The pastor's gift

Preface

A want, long experienced, naturally leads to the creation of a supply, if no supply is to be found. Such have been the facts in regard to the following pages. They had their origin in the necessities of the author, as felt by himself while a young Christian, and also during his subsequent labors as a pastor. They are not designed to supercede any of the excellent works already in use, but to fill an apparent vacancy. With this end in view, and with a humble hope that they are not wholly unadapted to the object proposed, they are herewith submitted to the friendly attention of the Christian public,

Author.

Chapter I. Preliminary Considerations

PAGE

Repentance the First Duty enjoined in the Gospel 9

The Importance of Practical Knowledge

to the Christian 11

The True Standard of Christian Piety... 15 The Christian Profession should be highly

esteemed 23

We should be true to ourselves as Professing Christians 27

Chapter II. The Church

The Object of Forming Churches 32

The Duty of Uniting with the Church.... 37

What it is to unite with the Church 43

Withdrawing from the Church, and Losing Membership in it 49

Chapter III. Prayer

The Design of Prayer 56

Secret Prayer 60

Family Prayer 67

Social Prayer 73

Social Prayer by Females 78

1*

CONTENTS,

Chapter IV. Private Personal Virtues

PAGE

Filial Virtues 82

Settlement in Life , 86

Conjugal Virtues 93

Parental Virtues 98

Virtues to be exercised in various other

Relations in Life Ill

A Cheerful Disposition 121

Self-Control 123

Unyielding Integrity 126

Benevolence 134

Observance of the Sabbath 142

Chapter I. Preliminary Considerations

REPENTANCE THE FIRST DUTY ENJOINED IN THE GOSPEL.

" Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." This was the burden of John's message as he came " preaching in the wilderness of Judea." So with that of Christ and the apostles. Their first injunction ever was " Repent ye and believe the Gospel" — " Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost."

Men had estranged themselves from God and, therefore, the first thing to be done was to recall them to a sense of their wrong, restore them to the Divine favor, and place them in the proper attitude of love and obedience.

The ship had lost its compass and been driven far out of its way in the adverse storm, and therefore, as the sun reappears, its helm must be borne hard down and the prow be turned anew to its true haven.

There is no partial reformation demanded in the Gospel. It is to be entire, embracing the affections as well as the outer life. We are to become "new creatures " in Christ, new in our love, new in our hope, new in our purpose, and new in every thing. This change, or reformation, is a first requirement. It is so of necessity. It is first in time and first in importance. It underlies all subsequent acceptable service. It is that which restores us to the moral image and to the favor of God, and which he now, first of all, demands of " all men, every where." It is a renovation without which we cannot become Christians or be saved. We "Must be born again — born from above — born of the Spirit — born of God ; " or as it is expressed in different language in other places, we must become "The children of God — be created in Christ Jesus unto good works — have the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost." This must be first or all else will be insufficient.

This repentance, or radical reformation, is supposed to have been experienced by those to whom the following pages are more particularly addressed. How has it been with you, kind reader ? Have you repented ? Have you been "born of the Spirit? " Are you now, or are you not, walking " in newness of life? "

THE IMPORTANCE OP PRACTICAL KNOWLEDGE TO THE CHRISTIAN.

Were a man about to start on a journey, new to him, he would first need know the way and the necessities which attend it. Were he about to commence a new work, he should first understand what the work is and how it is to be performed. So in the case before us. The young Christian starts on a journey, which though often pursued by others, has never been attempted by himself. He leaves the old, the open, and the broad way, and enters the new, the unfrequented and the straight. He commences a work of which he has often heard, but never before attempted himself. There is a necessity, therefore, of the appropriate knowledge. Religion must be supposed to have, not only a theory, but a practice. It has its system of duties, not less than its system of doctrines, And these duties we cannot imagine to be left to chance, accident, or our own mere momentary impulse, but unchangeably fixed by its own great Author. But if these duties are fixed and invariably the same, they cannot be strictly performed, except where they are previously known. "My people are destroyed for the lack of knowledge. Therefore the people, that doth not understand, shall fall."

We know that much is often said of the affections; nor do we object to this in its proper place and in its just proportions. The heart must be kept with " all diligence ; for out of it are the issues of life." The affections have a strong influence over the conduct, and therefore, cannot be observed with too much exactness, or regulated with too much care. But at best, the affections often vary, while the duties of religion always remain essentially the same. The affections or the feelings, therefore, cannot be trusted as the rule of life.

You speak of impressions or of the Spirit's influence- These are worthy of our careful attention, but evidently we cannot place our entire dependence on them. This may be sufficiently seen from the fact that the greatest pretenders here are often the champions of the wildest and most palpable errors. And further ; if without question or qualification, we can depend on our impressions, or on the Spirit's influence, of what use is the Bible ? There is none. Its necessity is superseded. But if we throw away the Bible, where are w^e ? The foundation of our belief and hope is gone. We are lost. We are left to grope our way through deserts wild, and midnight gloom, wandering we know not whither, and ever liable to plunge into inextricable depths. Without chart, compass, or polar star, we are cast adrift on a wide, and, to us, unknown ocean, bewildered in darkness, and lost amid angry and pathless waves. But the Christian does take the Bible for his guide. This is his acknowledged and cherished light. But a guide is of no use, except it is understood and followed. A lamp is worthless, if hid under a measure. The Bible avails not, if there is something else paramount to it.

It is knowledge then, and knowledge onlj that can safely direct us as Christians. It is by this, and this alone, that we can hope to escape the dangers which attend our course, or assure ourselves that we are in the path of truth and duty. And if we take the Bible for our guide, we must know what it teaches. We may, indeed, seek knowledge from other sources. We may become familiar with the nature and the laws of our complex constitution. We may learn from the sacred desk, from the wisdom of the wise and the experience of the good. But our great source of instruction is the Bible. To us, as Christians, this is the Book of books. It is our sun. Other volumes are valuable in their place, but in the department of Christian duty, they are to be viewed only as mirrors or lenses to reflect the light of the sacred page or passages in life, otherwise dark, or to concentrate its rays on difficult points. u Get wisdom, get understanding ; forget it not, neither decline from the words of my mouth. Forsake her not and she shall preserve thee ; love her and she shall keep thee. Wisdom is the principal thing ; therefore get wisdom, and with all thy getting get understanding. Exalt her and she shall promote thee; she shall bring thee to honor, when thou dost embrace her."

THE TEUE STAND AKD OF CHRISTIAN PIETY.

In the preceding Section we have noticed the importance of practical knowledge. This truth we have further illustrated in the one now before us. The discharge of an obligation necessarily presupposes a knowledge of the same. And if we would meet an obligation faithfully, and to its full extent, we must first clearly understand its entire claims. We profess to be Christians. We feel that this profession implies duties, and if we would meet these duties to the full, it becomes to us a most important question, what are they ?

Or in other words, what is the true standard of Christian piety ?

In endeavoring to place the question now before us, and to which we invite a candid and earnest attention, in its true light, we define the answer to be unreserved consecration. We are to do " no evil." We are to serve God, not in part, but wholly. We are to present our hearts to him in full submission, and " our bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable, which is our reasonable service."

Every one presumes the devotion of the minister, and especially, if he be a missionary, to be, necessarily, entire. All suppose a suitable incumbent of that sacred and laborious office, must have supreme love to God. He must be willing to perform any duty, however unpleasant, to make any sacrifice, however great, to practice any self-denial, however severe. He must be anxious to know, to do, and to suffer the entire will of God. This view is correct. But this standard of piety, thus justly understood and even demanded for the minister or missionary, is the one by which every Christian, in every situation, is bound to act. Why should it be thought otherwise ? On what principle can we require a greater degree of devotion in one disciple of Christ than in another? Is the one more, or the other less than a creature of God ? Is the one redeemed by the blood of Christ, and wholly so, more than is the other ? Is the letter and the spirit of the Bible one thing to one and another thing to another? Certainly not. No one pretends this, or any thing like it. Why then make a difference in the standards of piety which you would set up, respectively, for the two?

You say that we should have much piety to become missionaries. True. But if we have not piety enough to become missionaries, have we enough to become ministers ? And if we have not enough to become ministers, have we enough to become church-members ? And if we have not enough to become church-members, have we enough to cherish the faintest hope of heaven ? To these inquiries there can be but one consistent answer, and that answer is no. It may be that few only have the qualifications requisite to

IS become missionaries or ministers. It is certain that but few are called upon to make the effort, and practice the self-denial which are inseparable from the office and circumstances of those who labor in these responsible departments of usefulness. The spirit, however, which would make us willing to do this, should the providence of God mark it as our duty, is the spirit which is required of all. It is the disposition which we all cherished, when we were first adopted into the family of God. This was the very breath and beauty of our first love. Our wills were then subdued ; we were brought into sweet subjection to the law of Christ, and our great anxiety was, to know and to do His whole pleasure. So it should ever be. Like the buoyancy of childhood; like the first glow of youthful affection, that peculiar warmth of feeling, which is so common to the young Christian, will naturally and necessarily subside. But his purity of devotion, his strength of affection, and his willingness and anxiety to serve should pass away — never. It should be increased rather. As our evidence becomes more clear, and our hopes more fully confirmed, our love, likewise, should augment in strength ; we should become more and more like Christ, and more and more devoted to Him.

This entireness of devotion is to exist, not only in religious things, but also in those ivhich are temporal. Says the apostle, " Whether therefore ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." And again, " Ye are bought with a price ; therefore glorifyGod, in your bodies and in your spirit, which are God's." No language can be more comprehensive than this. Whatsoever we do, be it religious or secular, public or private, relating directly to God, to our fellow-men or to ourselves, it is to be done as a matter of duty or privilege ; as something required by our Maker, or as something well pleasing to Him. Religion is not the business of the Sabbath merely, but of every day. It is not an outside garment, designed for particular places or occasions ; it is a badge of societyship, to be worn at all times and amid all scenes. It has its seat in the heart, and, changing and controlling this, is to produce a corresponding outward reformation. It is a precious jewel, preserved in a transparent casket, and, consequently, always to be seen, when the casket is present. It places the will of man in that relation to the will of God, which the small wheel, in Ezekiel's vision, sustained to the larger one ; it is "a wheel in the middle of a wheel." There is to be a will within a will, the greater embracing and controlling the less.

Do you ask for proof of the correctness of the position here assumed ? But this we have in the^most natural and simple reasoning, independent of revelation. If we reflect for a moment, we must feel that man as man, and ourselves as individuals, had a Creator ; that we were created and brought into the world for some specific object; that this object is marked out by the law or the will of the Creator ; and, consequently, that to understand and to do this will, is our first, our highest, and our all-comprehending duty.

But to these natural and unavoidable deductions of reason, we have added the example of Christ. His language is, "Nevertheless, not as I will but as thou wilt." So the

Saviour prayed, and in accordance with this prayer was his entire conduct. But " The servant is not greater than his Lord ; neither is he that is sent greater than He that sent him." But if Christ made the will of God His rule of duty, how can we follow His example, and yet make any other principle our rule of duty ? The thing is impossible. The moment we attempt this we cease to follow Christ.

But in addition to reason and the example of Christ, we have the express testimony of Scripture. This is embraced in " The first and in the great commandment," " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." Our love to God, then, is to be supreme. But supreme love will require full submission and unreserved obedience. Says our Saviour, in the prayer which He taught his disciples, " Thy kingdom come and thy will be done, in earth, as in heaven." But how can it be our duty to pray, first of all, that the will of God be done, unless it be our duty to labor, first of all, to do this will? Again; "If any man come to me, and hate not" (that is ?

love not less than me) " his father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.' ' And still again, in the language of Paul, "I beseech you, therefore, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not comformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your minds, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God." These and numerous other passages, leave us no standard of duty, but the one we have affirmed ; viz. : that of entire consecration to G-od and Sis service. What is here said "to one," is said "to all," and is binding upon all. As creatures of God, and as the redeemed of Christ, our only appropriate attitude is that of Paul, when he prayed, " Lord what wilt thou have me to do ? " And as* duty is made known to us, like Paul, we should hasten to obey, conferring "not with flesh and blood," nor counting our own "life dear" unto us. Reader, do vou stand in this attitude ? Are you thus obedient ?

OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY.

THE CHRISTIAN PROFESSION SHOULD BE HIGHLY ESTEEMED.

" As a man thinketh, so is he." Our feelings in regard to an enterprise, will characterize our conduct in relation to it. If we view it as trivial or unworthy, we shall be without zeal or energy in its pursuit, On the other hand, let it magnify itself in our estimation, and it will inspire us with fidelity and bear us forward with unfaltering courage. So in the case before us. With low views of the Christian profession, no one will do justice to it, or to himself as one that bears it. His ideas should be those of the most elevated character, making him believe that he has before him the greatest, and most deserving object which it is possible for man to pursue,

A celebrated poet has said,

" An honest man's the noblest work of God."

A more correct sentiment would be, a man of consistent piety is this work. Honesty is good so far as it goes, but true piety

£4 will embrace this, while it goes far beyond it. It is this that restores man to a resemblance of what he was before the fall. It is this that restamps him with the image of his Maker ; and it is this that allies him in spirit w r ith the beings above. Look at the relation which he holds to God, the present object for which he labors, or his hopes for the future, and he is alike raised in his moral position far above that of men of all other names, professions or hopes.

Would you be joined with the wise, the good or the great ? The Christian is the disciple of Him who taught as " never man" taught. He is a subject of Him who is " King of kings and Lord of lords." His leader is the Creator and Governor of worlds. He is folded in the arms of divine love. He is a child of God, and not only a child, but one that is " dear."

Do you speak of great purposes or great deeds ? But here the Christian is in advance of all others. He is engaged in a cause which was planned, and is controlled by the Omnipotent One, — which commands the interest and admiration of angels, and which would have more than tasked an angel's powers. He acts as " the salt of the earth :" He stands as "the light of the world." His great work is to recover man from his present sin and woe, and make him better and happier here, and supremely holy and happy for ever hereafter.

Do you point to future hopes and the ultimate reward of toil ? But who has anticipations or recompense like the Christian ? His hope is "laid up" for him "in heaven." He is not only adopted into the family of God, but is made an " heir of God, and a joint heir with Christ." His portion is to be " Durable riches and righteousness — a house not made with hands," — and "a crown of glory that fadeth not away." His "mortality" is to be "swallowed up of life."

Do you compare the state of the mere worldly man with that of the disciple of Jesus ? But what is there in the two which admits of comparison? The feelings, the hopes and the efforts of the one tend downward ; those of the other upward. The one collects his all on this little ball of earth and suspends it by the thread of time ; and the 3 other measures his by the utmost limits of God's goodness, and binds it with the line of eternity.

Do you contrast the Christian with the infidel ? The infidel ! What does he do, or what would he do if he had the power? Mock and defy the Being who made him ; blight every moral virtue ; crush in the dust man's purest and most lofty hopes ; drag him down in feeling to a level with the brute ; and then make to him the future a fearful plunge into the murky chaos of oblivion. The feelings of the skeptic find a home amid clouds and gloom, while those of the believer play amid fields of light and peace. The thoughts of the one grovel in the dust and plod in the mire, while those of the other rise above the heavens, and, with the rapidity of light, range far beyond the measure of present conception. The one may talk of death, as being "a leap in the dark," or "a sleep without dreams ; " but the heart of the other beats for the present with the fullest and most pleasing emotions ; he meets death with a smile, while he looks beyond it with the brightest and most glowing hopes.

Who then would be ashamed to be called a Christian ? Let no one do this who has the least hope of the Christain. Rather let him feel that he can have no higher honor than to be a humble and consistent follower of Jesus. Let it be so while he is alone, conversing with his own thoughts, and with God. Let it be so also amid the busy scenes of public life, and, if need be, amid the scoffs, and jeers, and opposition of the wicked.

WE SHOULD BE TRUE TO OUR PRINCIPLES AS PROFESSING! CHRISTIANS.

We have spoken of the esteem which we should cherish for the Christian profession. We should have scarcely less for ourselves as members of that profession. Do we claim this privilege ? Then we should feel that we stand on high and holy ground. We should realize that the vows of God are upon us, and that the eyes of angels watch to witness their fulfillment. Our calling is a high and holy one, and, while we should feel that we are greatly honored of God in being permitted to share in it, we should be resolved to honor that calling. The just and noble decision ' of Joshua was, " As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Daniel, rather than abate one iota of his long-continued and soulinspiring devotion to Jehovah, was ready to brave the displeasure of the absolute monarch, lose his elevated civil position, and face even the entire troop of lions in their own fiercely guarded fortress. And what said Nehemiah in the hour of his strong and repeated temptations ? His ever to be admired and firmtoned language was, "I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. — Should such a man as I flee ? And who is there, that, being as I am, would go into the temple to save his life ? I will not go in." Here is the proper spirit. Like Joshua, like Daniel, like the three cast into the flaming furnace, or like Nehemiah, the Christian should appreciate his moral position, and, fully appreciating, should stand immovable. He should feel a stain on his character more deeply than he would feel a wound upon his person. With more dread than he would escape the enven-

OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY.

omed and already darted fang of the serpent, he should "avoid the appearance of evil." Virtue should be to him more than the largest and purest material gem.

Humility is indeed a choice Christian grace. A meek and quiet spirit, a gentle and unassuming demeanor is above all price. But there is no reason why we should be ever depreciating ourselves, either in our own estimation, or in the estimation of others. Humble we should be before God, but before man we may stand erect. Mild and yielding in other things, and yet, conscious that we have truth for our principles, and right for our practice, when these are called in question, we should be immovable as the mountains of rock. If duty is doubtful, we may justly hesitate. If it is plain, we should be more willing to suffer death than swerve from it, and thus have the name of Christ reproached. A soldier of Washington or of Bonapart felt that he must be as Washington or as Bonapart was. He must be animated by the same spirit, and armed with the same courage. So it should be with the Christian. He is the soldier of Christ, and he should 3* endeavor to be as Christ was, preserving His spirit and following His example. He should keep aloof alike from great and from small sins. His flight" should "so shine before men," that they, "seeing his good works, should glorify God." Even "from all appearance of evil " he should most carefully "abstain."

In the days of early persecution, Christians were often brought before the magistrates. When thus arraigned, they had put to them as a test question, "Have you kept the Lord's day?" and if true Christians, and true to their profession, their reply was, "i" am a Christian; I must keep it." So should every Christian feel, and this too, at all times and in all places. In the hour of temptation he should say to himself and to others, if need be, "J am a Christian; I must do what I believe and know to be right. I am a Christian, and I must not do what I believe and know to be wrong " There should be inspiration in this thought. It should hold us, as with a spell, from that which is forbidden of God. It should urge us, with unflinching energy, to full obedience to every command. Reader, do you profess to be a Christian? Then never, no never, dishonor that sacred name. It is the name on which rests your salvation, your hope, your glory.

Chapter II. The Church

THE OBJECT OF FORMING CHURCHES.

The term church is used in the New Testament in two senses. One of these is to express the whole number of Christian believers. This is the case in Eph. i : 22 ; Heb. xii : 23. The other and the more common application, is to any number of Christians, associated in one body, and meeting together in one place, for the purposes of worship, instruction, and discipline. — Rom. xvi: 5; 1 Cor. iv: 17; Col. iv : 15. Sometimes, to make the term more specific, we have added the qualifying phrase, "of God."— Acts xx: 28; 1 Cor. i: 2. When two or more religious assemblies are spoken of, they are called "churches," state, national, or other large associated bodies of churches, being unknown in those days. —Acts ix: 31; 1 Cor. vii: 17.

OUTLINES OF CHRISTIAN DUTY.

as

It is in the ordinary use of the term church that we employ it at the present time. We mean by it, simply, a number of Christian believers associated together for ordinary religious purposes. Such bodies were always formed by the apostles wherever a sufficient number of disciples were found. Following, then, this early example, what is the object to be secured in thus forming churches and gathering Christians into them ? This is in no place distinctly defined. We suppose it, however, to be chiefly threefold : the mutual benefit of Christians, the maintenance of the cause of Christ, and the extension of that cause. It seems to be the natural and the necessary result of the common feelings, interest and obligations of Christians. Like different drops of water, they are drawn together from their own inherent attraction, and when thus united, the one has a strong and salutary influence over the other, and the strength of the whole is greatly increased.

The first object to be secured then, in forming thurches, is the mutual benefit of Christians. We say the mutual benefit. We go into the church not only to receive good, but to impart it. We are to aid, as well as be aided ; to bless, as well as be blessed. We are creatures of impressions. We influence others, and they influence us. Our interests, hopes, and feelings blend with those of our associates, and consequently are strengthened or weakened according to the character of these associates. It is therefore in much mercy that the Great Head of the church has ordained that His people should be " together — be of the same mind — keep the unity of the spirit, in the bond of peace — exhort one another — pray one for another — bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ."