The Rock of Wisdom; An Explanation of the Sacred Scriptures

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| | The true Ministers are Instruments indeed, in order to spread the Cement of Brotherly Love which unites us in one Sacred Band; and so let us all agree and work in peace. Ps. 133 _ And so remember me: this denotes the Angel in the bush, and the Star in the East. Exod. 3rd. Ch. 2nd Ver _ Mat. 1st. Ch. 7th. & 10th. Ver _ Rev. 1st. Ch. 16th. & 20th. Verse. W.M. Caw, Sc.

THE

To the Reader

TO THE READER.

This little book is for the more wise to give counsel, wherein I fail, and the more ignorant stumble, for want of knowledge, for we must first learn what is right and then pursue it; I have no doubt that when this comes before the face of the public there may be many misrepresentations on this subject, but my soul is at stake for I stand as a minister of God, 2 Tim. 4 c. 1, 2 v and some may reject this on the account of my being a descendant of Ethiopia, and if so, then you may anticipate the feeling of your unworthy author; and he is well aware of the particular prejudice that still seems to exist from some whites towards that nation of people which is called Ethiopians, but my earnest prayer to God is that the time may soon come when that overruling prejudice of sin will die among all nations, and that the pure love of God may spring up in every heart and shine as the morning star, and that the Gospel may bear on the prejudice of man, and I feel it necessary to place my dependence upon the great Rock of Ages, in whose name and with whose words I come to you this day.

I choose to dedicate this little treaties to you, because sometimes those providences which appear rather out of the common line, are hard nuts in the mouth of a weak believer; but some of you have known me from the beginning and have been eye witnesses of most of the facts which I am going to relate, and if you will allow me to make an honest confession. My conscience has often lashed me for not keeping a diary, or rather minuteing down the many conspicuous providences of God, which have appeared to me in times of trouble; but like ungrateful Israel, I went the only way to forget his work and to be unmindful of the rock of my salvation, and now I have nothing to trust to, on this creation but my own treacherous memory, unless the Lord be pleased to send the comforter to me, and if he comes he will bring all things to my remembrance, whatever God hath said unto me in the way of providence. I am sure the earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof, the world and all that is thereon, all the cattle of the forest are his and so are the flocks of a thousand hills, yea, the corn and the wine, the oil thereof, and the flax; yea, the wicked deceiver as well as the deceived are the Lord's, and it is he that maketh one man poor and another rich, that bringeth down and lifteth up, and no man can add to the fixed statute of God whether the statute be in grace or providence. The battle, saith the wise man, is not to the strong nor the race to the swift, nor bread to men of skill, the weak are often sure to win the field and the cripple to win the heavenly race, and even fools to accumulate the greatest fortunes. There is no adding a cubit to the statute even in the least circumstance, then why take ye thought for the rest? and now the reader will please to take notice by pursuing these pages, that it should be attended by much prayer; feeling myself small among men and particularly to the learned, when considering my inability; I can make out to write my name, but being impressed by the spirit of God for some years to set before you life and death, in the way of a small treatise, and I hope that it will prove the happy power of God unto salvation to many souls. Many of the readers of this pamphlet may suppose this attempt was attended with a great deal of self, but my blessed master who stands at the helm of affairs to them that love and serve him, I often times say, as Moses said, "thou God seest me," also it is likely this treatise may fall into the hands of the critic, if so I pray to my God while he is a criticising that God may break down his obdurate heart if not a christian, and that his chains may fly off although they are made fast by the devil, likeunto the man that Christ spake unto "come out of the man thou unclean spirit," see Mark 3 ch. 8 vs. also this treatise may fall into the hands of some enemy to the cross of Christ, if so, I hope they will take in consideration the things that makes for their everlasting peace, now hold fast all things that are good, and if there is any thing that will not be beneficial throw it away and do not stumble over it and go down to hell, for I love your souls although I am of the Ethiopian race, and never had the chance of being; taught in the Colleges or Academies and taught the rudiments and sciences &c. unlike to Paul who was brought up at the feet of Gamaliel, one of the judges of the Sanhedren, neither like our great men of America who have been taught all these rudiments and are now capable of taking their station in any department of life standing at the head of affairs; but such as my God gave unto me, I will with all pleasure give it unto you so that you may stand fast in the liberty where Christ has made you free, for these things are commanded, and let no man despise thy youth but be thou an example of the believers in word in conversation in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity, see Tim. 4 ch. 11, 12 vs. I have one more requesting desire in my heart that has been there may years, ever since I began preaching the gospel, which has never yet been granted though I really believe it will in God's own time and way, and when it is accomplished perhaps my dear friends may hear from me again, till then farewell, be of good comfort, live in peace and the God of peace shall be with you, amen, amen.

Even thine in faith and affection,

N. CALWELL CANNON.

certificate of dr. j. spangles, of zanesville, ohio.

I do hereby certify that the Rev. N. C. Cannon, a minister of color in the Methodist Episcopal church, was from the fore part of July 1826, confined to his bed and room for a considerable length of time in consequence of serious indisposition, and that he, the said N. C. Cannon, took considerable medicine, during which time I attended to him, and I further certify that he was necessarily confined for a greater length of time than above stated, at a time when I was unable to attend to him owing to absence, his general health during the summer of 1826 was generally precarious, every time I saw him which was very frequently.

J. SPANGLES.

March 27, 1827.

certificate of dr. d.w. rhodes, of zanesville, ohio.

I hereby certify that I was called upon and did attend N. C. Cannon, a preacher belonging to the Methodist African church, sometime last July or August, (having made no charge against him the length of time I do not recollect,) and that he was then laboring under a severe affection of his bowels, so much so as to prevent him from attending to any business at that time.

D. W. RHODES.

Biography of the Author

BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR.

The author of this small treatise thought proper to give a small sketch of his life while residing at home with his father in the county of Sussex, State of Delaware.

My Father, B Cannon, who was born in the same county together with my mother,who both enjoyed the love of God at an early period of life and often endeavored to instill upon my mind the great advantage of making prayer unto my maker, which lovely instruction often reached my heart, I still lived a good while in a moral state and thought I was good enough and so procrastinated the time until I was about or between fourteen and fifteen years of age, I then took their advice that there must be something besides living in a moral state, and I being in a class meeting on one Thursday I heard the experience of a young girl about fourteen years of age, which deeply impressed my mind more, that I must be born again or never see God's face in glory; under this conviction I went with a bowed down head like a bullrush until I was about sixteen years of age, it pleased the Almighty to speak peace to my soul through the experience of the child and preaching of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. My father lived until the 6th of January, 1813, and departed this life triumphantly in the faith, and I believe this day he is in Heaven, and he gave me this advice on his death bed, to follow his example set before me and to keep Christ in my heart if I traveled far or near, that I would always find friends; after the death of my father I lived in the same county about three years, I took a notion to go on the water for the space of one year in which I did keep Christ my foremost object in life all the time, and then I went to Philadelphia and joined the society, and at last I was called on to take charge of a class, from that I passed the quarterly conference for an exhorter, and after that received license to preach and joined the travelling connexion. But here I would wish to give some moving causes before I joined the itineracy as a preacher.

After my conversion I was deeply impressed to go and preach the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, in which I disobeyed on the account of feeling not competent because I could not read very well, but that condemnation it appears was always in me, by these means I delayed my time, at last I started to go a journey and I was stopped by a thundergust and was caused to stop at a friends house, I was more affrighted when I recollected that a man and one child was killed in the same house by lightening,and I thought of my disobeying my master's call, that he was about to do me the same, I scarcely could pray, however I went to bed in the name of the Lord and went to sleep, an angel came unto my bed side in a vision to me, he appeared to have a candle about two feet long, tapped me on the shoulder and said arise and go with me, and I arose and sensible when I went out of the door and I came on a walk about four feet wide, and it; appeared to be solid gold, on each side stood popular trees about three feet apart, and it appeared to reach to the heavens; on viewing the sight I was lost in astonishment, I wondered what part of the country I was in that I ever saw the like, I thought of the western part of the country, but I found it was not that, and when I cast my eyes down it appeared that I stood on a sea of glass and seeing the black surface rolling beneath, and I said unto myself good Lord I shall fall for I am gone, and then thought of the words of our Lord to Peter "oh ye of little faith," and then I went on for some great distance but I do not know how far, at last I came to a large wall and put my left hand against it, and my hand stuck fast and the glass vanished away from beneath me, and nothing held me but my hand against the wall; when the glass vanished away I looked beneath me and I saw hell, and the discovery of some people, I had a knowledge of some hung by the hair of their heads, and others by their tongues, and others by their thumbs, and others by their two big toes, and in many other situations too awful to mention, and I saw a tree and it appeared to be about ten miles broad, and on that tree there was every color that I had ever seen here, and I asked my guide what this tree meant and the different colors, he answered and said unto me the tree represents the power of the wicked men, and the colors were the ways and means the Devil had to tempt the people with, then it appeared unto me that there were numbers of hatches, the pit flew open and the liquid flames of fire blazing and the people in the flames as thick as fish in a pond, and the awful shrieks and cries I never heard neither before nor since; it was about six months before I got clear of it, and then I was told to march forward and the walls appeared to open and I went into the most beautiful place that I ever saw or beheld, the greatest light I ever saw and there was no sun nor moon nor stars, the light my guide had looked like a candle when lighted at noon day, I was told to bear to the right and I entered into a large building as round as a plumb, and I could not see any end to it, I viewed the Savior the friend of sinners standing, and he said unto me have you come at last, I am here said I, and he had a book about four feet wide and proportioned accordingly, and I read in that book beautiful things which made my heart glad, but I could not remember any thing that I read afterwards, and I heard the sweetest music that I ever heard, the redeemed from among all nations of the earth, and then I turned to come back but an angel called me back, and had a testament in his hand opened and he showed me the 10th chapter of the Revelations 6 verse and said unto me, here is a text you must preach from for you are called to preach the everlasting gospel to mankind, and I refused and said unto him that is a sealed book for our wisest men feel afraid to undertake it, and I feel myself very small in the eyes of men, but he said unto me the third time you must preach it and he told me two propositions on it, and then I saw light on the subject which gave me great encouragement to take up the cross, while being faithful unto God he will be with me and bring me out and then I turned to come away and awoke from my vision in the night about 12 o'clock, and could see to pick up a pin in any part of the house, being so dark when I laid down that I could not discover any thing whatever in the room, and then when I awoke and seeing such a light, being much alarmed, I rose up out of my bed and fell upon my knees and made a covenant with my God if he would only give me grace I would go through by much weakness and preach the gospel and call sinners, and from that time to this day I have felt good times and seen good times, and I do expect to see greater yet, and would say unto all that is called to preach go and preach the gospel, by doing this you may save yourself and many I hope that may hear thee.

I remain dearly beloved, your affectionate servant in Christ.

N. COLWELL CANNON. Minister of the Gospel.