and upon the fly-leaf of all his books, Rev. Dr. . His wife, sympathising with him fully in his weakness, always spoke of him to others as Dr. , and was frequently known to reprove his parishoners who, through inadvertence, failed to give him his proper title. Very different ly did they view this honor from the vener able Dr. Beecher, who once said to a brother clergyman : “So, they have made you D.D., 1 see; they make every thing D.D. now-a days: they have made meline, you know ;” —which last clause cleared the brow of the minister, which was somewhat clouded*by the previous intimation.— Journal and Messenger. , The Way to Seek. A farmer who had long neglected the house of God, arid indulged in the use of profane language, one day lost a bank note in his barn. He searched for it in vain. At length he said, “That note is in the barn, and 1 will search for it until I find it.” Accordingly he went to the barn, and carefully moved the hay and straw, hojir after hour, till he found the note. A few weeks before this he had been awaken ed to a sense of his need of a Saviour, and had earnestly sought to live a better life. His anxiety increased. A few weeks after he lost the note, he sat by the fire musing on the state of his soul, when he turned to his wife, and asked: “What must you do to become a Christian ?” “ You must seek for it,” srhe re plied, “as you sought for that bank note.” It was “ a word fitly spoken.” He followed the direction ; and, through the mercy of'Christ, he found the “ pearl of great price,” and re joiced in the hope of the glory of God. Heathen Estimate of the Bible. It is pleasing to find even an intellectual appreciation of the Holy Scriptures among the prejudiced votaries of Boodh. Some knowledge is necessary to faith, and the Bible will repay the fullest publication with infor mation that points the way of faith. A native heathen newspaper in Bengal bold ly advocates the introduction of the Bible into government schools, saying of it: “ It is the best and most excellent of all English books, and there is not its like in the English lan guage.” Another heathen writer, in a pam phlet published two years since, strongly re commends that the “precepts of Jesus” should at once be made a class-book in the government schools. Interpretation. In interpreting the scriptures, many do as if a man should see a man. have ten pounds, which he reckons by 1,2, 3,4, 5,6, 7,8, 9, 10, meaning four was but four units, and five five units, etc., and that he had in all but ten pounds; the other, that has seen him, takes not the figures together as he doth, but picks here and there, and thereupon reports that he had five pounds in one bag, and six pounds in another bag, and nine pounds in another bag, etc., when, as in truth, he has but ten pounds in all. So we pick out a text here and there, to make it serve our turn, whereas if we take it altogether, and consider what went before and what followed after, we should find it meant no such thing.— Selden. Superficial Metaphysics. —Your dabblers in metaphysics are the most dangerous crea tures breathing; they have just abstraction enough tp raise doubts that never would have entered into another’s head, but not enough to resolve themi —Abraham Tucker. Repentance. —A deep sorrow for sin, aris ing from a genuine love of God, and a heart felt grief for having offended him, are indis pensably necessary to a truly evangelical re pentance.—Port Royal. WHOLE NO. 2: ■ § Mtfg. Seed Time and Harvest. Go forth, though weeping, bearing precious seed; Still sow in faith, though not a blade is seen ; Go forth ; the Lamb himself the way will lead ; The everlasting arms are o’er thee spread, And grain shall ripen where thy tears have been. Take up thy burden, bear it joyfully, Fear not sin's darkest cave to enter in ; Though fierce thy foe, yet Israel’s Lord is nigh, And o’er thy fellow men he hears thee sigh, Seeking, for him thou lov’st, a soul to win. Go forth; there is no shadow on thy brow, No tear that rises, no swift cry to bless Thejseed thou barest, but He heedeth. Thou Shalt soon rejoice—light breaketh even now ; On 1 to the mark of thy high calling press. The pastures of the wilderness may mock Thine earnest labors. Look thou to the hills. God shall the chambers of his dew unlock, Till living water from the smitten rock, With fertilizing streams, each furrow fills. Fret not for sheaves ; a holy patience keep ; Look for the early and the latter rain ; For all that faith hath scattered, love shall reap, Gladness is sown ; thy Lord may let thee weep, But not one prayer of thine shall be in vain. ’Tis thy beloved gently beckons on; His love illumes for thee each passing cloud; When yon fair land of light at last is won, And seed time o’er, and harvest work begun, He’ll own the fruit that shadows now enshroud Behold 1 the Master standeth at the door ; Cry for Sabaoth’s Lord—raise thou thy voice; Shdrt hour of labor, soon shall it be o’er; The dawn is breaking—night shaft be no more; Then with thy harvest Lord thou shalt rejoice —Anna Shipton. The Master’s Touch. In the still air music lies unheard; In the rough marble beauty hides unseen ; To wake the music and the beauty, needs The master’s touch, the sculptor’s chisel keen. Great Master, touch us with Thy skillful hand— Let not the music that is in us die ; Great Sculptor, hew and polish us: nor let, Hidden and lost, Thy form within us lie. Spare not the stroke; do with us as Thou wilt; Let there be naught unfurnished, broken, marred; Complete Th} r purpose, that we may become Thy perfect image, 0 our God and Lord. Respectability and Lifelessness. The fact is, too many of our churches are dying of respectability. We are too respect able to be in earnest in religion. It would not do to let the heart appear in religious ex ercises. All emotion but that of sentiment alism must be stifled. An uhimpassioned d< meanor, cold and heartless as an iceberg, must characterize our approaches to God. Even such immense subjects as*eternity, eternal judgment, the soul, salvation, Christ, Gob, must be treated with cool intellectuality, without causing any excitement, or disturbing the ease of any sleeping conscience. A man in earnest—full of zeal and enthusiasm for tin rescue of men rushing down to hell with the speed of heart-throbs—is by'many regarded as Festus did liis prisoner : “ Paul, thou ar; , beside thyself! ’■ - We may-Bfe jntT»b*ke&—w;t*w#ulJ fain Uopv we are—but we greatly fear thk't this spirit is on the increase ; that every year larger num bers substitute a studied and regular observ ance of externalities in religion for heart de votion, for spiritual worship, and for patient, steady, sturdy service of God in every day life. The church in which it obtains is shorn of its strength for aggressive work in the w<?rld. It may, if wealthy, pay its minister largely and contribute liberally for benevolenl enterprises. It may have pride in having such a representative; and then it becomes easy so to do; for it is simply ministering to self. But there its work ceases. Beyond this it does little or nothing for souls and Christ, for man and God. Retaining the form, it loses the power of godliness.— Christian In telligencer. Life-Building. There are Oriental mosques, which exhale ceaseless perfume—musk having been mingled with the mortar when they were built. So should the Christian build the structure of his life—mingling even with the toils pertaining to the present state, the graces which shall emit perpetual fragrance, in the nostrils, not of man alone, but of “ our covenant God ” as well! Does he till the ground ? Is he an artisan 1 Has he devoted himself to a pro fession ? Does his country marshal him among her soldiers? Has she raised him to a seat and share of power with her rulers ? Every where, all that he does, no matter how earthly in its nature and relations, should be heavenly in the spirit of the doing. There should be so much* of Christ and of the things of Christ in all his works, as to diffuse an odor of sanctity through them. He may do this. He may constrain men to take knowl edge, that “ airs of heaven breathe over ” the structure of his life, as he builds it day by day. Then shall the building exhale perfume, even when it has been broken down by the great subverter, Death! His name shall “ smell sweet, and blossom in the dust.” And when that structure is rebuilt in the resurrec tion of the just and “ the revelation of the righteous judgment of God,” it shall be as “ the altar of gold for incense ” in that temple, of which the Lamb is the light, and from which the worshippers go no more out! The Body, In reading a sketch of that great and good man who has recently passed away, Dr. Whately, Archbishop of Dublin, we met with this incident connected with his last illness. A few nights before his death a friend who was sitting by him, as that body so full of weak ness and pain, but having in it the seeds of an immortal vigor, was wasting away, quoted the words, “Who shall change our vile body.” “Read the words—the apostle’s own words,” said the Archbishop. Not having a Greek Testament at hand, this friend, who knew th" meaning of the original, repeated from meuiw ry, “ This body of our humiliation.” “ That’s right; not vile—nothing that He made is vile.” How Grace Show's Itself.—The roots of plants are hid under ground, so that th y themselves are not seen ; but they appear in their branches, flowers and fruit, which argue there is a root and life, in them. Thus the graces of the spirit planted in the soul, though themselves invisible, yet discover their being and life in the track of a Christian’s life, his words, his actions, and the frame of hia car riage.—Leighton. Human Influence. —God can employ all methods, but chiefly loves to work upon man by man. —John Wesley. Satisfaction. —The moment a man is sat isfied with himself, every body else is dissat isfied with him. —Arab Proverb. |