■ -+— ^-SHt»- 
 
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 CHARACTEIIISTICS OF A^ltHE MINISTER OF CimiST. 
 
 
 &ERMOK, 
 
 PREACHED AT THE FUNERAL 
 
 / 
 
 t 
 
 SENIOR PASTOR OF THE FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST IN NORWICH, CONN. 
 
 BY CORNELIUS B, EVEREST, 
 
 Fastor of said Church. 
 
 NORWICH; 
 J. DUNHAM. 
 
 1835. 
 
The original of tliis book is in 
 tlie Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924104035872 
 
SERMON, 
 
 Kr^'lA-- 
 
 2 TIMOTHY, IV. 6, 7, 8. 
 
 "For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have 
 
 fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have Icept the faith. Henceforth there 
 
 is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall 
 
 give me at that day ; and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing."" 
 
 The apostle Paul was a distinguished servant of the Lord 
 Jesus Christ. Possessed of strong^ native powers of mind, 
 and a constitutional boldness and ardor, brought up at the feet 
 of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the 
 
 ' law, he was qualified in early life to exert a pow;.erful influence 
 in whatever cause he might engage. With respect to religion 
 he was a rigid Pharisee, and a violent opposer of Christ and, 
 his cause. He made havoc of the church, and thought that 
 he ought' to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of 
 Nazareth. But as he went to Damascus, with authority an,d 
 commission from the chief priests, he was arrested by the" 
 Lord in a miraculous manner, and smitten to the. ground. He 
 heard a voice saying unto him, " Saul, Saul, why persecutest 
 thou me?" The arrows of conviction were fastened in his 
 heart. He was renewed by the Holy Spirit. And in the 
 exercise of unconditional submission to God, he inquired, 
 " Lord, what wilt thou have me to do ? " And the Lord said 
 unto him, " Rise, and stand upon thy feet : for I have appear- 
 ed unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a 
 witness, both of these things which thou hast seen, and of 
 those things in the which I will appear unto thee ,; delivering 
 
 , thee frpm the people and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I 
 send tbee,, to .©pen their eyes, and to turn them from darkness 
 
to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may 
 receive forgiveness of sins, and arr inheritance among them 
 which are sanctified, by faith that is in me." 
 
 Thus he commenced a new life ; new with respect to prin- 
 ciples of action, and object of pursuit. And he subsequently 
 directed all his effi>rts, in humble dependence on the Holy 
 Spirit, to build up the cause which he had endeavored to de- 
 stroy. He was raised up to do a great work ; to be a pioneer 
 of the Lord's host to the Gentile nations; to be a star of the 
 first magnitude in his kingdom. His labors through life were 
 crowned with marked success ; and he prepared the way for 
 rich harvests of souls long after he was at rest in heaven. 
 
 When he wrote this Epistle to Timothy, he was in prison at 
 at Rome, expecting soon to.be put to death. He stood in 
 reality between two worlds, reviewing his past life, — his la- 
 bors, trials, success, and enjoyment in preaching the gospel ; 
 and looking forward into eternity with unshaken confidence 
 that he should receive in heaven a crown of righteousness. 
 And he stated in few words his own views with respect to 
 his whole ministerial life. " I have fought a good fight, I 
 have finished my course, I have kept the faith." He was con-. 
 fident that he had been a devoted, persevering, and success- 
 ful servant of the Lord Jesus, and was ready to depart, " not 
 in the gentle decay of exhausted nature, not in the weaning 
 languor of a sick bed, not in the calm of a peaceful dissolution, 
 suffering only the pains inseparable from an ordinary death y 
 but he was ready to meet the hand of violence : he was ready 
 to pour out his blood upon the scaffold ; he was longing to 
 join the souls which were beheaded for the witness of Jesu^ 
 and for the word of God." 
 
 The apostle has here presented the prominent characteris- 
 tics of a true minister of Christ. 
 
 Some perhaps may question the propriety and reasonable- . 
 ness of presenting for general imitation a character so highly 
 gifted, so peculiarly circumstanced as this inspired apostle, this 
 devoted martyr. But the labors of the ministry in every age 
 are to be performed, and its trials sustained in somewhat of the 
 same spirit and temper that he possessed. And the higher his 
 
successors in the ministerial office rise in imitation of his faith, 
 zeal, self-denial, and untiring efforts, the more they advance 
 the cause of truth and righteousness, and commend themselves 
 to every man's conscience in the sight of God. 
 
 That which lies at the foundation of fidelity in a minister of 
 Christ, and which ought here first to be noticed, is vital piety. 
 It is by no means the duty of every christian to be a public 
 teacher of religion, but every true minister of Christ is a sub- 
 ject of the renewing grace of God. He is a believer, not 
 merely in divine revelation, but in the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 His faith, like that of the apostle Paul, and which he kept, is 
 a lively conviction of the power and goodness of God^ and of 
 bis mercy in Christ Jesus, as reyealed in the gospel. It is an 
 animating and pervading principle produced in the heart by 
 the Holy Ghost, spreading and enlarging in its progress, and 
 gathering energy as it proceeds. 
 
 It is a characteristic of a true minister of Christ to preach 
 the word of God in its simplicity and purity. The charge of 
 the apostle Paul to Timothy, in addition to all his other in- 
 structions on the subject, shows that he felt deeply the im- 
 portance of this trait of character. " Preach the word ; be 
 instant in season, out of season j reprove,, rebuke, exhort with 
 all long-suffering and doctrine." 
 
 To preach the word of God is to present and inculcate its 
 doctrines^ precepts, promises, and threateningg. It is to give 
 a. right view of God himself, wliose perfections are infinite, 
 whose law is, holy, just, and good, and whose dominion is an 
 everlasting dombion ; who exists in three persons. Father, 
 Son, and Holy Ghost, the same in substance, eq^ual in power 
 and glory ; and who by his works of creation, providence, and 
 redemption, will promote his own glory. 
 
 It is to give a right view of man in his unregenerate state, as 
 dead in trespasses and sins, and justly condemned ; and of the 
 plan of redemption formed in the counsels of eternity, and pro- 
 gressively carried into execution in the advent of Christ, in his 
 atoning sacrifice, in the dispensation of the, Holy Spirit, in the 
 repentance, faith, and obedience of sinners resulting from the 
 energies of divine grace on the heart, in the institutions of the 
 
6 
 
 gospel, in the perseverance of belierers, and in the results of 
 the last great day. 
 
 A true minister of Christ realizes that his warrant from 
 heaven is, " Thus saith the Lord." No worldly policy in 
 withholding or mutilating the message of God will alter its na- 
 ture ; for truth and error, light and darkness, life and death^ 
 are unchangeable. But God has proclaimed his own name, 
 written his own law, proposed his own terms of salvation, and 
 spread out before us, in all the vividness of truth, the realities 
 of eternity ; and it is the preacher's duty, as an ambassador to 
 guilty men, to deliver the message just as it is recorded on the 
 sacred page. Besides, nothing is so convincing to the human 
 mind, nor so powerful and salutary in its influence on the heart 
 and life, as plain scriptural truth. 
 
 It is worthy of remark, however, that a minister of Christ 
 feels it to be important to adapt his instructions to the capaci- 
 ties and wants of his hearers. There is doubtless a difference 
 in congregations with respect to intellectual attainments, habits 
 of thought, tastes of mind, and a variety of external circum- 
 stances. There are also different characters in the same con- 
 gregation, the penitent and impenitent, the moral and immoral, 
 the awakened and careless, the prosperous and afflicted, the 
 old and young ; and although the word of God should be 
 preached in its simplicity and purity, there should be an ap- 
 propriateness of instruction that each one may have his por- 
 tion in due season. 
 
 It is a characteristic of a true minister of Christ to preach 
 with earnestness, solemnity, and affection. " Now then," says 
 the apostle Paul, " we are ambassadors for Christ, as though 
 God did beseech you by us ; we pray you in Christ's stead, 
 be ye reconciled to God." On what subjects in the universe 
 should a man be in earnest, if not on concerns of eternal mo- 
 ment .' Who would entrust his property, much less his life, 
 in the hands of an advocate at the bar that would enter upon 
 the cause with no apparent zeal and interest ? But this is in- 
 deed a case of life and death. It respects both body and soul 
 forever. Good men are somewhat different in their constitu- 
 tional temperament,' and in their modes of thinking, speaking, 
 
and acting ; and they may have different degrees of grace. 
 But under a solemn sense of his own responsibility, of the du- 
 ty and danger of the impenitent, and of the nearness of eterni- 
 ty, a true minister of Christ will have his heart in the work, 
 and, in a greater or less degree, preach as a dying man to dy- 
 ing men. 
 
 In doing this, will he not be solemn ? Every consideration 
 derived from the character of his divine Lord and Master, from 
 the nature of the message that he is required to deliver, and 
 from the future world where he must soon meet his hearers, 
 attaches deep interest to his work and throws an air of solem- 
 nity around the sacred desk. 
 
 And does he not love the souls of his fellow-men ? Does he 
 not labor for their salvation? Though he must inculcate 
 truths which exalt God and abase the sinner, and point out the 
 danger and duty of unbelievers, he will feel the importance of 
 doing it with that kindness and affection which, under God, 
 is best calculated to accomplish the desired object. 
 
 A true minister of Christ is influenced in the discharge of his 
 duties by a consideration of the grace of God which he has re- 
 ceived, and of ike solemnity of his ordination vows. 
 
 Does he ask, Why was my attention arrested, my conscience 
 convicted, my soul renewed, my guilt forgiven ? His mind is 
 furnished with an answer : " By the grace of God I am what 
 I am." But it was not enough that he indulged hope of sal- 
 vation. He felt for his fellow-men, and ardently desired to be 
 engaged through life in the work of the ministry. He prayed 
 for divine direction, consulted the word of God, watched the 
 leadings of Divine Providence, and cherished the influences of 
 the Holy Spirit. His path was made plain. He was led from 
 step to step until his hopes were realized ; and he felt an obli- 
 gation to go forward, and do all in his power in the Redeem- 
 er's cause. The day of his public consecration to the work of 
 the ministry arrived. It was a solemn day to his souL Be- 
 fore God, and angels, and men, he renewedly vowed allegi- 
 ance to the throne of heaven, took the charge of immortal 
 souls, and entered a field that he must cultivate in view of eter- 
 nity. He now feels that he belongs wholly and emphatically 
 
8 
 
 to Christ, and that he should indulge himself in no hesitancy, 
 no misgivings of heart. Influenced by these solemn conside- 
 rations, he desires, in all his future ministry, to be faithful to 
 bis divine Lord. 
 
 " Would I describe a preacher, such as Paul, 
 Were he on earth, would hear, approve, and own, 
 Paul should himself direct me. t would trace 
 His master-strokes, and draw from his design. 
 I would express him simple, grave, sincere ; 
 In doctrine uncorrupt ; in language plain, 
 And plain in manner; decent, solemn, chaste. 
 And natural in gesture ; much impressed 
 Himself^ as conscious of his awful charge. 
 And anxious mainly that the flock he feeds 
 May feel it too ; afiectionate in look, 
 And tender in address, as well becomes 
 A messenger of grace to guilty men." 
 
 It is characteristic of a true minister of Christ to be lahori'- 
 ous in his great and important work. The example and in- 
 structions of the apostle Paul, on this branch of the subject, 
 present it in a very interesting point of light. " Ye know — 
 after what manner I have been with you at all seasons, serving 
 the Lord with all humility of mind, and with many tears and 
 temptations which befel me by the lying in wait of the Jews ; 
 and how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but 
 have shewed you, and have taught you publicly, and from 
 house to house ; testifying both to the Jews, and also to the 
 Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord 
 Jesus Christ." " Meditate upon these things ; give thyself 
 wholly to them ; that thy profiting may appear to all. Take 
 heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine : continue in them ; 
 for in doing this, thou shalt both save thyself, and them that 
 hear thee." " But thou, O man of God, flee these things ; 
 and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, 
 meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal 
 life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good 
 profession before many witnesses." " But watch thou in all 
 things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist,' make 
 full proof of thy ministry." 
 
 The life of a faithful minister of Christ is indeed a laboriotu 
 
9 
 
 one. Chrisl owns him— joul, body, talente, lime, and influ* 
 ence, and requires him to devote them all to his appropriate 
 work. It is hot to be supposed however that a minister ought 
 BOt to allow himself time for occasional relaxation and exer- 
 cise. The preservation of his health, and the continuance of 
 his usefulness, require it. Nor is it claimed that he is a pev 
 feet man, in the highest sense of the term. But he makes his 
 sacred work the great object of his labors. Nor can he expect 
 to satisfy fully all the people of his charge, however devoted 
 he may be to their spiritual interests. Many think that it is 
 easy work to discharge the duties of the ministry ;— >but Q, 
 what an abundance of labor is requisite, what deep solicitude 
 and unremitted diligence, which exbanst the strength, drink up 
 the spirits, and prey upon the very life of the consecrated ser- 
 vant of Jesus. 
 
 A true minister of Christ aims at the glory of Godf in the 
 salvation of soiUs. This is his great object,, which infinitely 
 exceeds every other — which occupies his mind,, enlists his feel'» 
 ings, and calls forth bis energies. Losing sight of himself in a 
 great measure, he keeps God and eternity in view, and labors 
 for the conversion of sinners, and the edification and enlarge- 
 ' mentof the church. It has been well remarked, by a distin- 
 guished writer, that the " perfection of christian character does 
 not so much consist in this excellence, or that talent, or the 
 other virtue — in the performance of some right action, or the 
 abstinence from some wrong one, as in the determination of 
 the whole soul for God." 
 
 It is not meant that a minister of Christ has no regard to his 
 ovra character and welfare. He looks well to the state of his 
 own soul, sacredly regards his character that he may have a 
 good report of them that are without, and studies to shew him- 
 self approved of God, a workman that needeth not to be asha- 
 med, rightly dividing the word of truth. In all this, he regards 
 his usefulness, no less than his enjoyment in his Master's 
 work. Though all do not obey .the truth, however plainly, af- 
 fectionately, and faithfully delivered, to some it is a savor of 
 life unto life. And who can estimate the extent of the bles- 
 2 
 
10 
 
 sing in such a case ? How enraptured will be a miniver bf 
 Christ to meet in heaven those who were converted to Grod by 
 bis instrumentality ; and to hear the benediction, " Well donej 
 good and faithful servant ; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." 
 
 In the dying experience of the true ministers of Cfaristj 
 there is unquestionably a difference. And it may arise, in some 
 measure, from external causes, the peculiar structure of the 
 mind, the nature of the disease, and the influence of medicine ; 
 as well as from different degrees of grace. Some may die in 
 less apparent triumph than others, and yet give evidence en- 
 tirely satisfactory to survivors, that they were in readiness to 
 depart. But few. at the close of life are favored with that 
 high degree of confidence, and joy with which the Apostle 
 Paul looked into eternity. But few with the pious Payson 
 can say, " The celestial city is full in my view. Its glories 
 beam upon me, its odours are wafted to me, its sounds strike 
 upon my ears, its spirit is breathed into my heart." 
 
 A true minister of Christ however has good hope through 
 grace. He has something of heaven in his soul. Looking 
 back upon his past life, he is conscious of many imperfections 
 of character, of many deficiences in duty. All his success in 
 preaching the gospel, he ascribes to God ; all his hope of sal-' 
 ration is in his mercy through Christ. And, having fought a 
 good fight, and kept tlie faith, he firmly hopes to receive in 
 heaven a crown of righteousness. 
 
 The subject naturally leads our minds to a consideration of 
 the character of our beloved friend and venerated father,whose 
 remains we have just deposited in the silent grave. 
 
 The Reverend Joseph Strong was a son of a respectable 
 clergyman in Coventry, Connecticut, and was born Sept. 21j 
 1753. Possessing strong powers of mind, and enjoying supe- 
 rior advantages for an early and thorough education, in con- 
 nection with the influence of pious example, he became prepa- 
 red while young for distinguished usefulness in subsequent life. 
 He graduated at Yale College in 1772. Previous to that pe- 
 riod he had become a hopeful subject of the renewing grace 
 of God, and a member of his visible church. Having com- 
 pleted his academical course at an early age, he returned to 
 
11 
 
 Cdllege in compliance with tlie advice of his father, and, as s. 
 resident graduate, reviewed most of his former studies- He 
 next made suitable preparation for the ministry, and became a 
 preacher of the gospel. In the course of Divine Providence 
 he was led to Norwich, and was ordained over thi^ church and 
 society March 18th, 1778, on which occasion, the ordination 
 sermon was preached by his brother, the late Dr. Strong of 
 Hartford, and the charge given by his father, the pastor of the 
 church in Coventry. 
 
 To a disposition uncommonly amiable, was united a heart 
 always alive to the wants, the comfort, the interest, and the 
 happiness of others. Amid the various duties, changes, and 
 trials of life, his feelings were admirably regulated by the pre- 
 cepts of the gospel. He was a devoted husband, an affection- 
 ate parent, a kind neighbor, and a good citizen. 
 
 As a scholar, he stood deservedly high. His mind was 
 acute and discriminating, and his memory uncommonly reten- 
 tive. With respect to literary acquirements, classical taste, and 
 a sound judgment, but few have been his superiors. Thesff 
 are traits ef character of no small importance in the great work 
 of the christian ministry, and which he retainedjo' the Very 
 close of life. 
 
 In addition to all bis other qualities, he possessed, in no 
 small degree, those prominent characteristics of a true minister 
 of Christ that we have been considering. He was evidently a 
 renewed man. His piety was built on christian principles. — 
 To the declarations of the Bible, he gave implicit confidence. 
 He firmly believed what are called by way of distinction, the 
 doctrines of grace, and cordially approved of them. He knew 
 God. He was experimentally acquainted with the truth as it 
 is in Jesus. The Redeemer was precious to him ashis divine 
 Instructor, atoning Sacrifice, and rightful Lord. Of all this, 
 he has given evidence by a life devoted to the service of God, 
 and regulated by the precepts of the gospel. He was reserv- 
 ed, except with his intimate friends, as to his own religious ex- 
 ercises j and adverse to all ostentation and display. There was 
 nothing boisterous in his religion, nothing transient. It seemed 
 inwrought into the very temper of his soul, and exhibited itself, 
 
not as a passionate excitement, but as a steady, acthre, faoly 
 principle. 
 
 This departed servant of Christ preached the word of God, 
 it is believed, in its simplicity and purity. His sermons were 
 doctrinal and practical, presenting in due connection the grace 
 of Gfod, and tba necessity of human agency, — ^the deep de- 
 pravity of sinners, and the duty of immediate repentance, feith, 
 and obedience, — the terrors of the law, and the consolations of 
 the gospel. He preached Christ and him crucified, and show- 
 ed, in connection with the claims of the gospel and the retri- 
 butions of eternity, that the test of the genuineness of a 
 Christian profession is a holy life. His sermons were always 
 written with care. His positions were supported by scriptural 
 argument. The subject was methodically arranged, admira- 
 bly condensed, clearly illustrated, and forcibly applied. His 
 object was rather to enlighten the understanding than to ad- 
 dress the passions, that his hearers, under the influence of 
 truth, might know their own hearts and the method of salva- 
 tion, and unconditionally submit to God. He earnestly de- 
 sired that all who publicly professed the Christian religion 
 might do it understandingly, as necessary to the preservation 
 of the peace and purity of the church. 
 
 In preaching the word of God he was simple, grave, sin- 
 cere. He was earnest, solemn, and affectionate, evincing to 
 all who heard him that he feh deeply the importance of the 
 message which he delivered, and anxious that they should feel 
 it too. He felt a weight of obligation pressing upon him to be 
 faithful, as be contemplated the grace of God which be had 
 experienced, and the solemn vows which he bad taken upon 
 himself in his public consecration to the work of the ministry, 
 as he looked upon the people of his charge, and extended his 
 thoughts onward to the judgment. 
 
 Having enjoyed more than an ordinary share of health, he 
 lost by being detained from public worship only a very few 
 Sabbaths during his ministry. He was devoted to the interests 
 of his people. He preached a great many sermons, and pra- 
 formed a great amount of parochial and other ministerial labor. 
 In his addresses to the throne of grace, whether in the pul- 
 pit, the lecture-room, or the private dwelling, be was peculiar- 
 
\y solemn, fervent, and appropriate. He showed that his 
 heart was right with God ; that he had a deep sense of the 
 greatness of the Being whom he addressed, of the wants of 
 himself and others for whom he plead, and of the preciousness 
 of Christ in whose name he approached the Father. 
 
 In parochial labors and concerns he evinced sound judg- 
 ment and christian prudence, in connection with that independ- 
 ence of mind which is ever suitable to a minister of Christ. 
 And we doubt not, that his great object in the work of the 
 ministry was to promote tise glory of God in the salvation of 
 souls. His labors were not without success. In his Half 
 Century Sermon, he has made the following statement : " I 
 do not recollect a single year of my ministry, without some 
 instances of awakening and conversion. ' In the shaking of 
 the olive-tree, two or three berries have been found in the top 
 of the uppermost bough ; four or five in the outmost fruitful 
 branches thereof.' At three seasons, more especially, san- 
 guine hopes were excited that the Lord was about to work 
 wonders on our behalf. But though painful disappointment, 
 to a degree, formed out the result, still it will be remembered 
 with gratitude with regard to each of them, that it proved the 
 occasion of very considerable increase to the church." 
 
 Not long after that sermon was delivered, he was permitted 
 to witness, in connection with the present pastor, a still more in- 
 teresting revival, as the fruits of which more than one hundred 
 united with the visible church of God. He was indeed a sin- 
 cere and cordial friend of revivals of religion. 
 
 He was a member of the Corporation of Yale College eight- 
 een years, and performed the duties of that responsible station 
 with discretion and fidelity. His mind took a comprehensive 
 view of the whole subject that was presented to him. He wag 
 an accurate observer of men and things ; a prudent and wise 
 counsellor. He received from the college in New Jersey the 
 honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity. 
 
 Dr. Strong has been one of the lights that have shone in the 
 Christian church. Divine Providence has made him, during 
 a long life, an able and faithful minister of the gospel, and an in- 
 strument of advancing the cause of tha Redeemer in the world. 
 
It is here worthy of remark, that the period from the ordi-' 
 nation of Dr. Lord to the death of Dr. Strong was 117 years. 
 It is indeed a fact of rare occurrence that two men, without 
 mentioning the period of joint labor, should occupy a station 
 so long, or that a church in this changing world should not 
 be destitute of a settled pastor a single moment during so 
 long a period. As our departed friend said with reference to 
 his predecessor, so your present pastor can say with reference 
 to him, both as to cordiality and length of time : " It is one of 
 the most pleasing recollections of my past life, that I was per- 
 mitted to serve with him in the gospel, as a son with a father ^ 
 almost six years." 
 
 During this period, entire friendship and cordiality have ex- 
 isted between us. Nothing has transpired to mar our mutual 
 enjoyment. The speaker has endeavored to profit by this 
 aged father's experience, and to make the evening of his life 
 pleasant ; while he, I doubt not, has equally labored to pro- 
 mote the usefulness of his colleague. 
 
 The last time that he met with us in the house of God was 
 on the first Sabbath in January, 1833, when he took part in 
 the administration of the Lord's Supper. His prayers and ex- 
 hortations, flowing from the fullness of his soul, and pro*- 
 nounced with trembling lips, led us to feel that it might be, as 
 he said, the last time that he should meet us at the sacramental 
 board. As a patriarch, he commended us to God, and took 
 bis leave. From that period to his death he has continued 
 as before, humble and devout, patient and resigned under in- 
 firmities and trials, firm in bis attachment to Christ, and happy 
 in God. The close of his life, calm and bright, was like the 
 setting of a summer's sun. 
 
 Thus he died on the 18th of December, 1834, in the 82d 
 year of his age, and the 57th of his ministry ; leaving a wife 
 and three children, a numerous circle of relatives and friends^ 
 a beloved church and congregation, to mourn his departure. 
 " And T heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, 
 Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth j 
 yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors ; and 
 their works do follow them." 
 
15 
 
 To the bereaved family and relatives, I am happy to impart 
 all the consolation in my power. I know, my friends, that you 
 weep and mourn. But few are as highly favored in life as you 
 have been — the widow with a husband, and the children with 
 a parent so kind and affectionate, so wise and fahhful, present- 
 ing through Ufe an example of unaffected politeness, of manly 
 virtue, of evangelical piety. The more and greater were his 
 excellences, the greater is your loss. But be truly thankful 
 that he has been to you so rich a blessing, and spared so long. 
 Realize that the Lord does all things right ; that though clouds 
 and darkness are round about him, justice and judgment are 
 the habitation of his throne. You may not sorrow even as oth- 
 ers which have no hope ; for if you believe that Jesus died and 
 rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God 
 bring with him. That endeared form, though deposited in the 
 grave, is not forever lost. He who is " the resurrection and 
 the life " hath abolished death, and brought Ufe and immortal- 
 ity to light through the gospel. Your friend will rise incorrupt- 
 ible and immortal, and wear in heaven a crown of righteous- 
 ness forever. 
 
 May the widow's heart enjoy the consolations of God,which 
 are neither few nor small. Casting her burdens upon the 
 Lord, may she be sustained by his arm of strength, and be en- 
 abled by victorious grace to say, " It is the Lord, let him do 
 what seemeth hmp^ood." 4. 
 
 May the chil(freriihave grace to become wise unto salvation. 
 May the Lord' BS»their friend and everlasting portion. May 
 they be cheered by his presence, protected by his arm, and ta- 
 ken at last to heaven. 
 
 Brethren and friends of this church and congregation ! your 
 former pastor, who has long stood on these walls of, Zion, and 
 proclaimed the unsearchable riches of Christ, who feh that 
 your interests were his own, whose counsels and sympathies 
 you have enjoyed in the house of God and in your own dwell- 
 ings, has closed his labors. He has gone to unite with patri- 
 archs, prophets, and apostles, in the employments of heaven ; 
 he has gone to unite with him who was his predecessor and 
 venerable colleague in the ministry, and with those of his owa 
 
16 
 
 dear flock whom the great Shepherd and Bishop of souls had 
 removed before him. But in what condition has he left you ? 
 Some are members of the visible church of God. With you 
 be has often communed at the Lord's table. He has counsel- 
 led you. He has wept and rejoiced with you. And though 
 dead, he yet speaketb. He calls upon you to be In readiness 
 to follow him into the eternal world ;. to be steadfast, unmovea- 
 ble, always- abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as 
 ye know: that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. 
 
 Bat it cannot in truth be said, that all who have set under 
 his ministry ' are truly piousv -Sjpme have rejected' the message 
 ' which he delivered, and despised the' goodness and forbearance 
 of God. O what an account you must, render at the kst day, 
 when you meet him at the judgment-sear of Christ .' Unless 
 you become reconciled to God before you die, inevitable ruin 
 awatts you. 
 
 In addressing this church and people, I am constrained to 
 add that I feel a heavy load of affliction pressing upon me.. 
 I have lost a father in the rainistiy, an intimate friend, my ven- 
 erable colleague. '■ My father ! my father ! the chariot of 
 Israel, and the horseman ^thereof." 
 
 Fathers and brethren in the ministry! This subject is one of 
 ilo ordinary importance to us. And the Providence of God, 
 in connection wkh it, speaks in deep, impressive tones. Are 
 we faithful to declare the whole coubse|:o^^^^.and in the 
 spirit and manner which he requires ? ^D^^H^ra^ the great 
 apostle Paul, as he copied Christ, reali^n^^^^^pisssponsi- 
 bility is high, that our time is short, ffekt we mS^Jmeet our 
 hearers at the bar of God ? 'While fe^ indeed are permitted 
 to rfmam as long as our departed friend in the field of labor, 
 many are.^t down in the midst of their 'usefulness, and re- 
 moved frdfcft the church and the world. It becomes us to keep 
 our hearts with all diligence, and count not our lives dear to 
 us, so that we may finish our course with joy, and the ministry 
 which we have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel 
 of tiie grace of God. Motives, awful aaeternity, urge us to be 
 faithful. O, may we be approved and accepted at last, as true 
 mintsiert of Jesus ! *. '