Newspaper Page Text
{ heard t’rotil lietiVen in awful proclamation—
Awake 0 sword against my shepherd, and agatns
the man that is my f llow, saivh the Lord of hosts ;
smite the shepherd, and t!je sheep shall be scattei
ed, and I will turn my hand upon the little ones.’
The slumbering swoid of justice can no longe.
sleep in silent forbearance, but with unernng am.
is plunged into his body, and bathed in his blood.
The withering curses of Sinai are pouring hk i a
tremendous and destructive hail-storm npoo lmn ;
the fiends of the dark pit, having been smmnoneu
to the contest in the challenge—“ Now is Vour
hour, and the power of darkness,” as incarnate dev
i!s are gathered thick around him, their unhallow
ed hands reeking in his blood. The loweiing
cloud of almighty vengeance has vieled the sun
in sable sackcloth, and the merciless storm rages
upon him. Three dreadful hour’s suffering upon
the cross, and the work is finished. An all sufficient
sacrifice is made, the holy incense ascends to heav
en, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet
•melling savor. The anti-typical blood is poured
out like water, and .the myriads of our sins, a black
and feartul list, is forever washed away. The por
tentous cloud that lately lowered in the heavens,
big with vengeance, has poured down all its stores
of wrath upon the sacrifice, and now all is calm. —
lie has blotted out the band-writing of ordinances
that was against us, and which was contrary to us,
taking it out of the way, nailing it to his cross.
The Jewish altars need now no longer smoke
with burning inceuse; the bellowing herds, the
bleating flocks, the bleeding birds, and other pant
ing victims need no longer be heard and seen to
<i Jerusalem’s carnal temple ; for their
Enti-type has come, fulfilled, and flung to ihe winds
the former covenant. But O, my brethren and
sisters, let us contemplate for a moment the won
drous work performed in those few hours of suffer
ing, the triumphant victory achieved to be exem
plified after three days repose in the silent sepul
cher.
“ He slept in the tomb till the morning arose,
That signed his release and disturbed his repose;
Then bursting its bars he ascended the sky,
To reign in his glory eternal on high.'’
O yes ! and how soul-animating the thought
that we shall reigo with him by virtue of the blood
be shed for the remission of our sins, and his right
eousness which is unto all, and upon all them that
believe. He has carried our case before the High
Tribunal of heaven ; his blood and righteousness
affording an all-suffi :ieot plea, he is consequently
O-ur ever-prevailing intercessor.
He is ever there for us, and who can be against
ns. He has spoiled the prince of daikness, and is
the victor over death.
“ No more the bloody spear,
The cross and nails no more,
For hell itself shakes at his name,
And all the heavens adore.”
He has broken the manacles that bound us ;
lb* own open the prison-doors that confined us, lei
us poor prisoners go free, and made us the partici
pants of His victory. A radiant crown of lucid
light and brilliant glory surrounds his burnished
SOUTHERN BAPTIST MESSENGER.
throne and crowns bis regal head, while the lum
inous rays fall upon us bis poor benighted chil
dren, to dissipate the daiknets with which we are
enshrouded here below?
“And light our passions to a flame—
Lord how we love thy charming name!”
*“10 hi light we see light.” It pmt av> ‘o u
our sinfulness, dtreh-p-i our thraldom, and exUib
its our bondage. lie shines in <ur hearts, to <rive
us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God
in his smiling countenance. He wo ks in us to
will and to do of his good pleasure, thus hallowing
our devotions, and attuning our hearts to sing his
high praises. O, my Father’s ransomed children,
what wonders has his stying grace wrought for
us ! Shall wo sit in silence and hang our harps
upon the willows? shall a sense of our sinfulness
clip the wings of our faith ! blunt the ardor of our
love, or weaken the anchor of our hope while the
blood and iighteousuess of our great Mediator ad
High Priest shine forth in lucid revelation to our
admiring eyes ?
No, let us look up in humble supplication to the
throne of His grace to fill our hearts with love to
him, love to his noble cause and love to each oth
er, and thereby inspire us to fling to the winds our
cruel jealousies, our blighting piejudices, our petty
differences, our withering schisms, and form us
into one grand orchestra; then prepare us to swell
the stveet anthems of undying love in melling
notes of harmonious melody, to the the lofty
praises of our great mediator the high priest and
apostle of our profession, Christ Jesus.
Your brother iu the gospel of peace,
J. F. JOHNSON.
Union, Newton Cos., Miss., Jan. 3, 1860.
Brethren Editors, and Brethren and Sis
ters —I have thought for some time, for some
cause, I cannot tell what, that I would try to write
out some of my experience for you to publish, if
you think proper; but when I think of my ina
bility to write, and of my nothingness, I shrink
from it. lam no grammarian, very limited in ed
ucation, and hope, if you should publish anything
that I may write, that you will correct it and set it
in order,
I will say to the brethren and sisters, that I was
born in Jasper county, Ga., and my parents moved
from there, when I was young, to Fayette county,
same State, where I lived until I was about grown
—then moved to Alabama. I suppose I was like
all the rest of the human family—an Anninian,
and thought I could get religion whenever I got
ready, and thought, when I would see my father
and mother talking with the brethren, that they
had no troubles, no trials, to incounter with, that
they were done with trouble in this world ; hut
alas ! poor blind creature ! I also thought, when
1 got to be a Christian, that I would be one of the
right sort —would not be getting out of the way, as
l thought some of them did. As I grew up, I had ,
some serious thoughts of God and religion; when
about fifteen, it was the will of the Lord to lay me 1
on the bed of affliction, and that very sorely, inso
much that all thought that I would die; but the i
Lord knew best, and I am still in the land of the
living—a sinner. Yet while on this bed of afflie*
tion, I made as fair promises, and as honest, as hu
man nature could make; but when I got well I
was as had as .ver. And when it was the Lord’s
will to show me that I was a lest and ruined sin
ner before God, it came in a way that 1 was not
looking for. I thought the time had; been when I
might have repented, but now it was too late, and
l was compelled to hunt some solitary* place to try
to piay ; but I could say nothing hut Lord have
rneicy on me, a poor lost sinuer; and it seemed
to me that they fell to the ground. I had previous
to this time thought l was a sinner, but did not
know that I was a lost sinner, and already con
demned ; hut now there was a chance for every
body else to be saved but me. In this condition I
went for months. Sometimes I woulu try to ban
ish such thoughts from my mind, arid would try to
think of them no more; but they would push into
my mind with ten fold more weight. And I tried
to do what I always thought I could do, until I
worked myself out of tools and timber, and fell at
the feet of Jesus. Lord save or I perish ! Come
down on a level with the little child ! L-ke Jonah
acknowledge that salvation is of the Lord ; and
thought it would be just in God if he was to banish
me from his presence forever, and if he saved me,
it was mercy. But still I could not help cry ing
Lord have mercy on me, a poor, lost, aud ruined
sinner. My distress grew heavier on account ray
guilt and condemnation, and it seemed that every
sin was presented to my view. It seemed to me
that it was more than I could bear. I thought I
O
would try to pray one time more, for the last time,
for I thought I should su rely die. I tried to pray f
and how I got away from the place, I know not—
the first thing I knew I was standing with ray face
toward the north, praising the Lord for his good
ness to me. My load of guilt and distress was gone
—my mind was eased, and I felt as light as a
feather all nature seemed to be changed—every
thing looked bright as gold, and it seemed to me
that my troubles were gone. But oh ! what a sad
mistake! In a few minutes the tempter came
along, and said it was all a mistake. Then my
prayer was, Lord if lam deceived, undeceive me.
I could not get my burthen back, though I am of
tentimes driven back to my deliverance—there the
enemy can’t get me any further.
I tolJ my experience—or a part of it—to Smyr
na church. Coosa county Ala., and was received
and baptized in 1837. In a short time I took my
letter, and was in the constitution of Fellowship
church, Tallapoosa county, Ala. I moved some
ten miles from that place—took a letter, aud was
in the constitution of Ephesus church, same coun
ty ; and from there I came to Mississippi, where I
now live. My membership is in a church called
Primitive.
Dear Brethren, I find some Baptists in this
country, though they are few in comparison to the
great number called Baptists, though sound in th
faith.
I would here say to the preaching brethren, Via
it us if you crd, for preachers are scarce in this
45