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CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP, 
 
 OR THE 
 
 CHURCH MEMBER'S GUIDE, 
 
 — \^ 
 
 BY J. A. JAMES, A.M. 
 
 BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND. 
 
 " And are built upon the foundatiih of the apostles and prophets, 
 Jesas Christ himself being the chief corner stone." Eph. ii 20. 
 
 EDITED 
 
 BY J. O. CHOULES, A. M. 
 
 PASTOR OF THE SECOND BAPTIST CHURCH IN NEWPORT, R. L 
 
 Stereotype 3Etrftion. 
 
 BOSTON: 
 
 LINCOLN AND EDMANDS, 
 
 No. 59 Washington Street. 
 
 SOLD ALSO BY CROCKER AND BREWSTER, BOSTON; J. LEAVITT 
 
 NEW YORK J IRA M. ALLEN, PHILADELPHUj 
 
 JOS. JEWETT, BALTIMORE. 
 
 1831. 
 
DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS, TO WIT: 
 
 District Clerk^s Office. 
 Be it rkmembered, That on the third day of April, A. D. 1829, 
 in the fifty-third year of the Independence of the United States 
 of America, Lincoln & Edmawds, of said district, have deposit- 
 ed in this office the title of a book, the right whereof they claim 
 &8 proprietors, in the words following, to wit .- 
 
 " Christian Fellowship, or The Church Member's Guide. By J. A. 
 James, A. M., Birmingham, England. ' And are built upon the foun- 
 dation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the 
 chief corner stone.' Eph.ii.2ifc Edited by J. O.Choules, A. M., Pas- 
 tor of the Second Baptist Churcn, Newport, R. I." 
 
 In conformity to the act of the Congress of the United States, en- 
 titled, " An Act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the 
 copies of maps, charts and books to the authors and proprietors of 
 such copies during the times therein mentioned ;" and also to an act, 
 entitled, "An Act supplementary to an act, entitled, ' An Act for the 
 encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of maps, charts and 
 books to the authors and proprietors of such copies during the times 
 therein mentioned,' and extending the benefits thereof to the arts of 
 designing, engraving and etching historical and other prints." 
 JNO. W. DAVIS 
 Clerk of the District of J^assachusetts. 
 
PREFACE 
 
 TO THE FIRST AMERICAN EDITION. 
 
 IN presenting the following pages to the notice of the American 
 churches, it is necessary to offer some remarks. 
 
 During the few past years, God has graciously poured out his Holy 
 Spirit upon various regions of our country. Zion has broken forth on 
 the right hand and upon the left, and has received a vast accession of 
 converts from those who were once aliens from the commonwealth of 
 Israel. The Church has gazed upon her new-born children with de- 
 light, and inquired, " As for these, whence did they come ?" They 
 are recruits from the world, they are deserters from the army of the 
 prince of the powers of darkness, they have sworn allegiance to anoth- 
 er Sovereign, one Jesus. They have identified themselves with his 
 cause, they are the subjects of his kingdom, they have become stran- 
 gers upon the earth, that they may be citizens in heaven, and they seek 
 that better country. 
 
 It has been frequently lamented, that there was no work upon 
 Church Fellowship, v/hich could be put into the hands of church mem- 
 bers, and especially of our youthful brethren and sisters, embodying 
 under separate heads those scriptural instructions which lie dispersed 
 through the Sacred Volume. I have frequently heard the complaint 
 from ministers, " O that we had a directory for our members, that all 
 our churches and all our brethren might be one in discipline and feel- 
 ing, as well as in doctrine and practice." And since my engagement 
 in pastoral labours, and more especially when lately called to receive 
 a large number of young and inexperienced persons to the fellowship 
 of the church, I have felt that a Church Member's Guide was a desid- 
 eratum. After a careful examination of the various works on this 
 subject, which are in circulation in the English churches, I am per- 
 suaded that I can render no greater benefit to the Christian church, 
 than by presenting to its attentive regard, the treatise entitled, "Chris- 
 tian Fellowship, or The Church Member's Guide," by the Rev, J. A. 
 James of Birmingham. On a careful perusal of the English edition, 1 
 was convinced, that though admirably adapted to the state of the 
 British churches, yet it required considerable alteration to render it 
 extensively useful in our western churches, which have so happily 
 come up from the bondage of National Establishment, passed through 
 the wilderness of persecution, and are planted in this thrice happy 
 land, where government does all for Religion which she asks, wishes, 
 or wants ; and that is, — lets her alone. 
 
 Mr. James has displayed singular ability in his defence of the 
 churches which have dissented from the National Establishment ; and 
 it is gratifying to see so able a champion, wielding such powerful 
 weapons, with so fearless a temper, in a cause so good and holy as that 
 of Protestant Nonconformity. But the existing relations of Episcopacy 
 and dissent in England, which fully justify Mr. James in carrying his 
 remarks on Law Establishments throughout the volume, having no 
 place among us, it is desirable, aud indeed necessary, that all passages 
 
IV EDITOR'S PREFACES. 
 
 of reference to these subjects should be expunged. I may be exposed 
 to the cavils of a few who would blame me for altering an author'3 
 work, adding to or diminishing from it ; but I find all the shelter that 
 I need from such censure, in the opening remark of Mr. James's Pref- 
 ace : " The chief value of a book consists in its utility." The entire 
 civil and religious liberty which we enjoy in this country, has produc- 
 ed habits and sentiments very dissimilar to those which are the result 
 of a different state of society in our father land. 
 
 Bearing this fact in view, I have omitted many expressions, left out 
 whole lines and paragraphs, and in some instances altered words, when 
 satisfied that " utilitif^ required such a course. 
 
 I have pleasure in the belief, that the excellent author would sanc- 
 tion the task which I have assumed ; and that to promote the increas- 
 ed service of his work in the cause of Christ, he would permit its ac- 
 commodation to a meridian very different from that in which its cir- 
 culation was primarily designed. 
 
 May the Head of the church smile on this effort to advance the 
 purity and hajjpiness of that body which he purchased with his own 
 blood 5 and may this work serve to render the members of the church 
 a peculiar people, zealous of good works. 
 
 J. O. CHOULES. 
 
 Mwpart, R. J. March 30, 1829. 
 
 PREFACE TO THE STEREOTYPE EDITION. 
 
 The high estimation in which the Church Member's Guide is held 
 by the religious public has been evinced in the rapid sale of three edi- 
 tions. — The editor, in preparing the first edition, turned his attention 
 chiefly to an omission of all that related to the points in debate between 
 the established church and the English dissenters ; but as the demand 
 for the work is become so general in all parts of the country, that the 
 publishers have determined to stereotype ik, a very careful revision 
 has been made, and some sentences omitted which may accommodate 
 the volume still farther to the state of the American churches. It is 
 gratifying to the editor to receive continued assurances that the 
 Guide is effecting much good. — May it elicit the energies of the 
 Church. She has a giant's strength, but it is in repose. 
 
 The <liscipline and order of God's house should not be neglected* 
 Personal piety, social religion, the majesty of truth, and the diffusion 
 of the gospel, are all connected with the constitution and discipline 
 of churches in the same degree as cause and effect. 
 
 A valuable sermon, addressed as a Charge by Mr. James, at the 
 ordination of his brother, is appended to the present edition, and, it 
 is hoped, will prove an interesting monitor to the pastors of churches. 
 
 Mwport, Jlpril 1, 1831 
 
PREFACE 
 
 TO THE FIRST ENGLISH EDITION. 
 
 The chief value of a book consists in its utility. We may be sur- 
 prised by what is original, amused by what is entertaining, and daz- 
 zled by what is splendid ; but we can be benefited only by what is 
 good. To discover new territories in the world of thought, is an eflfort 
 of genius to which few can aspire. Every sailor cannot be a Colum- 
 bus ; but the labours of the pilot are not to be despised, because they 
 are restricted to the humbler task of conducting the voyager through 
 seas and shoals long known to geography : at any rate, he has fa- 
 cilitated the pursuits of established trade, if he have not opened new 
 fields for the exploits of commercial enterprise. Such are the preten- 
 sions of the author in the following treatise ; he aspires to no loftier 
 character than a guide through channels which, although intricate, 
 are certainly not new. 
 
 The author has treated the subject of church government more in a 
 practical than in a controversial manner. Numerous are the votive 
 offerings which already hang around this compartment of the temple 
 of truth j but they are too generally composed of, or attended with, a 
 chaplet of thorns. In this treatise, the author has endeavoured to sac- 
 rifice, at the same time, to both truth and love, whose altars should 
 ever be near each other. He has endeavoured to state his own opinions 
 with clearness and boldness, but, at the same time, without dogmatism 
 or asperity. His aim has been rather to regulate the spiritual police 
 of our Zion, than either professedly to strengthen its bulwarks, or to 
 increase its means of spiritual conquest ; assured that it is most migh- 
 ty, when it is most holy and peaceful ; and that love and purity render 
 our churches " bright as the sun, fair as the moon, and terrible as an 
 army with banners." 
 
 As the form of church government here exhibited, so far as human 
 direction is concerned, allows of a considerable share of popular influ- 
 ence, the author has adopted two general principles, to which he has 
 
VI 
 
 given great prominence in the following pages ; and these are, the alv 
 solute impropriety of a few rich men attempting to lord it over God's 
 heritage, and the equal impropriety on the part of those who are 
 young, or immature in knowledge and experience, practically assert- 
 ing their claim to equal rights, upon every occasion, in a vehement, 
 contentious manner. In all societies, there necessarily must be some 
 individuals of greater influence than the rest ; but this influence should 
 ever be the result of character and usefulness, rather than of station ; 
 and should be most cheerfully conceded by others, but never forcibly 
 taken by themselves. 
 
 If the author had been acquainted with any treatise on this subject, 
 in which the principles here laid down and illustrated, had been suffi- 
 ciently developed, he would have spared himself the trouble of this pro- 
 duction. The little tract of Dr. Owen's, entitled " Eschol," the ad- 
 dresses of Dr. Harris and Mr. Hacket, and the Catechism of Mr. Mil- 
 ler, are exceedingly excellent ; and the only fault belonging to them, 
 which the author has any hope of correcting in his book, is their brevi- 
 ty. The compendium of the late Rev. Daniel Turner, of Abingdon, is 
 very useful as a skeleton ; but a mere unclothed synopsis of principles, 
 unaccompanied by much illustration, is not sufficiently attractive for 
 ordinary readers, who need not only to be informed what is their duty, 
 but allured to its performance. Mr. Inne's Sketches of Human Na- 
 ture are judicious to admiration, and have furnished many valuable re- 
 marks to enrich the following work ; but do not so directly and com- 
 prehensively treat on the subject of church government, as to render 
 this volume unnecessary. 
 
 As the author not only renounces all claim to infallibility, but is sor- 
 rowfully conscious of liability to error ; and as he is anxious to render 
 this little work as useful as possible, he will be most happy, in case of 
 its coming to a second edition, to avail himself of the hints of his 
 brethren, and the remarks of friendly critics, in order to render it more 
 worthy of public esteem, and more adapted to general usefulness. It 
 is more than probable that on such a subject his views will be opposed 
 by some ; and the moment they are shown to be opposed to the Scrip- 
 ture, he will abandon them himself, and thank the man who has con- 
 vinced him of his error. 
 
 Edgbaston, June 15, 1822. 
 
AUTHORS PREFACES. Vll 
 
 PREFACE TO THE SECOND LONDON EDITION. 
 
 The author of the following work cannot but feel gratified at the 
 reception which it has experienced from the religious public, of which 
 a flattering proof is afforded to him, by the circumstance of a second 
 edition having been called for within three months afler the publication 
 of the first. 
 
 This edition has been, the author hopes, somewhat improved by the 
 aid of both public and private criticism. 
 
 Edgbaston, JVov. 5, 1822 
 
 PREFACE TO THE THIRD LONDON EDITION. 
 
 Akother edition of this work having been long called for, it is 
 deemed expedient to publish it in a cheaper form — an alteration which 
 has its advantage in rendering the book more portable as a pocket 
 eompanion. 
 
 Vec. 31, 1828. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER I. On the Nature of a Christian Church 9 
 
 " II. On the Nature and Design of Church Fellow- 
 ship 22 
 
 " III. The Privileges of Membership 30 
 
 « IV. The General Duties of Church Members in 
 
 their Individual Capacity 36 
 
 " V. On the Duties of Church Members to their Pas- 
 tors 49 
 
 " VI. Duties of Church Members towards each other ... 67 
 " VII. The Duties of Church Members to the Mem- 
 bers of other Christian Societies 98 
 
 " VIII. The Duties of Church Members in their pe- 
 culiar Character and Station 108 
 
 The Pastor's Wife 108 
 
 The Deacons 113 
 
 Heads of Families 122 
 
 Domestics 127 
 
 Young Persons 130 
 
 Rich Members 131 
 
 The Poor 134 
 
 Tradesmen 136 
 
 " IX. Miscellaneous Subjects. 
 
 On the true Nature of Church Power 140 
 
 On the Mode of conducting Church Meetings ... 142 
 On the Admission of Members to the Church . . . 144 
 
 On Discipline 148 
 
 On the Removal of Members from one Church 
 
 to another in the same Town 161 
 
 On the Conduct to be observed by a Church in 
 
 the Election of a Pastor 165 
 
 On the Propriety of occasionally administer- 
 ing the Lord's Supper in Private Houses, 
 for the Sake of sick Persons who are inca- 
 pable of attending the Solemnities of Public 
 
 Worship 175 
 
 On the Causes of those Schisms which some- 
 times distract and disturb the Churches .... 179 
 Ministerial Duties 201 
 
CHURCH MEMBER'S GUIDE. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 ON THE NATURE OF A CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 
 
 IT is obviously incumbent on the members of any 
 community, whether civil or sacred, to acquaint 
 themselves with its constitution and design ; without 
 this, they can neither adequately enjoy the privi- 
 leges, nor properly discharge the duties, which 
 their membership brings with it. Such persons are 
 held more by feeling than by principle ; a tenure quite 
 insufficient, as a bond of religious connexion. 
 
 It is admitted that as in the human frame, so in 
 the system of divine truth, there are parts of greater 
 and less importance : and the man who would put 
 the principles of church government upon a level 
 with the doctrine of the atonement, and represent a 
 belief in the former as no less essential to salvation 
 than a reliance upon the latter, betrays a lamentable 
 ignorance of both. Still, however, although the hand 
 is of less consequence to vitality than the head or 
 the heart, is it of no value ? Will any one be reck- 
 less of his members, because he can lose them and 
 yet live ? So because church government is of 
 less moment to spiritual and eternal life than faith 
 in Christ, will any one abandon it as a vain and prof- 
 itless subject? Whatever God has made the sub- 
 ject of revealed truth, should be guarded, on that 
 account, from being considered as too frivolous to 
 deserve our attention. 
 
10 NATURE OF A 
 
 The government of the church ought never to be 
 viewed apart from its moral and spiritual improve- 
 ment, any more than the laws of a country should 
 be considered as something distinct from the means 
 of its civil order, comfort, and strength. It is im- 
 possible for us to imagine otherwise, than that the 
 Head of the church arranged its government with a 
 direct reference to its purity and peace, and that 
 the system he has laid down is the best calculated 
 to promote these ends. Hence, then, it is obvious- 
 ly our duty to inquire what that system is, not 
 merely for its own sake, but for the sake of the in- 
 terests of evangelical piety. The error of viewing 
 the subject of church government as a mere abstract 
 question, is very common, and has tended more than 
 any thing else, with many persons, to lead them to 
 regard it with indiiference and neglect. The ac- 
 knowledgment of no other rule of faith and prac- 
 tice than the word of God, must tend to exalt the 
 only infallible standard of truth, and the only divine 
 means of sanctity — the refusal to own any other 
 head of the church than Christ, must bring the soul 
 into more direct submission to him — the scheme of 
 founding a right to spiritual privileges exclusively 
 on the scriptural marks of religious character, and 
 not upon legislative enactments, or national dissent, 
 must have a tendency to produce examination, and 
 prevent delusion — and indeed the habit of viewing 
 the whole business of religion as a matter of con- 
 science, and not of custom, to be settled between 
 God and a man's own soul, must ensure for it a 
 degree of attention more solemn and more effectual 
 than can be expected, if it be allowed, in any degree, 
 to rank with the affairs which are regulated by civil 
 legislation. 
 
 It will probably be contended by some, in apol- 
 
CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 11 
 
 ogy for their neglect, that the New Testament has 
 laid down no specific form of church government, 
 and that where we are left without a guide, it is 
 useless to inquire if we are following his directions. 
 If by this it be meant to say, that the Lord Jesus 
 Christ has left us no apostolic precept or example, 
 which is either directory for our practice, or obli- 
 gatory upon our conscience, in the formation of 
 Christian societies, nothing can be more erroneous. 
 It might be presumed, a priori, that a matter of 
 such moment would not be left so unsettled, and 
 we have only to look into the Word of God, to see 
 how groundless is the assertion. It is true that we 
 shall search the New Testament in vain for either 
 precedent or practice, which will support all the 
 usages of our churches, any otherwise than as these 
 usages are deduced from the spirit and bearing of 
 general principles. These alone are laid down by 
 the apostles, but still with sufficient precision to 
 enable us to determine whether the Episcopal, the 
 Presbyterian, or Independent form of church gov- 
 ernment, be most consonant with the mind and will 
 of Christ. 
 
 What is a Christian church ? 
 
 Tlie word church signifies an assembly. In the 
 New Testament it invariably applies to persons, 
 not to places. It means not the building in which 
 the assembly is convened, but the assembly itself. 
 It has an enlarged, and also a more confined signifi- 
 cation in the Word of God. In some places it is em- 
 ployed to comprehend the aggregate of believers of 
 every age and nation ; hence we read of the " gener- 
 al assembly and church of the first born," and of the 
 church which " Christ loved and purchased with his 
 blood." Acts XX. 28. In its more confined accepta- 
 tion, it means a congregation of professing Chris- 
 
12 NATURE OP A 
 
 tians, meeting for worship in one place ; hence we 
 read of the church at Corinth, of the Thessalonians, 
 of Ephesus, &c. These are the only two senses 
 in which the word is ever employed by the sacred 
 writers ; consequently all provincial and national 
 churches, or, in other words, to call the people of a 
 province or nation a church of Christ, is a most gross 
 perversion of the term, and rendering the kingdom 
 of Jesus more a matter of geography than of reli- 
 gion. The sacred writers, when speaking of the 
 Christians of a whole province, never employ the 
 term in the singular number ; but, with great pre- 
 cision of language, speak of the churches of Galatia, 
 Syria, Macedonia, Asia, &c. 
 
 A church of Christ, then, in the latter and more 
 Usual acceptation of the term, means " a number of 
 professing Christians, united to each other by their 
 own voluntary consent, having their proper officers, 
 meeting in one place for the observance of religious 
 ordinances, and who are independent of all other 
 control than the authority of Christ expressed in his 
 word," This company of professing Christians may 
 be few or many in number, rich or poor in their cir- 
 cumstances, and may meet either in a mean or mag- 
 nificent building, or in no building at all. These 
 things are purely adventitious ; for, provided they 
 answer to the above definition, they are still, to all 
 intent and purpose, a church of Christ. 
 
 I. The members of the chwch should he such as 
 make a credible profession of their faith in Christ ; 
 or, in other Avords, such as appear to be regenerated 
 by the Spirit of God, to have believed in the Lord 
 Jesus for salvation, and to have submitted them- 
 selves in their conduct to the authority of his word. 
 To these the Head of the church has limited the 
 privileges of his kingdom ; they alone can enjoy its 
 
CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 13 
 
 blessings, and perform its duties ; and to such the 
 Epistles are uniformly addressed, Romans i. 7. 1 
 Cor. i. 2. &c. If these passages are read, it will 
 be found that the members of the first churches are 
 not merely admonished to be saints, but are address- 
 ed as such ; which is a circumstance of great weight 
 in determining the question about the proper sub- 
 jects of fellowship. But who is to judge in this 
 case ? I answer, the church ; for although no in- 
 stance can be brought from the New Testament, in 
 which any one of the primitive churches can be 
 proved to have exercised this power, yet, as it is a 
 voluntary society, founded on the principle of mutual 
 affection, it seems reasonable that the church should 
 judge of the existence of those qualifications which 
 are necessary to the enjoyment of communion. 
 The very act of obtruding upon them any one 
 without their own consent, whether by a minister or 
 by elders, is destructive of one purpose of Christian 
 association, — i. e. the fellowship of the brethren. 
 Nor is the power of searching the heart requisite 
 for those who exercise the right of admitting others, 
 since we are to judge of each other by outward con- 
 duct. 
 
 II. This company of professing Christians must 
 meet in one place for the observance of religious in- 
 stitutes. A society that cannot associate, an assembly 
 that cannot assemble, are perfect solecisms. When, 
 therefore, a church becomes too large to communicate 
 at one table, and divides, to eat the Lord's supper, 
 in two distinct places of worship, each having its 
 own pastor, there are two churches, and no longer 
 one only. 
 
 III. These persons must be formed into a society 
 upon the principle of mutual voluntary consent. 
 They are not to be associated by act of civil govern- 
 
14 NATURE OF A 
 
 ment, by ecclesiastical decree, by ministerial authori- 
 ty, or by any other power than that of their own 
 unconstrained choice. They are to give themselves 
 first to the Lord, and then to each other. No 
 authority whatever, of an earthly nature, is to con- 
 strain thennto unite themselves in fellowship, nor 
 to select for them any particular company of believers 
 with whom they shall associate. All is to be the 
 result of their own selection. Parochial limits, 
 ecclesiastical divisions of country, together with all 
 the commands of ministerial authority, have nothing 
 to do in regulating the fellowship of the saints. 
 The civil power, when employed to direct the affairs 
 of the church of Christ, is manifestly out of place. 
 It is as much at a man's own option, so far as human 
 authority is concerned, to say with whom he will 
 associate in matters of religion, as it is to decide 
 who shall be his fellows in philosophical or literary 
 pursuits. 
 
 IV. A church of Christ has its scriptural officers. 
 Here two questions arise : — First, How many kinds 
 of officers does the New Testament mention ? 
 Secondly, How are they to be chosen ? As to the 
 kinds of office-bearers in the primitive churches, 
 there can be neither doubt nor difficulty with any 
 one who will impartially consult the Word of God, 
 With all that simplicity which characterizes the 
 works of God, which neither disfigures his produc- 
 tions with what is excrescent, nor incumbers them 
 with what is unnecessary, he has instituted but two 
 kinds of permanent officers in his church, bishops 
 and deacons ; the former to attend to its spiritual 
 affairs, and the latter to direct its temporal concerns. 
 That there were but two, is evident, because wo 
 have no information concerning the choice, qualificEk- 
 tions, or duties of any other. The bishops of the 
 
CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 15 
 
 primitive churches correspond exactly to the pastors 
 of modern ones. That bishop, elder, and pastor, 
 are only different terms for the same office, is 
 evident from Acts xx. 17, compared with the 28 ; 
 Titus i. 5, 7, and 1st Peter v. 1, 2. They are called 
 bishops, which signifies overseers, because they 
 overlook the spiritual concerns, and watch for the 
 souls of their brethren. Acts xx. 28, 1st Tim. iii. 1. 
 Pastors or shepherds, because they feed the flock 
 of God with truth, Ephes. iv. 11. Rulers, because 
 they guide the church, Heb. xiii. 7. Elders, be- 
 cause of their age, or of their possessing those 
 qualities which age supposes, Tit. i. 5. Ministers, 
 because they are the servants of Christ and the 
 gospel. Ephes. vi. 21. 
 
 The Deacon is appointed to receive and distribute 
 the funds of the church, especially those which are 
 raised for the relief of the poor. All other kinds 
 of officers than these two, are the inventions of men, 
 and not the appointment of Christ ; and which, by 
 intending to add splendour to the kingdom of Jesus, 
 have corrupted its simplicity, destroyed its spirituali- 
 ty, and caused it to symbolize with the kingdoms of 
 this world. 
 
 On the mode of electing them to their office the 
 Scripture is sufficiently explicit, to justify the prac- 
 tice of those denominations who appeal to the 
 suffrages of the people. If the Acts of the Apostles 
 be studied with care, a book which seems given us 
 more for the regulation of ecclesiastical practices, 
 than the revelation of theological opinions, we shall 
 find that nothing was done in the primitive churches 
 without the cooperation of the members ; no, not 
 even when the apostles themselves were present. Even 
 the election of a new apostle was made by the 
 brethren, and not by the ministers exclusively. Acts 
 
16 NATURE OP A 
 
 i. 21, 26. The deacons were chosen by the same 
 persons. Acts vi. The decrees of the council at 
 Jerusalem were passed also by them, and went forth 
 with their name. Acts xv. 23. From hence we 
 infer, that although no case occurs in the inspired 
 history, where it is mentioned that a church elected 
 its pastor, yet it so entirely accords with the practice 
 of the church in other respects, that an exception 
 in this particular would have been a singular anomaly, 
 which nothing could justify but the plainest and 
 most express provision. The decisions of reason 
 harmonize, on this subject, with the testimony of 
 revelation ; for if Ave have an undoubted right to 
 choose our own lawyer, or physician, how much 
 more so, to elect the man to whom we shall intrust 
 the care of our soul ! If we should feel it hard to 
 be obliged to take the medicines of the parish doc- 
 tor, whether we liked them or not, how much more 
 oppressive is it, that we should be obliged to hear 
 the opinions of the parish minister, who may have 
 been appointed by the patron for other qualifications 
 than those of a spiritual nature, and whose senti- 
 ments may be as much opposed to the doctrines of 
 the gospel, as his conduct is to its holiness ! What ! 
 are we to be obliged to look up to such a man as 
 our spiritual instructor, because some profligate, who 
 has the living in his gift, chooses to introduce him 
 to the vacant pulpit ? 
 
 V. A Christian church, with its office-bearers, is 
 complete within itself, for the observance of divine 
 ordinances, and the exercise of discipline ; and is 
 subject to no authority or tribunal on earth. This 
 is the Congregational or Independent form of church 
 government, and it is thus denominated, to distin- 
 guish it from the Episcopal, or the government of 
 a bishop, and from the Presbyterian, or the govern- 
 
CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 17 
 
 ment of the churches by the authority of their 
 assembled pastors and elders. No trace of any 
 foreign control over a church of Christ, can be found 
 in the New Testament, except such as the repre- 
 sentatives of Jesus Christ. 
 
 VI. Such a church is hound, hy the authority of 
 Christ, in their associated capacity, to observe all the 
 institutes, to obey all the commands, and to cherish 
 all the dispositions, which relate to their social 
 union, in the time, order, and manner in which they 
 are enjoined by Christ Jesus. They are to assem- 
 ble in public on the first day of the week for prayer, 
 praise, hearing the Scriptures read and expounded, 
 celebrating the Lord's supper, and exercising mutual 
 affection. They are also bound by divine authori- 
 ty to maintain the purity of the church, by receiving 
 only such as give evidence of true faith, and by 
 excluding from their communion all those whose 
 life is opposed to the doctrine which is according 
 to godliness. They are to live in the exercise of 
 mutual submission and brotherly love, and ever to 
 consider themselves amenable to the tribunal of 
 Christ, for their conduct in their church capacity. 
 
 Such is a very concise view of the nature of a 
 Christian church. 
 
 Hence what might be termed the general princi 
 pies of the New Testament on this topic, are tha 
 all-sufficiency and exclusive authority of the Scrip- 
 tures as a rule of faith and practice in matters of 
 religion ; — the consequent denial of the right of 
 legislatures and eccelesiastical conventions to im- 
 pose any rites, ceremonies, observances, or in- 
 terpretations of the Word of God, upon our belief 
 and practice ; — the unlimited and inalienable right 
 of every man to expound the Word of God for 
 himself, and to worship his Maker in that place and 
 2 
 
18 NATURE OF A 
 
 manner which he deems to be most accordant with 
 the directions of the Bible ; — the utter impropriety 
 of any alliance or incorporation of the church of 
 Christ with the governments of the kingdoms of 
 this world ; — the duty of every Christian to oppose 
 the authority which would attempt to fetter his con- 
 science with obligations to religious observances 
 not enjoined by Christ. These are general princi- 
 ples, which should lead the thinking Christian to 
 separate from all national establishments of religion 
 whatever. 
 
 It is not enough to plead the authority of exam- 
 ple, or of mere feeling, as a reason for any religious 
 service. These are insufficient pilots on the trou- 
 bled ocean of theological opinion, where opposing 
 currents, stormy winds, and concealed rocks, endan- 
 ger the safety of the voyager to efernity. Our com- 
 pass is the word of God, reason must be the steers- 
 man at the helm to guide the vessel by the direction 
 of the needle, and that mariner is accountable for the 
 consequences, who is too ignorant or too indolent 
 to examine his course. 
 
 Away with that morbid insensibility which ex- 
 claims, " It is of no consequence to Avhat church or 
 denomination a man belongs, provided he be a 
 Christian." Such a spirit is a conspiracy against 
 the throne of truth, and is the first step towards a 
 complete abandonment of the importance of right 
 sentiments. Admitting that error is to be measured 
 by a graduated scale, who will undertake to fix upon 
 the point where harmless mistakes end and mischie- 
 vous ones b«gin ? Every thing relating to religion is 
 of consequence. In the temple of truth, not only the 
 foundation is to be valued and defended, but every 
 point and every pinnacle. 
 
 It does not necessarily follow that an inquiry 
 
CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 19 
 
 into the grounds of our conduct should imbitter our 
 temper. The mist of passion obscures the splendour 
 of truth, as much as fogs do the effulgence of the 
 solar orb. Let us contend earnestly ior right prin- 
 ciples, but let it be in the exercise of right feelings^ 
 Let us hold the truth in love. Then do our senti- 
 ments appear to greatest advantage, and look like 
 gems set in gold, when they are supported by a spirit 
 of Christian charity. 
 
 « O divine love ! the sweet harmony of souls ! the 
 music of angels ! the joy of God's own heart ; the 
 very darling of his bosom ! the source of true hap- 
 piness ! the pure quintessence of heaven! that which 
 reconciles the jarring principles of the world, and 
 makes them all chime together ! that which melts 
 men's hearts into one another! See how St. Paul 
 describes it, and it cannot choose but enamour your 
 affections towards it ; — " Love envieth not, it is not 
 puffed up, it doth not behave itself unseemly, seek- 
 eth not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no 
 evil, rejoiceth not in iniquity ; beareth all things, 
 believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all 
 things." I may add, it is tlie best natured thing, 
 the best complexioned thing in the world. Let us 
 express this sweet harmonious affection in these 
 jarring times ; that so, if it be possible, we may tune 
 the world into better music. Especially in matters 
 of religion, let us strive with all meekness to in- 
 struct and convince one another. Let us endeavour 
 to promote the gospel of peace, the dove-like gospel, 
 with a dove-like spirit. This was the way by which 
 the gospel at first was propagated in the world. 
 " Christ did not cry nor lift up his voice in the 
 streets ; a bruised reed he did not break, and the 
 smoking flax he did not quench ; and yet he brought 
 forth judgment unto victory." He whispered the 
 
20 NATURE OF A 
 
 gospel to us from mount Sion, in a still voice ; and 
 yet the sound thereof went out quickly throughout all 
 the earth. The gospel at first came down upon 
 the world gently and softly, like the dew on Gid- 
 eon's fleece ; and yet it quickly penetrated through 
 it ; and, doubtless, this is still the most effectual way 
 to promote it farther. Sweetness and ingenuity 
 will more command men's minds, than passion, 
 sourness, and severity ; as the soft pillow sooner 
 breaks the flint than the hardest marble. Let us 
 " follow truth in love ;" and of the two, indeed, be 
 contented rather to miss of the conveying a specu- 
 lative truth, than to part with love. When we 
 would convince men of any error by the strength 
 of truth, let us withal pour the sweet balm of love 
 upon their heads. Truth and love are two of the 
 most powerful things in the world ; and when they 
 both go together, they cannot easily be withstood. 
 The golden beams of truth, and the silken cords of 
 love, twisted together, will draw men on with a 
 sweet violence, whether they will or no. 
 
 "Let us take heed we do not sometimes call 
 that zeal for God and his gospel, which is nothing 
 else but our own tempestuous and stormy passion. 
 True zeal is a sweet, heavenly, and gentle flame, 
 which maketh us active for God, but always within 
 the sphere of love. It never calls for fire from 
 heaven to consume those that differ a little firom us 
 in their apprehensions. It is like that kind of light- 
 ning, (which the philosophers speak of,) that melts 
 the sword within, but singeth not the scabbard : it 
 strives to save the soul, but hurteth not the body. 
 True zeal is a loving thing, and makes us always 
 active to edification, and not to destruction. If we 
 keep the fire of zeal within the chimney, in its own 
 proper place, it never doth any hurt ; it only warm- 
 
CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 2J 
 
 eth, quickeneth, and enliveneth us ; but if once 
 we let it break out, and catch hold of the thatch of 
 our flesh, and kindle our corrupt nature, and set the 
 house of our body on fire, it is no longer zeal, it is 
 no heavenly fire, it is a most destructive and devour- 
 ing thing. True zeal is an ignis lambens, a soft and 
 gentle flame, that will not scorch one's hand ; it is 
 no predatory or voracious thing ; but carnal and 
 fleshly zeal is like the spirit of gunpowder set on fire, 
 tliat tears and blows up all that stands before it. 
 True zeal is like the vital heat in us, that we live 
 upon, which we never feel to be angry or trouble- 
 some ; but though it gently feed upon the radical 
 on within us, that sweet balsam of our natural 
 moisture, yet it lives lovingly with it, and maintains 
 that by which it is fed : but that other furious and 
 distempered zeal, is nothing else but a fever in the 
 soul. 
 
 To conclude, we may learn what kind of zeal it 
 is, that we should make use of in promoting the 
 gospel, by an emblem of God's own, given us in the 
 Scripture, those fiery tongues, that upon the day of 
 Pentecost sat upon the Apostles : which sure were 
 harmless flames, for we cannot read that they did 
 any hurt, or that they did so much as singe an hair 
 of their heads."* 
 
 * Cudworth's Sermon before the House of Commons, 1647. 
 
22 NATURE AND DESIGN 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 ON THE NATURE AND DESIGN OF CHURCH 
 FELLOWSHIP. 
 
 " For want of clear information on this head, 
 there is, both before and after admission, in the 
 minds of many persons, a certain mystic obscurity 
 hanging over the subject, which either repels them 
 from seeking for admission, or fills them with dis- 
 quiet. Christian churches have no mysteries, no 
 adyta, no secrets. It is a pernicious policy which 
 would exalt plain duties into secret rites, and trans- 
 form the simple institutions of the gospel into enig- 
 mas."* Nothing is more plain than the nature of 
 Christian fellowship, yet nothing is less understood. 
 
 I. Church fellowship is the exercise of the social 
 principle in matters of religion, and in obedience to 
 the authority of Christ. 
 
 Many persons seem to imagine that the only end 
 and object of church fellowship, is the participation 
 of the Lord's supper. Hence they attach no other 
 idea to a church, than that of a company of Chris- 
 tians going together to the sacramental table ; who 
 having nothing to do with each other, till they ar- 
 rive there, and whose reciprocal duties end with 
 that ordinance. The observance of the Lord's sup- 
 per, it is confessed, is one design and exercise of 
 fellowship ; but it is not the only one. Man is a so- 
 cial being, by which we mean that he instinctively 
 seeks the company of his fellows ; is capable of en- 
 joying their society, and derives from their commun- 
 ion no small portion of his improvement and felicity. 
 
 * Eclectic Review, vol. 18, p. 325. 
 
OF CHURCH FELLOWSHIP. 23 
 
 The aphorism of Solomon is as just as it is beauti- 
 ful, — " As iron sharpeneth iron, so a man sharpen- 
 eth the countenance of his friend." Social bliss 
 was the*finish of paradisiacal happiness; its influ- 
 ence has survived the shock of our apostasy, and 
 will be felt amidst the felicities of the heavenly- 
 state. It is not matter of surprise, therefore, that 
 the Lord Jesus should recognize the social principle 
 in the arrangements of his wise and merciful econo- 
 my. He might have left his people unconnected 
 by any visible bond, or at best with no other guide 
 to each other than the natural workings and affini- 
 ties of the human bosom. Instead of this, however, 
 he has by explicit authority grafted the duties of his 
 religion upon the propensities of our social nature. 
 The identifying law of Christ's kingdom is love to 
 one another; and in order that this love may be 
 more perfect in its exercise, we are united in visi- 
 ble communion. When, therefore, we join a Chris- 
 tian church, we enter a society of believers for the 
 purpose of giving and receiving every suitable ex- 
 pression of mutual love. We then associate our- 
 selves with those towards whom we are to cherish, 
 in consequence of a common relationship, the kind- 
 est emotions. We are not only to worship with 
 them in the same place, not only to sit with them 
 at the same sacramental board, but we are to con- 
 sider ourselves as one of their fellowship, to identify 
 our best feelings with theirs, and in all things to 
 consider ourselves members one of another. Our 
 fellowship is not intended for, nor is it to be express- 
 ed by, any one exclusive act ; but it is to extend 
 itself to every possible way of having communion 
 with each other. We are to rejoice together in 
 the common salvation ; and to bring forth together 
 the fruits of a like precious faith. Dr. Watts has 
 
24 NATURE AND DESIGN 
 
 very beautifully expressed the feelings which every 
 church member, who understands his relationship, 
 constantly recogni2?es. 
 
 " My soul shall pray for Zion still, 
 
 Wh!<3 life or breath remains 5 
 There my best friends, my kindred dweH j 
 
 There God my Saviour reigns." 
 
 The great end of Christian fellowship, and the 
 impropriety of limiting its design to a celebration 
 of the eucharist, are strikingly represented by Mr. 
 Hall ; — " Nothing is more certain than that the 
 communion of saints is by no means confined to 
 one particular occasion, or limited to one transac- 
 tion, such as that of assembling around the Lord's 
 table ; it extends to all the modes by which believ- 
 ers recognize each other as the members of a com- 
 mon Head. Every expression of fraternal regard, 
 every participation in the enjoyments of social wor- 
 ship, every instance of the unity of the Spirit exerted 
 in prayer and supplication, or in acts of Christian 
 sympathy and friendship, as truly belong to the 
 communion of saints, as the celebration of the eu- 
 charist. In truth, if we are strangers to commun- 
 ion with our fellow Christians on other occasions, 
 it is impossible for us to enjoy it there ; for the 
 mind is not a piece of mechanism which can be set 
 a going at pleasure, whose movements are obedient 
 to the call of time and place. Nothing short of an 
 habitual sympathy of spirit, springing from the cul- 
 tivation of benevolent feeling, and the interchange 
 of kind offices, will secure that reciprocal delight, 
 that social pleasure, which is the soul of Christian 
 communion. Its richest fruits are frequently reserv- 
 ed for private conference, like that in which the two 
 disciples were engaged, in their way to Emmaus, 
 
OP CHUKCH FELLOWSHIP. 25 
 
 when their hearts burned within them, while the 
 Lord opened to them the Scriptures. When they 
 take sweet counsel together as they go to the house 
 of God in company, when they bear each other's 
 burdens, weep with those that weep, and rejoice 
 with them that rejoice ; say, have Christians no mu-^ 
 tual fellowship ? 
 
 The sacred historian has given us a very beauti- 
 ftil practical exhibition of the ends of Christian 
 fellowship in Acts ii. 40 — 47 : " Then they that 
 gladly received his word were baptized : and the 
 same day there were added unto them about three 
 thousand souls. And they continued steadfastly in 
 the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in break- 
 ing of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon 
 every soul : and many wonders and signs were 
 done by the apostles. And all that believed were 
 together, and had all things common ; and sold their 
 possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, 
 as every man had need. And they, continuing daily 
 with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread 
 from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness 
 and singleness of heart, praising God, and having fa- 
 vour with all the people. And the Lord added to 
 the church daily such as should be saved." 
 
 Here we see the social principle putting forth all 
 its energies in a way of sacred fellowship, and with 
 direct reference to religion. A new and holy 
 brotherhood was set up, of which love to Christ, 
 and to each other for Christ's sake, was the bond. 
 There was the recognition of a common relationship, 
 and the exercise of all that affection which it in- 
 volved. The converts immediately gave them- 
 selves to each other, as members one of another, 
 and not only performed acts of religious worship 
 together, but exercised a reciprocal and most sub- 
 3 
 
2fi ' 
 
 ^'^TURE AND 1 msrcfis- 
 
 ^tantial benevolence, and afforc l«d the most valuable 
 wiutual service. 
 
 " Itoagination can scarcely delii^ate a scene more 
 ^Ja'oly interesting, than that which the infant 
 ^fturcii in reality displayed. B ound, together by 
 tiie fellowship of sentiments, feeli^ag, and affec- 
 
 uon- -having one Lord, one faith, am baptism the f^ 
 
 Ijelie vers in Christ found more than, a compensation ^ 
 for the contempt, und hatred, an'i persecution of 
 the world, in their common hopes,, and mutual offices 
 of kindness. Around them wa.s a scene of rude 
 agitation and wild confusion ; but witliin the little 
 circle of the ir society all was union, harmony, and 
 love." A\as, alas, that this reign of love and peace 
 should ^oe of such short duration, that the apostles 
 lived to witness, not indeed its termination, but its 
 int erruption, and had to interpose their authority to 
 stop the progress of false opinions, and the aliena- 
 tion of heart to which error had given rise. 
 
 This exercise of the social principle is conducted 
 with direct reference to the authority of Christ. 
 He who is our Lord has commanded it. It is his 
 will that his people should not live solitarily and 
 unconnected, but in visible association. To the 
 question, therefore. Why are you a church mem- 
 ber ? — the first answer must be. Because Jesus 
 Christ has commanded it. Independently of the ad- 
 vantages arising from this practice, the true ground 
 of it is the authority of our divine Lord. It is not 
 only a privilege which he has permitted us to enjoy, 
 but a duty which he has commanded us to perform. 
 If we were unable to perceive its advantages, it 
 would still be our duty to comply with it. Church 
 fellowship is no less a duty than the observance of 
 the first day Sabbath, as the same reasons may be 
 advanced for one as for the other. 
 
OF CHURCH FELLOWSHIP. 27 
 
 From not viewing it in this light it is, that so 
 many refuse to join themselves to the church : they 
 consider memhership merely in the light of a privi- 
 lege which it is at their option to receive or refuse. 
 This is a very great and very injurious error. If a be- 
 liever remain without visible connexion with some 
 Christian society, he is guilty of direct disobedience 
 against his rightful Lord. 
 
 II. Fellowship is the instituted ivay of makiiig a 
 public profession of the faith and hope of the gospel. 
 
 A man may hold the opinions and approve the 
 practices of some voluntary, worldly society ; but 
 until he has united himself with it, he is not consid- 
 ered, either by its members or the public, as one of 
 their number. His actually joining himself to them 
 according to the established usage, is his profession. 
 Thus a man may be a sincere believer of the gos- 
 pel, and, so far as respects his own private conduct, 
 an exemplary example of genuine piety ; but until 
 he has connected himself with a Christian church, 
 he has not professed himself to be a Christian. It 
 is by that act he declares to the world his faith and 
 hope as a believer in Christ. It is thus he virtually 
 says, "I receive the opinions, possess the disposi- 
 tions, submit to the obligations, and observe the 
 practices of the church of God with which I now 
 connect myself." Jesus Christ has made it our du- 
 ty not only to receive his truth into our hearts, but 
 to confess him before men ; and it is a duty on 
 which very considerable stress is laid. This is to 
 be done, not in any ostentatious way, but by join- 
 ing ourselves to his people : which is a confession, 
 that both the church and the world clearly under- 
 stand. Hence it is apparent, that church member- 
 ship is no trifling matter, since it is calling heaven, 
 earth, and hell, to witness our solemn declaration of 
 
28 NATURE AND DESIGN 
 
 submission to the authority of Christ. It is saying, 
 in the hearing of more worlds than one, « I am a 
 Christian." 
 
 III. It is the visible bond of union with the disciples 
 of Jesus. 
 
 Christians are not only to be united, but are to 
 exhibit their union. Their oneness of sentiment, 
 of affection, of purpose, is to be seen. We are not 
 only to love one another, but our love is to be 
 knoAvn, which is impossible without membership. 
 In its collective capacity, a church concentrates, 
 as in a focus, the light and love that exist in her 
 individual members. Without being combined in 
 a visible union, its splendour would be only as the 
 dim and scattered light which was diffused over the 
 chaos in the twilight of creation, while the fellow- 
 ship of the saints is the same light gathered up and 
 embodied in the solar orb. We are indeed united 
 in spirit with the church of Christ, from the moment 
 we have believed his gospel ; but our union is nei- 
 ther expressed nor recognized, until "yve have joined 
 it in the usual way. We are citizens in feeling 
 and intention, but not yet known from enemies, al- 
 iens, and spies. Membership, therefore, is the 
 bond of visible union with the brethren in Christ. 
 
 IV. It is an explicit declaration of our determina- 
 tion to submit to the government and discipline of the 
 church. 
 
 Every society has laws for the regulation of its 
 affairs. Without these it could not exist ; and to 
 which every member professes, at the time of his 
 entrance, his determination to submit. The church 
 of the Redeemer has in like manner its social rules, 
 which respect the members in their associated capaci- 
 ty. We are therefore not only amenable to the direct 
 authority of Christ, but also to that authority express- 
 
or CHURCH FELLOWSHIP. 29 
 
 ed by the voice of the church ; we must submit to 
 all its regulations, observe all its mjunctions, sup- 
 port its decisions, or we can no longer remain 
 in its communion. If we are called before it, we 
 must appear ; if required to explain any part of our 
 conduct, we must comply ; if censured, we must 
 submit. We are in no case haughtily to ex- 
 claim, " What IS the church, that I should obey it ? 
 to my own master I stand or fall." Our act of join- 
 ing the society is an explicit declaration of our wil- 
 lingness to submit to the laws by which it is gov- 
 erned. We can voluntarily secede when there is 
 just occasion, or in case of a false decision, we can 
 mildly protest ; but as long as we continue members 
 we must submit, for our very membership professes 
 and requires it. 
 
 V. It is designed to exhibit upon a smaller scale 
 that sublime and glorious union and communion 
 which subsist, not only between all real Christians of 
 every country, name, and age, but between the ivhole 
 redeemed church and their Divine Head. 
 
 Passages of a very striking import speak of this 
 most comprehensive confederation. " That in the 
 dispensation of the fulness of times, he might gath- 
 er together in one all things in Christ, both which 
 are in heaven and which are on earth ; even in 
 him." Ephes. i. 10. " There is one body and one 
 spirit." Ephes. iv. 4. " That which we have seen 
 and heard, declare we unto you, that ye also may 
 have fellowship with us ; and truly our fellowship 
 is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ." 
 1 John i. 3. From these passages we learn that 
 the aggregate of believers, united to Jesus Christ, 
 and through him to the Father, form one vast har- 
 monious fellowship of holiness and benevolence. 
 They are united in the same pursuit, which is the 
 
30 PRIVILEGES OF MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 divine glory ; in the same means for the attainment 
 of that object, which is the salvation of the soul. 
 The church universal will ever remain the one 
 grand monument on which are recorded the prais- 
 es of the living God. Of this general assembly 
 every particular society is the miniature resem- 
 blance. By its public worship, its beautiful subordi- 
 nation, its mutual affection, its truth, its holiness, its 
 peace, it is an exhibition to the world of that fellow- 
 ship which has God in Christ for its head, all be- 
 lievers for its members, heaven for its temple, and 
 eternity for its duration ; while every time it assem- 
 bles for worship, it shoAvs forth the unity of the 
 church, and the communion of saints. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE PRIVILEGES OF MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 " The privileges of membership are, in a general 
 sense, the privileges of Christian society : and 
 churches were originally formed only to secure and 
 promote these social objects — to bring Christians, 
 as such, more closely together, to make them known 
 to each other in that character, and to bind them by 
 positive engagements to neighbourly offices, religious 
 communion, and brotherly kindness ;" but to descend 
 to particulars, these privileges consist in, 
 
 I. The participation of the Lord's supper. 
 
 That a reception of the appointed memorials of 
 the Saviour's dying love, is indeed a privilege, re- 
 quires no proof. As creatures, whose minds are 
 instructed, and whose hearts are impressed through 
 the medium of our senses, how affecting are the 
 
PRIVILEGES OF IVtEMEfERSHIP. 31 
 
 emblems of the body and blood of Christ ! Enough 
 of resemblance may be observed by the fancy, 
 between the sign and the thing signified, to aid 
 the exercise of the affections, while enough of 
 simplicity remains to prevent the excursions of 
 the imagination from interfering with the more 
 sublime and scriptural operations of our faith. 
 That sacramental seasons are commonly the most 
 happy and most profitable which a believer ever 
 spends amongst the means of grace, is a fact not 
 to be denied. It is no wonder that it should be so. 
 It is at the sacred supper that the attention is more 
 powerfully arrested and fixed, and the heart impress- 
 ed and affected. It is there, that the scheme of re- 
 deeming mercy seems peculiarly to expand upon the 
 understanding, and to excite the emotions of the 
 bosom in a degree almost unknown elsewhere. 
 Jt is there that the glory of the divine character 
 has been most clearly discovered by our mind ; there, 
 that Jesus has unfolded to us the wonders of Ms 
 meditation ; and there, that the eternal Spirit has 
 descended into our souls, in the most munificent 
 communications of his sanctifying and consoling in- 
 fluence. How have our icy hearts there melted 
 beneath the ardour of celestial love, and flowed 
 down in streams of godly sorrow ! How have our 
 grovelling, earthly minds soared, on the wings of 
 faith and hope, till we have lost sight of earthly 
 scenes and sounds, amidst the glory of such as are 
 divine. It is,, there, that we have felt ourselves 
 crucified with Chris<;, and have risen with him into 
 newness of life. It is there, that brotherly love has 
 glowed with its most perfect fervour, and the com- 
 munion of saints has yielded its most precious de- 
 lights. Happier hours than those which have been 
 there spent, we never expect to know in this world. 
 
32 
 
 PRIVILEGES OF MEMBERSHIP. 
 
 They have left a relish and a fragrance upon the 
 mind ; the remembrance of them is sweet, and the 
 anticipation of their return is among the brightest 
 hopes we have this side the vail. 
 
 II. Another privilege connected with membership 
 is, the right of assisting in the choice of a pastor, in 
 tlie election of deacons, and in the admission and ex- 
 clusion of members. 
 
 It might indeed be said, that in many cases this 
 right is enjoyed by those who are not church mem- 
 bers — be it so ; but as it is in every case enjoyed by 
 those who are members, it may be very fairly placed 
 in the number of their privileges. That it is also 
 in a measure enjoyed by all persons who, in a town 
 where there are more places of worship than one, 
 choose the minister whose preaching they will at- 
 tend, is also granted ; but still there is a great dif- 
 ference between choosing a minister to occupy a 
 particular station, and merely going to hear him 
 when chosen by others. 
 
 It must surely be accounted no inconsiderable 
 privilege to have a voice in the election of an in- 
 dividual, on whose ministrations so much of our own 
 spiritual welfare, and that of our families, depends ; 
 iior is it a light thing to be admitted to a participa- 
 tion of the other business connected with, and 
 arising from, the history of a church. 
 
 III. A church member has the advantage of 
 pastoral oversight and supplication. 
 
 '^ They watch for your souls," said the apostle to 
 the ancient Christians, when speaking of their pas- 
 tors ; evidently implying that it was a great privilege 
 to be the subjects of such inspection. A faithful 
 friend, that will instruct, warn, comfort, or reprove, 
 as circumstances may require, is a great treasure ; 
 and such an one a Christian will find, or ought to 
 
PRIVILEGES OF MEMBERSHIP. 33 
 
 find, in his minister. In him he has a right to ex- 
 pect a steady, active, and vigilant guardian of his 
 eternal interests ; one who will follow the individ- 
 uals of his charge, as far as can be, through all their 
 spiritual career comforting them when in distress, 
 rousing them when lukewarm, reproving them when 
 their conduct needs rebuke, lending his ear to their 
 every complaint, and opening his heart to receive 
 their every grief. A faithful pastor will consider 
 himself as the guide and the shield of the souls com- 
 mitted to his care ; a shepherd to provide for their 
 wants, a watchman to observe the approach of their 
 dangers. He will visit them in the afflictions which 
 attend their pilgrimage ; will hasten to their bed- 
 side when the sorrows of death encompass them ; 
 will disclose to the eye of faith the visions of im- 
 mortality, which irradiate the dark valley itself; and 
 will never cease his solicitude until the portals of 
 heaven have closed upon their disembodied spirits. 
 In addition to this, the pastor bears the church in 
 the arms of his affection, and presents them in his 
 prayers before the throne of grace. Like the high 
 priest of the Jews, he approaches the mercy seat, 
 not with the names of the people merely engraven 
 upon his breast plate, but written upon his heart. 
 Nor does he confine himself to general supplications 
 for the society in the aggregate ; its individual mem- 
 bers, in their separate capacity and peculiar circum- 
 stances, are often the subjects of his intercession be- 
 fore the fountain of life. As he takes a deep inter- 
 est in their personal, no less than in their collective 
 capacity, he expresses his concern by definite and 
 special supplication. Not only are sermons com- 
 posed, but prayers presented, which are adapted to 
 the various cases of his flock. The afflicted, the 
 backsliding, the tempted, the novice, are all in turn 
 
34 PRIVILEGES or MEMBERSfHIF. 
 
 M 
 remembered in his holiest moments before God. 
 Nor can any of these individuals say to which they 
 are most indebted, to his labours in the pulpit^ or to 
 his supplications in the closet ; for if " the effectual 
 fervent prayer of the righteous man availeth much,!* 
 we certainly may believe that the entreaty of the- 
 righteous minister is not less availing. 
 
 IV. The watchfulness, sympathy and prayers of 
 the church, are no inconsiderable privilege of mem- 
 bership. 
 
 In what way these duties should be performed, 
 will be matter of consideration hereafter ; and 
 therefore we shall not enter minutely into the sub- 
 ject now, any farther than to show how great a 
 mercy it is to enjoy an interest in the affection and 
 the intercession of a Christian society. We are 
 commanded to exhort one another daily ; and amidst 
 such temptations, such weakness, such corruptions 
 as ours, is it not an unspeakable mercy to be sur- 
 rounded by those who will watch over and assist 
 us ? With every help, how hard a thing is it to be 
 a consistent Christian ! how difficult to maintain 
 the purity and vigour of true godliness ! how often 
 do our steps slip, and our exertions relax ! and 
 Sometimes, throwgh the deceitfulness of the human 
 heart, others may perceive our danger before we 
 ourselves are aware of its existence. It may often 
 be said of us, as it was of Israel of old, " Strangers 
 have devoured his strength, yet he knoweth it not ; 
 grey hairs are here and there upon him, yet he 
 knoweth it not." In such cases, none can estimate 
 the value of those Christian friends, who with faith- 
 ful love will remind us of our danger, and affection- 
 ately admonish us. How inestimable the privilege 
 of having those who will tenderly reprove us, and 
 draw us back with the cords of a man and the bands 
 
PRIVILEGES OF MEMBERSHIP. 35 
 
 of love. In the case of our soul's salvation, more 
 than worlds are at stake ; and he who will give 
 himself the trouble to admonish us and exhort us 
 to diligence, performs a service of infinite value, 
 for which, if we improve by it, we shall offer him 
 our gratitude in eternity. 
 
 And then think of the value of Christian sym- 
 pathy. How consolatory it is in our troubles to 
 recollect, that there are those who are thinking of 
 our situation and pitying our distress ! Even when 
 tliey visit us not, they are probably talking to each 
 other about us. We have their affectionate re- 
 membrance, their tenderest interest. 
 
 Nor are their prayers withheld when they meet 
 in the temple, or when they retire to the closet. 
 When they join with one accord in supplication, 
 and when they pray to their Father in secret, they 
 mention their suffering brother or sister, to Him 
 who loveth the church. Ah ! how often has the 
 troubled believer felt it lighten his load, and irradi- 
 ate his gloom, as he groaned away the hour when 
 the church was assembled, to believe that they 
 were thinking of him, and blessing him with their 
 prayers ! It has been as if an angel were despatch- 
 ed to inform him that supplication was being made 
 for him, and that therefore he ought to dry up his 
 tears. Yes, and the sweet remembrance has in 
 some cases made the tears forget to fall, and the 
 half uttered groan to die away with silent submis- 
 sion. He has laid down upon his restless couch 
 again, and it seemed as if it had been smoothed 
 afresh for him by some viewless agent ; and so it 
 has, for God has heard the prayers of the church on 
 his behalf, and has made " all his bed in his sickness."* 
 
 * It has been said that the last two particulars are not the 
 privileges of members exclusively; nor of them as members of a 
 
THE GENERAL DUTIES 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE GENERAL DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS IN 
 THEIR INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY. 
 
 I. Thet should seek to acquire clear and enlarged 
 views of divine truth. 
 
 It is a fact which cannot be questioned, that a 
 very large proportion of those whom we believe to 
 be real Christians are mere babes in knowledge. 
 They have just enough instruction to know that 
 they are sinners, and that salvation is all of grace 
 through Christ Jesus. But ask them to state, prove, 
 
 particular church, but as Christians in general. It is unques- 
 tionable, however, that church members have a prior and a 
 stronger claim upon their pastors and each other, for these ex- 
 pressions of sympathy, than any others have ; and it has been 
 admitted, even by those who object to the author's statement, 
 '' that churches were originally formed only to secure and pro- 
 mote the social objects of their union — i. e. to bring Christians, 
 as Christians, more closely together, to make them known to 
 each other in that character, and to bind them by positive en- 
 gcigements to neighbourly offices and brotherly kindness ;" if 
 this be con'ect, as it unquestionably is, then certainly church 
 members, as such, have peculiar claims upon their pastors and 
 each other for neighbourly offices and brotherly kindness ; and 
 who will doubt if this be a privilege ? One great end of mem- 
 bership, is to found a peculiar claim for these manifestations not 
 merely of Christian, but of brotherly love. If there be no pe- 
 culiarity of claim above what we have upon each other as 
 Christians, why are we formed into separate churches ? 
 
 It appears to me, then, that in addition to the obligation 
 which rests upon me to pray for and watch over my members 
 as Christians, I am bound to take a special interest in their 
 spiritual affairs as members of the church under my care. They 
 stand in a relation totally different from that of persons not in 
 communion, and are entided far beyond the latter to my sym- 
 pathy, prayer, and vigilance. 
 
OF CHURCH MEMBERS. 37 
 
 and defend, in a scriptural manner, any one of the 
 leading doctrines of the gospel, and you would im- 
 mediately discover, how contracted is their view, 
 and how feeble is their perception of divine truth. 
 Instead of walking amidst the splendid light and va- 
 ried scenery of revelation, with the confidence and 
 joy of men whose vision is clear and strong, they 
 are groping along with the fear and hesitation of 
 those who are partially blind. This, in most cases, 
 is their fault, and not their misfortune merely. We 
 are commanded to grow in knowledge ; and the apos- 
 tle in the following very severe language, reprov- 
 ed the believing Hebrews for their ignorance. 
 " When for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye 
 have need that one teach you again, wliich be the 
 first principles of the oracles of God." After this he 
 exhorts them to leave the principles of the doctrine 
 of Christ, and go on to perfection. How earnestly, 
 in other parts of his writings, did he supplicate for 
 the churches, an increase of their religious knowl- 
 edge ! Eph. i. 17, 18. Colos. i. 9. It is very com- 
 mon for ministers to complain that they are almost 
 afraid to ascend to the loftier parts of revealed truth, 
 lest a great portion of their hearers, instead of ea- 
 gerly following them, should reproach them with 
 ascending to barren and almost inaccessible sum- 
 mits. 
 
 The causes of this deficiency of religious knowl- 
 edge in our members, are numerous and various. 
 In many cases, the want of a religious education 
 contributes to it. Not a few of them are brought 
 in from the world, when they are far advanced in 
 life. There is, with many, a more culpable cause ; 
 I mean a systematic neglect of the sijbject. « What," 
 they exclaim, " will head knowledge do for us ? we 
 are for experience ; experience is every thing in 
 
38 THE GENERAL DUTIES 
 
 religion." What kind of experience that is, which 
 is not founded on knowledge, I am at a loss to con- 
 ceive. With such people, ignorance appears to be 
 the mother of devotion. It should be recollected 
 that it is in the spiritual world, as it is in the natur- 
 al ; the seed of the kingdom is sown in the light, 
 and light is essential to every stage of its growth. 
 If that be not right knowledge, which does not pro- 
 duce feeling, certainly that is not right feeling 
 which is not produced by knowledge. They who 
 have only head knowledge, dwell in the frigid zone 
 of Christianity ; and they who have only feeling, 
 occupy the torrid zone. The former are frozen 
 amidst mere cold and heartless speculation ; the 
 latter are scorched amidst wild fanaticism. 
 
 How much more real enjoyment of the truth is 
 possessed by him who clearly and comprehensively 
 understands it ! and how much more useful is he 
 likely to be in communicating instruction, than the 
 individual who barely understands first principles ! 
 Every professing Christian, at least all those who 
 have leisure for reading, should endeavour to unite 
 the knowledge of a good theologian with the expe- 
 rience of a real believer. 
 
 In order to this, let Christians set apart time not 
 only for reading, but studying the scriptures ; let 
 them read theological books which explain and prove 
 the doctrines of the gospel ; let them commit to 
 memory the admirable definitions of these doctrines 
 contained in the Assembly's Shorter Catechism ; let 
 them attend upon the preaching of the word with 
 a view not only to be comforted, but to be instruct- 
 ed. The exclusive object for which some persons 
 liear sermons, is to obtain a little comfort. They sit 
 waiting and watching for some sweet and savoury 
 assurance, some well known hackneyed consolatory 
 
OF CHURCH MEMBERS^ 39 
 
 itopic, some lively appeal to the experience, and 
 until this comes, they think lightly of every thing 
 else. The minister may have given the clearest 
 elucidation of some dark and doubtful passage, the 
 most profound discussion of some sublime doctrine, 
 the most masterly defence of some disputed truth ;: 
 but to the mere comfort hunters, all this is nothing 
 else than the husk or the shell, which is to be crack- 
 ed and thrown away for the kernel of a little Chris- 
 tian experience. From such sermons they go home, 
 with hungry and cheerless appetites, complaining: 
 that they have found it a lost opportunity. 
 
 Let me not be mistaken. Comfort ought to be 
 sought for, but always through the medium of knowl- 
 edge. The best warmth is that which comes not 
 from ardent spirits, but from the sun, which sends 
 his heat to the frame, in those beams which, 
 convey light to the eye. The fact is, that some 
 people's religion is of that weak, unhealthy kind, 
 which is supported only by elixirs and cordials. 
 
 After all, I am constrained to confess, that the 
 darkness which rests upon the mind of the church 
 member, is the result, in some cases, of that cloudi- 
 ness which envelopes the mind of the pastor ; if 
 there is ignorance in the pew, it is because there is 
 so little knowledge in the pulpit. When the preach- 
 er dwells on nothing but a few hackneyed common- 
 place topics of an experimental or consolatory na- 
 ture ; when all the varied and sublime parts of re- ' 
 vealed truth are neglected for one unceasing round 
 of beaten subjects ; when a text is selected from 
 time to time which requires no study to understand, 
 no ability to expound ; when nothing is heard from 
 one Sabbath to another, but the same sentiments in 
 the same words, until the introduction of a new or 
 original conception would startle the congreg&Lon 
 
4(^' THE GENERAL DUTIES 
 
 almost as much as the entrance of a spectre ; who can 
 wonder, if, under such circumstances, the congrega- 
 tion should grow tired of their preacher ; or if such 
 drowsy tinklings should lull the fold, till with their 
 shepherd they sink to the slumbers of indifference, 
 amidst the thickening gloom of religious ignorance ? 
 
 II. Advancement in religion is incumbent on eve- 
 ry professing Christian. 
 
 As the usual mode of admission to our churches, 
 subjects their members to a scrutiny of their conduct, 
 it is considered by many as a kind of ordeal, which 
 being passed with success, remits them from any 
 solicitude about farther improvement. A kind of 
 indelible character is then impressed upon them, 
 which is susceptible of neither increase nor improve- 
 ment. I do not mean to say that they come deliberate- 
 ly to such a conclusion, or that they are aware of any 
 such opinion being in their mind ; but having passed 
 their trials with honour, they insensibly acquire the 
 idea, that noA\^ they are professed and acknowledged 
 Christians, that their religion is admitted to be gen- 
 uine, that they are put amongst the disciples, and 
 therefore the same anxiety is no longer necessary. 
 Often and often have we seen, especially in the case 
 of young persons, that the act of joining the church, 
 has in some measure diminished the earnestness 
 with which their minds were formerly directed to 
 the subject of religion. They were growing rapidly 
 as babes in Christ, till the consciousness of being a 
 church member, and acknowledged a Christian, either 
 by generating pride, or relaxing diligence, has para- 
 lyzed their piety, arrested their growth, and left 
 them dwarfs in grace forever after. 
 
 We should consider that religion is not an ab- 
 stract thing of times, places, and ceremonies ; nor 
 is the religious character formed by any single 
 
OF CHURCH MEMBERS. 41 
 
 compliance, however public or however solemn. If 
 it were admitted that regeneration is an instantane- 
 ous change, in which the whole character of a child 
 of God is formed at once, this will not apply to 
 membership. Instead of considering our union with 
 the church as the goal of our religious career, where 
 improvement may cease, and progress be stopped, 
 we should view it as but the very starting point from 
 whence we are to forget the things that are behind, 
 and press towards the mark for the prize of our high 
 calling. From that moment, we are under more 
 solemn obligations than ever to grow in grace, inas- 
 much as the means of growth are increased. Till 
 then, we have been as trees growing in obscurity, 
 without the aid of human culture ; but when we as- 
 sociate with a church, we are transplanted into a 
 garden, and have the advantage of the gardener's 
 care, and should therefore abound more than ever in 
 all the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus 
 Christ unto the glory of God. 
 
 III. Consistency in their conduct, as professing 
 Christians, is a most obvious and pressing obligation 
 of church members. 
 
 The want of this in the conduct of professing 
 Christians has done more harm to Christianity than 
 all the ravings of infidelity from the time of Cain to 
 the death of Paine. This sacred and deathless 
 cause lifts her venerable form, bearing the scars of 
 many a wound, not inflicted by arrows plumed with 
 the pen of Voltaire or Hume ; oh, no, such weapons 
 bounded from her bosom, as from a shield of triple 
 brass, and dropped at her feet to be deposited with 
 the spoils of her victories ; but the darts that lacera- 
 ted her, and left the memorials of their mischief 
 upon her form, were the vices and follies of her vo- 
 taries. O Christians ! will ye scourge and lacerate 
 4 
 
42 THE GENERAL DUTIES 
 
 her ? will ye array her in the costume of scorn, and, 
 leading her forth bleeding and dejected to meet her 
 enemies in the gate, proclaim, " Behold, an impos- 
 tor !" Will ye assist to raise the clamour which in- 
 fidel philosophers endeavoured to excite, and stir up 
 the multitude to exclaim, " Away with her, away 
 with her ! Crucify her, crucify her !" Tremble at 
 the thought. If Christianity ever die, it will not be 
 in the field of conflict, by the power of her enemies, 
 but like Csesar in the capitol, by the hand of her 
 friends ; and which of us would like to meet the 
 look of her expiring eye, or the mild reproach of her 
 faltering tongue, " What, thou my son !" But she 
 cannot die ; wounded she may be, and has been ; but 
 the memorials of her injury are the proofs of her im- 
 mortality, and proclaim her to be of heavenly origin : 
 like the fabled scars of the heathen gods of Greece 
 and Rome, her wounds demonstrably prove tliat a 
 divinity sustained her. 
 
 Still, however, the inconsistencies of professing 
 Christians may limit her reign, although they cannot 
 destroy her existence. By these things sinners are 
 hardened in their courses, the access to life is ren- 
 ,dered more difficult, while the avenues of eternal 
 death are made more wide and easy. That man, 
 whose conduct opposes his profession, may be cer- 
 tainly arraigned for the crime of murder. Let him 
 not go quietly to his pillow as if blood-guiltiness 
 were not upon his conscience ; for it is there, and a 
 voice is continually saying to him, " Thy brother's 
 blood crieth to me from the ground." He has not 
 fllain the body of a fellow mortal, but has been ac- 
 cessory to the death of souls. Some that sought for 
 an apology for their sins, an opiate for their con- 
 sciences, found it in his misconduct. 
 
 I have no' need to specify the duties included in 
 
OF CHURCH MEMBERS. 43 
 
 the general idea of consistency; these are known 
 well enough. The apostle's beautiful and compre- 
 hensive admonition is a sufficient directory. " What- 
 soever things are true, whatsoever things are hon- 
 est, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things 
 are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever 
 tilings are of good report, if there be any virtue, and 
 if there be any praise, think on these things." 
 
 I particularly exhort church members to beware 
 of what might be denominated the minor breaches 
 of consistency. We are not to conclude that noth- 
 ing breaks the uniformity of our character, but what 
 subjects us to the discipline of the church. Overt 
 acts of immorality are comparatively rare, while ten 
 thousand instances of less delinquency, such as the 
 church cannot take cognizance of, are continually 
 occurring in the conduct of Christians, to the dis- 
 grace of religion and the injury of men's souls. 
 Those things are seen in us, which would pass un- 
 noticed in others who make no profession of religion ; 
 just as a spot which would be lost on canvass, is 
 visible on cambric. A Christian's character is like 
 polished steel, which may have its lustre destroyed, 
 not only by broad spots of rust, but by an assem- 
 blage of innumerable specks. 
 
 More scandals have occurred in the Christian 
 church from dishonourable pecuniary transactions 
 than from any other source. Instances of drunken- 
 ness and debauchery are seldom, compared with 
 those of an artful, imposing, dishonest way of con- 
 ducting business. The world is a dangerous and 
 sucftessful foe to grace ; and although every church 
 member professes himself to be through faith a con- 
 queror, how many by their over-reaching, ungener- 
 ous conduct, prove that they are yet enslaved by 
 this sordid enemy. Some there are that betray 
 
4i THE GENERAL DUTIES 
 
 their Master for a less sum than that which Judas 
 set upon his blood ; and, for a tithe of thirty pieces 
 of silver, will be guilty of an action which they 
 must know, at the time, will provoke the severest 
 invective and bitterest sarcasm against all re- 
 ligion. 
 
 IV. Church members should excel in the mani- 
 festation of the Christian temper. 
 
 The mind which was in Christ Jesus, should be 
 in them. They should consider his character as a 
 model of their own ; and be conspicuous for their 
 poverty of spirit, meekness, gentleness, and love. 
 They should seek a large portion of the " wisdom 
 which Cometh from above ; which is first pure, then 
 peaceable, gentle, easy to be entreated, full of 
 mercy and good fruits, without partiality and with- 
 out hypocrisy." It is matter of surprise and regret, 
 that many persons seem to think that religion has 
 nothing to do with the temper ; and that provided 
 they are free from gross sins, and have lively feelings 
 m devotional exercises, they may be as petulant, 
 irritable, and implacable as they please. This is a 
 dreadful error, and has done gi'eat mischief to the 
 .cause of God. A sour, ill-natured Christian, if I 
 may describe him by a resemblance as fabulous as 
 that of the centaur, is like a lamb with a dog's head, 
 a dove with a vulture's beak, a rose with leaves of 
 nettles. If there be any one word which above all 
 others should describe a Christian's character, it is 
 that which represents his divine Father ; and as it 
 is said, that God is love, so should it be also affirm- 
 ed, that a Christian is love — ^love embodied, an in- 
 carnation of love. His words, conduct, nay, his 
 very looks, should be so many expressions of love. 
 
 V. Church members should be vei-y eminent for 
 a right discharge of all their social duties. 
 
OP CHURCH MEMBERS. 45 
 
 The apostles have given this great importance 
 by the frequency with which they have introduced 
 it.* Christianity, so far from loosening the bands 
 of society, adds to them incredible strength and 
 firmness, by motives draAvn from the eternal world. 
 One part of the design of revelation is to purify and 
 strengthen the social principle, and carry it to its 
 greatest elevation and perfection. 
 
 A good Christian, and yet a bad husband, fathef, 
 brother, neighbour, or subject, is an anomaly which 
 the world never yet beheld. Professing Christians 
 should excel all others in the beauties of social 
 virtue. Religion should give additional tenderness 
 to the conjugal relationship ; greater love to the 
 parent, and obedience to the child ; fresh kindness 
 to the master, and diligence to the servant. The 
 world should look to the church with this conviction, 
 " Well, if social virtue were driven from every other 
 portion of society, it would find an asylum, and be 
 cherished with care, upon the heights of Zion." 
 Then will religion have attained its highest credit 
 upon earth, when it shall be admitted by universal 
 consent, that to say a man is a Christian, is an in- 
 disputable testimony to his excellence in all the re- 
 lations he bears to society. 
 
 VI. There are duties to be discharged in refer- 
 ence to the iDorld. 
 
 By the world, I mean all those of every party 
 and denomination who are destitute of true godli- 
 ness. The apostle has summed up our obliga- 
 tions towards them under the comprehensive injunc- 
 tion, "Walk in wisdom towards them which are 
 without."! Iji another place, we are commanded 
 
 * Ephes. V. 22, vi. 1—9. Col. iii. 18. 1 Tim. vi. 1—4. 
 1 Pet. iii. 1, 2. 1 Pet. ii. }8, 
 t Col, jv, 5, 
 
46 THE GENERAL DUTIES 
 
 to "Let our light shine before men, that they seeing 
 our good works, may glorify our Father which is in 
 heaven."* We are also exhorted "to have our 
 conversation honest (this word signifies beautiful, 
 honourable) among the Gentiles."f In order to 
 comply with this, we must act consistently with our 
 profession ; excel in the observance of social duties ; 
 abound in mercy ; bear a prudent testimony against 
 evil practices ; be most punctiliously exact in fulfil- 
 ling all our engagements, and performing all our 
 promises ; live in a most peaceable and neighbourly 
 manner ; perform every office of kindness and char- 
 ity which can please or benefit; and set an exam- 
 ple of industry, honesty, and generosity. 
 
 VII. We should as professing Christians he ex- 
 emplary in our obedience to the civil magistrate. 
 
 The Scriptures which enjoin this duty are too 
 numerous to be quoted at length.| One only shall 
 be given, but that is a very striking one. "Let 
 every soul be subject to the higher powers ; for 
 tliere is no power but of God ; the powers that be, 
 are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resist- 
 eth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God : and 
 tliey that resist shall receive to themselves damna- 
 tion." This injunction must of course be understood 
 as relating to matters purely civil : or in other words 
 to those laws which are not in opposition to the 
 spirit and letter of divine revelation. If rulers en- 
 join any thing which is condemned by the word of 
 trutli, it is the duty of a Christian, without hesita- 
 tion, and at all hazards, to act upon the principles, 
 and follow the example of the apostles, and " obey 
 God rather than man." 
 
 * Matt. V. 16. 1 1 Pet. H. 12. 
 
 X Rom. xiii. 1, 2. Acts xxiii. 5. Titus iii. 1. 1 Pet. ii. 13, 
 14. 1 Tim. ii. 1—3. 
 
OF CHURCH MEMBERS. 47 
 
 God forbid I should teach a doctrine so perni- 
 cious, as that one of the first efforts of true piety 
 when it enters the soul is to extinguish the love of 
 civil liberty ; or that having broken the fetters of 
 vice, it immediately bows the regenerated soul into 
 submission to the yoke of despotism. No such 
 thing ; religion is a noble, and sublime, and elevat- 
 ing principle. It expands, not contracts the mind. 
 It is not a spirit of bondage which causes its pos- 
 sessor to fear ; but it is a spirit of power, and of a 
 sound mind. It lifts the soul from the dust, and 
 does not chain it there ; it has raised a noble army 
 of martyrs, every one of whose millions was a hero 
 that defied the tyrant's rage, and spurned his yoke. 
 Religion therefore is no friend of slavery, nor can 
 any of its precepts be quoted by the tyrant as an ex- 
 cuse for his trampling on the liberties of mankind. 
 
 Avowing thus much, and admitting that the most 
 spiritual Christian may take an interest, and oughi 
 to take an interest, in public affairs ; nay, that he 
 ought to maintain a ceaseless jealousy over the 
 constitution and freedom of his country, still I con- 
 tend that a constant, and noisy, and factious med- 
 dling in party politics, is as injurious to his own 
 personal religion, as it is to the interest of piety in 
 general. We do not cease to be citizens, when 
 we become Christians ; but we are in danger of 
 ceasing to be Christians, when we become politi- 
 cians. It is with politics as with money ; it is not 
 the temperate use, but the immoderate love of it, 
 that is the root of all evil. Thousands of professors 
 of religion have made shipwreck of their faith and 
 a good conscience, during the tempests of political 
 agitation ; let us then, as we value our lives, be 
 cautious how we embark on this stormy and troub- 
 led ocean. 
 
48 GENERAL DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS. 
 
 There is one way in which many Christians of- 
 fend against the law^ of their country without scru- 
 ple, and without remorse ; I mean by endeavouring 
 to evade the payment of taxes. Had there been 
 no Christian statute to condemn this practice, the 
 general principles of reason would be quite sufficient 
 to prove its criminality. But the New Testament 
 has added the authority of revelation to the dictates 
 of reason ; and thus made it a sin against God, no 
 less than a crime against society, to defraud the 
 revenue. " Render unto Cesar the things that are 
 Cesar's ; tribute to whom tribute is due, and custom 
 to whom custom," is the authoritative language of 
 St. Paul. This precept derives great force from 
 the consideration that it was delivered at a time, 
 and under a government, in which the taxes were 
 not imposed by the people themselves, but by the 
 arbitrary power of a despot. Certainly if, under 
 these circumstances, it was the duty of a Christian 
 to pay the tribute money, any effort which we make 
 to evade it, must be additionally criminal, since we 
 are taxed by the will of our representatives. The 
 excuses usually made in justification of this practice, 
 only serve to show how far even some good people 
 may be imposed upon, by the deceitfulness of the 
 human heart. Every time we have made a false 
 return on the schedule which regulates our quota 
 of taxation, or that we have purchased knowingly a 
 contraband article of food, beverage, or dress, we 
 have committed a fraud upon society, have assumed 
 a power to dispense with the laws of our country, 
 have violated the precepts of the New Testament, 
 have brought the guilt of a complicated crime upon 
 our conscience, and have subjected ourselves to 
 the displeasure of God, and the discipline of his 
 church. 
 
DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS, &C. 49 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 ON THE DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS TO THEIR 
 PASTORS. 
 
 It is the will and appointment of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, the King and Head of his churches, that they 
 should behave towards their pastors as his ministers, 
 who come in his name, bear his conmiands, and 
 transact his business ; and who are to be treated, 
 in every respect, in a manner that corresponds with 
 their office. In a subordinate sense, they are am- 
 bassadors for Christ, and are to be received and 
 esteemed in a way that corresponds with the au- 
 thority and glory of the Sovereign who commissions 
 them. Whoever slights, insults, or neglects them, 
 in the discharge of their official duties, disobeys and 
 despises their divine Master, who will keenly resent 
 all the injuries that are offered them. No earthly sov- 
 ereign will alloAv his messengers to be rejected and 
 insulted with impunity ; much less will the Lord of 
 the church. Those who entertain low thoughts of 
 the pastoral office, and neglect its ministrations ; 
 who speak contemptuously of their ministers ; who 
 excite a spirit of resistance to their counsels, admo- 
 nitions, and reproofs ; who endeavour to lessen that 
 just reverence, to which, for their works' sake, and 
 on their Master's behalf, they are entitled, certainly 
 despise them, and not only them, but Him that sent 
 them also, and for such conduct will incur the heavy 
 displeasure of Christ, Luke x. 16. 1 Thess. v. 13. 
 
 But to descend to particulars ; the duty of church 
 members towards their pastors includes : 
 
 I. Submission to their just and scriptural aw- 
 ihority. 
 
 5 
 
50 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 It is readily admitted that the unscriptural, and 
 therefore usurped domination of the priesthood is 
 the root whence arose the whole system of papal 
 tyranny : which, springing up like a poison tree in 
 the garden of the Lord, withered by its shadow, and 
 blighted by its influence, almost every plant and 
 flower of genuine Christianity. It is matter of no 
 regret, therefore, nor of surprise, if a ceaseless jeal- 
 ousy should be maintained by those who understand 
 the principles of religious liberty, against the en- 
 croachments of pastoral authority. Priestly domin- 
 ion, as it appears in the Vatican, is the most detest- 
 able and the most mischievous of all tyranny ; but 
 when it appears in the pastor of an independent 
 church, divested at once of the elements of power 
 and the trappings of majesty, the mere mimicry of 
 authority, it is rather ridiculous than alarming, and 
 bears no nearer resemblance to its prototype at 
 Rome, than the little croaking, hopping animal of 
 the pond, did to the ox of the field, which his pride 
 led him to emulate, till he burst. 
 
 Still, however, there is authority belonging to 
 the pastor ; for office without authority is a solecism. 
 "Remember them that have the rule over you," said 
 St. Paul to the Hebrews, xiii. 7. " Obey them that, 
 have the rule over you. Submit yourselves, for they 
 watch for your souls," ver. 17. "They addicted 
 themselves to the ministry ; submit yourselves to 
 such." 1 Cor. xvi. 15, IG. These are inspired in- 
 junctions, and they enjoin obedience and submission 
 on Christian churches to their pastors. The au- 
 thority of pastors, however, is not legislative or 
 coercive, but simply declarative and executive. To 
 define with precision its limits, is as difficult as to 
 mark the boundaries of the several colours of the 
 
TO THEIR PASTORS. 51 
 
 rainbow, or those of light and darkness at the hour 
 of twilight in the hemisphere. This is not the only 
 case, in which the precise limits of authority are left 
 undefined by the Scriptures. The duties of the con- 
 jugal union are laid down in the same general man- 
 ner: the husband is to rule, and the wife to obey; 
 yet it is difficult to declare where, in this instance, 
 authority and submission end. In each of these 
 instances, the union is founded on mutual love, con- 
 fidence, and esteem, and it might therefore be ration- 
 ally supposed, that, under these circumstances, gen- 
 eral terms are sufficient, and that there would arise 
 no contests for power. If the people see that all the 
 authority of their pdstor is employed for their benefit, 
 they will not be inclined to ascertain by measurement 
 whether he has passed its limits. The very circum- 
 stance of his prerogative being thus undefined, should, 
 on the one hand, make him afraid of extending it, and 
 on tlie other, render his church cautious of dimin- 
 ishing it. It is my decided conviction, that, in some 
 of our churches, the pastor is depressed far below 
 his just level. He is considered merely in the light 
 of a speaking brother. He has no official distinction 
 or authority. His opinion is received with no defer- 
 ence, his person treated with no respect. 
 
 Those persons who are anxious to strip their pas- 
 tors of all just elevation, cannot expect to derive 
 much edification from their labours ; for instruction 
 and advice, like substances falling to the earth, im- 
 press the mind with a momentum proportionate to 
 the height from which tliey descend. 
 
 II. Church members should treat their pastor with 
 distinguishing honour, esteem, and love. 
 
 « Let the elders that rule well be accounted vor- 
 thy of double honour, especially they that labour in 
 
52 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 the word and doctrine."* 1 Tim. v. 17. « Knew 
 them that have the rule over you, and esteem them 
 very highly in love, for their works' sake." 1 Thess. 
 V. 11, 12. To prescribe in what way our love should 
 express itself, is almost needless, as love is the most 
 inventive passion of the heart, and will find or make 
 a thousand opportunities for displaying its power. 
 Love is q]so practical, as well as ingenious, and does 
 not confine itself either to the speculations of the 
 judgment, or the feelings of the heart. It breathes 
 in kind words, and lives in kind deeds. Where a 
 minister is properly esteemed and loved, there will 
 be the greatest deference for his opinions, the most 
 delicate attention to his comfort, a scrupulous re- 
 spect for his character. Some people treat their minis- 
 ter as if he could feel nothing but blows. They are 
 rude, uncourteous, churlish. Instead of this, let him 
 see the most studious and constant care to promote his 
 happiness and usefulness. When he is in sickness, 
 visit him ; in trouble, sympathize with him ; when ab- 
 sent from home, take a kind interest in his family ; 
 when he returns, greet him with a smile ; at the 
 close of the labours of the Sabbath, let the deacons 
 and leading members gather round him in the vestry, 
 and not suffer him to retire from his scene of public 
 labours without the reward of some tokens of their 
 
 *It is surprising to me that an attempt should have been 
 made to found on no other basis than this passage, a double 
 office of eldership in the church, and to establish a distinction 
 between ruling and preaching elders, when nothing more can 
 be fairly inferred from the peissage, than that the apostles in- 
 tended to show the whole design and duties of the elder's office, 
 and (o pronounce him entitled to peculiar respect, who fulfilled 
 them all, and who to ruling well added much diligence in 
 preaching the word. 
 
TO THEIR PASTORS. 53 
 
 approbation, if it be only one friendly pressure of the 
 hand. Let him see that his prayers, and sermons, 
 and solicitude, render him dear to the hearts of his 
 flock. It is astonishing what an influence is some- 
 times produced upon a minister's mind and comfort, 
 even by the least expression of his people's regard. 
 Of this we have a beautiful instance in the life of St. 
 Paul. On that important journey to Rome, which 
 was to decide the question of life or death, he ap- 
 pears to have felt a season of temporary depression 
 when the imperial city presented itself to his view. 
 In silent meditation he revolved, not without some 
 degree of dismay, his approacliing appeal to a tribu- 
 nal from which he had nothing in the way of clem- 
 ency to expect. For a little while the heroism of 
 this exalted man was somewhat affected by his situ ■ 
 ation. At this juncture, some of the Roman Chris- 
 tians, who had been apprized of his approach, came 
 out as far as the Apiiforum, and the Three Taverns, 
 to meet him, " whom, when Paul saw, he thanked 
 God, and took courage." From that moment, fears 
 of Nero, of prison, and of death, all left him. He 
 sprung forward with new ardour in his career, pre- 
 pared to offer himself in sacrifice on the altar of mar- 
 tyrdom. If, then, the love of these brethren, who had 
 travelled a few stages to meet St. Paul, produced so 
 happy an effect upon the mind of this illustrious 
 apostle, how certainly might the members of our 
 churches calculate upon a similar influence being 
 produced upon the hearts of their pastors, by even 
 the smaller expressions of their affection ! 
 
 III. Attendance upon their ministration, is another 
 duty which church members owe their pastors. 
 
 This attendance should be constant, not occasion- 
 al. Some of our members give unspeakable pain to 
 their pastors by the irregularity of their visits to the 
 
54 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 house of God. A little inclemency of weather, or 
 the slightest indisposition of body, is sure to render 
 their seats vacant. Sometimes a still more guilty 
 cause than this exists. Oli ! " Tell it not in Gath 
 publish it not in Askelon, lest the daughters of tlie 
 Philistines triumph." Many professors do not scru 
 , pie to devote a part of the Sabbath to travelling 
 y They do not probably set oif upon a journey in the 
 morning of the Sabbath, and travel all day, but they 
 set off perhaps on Saturday evening, and arrive at 
 home late on Sunday morning; or they leave home 
 after tea on Sunday evening, and thus take only a 
 part of the hallowed day from its destined purpose. 
 This practice, it is to be feared, has much increased 
 of late, and is become one of the prevailing sins of 
 the religious world. Such persons deserve to be 
 Drought under the censures of the church. 
 
 Some persons are irregular in their attendance 
 through the distance at which they live from their 
 place of public worship. Oftentimes this is unavoid- 
 able ; but it is a great inconsistency for professing 
 '' Christians voluntarily to choose a residence which, 
 from its remoteness from the house of God, must of- 
 ten deprive them of the communion of the saints. 
 Such a disposition to sacrifice spiritual privileges to 
 mere temporal enjoyment, does not afford much evi- 
 dence that religion is with them the one thing need- 
 ful, or that they have the mind of David, who 
 thought the threshold of the sanctuary was to be 
 preferred to the saloon and the park of the palace. 
 Injurious as the practice necessarily must be to the 
 individuals themselves, it is still more so to their 
 servants and children. 
 
 In the families of the poor, and in others, indeed, 
 where no servant is kept, the mother is detained 
 from public worship far more than she ought to be, 
 
TO THEIR PASTORS. 
 
 55 
 
 in consequence of her husband not taking his share 
 of parental duty. Many fathers will suffer their 
 wives to be kept from the sanctuary for weeks to- 
 gether, rather than take charge of their children, 
 even for one part of the Sabbath. This is most un- 
 kind, and most unjust. A mother, it might be 
 thought, has pain and toil enough already, without 
 being called to suffer unnecessary privations in re- 
 ligious matters. That must be an unfeeling hus- 
 band, who would not gladly afford an hour's rest and 
 respite to his wife, on the day set apart for sacred 
 repose. 
 
 Professing Christians should feel the obligations 
 to attend week day services. Most ministers have 
 often to complain, that they are half deserted on 
 these occasions. Surely, with such hearts and 
 amidst such circumstances as ours, it is too long to 
 go from Sabbath to Sabbath without the aid of pub- 
 lic worship. All persons have not the command 
 of their own time ; but in the case of those who 
 have, the neglect is inexcusable, and argues a very 
 low state of religion in the soul. And what shall 
 be said of those members whom their pastor, on his 
 way to the house of God, either meets going to 
 parties of pleasure, or sees in the very circles of 
 gayety ? 
 
 A minister has a right to expect his members at 
 the meetings for social prayer.* The Christian that 
 
 * Unfortunately for the interests of our prayer meetings, some 
 brethren who lead our devotions are so outrageously long, that 
 after enjoying the first half of their prayers, the congregation 
 are anxiously waiting for the close of the other half. We are 
 often prayed into a good frame, and then prayed out of it again, 
 by those who extend their supplications to the length of twenty 
 or five and twenty minutes at a time. A prayer on these occa- 
 sions should rarely exceed ten minutes. I do most earnestly 
 
90 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 neglects these betrays such an utter indifference to 
 the interests of the church, and the comfort of the 
 pastor, as well as so much lukewarmness in his own 
 personal religion, as to be a fit subject for the exer- 
 cise of discipline. 
 
 IV. Earnest prayer. 
 
 How often and how earnestly did the great 
 apostle of the Gentiles repeat that sentence, which 
 contained at once the authority of a command and 
 the tenderness of a petition — « Brethren, pray for 
 us." In another place, he ascribes his deliverance 
 and preservation to the prayers of the churches — 
 « You also helping together by prayer for us." 2 
 Cor. i. 11. Surely, then, if this illustrious man was 
 dependent upon, and indebted to the prayers of 
 Christians, how much more so the ordinary ministers 
 of Christ ! Pray, then, for your ministers ; for the 
 increase of their intellectual attainments, spiritual 
 
 recommend this to the consideration of those brethren who are 
 in the habit of engag-ing in public prayer. Devotion ends 
 when weariness begins. Brevity,, fervour, and variety, are the 
 qualities which all should seek. It is also to be regretted that 
 the prayers are so much alike in the arrangement of their 
 parts. Each individual seems to thiyk it necessary that he 
 should pursue a regular routine. How much more edifying 
 would it be, if one were to confine himself to one topic, and 
 the next were to enlarge on what the preceding one had omit- 
 ted. U a person feels his mind impressed and drawn out by 
 any particular subject, let him confine himself to that subject, 
 and not suppose that his supplications will be unacceptable 
 either to God or man because he has not brought in the sick, 
 the church, the minister, the nation, the world, &.€. &c. How 
 affecting and impressive would it be to hear a brother some- 
 times confine his whole intercession to his minister's usefulness ; 
 sometimes to the church ; sometimes to the spread of the gos- 
 pel in the world ! See a most admirable letter of Mr. Newton's 
 on this subject in his Omicron. 
 
TO THEIR PASTORS. 57 
 
 qualifications, and ministerial success. Pray for 
 them in your private approaches to the throne of 
 grace ; pray for them at the family altar ; and thus 
 teach your servants and children to respect and love 
 them. Reasons both numerous and cogent enforce 
 this duty. It is enjoined by divine authority. It is 
 due to the arduous nature of their employment. 
 Little do our churches know the number and mag- 
 nitude of our temptations, discouragements, difficul- 
 ties, and trials. 
 
 " 'Tis not a cause of small import 
 
 The pastor's care demands, 
 But what might fill an angel's heart, 
 And filled a Saviour's hands." 
 
 Our office is no bed of down or of roses, on which 
 tlie indolent may repose with careless indifference, 
 or uninterrupted slumbers. Far, very far from it. 
 Cares of oppressive weight; anxieties which can 
 be known only by experience ; labours of a mental 
 kind almost too strong and incessant for the powers 
 of mind to sustain, fall to our lot, and demand the 
 prayerful sympathy of our flocks. And then, as 
 another claim for our people's prayers, we might 
 urge the consideration of their own interest, which 
 is identified with all our efforts. We are to our 
 people just what God makes us, and no more ; and 
 he is willing to make us almost what they ask. A 
 regard to tlieir own spiritual profit, if nothing else, 
 should induce them to bear us much on their hearts 
 before the throne of divine grace. Prayer is a 
 means of assisting a minister within the reach of 
 all. They who can do nothing more, can pray. 
 The sick, who cannot encourage their minister by 
 their presence in the sanctuary, can bear him upon 
 their hearts in their lonely chamber : the poory who 
 
58 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 cannot add to his temporal comfort by pecuniary 
 donations, can supplicate their God " to supply all 
 his needs according to his riches in glory by Christ 
 Jesus :" the timid, who cannot approach to offer 
 him the tribute of their gratitude, can pour their 
 praises into the ear of Jehovah, and entreat him still 
 to encourage the soul of his servant : the ignorant, 
 who cannot hope to add one idea to the stock of his 
 knowledge, can place him by prayer before the 
 fountain of celestial radiance : even the dying, who 
 can no longer busy themselves as aforetime for his 
 interests, can gather up their remaining strength, 
 and employ it in the way of prayer for their pastor. 
 
 Prayer, if it be sincere, always increases our af- 
 fection for its object. We never feel even our 
 dearest friends to be so dear, as when Ave have com- 
 mended them to the goodness of God. It is the 
 best extinguisher of enmity, and the best fuel for 
 the flame of love. If some professing Christians 
 were to take from the time they spend in praising 
 their ministers, and others from that which they 
 employ in blaming them, and both were to devote 
 it to the act of praying for them, the former would 
 find still more cause for admiration, and the latter 
 far less reason for censure. 
 
 V. Members should encourage others to attend 
 upon the ministry of their pastors. 
 
 Let us go up to the house of the Lord, is an in- 
 vitation which they should often address to the peo- 
 ple of the world, who either attend no place of 
 worship at all, or where the truth is not preached. 
 A minister cannot himself ask people to attend his 
 place of worship, but those who are in the habit of 
 hearing him can ; and it is astonishing to what an 
 extent the usefulness of private Christians may be 
 carried in this way. I have received very many 
 
TO THEIR PASTORS. 59 
 
 into the fellowship of the church under my care, 
 wlio were first brought under the sound of the gos- 
 pel by the kind solicitations of a pious neighbour. 
 To draio away the hearers of one faithful preacher 
 to another, is a despicable ambition — mere sectarian 
 zeal : but to invite those who never hear the gospel, 
 to listen to the joyful sound, is an effort worthy the 
 mind of an angel. Shall sinners invite one another 
 to iniquity— ^to the brothel, the theatre, the tavern — 
 and Christians not attempt to draw them to the house 
 of God ? This is one way in which every member, 
 of every church, may be the means of doing great 
 good ; the ricli, the poor, male and female, masters 
 and servants, young and old, have all some ac- 
 quaintance over whom they may exert their influ- 
 ence ; and how can it be better employed than in 
 attracting them to those places 
 
 " Where streams of heavenly mercy flow, 
 And words of sweet salvation sound ]" 
 
 VI. It is incumbent on church members to make 
 known to their pastor any thing of importance that 
 occurs xtnihin the scope of their observation, or the 
 course of their experience, relating to his church and 
 congregation. 
 
 For instance, their own spiritual embarrassments, 
 trials, temptations ; the declensions, backslidings, 
 and sins of others, which they imagine may have 
 escaped his notice, and Avhich they have first tried, 
 by their own personal efforts, to remove. If they 
 perceive any root of bitterness growing up, which 
 they have not strength or skill enough to eradicate, 
 it is then manifestly their duty to inform him of the 
 circumstance. If they perceive any individual whose 
 ease has been overlooked, any one in circumstances 
 which need sympathy or relief, any who are strug- 
 
60 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 gliu^ with affliction, but are too modest or timid to 
 disclose their situation ; they should bring all such 
 occurrences under his notice. Especially should 
 they encourage, by their own personal attentions, any 
 persons in the congregation who appear to be under 
 religious concern ; in such cases, they should put 
 forth all their tenderest solicitude to shelter and 
 cherish these hopeful beginnings, and introduce the 
 subjects of them to their minister. There are some 
 Christians — but do they indeed deserve the name ? 
 — who would see all the process of conversion 
 going on in the very next seat to theirs, and observe 
 the fixed attention, the anxious look, the tearful eye, 
 the serious deportment — and all this repeated one 
 Sabbath after another — without the least possible 
 interest, or ever exchanging a single syllable with 
 the inquiring penitent ! Shame, shame on such pro- 
 fessors I Can the love of Christ dwell in such cold 
 and careless hearts ? Can they have ever felt con- 
 viction of sin ? How easy and how incumbent is it 
 to introduce ourselves to such individuals ; a word, 
 a look, would be received with gratitude. 
 
 I am aware that tlie part of a member's duty, en- 
 forced under this division of the subject, requires 
 extreme caution and delicacy, not to degenerate in- 
 to a busy, meddling, officious disposition. All im- 
 pertinent obtrusion, all fawning activity, should be 
 carefully avoided by the people, and as carefully 
 discouraged by the pastor. 
 
 VII. Zealous co-operation in all schemes of useful- 
 ness proposed by the pastor, whether for the benefit of 
 their own society in particular, or the welfare of the 
 church, and the world at large, is the duty of Chris- 
 tians. 
 
 This is an age of restless activity, practical be- 
 nevolence, and progressive improvement. One 
 
TO THEIR PASTORS. 61 
 
 scheme of benefit often contains the germs of many 
 more. The love of innovation and the dread of it, 
 are equally remote from true wisdom. Zeal, when 
 guided by wisdom, is a noble element of character, 
 and the source of incalculable good. A church 
 ought always to stand ready to support any scheme 
 which is proved to their judgment to be beneficial 
 either to themselves or others. It is most disheart- 
 ening to ministers, to find all their efforts counteract- 
 ed by that ignorance which can comprehend noth- 
 ing strange, that bigotry which is attached to every 
 thing old, by that timidity which starts at every 
 thing new, or by that avarice which condemns every 
 thing expensive. Usages and customs that are 
 venerable for their antiquity, I admit, should not be 
 touched by hot spirits and rude hands, lest, in re- 
 moving the sediment deposited by the stream of 
 time at the base of the fabric, they should touch the 
 foundation itself: but where the word of God is the 
 line and the plummet ; where this line is held by 
 the hand of caution, and watched by the eye of wis- 
 dom ; in such cases, innovation upon the customs of 
 our churches is a blessing, and ought to receive the 
 support of the people. It is a scandal to any Chris- 
 tian society, when the flame of ministerial zeal is 
 allowed to burn, without enkindling a similar fire. 
 
 VIII. A most delicate and tender regard for the 
 pastor^s reputation. 
 
 A minister's character is the lock of his strength ; 
 and if once this be sacrificed, he is, like Samson 
 shorn of his hair, a poor, feeble, faltering creature, 
 the pity of his friends and the derision of his ene- 
 mies. I would not have bad ministers screened, 
 nor would I have good ones maligned. When a 
 preacher of righteousness has stood in the way of 
 sinners, and walked in the counsel of the ungodly, 
 
62 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 he should never again open his lips in the great 
 congregation, until his repentance is as notorious as 
 his sin. But while his character is unsullied, his 
 friends should preserve it with as much care against 
 the tongue of the slanderer, as they would his life 
 against the hand of the assassin. 
 
 When I consider the restless malignity of the 
 great enemy of God and holiness, and add to this 
 his subtlety and craft ; when I consider how much 
 his malice would be gratified, and his schemes pro- 
 moted, by blackening the character of the ministers 
 of the gospel ; when I consider what a multitude 
 of creatures there are who are his vassals, and under 
 his influence, creatures so destitute of moral princi- 
 ple, and so filled with venomous spite against re- 
 ligion, as to be prepared to go any lengths in 
 maligning the righteous, and especially their min- 
 isters, I can account for it on no other ground than 
 that of a special interposition of Providence, that 
 the reputation of Christian pastors is not more fre- 
 quently attacked by slander, and destroyed by calum- 
 ny. But probably we see in this, as in other cases, 
 that wise arrangement of Providence by which 
 things of delicacy and consequence are preserved, 
 by calling forth greater solicitude for their safety. 
 Church members should therefore be tremblingly 
 alive to the importance of defending their minister's 
 character. They should neither expect to see him 
 perfect, nor hunt after his imperfections. When 
 they cannot but see his imperfections — imperfections 
 which, after all, may be consistent with not only real, 
 but eminent piety — they should not take pleasure 
 in either magnifying or looking at them ; but make 
 all reasonable excuse for them, and endeavour to 
 lose sight of his infirmities in his virtues, as they 
 do the spots of the sun amidst the blaze of radiance 
 
TO THEIR PASTORS. 63 
 
 "w^ith which they are surrounded. Let them not be 
 tlie subject of conversation even between your- 
 selves, much less before your children, servants, 
 and the world. If you talk of his faults in derision, 
 who will speak of his excellences with admiration ? 
 Do not look at him with suspicion, but repose an 
 honourable confidence in his character. Do not 
 make him an offender for a word, and refuse to him 
 that charity and candour of judgment, which would 
 be granted to every one else. Do not magnify in- 
 discretions into immoralities, and exact from him 
 that absolute perfection, which in your own case 
 you find to be unattainable. Beware of whispers, 
 inuendoes, significant nods, and that slanderous si- 
 lence, which is more defamatory than the broadest 
 accusation. 
 
 Defend him against the groundless attacks of others. 
 Never hear him spoken of with undeserved reproach, 
 without indignantly repelling the shafts of calumny. 
 Express your firm and dignified displeasure against 
 the witling that Avould make him ridiculous, the 
 scorner that would render him contemptible, and 
 the defamer that would brand him as immoral. 
 
 Especially guard against those creeping reptiles 
 which infest our churchjss, and are perpetually in- 
 sinuating that their ministers do not preach the 
 gospel, merely because they do not incessantly re- 
 peat the same truths in the same words ; because 
 they do not allegorize and spiritualize all the facts 
 of the Old Testament, until they have found as 
 much gospel in the horses of Pharaoh's chariot as 
 they can in St. Paul's epistles ; and because they 
 have dared to enforce the moral law as the rule of 
 the believer's conduct. This antinomian spirit has 
 become the pest of many churches. It is the most 
 mischievous and disgusting of all errors. If the 
 
64 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 heresies which abound in the spiritual world were 
 to be represented by the noxious animals of the nat- 
 ural world, we could find some errors that would 
 answer to the vulture, the tiger, and the serpent ; 
 but we could find nothing that would be an adequate 
 emblem of antinomianism, except, by a creation of 
 our own, we had united in some monstrous reptile, 
 the venom of the wasp, with the deformity of the 
 spider, and the slime of the snail. 
 
 IX. Liberal support. 
 
 The Scripture is very explicit on this head : « Let 
 him that is taught in the word communicate unto 
 him that teacheth in all good things." Gal. vi. 6. 
 " Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges ? 
 — even so hath the Lord ordained, that they which 
 preach the gospel, should live of the gospel." 1 Cor. 
 ix. 7, 14. The necessity of this appears from the 
 injunctions delivered to ministers to devote them- 
 selves exclusively to the duties of their office." 
 2 Tim. ii. 4. 1 Tim. iv. 13, 15. I by no means 
 contend that it is unlawful for a minister to engage 
 m secular concerns ; for necessity is a law which 
 supersedes the ordinary rules of human conduct: 
 And what are they to do, whose stipend is too small 
 to support a family, and who have no private source 
 of supply ? A minister is under additional obliga- 
 tions to provide for things honest, not only in the 
 sight of the Lord, but of men ; to owe no man any 
 thing, to provide for his own house ; and if he is 
 not enabled to do this by the liberality of his flock, 
 and has no private fortune, he must have recourse 
 to the labour of his hands. It is to the deep, and 
 wide, and endless reproach of some churches, that, 
 although possessed of ability to support their pastors 
 in comfort, they dole out but a wretched pittance 
 from their affluence, leaving them to make up the 
 
TO THEIR PASTORS. 65 
 
 deficiency by a school; and then, with insulting' 
 cruelty, complain that their sermons are very meagre, 
 and have a great sameness. Such congregations, 
 if they were treated as they deserve, would be put 
 upon abstinence for at least a twelve month, or until 
 they were willing to support their pastor in comfort. 
 They love him dearly with their lips, but hate him 
 as cordially with their pockets. They keep him 
 poor to keep him humble, forgetting that as humility 
 is no less necessary for themselves than for him, 
 this is an argument why the articles which minister 
 to their pride, should be retrenched in order to sup- 
 port his comfort. This is certainly not dra-Ving 
 them with the cords of love and the bands of a man, 
 but treating them like animals who are tamed into 
 submission by hunger, and kept humble by being 
 kept poor. It is curious to hear how some persons 
 will entreat of God to bless their minister in his 
 basket and his store, while alas ! poor man, they 
 have taken care that his basket should be empty, 
 and his store nothingness itself. Is not this mock- 
 ing both God and his minister with a solemn sound 
 upon a thoughtless tongue ? 
 
 M^y rich Christians spend more in the needless 
 wine they individually drink, than they contribute 
 towards the support of their pastor ; and others give 
 more for the sugar that sweetens their tea, than 
 they do for all the advantages of public worship. A 
 reproach of this kind yet rests upon multitudes, wliich 
 it is high time should be rolled away. 
 
 It is extremely difficult, where a matter of this 
 kind must be left to voluntary contribution, and the^ 
 dictates of individual liberty, to lay down particular 
 rules ; all that can be done, is, to state general 
 principles, and leave these to operate in particular 
 cases. Let all Christians therefore consider what 
 6 
 
66 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 is a just and g-enerous reward for the labours of a 
 man, who is devoting his life to assist them in ob- 
 taining an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and 
 that fadeth not away ; an exceeding great and eter- 
 nal weight of glory : — who, in assisting them to 
 gain eternal life, exerts at the same time an indi- 
 rect, but a beneficial influence upon all their tem- 
 poral prosperity — who, by his ministrations, soothes 
 their cares, lightens their sorrows, mortifies their 
 sins, throws a radiance over their darkest scenes, 
 and gilds their brightest ones with additional splen- 
 dour — who brings heaven down to earth for their 
 comfort, and elevates them from earth to heaven ; 
 and who, after mitigating for them the ills of time 
 with an anticipation of the joys of eternity, is pre- 
 pared to attend them to the verge of the dark valley, 
 and irradiate its gloom with the visions of immortality. 
 Let it not be thought that what is given to a 
 minister is a charitable donation ; it is the payment 
 of a just debt. It is what Christ claims for his 
 faithful servants, and which cannot be withheld 
 without robbery. I spurn for myself and for my 
 brethren, the degrading apprehension that we are 
 supported by charity. We are not clerical^en- 
 sioners upon mere bounty. Our appeal is to justice ; 
 and if our claims are denied on this ground, we 
 refuse to plead before any other tribunal, and refer 
 the matter to the great assize.* 
 
 * Since the first edition of this work was printed, the author 
 has,j:eceived a letter from a very valuable and much respected 
 deacon of his own church, which is justly entitled to the most 
 serious attention, an extract from which is here inserted. 
 
 " My dear Sir, 
 
 " I intimated to you that I should probably take the liberty 
 to suggest to you an idea or two upon a subject which you 
 have considered in your ' Church Member's Guide ;' aud I feel 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 67 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS TOWARDS EACH 
 OTHER. 
 
 1. The first, and that which indeed seems to 
 include every other, is love. 
 
 The stress wliich is laid on this in the Word of 
 God, both as it respects the manner in which it is 
 stated, and the frequency with which it is enjoined; 
 sufficiently proves its vast importance in the Christian 
 temper, and its powerful influence on the communion 
 
 persuaded you will not attribute my suggestions to any improp- 
 er motive, or deem me '' inti'uding into those things which I 
 ought not." 
 
 The subject is that of a minister's support. You know, Sir, 
 diat it Ls a principle which I have on several occasions inculcat- 
 ed 5 and llie more I think of it, the more 1 am convinced of its 
 perfect accordance with the law of equity, ' That it is the duty 
 of every person connected with a congregation to contribute 
 somewhat towards the support of the gospel in his own place 
 of worship.' 
 
 The principle which I now la}' down I consider to be of «mrer- 
 sal obligation, and applying as much to the domestic servant and 
 to the poor man in his cottage, as to the more affluent members 
 of our congregation. I am quite aware how difficult it is for 
 ministers to bring this subject before their hearers, and how few 
 are those occasions, when, consistently with delicacy and pro- 
 priety, such a topic can be urged ; but I do think your ' Guide' 
 affords one of the most suitable opportunities of urging it, and 
 its extensive circulation will, I think, bring the matter fairly be- 
 fore the view of the religious public. 1 verily believe that if 
 all the members of our congregations — for I confine it not to 
 church members — were to act on the principle I have laid down, 
 and every man to do his duty, not only would the evil you justly 
 deplore cease to exist, but a much more general effort of diffu- 
 sive benevolence be the result. 
 
 Yours, very affectionately, J. P.' 
 
68 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 of believers. It is enforced by our Lord as the 
 identifying law of his kingdom. " This is my com- 
 mandment, that ye love one another as I have loved 
 you." John xv. 12. By this we learn that the 
 subjects of Christ are to be known and distinguish- 
 ed amongst men, by their mutual affection. This 
 injunction is denominated the new commandment of 
 the Christian economy ; not that love was no duty 
 before the coming of Christ ; but it is now placed 
 more prominently amongst the duties of believers ; 
 is urged on fresh grounds, enforced by a more per-' 
 feet example, and constrained by stronger motives. 
 The dispensation of Jesus Christ is a system of most 
 wonderful, most mysterious grace ; it is tlie mani- 
 festation, commendation, and perfection of divine 
 love. It originated in the love of the Father, and 
 is accomplished by the love of the Son. Jesus 
 Christ was an incarnation of love in our world. He 
 was love living, breathing, speaking, acting, amongst 
 men. His birth was the nativity of love, his sermons 
 the words of love, his miracles the wonders of love, 
 his tears the meltings of love, his crucifixion the 
 agonies of love, his resurrection the triumph of love. 
 Hence it was natural, that love should be the car- 
 dinal virtue in the character of his saints, and that 
 it should be the law which regulates tlieir conduct 
 towards each other. 
 
 And it is worthy of remark, that He has made 
 his love to us, not only the motive, but the pattern 
 of our love to each other. This is my command- 
 ment, that ye love one another as I have loved you, 
 John XV. 17. Let us for our instruction dwell upon 
 the properties of his love, that we might know what 
 should be the characteristics of our own. His was 
 real and great affection, and not a mere nominal 
 one : so let us love, not in word and in tongue only. 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. Oil 
 
 but also in deed and in truth. His wa.3 free and 
 disinterested, without any regard to our deserts : so 
 ours should be independent of any regard to our 
 own advantage. His was fruitful unto tears, and 
 agonies, and blood, and death : so should ours in 
 every thing that can establish the comfort of each 
 other. His was a love of forbearance and forgive- 
 ness : so should ours be. His was purely a spiritual 
 flame ; not loving them as rational creatures merely, 
 but as objects of divine affection, and subjects of 
 divine likeness. His was unchangeahle notwith- 
 standing our weaknesses and unkindnesses : thus 
 are we bound to love one another, and continue un- 
 alterable in our affection to each other, in opposition 
 to all those little infirmities of temper and conduct 
 which we daily discover in our fellow Christians. 
 
 The Apostles echoed the language of their Mas- 
 ter, and continually enjoined the churches which 
 they had planted, to love one another, and to let 
 brotherly love abound and increase. It is a grace 
 so important that, like holiness, no measure of it is 
 sufficient to satisfy the requirement of the Word 
 of God. It is the basis, and cement, and beauty 
 of the Christian union. The church where it is 
 wanting, whatever may be the number or gifts of 
 its members, is nothing better than a heap of stones, 
 which, however polished, want the coherence and 
 similitude of a palace. 
 
 In the best and purest ages of the church, this 
 virtue shone so brightly in the character of its 
 members, was so conspicuous in all their conduct, 
 was expressed in actions so replete with noble, 
 disinterested, and heroic affection, as to become a 
 proverb with surrounding pagans, and call forth the 
 well known exclamation, " See how these Christians 
 love one another !" A finer eulogium was never 
 
70 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 pronounced on the Christian church ; a more valua- 
 ble tribute was never deposited on the altar of 
 Christianity. Alas ! that it should so soon have 
 ceased to be just, and that the church, as it grew 
 older, should have lost its loveliness by losing its love. 
 
 But it will be necessary to point out the manner 
 in which brotherly love, wherever it exists, will 
 operate. 
 
 1. In a peculiar complacency in our fellow mem,' 
 hers, viewed as the objects of divine love. 
 
 Complacency is the very essence of love ; and 
 tlie ground of all proper complacency in the saints 
 is their relation and likeness to God. We should 
 feel peculiar delight in each other as fellow heirs 
 of the grace of God ; partakers of like precious faith, 
 and joint sharers of the common salvation. We 
 must be dear to each other as the objects of the 
 Father's mercy, of the Son's dying grace, and of the 
 Spirit's sanctifying influence. The love of Chris- 
 tians is of a very sacred nature, and is quite peculiar. 
 It is not the love of consanguinity, or friendship, or 
 interest, or general esteem ; but it is an affection 
 cherished for Christ's sake. They may see many 
 •tilings in each other to admire, such as an amiable 
 temper, public spirit, tender sympathy ; but Chris- 
 tian love does not rest on these things, although 
 they may increase it, but on the ground of a com- 
 mon relationsliip to Christ. On this account they are 
 to take peculiar delight in each other, as being one 
 in Christ. " These," should a believer exclaim, as 
 he looks on the church, " are the objects of the 
 Redeemer's living and dying love, whom he re- 
 gards with complacency ; and out of affection to 
 him, I feel an inexpressible delight in them. I love 
 to associate with them, to talk with them, to look 
 upon them, because they are Christ's," 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 71 
 
 2. Love to our brethren will lead us to bear one 
 anotner^s burthens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. 
 Gal. vi. 2. 
 
 When we see them oppressed with a weight of 
 anxious care, instead of carrying ourselves with 
 cold indifference and unfeeling distance towards 
 them, we should cherish a tender solicitudg to know 
 and relieve their anxieties. How touching would 
 such a salutation as the following be, from one 
 Christian to another : " Brother, I have observed, 
 with considerable pain, that your countenance has 
 been covered with gloom, as if you were sinking 
 under some inward solicitude. I would not be 
 unpleasantly officious, nor wish to obtrude myself 
 upon your attention, farther than is agreeable ; but 
 I offer you the expressions of Christian sympathy, 
 and the assistance of Christian counsel. Can I in 
 any way assist to mitigate your care, and restore 
 your tranquillity ?" At such sounds, the loaded 
 heart would feel as if half its load were gone. It 
 may be, the kind inquirer could yield no effectual 
 relief; but there is balm in his sympathy. The in- 
 difference of some professing Christians to the 
 burthens of their brethren is shocking ; they would 
 see them crushed to the very earth with cares and 
 sorrows, and never make one kind inquiry into their 
 situation, nor lend a helping hand to lift them from 
 the dust. Love requires that we should take the 
 deepest interest in each other's case, that we should 
 patiently listen to the tale of wo which a brother 
 brings us, that we should mingle our tears with his, 
 that we should offer him our advice, that we should 
 suggest to him the consolations of the gospel ; in 
 short, we should let him see that his troubles reach 
 not only our ear, but our heart. Sympathy is one 
 
72 DUTIES^ OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 of the finest, the most natural, the most easy ex- 
 pressions of love. 
 
 3. Love requires that we should visit our breth- 
 ren in their affliction. 
 
 " I was sick and ye visited me, I was in prison 
 and ye came unto me ; — for as much as ye did it 
 unto the least of these my brethren, ye did it unto 
 me ;" such is the language of Jesus Christ to his 
 people, by which he teaches us how important and 
 incumbent a duty it is for church members to visit 
 each other in their afflictions. Probably there is 
 no duty more neglected than this. Christians often 
 lie on beds of sickness for weeks and months suc- 
 cessively, without seeing a fellow member cross the 
 threshold of their chamber door. How often have 
 I been shocked, when upon inquiring of the sufferer 
 whether such and such an individual residing in their 
 neighbourhood had been to visit them, it had been 
 said in reply, " Oh ! no, sir, I have now been stretch- 
 ed on this l3ed for days and weeks. My pain and 
 weakness have been so great, that I have scarcely 
 been able to collect my thoughts for meditation and 
 prayer. The sight of a dear Christian friend would 
 indeed have relieved the dull monotony of this gloomy 
 scene, and the voice of piety would have been as 
 music to blunt my sense of pain, and lull my troubled 
 heart to short repose ; but such a sight and such a 
 sound have been denied me. No friend has been 
 near me, and it has aggravated sorrows, already 
 heavy, to be thus neglected and forgotten by a church, 
 which I joined with the hope of finding amongst 
 them the comfort of sympathy. But alas ! alas ! I 
 find them too much occupied with the things seen 
 and temporal, to think of a suffering brother, to 
 whom wearisome nights and months of vanity are 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 73 
 
 appointed." How could I help exclaiming, «0, 
 Christian love, bright image of the Savioxir's heart ! 
 whither hast thou fled, that thou so rarely visitest 
 the church on earth, to slied thine influence, and 
 manifest thy beauties there ?" There have been ages 
 of Christianity — so historians inform us — in which 
 brotherly love prevailed amongst Christians to such 
 a degree, that, fearless of the inffection diffused by 
 the most malignant and contagious disorders, they 
 have ventured to the bed side of their brethren ex- 
 piring in the last stages of the plague, to adminis- 
 ter the consolations of a hope full of immortality. 
 This ivas love ; love stronger than death, and which 
 many waters could not quench. It was no doubt 
 imprudent, but it Avas heroic, and circulated far and 
 wide the praises of that dear name which was the 
 secret of the wonder. 
 
 How many are there, now bearing the Christian 
 name, who scarcely ever yet paid one visit to the 
 bed side of a suffering brother ' Shame and dis- 
 grace upon such professors ! ! Let them not expect 
 to hear the Saviour say, " I was sick and ye visited 
 me." 
 
 That this branch of Christian love may be per- 
 formed with greater diligence, it would be a good 
 plan for the pastor, at every church meeting, to 
 mention the names of the afflicted members, and stir 
 up the brethren to visit them. It would be par- 
 ticularly desirable for Christians to go to the scene 
 of suffering on a Sabbath day, and read the Bible 
 and sermons to the afflicted, at that time, as they 
 are then peculiarly apt to feel their sorrows, in con- 
 sequence of being cut off* from the enjoyments of 
 public worship. 
 
 4. "Pray one for another,''^ James v. 16. 
 
 Not only ivith, but for one another. A Christian 
 7 
 
74 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 should take the interests of his brethren into the 
 closet. Private devotion is not to he selfish devo- 
 tion. It would much increase our affection did we 
 devote more of our private prayers to each other's 
 welfare. 
 
 5. Pecuniary relief should be administered to those 
 who need it. 
 
 " Distributing to the necessities of the saints," 
 Rom. xii. 13, is mentioned amongst the incumbent 
 duties of professing Christians. How just, how for- 
 cible is the interrogation of the Apostle, 1 John iii. 
 17, "Whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his 
 brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of 
 compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God 
 in him ?" Nothing can be more absurd than those 
 pretensions to love, which are not supported by ex- 
 ertions to relieve the wants of tfie object beloved. 
 It must be a singular afiVction which is destitute of 
 mercy. So powerfully did this holy passion operate 
 in the first ages of the church, that many rich Chris- 
 tians sold their estates, and shared their affluence 
 with the poor. What rendered this act the more 
 remarkable is, that it was purely voluntary. It is 
 not our duty any more than it was theirs, to go this 
 length ; still, however, it is evident both from gen- 
 eral principles as well as from particular precepts, 
 that we are under obligation to make some provision 
 for the comfort of the poor. This duty must be left 
 in the statement of general terms, as it is impossi- 
 ble to define its precise limits. It does not appear 
 to me to be at all incumbent to make regular peri- 
 odical distributions to the poor, whether in circum- 
 stances of distress or not. Some churches have a 
 registered list of pensioners, who come as regular- 
 ly for their pay, as if they were hired servants. If 
 tliey are old, infirm, or unprovided for, this is very 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 75 
 
 well ; but for those to receive relief, who are get- 
 ting a comfortable subsistence by their labour, is an 
 abuse of the charity of the church. The money 
 collected at the Lord's supper, should be reserved 
 for times of sickness and peculiar necessity. 
 
 It should be recollected, also, that public contri- 
 butions do not release the members from the exer- 
 cise of private liberality. The shilling a month 
 which is given at the sacrament, seems, in the opin- 
 ion of many, to discharge them from all further ob- 
 ligation to provide for the comfort of their poorer 
 brethren, and to be a sort of composition for the full 
 exercise of religious charity. This is a great mis- 
 take ; it ought rather to be considered as a mere 
 earnest, or pledge of all that more effective and 
 abundant liberality Avhich they should exercise in 
 secret. Every Christian who is indulged with a 
 considerable share of the bounties of Providence 
 ought to consider the poorer members of the church, 
 who may happen to live in his neighbourhood, as 
 the objects of his peculiar care, interest, and relief. 
 
 6. Forbearance is a great part of love. 
 
 " Forbearing one another in love." Eph. iv. 3. 
 In a Christian church, especially where it is of con- 
 siderable magnitude, we must expect to find a very 
 great diversity of character. There are all the gra- 
 dations of intellect, and all the varieties of temper. 
 In such cases, great forbearance is absolutely essen- 
 tial CO the preservation of harmony and peace. The 
 strong must bear with the infirmities of the weak. 
 Christians of great attainments in knowledge should 
 not in their hearts despise, nor in their conduct ridi- 
 cule, the feeble conceptions of those who are babes 
 in Christ ; but most meeldy correct their errors, and 
 most kindly instruct their ignorance. This is love. 
 In very many persons there will unhappily be found 
 
76 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 some things, which, although they by no means af- 
 fect the reality and sincerity of their religion, con- 
 siderably diminish its lustre, and have a tendency, 
 without the caution of love, to disturb our commu- 
 nion with them. Some have a forward and obtru- 
 sive manner ; others are talkative ; others indulge 
 a complaining, whining, begging disposition ; others 
 are abrupt, almost to rudeness, in their address. 
 These, and many more, are the spots of God's chil- 
 dren — with which we are sometimes so much dis- 
 pleased, as to feel an alienation of heart from the 
 subjects of them, although we have no doubt of their 
 real piety. Now here is room for the exercise of 
 love. These are the cases in whicli we are to em- 
 ploy that charity which covereth all things. Are 
 we to love only amiable Christians ? Perhaps, after 
 all, in the substantial parts of religion, these rough 
 characters far excel others, whom courtesy and 
 amiableness have carried to the highest degree of 
 polish. I do not say we are to love these individ- 
 uals for their peculiarities, but in spite of them. 
 Not on their own account, but for Christ's sake, to 
 whom they belong. And what can be a greater 
 proof of our affection for him, than to love an un- 
 lovely individual on his account ? 
 
 If you had the picture of a valued friend, would 
 you withdraw from it your affection, and throw it 
 away, because there was a spot upon the canvass, 
 which in some degree disfigured the painting ? No : 
 you would say, it is a likeness of my friend still, 
 and I love it, notwithstanding its imperfection. The 
 believer is a picture of your best friend ; and will 
 you discard him, neglect him, because there is a 
 speck upon the painting ? 
 
 7. Love should induce us to watch over one 
 another. 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 77 
 
 Am I my brother's keeper ? was an inquiry suita- 
 ble enough in the lips of a murderer, but most un- 
 suitable and inconsistent from a Christian. We 
 are brought into fellowship for the very purpose of 
 being keepers of each other. We are to watch 
 over our brethren, and admonish and reprove them 
 as circumstances may require. I do not mean that 
 church members should pry into each other's se- 
 crets, or be busy bodies in other men's matters, for 
 that is forbidden by God and abominable in the sight 
 of man. 1 Thess. iii. 11. 1 Pet. iv. 15. Much less 
 are they to assume authority over each other, and 
 act the part of proud and tyrannical inquisitors. 
 But still we are to " exhort one another daily, lest 
 any be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin." 
 We are not to suffer sin to be committed, or duty 
 to be omitted by a brother, without affectionately 
 admonishing him. , What can be more incumbent, 
 more obligatory, than this ? Can Ave indeed love 
 any one, and at the same time see him do that which 
 we know will injure him, without entreating him 
 to desist ? " Brethren, if any man be overtaken in 
 a fault, ye which are spiritual restore such an one 
 in the spirit of meekness." Gal. vi. 1. 
 
 Let us then take heed against that Cain-like 
 spirit which is too prevalent in our churches, and 
 which leads many to act as if their fellow-members 
 were no more to them than the stranger at the ends 
 of the earth. Striking are the words of God to the 
 Jews, " Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart ; 
 thou shalt in any wise rebuke him, and not suffer 
 sin upon him." Lev. xix. 17. Not to rebuke him, 
 then, when he sins, is, instead of loving him, to hate 
 him. This neglect is what the apostle means by 
 being partakers of other men's sins. The admoni- 
 tion to " warn the unruly," 1 Thess. v. 14. was de- 
 
78 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 livered not merely to ministers, but to private Chris- 
 tians. 
 
 I know no duty more neglected than this. It is 
 one of the most prevailing defects of Christians. 
 Many a backslider would have been prevented from 
 going far astray, if, in the very first stages of his 
 declension, some brother, who had observed his 
 critical state, had faithfully and affectionately warn- 
 ed and admonished him. What shame, and an- 
 guish, and disgrace, would the offender himself have 
 been spared, and what dishonour and scandal would 
 have been averted from the church, by this one act 
 of faithful love ! 
 
 I am aware it is a difficult and self-denying duty ; 
 but that cannot excuse its neglect. Love will ena- 
 ble us to perform it, and the neglect of it violates 
 the law of Christ. 
 
 II. Church members should aultivate peace and 
 HARMONY one with another. 
 
 " Keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of 
 peace. Ephes. iv. 3. Be of one mind, live in peace. 
 2 Cor. iii. 11. Follow after the things which make 
 for peace. Rom. xiv. 19." It is quite needless to 
 expatiate on the value and importance of peace. 
 What society can exist without it? I shall there- 
 fore proceed to state what things are necessary for 
 tJie attainment of this end. 
 
 1. Members should be subject one to another in 
 humility. " Likewise, ye younger, submit your- 
 selves unto the elder. Yea, all of you, be subject 
 one to another, and be clothed with humility." 1 Pet. 
 v. 5. Now from hence we learn, that some kind 
 of mutual subjection ought to be established in every 
 Christian church. This of course does not mean, 
 tliat some members are to make an entire surrender 
 of their opinions and feelings to others, so far as 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 79 
 
 never to oppose them, and always to be guided by 
 them. It is not the subjection of an inferior to a 
 superior, but of equals to one another ; not that 
 which is extorted by authority, but voluntarily con- 
 ceded by affection ; not yielded as matter of right, 
 but given for the sake of peace : in short, it is the 
 mutual subjection of love and humility. Young 
 and inexperienced persons ought to be subject to 
 the aged ; for what can be more indecorous than to 
 see a stripling standing up at a church meeting, and, 
 with confidence and flippancy, opposing his views 
 to those of a disciple old enough to be his grand- 
 father ? Youth loses its loveliness when it loses its 
 modesty. They should hearken with deference and 
 most reverential attention to the opinion of the aged. 
 Nor does the obligation rest here ; it extends to 
 those who are equal in age and rank. Church mem- 
 bers should be subject to each other ; they should 
 not be determined at all events to have their own 
 way, but should go as far as principle would let 
 them, in giving up their own views and predilections 
 to the rest. Every one should hearken with respect- 
 ful attention to the opinions of others, and be will- 
 ing to sacrifice his own. The contention ought 
 not to be for rule, but for subjection. Instead of 
 haughtily exclaiming, " I have as much right to have 
 my way as any one else," we should say, "I have 
 an opinion, and will mildly and respectfully state it ; 
 yet I will not force it upon the church, but give way 
 to the superior wisdom of others, if I am opposed." 
 There should be in every member a supposition that 
 others may see as clearly, probably more so, than 
 himself. 
 
 The democratic principle in our system of church 
 government must not be stretched too far. The 
 idea of equal rights is soon abused, and converted 
 
80 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 into the means of turbulence and faction. Liberty, 
 fraternity, and equality, are words which, both in 
 church and state, have often become the signals, in 
 the mouths of some, for the lawless invasion of the 
 rights of others. It has been strangely forgotten, 
 that no man in social life has a right to please only 
 himself; his will is, or ought to be, the good of the 
 whole. And that individual violates at once the so- 
 cial compact, whether in ecclesiastical or civil soci- 
 ety, who pertinaciously and selfishly exclaims, " I 
 will have my way." Such a declaration constitutes 
 him a rebel against the community. Yet, alas ! how 
 much of this rebellion is to be found not only in the 
 world, but in the church ; and what havoc and deso- 
 lation has it occasioned ! Unfortunately fcr the 
 peace of our societies, it is sometimes disguised, by 
 the deceitfulness of the human heart, under the 
 cloak of zeal for the general good. Church mem- 
 bers should enter into these sentiments, and thus 
 comply witli the apostolic admonitions, " Let nothing 
 be done through strife or vain-glory, but in lowliness 
 of mind let each esteem others better than them- 
 selves." Phil. ii. 3. "In honour preferring one 
 ?Lnother." Rom. xii. 10. 
 
 2. To the preservation of peace, a right treatment 
 of offences is essentially necessary. 
 
 We should ever he cautious not to give offence. 
 
 Some persons are rude, dogmatical, or indiscreet ; 
 they never consult the feelings of those around 
 them, and are equally careless whom they please 
 and whom they offend. They say and do just what 
 their feelings prompt, without the least regard to 
 the consequences of their words and actions. They 
 act like an individual who, because it pleases him, 
 discharges a loaded musket in a crowded street, 
 ; where some are almost sure to be wounded. This 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 81 
 
 is not the charity which is kind, courteous, and civil. 
 A Christian should be ever afraid of giving offence ; 
 he should be anxious not to injure the wing of an 
 insect, much more the mind of a brother. The 
 peace of his brethren should even be more sacred 
 than his own. It should be his fixed determination 
 never, if possible, to occasion a moment's pain. 
 For this purpose he should be discreet, and mild, 
 and courteous in all his language, weighing the 
 import of words before he utters them, and calcu- 
 lating the consequence of actions before he performs 
 them. He should remember that he is moving in 
 a crowd, and be careful not to trample on, or jostle 
 his neighbours. •,;' 
 
 M^e should all he backward to receive offence. 
 
 Quarrels often begin for want of the caution I 
 have just stated, and are then continued for want 
 of the backwardness I am now enforcing. An 
 observance of these two principles would keep the 
 world in peace. There are some people whose pas- 
 sions are like tow, kindled into a blaze in a moment 
 by the least spark which has been designedly or 
 accidentally thrown upon it. A word, a look, is in 
 some cases quite enough to be considered a very 
 serious injury. It is no uncommon thing for such 
 persons to excuse themselves on the ground that 
 their feelings are so delicately sensible, that they 
 are offended by the least touch. This is a humiliat- 
 ing confession, for it is acknowledging that, instead 
 of being like the cedar of Lebanon, or the oak of 
 the forest, which laughs at the tempest, and is 
 unmoved by the boar of the wood, they resemble 
 the sensitive plant, a little squeamish shrub, which 
 trembles before the breeze, and shrivels and contracts 
 beneath the pressure of an insect. Delicate feel- 
 ings ! ! In plaJQ English, this means that they axe 
 
82 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 petulant and irascible. I would have a text of 
 Scripture written upon a label, and tied upon the 
 forehead of such persons, and it should be this — 
 " Beware of dogs." 
 
 We should never suffer ourselves to be oifended, 
 until, at least, we are sure that offence was intended ; 
 and this is really not so often as we are apt to con- 
 clude. Had we but patience to wait, or humility 
 to inquire, we should find that many things were 
 done by mistake, which we are prone to attribute 
 to design. How often do we violate that charity 
 which thinketh no evil, and which imperatively de- 
 mands of us to attribute a good motive to another's 
 conduct, except a bad one is proved ! Let us then 
 deliberately determine, that, by God's grace, we will 
 not be easily offended. If such a resolution were 
 generally made and kept, offences would cease. Let 
 us first ascertain whether offence was intended, be- 
 fore we suffer the least emotion of anger to be in- 
 dulged ; and even then, when we have proved that 
 the offence was not committed by accident, let us 
 next ask ourselves whether it is necessary to notice 
 it. What wise man will think it worth while, when 
 an insect lias stung him, to pursue and punish the 
 aggressor ? 
 
 When we have received an injury which is too 
 serious to be passed over unnoticed, and requires 
 explanation in order to our future pleasant intercourse 
 with the individual who inflicts it, ive should neither 
 brood over it in silence, nor communicate it to a third 
 person, hut go direatly to the offender himself, and 
 state to him in private our vieivs of his conduct. This 
 is most clearly enjoined by our divine Lord — " More- 
 over, if thy brother trespass against thee, go and 
 tell him his fault between thee and him alone : if he 
 shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother." Matt. 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 83 
 
 xviii. 15. Many persons lock up the injury in their 
 own bosom ; and instead of going to their offending 
 brother, dwell upon his conduct in silence, until their 
 imagination has added to it every possible aggra- 
 vation, and their minds have come to the conclusion 
 to separate themselves forever from his society. 
 From that hour, they neither speak to him, nor think 
 well of him ; but consider and treat him as an alien 
 from their hearts. This is not religion. Our duty 
 is to go, and to go as speedily as possible, to the 
 offender. The longer we delay, the more serious 
 will the offence appear in our eyes, and the more 
 difficult will it be to persuade ourselves to obtain 
 the interview. 
 
 Others, when they have received an offence, set 
 off to some friend, perhaps to more than one, to lodge 
 their complaint, and tell how they have been treat- 
 ed. The report of the injury spreads farther and 
 wider, exaggerated and swelled by those circumstan- 
 ces, which every gossip through Avhose hands it 
 passes, chooses to add to the original account, till, 
 in process of time, it comes round to the offender 
 himself, in its magnified and distorted form, who now 
 finds that he, in his turn, is aggrieved and calumni- 
 ated ; and thus a difficult and complicated case of 
 offence, grows out of what was at first very simple 
 in its nature, and capable of being adjusted. We 
 ought to go at once to the party offending us, before 
 a syllahle has passed o\ir lips on the subject to a third 
 person ; and we should also close our ears against the 
 complaints of any individual, who ivould inform us 
 of the fault of a brother, before he has told the offend- 
 er himself. 
 
 Sometimes, when persons have received a sup- 
 posed offence, they will endeavour to gain informa- 
 tion from others in a circuitous and clandestine man- 
 
84 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 ner^ in order, as they think, to conduct the affair with 
 prudence. This is crooked policy, and rarely suc- 
 ceeds. It is next to impossible to creep with a step 
 so soft, and to speak with a voice so muffled, as to 
 escape detection ; and if the individual surprise us 
 in the act of ferreting into holes and corners for 
 evidence, it will be sure to excite his indignation 
 and disgust. No, go to him at once, and alone. 
 This is the command of Scripture, and it is approved 
 by reason. Matt, xviii. 15 — 17. This single admo- 
 nition is worth all the volumes that philosophy ever 
 wrote, and ought to be inscribed in letters of gold. 
 It cannot be too often repeated, nor can too much 
 stress be laid upon it. Third persons, whose ears 
 are ever open to catch reports, should be avoided 
 as the plague ; they are the mischief-makers and 
 quarrel-mongers, and are the pests of our churches. 
 Great caution, however, should be observed as 
 to the spirit in which we go to the offending brother. 
 All the meekness and gentleness of Christ should 
 be in our temper and manner. We should dip our 
 very tongue in the fountain of love. Every feeling, 
 every look, every tone of anger, should be sup- 
 pressed. We should not at once accuse our broth- 
 er of the injury, for the report may be false ; but 
 modestly ask him if it be correct. All attempts to 
 extort confession by threatenings should be avoided ; 
 and instead of these, nothing should be employed 
 but the appeals of wisdom, the gentle persuasions 
 of love.* If we succeed in this private interview 
 to gain our brother so far as to produce a little re- 
 
 * There is a very interesting- description of tlie marftier in 
 which private oftences should be treated, in that inimitable 
 book, " Social Religion Exemplified ;" a book which every 
 professing Christian ought to read, and which, having begun to 
 read, he will never lay eiside, till he has finished it. Part of a 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 85 
 
 lenting, wc ought to cherish, by the kindest expres- 
 sions, these beginnings of repentance, and to avoid 
 
 dialogue I here transcribe, as showing: the manner and spirit in 
 which this very difficult matter ought to be managed : — 
 
 "Neophytus. If Epenetus please, and with the good 
 leave of the company, I would further request a brief account 
 ofpi-ivate offences, that probably occurred among these profess- 
 ing brethren. 
 
 " Epenetus. I shall then gratify my young friend, which I 
 am persuaded will not be ungrateful to the company. Upon a 
 time, in some discourse which Egwan (of whom you have heard 
 something before) and one Hyderus had, wherein they differed 
 in opinion, the latter told the former that he was an insignifi- 
 cant fellow, whose thoughts were not to be regarded. Egwan 
 said in answer, that he took it very ill of him. The other re- 
 plied, You may take it as you please. So their conversation 
 ended in a cloud. Egwan had but little rest that night. Is it so, 
 then, he says to himself; and yet did Christ redeem me ? Did 
 the Spirit of the Lord visit my heart ? Did the church of Christ 
 receive me ? And must I (though weak and feeble) be called 
 insignificant ? Tossed through the night in much uneasiness, he 
 thought to go in the morning to one of the elders to complain. 
 He got up, and, as usual, in the first place committed himself to 
 God ; but while he was at prayer, mourning over his present un- 
 easiness, that word came into his mind, If thj brother shall tres- 
 pass against thee, go and tell him his fault between tJiee and him 
 alone. He quickly saw, that it was not his itnmediate business 
 to divulge it to any body, — no, not to an elder; but to go di- 
 rectly to the brother who gave him the offence. Accordingly, 
 he desired God to give him meekness of wisdom from above, 
 and to bless his design. So he went to Hyderus, and spoke to 
 him as follows : 
 
 Egwan. Brother, I have had a very uneasy night ; you 
 spoke, I think, very unadvisedly with your lips, to say no 
 worse of it ; you have grieved me much, and surely you have 
 sinned against God. I have judged it my duty to come and 
 have some talk with you about it ; and have mentioned it 
 to none but the Lord. You know you called me, in disdain, 
 An insignificant fellow. Pray, what do you think of the expres- 
 sion, and of the spirit in which it was spoken 1 
 
 Hyderus. Truly, I think it was not worth your while to 
 come to me about it. I charge you not with pride ; yet pray 
 
86 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 all demands of unnecessary concession, all haughty 
 airs of conscious superiority, all insulting- methods 
 
 does it not look very much that way, that you should make it 
 your business to come hither to prove yourself valuable and 
 significant ? 
 
 Egwan. I came with no other design than to tell you my 
 grievance. For if I am such a person as, with disdain, you de- 
 scribed me, then am I not regarded b}' the Redeemer; have 
 no portion in him ; nor doth his Spirit dwell in me ; nor hath he 
 ever taken notice of me ; otherwise, sure, I should be entitled 
 to a place in the esteem of his children. Why did the church 
 receive me ? You have censured the whole church and its el- 
 ders, as well as myself. 
 
 Hijderns. I do not pretend to justify what I said ; but think 
 3'ou greatly aggravate it; whereas, you might as well have 
 been easy without taking any notice of it. 
 
 Egwan. And suflcr the sin to lie upon you ? Brother, noth- 
 ing is desired but repentance for sinning against God. I hope 
 1 am willing to think meanly of myself, but am not so willing 
 that any thing appertaining to the Redeemer's kingdom should 
 be treated with derision or disdain. 
 
 Hijderus. Dear brother, I disdain you not; you discover 
 yourself to be a Christian of good improvement. I am sony to 
 have so sinned against God and you, and desire that brotherly 
 love and tender respect may continue. 
 
 Egwan. Amen; 1 am satisfied, dear brother. ' 
 
 , Christophii.us. What a speedy, happj' end was put to 
 lliis offence ! Oh, what endless strife of tongues, evil suraiisings, 
 animosities, and popular clamour, spring and prevail in some 
 places, for want of observing such a method as this ! 
 
 Neophytus. But what if Egwan had gone to the eXdevJirst, 
 as he thought once to do ? 
 
 Epenetus. Why, then he would have been reproved for- 
 taking such a wrong step ; would have been better infonned, 
 and sent about his business. 
 
 Neophytus. But what if Hyderus had justified himself and 
 persisted in liis sin ? 
 
 Epenetus. Then Egwan must have taken another oppop> 
 tunity, and desired a brother or two to go along with him, 
 that they might use their joint endeavours to bring the offender 
 to repentance. 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 87 
 
 of dispensing pardon. « Brother," we should say, 
 " my aim Avas not to degrade you, but to convince 
 you ; and since you see and acknowledge your fault, 
 I am satisfied, and shall forgive and forget it from 
 this moment." 
 
 If the offender should refuse to acknowledge his 
 fault, and it should be necessary for us to take a 
 witness or two, which is our next step in settling a 
 disagreement, we must be very careful to select men 
 of great discretion and calmness ; men who will not 
 be likely to inflame, instead of healing the wound ; 
 men who will act as mediators^ not as partisans. 
 
 It is absolutely necessary, in order to offences 
 being removed, that the offender, upon his being 
 convicted of an injury, should make all suitable con- 
 cession ; and it will generally be found, that in long 
 continued and complicated strifes, this obligation be- 
 comes mutual. Whoever is the original aggressor, 
 a feud seldom continues long, ere both parties are to 
 blame. Even the aggrieved individual has some- 
 thing to concede ; and the way to induce the other 
 to acknowledge his greater offence, is for him to 
 confess his lesser one. It is the mark of a noble 
 and ingenuous mind to confess an error, and solicit 
 its forgiveness. " Confess your faults one to another," 
 is an inspired injunction. The man who is too proud 
 to acknowledge his fault, when his conduct demands 
 it, has violated his duty, and is a fit subject for cen- 
 sure. There are some persons, so far forgetful of 
 their obligations to Christ and to their brethren, as 
 not only to refuse to make concession, but even to 
 give explanation. Their proud spirits disdain even 
 to afford the least satisfaction in the way of throw- 
 ing light upon a supposed offence. This is most 
 criminal, and is such a defiance of the authority of 
 
OO DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 the Lord Jesus, as ought to bring the individual be- 
 fore the bar of the church. 
 
 We should be very cautious not to exact unrea- 
 sonable concession. A revengeful spirit is often as 
 effectually gratified by imposing hard and humiliat- 
 ing terms of reconciliation, as it possibly could be 
 by making tlie severest retaliation. No offender 
 is so severely punished, as he who is obliged to de- 
 grade himself in order to obtain a pardon. And as 
 all revenge is unlaAvful, we should be extremely 
 careful not to gratify it at the very time and by the 
 manner in which we are dispensing pardon. To 
 convince a brother, not to degrade him, is the object 
 we are to seek ; and especially should we endeav- 
 our to show him, that his offence is more against 
 Christ than against ourselves. 
 
 When suitable acknowledgments are made, the 
 ■act of forgiveness is no longer oj^tional with us. From 
 that moment every spark of anger, every feeling of 
 a revengeful nature, is to be quenched. " Let not 
 the sun go down upon your wrath, neither give place 
 to the devil." Eplies. iv. 26, 27. If we suffer sleep 
 to visit our eyes before we have forgiven an offend- 
 ing, but penitent brother, loe are committing a great- 
 er offence against Christ, than our brother has com- 
 mitted against us. The man that takes a revenge- 
 ful temper to his pillow, is inviting Satan to be his 
 guest. Such a man would probably tremble at the 
 thought of taking a harlot to his bed ; but is it no 
 crime to sleep in the embrace of a. fiend ? The word 
 revenge should be blotted from the Christian's vocab- 
 ulary by the tears which he sheds for his oAvn of- 
 fences. How can an implacable Christian repeat 
 that petition of our Lord's prayer, " Forgive me my 
 trespasses as I forgive them that trespass against 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER* Oil 
 
 me ?" Does he forget that if he uses such language 
 while he is living in a state of resentment against 
 a brother, he is praying for perdition ? — for how does 
 he forgive them that trespass against him ? By re* 
 venge. How strong is the language of St. Paul I 
 " Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God whereby ye are 
 sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitter'- 
 ness, and wrath, and clamour, and evil speaking, be 
 put away from you, with all malice : and be kind 
 one to another, and tender hearted, forgiving one 
 another, even as God, for Christ's sake, hath for- 
 given you." Ephes. iv. 30 — 32. What motives 
 to a forgiving spirit ! ! Can that man have ever 
 tasted the sweets of pardoning mercy, who refuses 
 to forgive an erring brother ? Go, Christian profess- 
 or, go first to the law, and learn thy twice tea 
 thousand sins ; go in imagination to the brink of the 
 bottomless pit, and as thou hearkenest to the bowl- 
 ings of the damned, remember that those bowlings 
 might have been thine ; then go to the cross, and 
 while thou lookest on the bleeding victim, which is 
 nailed to it, hearken to the accents of mercy which 
 breathe like soft music in thine ear, " Go in peace, 
 thy sins are all forgiven thee." What, tvill you, 
 can you return from such scenes, with purposes of 
 revenge ? No ; impossible. An implacable Chris- 
 tian is a contradiction in terms. " Bigots there may 
 be, and have been, of all denominations ; but an 
 implacable, irreconcilable, unforgiving Christian, is 
 of the same figure of speech, as a godly adulterer, 
 a religious drunkard, a devout murderer."* 
 
 The last step in reclaiming an offender, is to bring 
 him before the assembled church. "If he will not 
 
 Dr. Grosvenor's most pathetic Sermon on the " Temper 
 of Jesus." 
 
 8 
 
90 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that 
 in the mouth of two or three witnesses, every word- 
 may be established ; and if he shall neglect to hear 
 them, tell it unto the church ; but if he neglect to 
 hear the church, let him be unto thee as a heathen 
 man and a publican." Every effort that ingenuity 
 can invent, affection prompt, or patience can conduct, 
 ought to be made, before it be brought to be investi- 
 gated by the brethren at large. If every trivial dis- 
 agreement be laid before the church, it will soon 
 become a court of common pleas, and have all its 
 time consumed in adjusting matters of which it ought 
 never to have heard. Before a public inquiry takes 
 place, the pastor should be made acquainted with 
 tJie matter ; who, if he possess the confidence and 
 affection of his people, will have sufficient influence, 
 at least in all ordinary cases, to terminate the differ- 
 ence in an amicable manner. It is best to settle it 
 even without his interference, if possible ; but it is 
 better to consult him in every case, before the affair 
 is submitted to the last tribunal. 
 
 An offence ought never to he considered as removed, 
 until love IS restored. We should never rest until 
 such an explanation has been given and received, as 
 will enable us to return to harmony and confidence. 
 A mere cessation of actual hostilities may do for 
 the intercourse of the world, but not for the fellow- 
 ship of the saints. There is no actual strife between 
 the tenants of the sepulchre ; but the cold and gloomy 
 stillness of a church-yard is an inappropriate emblem 
 of tlie peace of a Christian church. In such a com- 
 munity, we expect, that not only will the discords 
 and sounds of enmity be hushed, but the sweet har- 
 monies of love be heard ; not only that the conflict 
 of rage will terminate, but be succeeded by the ac- 
 tivity of genuine affection. 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 91 
 
 When once an offenct has been removed, it should 
 never he adverted to in future. Its very remembrance 
 should, if possible, be washed from the memory by 
 the waters of Lethe. Other causes of disagreement 
 may exist, and fresh feuds arise ; but the old one 
 is dead and buried, and its angry ghost should never 
 be evoked to add fury to the passion of .its successoE. 
 Nor should ive, when in our turn we are convicted 
 of an error, shelter ourselves from reproof, by re- 
 minding our reprover, that he was once guilty of a 
 similar offence. This is mean, dishonourable, un- 
 christian, and mischievous. 
 
 Every Christian should hear reproof icith meekness. 
 Few know how to give reproof with propriety, stiU 
 fewer how to bear it. " Let the righteous smite 
 me, it shall be a kindness ; and let him reprove me, 
 it shall be as excellent oil, which shall not break my 
 head." How small is the number who can adopt 
 this language in sincerity ! What wounded pride, 
 %vhat mortification and resentment are felt by many 
 when their faults are told to them. When we have 
 so far sinned as to deserve rebuke, we ought to have 
 humility enough to bear it with meekness ; and should 
 it be delivered in greater weight, or with less aiSee- 
 tion than we think is proper, a penitential remem- 
 brance of our offence should prevent all feelings of 
 irritation or resentment. The scripture is very se*- 
 vere in its language to those who turn with neglect, 
 anger or disgust from the admonitions of their breth- 
 ren. " He that despiseth reproof sinneth." Prov. 
 X. 17. " He that hateth reproof is brutish." Prov. 
 xii. 1. « He that is often reproved, and yet harden- 
 eth his neck, shall be suddenly destroyed, |||d that 
 without remedy." Prov. xxix. 1. Such persons are 
 guilty of great pride, great neglect of the word of 
 God, and great contempt of one of the ordmances 
 
92 
 
 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 of Heaven, and thus injure their souls by that which 
 was given to benefit them. 
 
 Do not then act so wickedly as to turn with in- 
 dignation from a brother that comes in the spirit of 
 meekness to admonish and reprove you. Rather 
 thank him for his fidelity, and profit by his kindness. 
 I know not a more decisive mark of true and strong 
 piety than a willingness to receive reproof with 
 meekness, and to profit by admonition, come from 
 whom it might. 
 
 2. If the peace of the church be preserved, the 
 members must watch against and repress a tattling 
 
 DISPOSITION. 
 
 There are few circumstances which tend more 
 to disturb the harmony and repose of our societies, 
 than a proneness, in some of their members, to a 
 gossipping, tattling disposition. There are persons 
 so deeply infected with the Athenian passion to hear 
 or tell some new thing, that their ears or lips are 
 always open. With insatiable appetite they devour 
 all the news they can by any means collect, and are 
 never easy until it is all disgorged again, to the 
 unspeakable annoyance and disgust of others around 
 them. It is one of the mysteries of God's natural 
 government, that such should gain a sort of adven- 
 titious consequence by the mischief they occasion, 
 and be thus sheltered from scorn by being regarded 
 with dread. The tattler is of this description: I 
 mean the individual who loves to talk of other men's 
 matters, and especially of Xheir faults ; for it will 
 be found, that by a singular perversity of disposition, 
 those who love to talk about the circumstances of 
 ot^ers0-arely ever select their excellences as matter 
 of discourse, but almost always fix upon their fail- 
 ings ; and thus, to borrow a simile of Solomon's, 
 they resemble the fly which neglects the healthful 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 93 
 
 part of the frame to pitch and luxuriate on the 
 sore. 
 
 In the case of tattling there are generally three 
 parties to blame ; there is first the gossip, then the 
 person who is weak enough to listen to, and report 
 the tales ; and lastly, the individual who is the sub- 
 iect of the report, who suffers his mind to be irri- 
 tated, instead of going, in the spirit of meekness, to 
 require an explanation from the original reporter. 
 
 Now let it be a rule with every church member, 
 to avoid speaking of the circumstances, and especially 
 of the faults of others. Let this rule have the sanc- 
 tity of the laws of Heaven, and the immutability 
 of those of the Medes and Persians. Let every 
 individual resolve with himself thus : " I will be slow 
 to speak of others. I will neither originate a report 
 by saying what I think, nor help to circulate a re- 
 port by repeating what I hear." This is a most 
 wise regulation, which would at once preserve our 
 own peace and the peace of society. We should 
 beware of saying any thing, which, by the perverted 
 ingenuity of a slanderous disposition, may become 
 the basis of a tale to the disadvantage of another. 
 It is not enough, as I have hinted, that we do not 
 originate a report, but we ought not to circulate it. 
 When it reaches us, there it should stop, and go no 
 farther. We should giv-e it to prudence, to be 
 buried in silence. We must never appear pleased 
 with the tales of gossips and newsmongers, much 
 less with the scandals of the backbiter ; our smile 
 is their reward. If there ivere no listeners, there 
 would be no reporters. In company, let us always 
 discourage and repress such conversation. Talkers 
 know where to find a market for their stuff; and 
 like poachers and smugglers, who never carry their 
 contraband articles to the house of an exciseman, 
 
94 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 they never oifer their reports to an individual who, 
 they know, would reprove them in the name of 
 Jesus. 
 
 Let us avoid and discourage the hollow, deceitful 
 practice of indulging a tattling disposition under the 
 cover of lamenting over the faults of our brethren. 
 
 Many who would be afraid or ashamed to men- 
 tion the faults of a brother in the way of direct 
 affirmation or report, easily find, or attempt to find, 
 a disguise for their backbiting disposition in affect- 
 ed lamentations. " What a pity it is," they exclaim, 
 " that brother B. should have behaved so ill. Poor 
 man, I am sorry that he should have committed him- 
 self. The petulance of his temper is exceedingly 
 to be regretted. He does not much honour religion." 
 " And then," replies a second, " how sorry I am to 
 hear this report of sister C. I How the world will 
 talk, and the cause of Christ suffer by such unwar- 
 rantable things in the conduct of a professor ! It 
 will not be a secret long, or I would not mention it." 
 " Oh," says a third, " I have heard whispers of the 
 same kind in times past. I have long suspected it, 
 and mentioned my fears some months ago to a friend 
 or two. I thought she was not the person she ap- 
 peared to be. I am very sorry for her, and for the 
 cause of Christ. I have long had my suspicions, 
 and now they are all confirmed. I shall tell the 
 friends to whom I expressed my fears what I have 
 now heard." In this way is a tattling disposition 
 indulged in the circles of even good people, under 
 tlie guise of lamentation for the sins of others. 
 " Odious and disgusting cant !" would a noble and 
 honourable Christian exclaim, with hallowed indig- 
 nation ; " which of you, if you really lamented the 
 fact, would report it ? Which of you has gone to the 
 erring individual, inquired into the truth of the mat- 
 
TOWARDS EACH OTHER. 95 
 
 ter, and, finding it true, has mildly expostulated ? 
 Let your lamentations be poured out before God 
 and the offender, but to none else." 
 
 Others, again, indulge this disposition hy running 
 about to inquire into the truth of a report, which they 
 say has reached them, respecting a brother. " Have 
 you heard any thing of brother H. lately ?" they ask, 
 with a significant look. " No," replies the person. 
 " Then I suppose it is not true." " Why, what have 
 you heard ? Nothing, I hope, affecting his moral 
 character." " Not very materially ; but I hope it is 
 false." The tattler cannot go, hoAvever, without 
 letting out the secret, and then sets off to inquire 
 of another and another. Mischief making creature ! 
 Why had he not gone, as was his obvious duty, to 
 the individual who was the subject of the report, and 
 inquired of him the truth of it ? Ay, but then the 
 story would have been contradicted at once, and the 
 pleasure of telling it would have been ended. 
 
 There are cases in which a modest disclosure of 
 the failings of others is necessanj. Such, for ex- 
 ample, as when a church is likely to be deceived in 
 the character of an individual, whom it is about to 
 admit to communion. In such instances, the person 
 who is aware of the imposition that is likely to be 
 practised, should go directly to the pastor, and make 
 him acquainted with the fact; instead of which, 
 some persons whisper their suspicions to any and to 
 many, except the pastor. It is perfectly lawful also 
 to prevent any brother from being betrayed into a 
 ruinous confidence in pecuniary matters, by inform- 
 ing him of the character of the individual by whom 
 he is about to be deceived. Silence, in such cases, 
 would be an obvious injury. 
 
 Be slow to speak, then, is a maxim which every 
 Christian should always keep before his eyes. Si- 
 
96 DUTIES OP CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 lent people can do no harm ; but talkers are always 
 dangerous. 
 
 III. Besides these things, there are duties which 
 members owe to the church in its collective capifcity. 
 
 1. They are bound to take a deep interest in its con- 
 cernSf and to seek its prosperity hy all lawful means. 
 
 Every one should feel that he has a personal 
 share in the welfare of the society. He should con- 
 sider that, having selected that particular community 
 with which he is associated, as his religious home, 
 he is under a solemn obligation to promote, by every 
 proper effort, its real interest. He is to be indif- 
 ferent to nothing which at any time affects its pros- 
 perity. Some members, from the moment they have 
 joined a Christian church, take no concern in any 
 of its affairs. They scarcely ever attend a church 
 meeting ; they know neither who are excluded, nor 
 who are received. If members are added, they ex- 
 press no delight ; if none are admitted, they feel no 
 grief. They fill up their places at the table of the 
 Lord, and in the house of God ; and beyond this, 
 seem to have nothing else to do with the church. 
 This is a most criminal apathy ; a Christian ought 
 to be as tremblingly alive to the welfare of the re- 
 ligious society to which he is united, as he is to the 
 success of his worldly affairs. 
 
 2. They are bound to attend all the meetings of the 
 church, at least so far as their circumstances will 
 allow. They had better be absent from sermons 
 and prayer-meetings, than from these. How can 
 they know the state of the society, if they are not 
 present when its affairs are exhibited and arranged ? 
 or how can they exercise that proper confidence in 
 the piety of the brethren, which is essential to fel- 
 lowship, if they are absent at the time of their ad- 
 mission ? 
 
TOWARDS EACn OTHER. 97 
 
 3. They should most conscientiously devote their 
 gifts, graces and abilities to the service of the church, 
 in an orderly and modest way; neither obtruding 
 their assistance when it is not required, nor with- 
 holding it when it is solicited. Those who have 
 gifts of prayer, should not be backward to exercisa 
 them for the edification of their brethren. Those 
 who have penetration and sound judgment, should 
 render their counsel and advice upon every occasion. 
 Persons of large and respectable worldly connexions 
 may often use their influence with great benefit to 
 the temporal affairs of the society. 
 
 And there is one line of charitable exertion, which 
 would be peculiarly beneficial, and which has been 
 too much neglected in all our societies ; I mean the 
 practice of respectable members reading the Scriptures, 
 religious tracts, and sermons, in the habitations of the 
 poor, I am aware that this is an age when many 
 run to and fro, and when lay preaching is carried 
 to a very improper and mischievous extent. Some 
 who have no other qualification for preaching than 
 boldness and ignorance, are every Sabbath employ- 
 ed, of whom it might be said, that it is a pity they 
 have not the gift of silence. Unfortunately, those 
 who are most qualified, are frequently least disposed ; 
 while the least qualified, are the most zealous. But 
 how many wise, judicious, holy men, are there in 
 our churches, who would be most honourably and 
 most usefully employed, in reading the words of 
 life, and short evangelical sermons, in the cottages 
 of the poor ! Let a convenient house be selected, 
 and the neighbours invited to attend : and who can 
 tell what vast benefit would accrue from such a 
 scheme ? By the blessing of God upon these efforts, 
 reformation would be wrought in the lower class- 
 es ; religion would gain an entrance where it could 
 9 
 
yb DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 be introduced by no other means, and our churches 
 be replenished with holy, consistent members. Per- 
 sons of respectable circumstances in life, especially, 
 should thus employ themselves, as their situation 
 gives them greater influence. Females may be 
 thus engaged, without transgressing either against 
 the injunction of the apostle, or the modesty which 
 is so becoming their sex. I am astonished that means 
 of usefulness so simple, so easy, and so efficient, are 
 not more generally employed. 
 
 4. It is due to the authority of the church, that 
 every member should cordially submit to its discipline. 
 Without this, order would be destroyed, and the 
 reign of anarchy introduced. This, indeed, as we 
 have already considered, is essentially implied in 
 the very act of joining tlie church ; and no one ought 
 to tliink of such an act of union, who is not deter- 
 mined to submit to its rules and its decisions. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 THE DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS TO THE MEMBERS 
 OF OTHER CHRISTIAN SOCIETIES. 
 
 First. In those cases where the churches are 
 of a different denomination. 
 
 1. We should respect their religious opinions and 
 practices. 
 
 They act conscientiously ; and whatever is done 
 at the dictate of conscience, is too sacred to be made 
 the matter of ridicule. The way to bring the scorn 
 of ungodly men upon all religion, is for religious 
 people, differing upon minor points, to jest with each 
 other's practices. 
 
TO OTHER CHRISTIAN SOCIETIES. 99 
 
 2. Let Its avoid religious bigotry and prejudice. 
 
 By bigotry, I mean such an overweening attach- 
 ment to our opinions and denomination, as alienates 
 our affections from Christians of another name, and 
 leads us to conclude there is little excellence or 
 piety, except in our own communion. Some Chris- 
 tians are so shortsighted by prejudice, that they can- 
 not discern the most splendid exhibitions of moral 
 excellence, if they are at the least removed from 
 their own denomination. The consideration, that a 
 man is not of their party, is sufficient, in their evil 
 eye, to dim the lustre of an example which 6,ngels 
 admire, and to eclipse that living luminary, Avhich, 
 to the eye of Heaven, shines with most radiant glory. 
 Their moral vision has so long and so intently pored 
 over the minute distinctions of party, as to have 
 acquired a contraction of power, which prevents them 
 from comprehending and admiring, as they would 
 otherwise do, the grander features of religion in 
 general. 
 
 I know not a proof of true piety more decisive, 
 and more pleasing, than that quick perception and 
 fervent admiration of the beauties of holiness, which 
 lead a man to recognise and love them, wherever 
 they are seen, whether in his own denomination or 
 in others. " The evil to be deplored in the present 
 state of the church, is the unnatural distance at which 
 Christians stand from each other, the spirit of sects, 
 the disposition to found their union on the wood, hay 
 and stubble of human inventions, or disputable tenets, 
 instead of the eternal Rock, the faith once delivered 
 to the saints. Surely, surely, we shall find a suffi- 
 cient bond of union, a sufficient scope for all oui 
 sympathies, in the doctrine of the cross."* 
 
 * Robert Hall 
 
100 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 3. TFe should abstain from all officious contrO' 
 versy, or underhand proselytism. 
 
 I will not deny that there are occasions when 
 our peculiar opinions may be brought forward with 
 propriety and advocated with zeal ; when silence 
 would be lukewarmness, and not candour. But to 
 be ever obtruding them upon the attention of others, 
 and to be always seeking after opportunities of con- 
 troversy, is as disgusting as it is pernicious ; for 
 while it offends others, it is sure to do harm to our 
 own spirit. 
 
 Regarding the irreligious part of our population 
 as an immense moral desert, surely there is scope 
 enough for our zeal, to reclaim this immense waste, 
 and convert it into the garden of the Lord, without 
 employing our energies in altering the position of 
 those plants and trees, which are already flourishing 
 in the sacred enclosure. It is a far more honourable 
 and useful kind of zeal, to convert sinners into Chris- 
 tians, than real Christians of one name, into real 
 Christians of another name. 
 
 Secondly. I shall nov/ speak of the conduct of 
 Christians to the members of other churches of their 
 own denomination. 
 
 It does not unfrequently happen, that where two 
 or more churches of the same denomination exist in 
 a town, a most unhappy, unscriptural, disgraceful 
 temper is manifested towards each other. All the 
 feelings of envy, jealousy, and ill will, are cherished 
 and displa^^ed with as much, or more bitterness than 
 two rival tradesmen would exhibit in the most de- 
 termined opposition of interests. This is peculiarly 
 the case where two churches have been formed, by a 
 schism, out of one. Oftentimes the feud has been 
 perpetuated through one generation, and has been 
 bequeathed to the generation following. Can it be 
 
TO OTHER CHRISTIAN SOCIETIES. 101 
 
 that these are churches of saints ? Can it be that 
 these are all one in Christ? Can it be that these 
 are societies, whose rule is the word of Christ, whose 
 conduct is the image of Christ, whose end is the 
 glory of Christ ! ! 
 
 Shame, public, deep, indelible shame on such so- 
 cieties ! Is it thus that churches quarrel, to find 
 sport for their enemies ? By all the regard which 
 is due to the authority of the Lord Jesus, by all the 
 constraining influence of his love, let such societies 
 be impelled to terminate their hateful strifes, which 
 are not more dishonourable to the cause of religion 
 in general, than they are injurious to the interests ' 
 of piety within their oAvn immediate sphere of ac- 
 tion. With what bitter taunts, with what sarcastic 
 triumph do profane and infidel spectators point to 
 such scenes, and ironically exclaim, " ^ee hoiv these 
 Christians love one another /" 
 
 Let us guard against this evil where it does not 
 exist, and endeavour to suppress it where it does. 
 Let us not look with envy and jealousy on the grow- 
 ing prosperity of other societies. Let us not con- 
 sider their success as in any degree encroaching 
 upon ours. If we succeed more in our own church, 
 let us be thankful, but not boastful ; if others take 
 precedence, let us be stirred up to aifectionate, holy 
 emulation, but not to envy and jealousy. 
 
 A worthy minister, who used to preach a week 
 day lecture in the city of London, heard a friend 
 expressing his regret that it was so ill attended. 
 "Oh, that," replied the minister, "is of little conse- 
 quence, as the gospel is preached by several others 
 in the same neighbourhood ; and in such a situation, 
 for any one to be very desirous that people should 
 come and hear the gospel from him^ instead of others, 
 seems as unreasonable, as it would be for one of the 
 
102 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 shopmen in a large shop, to wish all the customers 
 to come to his particular part of the counter. If the 
 customers come at all, and the goods go off, in so 
 far as he feels an interest in the prosperity of the 
 shop, he will rejoice." Beautiful and rare example 
 of true humility, pure zeal and genuine love to 
 Christ! Look at this, ye ministers and churches, 
 who quarrel with your neighbours, and scarcely speak 
 well of them, because they prosper no less than you ! 
 Shall we feel mortified when immortal souls are saved, 
 because we are not the instruments of their conver- 
 sion ? Shall we say, if we cannot gather them into 
 our church, let them not be gathered ? If two rival 
 physicians, who had each as much as he could do, 
 when the plague was raging in a town, looked with 
 envy and grudging on each other's success, what 
 should we say of their spirit ? But such a temper 
 in these circumstances is far less criminal than the 
 envious disposition of some ministers and their 
 flocks. 
 
 There should be a spirit of mutual affection be- 
 tween the members of different churches. They 
 sliould love as brethren ; and that this might not 
 be disturbed, they should avoid, when they meet in 
 tlieir respective social circles, all invidious and un- 
 diaritahle reference to the others. Nothing is more 
 common than for the Christians of one society to 
 make the circumstances and faults of those of anoth- 
 er the leading topics of conversation. Thus the 
 coals of strife are kindled in these Christian parties, 
 and every one present lends his breath to fan the 
 flame. It is melancholy indeed, when our houses 
 are thus converted into temples for the god of this 
 world, the divider of the brethren ; and our family 
 altar is lent for an ofl*ering of scandal at his shrine. 
 Ministers, and leading persons in the company, 
 
TO OTHER CHRISTIAN SOCIETIES. 103 
 
 should always set their faces against this mischie- 
 vous gossip. All comparisons between the talents 
 of the ministers, and the respectability of their church- 
 es, should be carefully abstained from. This is sure 
 to do harm. It is right for every church member 
 to be attached to his own pastor, and he may very 
 innocently think that his minister is the best preach- 
 er in the to"\vn ; but it is insulting and mischievous 
 to express ]iis opinion to those who prefer another. 
 It is not unusual for the pulpit to be converted into 
 a source of the most disgusting adulation, and for a 
 ministerial sycophant to Hatter the pride of his flock, 
 by telling them how superior they are to all others 
 in affluence, liberality, and influence. Such fawning, 
 to say nothing of its littleness, is exceedingly in- 
 jurious. What is intended as a compliment to one 
 church is felt as an insult by all others in its vicinity. 
 All boasting should be most conscientiously refrained 
 from, both on the part of ministers and people. If 
 they are in a state of spiritual prosperity, let them 
 be thankful, but not vain-glorious. " Charity vaunt- 
 eth not itself, is not puffed up." The apostle de- 
 livered a very keen rebuke on those who are the 
 trumpeters of their own fame, when he said, "I 
 speak not after the Lord, but as it were foolishly in 
 the confidence of boasting. Seeing that many glory 
 after the flesh, I will glory also, for ye suffer fools 
 gladly." 
 
 Church members should never resent by coldness^ 
 and distance of behaviour, the conduct of those who 
 leave their society, to join another in the same toivn. 
 They have a right to exercise their oAvn judgment 
 as well as we, and in their view, at least, have as 
 good reason for preferring the pastor to whom they 
 go, as we have for continuing with the one they 
 leave. They may separate too hastily, and not on 
 
104 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 sufficient grounds ; but that is their concern, not 
 ours. I have known cases in which both the min- 
 ister and his flock have refused even the civilities 
 of ordinary intercourse to those who have left their 
 church to associate with another. This is a most 
 pitiful and unchristian disposition. 
 
 There are duties to be performed by the church 
 in its collective capacity towards other societies of 
 the same denomination. 
 
 1. We should oiun them as churches of Chy'ist, 
 cherish the most friendly and fraternal feelings to- 
 wards them, and hold Christian communion with 
 them in all the duties of our common faith and 
 practice. 
 
 Such appears to have been the feelings of the pri- 
 mary churches. "The clmrches of Christ salute 
 you." Rom. xvi. 16. " The church that is at Bab- 
 ylon, elected together with you, saluteth you." 1 Pet. 
 v. 13. " Ye are taught of God to love one another, 
 and ye do it towards all the brethren in Macedonia." 
 1 Thes. iv. 9, 10. 
 
 2. We should receive their members ivhen recom- 
 mended to us, and freely grant honourable recommen- 
 dations of our members to them. 
 
 « I commend unto you Phebe our sister, a servant 
 of the church at Cenchrea ; receive her in the Lord 
 as becometh saints, and assist her in whatsoever 
 business she hath need of you." Rom. xvi. 1. 
 " They are the messengers of the churches ; shew 
 ye to them, and before the churches, the proof of 
 your love." 2 Cor. viii. 23, 24. 
 
 3. We should co-operate with neighbouring church- 
 es for promoting the spread of the gospel, either by 
 local or general institutions. 
 
 Many objects of vast importance to the spread 
 of the gospel in the world can be accomplished by 
 
TO OTHER CHRISTIAN SOCIETIES. 105 
 
 the union of churches, Avhich cannot be effected 
 without it. Union is power. Places of worship 
 may be opened, the faithful ministry of the word in- 
 troduced, and churches planted in dark, benighted 
 villages; while all the grand and noble institutions 
 which are organized to save a perishing world, may 
 by this means receive additional support. United 
 fires brighten each other's blaze, and increase each 
 other's intensity ; and thus the association of church- 
 es enkindles each other's zeal, and provokes one 
 another to love and good works. Nor is zeal the 
 only Christian virtue promoted by such unions ; 
 brotherly love is cherished and excited. The pres- 
 ence of messengers from other churches at the annu- 
 al meetings of our societies, produces a friendly 
 feeling and brotherly interest, not unlike that which 
 a family experiences, when gathered together at 
 their Christmas party. One great end of assembling 
 the males of the Jewish nation three times a year 
 before the ark, was to keep up a brotherly feeling 
 between the different and distant parts of the nation. 
 Nothing is so likely to cherish the fire of love, as 
 the fuel supplied by works of zeal. 
 
 4. We should be willing to give and receive ad- 
 vice in cases of difficulty and importance. 
 
 Of course, the independence of the churches, and 
 the right of private judgment, should be vigilantly 
 watched, and sacredly preserved. We have no do- 
 minion over each other's conduct, any more than 
 over each other's faith. The idea of control is as 
 repugnant to revelation as it is to reason. And we 
 are to resist unto blood, striving against the usurpa- 
 tion of foreign compulsory interference. But advice 
 does not imply control. The dread which has been 
 felt of the simple act of one church's asking the ad- 
 vice of a neighbouring minister, or an association 
 
106 DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS 
 
 of ministers, in cases of extreme difficulty, discovers 
 a fear of domination, which is perfectly childish. 
 How consonant with all the dictates of reason, and 
 all the proceedings of civil life, is it, for two parties 
 in a state of litigation, to ask the opinion of a third ; 
 or for one individual in difficulty, to solicit the ad-, 
 vice of another. ' When a minister and his flock are 
 in some critical situation, let them jointly agree to 
 lay their affiiirs before some two or three neighbour- 
 ing ministers and laymen of sound judgment, for 
 counsel and direction ; and how often, by this simple, 
 rational, scriptural process, would a society be 
 brought back from the brink of ruin to peace and 
 safety ! But what if they should not take the advice 
 thus given ? Tliey must then be left to themselves, 
 and would be but where they were before. The 
 disposition which scorns to ask, and refuses to take 
 advice, savours far more of the pride of indepen- 
 dence, than the love of peace ; and of the temper 
 which courts interminable anarchy rather than be 
 indebted for the restoration of order, to the opinions 
 and persuasions of another. Men which stand out 
 of the mist of passion, can see more than those en- 
 veloped in the fog. 
 
 5. We should take a dtep interest in the ivelfare 
 of other churches, and in a suitable and proper man- 
 ner express our sympathy, and affi3rd to them our 
 assistance. 
 
 We should at our church meetings remember in 
 prayer, the cases of such as are in circumstances 
 of affliction ; and in the event of the death of a pas- 
 tor, how consoling would it be to a bereaved church, 
 to receive letters of condolence from neighbouring 
 societies ! There is one way, in which the most 
 effectual help may be rendered by one church t(5 
 another : I mean, pecuniary assistance granted from 
 
TO OTHER CHRISTIAN SOCIETIES. 107 
 
 such as are wealthy to those who are poor. We are 
 informed, Acts xi. 29, 30, that the disciples at An- 
 tioch sent relief, according to their abilities, to the 
 poor saints in Judea. " Concerning the collection 
 for tlie saints, as I had given orders to the churches 
 at Galatia : Even so do ye." 1 Cor. xvi. 1. I am 
 aware, that this is sometimes done out of a fund, 
 raised by the joint contributions of the churches in 
 a county or district association ; but how great 
 would be the effect produced, if a church, in its in- 
 dividual capacity, were from year to year to send 
 a donation to some poor community in its neigh- 
 bourhood ! What a lovely display of Christian feel- 
 ing would this be ! Hoav v/ould it endear the socie- 
 ties to each other ! It would assist those to gain an 
 efficient and settled minister, who, probably, but for 
 such help, would only enjoy the precarious labours 
 of occasional and incompetent preachers. The com- 
 fort of many faithful and laborious ministers would 
 be thus promoted, and the kingdom of Jesus Christ 
 enlarged. 
 
 Ye rich churches in our large cities, and in the 
 country, who, Avithout effort, can raise for your own 
 pastors ample salaries, I appeal to your liberality, 
 on behalf of those many churches scattered up and 
 down the land, which are withering for the want of 
 a little of that wealth, which you could spare, with- 
 out lessening the comfort, either of your minister, 
 or your families. I would not rob the funds of 
 Missionary, or Bible Societies, to replenish the little 
 store of gospel ministers at home ; but I will say, 
 that no foreign objects should be allowed to inter- 
 fere with the claims of those deserving and holy 
 men, who are labouring for souls amidst all the ills 
 of poverty, and all the cares and woes which such 
 ills must necessarily entail. 
 
108 CHURCH members' PECULIAR 
 
 Where is the favoured individual, into wnose lap 
 the bounty of Heaven has poured the abundance 
 of riches, and into whose heart divine grace has in- 
 troduced the mercy that is full of good fruits? 
 here let him fxud an object worthy of his wealth 
 and of his zeal. Let him become the nursing fa- 
 ther of our poor churches. If he spend tiuo thou- 
 sand a year in this way, he may give forty pounds a 
 year to fifty ministers. What a means of useful- 
 ness ! How many infant churches would smile up- 
 on him from their cradle ; and, as they turned upon 
 him tlieir eyes glistening with gratitude, would ex- 
 claim, «My Father, my father!" In how many 
 church-books would his name be enrolled, amidst 
 the benedictions and prayers of the saints ! 
 
 CHAPTER Vm. 
 
 THE DUTIES OF CHURCH MEMBERS IN THEIR PECU- 
 LIAR CHARACTER AND STATION. 
 
 I. The pastor's wife. 
 
 A station so honourable, so important, so respon- 
 sible, must necessarily be attended with duties nu- 
 merous, difficult, and of great consequence. As a 
 ivife, she should be a bright pattern of all that ten- 
 der affection, that unsuspicious confidence, that 
 cheerful obedience, that undivided devotedness to 
 her husband's comfort, which such a relationship im- 
 plies ; a lovely, spotless exhibition of connubial vir- 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 109 
 
 tue. No man is in greater need of all the force of 
 conjugal sympathy and love, than a faithful min- 
 ister. 
 
 As the female head of a family^ she should direct 
 her household affairs with judgment, and he a model 
 of order, neatness, and domestic dicipline. A minis- 
 ter derives some degree of respectability from the 
 state of his family. Home scenes, according as they 
 are lovely or repulsive, form a beauteous halo round, 
 or dark specks upon, the orb of his public character. 
 It is required of him that he should rule well his 
 own household ; but in this he is dependent upon his 
 tvife. What a disgrace is it that his house should 
 be such a scene of disorder, as to disgust, by its 
 confusion, the more respectable part of his friends ! 
 Some people, if we were to judge from their habits, 
 and their homes, seem to have been born out of 
 due time ; they look as if the era of their existence 
 were the reign of chaos. Order is heaven's first 
 law, and the laws of heaven certainly should govern 
 the habitations of its ministers. If a mother, a min- 
 ister's wife should strive to excel in every maternal 
 excellence. How often is it the case, that a minis- 
 ter's children are talked of almost to a proverb, for 
 their rudeness, ill behaviour, and wickedness ; in 
 such inj 
 mother. 
 
 In her own personal character, there are two traits 
 which should appear with peculiar prominence, and 
 shine with attractive lustre in a minister's wife ; 
 these are piety and prudence. Her piety should 
 not only be sincere, but ardent ; not only unsuspect- 
 ed, but eminently conspicuous. Her habits, her 
 conversation, her whole deportment, should bear the 
 deep, bright impress of heaven. She should be the 
 holiest, most spiritual woman in the church. Her 
 
110 CHURCH members' PECULIAR 
 
 prudence should equal her piety. Without the for- 
 mer, even the latter, however distinguished, would 
 only half qualify her for her important station. Her 
 prudence should display itself in all her conduct 
 towards her husband. She should be very careful 
 not to make him dissatisjied %vitk the situation he oc- 
 cupies. Many a minister has been rendered uncom- 
 fortable in a situation of considerable usefulness, or 
 has been led to quit it against the convictions of his 
 judgment, by the capricious prejudices of his wife ; 
 whose ambition has aspired to something higher, or 
 whose love of change has coveted something new. 
 A minister's wife should consult her husband's u«e- 
 fidness, and be willing to live in any situation, how- 
 ever self-denying its circumstances may prove, where 
 this is promoted ; and considering the influence she 
 has over his decisions, she should be very careful 
 hoAv she employs it in those seasons when a change 
 is meditated. Her prudence should render her ex- 
 tremely careful, not to prejudice her hushand^s mind 
 against any individual ivho may have, designedly or 
 unintentionally, ivjured her. In not a few cases, 
 have pastors been drawn into contention with some 
 of their friends, by the imprudent conduct of their 
 wives, who, possessing a morbid sensibility of of- 
 fence, have reported, amidst much exaggeration, 
 affronts which they ought not to have felt — or, feel- 
 ing, ought to have concealed. Instead of acting 
 as a screen, to prevent these petty vexations from 
 reaching his ear, they have rendered their tongues 
 a conductor, to convey them to his bosom. They 
 should hide many things of this kind, which it is not 
 important he should know, and soften others of which 
 he cannot be ignorant. 
 
 In all cases ivhere her hushand is the direct object 
 of a supposed or real injury, a minister's wife should 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. Ill 
 
 be very cautious how she acts. Intended by na- 
 ture, and inclined by affection, to be a partisan and 
 an advocate in her husband's cause, so far as truth 
 and holiness will allow, she should, at the same time, 
 endeavour rather to mitigate than exasperate the 
 displeasure of his mind. Her breath, in such cases, 
 if imprudently employed, may fan a flame which, in 
 its progress, may consume all the prosperity of the 
 church, and half the reputation of her husband. Let 
 her therefore govern her own spirit, as the best means 
 of aiding to govern his. Let her calm, conciliate, 
 and direct that mind, which may be too much en- 
 veloped in the mist of passion, to guide itself. Let 
 her not go from house to house, dropping sparks and 
 scinxillations from a tongue set on fire of hell. If 
 her husband be the head of a party, let her not en- 
 venom their minds with bitter words, which are sure 
 to be rendered still more bitter, by the lying re- 
 porters who carry them to the opposite party. Pru- 
 dence in a pastor's wife would have often saved a 
 church from division. 
 
 A minister's wife should never betray the confi- 
 dence reposed in her by her husband, and repfti the 
 opinions, views, and feelings, which he has communi- 
 cated in the seasons of their private conversation. 
 The secrets he deposits in her bosom, are to be as 
 sacredly preserved and guarded, as the ring, which, 
 on the morning of their union, he placed upon her 
 finger. 
 
 Prudence is to be displayed in all her conduct 
 towards the church. Probably, the chief part of this 
 virtue lies in a proper government of the tongue. 
 A very large proportion of the disturbances which 
 agitate the surface, and extend their influence to 
 the very depths of society, arise from imprudent 
 language. There appears to be, in one half of so- 
 
112 CHURCH members' PECULIAR 
 
 ciety, an incurable propensity to relate what is to 
 the disadvantage of their neighbours ; and in the 
 other half, an indestructible appetite to relish the 
 slander, when it is reported. Now a minister's 
 wife should most anxiously guard against this pro- 
 pensity in herself, and most assiduously labour to 
 abate this appetite in others. Let her, wherever 
 she goes, remember, that there are many waiting 
 and watching for her Avords, Avhich they will be sure 
 to reverberate with the mimicry, though not with 
 the fidelity, of an echo. Let litr tongue never deal 
 in sarcasm, satire, invective, censure, or slander. 
 Let it be an invariable rule with her, to speak ill 
 0¥ NO ONE. She should never appear fond of re- 
 ceiving ill reports from others. If she have a taste 
 of this kind, gratification enough will be found lier. 
 Like a queen bee, she has no need to roam abroad 
 in quest of ]ioney — she may sit at home in indo- 
 lent repose, while the whole hive of gossips and tat- 
 tlers will collect for her an exuberant supply. Let 
 her rather dis^mirage these humming, busy insects, 
 and convince them that she has neither ear for their 
 buzz, nor taste for their honey. 
 • Let her never betray a secret, which she has been 
 compelled to receive ; nor become umpire between 
 two contending parties, since, in whatever way her 
 decision is pronounced, she is almost sure to offend 
 one of them. She should avoid, as much as possible, 
 the appearance of favouritism. Some there must 
 be, with whom she will be more intimate than others : 
 but this fact, if it be known, should be but little 
 seen ; and her friends should be always such, as by 
 the common consent of the society luould be allotted to 
 her ; of course, they should not be minions selected 
 to sustain the character of fawning sycophants, 
 purveyors of news, or tools of selfishness. In all 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 113 
 
 her deportment towards the church, she should main- 
 tain a dignified consciousness of her station, blended 
 with the greatest affability and affection. The law 
 of kindness should be on her lips, and all her con- 
 duct should be so many displays of the meekness 
 of wisdom. Her dignity should prevent the highest 
 from being obtrusive, her kindness should make the 
 lowest feel that she is accessible. Without being 
 a busy body, and meddling with the concerns of 
 others, she should make the interests of her friends 
 her own. Her advice and assistance should always 
 be granted when asked, but never distributed in a 
 way that would render it unwelcome and little val- 
 ued. Her influence should be discreetly exerted 
 informing the general and pious habits of the young- 
 er females. She should be the friend of the poor, 
 and be often seen in the chambers of tliose of her 
 own sex, when they are visited with sickness. With 
 so much to engage her attention, she will have little 
 leisure for visits of useless shoiv, or expensive in- 
 tercourse. Such she ought not to be expected to 
 keep up, for her time can be more usefully and pi- 
 ously employed. For visits of mere gossip, or eti- 
 quette, she ought not to be put in requisition ; and 
 if she is, she should resist the attempt which is thus 
 made to enslave her, by the bonds of fashion or of 
 folly. She is the wife of a man, whose master is 
 God, ivhose business is the salvation of souls, whose 
 scene of labour is the church of Christ, and the con- 
 sequences of ivhose exertions, ichether they succeed or 
 fail, are infinite and eternal ; let her act accord- 
 ingly. 
 
 n. The deacons. 
 
 The institution of the deacon's office arose from a 
 seemingly accidental circumstance which occurred 
 in the church at Jerusalem, the particulars of which 
 10 
 
114 CHUPwCH members' peculiar 
 
 are recorded in the 6th chapter of the Acts of the 
 Apostles.* The original design of this office, was 
 to administer the bounty of the church. The first 
 deacons were simply the almoners of their brethren. 
 They dispensed the charities of the rich, for the re- 
 lief of the poor. And this, whatever has been added 
 by the usages of the churches, must still be consid- 
 ered as its paramount duty. What a lovely and 
 attractive view does it give us of Christianity, and 
 how strikingly characteristic of its merciful genius 
 to behold it solemnly instituting an office, the chief 
 design of which is, the comfort of its poorer follow- 
 ers ! Where shall we find any tiling analogous to 
 this in other systems ? Paganism and Mahometan- 
 ism have nothing like it. 
 
 * Some persons are of opinion that this occurrence was not 
 the origin of the deacon's office, and that the individuals there 
 mentioned, are to be viewed, not as officers of the church, but 
 merely as stewards of a public charity, who were appointed for 
 a special occasion, and not as a general and authoritative prece- 
 dent. It is said, in support of this opinion, that these individu- 
 als are not called deacons by the sacred historian, and that, in 
 , consequence, they cannot be proved to have been such. It is 
 also contended, that St. Paul does not specify, in his epistle to 
 Timothy, the duties of a deacon in such a way as to identify the 
 office with what Luke, in the 6th of Acts, has stated to be the 
 duties of llie individuals there selected for the primitive church. 
 
 In reply to this, I contend that this was the origin of the dea- 
 con's office, and on the following grounds : 
 
 Ist. Ecclesiastical history informs us, that the office was 
 always considered, from the very earliest ages, as designed for 
 the relief of the poor. If so, how natural is it to trace up its ori- 
 gin to the circumstance alluded to, which so estsily accounts 
 for it. 
 
 2nd. The solemnity with which the seven persons were set 
 apart to their office, i. e. with prayer and imposition of hands, 
 looks as if their appointment was to be considered as a stand- 
 ing and authoritative precedent. 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 115 
 
 By a reference to the origin of the office, we shall 
 learn how widely some religious communities have 
 departed from the design of this simple, merciful, 
 and useful institution. " Those who perverted all 
 church orders," says Dr. Owen, " took out of the 
 hands and care of the deacons, that work which was 
 committed to them by the Holy Ghost in the apos- 
 tles, and for which end alone their office was in- 
 stituted in the church, and assigned other work unto 
 them, whereunto they were not called and appoint- 
 ed. And whereas, when all things were swelling 
 with pride and ambition in the church, no sort of its 
 officers contenting themselves with their primitive 
 institution, but striving by various degrees to be 
 someAvhat, in name and thing, that was high and aloft, 
 
 3d. Ifthisbenot the origin of the deacon's office, where 
 shall we find the account ? and what is still stronger, if this be 
 not the institution, St. Paul has given directions about an office, 
 the duties of which are, in that case, not mentioned in the Word 
 of God. He has certainly' said nothing himself of its design — a 
 circumstance which is strongly presumptive of the truth of my 
 view of the case, since his silence seems to imply that the du- 
 ties of the deacon were already too well known to need that be 
 should specify them. His very omission is grounded on some 
 previous institution. Where shall we find this, but in Acts vi. ? 
 
 4th. The reason of the appointment in question, is of per- 
 manent force, i. e. that those who minister in the Word, should 
 not have their attention diverted by tempored concerns ; and, 
 therefore, seems as if a permanent office was then estab- 
 lished. 
 
 5th. I would ask any one who takes a different view from 
 that which I hold, what are the duties of the deacons mentioned 
 by Paul ? If he reply, as I thmk he must, " To attend to the 
 concerns of the poor," I would still inquire how he knows that. 
 If he answer. The testimony of ecclesiastical history — I would 
 still ask, On what the immemorial usage of the church could be 
 founded, if not on the fact mentioned by Luke in the Acts of 
 the Apostles ? 
 
116 CHURCH members' PECULIAR 
 
 there arose from the name of this office the meteor 
 of an arch deacon, with strange power and authority 
 never heard of in the church for many ages. But 
 this belongs to the mystery of iniquity, whereunto 
 neither the Scripture nor the practice of the primitive 
 churches, do give the least countenance. But some 
 think it not inconvenient to sport themselves in mat- 
 ters of church order and constitutions."* 
 
 The church of England, which retains some of 
 the corruptions of the church of Rome, has imitated 
 her in the total alteration of this office. In that 
 communion, the deacon is not a secular, but a spirit- 
 ual officer, and his post is considered as the first 
 grade in the ascent to the episcopal throne. He is 
 a preacher, and may baptize, but not administer the 
 eucharist. He is, in fact, half priest, half layman, 
 and does not altogether put off the laic, nor put on 
 the cleric character, till his second ordination to the 
 full orders of the priesthood. The church-warden 
 and the overseer share between them the office of 
 the deacon. 
 
 Abuses of this office, however, are not confined 
 to the churches of Rome and of England, but may 
 be found in the ecclesiastical polity of those who 
 separate from both. What is the deacon of some 
 of our independent communities ? Not simply the 
 laborious, indefatigable, tender-hearted dispenser 
 of the bounty of the church, the inspector of the 
 poor, the comforter of the distressed; no, but "the 
 bible of the minister, the patron of the living, and 
 the wolf of the flock ;" an individual, who, thrusting 
 himself into the seat of government, attem])ts to lord 
 it over God's heritage, by dictating alike to the pastor 
 and the members ; who thinks that, in virtue of his 
 
 * Dr. Owen on Church Government, 4to. 184. 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 117 
 
 office, his opinion is to be law in all matters of churcli 
 government, whether temporal or spiritual. This 
 man is almost as distant from the deacon of apostolic 
 times, as the deacon of the Vatican. Such men 
 there have been, whose spirit of domination in the 
 church has produced a kind of diaconophohia in the 
 minds of many ministers.* 
 
 I do beseech those who bear this office to look 
 to its origin, and learn that it is an office of service, 
 which gives no authority, or power, or rule in the 
 church, beyond the special work for which it is ap- 
 pointed, and that is, to 'provide for the comfort of the 
 poorer brethren. This is their business. It is true, 
 that by the usages of our churches, many things 
 have been added to the duties of the office, beyond 
 its original design ; but tliis is mere matter of ex- 
 pediency. 
 
 It is often said that the duty of the office is to 
 serve tables ; the table of the Lord, the table of tl^e 
 minister, and the table of the poor. If it be meant 
 that this was the design of its appointment, I deny 
 the statement, and affirm that the table of the poor, 
 is the deacon's appropriate and exclusive duty. 
 Whatever is conjoined with this, is extra diaconal 
 service, and vested in the individual, merely for the 
 sake of utility. Such increase of their duties, I admit, 
 is wise and proper. We need persons to take care 
 of the comfort of the minister — to provide for tlie 
 holy feast of the Lord's supper — to direct the ar- 
 rangements of all matters connected with public 
 worship ; and who so proper for this, as the breth- 
 
 * The author WTites from observation, not from experience ; 
 besides the eight deacons with whom he acts at present, he lias 
 already outHved eight more, and both tlie dead and the living 
 have been his comfort and joy. 
 
118 CHURCH members' PECULIAR 
 
 rcn who already fill an office, of which temporalities 
 are the object and design? But these are all ad- 
 ditions to the paramount duty of the deacon, which 
 is to take care of the poor. 
 
 Let it not be thought, that this is exhibiting the 
 office in a naked, and meagre, and degrading point 
 of view ; or as shorn of the beams of its brightest 
 glory. What can be a more happy or more honour- 
 able employment, that to distribute the alms of the 
 brethren, and visit the habitations of the poor, like 
 angels of mercy, with words of peace upon their 
 lips, and the means of comfort in their hands ? A 
 faithful, laborious, affectionate deacon, must""neces- 
 sarily become the object of justly deserved regard 
 in the church, and be looked up to with the esteem 
 and veneration, which are paid by a grateful depen- 
 dent family to their sire. The poor will tell him 
 their wants and woes, spiritual and temporal ; and 
 ask his advice with implicit confidence. He will 
 move through the orbit of his duty amidst the prayers 
 and praises of his brethren, and in measure may 
 adopt the language of Job — " When the ear heard 
 me, then it blessed me ; and when the eye saw me, 
 then it gave witness to me ; because I delivered 
 the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that 
 had none to help him. The blessing of him that 
 was ready to perish came upon me, and I caused 
 the widow's heart to sing for joy. I was eyes to 
 the blind, and feet was I to the lame. I was a fa- 
 ther to the poor, and the cause which I knew not, I 
 searched out." Surely, surely, here is honour, much 
 pure, legitimate, exalted honour. Such a man must 
 be, and ought to be a person of influence in the so- 
 ciety ; but it is the influence of character, of good- 
 ness, of usefulness. Let him have his periodical 
 visitations of the poor. Let him go and see their 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 119 
 
 wants and woes in their oivn habitations, as well as 
 bid them come and tell their sorrows in his. Let 
 him be full of compassion and tender hearted ; let 
 his eyes drop pity, while his hands dispense bounty ; 
 let him be alfable and kind as well as attentive. 
 And such a man shall want neither honour nor pow- 
 er amongst his brethren, although, at the same time, 
 he be peaceful as a dove, meek as a lamb, and gen- 
 tle as a little child. 
 
 The apostle is very explicit in his statement of 
 the qualifications Avliich the deacons should possess. 
 " Likewise must the deacons be grave," L e. men 
 of serious and dignified deportment ; " not double 
 tongued," i. e. sincere, not addicted to duplicity of 
 speech ; " not given to much wine ; not greedy of 
 filthy lucre ; holding the mystery of the faith in a 
 pure conscience," i. e. attached to the doctrines ot 
 the gospel, and exhibiting their holy influence in a 
 spotless life ; " and let them also first be proved ; 
 then let them use the office of a deacon, being 
 found blameless. Let them be the husband of one 
 wife, ruling their children and their own houses 
 well." ] Tim. iii. 8—13.* 
 
 Deacons should remember, that all these qualifica- 
 tions should be found embodied, as much as possible, 
 
 * The allusion made to the deacons' wives, appears to me 
 to be a mistranslation, and in the original refers to a class of 
 female office bearers in the primitive church. " Even so the 
 tromen." As the manners of the Greeks and Romans, and es- 
 pecially of the Asiatics, did not permit men to have much in- 
 tercourse with women of character, unless the}' were relations, 
 it was proper that an order of female assistants should be insti- 
 tuted for visiting and privately instructing the young of their 
 own sex, and for catechising females of any age. And as \he 
 ehurch was then much persecuted, and many of its members were 
 often condem ed to languish hi a prison, these holy women were, 
 no doubt, peculiarly useful in visitmg the captive Christians, 
 
120 CHURCH members' PECULIAR 
 
 in each individual^ holding the olffice ; and not mere- 
 ly some in one and some in another, till the charac- 
 ter is formed by the joint number, but not in each 
 member of the deaconry. Some have contended for 
 plurality of elders in a church, because it is impos- 
 sible to find all the qualifications of a Christian bish- 
 op stated by the apostle, in one person. We are 
 to look for one excellence in one man, and another 
 in the second, and what is wanting in one will be 
 made up in another, until their defects and attain- 
 ments are made to unite, like the corresponding' 
 parts of a dovetail joint. I confess, however, that 
 this way of making church officers, as it were by 
 patch work, appears to me a most absurd idea. 
 
 The deacons, from their being officers in the 
 church, although their office refers to temporalities, 
 and also from their being generally acquainted with 
 the affairs of the chur(ih, will be considered by every 
 wise and prudent minister, as his privy council in 
 his spiritual government, and should be always 
 ready to afford him their advice in a respectful and 
 unobtrusive manner. " Christian brethren," said 
 a preacher on this subject, " give to the minis- 
 ter I love, for a deacon, a man in whose house he 
 may sit down at ease, when he is weary and loaded 
 
 and performing- for them many kind offices which their sex can 
 best render. Such an one, in all probability, was Phebe, men- 
 tioned Rom. xvi. 1. Such were the widows spoken of 1 Tim. 
 V. Such were Euodia and Syntjche, Phil. iv. 3. Clement of 
 Alexandria reckons widows amongst ecclesiastical persons. 
 " There are many precepts in Scripture for those who are chos- 
 en, some for priests, others for bishops, others for deacons, 
 others for widows." Pliny, in his celebrated Epistle to Trajan, 
 is thought to refer to deaconesses, when, speaking of two fe- 
 male Christians whom he put to the torture, he says, " qua 
 ministrse dicebcuitur ;" i. e. who were called deaconesses. 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 121 
 
 with care ; into whose bosom he may freely pour his 
 sorrows, and by whose lips he may be soothed when 
 he is vexed and perplexed ; by whose illuminated 
 mind he may be guided in difficulty ; and by whose 
 liberality and cordial co-operation, he may be ani- 
 mated and assisted in every generous undertaking." 
 And I would add, who would do all this in the spir- 
 it of humble, modest, and unauthoritative affection. 
 
 In the transactions of church business, the dea- 
 cons should exert no other influence than that which 
 arises from the esteem and affection in which they 
 are held by the people. All personal and official au- 
 thority should be abstained from. Their opinion 
 should ever be stated with pre-eminent modesty ; 
 for if it be a wise one, its wisdom will commend it- 
 self to the judgment of the people, whose hearts are 
 already prepared by affection and esteem to yield 
 to its influence. Whereas, the wisest opinion, if de- 
 livered dogmatically, will oflen be resisted, merely 
 because it is attempted to be imposed. 
 
 If a man deserve influence, he will be sure to 
 have it without seeking it, or designedly exerting 
 it ; if he do not deserve it, and still seek it, he is 
 sure to be resisted. 
 
 " The deacon's duty to the people, is to promote, 
 so far as he is able, the happiness of individuals, and 
 the welfare of the society. In his intercourse with 
 them, he should be firm and unbending in principle, 
 but kind and conciliatory in temper and in manner. 
 In those parts of his office, which are sometimes very 
 irksome and arduous, from the difficulty of serving 
 all according to their wishes, he should guard against 
 every thing which even appears to be harsli and un- 
 kind. More especially should he do this, when he 
 finds it impossible, in consistency with his duty to 
 others, to fulfil their desires. The apparently insig- 
 11 
 
122 CHURCH members' peculiar 
 
 nificant circumstance, which will often occur in our 
 congregations, of being unable to accommodate an 
 individual, or a family, with a seat, may be mention- 
 ed with so much kindness, and with such unfeigned 
 regret that it is so, as to lead the individual, or 
 the family, patiently to wait for a more favourable 
 opportunity ; or it may be done, although without 
 design, in a tone of so much indifference, as to lead 
 the disappointed applicant to relinquish the hope of 
 success, and to leave the place. The secret charm 
 by which the deacon's office may be rendered com- 
 fortable to himself, and beneficial to others, is that 
 golden precept of inspiration, " Let all your things 
 be done with charity ;" or, as Dr. Doddridge better 
 translates the passage, " Let all your affairs be trans- 
 acted in love." 1 Cor. xvi. 14. 
 
 in. Heads of families. 
 
 The station occupied by such persons, is exceed- 
 ingly important, and therefore very responsible. 
 We naturally look to the families of professing 
 Christians for the materials with which the "spirit- 
 ual house" is to be repaired amidst the spoliations 
 of sin and death. A large proportion of our mem- 
 bers are the children of the righteous, and our 
 churches would be still nuore enriched with the fruits 
 of domestic piety, if that piety itself were more ar- 
 dent, and more exemplary. It is impossible to urge 
 in terms too strong, the sacred duties of Christian 
 masters, mistresses, and parents. Their influence 
 on the prosperity of the church is greater than is 
 generally conceived, or can be fully stated. The 
 duties of such persons are of a two-fold nature. 
 
 1. The primary ones, of course, relate to your 
 CHILDREN. It is the command of God to train them 
 up in the fear, and nurture, and admonition of the 
 -Lord. Let your first, and deepest, and most lasting 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 123 
 
 solicitude be for the formation of their religious char- 
 acter, and the salvation of their souls. Let this reg- 
 ulate all your conduct towards them. Let it impel 
 you to adopt a system of instruction and discipline, 
 which shall have a close and constant bearing on 
 their moral and religious habits. Let it guide you 
 in the choice of schools where they are to be educat- 
 ed, the families into which they are to be appren- 
 ticed. Act so, as that they may clearly discern, 
 that your most ardent prayer, your most anxious 
 concern, is, that they may be truly pious. They 
 should see this interwoven with all your conduct to- 
 wards them ; and behold a uniform, consistent, con- 
 stant effort to accomplish this object. Let them 
 hear it expressed in your advice and prayers, and 
 see it manifested in all your arrangements. Alas ! 
 alas ! how many children of church members are 
 there, who, if they were asked the question, "What 
 is your father and mother's chief concern for you ?" 
 would he obliged to reply, " That I might excel in 
 fashionable accomplishments, and make a figure in 
 the drawing room." There appears to me to be, at 
 the present moment, a most criminal neglect, on the 
 part of Christian parents, of the religious education 
 of their children. Every thing is sacrificed to the 
 lighter and more frivolous accomplishments of the 
 female character, and to the literary and scientific 
 acquisitions of boys. Religion is a secondary mat- 
 ter. But ought it to be so ? Ought it not rather 
 to be the one thing needful for our children, as well 
 as for ourselves ? 
 
 That Christian who would carry on a system of 
 religious education with success, should enforce it 
 with all the commanding influence of a holt exam- 
 ple. Let your children see all the " beauties of 
 Ivoliness^'' reflected from your character, and the 
 
124 CHURCH members' peculiar 
 
 grand outline of Christian morality filled up with all 
 the delicate touches and varied colouring of the 
 Christian temper. The heathens had their Penates, 
 or little siirines of their gods, which they kept in 
 their own habitation, to remind them of the objects 
 of their religious veneration and trust. Be you to 
 your families instead of these household gods, by 
 being lovely images of the great Jehovah. Let 
 your children have this conviction in their hearts, 
 " If there be but two real Christians in the world, 
 my father is one, and my mother is the other." It 
 is dreadful, but not uncommon for children to em- 
 ploy themselves in contrasting the appearance 
 which their parents make at the Lord's table and at 
 their own ; in the house of God, and at home. 
 
 Family prayer should be performed with great 
 punctuality, constancy and seriousness. It is of 
 course presumed that every Christian does pray 
 with his household. It should not be performed so 
 late in the evening that the family are more fit for 
 sleep than devotion, nor so late in the morning, as 
 for business to interrupt it. It should ever be con- 
 ducted with the most solemn devotion, and never 
 rendered tedious by extreme length. It should be 
 very simple, and have special reference to the case 
 of the children and the servants. That it might be 
 performed with regularity, heads of families should 
 rarely sup from home. It is a disgrace for a Chris- 
 tian master or parent to be often seen in the streets 
 at eleven o'clock at night. 
 
 Professing Christians should resist the entrance 
 of loorldly conformity into their families. Expensive 
 entertainments, gay parties, vain and frivolous 
 amusements, showy modes of dress, should be most 
 cautiously avoided. Religion will not dwell amidst 
 such scenes ; her refined and spiritual taste is soon 
 \ 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 125 
 
 offended, and she retires. A Christian's habits 
 should be simple and spiritual. If it be his aim to 
 approach as nearly as possible to the manners of 
 the world without actually being numbered with its 
 votaries, his children will be restrained with difficul- 
 ty on the right side of the line of demarcation, and 
 be perpetually longing and trying to push onward. 
 The miserable efforts, made by some professing 
 Christians, to be thought people of taste a.nd fashion ; 
 to live half way between the tradesman and the 
 gentleman, show how ill they bear the Christian 
 yoke, and how nearly they are resolved to cast it 
 away as an encumbrance. We should despise these 
 things wherever we see them, if they did not prefer 
 claims upon our pity, still stronger than those upon 
 our scorn. When a worldly temper has crept into 
 the circle of a Christian church, piety retires before 
 it, and tlie spirit of error *soon enters to take posses- 
 sion of the desolate heritage. 
 
 2. There is another duty which devolves on 
 those whom Providence has placed at the head of 
 a family, and that relates to their domestics. 
 
 Heads of families should manifest a kind solici- 
 tude for the temporal comfort of their domestics, and 
 especially a deep solicitude for their spiritual welfare. 
 They should take care that they are provided with 
 Bibles, and furnished with a few religious books to 
 peruse on the Sabbath, and at other intervals of lei- 
 sure. In every respectable habitation, there should 
 certainly be a kitchen library, comprising a few 
 plain, interesting, moral, and religious treatises. 
 Great care should be taken, in the arrangement of 
 domestic affairs, to afford opportunities to their 
 households, to attend the solemnities of public wor- 
 ship. It is too common to allow them this privi- 
 lege only in the afternoon, which is a part of the 
 
126 CHURCH MExMBERs' PECULIAR 
 
 day least favourable to religious instruction and im- 
 pression. Is not this a most cruel deprivation ? If 
 the heads of a family find the afternoon a dull and 
 profitless season, how much more so must it be to 
 them^ who, to the labour of the week, have added 
 that of the Sabbath morning ! 
 
 ^, And why cannot the domestics be permitted to 
 go to worship on the Sabbath morning ? — O ! tell 
 it not in Gath — because they are kept at home to 
 cook a dinner for the parlour. Shame and disgrace 
 on that professing Christian, who will not forego 
 the gratifications of his palate, though it be to aid 
 in the salvation of souls. How can he enjoy the 
 roasted joint, when he remembers that one of the 
 family has been, at his command, devoting the Lord's 
 day to prepare the feast ? He comes from the 
 house of God, perhaps from the sacramental table, 
 and, in the hearing of his' domestics, talks of the 
 precious season he has experienced ; while they re- 
 vile, as mere disgusting cant, the religious conver- 
 sation of a man who would rob the souls of others to 
 pamper his appetite. Sucli men are worse than Esau ; 
 he sold his own birthright for the gratification of his 
 palate, but they sell the birthright of others. Yes, the 
 Sabbath is their birthright, or rather is granted to them 
 
 ^ by charter from God ; and no man can alienate the sa- 
 cred gift from them,without committing a felony of the 
 worst kind. Is it not enough, that they labour for our 
 comfort six days in the week, but they must also have 
 the seventh, the season of repose, taken from them. 
 Great, very great reproach is frequently brouglit 
 upon religion by the manner in whicli many profes- 
 sors conduct themselves towards those, who have 
 claims upon them for something more than their 
 wages. It has been said that no man is great in 
 the eyes of his valet. I am afraid that the senti- 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 127 
 
 ment admits of extension, and that it might be said, 
 that few men are exemplai-y for piety in the eyes of 
 tlieir servants. 
 
 IV. Domestics. 
 
 There is no class of church members, for whom 
 I feel more anxious, than for domestics. Cut off, in 
 a considerable degree, by their very situation, from 
 pastoral attentions ; urged forward in a course of 
 labour, which in many cases has no intervals of 
 rest ; often most cruelly deprived of the repose of 
 the Sabbath; it is difficult, indeed, for them to keep 
 up the power, or enjoy the consolations of personal 
 religion. They have peculiar need to watch, lest 
 the flame of piety should languish and expire in 
 their hearts. 
 
 It is quite interesting to observe how particular 
 the apostle is in his direction to servants. " Ser- 
 vants, be obedient to them that are your masters 
 according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in 
 singleness of your heart as unto Christ ; not with 
 eye service, as men pleasers, but as the servants of 
 Christ, doing the will of God from the heart ; with 
 good wiil doing service as to the Lord, and not to 
 men." Eph. vi. 5 — 7. The same sentiments are 
 repeated. Col. iii. 22 — 25. Titus ii. 9, 10. It is 
 to such that the solemn and striking admonition is 
 addressed, " to adorn the doctrine of God our Sa- 
 viour in all things." Even the sublime doctrine of a 
 redeeming God, that bright effulgence which has is- 
 sued from the fountain of light, is susceptible of deco- 
 ration, and receives its adorning from the consistent 
 conduct, not merely of a religious monarch, philos- 
 opher, or scholar, but of a Christian servant. The 
 most scrupulous honesty, the most unwearied dili- 
 gence, the most humble submission, the most invi- 
 olable truth, are necessary to this. Servants should 
 
128 CHURCH members' peculiar 
 
 make the interests of the family their own, and act in 
 all things towards their employer's property as if 
 they were its possessors. The apostle has laid un- 
 common stress upon servants' being uniformly the 
 same for fidelity, and honesty, and diligence, whether 
 in the presence or absence of their employers. All 
 they do, even the most ordinary duties of their sta- 
 tion, is to be done as to the Lord, and he is every 
 where present. Their religion should be distinctly 
 seen in the manner of performing the duties of their 
 station ; and it should be obvious that their piety has 
 improved them as servants. 
 
 Where they are placed in irreligious families, 
 « let them count their own masters worthy of all 
 honour, that the name of God and his doctrine be 
 not blasphemed." 1 Tim. vi. 1. Let them not feel 
 at liberty to treat their employers with contempt 
 and neglect, as mere carnal persons ; for religion 
 does not abolish the distinctions of society, nor the 
 rights connected Avith them. I scarcely know one 
 character in the private walks of life, that has a 
 fairer opportunity to glorify God, than a religious 
 servant in an ungodly family. It will be a fine tes- 
 timony to the excellence of piety, when we shall 
 hear even irreligious persons generally say, « We 
 will never have, if we can help it, any but religious 
 servants, for we have seen that piety renders them 
 faithful, humble, diligent and trust- Avorthy." 
 
 Where pious servants are placed in irreligious 
 families, fhey should certainly endeavour to act the 
 part of reformers ; but it must be rather by their 
 actions than their words. Mr. Jay informs us, that 
 in his conversation with a pious domestic, she ex- 
 claimed, " My master and mistress will not hear a 
 word I have to say on religion." " What you sat," 
 he-replied ; "i/oit should do, and not say. You should 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 129 
 
 instruct tliem by early rising, by diligence, by fidel- 
 ity, by not replying again." Servants have a most 
 favourable opportunity of letting their employers see 
 what religion is : but then it is not merely by going 
 to meeting or church, but by diligence, good tem- 
 per, order and fidelity, obliging conduct, submission, 
 meekness, and letting it be apparent that all this 
 is the result of their religion. 
 
 " They that have believing masters, let them not 
 despise them because they are brethren, but rather 
 do them service because they are faithful and be- 
 loved, partakers of the benefit." 1 Tim. vi. 2. 
 They are not in such circumstances to abate one 
 iota of that reverence and obedience which are 
 due to them : for though by the law of Christ they 
 are brethren, this does not destroy their superiority. 
 It is no uncommon thing for religious servants to 
 manifest such a degree of consequence^ and to expect so 
 much deference, as to lead some heads of families to 
 say that they would rather have merely good moral 
 sei-vants, than religious ones. In some cases, where 
 they have been deprived, not by any capricious or 
 arbitrary arrangement, but the unavoidable necessi- 
 ties of the family, from enjoying so many opportu- 
 nities as they could wish ; when they have been un- 
 expectedly deprived of the privilege of attending 
 public worship, perhaps only for a single season, they 
 have manifested so much petulance, and entered up- 
 on their home duties with so much sullen reluctance 
 and ill humour, that their religion, or rather, I ought 
 to say, their want of it, has become a source of dis- 
 gust and uneasiness. The means of grace ought 
 to be valued and improved ; but the occasional and 
 unavoidable loss of them should not be attended with 
 the destruction of the Christian temper. 
 
 It would be well, on entering upon a place, to 
 
130 CHURCH members' PECULIAR 
 
 have an understanding with employers, on the sub- 
 ject of attendance at public worship. This would 
 prevent all disagreement afterwards, or would at 
 least furnish a compact to which reference might 
 be made in future. It cannot surely be necessary 
 to admonish such as make a profession of religion, 
 never to go into any situation, whatever pecuniary 
 advantages may present themselves, in which they 
 are prevented from attending the public means of 
 grace. That person cannot really seek first the 
 kingdom of God, who, for the sake of higher wages, 
 would go into a place, which excludes all enjoy- 
 ment of the Sabbath, and the house of God, and al- 
 most all opportunities of private prayer. Those 
 who have obtained comfortable situations, should 
 be anxious to retain them ; for it is not creditable to 
 their profession, to be often changing places. It 
 would also be honourable to their characters, to be 
 ever distinguished for neatness, rather than gaudi- 
 ness of attire. A love for dress is censurable in all 
 professing Christians, but most of all, in those whose 
 means scarcely enable them to command the vani- 
 ties of this world. How much more would it be to 
 their honour and comfort, to lay by a portion of their 
 wages for a time of need! 
 
 V. Young persons. 
 
 These generally form a very considerable class 
 of our members, and have duties to perform appro- 
 priate to their age and station. They should be 
 very watchful against the sins to which the ardour 
 and inexperience of their years may expose them. 
 They should flee youthful lusts, and be very cautious 
 to abstain from vanity and self-conceit. Their in- 
 troduction at so early a period to the church, is very 
 apt, in some cases, to inflate them with pride, to 
 invest them with self-importance, and impair that 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 131 
 
 modesty of deportment, which is the loveliest orna- 
 ment of their character. In all their conduct 
 towards the church, there should be an amiable re- 
 tiredness of disposition. They should be seen at 
 the church meetings, but very rarely heard. It is 
 difficult to conceive of a more disgusting- or mis- 
 chievous spectacle, than a young member dogmati- 
 cally stating his opinion, and pertinaciously enfor- 
 cing it, before men Avho were grey in the service 
 of God before his head was covered with the down 
 of infancy. 
 
 Young Christians should be very careful not to 
 form matrimonial connexions, in opposition to the 
 apostolic injunction, "not to be unequally yoked 
 together with unbelievers." Both reason and reve- 
 lation unite their testimony against the practice of 
 Christians marrying irreligious persons. What an 
 interruption to conjugal comfort, what an obstacle 
 to domestic piety, what an injury to the cause of 
 religion, does such a practice bring with it ! 
 
 There is one way, in which young Christians 
 may bring great reproach upon the cause of God, 
 and that is by engaging the affections of a female, 
 and then abandoning her. This is a species of cru- 
 elty which certainly deserves, and always receives, 
 the severest reprobation. It is dishonourable in a 
 man of the world, much more in a church member. 
 
 VI. Rich members. 
 
 It is true our churches do not abound with such 
 persons ; but, enriched as our cause is with the prin- 
 ciples of divine truth, and patronised b}'^ the smiles 
 of Heaven, we can dispense with the blazonry and 
 patronage of secular distinctions. 
 
 There are men, however, who, amidst the accu- 
 mulations of increasing wealth, remain firmly attach- 
 ed to the principles of the gospel, and who delight 
 
132 CHURCH members' peculiar 
 
 to lavish their fortunes in supporting the cause they 
 love and espouse. Let them consider it as their 
 incumbent duty, to consecrate no small portion of 
 their affluence, not merely in propagating the prin- 
 ciples of Christianity abroad, but upholding the cause 
 of truth at home. The erection of chapels, the sup- 
 port of seminaries, the maintenance of poor minis- 
 ters, the establishment of churches, should with 
 them be objects of deep anxiety. 
 
 Let them, in order to abound more and more in 
 such efforts, as well as to exhibit a bright example 
 of pure and undefiled religion, avoid all unnecessary 
 worldly conformity, and all expensive modes of living. 
 Sometliing is due to their rank and station, but more 
 than is necessary, ought not to be conceded. There 
 is, in the present age, a disposition, even in profess- 
 ing Christians, to a showy and expensive style of liv- 
 ing, which cannot be more effectually repressed, 
 than by the plain and simple habits of those who are 
 knoAvn to have an easy access to all the elegances 
 and splendours of life. « Charge them that are rich 
 in this world, that tliey be not high-minded, nor trust 
 in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth 
 us all things richly to enjoy ; that they do good, that 
 tiiey be rich in good works, ready to distribute, will- 
 ing to communicate." Such was the admonition of 
 St. Paul to Timothy, from which we gather, that rich 
 Christians ouglit to be far more anxious to lay out 
 that to lay up their fortunes. When we enter their 
 mansions and see magnificence in every room, luxu- 
 ry on every table ; when we see their gay equipage, 
 we cannot help saying, « How much ought a disciple 
 of Jesus, who lives in this manner, to give away to the 
 cause of religion and humanity, before he is justified 
 in such an expenditure." There appears to me to be 
 yeivfdJiiiwgd. proportionate liberality on the part of 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 133 
 
 the rich. Their efforts bear no comparison with those 
 of the middling classes, and of the poor. The former 
 give of their abundance, the latter of their little ; at 
 most, the former only tax their luxuries, but the lat- 
 ter, their comforts and necessaries. 
 
 Rich Christians should be exceedingly attentive 
 to the ivants and comforts of their poorer brethren. 
 There is a great lack of this in the churches of 
 Christ. " Whoso hath this world's goods, and seeth 
 his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels 
 of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God 
 m him ?" 1 John iii. 7. Such persons should care- 
 fully and tenderly inquire into the condition of the 
 poor, and not content themselves with a monthly 
 contribution at the Lord's supper, to be disposed of 
 by the deacons. And it would be well if the dea- 
 cons were often to go to the habitations of the more 
 affluent members of the church, and lay before them 
 the case of their destitute brethren. 
 
 The more wealthy members should be very cau- 
 tious not to assume undue power in the government 
 of the church. The distinctions of wealth have no 
 place in the kingdom of Christ. No haughty airs, 
 no proud scorn of the opinions of others less affluent 
 than themselves, no overbearing urgency in stating 
 their own views, should ever be discovered in their 
 conduct in the transactions of church business. 
 Their superior wealth, if not attended with a spirit 
 of domination, is sure in every case to procure for 
 them all the deference that is compatible with the 
 independence of the church. 
 
 In short, the vices to which the rich are more 
 particularly exposed, and against which they should 
 vigilantly guard, are pride, haughtiness, love of 
 money, idleness, self-indulgence, luxury, worldly 
 conformity, ecclesiastical domination, and oppres- 
 
134 CHURCH members' peculiar 
 
 si on of the poor. The vh-tues they are called to 
 exercise are gratitude to God, humility and conde- 
 scension to men, economy, temperance and liberal- 
 ity, together with tender sympathy to their poorer 
 brethren, and a generous regard to the support 
 of the cause of pure religion and general benevo- 
 lence. 
 
 VII. The poor. 
 
 Contentment with such things as they have, and 
 an unmurmuring suhmission to the appointment of 
 Providence, are most obviously f/ieir duty, and should 
 be conspicuously manifested invall their deportment. 
 It should not appear as if they thought it hard, that 
 their lot was cast in the humble vale of poverty. 
 A cheerful resignation to the irremediable ills of 
 their station, a frame of mind that looks as if they 
 were so grateful for the blessings of grace, as to 
 be almost insensible to the privations of poverty, is 
 one of the ways in which poor Christians may sig- 
 nally glorify God. 
 
 The poor should watch against an envious spirit. 
 " Grudge not one against another," said the apos- 
 tle. They should be conspicuous for their industry, 
 nor wish to eat the bread of idleness. "For this 
 is commanded you, that if any would not work, nei- 
 ther should he eat. For some walk among you dis- 
 orderly, working not at all, but are busy bodies. 
 Such we command and exhort by the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, that with quietness tliey Avork and eat their 
 own bread." 2 Thess. iii. 10 — 12. The poor have 
 no right, therefore, to expect, that in consequence 
 of their association with a Christian church, they 
 are in any measure released from the obligation of 
 the most unwearied industry. They are not to be 
 supported by the society in idleness, nor ought they 
 to look for any pecuniary allowance while able to 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 135 
 
 provide for themselves and their family. The reli- 
 gion of Jesus Christ was never intended to establish 
 a system of religious pauperism. It is to be feared, 
 that not a few have entered into Christian fellow- 
 ship on purpose to share its funds. This is an aw- 
 ful case, wherever it occurs, and should make all 
 the poor members of our churches tremble at the 
 most distant approximation to such a crime. 
 
 The only times in which members should feel that 
 they have claims upon the funds collected at the 
 Lord's supper, are, when sickness has entered their 
 dwelling, when age has incapacitated them for la- 
 bour, or when the produce of their industry is too 
 scanty to procure the necessary comforts of life.* 
 
 The poor should not be exorbitant in their expec- 
 tations of relief; and should the bounty of the 
 church flow less freely towards them than they 
 have reason and right to look for, they should not 
 indulge in the language of reproach and complaint. 
 Not that they are forbidden in mild and modest lan- 
 guage to represent their situation to the deacons. 
 
 They should be particularly careful not to mani- 
 
 * It is a question that has been sometimes agitated, whether 
 it is rig-ht for a church to allow the members to apply for assist- 
 ance from the town. Such a question^ however, may be set at 
 rest by a law, which, where it really exists, allows of no farther 
 appeal ; I mean the law o^ necessity. Some churches are com- 
 posed in a great measure of poor persons, and even of the re- 
 mainder who are not poor, there are few above the rank of 
 small tradesmen. In this case, when trade is bad, and disease is- 
 prevalent, it is next to impossible, if not quite so, for the church to 
 relieve all the wants of its members. But setting aside this ex- 
 treme case, what law is violated, what obligation is broken 
 through, by our members' applying for a portion of that prop- 
 erty, which is collected for them no less than others, and to 
 which they are legally entitled in common with others ? There 
 can be nothing wrong on the part of the poor themselves in 
 applying for this relief, unless they are so well provided for by 
 
136 CHURCH members' peculiar 
 
 fest an encroaching and begging disposition. I 
 have known cases, in which the greatest disgust 
 and the most unconquerable prejudice have been 
 excited against individuals, by their proneness to 
 beg of every one that visited them, till at length 
 their fellow-members, wearied too soon, it must be 
 admitted, with the language of perpetual complaint 
 and petition, have left off to visit them altogether. 
 
 Cleanliness is a very incumbent duty of the poor. 
 Their cottages may be lowly, but certainly need not 
 be dirty. Filthiness is one species of vice, and 
 cleanliness is not only nexi to godliness, but a part 
 of it. The credit of religion often depends on little 
 things, and this is one of them. 
 
 VIII. Tradesmen. 
 
 A very large number of our church members are 
 engaged in the pursuits of trade, manufacture, or 
 commerce ; and from their very calling are exposed 
 to peculiar dangers, which must be met Avith pro- 
 portionate vigilance. 
 
 It is highly incumbent upon them to take care 
 against a worldly spirit. They are in extreme peril 
 
 the church as not to need it. In this case their apphcation 
 would be manifestly an imposition. The only question is, 
 whether a church, tolerably favoured with affluent members, 
 ought to allow such application. It would certainly be an act 
 of great generosity in such a church, to render their members 
 independent of assistance from the town : but I do not see by 
 what law this is actually their duty. We stand in a double re- 
 lationship to the poor, as fellow-citizens and fellow Cliristians ; 
 in our former connexion we may ask for them a share of a 
 civil fund, while in the latter we relieve them from a still more 
 sacred source. The poor by entering our churches do not for- 
 feit any of their civil rights, and since they are legally entitled 
 to the assistance of their fellow-subjects, it is not necessary 
 that we should take upon ourselves, as Christians, those bur- 
 dens wliich others are bound to sustain as citizens. 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 137 
 
 of losing the power of godliness from their hearts, 
 and joining the number of those, of whom it is said, 
 in the expressive language of St. Paul, that " they 
 mind earthly things." Such persons look upon the 
 possession of wealth as " the one thing needful." It ' 
 is their chief object of pursuit, the chief source of 
 happiness. Nothing modifies or mitigates the de- 
 sire of riches. They are of the earth, earthy. Now 
 certainly a Christian tradesman is, or ought to be, 
 of another spirit than this. He should be industri- 
 ous, frugal, and persevering in his attention to the 
 concerns of this world ; but still there should be 
 in his mind an ultimate and supreme regard to the 
 possession of everlasting life. He ought not to ba 
 slothful in business, but then he must be fervent in 
 spirit, serving the Lord. He should be seen to 
 unite the clever tradesman and sincere Christian ; 
 and to be busy for both worlds. The men of this 
 world should be constrained to say of him, " This 
 man is as attentive to business, and as clever in it 
 as we are , but we can perceive in all he does, an 
 inflexible regard to principle, an invariable reference 
 to religion. We can discover no lack of diligence or 
 prudence ; but it is perfectly evident, that his heart 
 and highest hope are in heaven. He is neither so elat- 
 ed in prosperity, nor so depressed in adversity, as we 
 are. He has some secret source of happiness, of 
 wliich we are not possessed ; and his eye is upon 
 some standard of action, which we do not recognise 
 He is a Christian as well as a tradesman.'''' 
 
 What a testimony ! Who can obtain a higher one : 
 Who should seek less ? 
 
 There are many snares to which a Christiau 
 
 tradesman is peculiarly exposed in the present mode 
 
 of conducting business. The stream of trade no 
 
 longer glides along its old accustomed channel, 
 
 12 
 
138 CHURCH members' PECULIAR 
 
 where established and ordinary causes impelled its 
 motions and guided its course ; but under the vio- 
 lent operation of new and powerful impulses, it has 
 of late years started from its course, and, with the 
 tapidity of a torrent or the force of an inundation, 
 has swept away the restraint of religious principle, 
 and carried a deluge of dishonesty over the moral 
 world. 
 
 It is quite time for Christian tradesmen to return, 
 in their mode of conducting business, to the sound 
 principles of Christian morality. Let them beware 
 of excessive speculation ; and where the property 
 with which they trade, is scarcely their own, let 
 them err rather on the side of caution than of en- 
 terprise. Let them beware of all dishonourable 
 means of propping up a sinking credit. Let them 
 view with abhorrence those practices which are re- 
 sorted to only by rogues and swindlers. Let them 
 tremble and blush at a single effort to extricate 
 themselves from difficulty, which the world would 
 condemn as unfair or dishonourable. Let their 
 motto be, " whatsoever things are true, whatsoever 
 thmgs are honest, whatsoever things are just, what- 
 soever things are pure, whatsoever things are love- 
 ly, whatsoever things are of good report, if there 
 be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on 
 these things."* Phil. iv. 7. 
 
 A Christian should be careful not to conceal, too 
 long, the fact of his being in a state of insolvency. 
 A false pride, or a foolish hope, has led many to 
 tlie dishonour of their profession, to go on flounder- 
 ing in difficulties, while every struggle has only car- 
 ried them farther and farther into the current of 
 
 * See Dr, Chalnier's admirable sermons on the moral princi- 
 ples of trade. 
 
CHARACTER AND STATION. 139 
 
 ruin, till at length their fortune and their character 
 have sunk together, to rise no more. I do not say 
 that a man ought in every case to call his creditors 
 together the moment that he discovers he cannot pay 
 twenty shillings in the pound ; but he certainly 
 ought to do it without delay, as soon as he ceases 
 to hope that he shall ultimately do so. 
 
 Every Christian tradesman should he very ivatchfid 
 against those artifices^ violations of truths and vnifair 
 advantages, which many resoH to in the disposal of 
 their articles. It might indeed have become the gen- 
 eral practice ; but tricks of trade, if contrary to truth 
 and honesty, are clear and flagrant violations of re- 
 ligious duty. No prevalence of custom can make 
 that right, which in itself is wrong. The standard 
 of a Christian's morality is the Bible ; and whatever 
 is opposed to that, he must avoid and abhor. 
 
 A tradesman who makes a profession of religion, 
 should be most eminent for justice, truth, honour, and 
 generosity, in all his dealings. His religion should 
 be seen in all his conduct. " I know nothing of 
 that man's creed," said a person of a religious 
 tradesman with whom he dealt, " because I never 
 asked him what he believed ; but a more honoura- 
 ble, punctual, generous tradesman, I never met 
 with in my life. I would as soon take his word 
 for a thousand pounds, as I would another man's 
 bond for a shilling. Whatever he promises he per- 
 forms, and to the time eCIso." This is adorning the 
 doctrine of God his Saviour in all things. 
 
 It is very dishonourable, when a Christian trades- 
 man is actuated by a spint of envy and jealousy to- 
 wards others, and when he employs ungenerous means 
 to prevent their success. No one has an exclusive 
 monopoly, except in the case of patents. Others 
 have as much right to live where they like, as we 
 
140 ON CHURCH POWER. 
 
 have. It is their ivorld, as well as ours ; and to em- 
 ploy our wealth in any case to ruin them, by under- 
 selling, is a spirit perfectly incompatible with the 
 genius of religion, and the nature of Christian fellow- 
 ship. Such an envious person deserves excommu- 
 nication, not only from the church of God, but from - 
 the society of rational creatures. 
 
 It is perfectly obvious, that the tradesman ought to 
 regulate his expenditure by his income. The man that 
 lives beyond his resources is a robber and a thief. 
 His extravagance is supported by the property of 
 others ; and as it is taken without their consent, 
 it is a felony, for which he is answerable, if not 
 at the bar of man, vet certainly at the tribunal 
 of God. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 MISCELLANEOUS SUBJECTS. 
 
 On the true JVatui'e of Church Power. 
 
 In our conversation upon the subject of church 
 government, it is very common to talk of the pow- 
 er or authority of our churches. But in what does 
 this power really consist, and how far does it extend ? 
 Every society has certainly an unquestionable right 
 to regulate all its own temporal and spiritual affairs, 
 to the entire exclusion of all human interference 
 and control whatever. But we must be careful 
 not to carry the idea of independence so far as to 
 trench upon the dominion of Jesus Christ. The 
 power of a church is simply a right to put their own 
 construction upon the laws of Christ, and to obey 
 his laws, in the way which they think will be most 
 
ON CHURCH POWER. 141 
 
 agreeable to him. This is neither understood nor 
 remembered with as much distinctness as it should 
 be. Hence it is a very usual thing for churches 
 at their stated, or occasional meetings, to consider 
 themselves as met to make laws, and set in order 
 the affairs of the spiritual kingdom ; and a great 
 deal is said about " our cliurch," and " the rules 
 that we have established in our church." Our 
 church ! ! How came it ours ? The church is 
 Christ's. The rules ive have established ! ! The 
 sole right of making laws, is with Him to whom the 
 church belongs. The church is a kingdom, of 
 which Christ is sole monarch, the New Testament 
 is his spiritual code, and all the power we have, is 
 to execute the laws which he has already establish- 
 ed. In the whole business of church government, 
 we are to acknowledge the authority, and consider 
 ourselves as doing the vail of Christ. Nothing is 
 loft to our will, to our wisdom, to our caprice ; but 
 in all things we are to be guided by the law of Je- 
 sus, laid down in his word. 
 
 In the choice of officers, in the admission of mem- 
 bers, in the exfercise of discipline, we are not to 
 act upon views and principles of our own, but are 
 to be guided by those we find in the New Testa- 
 ment. We have no power to legislate, but merely 
 to interpret the law, and obey. When we meet, 
 Christ is in the midst of us, not only by his essen- 
 tial presence, but by his revealed will ; and every 
 authoritative voice is huslied, but that which speaks 
 to us from the sacred canon. When a member is 
 proposed, Ave are not to ask, "Is he such an one as 
 we think will add respectability to our communion ? 
 is he of long standing in the ways of God ? is he 
 peculiar in his habits ?" but, " Is he such an one as 
 Christ has received ?" When a measure is submit- 
 
142 CONDUCTING CHURCH MEETINGS. 
 
 ted for our adoption, we are not first to inquire in- 
 to its policy, but whether it is in exact accordance 
 with the general principles and spirit of the New 
 Testament. Every act of church government must 
 be an explicit acknowledgment of the authority of 
 Jesus, as King in Zion, and an act of obedience to 
 his laws. 
 
 It is impossible for this sentiment to be stated 
 too frequently or too forcibly. It lays the axe to 
 the root of all the errors on church government, 
 wliich have crept into the world. The papacy, and 
 the episcopacy, with other ecclesiastical corruptions, 
 may be traced to a want of proper views of the na- 
 ture of church power. Let it once be admitted 
 that a church of Christ has a right of legislating 
 beyond what is written in the New Testament, and 
 there is no such thing as limiting the exercise of 
 this right, until the authority of Christ is supersed- 
 ed, and his church is converted into a mere secu- 
 lar institution. 
 
 0)i the Mode of Conducting Church Meetings. 
 
 Every well regulated church will have its solemn 
 and stated meetings for conducting the business ne- 
 cessarily connected with its existence and progress. 
 Many ministers have imbibed a prejudice against 
 these meetings, and, like Charles the First, who, not 
 finding the parliament as suppliant as he could wish, 
 determined to govern without parliaments altogeth- 
 er, they have resolved to rule without calling the 
 church together, except, at least, on extraordinary 
 emergencies. I admit that church meetings have 
 been abused ; but this has been more frequently 
 the fault of the pastor, than the people. They have 
 sometimes exhibited scenes of confusion, little rec- 
 
CONDUCTING CHURCH MEETINGS. 143 
 
 ommendatory of the democratic form of church 
 government. This, however, is not the error of 
 the system, but the improper way in which it is ad- 
 ministered. When ignorance or imprudence is el- 
 evated to the chair, order and decorum cannot be 
 looked for in the assembly. 
 
 It would conduce to the order of church meet- 
 ings, if it were much inculcated by the pastor, 
 and generally understood by the people, that they 
 were meetings for devotion, and not for debate. 
 They should ever be attended with the usual ser- 
 vices of a prayer meeting, i. e. with singing, suppli- 
 cation, and ministerial exhortation. If business is 
 to be done, it should be thus introduced, and trans- 
 acted in the spirit, and amidst the services of devo- 
 tion. These times of assembling should be peri- 
 odical ; for when they are only occasional, they lose 
 the character of devotional seasons, and assume 
 the form of business meetings, to which the mem- 
 bers come prepared for protracted and general dis- 
 cussion. 
 
 The admonition of the apostle is always in sea- 
 son, but never more so than in reference to the 
 times of the assembling of the saints : " Let every 
 man be slow to speak." And when any one does 
 deliver his opinion, it should not be in a prating, 
 dogmatical manner, but in few words, modestly 
 spoken. Not only the pastor, but the people them- 
 selves, should discourage those forward, obtrusive 
 spirits, to whom no music or melody is so pleasant 
 as the sound of their own voice. Talking assem- 
 blies soon become disorderly ones. A wise and 
 prudent minister will set his face against them ; 
 and a wise and prudent church Avill support him in 
 this conduct. 
 
 It is, of course, no less the interest than the du- 
 
144 ADMISSION OF MEMBERS. 
 
 ty of the society, to support, at all its meetings, the 
 just and scriptural authority of the pastor. He 
 should never be addressed but in the most cour- 
 teous and respectful manner, and every expression 
 of rudeness should be marked with the disappro- 
 bation of the members present. 
 
 On the Admission of Members to the Church. 
 
 When an individual is known to be desirous of 
 fellowship, information of this should be conveyed 
 without delay to the pastor, who, upon conversing 
 with the person, and making suitable inquiries 
 about his character and conduct, may mention him 
 as a candidate for fellowship. No member should 
 bring forward a candidate in opposition to the opin- 
 ion of the pastor. It is of course to be expected, 
 that he will never reject an individual, but upon 
 grounds which appear to him to be quite sufficient, 
 and which he will, without hesitation or reserve, 
 communicate to the person himself. 
 
 On the part of the church, there is sometimes a 
 very unscriptural reluctance to receive persons in- 
 to membership, till after they have had a long trial 
 of their Christian steadfastness and integrity. It is 
 very common for some members to exclaim in sur- 
 prise, when the name of a candidate is mentioned 
 to them in secret, " What, is he going to be propos- 
 ed to the church ? Why, he has not been converted 
 three months." I wish these over-cautious Chris- 
 tians to tell me, what length of time ought to elapse 
 after conversion, before the individual is introduced 
 to communion ? Has Jesus Christ stated any term 
 of probation, which we must pass through before 
 we are received into the church? Certainly not. 
 
ADMISSION OP MEMBERS. 145 
 
 What right have we then to fix upon any ? Is it 
 not establishing terms of communion, which he has 
 not established ? Is not this a direct invasion of 
 his authority ? If we consult the precedents fur- 
 nished by the practice of the apostles, they most 
 decisively condemn the overstrained caution of 
 those, who would put a Christian upon the trial of 
 a year or two, before he is admitted to communion. 
 The very day in which a man professed himself a 
 Christian, he was added to the church. In fact, 
 his joining himself to the church, was his profes- 
 sion. I would have every step taken to inquire in- 
 to ,the knowledge, faith, and conduct of an individ- 
 ual who proposes himself for fellowship ; and if 
 they are satisfactory, I would admit him, although 
 he had been converted but a single month ; and I 
 call upon the person who would refuse to join in 
 such admission, to show on what ground he acts. 
 Let him not talk about the necessity of caution, 
 and the possibility of being deceived ; this is very 
 true, but it must not be allowed to interfere with 
 the rules which Christ has laid down for the gov- 
 ernment of his church. Our views of policy can- 
 not improve his institutions, and ought not to op- 
 pose the practice of his apostles. The rule of our 
 proceeding is simply this, " We must receive those 
 whom we think the Lord hath received." Aban- 
 don this rule, and we have no directory for our 
 conduct. One person may think a year's trial 
 enough ; but another may think two years' neces- 
 sary. It is truly shocking to see how many excel- 
 lent and exemplary Christians are kept by some 
 churches, month after month, at a distance from the 
 fellowship of the faithful, under the pretence of 
 trying their steadfastness, " We must not take the 
 13 
 
146 ADMISSION OF MEMBERS. 
 
 children's bread," say these ultra cautious disciples, 
 « and cast it to the dogs." Nor have you a right to 
 stai'vc the children, any more than you have to pam- 
 per the dogs. Our rule is this, " evidence of per- 
 sonal religion, wliether that evidence be the result 
 of a month or a year." 
 
 The Lord's supper is intended no less for babes 
 than fathers in Christ ; and who will contend that 
 the right way to treat a new born infant, is to neg- 
 lect him, and leave him to himself, to see whether 
 he will live ? fo nurse and feed him are the or- 
 dained means to preserve his life. It is precisely 
 the same in spirituals as in temporals. And if it 
 be proper to say of a child that died in consequence 
 of neglect, that he would have lived if proper care 
 had been taken, it is not less correct to say of some 
 persons that once appeared hopeful, but afterwards 
 returned to the world, they would have proved 
 honourable Christians, had they not been neglected 
 by the church. 
 
 The same unscriptural caution is sometimes dis- 
 played towards those converts, who are young in 
 years. It is surprising to see what a panic some 
 members are thrown into, when a young person is 
 proposed as a candidate for fellowship ; and if they 
 happen to discover that the youth is only fifteen or 
 sixteen years of age, they seem to feel as if the 
 church was either going to be profaned or destroy- 
 ed. Is there, then, a canonical age of membership? 
 Is the same rule established in the kingdom of 
 Christ, which is observed in the kingdoms of the 
 world, and every one considered as unfit for the 
 privileges of citizenship, till he arrive at the age of 
 one and twenty ? If not, what right have we to 
 speak or thinlc about the age of a candidate ? Piety 
 
ADMISSION OF MEMBERS. 147 
 
 is all we have to inquire into ; and whether the in- 
 dividual be fourteen, or fourscore, we are to receive 
 him, provided we have reason to suppose, "that 
 Christ has received him." 
 
 The MODE or admission is various in different 
 churches. On this subject Ave have no other scrip- 
 tural guide than mere general principles. The 
 church is to receive the member, and any mode 
 which they may adopt to ascertain the sincerity of 
 his piety, is lawful, provided that it is not so rigid 
 as to deter persons from applying for admission. 
 In every case, the church ought to have the means 
 of ascertaining the piety of the individuals ; without 
 this there can be no real communion. In some 
 churches, the pastor only examines the candidate : 
 but this is too great a power to delegate to any man, 
 and too great a responsibility for any man willingly 
 to incur. In other churches, the individuals are ex- 
 amined before the body of the brethren. Another 
 plan is, for the pastor and two of the brethren to con- 
 verse ivith the candidate in pnvaie, and then state 
 their opinion to the assembled church. In addition 
 to this, some churches require a loritten statement 
 of tlie religious views and feelings of the candidate. 
 To make this a sine qua non of admission, is un- 
 scriptural and absurd, since many cannot Avrite at 
 all, and others are so unaccustomed to commit their 
 thoughts to writing, that their letters are so incohe- 
 rent as to be scarcely fit to be read in public. It 
 is admitted that there are some advantages connect- 
 ed with the plan. 
 
 It is deeply interesting to hear a simple, artless 
 account of a sinner's conversion ; and by his par- 
 ticularizing the very sermons which were the means 
 of his conversion, he helps in no small degree to 
 raise the pastor in the estimation of the church, 
 
148 ON DISCIPLINE. 
 
 by these proofs of his usefulness and success, and 
 to endear him to their hearts.* 
 
 On Discipline. 
 
 By discipline, is meant, the right treatment of of- 
 fending members. The church which neglects this 
 duty, resembles a state in wJiich the administration 
 of justice is omitted, and crime is permitted to be 
 practised with impunity. That part of the design of 
 church union, which consists in mutual v/atchfulness, 
 is lost; backsliders are encouraged to go farther 
 astray, hypocrites are patronised in their self-delu- 
 sion, the ruin of men's souls abetted, the society is 
 corrupted, and the honour of religion is compromised. 
 It is this sin which the apostle describes in those 
 awful words, " If any man defile the temple of God, 
 him shall God destroy." The church is that tem- 
 ple, and to defile it, is to introduce improper mem- 
 bers to its communion, or to tolerate them in the 
 practice of sin. The passage of Scripture which is 
 connected Avith the one I have just quoted, appears 
 to me to be very generally misunderstood, and in 
 its true meaning to be deserving of especial consid- 
 eration, in reference to the subject of church disci- 
 pline. " Now, if any man build upon this founda- 
 tion, gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stub- 
 ble ; every man's work shall be made manifest. 
 For tlie day shall declare it, because it shall be re- 
 vealed by fire ; and the fire shall try every man's 
 
 * In most of our American churches, candidates are required 
 to appear Iiefore the assembled church, and detail the methods 
 of grace by which God brought them to his knowledge and 
 service. Ed. 
 
ON DISCIPLINE. 149 
 
 work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide 
 which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a 
 reward. If any man's work shall be burnt, he shall 
 suffer loss, but he himself shall be saved, yet so as 
 by fire." 1 Cor. iii. 12 — 15. It has been usual to 
 interpret this passage in reference to doctrines ; 
 but the true view of it would refer it to persons. 
 The materials laid by different preachers are not 
 the sentiments which they preach, but the members 
 which they add to the church. The leaders of the 
 different sects in the Corinthian church, were under 
 the temptation of introducing improper persons to 
 the communion, with the view of increasing their 
 party. Now, says the apostle, this is building up 
 the temple of Christ with unsuitable materials, 
 and therefore defiling it with the admixture of 
 hay and stubble. The fire of persecution, how- 
 ever, would try every man's work; for the times 
 of suffering would be sure to drive off those fyJse 
 professors, in whom the word had no root, and then 
 this bad workmanship would be utterly destroyed. 
 Let ministers and churches, therefore, beware of 
 that want of discipline, by which bad materials are 
 either added to, or kept in the walls of the- spiritual 
 house, since his is the crime of defiling the temple 
 of God. To suffer offences to be committed from 
 time to time, without being noticed and removed, 
 must be as displeasing in the sight of God, as it 
 would have been, if the Jews had permitted any 
 filthy substances to remain in the temple of Solo- 
 mon, or had swept the impurities of the sacrifices 
 into the holy of holies. A single unpunished trans- 
 gressor troubled the whole camp of Israel, and 
 brought calamity upon a nation ; nor could the fa- 
 vour of God rest upon the people, till Achan was 
 discovered and destroyed. Nothing can be con- 
 
150 ON DISCIPLINE. 
 
 ceived of, more likely to grieve the Holy Spirit, or 
 to induce him to withdraw his gracious iiifluence 
 from a church, than a neglect of scriptural discipline. 
 And it is worth Avhile to examine, whether this is 
 not one of the causes of the declining state of many 
 Christian societies. 
 
 The advantages of discipline are obvious and 
 ' numerous. It reclaims backsliders, it detects hypo- 
 crites, it circulates a secret and salutary awe through 
 tlie church, supplies an additional incentive to 
 watchfulness and prayer, by exhibiting at once the 
 most affecting proofs of human frailty, and the pain- 
 ful consequences resulting from its exposure ; 
 while, in addition, it is a public testimony, borne by 
 the church, against all unrighteousness. 
 
 Here several things deserve particular consider- 
 ation. 
 
 I. What offences should become subject to dis- 
 cipline. 
 
 1. Of course, all scandalous vices and immoral- 
 ities. " Not to keep company, if any man that is 
 called a brother, be a fornicator, or covetous, or an 
 idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortion- 
 er, with such an one, no, not to eat, — put away from 
 vourselves that wicked person," (mentioned verse 
 i,) 1 Cor. V. 11—13. 
 
 2. The denial of essential articles of the Christian 
 faith, and persisting in the error. 
 
 " But though we, or an angel from heaven, 
 preach any other gospel to you than that we have 
 preached, let him be accursed." Gal. i. 8. " Of 
 whom is Hymeneus and Philetus, who, concerning 
 the truth, liave erred, saying the resurrection is past 
 already, and overthrow the faith of some — whom I 
 deliver to Satan." 2 Tim. ii. 17 — 21. "If any 
 man teach otherwise, and consent not to the words 
 
ON DISCIPLINE. 151 
 
 of Christ and scand doctrine, according to godliness 
 — from such withdraw thyself." 1 Tim. vi. 3 — 5. 
 " If there come any unto you and bring not this 
 doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid 
 him God speed ; for he that biddeth him God speed, 
 is a partaker of his deeds." 2 John 10, 11. Nothing 
 can be more plain than that these passages require 
 us to separate from our communion those who deny 
 what we consider to be the essential articles of our 
 faith. Every church has an indubitable right of de- 
 termining for themselves, what they consider to be 
 fundamental truths ; they should, however, be ex- 
 tremely cautious, not to set up other terms of com- 
 munion than those which are established in the 
 Word of God. It is difficult to say, where forbear- 
 ance should terminate, and discipline begin ; but 
 there can be no doubt as to the path of duty, when 
 a member denies the divinity, atonement, and spirit- 
 ual influence of our blessed Lord. With such a 
 person, it is unpossible to have any spiritual com- 
 munion, and we ought not to hold with him any 
 visible union. Reason as well as revelation for- 
 bids it. 
 
 3. Disturhing the peace of the church in any luay, 
 is an offence that imperatively demands the exer- 
 cise of discipline. 
 
 " A man that is a heretic,* afler the first and 
 second admonition, reject." Titus iii. 10. « I 
 would they were cut off that trouble you." Gal. v. 
 12. " Mark them which cause divisions, and avoid 
 them." Rom. xvi. 17. " We command you,'breth- 
 
 *' The word here translated heretic signifies rather the author 
 and leader of a party, whatever his opinions may be, than one 
 who holds eiToneous sentiments. It means a factious person, 
 who raises a sect in the society, whether the ground of their 
 association be a matter of feeling or opinion. 
 
152 ON DISCIPLINE. 
 
 ren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye 
 withdraw yourselves from every brother that walks 
 disorderly." 2 Thess. iii. 6. 
 
 We are here taught, that if any man disturb the 
 peace, or break the unity of the church, no matter 
 in what way, whether by insinuating that the pas- 
 tor does not preach the gospel, or by forming a 
 party against him, or by raising up a division to op- 
 pose the proceedings of the society in a factious and 
 contentious manner, he must without delay be dealt 
 with as an offender. He may be a moral, and in 
 appearance a holy man, but this is not to screen 
 him from discipline : on the contrary, these very 
 qualities enable him, if suffered to continue, to do 
 the greater mischief. A factious temper, when 
 united with reputed sanctity, is the most dangerous 
 character that can exist in a Christian society. An 
 immoral man can do little harm : his vices have a 
 repellent power to drive away from him all who 
 have a regard for their own reputation ; but a man 
 who, under the guise of piety, becomes a troubler 
 of Israel, will be a troubler indeed. He should be 
 instantly called to account for his conduct, and if 
 not reclaimed by mild and affectionate admonition, 
 separated from communion. As long as the church 
 contains such an individual, it is cherishing a viper 
 in its bosom. 
 
 4. Suffering near relatives to want the necessaries 
 of life, ivhen able to relieve them. 
 
 " If any man provide not for his own house, he 
 hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel." 
 1 Tim. V. 8. 
 
 5. Living in a state of irreconcilahle enmity ivith 
 any of the brethren, and refusing to make suitable 
 concessions for an injury inflicted. " If he will not 
 
ON DISCIPLINE. 
 
 153 
 
 hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen 
 man and a publican." Matt, xviii. 17. 
 
 11. The manner of proceeding in cases of disci- 
 pline. 
 
 There are many things, of which no other notice 
 should be taken than the private admonition of one 
 member to another. When the offence is compara- 
 tively trivial, and knoAvn only to an individual or 
 two, nothing more is necessary than for these indi- 
 viduals, without saying a syllable about the matter 
 to any one else, to go, in a spirit of great meekness 
 and affection, to the offender, and to admonish him. 
 It is very undesirable to bring any thing more into 
 our church meetings than is absolutely neces- 
 sary. If the sin be attended with much aggra- 
 vation, and be generally known, it is a duty to 
 mention it to the church.* Should the offender 
 confess the fact, and manifest satisfactory proofs of 
 contrition, a simple and affectionate admonition to 
 him to go and sin no more, is sufficient. The 
 church should be satisfied, and restore him forthwith 
 to their confidence. But if he be obstinate — if he 
 either deny the charge, or palliate his sin — it would 
 be proper to appoint two or three discreet individu- 
 als to inquire into the fact, and to endeavour to 
 bring him to repentance. At the time the deputa- 
 tion is appointed, a resolution ought to be passed, 
 suspending the individual from the privileges of 
 communion.f Time after time he should be visited 
 
 * See p. 84, where the author treats of private offences. Ed. 
 
 t The suspension from the table, which is denominated the 
 lesser, excommunication, is opposed by some as a measure that 
 has no Scripture warrant. But may it not, hke many other of 
 our practices, be fairly deduced from general principles, and 
 be as proper as though it were expressly enjoined ? Does not 
 reason and the very nature of things require it ? Is there no 
 
154 ON DISCIPLINE. 
 
 by the pastor, and admonished ; and if after one, or 
 two, or three months, he should confess his offence, 
 and discover satisfactory contiition, he should with- 
 out delay be restored to the confidence and com- 
 munion of the church. But after waiting a reason- 
 able time, and waiting in vain, for any marks of re- 
 pentance, the church should proceed to separate him 
 
 medium between a mere admonition and the awful extremity 
 of expulsion ? What is to be done in those cases, where nei- 
 ther liie giiilt nor the innocence of an individual is at once appa- 
 rent to the cliurch ; but still a strong, very strong case, so far 
 as prima facie evidence goes, is made out against him 3 or 
 where there is some appearance of penitence, but yet that pen- 
 itence is equivocal ? Are we to admit that indi\'idual to the full 
 privileges of communion ? what, while his conduct is under 
 examination, and his character, to say the best, suspicious ? It 
 is useless to affirm that he is innocent till proved guilty ; this 
 may do in worldly matters, where no communion of heart is 
 necessary ; but not in the church of God, where the very act 
 of sitting dov/n at the sacred table is an expression of mutual 
 confidence, esteem, and love. Besides, even in civil affairs, a 
 man is denied the rights of innocence before he is proved guil- 
 ty ; I mean during the interval between his arrest and trial. 
 He is then in a state of suspension. Analogous to his is the 
 case of a suspected member, and who must therefore be sus- 
 pended till proved innocent or penitent. Still more culpable 
 would it be to proceed to excommunication, while there are 
 signs of penitence, even though those signs were not quite sat- 
 isfactory. Exclude the act of suspension fron discipline, and 
 the churches will often be involved in the dilemma of either 
 having their confidence impaired by retaining suspicious n)em- 
 bers, or being obliged to expel those who are not so hopeless 
 as to be consigned to this awful condition. To say that they 
 may be admitted again as soon as they are proved to , be peni- 
 tent, is to destroy the salutar3' terrors of a sentence, which 
 ought not to be pronounced, but in the last extremity, and the 
 solemnit}' of which nothing should be allowed to impair. 
 
 [Note. — As differences of opinion exist relative to the pro- 
 priety of suspension, churches, in this respect, are not uniform 
 m their practice. Ed.l 
 
ON DISCIPLINE. 155 
 
 from their communion. His contumacy has immeas- 
 urably aggravated his original offence. He has 
 now resisted, pertinaciously, the command and will 
 of Christ, declared through the church, and must 
 be treated as a heathen man and a publican. If he 
 neglect to hear the church, he must, whatever might 
 have been his original transgression, be expelled 
 from its fellowship. 
 
 In some cases, where the crime is higlily scan- 
 dalous, and very notorious, it is necessary for the 
 honour of religion, the credit of the society, and 
 the good of the offender, to proceed immediately to 
 excommunication, as soon as the fact is clearly 
 proved. 
 
 By excommunication, we mean nothing more 
 than an entire separation of the offender from all 
 relation to the church whatever, and an utter exclu- 
 sion from its privileges. The solemn sentence is 
 purely spiritual, designed to maintain the purity of 
 the church, and/ to manifest the glory of Christ's 
 holiness in the government of his kingdom, and can- 
 not extend to the person, estate, liberty, or any 
 civil rights whatever, of the excluded members.* 
 
 * There is some difficulty, and consequentl}'^ has been much 
 dispute, about the precise import of the apostle's expression, 1 
 Cor. V. 5. '' To deliver such an one unto Satan for the de- 
 struction of the flesh." The same expression is used in refer- 
 ence to Hymcneus and Philetus, 1 Tim. i. 20. " Whom I 
 have delivered unto Satan, that they may learn not to blas- 
 pheme." Some have supposed, that nothing more is intended 
 than their being delivered over again to the kingdom of Satan, 
 from which they were translated into the kingdom or church of 
 Christ. In other words, that they were sent back again to the 
 state of unconverted men, to be subject to the usurped domin- 
 ion of the god of this world, and led captive by him at his will. 
 But I do not sec how by this means they were to learn '' not to 
 blaspheme/' or to have '' the flesh destroyed/' which are stat- 
 
156 ON DISCIPLINE. 
 
 The sentence of excommunication should never 
 be proceeded to by the church, but with the great- 
 est caution and seriousness ; it should be accom- 
 panied with sorrowful and humble confession of the 
 delinquent's sin, and earnest prayer that it may have 
 a suitable effect upon his mind, and the mind of 
 others ; it should be done in the name of the Lord 
 Jesus, and not as an act of the church's own author- 
 ity ; it should have an immediate reference to the 
 ends of church fellowship, and the benefit of the 
 offender ; it should be unattended by any emotions 
 of wrath, malice, party spirit, or personal resent- 
 ment ; in short, from the beginning to the end of 
 the fearful proceeding, there should be a manifes- 
 tation of all that deliberation, discretion, serious- 
 ness, grief, and awe, which this solemn act of excis- 
 ion seems naturally to demand. There appears in 
 
 ed by the Apostle, as the end and desig-n of his thus dealing 
 with them. To get over this, some have supposed that the of- 
 fender's pride, lust, and other fleshly passions, would be mor- 
 tified when he found himself despised and shunned by all. This 
 view of the case is radior far-fetched, and does not agree so 
 wqH with the more natural interpretation of the words given by 
 others, nor with the threatenings denounced by the Apostle in 
 other places. 1 Cor. iv. 21. 2 Cor. xiii. 1. It is certain the 
 Apostles had power to punish notorious offenders with disease 
 and death. If so, maj"^ we not believe that the command which 
 the Apostle g'ave on this occasion to the Corinthians, '' to deliv- 
 er the incestuous person to Satan for the destruction of his 
 flesh," was an exertion of that power ? The only difficulty 
 which occurs in regard to this interpretation is, that it ascribes to 
 Satan an instrumentality in the infliction of disease, which is 
 no where acknowledged in the word of God, More than hints, 
 however, are to be found both in the Old Testament and New, 
 that such an influence is possessed by him. The case of Job, 
 and the woman whose case is mentioned, Luke xiii. 16, 
 ''whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years," are quite 
 in point. 
 
Oy DISCIPLINE. 157 
 
 this act, a reference to the future judgment of 
 Christ. In one sense, the church now judges for 
 Christ in matters of his kingdom ; and wo to them 
 who dare to pronounce this sentence, without being 
 persuaded on good grounds, that it is the sentence 
 of Christ himself. It is the echo of his awful voice, 
 saying even now to the offender, " Depart from my 
 house ;" and unless the offender repent, an antici- 
 pation of his sentence, saying at the last day, " De- 
 part from my heaven." 
 
 Mr. Hall's description of the nature and useful- 
 ness of excommunication is very striking. " I am 
 far from thinking lightly of the spiritual power with 
 which Christ has armed his church. It is a high 
 and mysterious one, which has no parallel on earth. 
 Notliing in the order of means, is equally adapted 
 to awaken compunction in the guilty, with spiritual 
 censures impartially administered ; the sentence of 
 excommunication in particular, harmonizing with 
 the dictates of conscience, and re-echoed by her 
 voice, is truly terrible. It is the voice of God, 
 speaking through its legitimate organ, which he 
 who despises, or neglects, ranks with ' heathen men 
 and publicans,' joins the synagogue of Satan, and 
 takes his lot with an unbelieving world, doomed to 
 perdition. Excommunication is a sword, which, 
 strong in its apparent wealmess, and the sharper, 
 and the more keenly edged, for being divested of 
 all sensible and exterior envelopements, lights im- 
 mediately on the spirit, and inflicts a wound which 
 no balm can cure, no ointment can mollify, but 
 which must continue to ulcerate and burn, till heal- 
 ed by the blood of atonement, applied by penitence 
 and prayer. In no instance is that axiom more ful- 
 ly verified, ' The weakness of God is stronger than 
 men, and the foolishness of God is wiser than men,' 
 
158 ON DISCIPLINE. 
 
 than in the discipline of his church. By encumber- 
 ing it with foreign aid, they have robbed it of its 
 real strength ; by calling in the aid of temporal 
 pains and penalties, they have removed it from the 
 spirit to the flesh, from its contact with eternity, to 
 unite it to secular interests ; and, as the corruption 
 of the best things is the worst, have rendered it the 
 scandal and reproach of our holy religion. 
 
 " While it retains its character as a spiritual or- 
 dinance, it is the chief bulwark against the disor- 
 ders which threaten to overrun religion, the very 
 nerve of virtue, and, next to the preaching of the 
 cross, the principal antidote to the ' corruptions that 
 are in the world through lust.' Discipline in a 
 church occupies the place of laws in a state : and 
 as a kingdom, however excellent its constitution, 
 will inevitably sink into a state of extreme wretch- 
 edness, in which laws are either not enacted, or not 
 duly administered ; so a church which pays no at- 
 tention to discipline, will either fall into confusion, 
 or into a state so much worse, that little or nothing 
 remains worth regulating. The right of inflicting 
 censures, and of proceeding in extreme cases to 
 excommunication, is an essential branch of that 
 power with which the church is endowed, and bears 
 the same relation to discipline that the administra- 
 tion of criminal justice bears to the general princi- 
 ples of government. When this right is exerted in 
 upholding the ' faith once delivered to the saints,' 
 or enforcing a conscientious regard to the laws of 
 Christ, it maintains its proper place, and is highly 
 beneficial. Its cognizance of doctrine is justified 
 by apostolic authority ; ' a heretic, after two or 
 three admonitions, reject :' nor is it to any purpose 
 to urge the diflTerence betwixt ancient heretics and 
 
ON DISCIPLINE. 159 
 
 modern, or that to pretend to distinguish truth from 
 error, is a practical assumption of infallibility." 
 
 It is a question worthy of consideration, " How 
 church members should conduct themselves toward 
 those who are thus separated from their communionJ" 
 We are not left without instructions on this head. 
 « If any man obey not our word by this epistle, note 
 that man, and have no company with him, that he 
 may be ashamed. Yet count him not as an enemy, 
 but admonish him as a brother." 2 Thes. iii. 14, 
 15. " I have written unto you, not to keep compa- 
 ny, if any man that is called a brother, be a forni- 
 cator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a 
 drunkard, or an extortioner, with such an one, no, 
 not to eat." 1 Cor. v. 11. Two things are here 
 evident : first — We are expressly commanded to 
 withdraw from all voluntary association with such 
 individuals. We are to shun their company. We 
 are not even to sit down with them at an ordinary 
 meal, nor freely to converse with them on secular 
 affairs, except they are our relations, or we are ne- 
 cessarily thrown by the contingencies of business 
 into their society. Of course, none of the relative 
 ties are to be dissolved, nor any of the social duties 
 to be neglected ; but all voluntary intercourse with 
 excommunicated persons, who are not related to us 
 by the ties of nature, is to be cautiously avoided : 
 and this is to be done, to testify our abhorrence of 
 the sin, and that the offender himself may be 
 ashamed, and feel the awful situation in which his 
 transgression has placed him. 
 
 But it is equally evident from the apostolic in- 
 junction, that excommunicated persons are not to 
 be utterly forsaken and abandoned. " Count him not 
 as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother." 
 Pains should be taken to bring them to repentance. 
 
160 ON DISCIPLINE. 
 
 They should not be given up to their sins, and given 
 over, as it were, to become more and more vile The 
 pastor and members should seek opportunities to ad- 
 monish and warn them : " Peradventure God may give 
 them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth." 
 Upon their penitence and reformation, they should 
 again be received into communion with compassion 
 and love, joy and gratitude. "Better," says Dr. 
 Owen, " never excommunicate a person at all, than 
 forsake and abandon him when he is expelled, or 
 refuse to receive him back again upon his repent- 
 ance ; but there is a class of persons unto whom, if 
 a man be an offender, he shall be so for ever." 
 
 Great care should be taken by a church, to dis- 
 play the most inflexible impartiality in the exercise 
 of discipline. To allow the riches, talents, or in- 
 fluence of any offender, to blind the eyes of the so- 
 ciety, and to screen him from punishment, is a most 
 flagrant crime against the authority of Christ, and 
 the laws of his kingdom. We can scarcely con- 
 ceive of any thing more displeasing in his sight, 
 any thing more likely to bring down his fearful in- 
 dignation upon a church, than to allow his temple 
 to be defiled, out of compliment to secular distinc- 
 tions. 
 
 No member should be allowed to resign, in order 
 to avoid expulsion. If he has done any thing wor- 
 thy of censure or separation, he should not be al- 
 lowed to retire with his conduct unnoticed. " It 
 becomes not the wisdom and order of any society, 
 intrusted with authority for its own preservation, as 
 the church is by Christ himself, to suffer persons 
 obnoxious to censure by the fundamental rules of 
 that society, to cast off all respect unto it, to break 
 their order and relation, without animadverting 
 thereupoji, according to the authority wherewith 
 
REMOVAL OF MEMBERS. 161 
 
 they are intrusted. To do otherwise is to expose 
 their order unto contempt, and proclaim a diffidence 
 in their own authority for the spiritual punishfeient 
 of offenders." * 
 
 On the Removal of Members from one Church to 
 another in the same Town. 
 
 This of course can happen only in those places 
 where there are more than one church of the same 
 denomination, and in such places it is a very com- 
 mon occurrence. Church fellowship is a very sa- 
 cred bond, which ought not to be formed without 
 serious deliberation, nor broken without just cause. 
 No member should dissolve his connexion with a 
 Christian society, but upon such grounds as will 
 stand the test of reason and revelation. The slight 
 pretexts on which some persons transfer themselves 
 from one church to another, betrays a frivolity and 
 volatility of mind, which looks like trifling with sa- 
 cred things. On the least offence, either imagina- 
 ry or real, produced either by minister or people, 
 they send for their dismission to anotlier communion, 
 and are off. 
 
 Sometimes a disagreement with one of the members 
 is the cause of secession. This is manifestly 
 wrong. The scripture is very explicit on the sub- 
 ject of offences. Instead of leaving a church on 
 this ground, we ought to take immediate steps 
 towards reconciliation. It is no justification to sayj 
 "If I cannot sit down at the Lord's Supper in love 
 with a person, I had better not sit down at all ;" 
 because we ought without delay to have the offence 
 
 * Dr. Owen on Churcli Govenimeut, p. 222. 
 
 14 
 
362 REMOVAL OF MEMBERS. 
 
 removed, and come to an agreement with the of- 
 fender. 
 
 Some persons break their connexion with a 
 church, because they think that there are sinful 
 members retained in its communion. Instead of re- 
 moving, their duty is, either by private admonition, 
 to reclaim such supposed delinquents, or, by inform- 
 ing the pastor, to take the proper measures for their 
 expulsion. If the matter should be brought be- 
 fore the church, and the brethren should not be 
 convinced that there is sufficient ground to proceed 
 to discipline, we ought immediately to acquiesce, 
 and to suppose that through want of information, or 
 some secret prejudice, we had formed an incorrect 
 opinion ; and from that time should feel charitably 
 toward tlie individuals in question. And even if 
 we were persuaded that the church had erred in 
 its judgment, yet, as they examined the evidence, 
 and acted upon conviction, it is not our duty to re- 
 tire. They endeavoured to decide impartially, and 
 as they did not connive at Avickedness, their com- 
 munion is not defiled. Societies must be governed 
 by fixed general laws, which may sometimes fail to 
 reach particular cases. We must always act upon 
 evidence ; and if this fail to prove a member guilty, 
 we must still consider ourselves bound to continue 
 him in the privileges of communion. 
 
 If a church refuses to take cognizance of flagrant 
 immorality, or, in order to screen some rich and 
 powerful member, declines to receive testimony, or 
 acts in direct opposition to the clearest evidence, — a 
 case which rarely happens, — then the communion 
 is defiled, and a member may conscientiously with- 
 draw. 
 
 It happens not unfrequently that members secede, 
 because a pastor is chosen, whose election they cannot 
 
REMOVAL OF MEMBERS. 1G3 
 
 approve. This forms a difficult case of casuistry. 
 It ought, however, to be a last resort. We should 
 never form a separatiou on this ground in haste. 
 We should give a patient and impartial hearing to 
 the minister, and strive, by every possible effort, to 
 have our prejudices removed. We should not suf- 
 fer ourselves to be disaffected towards him, by cir- 
 cumstances trivial and indifferent. We should not 
 lend our ear to those who have similar views, nor 
 suffer a party feeling to be excited ; but, acting 
 singly and for ourselves, strive to edify so far by his 
 ministry, as to render a secession unnecessary. If, 
 however, after earnest prayer for direction, coupled 
 with great efforts to subdue every thing of prejudice, 
 we still find our religious edification not promoted 
 by his preaching, then we may quietly and peace- 
 ably retire, provided there are numbers and proper- 
 ty sufficient to found another congregation, and erect 
 another place of worship. We should never at- 
 tempt to prejudice the minds of others ; a step which 
 is not unfrequently taken by some to justify their 
 own conduct ; but which is attended Avith more guilt 
 than words can describe. 
 
 It is quite unlawful to separate merely on the 
 ground of dissatisfaction tvith the decision of the 
 church, in its ordinary affairs. 
 
 It is equally sinful to retire because of some 
 imaginary or real offence given us by the pastor. 
 The same steps of explanation and reconciliation 
 are to be taken in this case, as in that of a private 
 member. We should go to him alone, but in the 
 spirit of the greatest meekness and respect, on ac- 
 count of his office. Nothing should be said in the 
 way of accusation, crimination, or demand; but a 
 kind, respectful, modest statement of the supposed 
 offence should be given, which, with any reasonable 
 
164 REMOVAL OF MEMBERS. 
 
 man, will be always sufficient to lead to a satisfac- 
 tory explanation. 
 
 A member ought not to retire, even on the 
 ground of supposed misconduct on the part of the 
 pastor. If his inconsistencies affect his Christian 
 character, they should become matter of church in- 
 vestigation : if they are but imprudences, or the 
 ligliter imperfections to which even the best of men 
 are subject, we should be rather disposed to treat 
 them with all reasonable candour, and cover them 
 with the veil of love ; at the same time it would be 
 proper, that a respectful and kind expostulation 
 should be delivered to him by the deacons, or senior 
 members of his flock. 
 
 In cases where a noAvly married couple are mem- 
 bers of two churches, it is quite, lawful for the wife 
 to withdraw from her own church to that of her hus- 
 band, provided she can edify by his minister ; if not, 
 the husband ought not to desire her to accompany 
 him. If by a removal of our dwelling place, we 
 are situated at an inconvenient distance from the 
 house of God, ]♦, is quite justifiable, in this case, to 
 connect ourselves with a religious society nearer to 
 our abode ; but then we ought to Avithdraw alto- 
 gether, and not hear the word preached in one place, 
 and receive the Lord's supper in another. This 
 practice is very common in the metropolis, than 
 which, I think, notliing can be more opposed to the 
 very spirit of church fellowship. This is resolving 
 the whole Christian communion into the mere act 
 of celebrating the Lord's supper ; Avhereas this is 
 but one part of it. It is destructive of many ends of 
 fellowship. It interferes with pastoral inspection ; 
 for how can a minister judge of a member's regu- 
 lar attendance upon the ordinances of religion, when 
 he sees him only once a month at the table of the 
 
ELECTION OF A PASTOR. 1G5 
 
 Lord ? It also interrupts tlie growth of brotherly 
 love, which is promoted by frequent association in 
 the public ordinances of religion. 
 
 Let us then consider that our connexion with a 
 Christian church is a bond of a very sacred nature, 
 and which, though not indissoluble, should not be 
 broken but upon some great and rare occurrence. 
 
 On the Conduct to be observed by a Church in the 
 Election of a Pastor. 
 
 When a Christian minister is removed either to 
 his eternal rest, or to some other sphere of labour 
 in the present world, the choice of a successor al- 
 ways brings on a crisis in tlie history of the cJiurch 
 of which he was the pastor. No event that could 
 happen, can place the interests of the society in 
 greater peril. Distraction and division have so fre- 
 quently resulted ft-om this circumstance, so many 
 churches have been rent by it, that an argument 
 has been founded upon it, if not against the right 
 of popular election to the pastoral office, yet against 
 the expediency of using it. It must be admitted 
 that, on these occasions, our principles as indepen- 
 dents, and our practices as Christians, have not 
 been unfrequently brouglit into disrepute. We 
 have been accused of wrangling about a teacher of 
 religion, till we have lost our religion itself in the 
 affray ; and the state of many congregations proves, 
 that tlie charge is not altogether without foundation. 
 God sometimes overrules these divisions for the 
 furtherance of the gospel, even as he has made the 
 introduction of evil into the moral world, an occa- 
 sion of displaying his glory ; but this alters not the 
 character of the event. Schisms are altogether 
 
166 ELECTION OF A PASTOR. 
 
 evil in themselves, and are always to be deprecated, 
 and, if possible, avoided. This occurrence forms no 
 solid objection, however, against the great principle 
 — the right of every Christian to choose his own 
 spiritual instructer. We must carefully separate, 
 in a system, between what is accidental, and what 
 is essential; and if, through the infirmity of our na- 
 ture, some evils of an adventitious kind arise in 
 the administration of a system clearly founded on 
 reason and revelation, we are no more authorized 
 to subvert the latter on account of the former, than 
 we should be to demolish a hospital, in order to 
 suppress the litigations which arise in its committee, 
 about the direction of its concerns. What we have 
 to do in one case and the other, is to leave the in- 
 stitution untouched, and endeavour to avoid these 
 evils, which arise from our imperfections, to obscure 
 its excellence, and limit its benefits. 
 
 Under these views, I shall proceed to point out 
 in what Avay a church should conduct itself, when 
 called upon to exercise its right in the choice of a 
 minister. 
 
 Let all the members, as soon as their pastor is 
 removed or dead, seiiously reflect on the crisis into 
 ivhich the church is brought, the great importance of 
 preserving its peace, and the influence that their 
 individual conduct may have upon the future pros- 
 perity of the society. Let them deliberately reflect 
 thus, " The church is now coming into circumstan- 
 ces of peril, and I, as an individual, may be acces- 
 sory, according as my conduct shall be to its inju- 
 ry or prosperity. God forbid our harmony should 
 be disturbed, or our Zion become otherwise than a 
 quiet habitation. So far as depends upon myself, I 
 will sacrifice any thing but principle, rather than 
 have those scenes of distraction and division 
 
ELECTION OF A PASTOR. 1G7 
 
 amongst us, which are so common in the religious 
 world." 
 
 Let the members instantly make it an object of 
 fervent and constant prayer^ that the church may be 
 kept in harmony and peace, guided in the choice of 
 a minister, and that they may be enabled, each in 
 his private capacity, to conduct himself in a spirit 
 of quietness and brotherly love. Each one alone 
 should pray for the Christian temper ; and periodi- 
 cal seasons should be appointed, when these objects 
 should be recognised, and their desires expressed 
 by social prayer. Prayer is the best bulwark 
 against strifes. The spirit of healing and union 
 descends in the cloud of incense formed by the 
 church's prayers. 
 
 Let the members recollect, that the choice of a 
 pastor is one of those occasions, which render pre- 
 eminently necessary, the exercise of that love which 
 St. Paul has so beautifully described in the first 
 Epistle to the Corinthians. This chapter should be 
 devoutly read at every church meeting, together 
 with the 122d and the 133d Psalms. These should 
 form the standing lessons for the occasion. The 
 business now under consideration will require on 
 all hands the utmost caution, candour, patience, 
 and mutual forbearance. Many opinions are now 
 to be consulted, many tempers to be tried, and each 
 one should subject the passions of his own mind to 
 the government of the Avord of God. If love were 
 elevated to the throne of the church, all would go 
 right. No division would then take place. Differ- 
 ence of opinion might be expressed, but it would 
 produce no alienation of heart. Directly therefore 
 as it becomes necessary to elect a new pastor, the 
 relationship of the church as brdhren, and the new 
 commandment of Christ, as the law of his kingdom, 
 
168 ELECTION OF A PASTOR. 
 
 should, by a solemn act of the church, be recognised 
 afresh. 
 
 The members should study St. PauVs Epistles to 
 Timothy and Titus, to learn wliat are the qualifica- 
 tions of a Christian minister. They should well 
 consider and settle with themselves, what objects 
 should direct their choice. It appears to me, they 
 should unite in their view, personal edification, and 
 general benefit. They should seek for a man whom 
 they can hear with pleasure, and who is likely to 
 prove attractive to others. The benefit of the society 
 at large, is the ultimate standard, to which private 
 and personal taste must ever give way. 
 
 A committee, composed of the deacons, or of the 
 deacons and a few of the most judicious members, 
 should be appointed to procure supplies, and look 
 out for candidates. This committee should write 
 to the most discreet and esteemed ministers in their 
 neighbourhood, or at a distance, who may be best 
 acquainted with the circumstances of the destitute 
 church, to name any person or persons who, in their 
 judgment, may be eligible as its future pastor. To 
 ask advice is not to solicit imposition. And in such 
 an afiiair as this, not to ask advice, is to betray a 
 want of prudent caution, most censurable in itself, 
 and often most injurious in its consequences. At 
 the same time, there are so many motives which in- 
 fluence people in giving advice, that no church 
 should be guided implicitly in their choice of a pas- 
 tor by the opinions of others. Whoever may be 
 recommended, the church should exercise its own 
 judgment as to the fitness of the person recom- 
 mended ; for want of this, I have known mistakes 
 committed of the most lamentable nature.* 
 
 * Let ministers to whom applications are made by a destitute 
 church, to recommend them a candidate; beware of suffering 
 
ELECTION OF A PASTOR. 1G9 
 
 Great care should be taken by those to wliom the 
 church has delegated the power of procuring can- 
 didates, not to invite, upon probation, any individual 
 of wJtose suitableness they have not received previous 
 and satisfactory testimony. Let it by no means be 
 thought necessary to toait long after the decease of 
 a pastor, before a successor is elected. Respect for 
 his memory does not require that the pulpit should 
 be continued vacant, or that the weeds of widowhood 
 should be worn by the church for any given period. 
 When an officer falls in battle, the welfare of the 
 army requires that a successor should be immediate- 
 ly appointed. 
 
 Neither is it necessary, that a church should hear 
 a great variety of candidates, before an election is 
 made. To set out with the intention of hearing 
 many, in order to choose one, is of all plans the 
 most injudicious and mischievous. The very idea 
 
 themselves to mention the name of any indix-idual, whom, in 
 their conscientious opinion, they do not think to be suitable. To 
 recommend any person out of mere pitj', because he is desti- 
 tute of a situation, or out of natural afiection or friendship, be- 
 cause he happens to be a relative or acquahitance, without re- 
 gard to his character, general qualifications, or such ableness 
 for the situation in question, is a most criminal act, and de- 
 serv^es the severest reprobation. It is an act of the most guilty 
 treachery towards, not an individual, but a community; not in 
 reference to temporal interests, but to spiritual and eternal 
 ones. In some cases, unsuitable recommendations are given 
 from a love of patronage ; in others, from an excess of good 
 nature ; but from whatever cause they proceed, the mischief 
 they do is incalculable. Oftentimes the evil cures itself, as it 
 respects the particular individuals, for their impnmalur to a 
 cure, or their testimonial to a person, is so easily and so gener- 
 ally procured, is so indiscriminately and so lavishly given, that 
 with all persons of discernment it really stands for nothing 
 Every man is responsible to God for all the evil consequences 
 which result from a recommendation carelessly given. 
 15 
 
170 ELECTION OF A PASTOR. 
 
 that others are to follow, will suspend the impartial 
 exercise of the judgment concerning every one, 
 will in all probability lead to a variety of opinions, 
 and ensure a repetition of the state of things at 
 Corinth, where one said, " I am for Paul ; another, 
 I am for Apollos ; and a third, I am for Cephas." 
 As soon as an individual is found who possesses the 
 scriptural qualifications of a Christian pastof, and 
 in whom the great body of the church is united, he 
 should be immediately chosen, even if he be tlie 
 first that has presented himself. 
 
 Great caution, however, ought to be exercised in 
 forming a judgment upon the suitableness of an indi- 
 vidual. That a proper opportunity might be af- 
 forded to the church for coming to this opinion, the 
 probationary term of a candidate's labours should 
 not be too short. Preaching is not the only thing 
 to be judged of; piety, prudence, diligence, general 
 deportment, are all to be taken into the account : 
 and for a trial on all these points, a period of three 
 months cannot be thought too long. 
 
 Especial deference should be paid by the young- 
 er and inexperienced members of the church, to the 
 opinion of their senior and more experienced breth- 
 ren. The sentiments of the deacons, and those in- 
 dividuals who have grown grey in the service of 
 the Lord and the church, should be received with 
 great attention, and have great weight. A youth 
 of seventeen is a very incompetent judge of minis- 
 terial qualifications, compared with a venerable fa- 
 ther of seventy. That haughty spirit which leads 
 a young person, or a novice, to say, " I have a vote 
 as well as the oldest and richest, and have as much 
 right to be heard and consulted as they," is not 
 the spirit of the gOspel, but of turbulence and fac- 
 tion. How much more amiable and lovely is such 
 
ELECTION OF A PASTOR. 171 
 
 a declaration as the following : " I, young and in- 
 experienced, am a very inadequate judge of the 
 suitableness of a minister for this situation, and 
 therefore shall be pretty much guided, in my decis- 
 ion, by the opinion of others, older and wiser than 
 myself." This is independency exercised in the spirit 
 of the gospel. 
 
 All secret canvassing, and attempts to influence 
 the minds of others, should be studiously avoided. 
 To see the mean, petty arts of a contested election 
 carried into the church of God, is dreadful. 
 
 It would be well for every church to have a 
 standing rule, that no pastor shoidd be chosen, hut 
 by the suffrages of two thirds, or three fourths, of tJie 
 members present. This would preclude much of 
 that cabal and intrigue, which are sometimes em- 
 ployed in cases where the matter is decided by a 
 mere majority. Besides which, the choice of a pas- 
 tor is a business of too much importance to be car- 
 ried simply by a majority. 
 
 It would be well, if in every case the church 
 could be unanimous ; but this is more than can be 
 looked for. It should certainly be sought for in the 
 use of all proper means. Tlie majority should ex- 
 ercise peculiar forbearance and affection to- 
 wards those who are opposed to them, carefully 
 avoiding to impute their objections to any improper 
 motives; listening to their statements with pa- 
 tience ; treating them with candour ; reasoning 
 with them in the spirit of love ; and giving them 
 time to have their difficulties removed. The hap- 
 piest results have been often the issue of such kind 
 and Christian conduct. If, however, instead of this, 
 the dissentients are treated with harshness and in- 
 tolerance ; if their opposition be attributed to a fac- 
 tious and cavilling temper ; if they are regarded 
 
172 ELECTION OF A PASTOR. 
 
 with contempt, as a despicable minority, of which 
 no notice should be taken ; and are left immediate- 
 ly to themselves, without any conciliatory measures 
 being taken, while the majority proceeds immedi- 
 ately to decide, a schism is sure to be the conse- 
 quence, as mischievous to the church as it is dis- 
 graceful to religion. 
 
 The party who wish a minister to be elected, 
 should seriously reflect thus : " If we choose this 
 man, we may give pain to the minds of a large body 
 of our brethren, which we most anxiously deprecate, 
 and cannot allow ourselves to do, but under the con- 
 viction that we are promoting the permanent wel- 
 fare of the church at large." While the party op- 
 posing should say, " The general body appear to 
 consider this minister as possessing the requisite 
 qualification for their pastor, and this has been so 
 satisfactorily ascertained, that it ought not to be 
 with us a light matter to obstruct the general edifi- 
 cation. Nothing but the good of the church 
 shall lead us to set up our opinion in opposition 
 to that of a large majority of its members." 
 Such alovely temper would generally lead to benefi- 
 cial results. 
 
 It would be very advisable, in some cases, for even 
 so large a majority as two thirds, or even three 
 fourths, to give up the point, rather than carry it in 
 opposition to a minority, which includes in it the 
 deacons, and many of the most experienced and re- 
 spectable members of the society. The majority, 
 in such instances, have the right to decide ; but it 
 is a question whether they ought not, for the sake 
 of peace, to waive the exercise of it. 
 
 Persons of property and influence should be very 
 careful how they conduct themselves on these occasions. 
 
 There are in many churches individuals whose 
 
ELECTION OF A PASTOR. 173 
 
 circumstances must necessarily give peculiar weight 
 to their opinions. Let them, however, not assume 
 the office of dictators. Let them not robe them- 
 selves in the dress of Diotrephes, nor display 
 amongst the brethren the love of preeminence. The 
 system of independency admits of influence, but 
 not of patronage ; men may lead, but not drive. 
 Democracies are as liable to the control of a few 
 leading individuals, probably more so, than any other 
 system ; but then these individuals should act, hy 
 causing the people to act for them. If such an appli- 
 cation of the words of scripture were admissible, I 
 would say, "they should render the people ivilling in 
 the day of their power." An attempt to exert their 
 influence, in opposition to the wishes of the people, 
 is a most irrational, unscriptural assumption of pow- 
 er. To sacrifice the interests of the church for the 
 gratification of their taste ; to attempt to force up- 
 on a society a man not approved by it, or to reject 
 one who is chosen by it, is the most disgusting ex- 
 ercise of the most disgusting tyranny. 
 
 It unfortunately happens, that when one party 
 has given up a minister in compliment to the other, 
 they almost insensibly oppose an individual, who, in 
 future, may he the favourite of their opponents. It is 
 most sinful to allow the corrupt passions of our na- 
 ture thus far to prevail in our hearts, as to turn 
 aside our judgment in affairs so sacred and so im- 
 portant. 
 
 When a minister is at length brought in by a 
 large majority, it then becomes a question, what 
 ought to he the conduct of the minority. Should they 
 separate, and form another religious society ? Cer- 
 tainly not, except as a dernier resort. Let them 
 consider the evils connected with such a state of 
 things. What ill will is often produced between 
 
174 ELECTION OF A PASTOR. 
 
 the two societies ; how much anti-christian feeling 
 is excited ; how it injures the spirit of both parties ; 
 what envies, and jealousies, and evil speakings, com- 
 mence and continue, to the injury of religion, and 
 the. triumph of its enemies! Let them, before they 
 separate, endeavour to lay aside thtir prejudice^ and 
 hear for a season, with as much impartiality as pos- 
 sible, the man to whom they object. On kis part, 
 much consummate prudence is necessary, and the 
 most conciliatory conduct. All he does and says 
 should have a healing tendency. Much depends 
 upon himself. Great credit is due to that minister, 
 
 WHO HAS CONCILIATED HIS OPPONENTS WITHOUT 
 ALIENATING HIS FRIENDS, and wllO haS beCOmO THE 
 RECONCILING MEDIUM OF TWO PARTIES, ONCE AT 
 VARIANCE ABOUT HIMSELF. 
 
 In some cases, a division is necessary. Where 
 this is unavoidable, great efforts should be made to 
 effect it in love. If the two parties cannot unite in 
 peace, at least let them separate in peace. Let the 
 separation take place without alienation. x\las ! 
 that this should so rarely be the case ! 
 
 What we want, to preserve the peace of our 
 churches unbroken, is a more distinct recognition and 
 a more powerful influence of the principles of the gos- 
 pel; more humility, more spirituality, more zeal for 
 the divine glory. We carry into the sanctuary, and 
 into the church, our pride, our self-will, our personal 
 taste. That spirit of mutual submission,brotlierly love, 
 and surrender of our own gratification to the good 
 of others which the word of God enjoins, and our pro- 
 fession avows, would keep the church always happy 
 and harmonious, and enable it to pass in safety 
 through the most critical circumstances in which it 
 can be placed. Instead of seeking the good of the 
 whole, the feeling of too many of our members may 
 
oy THE lord's supper. 175 
 
 be thus summarily expressed — « I will have my way.'* 
 Such a spirit is a source of all the evils to which 
 our churches are ever exposed, and of which it 
 must be confessed they are but too frequently the 
 miserable victims. 
 
 On the Propriety of occasionally administering th* 
 Lord's Supper in private Houses, for the Sake of 
 sick Persons who are incapable of attending the 
 Solemnities of Public Worship. 
 
 I do not now allude to the practice, so common 
 in the church of England, of administering the sac- 
 rament to dying persons, as a preparative for eter- 
 nity ; this custom, so unscriptural in its nature, and 
 so delusory in its tendency, is unknown, I believe, 
 amongst our churches. But instances have occur- 
 red, in which our ministers, for the sake of some 
 of their members, who have been long confined to 
 their own habitations by chronic diseases, without 
 the prospect of ever going to the house of God 
 again, have assembled a few others in the chamber 
 of the afflicted person, and administered to them the 
 Lord's supper. The infirm individual is supposed 
 to be a real Christian, in church fellowship ; the 
 others, joining in the act, are also members of the 
 same church, or Christians of undoubted piety ; and 
 the design of the act is not to countenance any 
 Pharisaic notions of human merit, which the sick 
 person might have connected with the reception of 
 the sacrament, but simply to give him an opportu- 
 nity of expressing his obedience, and gratifying his 
 love to Christ, by an observance of our Lord's 
 own institution. Is it right under these circum- 
 stances to gratify his request, and observe with 
 
176 ON THE lord's SUPPER. 
 
 him the sacred supper ? I think not ; and on the 
 following grounds : 
 
 1. The Lord's supper is strictly a church ordi" 
 nance, and not an exercise of mere social religion, 
 such as joint prayer, and therefore ought not to be 
 observed but wlien the church is professedly assem- 
 bled. It is not an act of social religion, which may 
 be performed in any place, where two or three 
 Christians are convened together, by accident or 
 design, but in the place of their public convention, 
 and at the time when they are so convened. All 
 the directions of the apostle, concerning this insti- 
 tution, are given to the church in its collective ca- 
 pacity ; and besides this, there are many incidental 
 expressions, Avhich plainly show that this was the 
 view which he took of it, under the guidance of the 
 Holy Ghost. In the eleventh chapter of the first 
 epistle to the Corinthians, he interferes to regulate 
 the abuses which, upon this subject, had crept into 
 the Corinthian church. He begins the subject thus : 
 " When ye come together in one place, this is not 
 to eat the Lord's supper." Now his meaning in this 
 language must evidently be, that merely coming in- 
 to one place together for a feast, was not enough, 
 but in tliat one place conforming to all the other 
 regulations delivered by our Lord concerning it. 
 The act of coming together in one place Avas right 
 so far as it went, but it was not enough. In 1 Cor. 
 v. 8, the apostle says, "Let us keep the feast," i. e. 
 the Lord's supper, " not with old leaven :" in the 
 7th verse they were commanded to purge out the 
 old leaven, i. e. to put away the offending member ; 
 and this was to be done when they were gathered 
 together ; the feast was to be observed then, when 
 the church were gathered together. 
 
 It is plain therefore that the Lord's supper is a 
 
ON THE lord's SUPPER. 177 
 
 church ordinance, and can with propriety be only 
 observed by the church in its assembled form. 
 But it will probably be said, " Do not two or tln-ee 
 persons convened together at any time, or in any 
 place, constitute a church ?" The answer to this 
 question depends on circumstances. If these two 
 or three meet together for the purposes, and in the 
 character, of a distinct and separate society of 
 Christians, and in the usual time and place of as- 
 sembly, they are a church, notwithstanding the 
 smallness of their number ; but if they meet togeth- 
 er as the acknowledged members of another soci- 
 ety, which in its general capacity neither do, nor 
 can, assemble with them in that place, they are not 
 a church, but merely a part of one ; and, as such, 
 have no right to perform acts which belong to the 
 whole number. This does not imply that it is neces- 
 sary for every member to be present, in order to a 
 meeting of the church ; for, provided all be invited to 
 assemble in one place, those who meet constitute 
 the church, however few may attend. This may 
 be illustrated by a reference to the British parlia- 
 ment. Two or three members, meeting together in 
 one place, do not constitute the senate, nor are 
 their acts legislatorial. The parliament are the 
 members assembled by appointment, whether few or 
 many, in the specified place of meeting. Such is 
 the church, not a casual, ambulatory, or private 
 meeting of a few of its members, but the body of 
 Christians convened by general notice. The 
 words of Christ, « Wherever two or three are gath- 
 ered together in my name, there am I in the midst 
 of them," more immediately refer to the exercise 
 of social prayer ; but, viewed in their most exten- 
 sive sense, will by no means countenance the idea, 
 that two or three members of a church constitute 
 
178 ON THE lord's SUPPER. 
 
 of themselves a church, until they have separated 
 from their late connexion, and formed themselves 
 into another distinct society. 
 
 2. The practice in question is contrary to one 
 of the ends of the Lord's supper, which is to be a 
 visible sign of the oneness of the church, of the 
 union of all its members in one body. Hence said 
 the apostle, " We being many are one bread [loaf) 
 and one body ; for we are all partakers of that one 
 bread {loaf.y 1 Cor. x. 17. The loaf by its unity 
 shows the oneness of the church ; by its division 
 into many parts, its many members. But is not 
 this design of the Lord's supper defeated by its pri- 
 vate celebration amongst a few members of the 
 church ? Are the tAvo or three assembled in pri- 
 vate, detached from the public body, a representa- 
 tion of its unity ? 
 
 3. There is not a single instance of any compa- 
 ny of Christians whose meetings were merely oc- 
 casional, and who were not united for the purpose 
 of stated fellowship as a church, in a particular 
 place, observing the ordinance of the Lord's supper. 
 And as Ave have no example, so we have no pre- 
 cepts for such things, not so much as a hint that 
 they may be done. Should ministers, therefore, 
 without the shadow of scriptural authority, consent 
 to them ? 
 
 4. As a precedent, the practice is dangerous ; 
 for if the scripture mode of observing the Lord's 
 supper be departed from in one way, it may in 
 another. If ministers depart from the regulations 
 of the New Testament for the advantage of the 
 sick, may they not be led on to do it in other 
 cases, till even the purposes of faction shall be pro- 
 moted by the practice ? 
 
 It is not enough to justify it, to say that it is a 
 
CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 179 
 
 great loss to the individual who is deprived of the 
 possibility of attending public worship, and there- 
 fore it is an act of Christian love to make up, in 
 tliis way, the privation. We must not, in any in- 
 stance, exercise charity at the expense of principle. 
 The regulations of the word of God are not to be 
 violated, even for the pious consolation of his peo- 
 ple. Every one who is visited by an affliction 
 which confines him to his house, is released from all 
 obligation to observe this command of Christ, " Do 
 this in remembrance of me." The duty to him is 
 impossible, at least in the scriptural mode of it, and 
 impossibility always supersedes obligation. If it 
 ceases to be his duty, it ought no longer to be con- 
 sidered a privilege. All he has to do, is to submit 
 to the privation, and not attempt to supply it in a 
 manner unauthorized by the Word of God. 
 
 On the Causes of those Schisms which sometimes dis- 
 tract and disturb the Churches. 
 
 The existence of this evil, truth will not allow 
 us to deny, nor ingenuity enable us to conceal. 
 
 Divisions in our churches produce incalculable 
 mischief, since they not only prevent the growth of 
 religion in the distracted societies, but they impair 
 and destroy it ; they excite a prejudice, a fearful 
 and destructive prejudice, against the principles of 
 independent churches, and extend their mischief 
 still farther, by obscuring the glory of religion it- 
 self. Infidels, like vultures drawn by the scent 
 of battle, hover over the scenes of these lamentable 
 conflicts, ever ready to gorge their sanguinary ap- 
 petite with the blood of the slain. 
 
 In searching for the causes of these divisions, we 
 
180 CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 
 
 are not to suppose, for a moment, that they are in- 
 separably connected with the congregational form 
 of church government. Even if it were attempted 
 to be proved, that these principles give more oppor- 
 tunity than some others, for the developement of 
 the imperfection yet remaining in the Christian 
 character ; yet as long as it can be shown, that 
 they are fairly deducible from scripture, we are not 
 to reject them, but only double our vigilance against 
 the depravity of our own nature. Even these evils 
 are less than others which are connected with the 
 systems of national establishments. That uniformi- 
 ty which is produced by legislative enactments, is 
 far more fatal to the interests of piety, than the oc- 
 casional disturbances of those churches which are 
 formed upon the ground of voluntary consent. The 
 occasional storm is less mischievous in its effects, 
 than the stagnant and quiescent atmosphere which 
 is purified by no breeze, and settles in the form of 
 fever and pestilence on the face of the earth. But 
 what are the causes of these schisms? 
 
 I. Some of these lie with ministers. 
 
 1. A defective education not unfrequently pre- 
 pares a minister to be the cause of much uneasiness 
 in a Christian church. 
 
 Deprived, by the circumstances of his birth, of 
 the advantages of education and cultivated society, 
 he enters upon his academic pursuits with little 
 knowledge both of books and of the Avorld. When 
 he has been a student but two or three years, some 
 injudicious congregation, captivated by a few ser- 
 mons, solicits him to become their pastor. He ac- 
 cepts their invitation, and with little information, 
 still less acquaintance with the habits of society, he 
 enters upon the duties of his office. He soon be- 
 trays his ignorance, incompetence, and want of all 
 
CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 181 
 
 those qualifications, which fit a person for govern- 
 ment in the church, and prepare him for esteem in 
 the world. At length, by the meagreness of his 
 preaching, and the want of prudence and respecta- 
 bility in his conduct, he disgusts his flock, and a 
 conflict ensues. Both parties are to blame ; they 
 in tempting him so soon to leave his studies ; and 
 he, in acceding to their wishes. They, however, 
 are mostly to be censured ; and so far as their own 
 comfort is concerned, are rightly punished for 
 plucking that fruit which, had it been pemiitted to 
 hang till it was ripe, would have done them much 
 service. A longer term of education would not 
 only have given him more information, but more 
 knowledge of men and things, and more capacity to 
 conduct himself with propriety. Knowledge is 
 power, by increasing a man's weight of character 
 and degree of influence. 
 
 The churches ought to be very cautious of 
 tempting students to leave the schools of the 
 prophets, before the term of education has been 
 completed ; and this term in the present age ought 
 to be lengthened rather than, diminished. This is 
 an age of activity, more than of study, and therefore 
 a young man should be well instructed at the acad- 
 emy, for he is sure to meet with many interruptions 
 to self-improvement, when he becomes a pastor. 
 An inefficient minister is the cause of many dis- 
 turbances ; and that inefficiency, where it does ex- 
 ist, is to be often traced up to a contracted term of 
 education. 
 
 Much, very much pains should be bestowed by 
 all our tutors, not only to form the scholar, the di- 
 vine, the preacher, but also the pastor. 
 
 2. In some cases, the evil is to be traced to the 
 want of ministerial diligence. 
 
182 CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 
 
 Some, instead of devoting their time and their 
 energies to the pursuits of the study, spend one 
 half of their weeks in running about the country to 
 attend public meetings, and the other in gossip- 
 ping either at their own house, or the houses of 
 their friends. The natural consequence is, that 
 their sermons are poverty itself, or mere repetition 
 of the same sentiments, in the same words. The 
 people become dissatisfied, perhaps remonstrate in 
 a disrespectful way ; the minister takes offence ; 
 forms a party of his own ; and the consequence is, 
 a divided, distracted church. I believe one half of 
 our church quarrels originate in lazy, loitering min- 
 isters. 
 
 3. Others are imprudent. 
 
 They live beyond their income, plunge them- 
 selves in debt, and their people in disgrace ; or 
 they speak unadvisedly with their lips, and involve 
 themselves in litigation, with either their own 
 friends, or persons of other denominations ; or they 
 hastily engage in paper wars with their neighbours ; 
 or they marry persons unsuitable to their character, 
 and offensive to their congregation, and thus lay 
 the foundation of uneasiness and dislike ; or they 
 become involved in politics, or public business, and 
 thus neglect the interests of the church ; or they 
 speak ill of some members to others, and thus raise 
 a prejudice and party against them in the society ; 
 or they let down their dignity by becoming the gos- 
 sipping companions of some of their congregation. 
 In all these, and many other ways, do ministers 
 often prepare the way for dissatisfaction or schism. 
 Piety and prudence in the ministerial character 
 would prevent many of the divisions of our churches. 
 
 4. Others are men of bad temper ; hasty, impetu- 
 ous, and peculiarly susceptible of offence. 
 
CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 183 
 
 . They are easily offended, and frequently where 
 no intention really existed to wound their niinds. 
 They then show their resentment in a way very 
 unpleasing to the people. Many hard speeches 
 and disrespectful terms drop from their lips, wliich 
 are by some mischief-makers conveyed to the indi- 
 viduals against whom they were uttered. A fire 
 of contention is soon kindled, and the whole church 
 is enveloped in the flames. 
 
 5. Others are immoral. 
 
 They commit sin, and yet, attaching to themselves 
 a party, they introduce great disorder and confusion 
 into the society. 
 
 It is a point in casuistry, which I do not take up- 
 on me to decide, how far a minister might go in 
 sin, and yet, upon his repentance, be authorized to 
 continue his office as a preacher and pastor. I am 
 inclined, however, to think, that if his transgression 
 has been very flagrant, no penitence, however deep, 
 no reformation, however manifest, can justify him 
 in continuing an office, one qualification of which 
 is, that he who holds it should be " blameless," and 
 another, that he should have " a good report of 
 them that are without." Instances have occurred, 
 in which men who have fallen into gross sin, have 
 been restored to penitence, and with it to their ac- 
 customed labour and success ; but whether these 
 are sufficient to justify the practice admits of a 
 doubt. It has been alleged, that Peter was not 
 discharged from the apostleship because of his 
 crime, which was a very great one. But it may be 
 questioned if our Lord's conduct in this instance 
 can be drawn out into a precedent for ours. This 
 was an extraordinary case under his own direction. 
 Moreover, if our Lord's conduct in retaining Peter 
 after liis fall, is a precedent for our retaining minis- 
 
184 CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 
 
 ters who have committed " presumptuous sins," his 
 conduct in employing Judas, whom he knew to be 
 a bad man, may be quoted as authority for employ- 
 ing- such as are wicked. 
 
 The wonder is, that any church should wish to 
 retain a minister, whose conduct has been grossly 
 immoral, whatever fruits of repentance he might 
 bring forth. It appears to me, therefore, upon the 
 whole, for the interests of true piety, that he who 
 has grossly violated the principles of Christian 
 morality, should think no more of the ministerial 
 office. It is of infinite importance to the interests 
 of religion, that the ministry be not blamed, but its 
 honour maintained Avith singular care. 
 
 6. The tenacity with which some ministers re- 
 tain their situation, when their labours are no longer 
 acceptable to their people, is another cause of un- 
 easiness. 
 
 When from any cause a minister's services are 
 no longer desired by his people, or the bulk of 
 them, it is manifestly his duty to give up his situa- 
 tion as soon as he can procure another. Any at- 
 tempt to remain in opposition to their wishes, is 
 certainly wrong, as the union is not only formed on 
 the ground of mutual consent, but for the purpose 
 of mutual edification. Extreme cases may occur, 
 such as a wish on the part of the majority of the 
 people to introduce heterodox sentiments, in which 
 a minister ought to remain, in opposition to the de- 
 cided opinion for him to retire. In this case, a di- 
 vision is desirable ; the majority (if any) ought to 
 retire, and the faithful preacher of the truth to re- 
 main firmly at his post. 
 
 Let all ministers consider how much the peace 
 and prosperity of the churches depend on their dili- 
 gence, prudence, temper, and piety. Let them 
 
CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 185 
 
 tremble at the thought of introducing strife and di- 
 vision to any part of the kingdom of Christ. 
 
 II. Other causes of division are to be found 
 amongst the people. 
 
 1. A very large proportion of our schisms arise 
 at the time of choosing a minister. This has al- 
 ready received a distinct and separate considera- 
 tion. 
 
 2. A hasty choice of an unsuitable person to fill 
 the pastoral office, has frequently ended in great 
 uneasiness. 
 
 The people have discovered their error, when its 
 rectification was sure to cause much trouble to the 
 society. Upon our system of church government, 
 it is not easy to displace an unsuitable individual, 
 and therefore great caution should be observed in 
 choosing him. Few men will venture to remain in 
 opposition to the wishes of a whole society ; but 
 how rarely does it happen that an individual has 
 no party in his favour ! 
 
 3. A peculiar and dishonourable ^cHenes5 of dis- 
 position on the part o^ the church, is in some in- 
 stances the cause of division- 
 
 They soon grow tired of the man whom they 
 chose at first with every demonstration of sincere 
 and strong regard. They seldom approve a min- 
 ister beyond a period of seven years, and are so 
 uniform in the term of their satisfaction, as to make 
 their neighbours look out for a change when that 
 term is about to expire. 
 
 4. Uneasiness has often arisen between a minis- 
 ter and his people, by the unwillingness of the lat- 
 ter to raise the necessary support for their pastor. 
 
 They have seen him struggling with the cares 
 of an increasing family, and marked the cloud of 
 gloom, as it thickened and settled upon his brow ; 
 16 
 
186 CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 
 
 they knew his wants, and yet, though able to dou- 
 ble his salary, and dissipate every anxious thought, 
 they have refused to advance his stipend, and have 
 robbed him of his comfort, either to gratify their 
 avarice, or indulge their sensuality. He remon- 
 strates ; they are offended : love departs, esteem is 
 diminished, confidence is destroyed ; while ill will, 
 strife, and alienation, grow apace. How easily 
 might all this have been prevented. A few pounds 
 a year more, given by some individuals who could 
 not have missed the sum, would have spared the 
 peace of a faithful servant of Christ, and, what is of 
 still greater consequence, the harmony of a Chris- 
 tian church. Can those persons be disciples of Je- 
 sus, who would put a religious society in peril, 
 rather than make so small a sacrifice ? Let not 
 the voice of avarice reply, " Can that man be a 
 minister of Christ, who would feel offended with 
 his church, for not increasing his salary?" But 
 what is a minister to do ? Starve ? or beg ? or 
 steal ? If he is already living in luxury, and ex- 
 pects more, he deserves to* be denied. But I am 
 supposing a case, where, in the judgment of can- 
 dour, he has not enough to support his family in 
 comfort. 
 
 5. An improper method of expressing dissatisfac- 
 tion with a minister's labours or conduct, has often 
 led to trouble in a church. 
 
 I do not pretend to say, that a minister occupies 
 a seat too elevated for the voice of complaint to 
 reach him, or that he is entitled (like his Master) to 
 an entire exemption from all that interference which 
 would say unto him, " What doest thou ?" There are 
 times when it might be proper to remind a minis- 
 ter of some duty neglected, some pastoral avoca- 
 tion overlooked. But if anonymous and insolent 
 
CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 187 
 
 letters are sent him ; if young, impertinent, or dic- 
 tatorial persons wait upon him ; if, instead of the 
 modest, respectful hint of some individual whose 
 age and station give him a right to be heard, he is 
 schooled in an objurgatory strain, by those who 
 have nothing to recommend them but their impu- 
 dence and ofRciousness, no wonder, considering 
 that he is but an imperfect man, if he feel offended 
 with the liberty, and almost command the intruders 
 from his presence. The apostle has spread over 
 the ministerial character the shield of his authority, 
 to defend it from the rude attacks of those who 
 would act the part of self-elected accusers. « Re- 
 buke not an elder, but entreat him as a father." 
 1 Tim. V. 1.* 
 
 6. The domineering spirit and conduct of some 
 leading members^ has often been the source of very 
 considerable uneasiness to our churches. 
 
 If amongst the first disciples of Christ, there ex- 
 isted a strife for pre-eminence, and even in the 
 churches planted by the apostles, it is not to be 
 wondered at, however much it is to be regretted, 
 that there should be individuals in our days, who 
 carry the spirit of the world into the church, mani- 
 fest a love of power, and struggle with others for 
 its possession. Their property, and perhaps their 
 standing, give them influence, and this unhappily is 
 employed in endeavouring to subjugate both the 
 minister and the people. No scheme is supported 
 unless it originates with them ; while every plan of 
 theirs is introduced, almost with the authority of a 
 
 * T\i\s text undoubtedly ^pomi% oMi aged Christians j but el- 
 der is a title g^iven to the gospel minister; and there is much 
 propriety in remembering the respect due to station. Mr. James 
 pleads iof kindness and lov^. Ed, 
 
188 CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 
 
 law. They expect to be consulted on the most 
 trivial occasions, and if in any thing opposed, be- 
 come resentful, sullen, and distant. Little by little, 
 they endeavour to gain a complete ascendency in 
 the society, and watch with peculiar jealousy every 
 individual who is likely to become a rival. The 
 minister at length scarcely dare leave home for a 
 Sabbath without asking their leave, nor can the peo- 
 ple form the least scheme of usefulness witliout 
 their permission. When they are at any time re- 
 sisted, they breathe out threats of giving up all in- 
 terests in church aifairs, at which the terrified and 
 servile society end their resistance, consolidate the 
 power of their tyrant, and rivet the fetters of slave- 
 ry upon their own necks. At length, , however, a 
 rival power springs up ; a family of growing repu- 
 tation and influence refuse any longer to submit to 
 the thraldom ; opposition to unlawful domination 
 commences, the church is divided into factions, the 
 minister becomes involved in the dispute, distrac- 
 tion follows, and division finishes the scene. Lam- 
 entable state of things ! Would God it rarely 
 occurred. Let the leading individuals of our 
 churches, the men of property, and the deacons, 
 consider what mischief may be occasioned by the 
 least assumption of undue influence. Let them 
 watch against the lust of power : it is a passion 
 most guilty and most mischievous : it arises almost 
 imperceptibly from their situation, and its progress, 
 like that of sin in general, is slow, but certain. 
 Let them conduct themselves with humility, and 
 deliver their opinions with modesty, and remember 
 that every exertion of illegal authority is an inva- 
 sion not only of the liberty of the church, but of 
 the prerogative of its Divine Head. Let them con- 
 sider themselves as persons, whose opinion is to 
 
CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 189 
 
 have no other mfluence than that which its own 
 wisdom gives it ; and that the measure of this wis- 
 dom is to be estimated, not by them, but by their 
 brethren. Let them seek for that humility which 
 can bear to be opposed, and that gentleness of tem- 
 per which can submit to contradiction. Let them 
 distinctly bear in recollection that the church of 
 God is a society, where all are equals, all are 
 brethren ; where the government of terror, or in- 
 terest, or property, is unknown, but where love and 
 humility are to prevail, and no other rule is to be 
 acknowledged but that of Jesus Christ. 
 
 7. The relaxation of scriptural discipline may be 
 mentioned as another source of evil. 
 
 Where the church is unscripturally lax in the ad- 
 mission of members, and, for the sake of enlarging its 
 bulk, admits improper materials, it is certainly multi- 
 plying the causes of schism and decay. If a wall is 
 built with unsound bricks and untempered mortar, it 
 may stand for a while, but cracks and dilapidations 
 must sooner or later be visible in its structure. Thus 
 if men of unsanctified dispositions be admitted to the 
 church, what can be expected from such individuals 
 in a time of conflicting opinion, but fuel for the 
 flame of contention ? The danger is considerably in- 
 creased, where the individuals, improperly admittetl, 
 are persons of property. If the ordinary rules of ad- 
 mission are dispensed with for the sake of bringing 
 into fellowship the wealthy and the worldly ; if a less 
 rigid examination of their personal religion take 
 place, it is little to be wondered at that mischief should 
 ultimately ensue. For the sake of its glittering ex- 
 terior, many a church has taken a serpent to its bo- 
 som ; or, to adopt a scriptural allusion, has welcomed 
 an Achan to the camp, for the sake of his Babylo- 
 nish vest and golden wedge. If a rich member be 
 
190 CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 
 
 an unsanctified man, he has a double power to mis- 
 chief; and in the time of trouble, this will be felt 
 to the bitter experience of the church. « Whence 
 come wars and fightings among you ? Come they 
 not hence, even of your lusts that war in your mem- 
 bers ?" James iv. 1. Of course, then, if we are 
 careless in the admission of members, and receive 
 those who do not give satisfactory evidence of per- 
 sonal religion, we are multiplying the sources of 
 contention within our societies. Civil wars are to 
 be expected in that country, which extends without 
 caution the rights of citizens to aliens and enemies. 
 Wolves admitted in sheep's clothing will worry and 
 scatter the flock. As, therefore, we would not pre- 
 pare for division and distraction, let us act upon 
 scriptural principles, in the admission of members. 
 
 8. The existence and prevalence of an antinomian 
 spirit is a fruitful source of schism in our churches. 
 
 " As every age of the church is marked by its 
 appropriate visitation of error, so little penetration 
 is requisite to perceive that Antinomianism is the 
 epidemic malady of the present, and that it is an 
 evil of deadly malignity. It is qualified for mis- 
 chief by the very properties which might seem to 
 render it merely an object of contempt — its vulgar- 
 ity of conception, its paucity of ideas, its determined 
 hostility to taste, science, and letters. It includes 
 within a compass which every head can contain, 
 and every tongue can utter, a system which can- 
 cels every moral tie, consigns the whole human race 
 to the extremes of presumption or despair ; erects 
 religion on the ruins of morality, and imparts to the 
 dregs of stupidity all the powers of the most active 
 poison." Robert Hall. 
 
 This ruinous spirit has already disorganized or 
 convulsed so many churches, that it 19 high time 
 
CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 19J 
 
 the tocsin should be sounded against it, and all 
 good citizens of Zion take the alarm. It must be 
 confessed, however, that it does not always origi- 
 nate amongst the people. A perversion of divme 
 truth so monstrous, so mischievous and absurd, 
 would hardly have acquired such power and preva- 
 lence, if it had not received the sanction of minis- 
 terial authority. I speak not now of those ministers 
 who are the avowed and consistent patrons of the 
 Bystem, but of men more reputable, and whose 
 strain of preaching is in general more scriptural ; 
 men who abhor the tenets of Antinomianism, but 
 who are ignorantly the abettors of them. When 
 such ministers dwell only on the doctrinal parts of 
 revealed truth, and state these in a phraseology ca- 
 pable of misconstruction ; when their preaching is 
 exclusively confined to a few topics, and to a stiff, 
 systematic exliibition of them; when a wretched 
 taste for spiritualizing and allegorizing pervades 
 their pulpit discussions ; when the facts and doc- 
 trines of the gospel are abstractly stated, without be- 
 ing made the grounds and motives of social duty 
 and moral excellence ; when terms obviously scrip- 
 tural are avoided, in compliment to a system which 
 reprobates without understanding them, and their 
 sermons are encumbered and disfigured with the 
 phraseology of a false experience ; Avhen believers 
 are flattered and caressed into a high conceit of 
 their peculiar excellence ; then, whatever be the 
 preacher's tenets or intentions, must Antinomianism 
 be generated and cherished. Ofttimes has this 
 elfish spirit risen up to be the tormentor of the 
 father that begat him ; but if quiet till his head was 
 beneath the clods of the valley, he has possessed 
 and convulsed the church during the time of his 
 successor. 
 
192 CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 
 
 To cure this evil, then, let ministers he cautions 
 how they preach. Let them give a full exhibition 
 of the doctrines of grace ; but at the same time let 
 them exhibit these doctrines in a scriptural man- 
 ner, as the basis of holiness and moral excellence ; 
 let them introduce, in their preaching, all the vari- 
 eties of revealed truth ; let them avoid the tram- 
 mels of system, nor ever attempt to corrupt the 
 testimonies of scripture by making a text say what 
 it was never intended to affirm. The chief source 
 of Antinomianism is in the pulpit, and let the first 
 effort, therefore, be employed on the fountain, to 
 render this pure and salutary ; and the next be de- 
 voted to drain off these streams, which are corrupt- 
 ing the churches. 
 
 When an individual, or any individuals, are 
 known to cavil at the sermons of the minister, and 
 to be employed in exciting a prejudice against him, 
 by insinuating that he does not preach the gospel, 
 they should be reasoned and expostulated with, 
 both by the minister and the more judicious mem- 
 bers of his flock. Every mild and persuasive 
 method should be adopted and employed either to 
 convince or silence them. If they cannot be con- 
 vinced, they should at least promise not to trouble 
 the church, or attempt to sow the seeds of disaffec- 
 tion in the minds of the brethren.* If they consent, 
 
 * Few persons can have any idea of the trouble which Anti- 
 nomianism has caused in many EngHsh churches. The plague 
 is in a measure arrested, but yet there are men, who would 
 call all reference to Christian duty and watchfulness " legality," 
 and complain of a preacher as unsound, who should insist on 
 the importance of daily obedience to the law of God. Mr. 
 James' language may appear strong ; but he has been fuUy 
 justified by the existence of the character whom he has de- 
 nounced. Ed. 
 
"tAUSES OF SCHISMS. 193 
 
 on these terms, to remain in communion, they 
 should of course be retained ; but if again detected 
 in the act of disturbing the society, they should 
 forthwith be put away, as the troublers of Israel. 
 I have known instances, in which ministers of great 
 eminence and influence have suffered such individ- 
 uals to remain in communion for the sake of peace, 
 and have trusted to their own authority to prevent 
 the mischief from spreading. This, however, is 
 chaining the fiend, not casting him out, and leaving 
 him to burst his fetters, when the hand that held 
 him in vassalage is paralysed by death, and permit- 
 ting him to waste and devour the church, under thev 
 rule of a younger or inferior minister. An act of 
 authority, scripturally and seasonably exerted, would 
 thus have destroyed an evil, which, by a tempo- 
 rizing policy, is bequeathed to a successor, who can 
 neither destroy nor control it. 
 
 9. After all that has been said upon distinct and 
 specific causes of disturbance, it must be admitted 
 that the grand source of ecclesiastical distraction is 
 the very feeble operation of Christian principles on 
 the hearts of church members. There is not that 
 solemn recognition and powerful influence of these 
 principles which there ought to be. The two vir- 
 tues of LOVE and humility, if prevalent, would ef- 
 fectually preserve the peace of the church against 
 the evils of intestine commotion. Without these, 
 even the kingdom of Christ, no less than the king- 
 doms of this world, is sure to b^onvulsed with fac- 
 tion, and torn by schism. As long as Christians 
 suflfer the passions of men to agitate their minds 
 and direct their conduct in the assembly of the 
 saints, so long must we expect to see even that ho- 
 ly convention liable to the distractions of mere 
 17 
 
194 CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 
 
 worldly communities. Pride is the polluted and 
 polluting fountain of faction. It is pride that makes 
 men turbulent and contentious ; that renders them 
 imperious, dogmatical and overbearing ; that drives 
 them upon the inflexible determination to have their 
 own way, and that makes them regardless of the 
 opinions -and feelings of others. Humility and 
 LOVE would keep all quiet and orderly. There is 
 one single passage of scripture, which, if sacredly 
 observed, would forever shut out the divider of the 
 brethren. " If there be, therefore, any consolation 
 ki Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship 
 of the spirit, if any bowels and mercies, fulfil ye 
 my joy, that ye be like minded, having the same 
 love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let noth- 
 ing be done through strife, or vain glory ; but in 
 lowliness of mind, let each esteem others better 
 than themselves. Look not every man on his own 
 things, but every man also on the things of others. 
 Let this mind be in you, which also was in Christ 
 Jesus."* The observance of this single injunction 
 would ever preserve our harmony, and make our 
 church meetings to be scenes where all the air 
 is love, and all the region peace. 
 
 And where is our religion, if we do not obey this 
 apostolic command ? We must come back to the 
 first principles of practical piety, and cultivate the 
 passive virtues of the Christian temper. We must 
 remember that Christianity is being like Christ, and 
 that unless we paigp.ke of that love " which suffer- 
 eth long and is kind ; which envieth not, vaunteth 
 
 * This passage of Scripture should be printed in larg-e letters, 
 and hung- up in the full view of the congregation, ev^y time 
 iney meet as a Christian church, that it might be referred to as 
 ne rule of their conduct and their spirit. 
 
CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 195 
 
 not itself, is not puffed up ; which doth not behave 
 itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easi- 
 ly provoked, thinketh no evil, rejoiceth not in ini- 
 quity, but rejoiceth in the truth ; which believeth 
 all things, beareth all things, hopeth all things, en- 
 dure th all things ;" we are only " as sounding brass 
 or a tinkling cymbal." The necessity of the Chris- 
 tian temper as a personal possession, and its impor- 
 tance, as a relative blessing, has hitherto been but 
 feebly perceived, and reluctantly acknowledged. 
 Amidst the controversies which have been carried 
 on about the doctrines of revelation, the spirit 
 of religion has been too much lost sight of. And 
 what, after all, is the doctrine without the spir- 
 it, but the body without the soul ? Strange in- 
 deed it is, that men, who by their own confession 
 are apostate, ruined, helpless sinners, should want 
 HUMILITY ; and that they who believe themselves 
 to be saved from hell by unmerited mercy, should 
 be destitute of love! 
 
 Never, until we are brought to a more implicit 
 submission to the authority of Christ, and to a more 
 distinct and practical recognition of the principles 
 of true religion, can we rationally expect to see 
 Zion a quiet and peaceable habitation. Heaven it- 
 self would be a region of storms if pride could en- 
 ter, or love diminish, in those realms of perfect 
 peace. We must crucify that selfishness, Avhich 
 fixes its exclusive observation on our own gratifi- 
 cation, and cherish that expansive benevolence 
 which looks upon the good of others. We must 
 contend who shall be lowest, not who shall be high- 
 est. We must seek to please, and not merely to 
 be pleased. In these things must our efforts begin, 
 to suppress and prevent the division of our churches. 
 
196 CAUSES OF SCHISMS. 
 
 Let ministers inculcate this temper from the 
 pulpit, and exhibit it in their conduct ; let private 
 Christians receive the instructions and copy the 
 examples of their pastors. Let both remember that 
 HUMILITY and LOVE are the necessary fruits of our 
 doctrines, the highest beauty of our character, and 
 the guardian angels of our churches. 
 
MINISTERIAL DUTIES 
 
 STATED AND ENFORCED. 
 
 PASTORAL CHARGE, 
 
 DELIVERED TO THE 
 
 REV. THOMAS JAMES, 
 
 AT 
 
 HIS ORDINATION 
 
 OVER 
 
 THE INDEPENDENT CHURCH, 
 
 ASSEMBLING IN CITY CHAPEL, 
 
 LONDON. 
 BY J. A. JAMES. 
 
PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 My Dear Brother, 
 
 I RISE to address you under circumstances 
 at once most interesting and embarrassing. I have 
 undertaken, at your particular request, an office 
 usually assigned to older ministers than myself. 
 The hoary crown is thought to add weight and em- 
 phasis to that part of an ordination service denomi- 
 nated the charge. Thi^ glory does not encircle my 
 brows. Compared with many by whom I am sur- 
 rounded, from whose shade I distantly retire, and 
 at whose feet I should thankfully sit to receive in- 
 struction, I am but young in the Christian ministry. 
 What I want in age and experience, however, if a 
 substitute may be admitted, I will endeavour to sup- 
 ply by affection. You are my brother, not merely 
 by the ties of religion and of office ; the same moth- 
 er bore us, the same father was the guide of our 
 youth ; whose sainted spirits, perhaps, now bend 
 from their celestial thrones, to witness the solemn 
 scenes of this interesting morning. I shall direct 
 no admonition to your heart, my brother, which has 
 not first been dipped in the affection of my own. 
 And in order to do away every appearance of pre- 
 sumption, I wish to be considered as publicly 
 recognising the vows, which, more than ten years 
 
200 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 ago, I pledged in circumstances similar to those in 
 which you now stand. I wish to feel addressed by 
 my own charge, thrown back in echo from your 
 spirit; and have therefore studiously selected a text 
 which associates me with yourself as a hearer, at 
 the same time that it employs me as a speaker. 
 
 2 CoR. VI. 4. 
 
 « In all things approving ourselves as the minis- 
 ters of God:' 
 
 The commencement of this chapter should have 
 been rendered in the form of a solemn address to 
 those who were employed in the Christian ministry 
 at Corinth. « Now then, fellow workers, we beseech 
 you that you receive not the grace of God in vain." 
 The four small words, supplied without the least 
 necessity by the translators, serve no other purpose 
 than to alter the sense and mar the beauty of the 
 ■original. The whole passage is a charge to those 
 whom the apostle in the preceding chapter had 
 represented as intrusted with the ministry of recon- 
 ciliation, and whom he here admonishes not to « re- 
 ceive this distinguished favour in vain ; to give no 
 offence in any thing, that the ministry be not 
 blamed ; but in all things to approve themselves as 
 the ministers of God." 
 
 These words present us with a description, 
 
 I. Of the nature of our office. We are the min- 
 isters of God. This implies 
 
 1. That we are sent hy God. The concerns of. 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 201 
 
 the Christian church are administered by him 
 " who is over all, God blessed for ever." Of course 
 an affair of so much importance as the appointment 
 of his principal officers, must be his unalienable 
 prerogative. Every one who is truly a minister of 
 God must be called by him to the work. To prove 
 your commission, you have no need to resort to the 
 solemn farce of apostolical succession; you have 
 derived it from God, and no power on earth can 
 add to it the least validity whatever. It cannot be 
 necessary for me, on the present occasion, to enter 
 particularly into the nature of a scriptural call to 
 the work of the ministry. To express this matter 
 summarily, it appears to me, that an ardent desire 
 to be employed in the work, with a view to the glo- 
 ry of God in the salvation of sinners ; the collation 
 of all those qualifications which the word of God 
 requires ; together with the election of a church of 
 Christ, are indications of the mind of God, sufficient- 
 ly obvious to warrant the conclusion that we are 
 called to this honourable but arduous office. If the 
 account you have just read of your views and feel- 
 ings as a Christian ; your motives, desires, and 
 aims as a minister, be a faithful representation of 
 your mind, it may be regarded by you in the light 
 of a copy of the letters patent, signed by the great 
 head of the church, and authorizing you, although 
 it bear no impress of the cross or the mitre, to 
 preach the gospel to the perishing children of men ; 
 and when the pride of ecclesiastical domination 
 would at any time demand by what authority you 
 
202 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 do these things, you have only to reply, the appoint- 
 ment of him " who giveth pastors and teachers, for 
 the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the 
 ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ." 
 
 2. This expression implies that you are to labour 
 for God : — if for God, tlitn not surely for yourself. 
 
 Self is an idol which has been worshipped by far 
 greater multitudes than any other deity of either 
 ancient or modern heathenism. A minister is the 
 last man in the world who should be seen at the al- 
 tar of this abomination, and yet without great care 
 he is likely to be there the first, to linger there the 
 longest, to bow the lowest, and to express his de- 
 votion by the costliest sacrifices. This, my brother, 
 and " not the form of creeping things, or women 
 weeping for Tammuz," this is the abomination which 
 Ezekiel would witness in many a Christian temple ; 
 this is " the image of jealousy which provoketh to 
 jealousy," before which the glory of Jehovah so of- 
 ten, in modern times, retires from between the 
 cherubim to the threshold, from the threshold to the 
 city, till at length the lingering symbol totally re- 
 moves, and a fearful Ichabod is inscribed alike up- 
 on the pulpit and the pew. 
 
 Many serve themselves instead of God, even by 
 the work of the ministry. 
 
 Some by entering upon it merely with a view to 
 temporal support. 
 
 Ashamed to beg, unwilling to work, « they crouch 
 for a piece of silver, and say. Put me into the priest's 
 office that I may eat a morsel of bread. They 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 203 
 
 teach for hire and divine for money ;" and on this 
 account are stigmatized in scripture «as greedy 
 dogs that can never have enough, as shepherds that 
 do not understand, looking every one for his gain 
 from his quarter." This prevails to a most awful 
 extent in every established church in Christendom, 
 and necessarily must do, as long as human nature 
 remains what it is, and so many pulpits are at the 
 disposal of secular patronage. Nor is it altogether 
 unknown amongst the body of dissenters. A man 
 whom indolence has led to this office, and who has 
 converted the pulpit into the den of the hungry 
 sloth, is one of the meanest, as he certainly is one 
 of the guiltiest of his species. Sometimes his pun- 
 ishment comes in this world, and he is driven out 
 by an indignant people, who determine no longer 
 to starve their souls in order to pamper his body ; 
 or if, like a wolf, he continue to feed and fatten up- 
 on the flock, it is only for the hour of approaching 
 destruction. Rather than that you, my brother, 
 should occupy this place for such a purpose, I would 
 tJ».ke you to my own house ; feed you at my own 
 table ; and if this would not suffice, would impov- 
 erish my wife and my babes to support you, and 
 then would earn for them their daily bread by the 
 sweat of my brow. " But I am persuaded better 
 things of you, although I thus speak." 
 
 Others serve themselves in the ministry hy enter' 
 iftg it chiefly with a view to literary leisure^ and sci- 
 entiflc pursuits. 
 
 You know my sentiments on the importance of 
 
204 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 learning to the ministerial character too well, to 
 suppose that I am placing it under the ban of the 
 pulpit. The pastoral office is neither the offspring 
 nor the advocate of Vandalism : it does not say to 
 barbarism thou art my sister, nor to ignorance thou 
 art my mother. You may draw the waters of the 
 Castalian fountain, and cull the flowers of Parnas- 
 sus. You may explore the world of mind with 
 Locke, or the laws of matter with Newton ; but 
 not as the end of your entering the ministerial office. 
 The pulpit, and not the study, is the summit on 
 which your eye is to be fixed ; and all the intense 
 application of the latter, is but to prepare you for a 
 more commanding eminence upon the former. A 
 thirst for literary pursuits, if it be your highest ob- 
 ject, may lift you farther above the contempt of 
 your fellow creatures, than an indolent regard to 
 temporal support, but will not elevate you one step 
 nearer to the approbation of your God ; it may place 
 you upon earth's pinnacle, but only to be smitten 
 after all by heaven's lightnings : it may procure for 
 you the brightest and the purest crown of worldly 
 glory, every ray of which, however, will be quenched 
 amidst the blackness of darkness for ever. 
 
 Not a few make the ministerial office tHhutary to 
 the acquisition of mere popular applause. 
 
 Vox populi is their directory and their aim. To 
 commend themselves, is the secret, but powerful 
 spring of all they do. Self is with them in the 
 study directing their reading — selecting their texts 
 — arranging their thoughts — forming their images, 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 205 
 
 and all with a view to shine in public. Thus pre- 
 pared, they ascend the pulpit with the same object 
 as that which conducts the actor to the stage, to 
 secure the applause of approving spectators ; there, 
 every tone is modulated, every emphasis laid, every 
 attitude regulated, to please, rather than to profit ; 
 to recomm.end themselves, and not Jesus Christ. 
 The service ended, this bosom idol returns with 
 them to their own abode, renders them restless and 
 uneasy to know how they have succeeded, and puts 
 them upon the meanest acts to draw forth the opin- 
 ion of their hearers. If admired, they receive their 
 reward ; if not, the first prize is lost. It is nothing 
 in abatement of the sin, that all this while, evangel- 
 ical sentiments are dispensed. Orthodoxy is the 
 most direct road to popularity. Christ may be the 
 text, when self is the sermon : and dreadful as it 
 seems, it is to be feared, that not a few have ele- 
 vated the cross, only to suspend upon the sacred 
 tree their own honours, and have employed all the 
 glories of redemption, merely to emblazon their own 
 name. My dear brother, when carried to this 
 height, it is the direst, deepest tragedy that was 
 ever performed by man, since it ends in the actual 
 and eternal death of the performer, who forgets, as 
 he snuffs the gale of popular applause, that the va- 
 pours of damnation float upon the breeze. 
 
 But you are a minister, that is, a servant of God; 
 and as such are to sum up all your life and labours 
 in that one sublime and comprehensive direction, 
 « Whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God." 
 
206 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 From this hour, till your tongue be inarticulate and 
 your heart be cold, your business, your pleasure, 
 your aim, must be to serve God in the ministry of 
 the gospel, by seeking his glory in the salvation of 
 immortal souls. Whatever other men do, and are 
 permitted to do, this is your duty. Without re- 
 tiring to tlie gloom and indolence of monastic seclu- 
 sion, you have, in tlie best sense of the term, taken 
 the veil to God. Before that altar on which the 
 Son of God offered up himself a sacrifice to sin, you 
 have taken the vow of separation from the world. 
 You profess to have relinquished the career of com- 
 merce, fame, wealth, and every other road through 
 which the human spirit marches to the gratification 
 of an earthly ambition ; and to be so filled with a 
 desire to glorify God in the salvation of souls, that 
 you could stand upon the mount which the Saviour 
 occupied when under satanic temptation, and refuse 
 all the kingdoms of the world, rather than give up 
 the object Avhich now fills your heart and occupies 
 your hands. To the accomplishment of this you 
 are to bring all the talents you possess, all the so- 
 licitude you can feel, all the influence you can com- 
 mand, and all the time you are destined to live ; for 
 you are not your own, but the minister of God. 
 
 3. This expression implies also that you are re- 
 sponsible to God. 
 
 Your presidency over the church is neither sov- 
 ereign nor legislative, but administrative only, and 
 therefore you are accountable for its exercise to 
 him from whom it is derived. " We must all appear 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 207 
 
 before the judgment-seat of Christ." No man has 
 more to account for at that day, and with no man 
 will the Judge be more strict in his requirements, 
 than a minister of the gospel. In that day of ter- 
 rors, disclosures will be made that will amaze all 
 worlds : but when the veil of secrecy, which now 
 conceals so many unthought of matters, shall be 
 rent asunder, nothing so fearful shall be discovered 
 as a faithless minister of God. At sight of him, as 
 he goes trembling to the throne, the countenance 
 of the Judge glows with more terrible indignation ; 
 — the thunder rolls with seven-fold terrors ; — a 
 shriek of horror involuntarily escapes from the hosts 
 of the redeemed ; — while a fiend-like shout is ut- 
 tered by all the monsters of iniquity, over an in- 
 stance of depravity, whose aggravations swell above 
 the heinousness of theirs. What will the misera- 
 ble creature say to such sounds as these — « Thou 
 wicked and slothful servant, wherefore hast thou 
 lived for thyself? Where are the souls I intrusted 
 to thy care ? What hast thou done with thy time 
 and thy talents ? How hast thou lived, and how 
 preached ?" But I forbear ; the scene is too awful 
 even to be imagined. At that day, and before that 
 tribunal, you and I must meet. Then all our mo- 
 tives and our conduct will be known. I shall wit- 
 ness your degradation or honour, and you will wit- 
 ness mine. Oh that we could make the judgment- 
 seat of Christ the polar star of all our conduct, and 
 preach and live as with the scenery of that day en- 
 circling our imagination ! 
 
208 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 II. The text instructs us in what way the duties 
 of our office should be discharged ; — so as to ap- 
 prove ourselves the ministers of God. 
 
 We should approve ourselves to God, to the 
 church, to the world. This expression implies that 
 we not only assume the pastoral character, but that 
 we commend ourselves to all who have an opportu- 
 nity of observing our conduct, as faithfully and ful- 
 ly discharging its duties. In a parallel passage to 
 this, we are exhorted to make full proof of our minis- 
 try. 2 Tim. 4. 6. According to M'Knight, the 
 original word signifies " to he carried with full saiV^ 
 This allusion, if it be just, is as instructive as it is 
 beautiful. While some men, who have nothing of 
 the minister but the name, ignorant, indolent, and 
 useless, are like empty and dismantled hulks moor- 
 ed in some narrow creek ; do you find your emblem 
 in the richly freighted vessel, gliding with every 
 sail set before the breeze of heaven, and traversing 
 the mighty ocean to enrich her employers with her 
 precious cargo. The apostle has particularly speci- 
 fied, in the verses which follow the text, in what 
 way this may be eff*ected ; " In much patience, in 
 afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, in strifes, in 
 imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, 
 in fastings ; by pureness, by knowledge, by long 
 suffering, by kindness, by a holy spirit,* by love 
 unfeigned, by the word of truth, by the power of 
 God, by the armour of righteousness on the right 
 hand and on the left, by honour and dishonour, by 
 
 * This is the right translation, and not, as our version renders 
 it, " the Holy Ghost." 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 209 
 
 evil report and good report." Leaving this beauti- 
 ful directory to find its own weight, I shall class 
 your duties in the following order : — 
 
 First. Approve yourself the minister of God, by 
 faithfully preaching his word. 
 
 This is to be a great part of the business of your 
 future life. I trust you will ever keep the pulpit 
 sacred to the purpose for which it was erected. 
 Preach there the word of God. It is neither the 
 chair of philosophy nor of literature, and therefore 
 whatever illustrations you may at any time borrow 
 from the sciences, or to whatever use you may 
 apply the aids of learning in the way of legitimate 
 criticism, never act there the pedant. It is not the 
 rostrum for political declamation, and should never 
 be enveloped in the mists of politics. It is not the 
 arena of controversy), where the preacher is to dis- 
 play his adroitness in attack and defence, and there- 
 fore, however necessary you may sometimes find it 
 to guard the truth from the assaults of its adversa- 
 ries, or to direct the whole artillery of just reasoning 
 upon the strong holds of error, I trust the character 
 of your public ministrations will not, in the strict 
 sense of the term, be polemical. Nor is the pulpit 
 merely the seat of the moralist, where Epictetus and 
 Seneca deliver their cold and heartless ethics, — ^but 
 it is the oracle of heaven, appointed to deliver in full 
 and faithful response the will and purposes of God 
 concerning the salvation and the duty of the human 
 race. In pursuance of this idea, I shall remind you, 
 
 I. Of the matter of your preaching. 
 18 
 
210 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 Take care that it is truly and faithfully the word 
 of God. May you be guarded from delivering error 
 instead of truth. Oh ! how tremblingly afraid should 
 we be of substituting the inventions of human igno- 
 rance for the doctrines of divine inspiration ! How 
 earnestly should we pray to be led into all truth ! 
 How cautiously should we search the word of God. 
 Should loe err, in all probability, we shall not have 
 the privilege of erring alone. A preacher of error 
 stands as a sort of volcano in the moral world, — his 
 mind is the dreadful laboratory where the mischief 
 is prepared, — his lips the crater whence it is dis- 
 gorged upon the world — and every sermon that he 
 preaches an irruption of mental lava upon the moral 
 interests of mankind. No man has so much cause 
 to tremble at those fearful words as a minister : " I 
 testify unto every man that heareth the words of 
 the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto 
 these things, God shall add unto him the plagues 
 that are written in this book. And if any man shall 
 take away from the words of this prophecy, God 
 shall take away his part out of the book of life, and 
 out of the holy city, and from the things which are 
 written in this book." Guided by the Spirit of God, 
 may you steer in safety through this Scylla and 
 Charybdis. 
 
 Preach the ivhole council of God. Elucidate its 
 histories — explain its prophecies — develope its doc- 
 trines — inculcate its precepts— ^denounce its threat- 
 enings — unfold its promises — repeat its invitations 
 — enforce its institutions. What a sublimity ! What 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 211 
 
 a variety ! What a harmony of subjects is before 
 you ! If you are straitened, it must be in your- 
 self, not in your themes. As a steward of the 
 mysteries of the kingdom, you have access to infinite 
 and exhaustless stqres. If your people are starved 
 by the penury, or wearied by the sameness of your 
 preaching, it cannot be for want of variety or opu- 
 lence in the treasures of revelation, but for want of 
 industry and fidelity in yourself. Do not then con- 
 fine yourself and your people in some little nook or 
 corner of revealed truth, and write upon all the rest 
 terra incognita. Explore for them, and ivUh them 
 the whole world of inspiration. Such is the bound- 
 less extent of this sacred territory, that without 
 .wishing or waiting for farther revelations, we shall 
 never reach the end of those already given. By 
 the aid of biblical criticism — diligent reading — ac- 
 curate collation — deep penetration — the Christian 
 student will be continually disclosing to his people 
 new regions and fresh treasures in God's most pre- 
 cious word. Mines of wealth will open at his feet, 
 and prospects of ineflkble beauty will expand upon 
 his eye. « Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by 
 fasting and prayer." If you follow this advice, you 
 will not be known, like some, by a particular topic. 
 The ministers of the gospel have no more right to 
 divide between them the different parts of divine 
 revelation, each taking only his favourite doctrine, 
 than they have to share between them, or attempt 
 to do so, the moral qualifications of the ministerial 
 character, each selecting some insulated grace, and 
 
212 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 neglecting all the rest. Our preaching and our 
 conduct should be a spiritual microcosm, the former 
 in relation to truth, the latter to holiness. 
 
 Still, after all, and in perfect consistency with 
 what I have already advanced, I remind you that as 
 a minister of the New Testament, you are to be " a 
 sweet savour of Christ." In this respect you can- 
 not have a better model than the great apostle of 
 the Gentiles. « I determined," says he, " to know 
 nothing among you, but Jesus Christ, and him cru- 
 cified ; whom we preach, warning every man, and 
 teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may pre- 
 sent every man perfect in Christ Jesus." No phrase 
 has been less understood than preadting Christ. 
 By some it has been confined to the eternal repeti- 
 tion of a few common-place thoughts upon the same 
 first principles of divine truth. The epistles of St. 
 Paul are the best exposition of this phrase ; for as 
 he determined to know nothing, i. e. to make known 
 nothing but Christ, of course he intends that every 
 thing he did make known, should be considered as 
 an accomplishment of this purpose. Now what a 
 vast variety, what a mighty range of topic do we 
 find in his epistles ! There we find the whole com- 
 pass of doctrinal theology — the whole body of practi- 
 cal divinity — positive institutions — church govern- 
 ment — social duties — sketches of Old Testament 
 history — a complete exposition of the ceremonial 
 law — and yet all this was making known Christ. 
 His cross is the centre of the whole system, around 
 which, in nearer or more remote circles, all the 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 213 
 
 doctrines and the duties of revelation perpetually 
 revolve, from which the former borrow their light, 
 and the latter their energy. Let all your preaching 
 be directed to exhibit Christ in the dignity of his 
 person, — ^the design of his mediation, — the variety 
 of his offices, — the freeness of his grace, — the na- 
 ture of his kingdom, — and the perfect beauty of his 
 example. And thus, while you cause your people 
 to scent the fragrance of every flower, and taste 
 the sweetness of every fruit in the garden of the 
 Lord, you will more statedly collect them round 
 the tree of life in the midst of the garden, whose 
 leaves are for the healing of the nations. 
 
 2. Much may be said of the manner of your 
 preaching. 
 
 ^n air of deep seriousness should characterize 
 our whole deportment while delivering the word of 
 God. The pulpit is the most solemn situation, and 
 preaching the most solemn employment, upon earth, 
 to which we should ever bring "that awe which 
 warns us how we touch a holy thing." Not only 
 should all merriment and jocularity be excluded, but 
 all that flippancy of manner — that light and frivolous 
 air — that careless and irreverend expression — that 
 start and stare theatric, which are but too common in 
 the present age. Every look, every tone, every ges- 
 ture should indicate a mind awed by the presence of 
 God, impressed with the solemnity of eternity ; should 
 bespeak a heart filled with the magnitude of its own 
 salvation, and oppressed with solicitude for the souls 
 pf others ; in short, should manifest a consciousness 
 
214 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 of our being « in a temple resounding with awful 
 voices, and filled with holy inspirations." In the 
 pulpit, we seem placed between the three worlds of 
 heaven, earth, and hell, to unfold, as they lie ex- 
 panded before our imagination, the glories of the 
 first, the vanity of the second, and the torments of 
 the third. Can we really be in earnest, or will our 
 hearers think us so, or be likely to become so them- 
 selves, unless we discover a deep and impressive 
 seriousness, in some measure adapted to our situa- 
 tion? 
 
 All our preaching should have a holy and moral 
 tendency. Great pains have been taken by two op- 
 posite classes of preachers and writers, to introduce 
 a schism between the Son of God and the legislator 
 of the Jews. The tables of the law, and the cross, 
 have been opposed, like hostile forts upon Mount 
 Sinai and Mount Calvary, to demolish each other. 
 Impious effort ! Have nothing to do with it, my 
 brother, but let your preaching be a sublime re- 
 sponse to the song of Moses and the Lamb. The 
 truth as it is in Jesus is « according to godliness." 
 No doctrine is given merely for the purpose of 
 intellectual speculation : even those which tran- 
 scend the comprehension of reason, are designed to 
 produce a moral effect, by humbling our pride and 
 increasing our submission. The truths of scripture 
 are revealed, not simply on their own account, nor 
 is the knowledge of them the last and highest end, 
 for which they are communicated. " Sanctify 
 them," said the Saviour in his sublime prayer, " by 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 215 
 
 thy truth ; thy word is truth." From hence we 
 gather that sanctification, or moral benefit, is the 
 ultimate end, so far as man is concerned, of reveal- 
 ed truth. No preaching, therefore, can be scriptu- 
 ral, however apparently true its abstract sentiments 
 might be, which does not represent those senti- 
 ments in such a manner as to have a practical 
 tendency. Many, without intending to be antino- 
 mian preachers, certainly make antinomian hearers, 
 not by telling them to be unholy, but by leaving 
 them to be so. That can never be true in senti- 
 ment, which is not holy in tendency. Let your 
 sermons be like sun-beams, quickening and cherish- 
 ing the virtues of the heart, at the same time that 
 they convey the light of doctrine to the under- 
 standing. 
 
 Let your discourses be replete with instruction. 
 It is greatly to be regretted, that many professors 
 of religion, seem to regard judicious and instructive 
 preaching, as lying within the frigid z^one of Christi- 
 anity, and as eagerly migrate from the regions of 
 intellect, as birds of passage do to a warmer climate 
 at the approach of winter. Their religion is all 
 feeling, with which the understanding has nothing 
 to do, either in the way of exciting or controlling it. 
 Their conversation is made up of terms, which they 
 but imperfectly understand, and of crude concep- 
 tions, which they could with difficulty explain. The 
 fault in this case lies, to a great extent, in the pul- 
 pit. They have heard but few ideas there, and 
 therefore never venture beyond the track which 
 
216 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 their spiritual guides have marked out for them. I 
 trust you will avoid a loose, empty, and declamatory 
 style of preaching, and fill your sermons with theo- 
 logical truths, clearly conceived and perspicuously 
 expressed. It is a painful circumstance, that in 
 tJie march of improvement, mankind seldom gain an 
 advantage without an attendant inconvenience. 
 The present method of delivering sermons, unshac- 
 kled by notes, is incalculably more adapted to im- 
 pression, than the motionless, unimpassioned, scho- 
 lastic reading of the last age. But is there no 
 danger of losing in instruction what we gain in 
 impression ? The preaching of some men forcibly 
 reminds us of the breaking open of the cave of 
 ^olus, and letting loose the winds. To a thinking 
 mind, nothing is more ridiculous than to hear a man 
 blustering about amidst a perfect vacuity of ideas ; 
 such a hearer finds himself in the situation of a 
 traveller, who is suddenly overtaken by a storm in 
 a wilderness, from which he feels happy to escape 
 as speedily as possible. You will not conclude, 
 from any thing I have said, that you are to under- 
 value an easy, graceful, energetic enunciation ; on 
 the contrary, this is of so much importance, that 
 without it, the most admirable sermon is stripped 
 of more than half its power to please or to profit. 
 As a Christian speaker, you should never forget the 
 opinion of Demosthenes, that the first, and the 
 second, and the third grace of an orator is pronunci- 
 ation. It is perfectly obvious that the most useful 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 2l7 
 
 preachers owe much of their success, under God, to 
 an easy and pleasant method of delivery. 
 
 Let your preaching be characterized by plainness. 
 Be ingenuous in the avowal of your religious senti- 
 ments. Let not the " trumpet give an uncertain 
 sound." As an honest man, speak honestly. I do 
 not enjoin a dogmatical tone and temper. Still I 
 admonish you to use no concealment. Let not 
 your sermons be mere pulpit riddles, as ambiguous 
 as the responses of the Delphian oracle. Do not 
 compel your hearers to throw your discourses into 
 a critical alembic, to see if, by the application of a 
 sort of chemical process, a few drops of orthodoxy 
 may be extracted. 
 
 Let your perspicuity extend to your language. 
 "Use great plainness of speech." I do not mean 
 vulgarity or buffoonery ; these are disgusting every 
 where, but in the pulpit they are actually profane. 
 In the house of God, the view of the worshippers 
 ought ever to terminate in heaven or hell ; neither 
 of which seems to be a fit subject for laughter. 
 Some preachers seem to have no idea that they can 
 handle a subject plainly, till they have dragged it 
 through all the mire, in which their own coarse and 
 groveling genius loves to wallow. Provided other 
 and higher properties be found in it, that is the best 
 sermon which conforms most accurately to the rules 
 of correct taste. Now, perspicuity is the first grace 
 of good composition. Attentive and enlightened 
 observers have marked in rasfny of the dissenting 
 ministers of the present age, a strong tendency to 
 19 
 
218 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 a glaring and bombastic style, by which the truths 
 that should affect the conscience, lose all their 
 effect by a mode of representation which bewilders 
 the imagination. For what the bulk of their con- 
 gregations understand, some men may just as well 
 preach Latin or Greek as the technical, far-fetched 
 language they have adopted, in violation of every 
 rule of good taste, as well as in neglect of a still 
 more awful responsibility. What should we say of 
 the messenger, who was sent to a condemned 
 malefactor with instructions to inform him how to 
 gain a reprieve, but who, instead of explaining to 
 him the means of life in the plainest and speediest 
 manner, dressed up his commission in such high- 
 wrought terms, that the poor criminal did not com- 
 prehend them, and so lost his life, because this vain 
 and cruel wretch chose to display his skill in elab- 
 orate composition ? And what shall be said of that 
 man, who, being charged with the offer of divine 
 mercy to guilty rebels, suffers them to perish for 
 lack of knowledge, because he chooses to announce 
 the means of reconciliation in hard words and fine 
 flowers ? Has language any terms of reprobation 
 sufficiently severe for such a minister ? 
 
 Secondly. Approve yourself the minister of 
 God, by the manner in which you preside over this 
 church. 
 
 I speak from ten years' experience, when I assure 
 you that preaching is the easiest part of a pastor's 
 duty. You are now « to take heed to the flock over 
 wliich the Holy Ghost hath made you overseer.'* 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 219 
 
 You are to take the direction of its spiritual con- 
 cerns, and by the right application of all the princi- 
 ples of church government, to promote " the increase 
 of the body unto the edifying of itself in love." 
 You are « not to lord it over God's heritage," for 
 this would be to minister for yourself, and not for 
 him whose right alone it is to reign. Not that I 
 imagine you are without authority ; for an office 
 without authority, seems to me an absurdity. The 
 prerogative of a minister, if it be less thau some 
 claim, is unquestionably more than many are willing 
 to concede. By too many, he is considered only 
 in the light of a speaking brother, the mere appen- 
 dage of a pulpit. Such persons are actuated by a 
 very short-sighted policy in relation to their spiritu- 
 al interests, since it is impossible to degrade the 
 office without sinking the officer ; and when we 
 cease to look up with respect to a minister, we shall 
 certainly cease to profit by his instructions. What- 
 ever authority you possess here, you should ever 
 maintain it with the meekness of one who remem- 
 bers that it is for another, and not for himself. 
 
 Let a ruling principle of regard for the interests 
 of the church, and the authority of Christ in his 
 house, be visible in all you do, so as to establish in 
 the breasts of your people, a plenary conviction 
 that you are never seeking merely to gratify your- 
 self. Never appear fond of your own plans, simply 
 as yours ; nor obstinately adhere to them, in op- 
 position to the wishes of the church. A bishop 
 must not be self-willed. What we gain by obstina- 
 
220 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 cy we lose in respect ; and there is a way, even of 
 conceding, that will increase our superiority. In 
 affairs of importance, and in measures that are likely 
 to startle by their novelty, never be above imparting 
 your views and intentions to the officers and expe- 
 rienced members of the church. Some men, Avho 
 have had more jealousy for their authority than 
 ability to support it, have done themselves irrepa- 
 rable mischief by appearing to despise the advice 
 of those, to whose wisdom they might have listened 
 with incalculable advantage. 
 
 It belongs to you, my brother, to keep up with vig- 
 our the spiritual police of this city of the Lord. 
 Maintain therefore the scriptural discipline of the 
 church. The pastor who neglects this, is planting 
 thorns, either for himself or his successor to tread 
 upon. Remember that troublesome members are 
 much more easily kept out, than put out. Never 
 sacrifice the purity of the church at the shrine of 
 Mammon. 
 
 Study characters. Know the disposition of every 
 member of your church, not with a design to flat- 
 ter or to cringe, but " to rule well." Give no 
 encouragement to the bold and forward. The 
 tongues of a popular assembly are more easily ex- 
 cited than controlled. The principles of the inde- 
 pendent form of church government must not be 
 pushed too far. Like some of the doctrines of 
 revelation, they require great wisdom in those who 
 state them to prevent their being abused. I heartily 
 subscribe to the opinion of the late venerable 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 221 
 
 Booth. — " Notwithstanding the fickleness and ca- 
 price of many private professors, with regard to 
 their ministers, it has long appeared probable to 
 me, that a majority of those uneasinesses, animosities, 
 and separations, which, to the disgrace of religion, 
 take place between pastors and their several 
 churches, may be traced up either to the un- 
 christian tempers, to the gross imprudence, or to the 
 laziness and neglects of the pastors themselves." 
 
 Thirdly. Approve yourself as a minister of God, 
 by the character of your visits to the houses of your 
 flock. 
 
 As an under-shepherd of the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 you will labour to say, in imitation of him, " I know 
 my sheep, and am known of mine." Endeavour to 
 conduct all your private intercourse with your 
 friends, in such a manner, as that their esteem may be 
 conciliated by all they see of you. Happy would it 
 be for some ministers, and happy for their people 
 too, if they could always be seen at the distance of 
 the pulpit; their failings would then be lost like 
 the spots of the sun, amidst the blaze of public 
 splendour, with which they are invested, but which, 
 upon a nearer inspection, are too broad and dark to 
 be unnoticed. Like the works of nature, in opposi- 
 tion to those of art, our character should appear 
 the fairer, in proportion as it is microscopically in- 
 spected. 
 
 Let all your visits he appropriate. Go as the 
 minister of God, and go to approve yourself such. 
 It is in private that you can make full proof of your 
 
222 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 ministry, by an affectionate solicitude for the spirit- 
 ual welfare of your flock ; by improving your inter- 
 course to some valuable purpose ; by retracing and 
 retouching- the impressions produced in the public 
 service of God. There, nothing can be set down 
 to a thirst for popularity, but all will be traced up 
 to a heart devoted to your work. Never do we 
 seem so dear to the hearts of our people, as when, 
 in their own houses, we manifest an affectionate 
 anxiety for their eternal salvation. How much bet- 
 ter, how much more elevated and characteristic is 
 this, than that low jocoseness and familiarity in 
 which some indulge. I do not wish you to be a 
 mere pulpit spectre, haunting the abodes of your 
 flock shrouded in sullen gloom, terrifying every body 
 from your presence, and creating a solitude wher- 
 ever you come : but even this is almost better than 
 the constant levity of a buffoon. Maintain a dignity 
 of behaviour : and especially in the season of inno- 
 cent cheerfulness, take care never to degenerate 
 into frivolity. Weight of character is of immense 
 importance to you : it will give an additional mo- 
 mentum to every sermon you preach : and this is 
 gained or lost in secret. It should be perpetually 
 remembered by you when in company, that the same 
 persons who see you there, will on the approaching 
 sabbath be sitting at your feet to receive instruction. 
 I trust, my dear brother, you will not, by any part 
 of your conduct, lead your people to conclude that 
 they cannot please you better than by asking you 
 to a feast. Do not ajypear fond of cdtbraling the 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 223 
 
 private carnival. This is one of the many roads 
 that lead to contempt. Jesus, your grekt master, 
 should in this respect be your model ; — Jesus, not 
 only as a preacher upon the mount, but as a visitor 
 in the house of Mary. 
 
 Your visits should not be long. You have no 
 time for this, and, indeed, it is not necessary. Half 
 an hour, or an hour well improved, would give you 
 an opportunity of saying very much that is useful. 
 Avoid the character of a lounger and a gossip. 
 You are to teach the value of time, and will best do 
 this practically. 
 
 Your visits should be impartial. Many pastors, 
 by confining their attention to a few families, have 
 alienated a large portion of their flock from them- 
 selves, and sown the seeds of lasting jealousy be- 
 tween the different members of the church. It 
 cannot be supposed, in the common course of things, 
 that you will have no favourites, no private friend- 
 ships ; but what I mean is, that these are not to be 
 allowed to interfere with your official and universal 
 obligations. As the common centre of the society, 
 you are to unite all hearts to each other, by uniting 
 them all to yourself. Especially remember the sick 
 and the poor. 
 
 Let your visits be seasonable : and if they are 
 seasonable, I am sure they will not be late in the 
 evening. Always sup at home. Late visiting is 
 an enemy to family religion, domestic orderj private 
 devotion, early rising, diligent study, and by a last 
 undulation, the mischief reaches the pulpit itself. 
 
;«» A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 Fourthly. Approve yourself a minister of God 
 by your general conduct, spirit, and habits. 
 
 1. By the unsullied purity of your outward con- 
 duct. If every private Christian should be a fair 
 copy of his example, who was holy, harmless, and 
 undefiled, think what your deportment should be, 
 who are to be " a pattern to believers in word, in 
 conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity." 
 Read St. Paul's Epistles to Timothy, and there learn 
 the vast importance to be attached to the most 
 scrupulous regard to all the branches of true holi- 
 ness. Oh ! I could shed tears of blood, to think of 
 the misconduct of those who have filled the office 
 you now occupy. The sins of teachers, are the 
 teachers of sins. An ungodly minister is the most 
 awfully guilty, and the most fatally mischievous 
 character in existence : he is a living curse, a walk- 
 ing pestilence, diffusing around him, wherever he 
 •goes, a savour of death, from whom, as to any vol- 
 untary association, every friend of holiness should 
 retire with greater horror than from a person infect- 
 ed with the plague. His name is Apollyon : his 
 work destruction. 'Tis dreadful to reflect what 
 multitudes are now in the bottomless pit, who were 
 conducted thither by the damnable heresies of such 
 men's lives ; from whose imprecations, envenomed 
 by despair, the guilty authors of their ruin will find 
 neither escape nor shelter through everlasting ages, 
 but feel the weight of blood for ever upon their 
 wretched souls. 
 
A PASTORAL CHARG 225 
 
 It is not enough for us to be wiijit guilt ; our 
 character, like that of a female, muito be reputa- 
 ble, be ivithout suspicion. There m\ be no cloud 
 of mystery hanging about us. We ust keep at 
 the farthest remove from every thii wrong, and 
 avoid the very appearance of evil. " a minister 
 be not overcome by vice, may he not \ by error, 
 by vanity, by indolence, by dullness i If he es- 
 cape from gross immorality, may not i excellen- 
 cies be tarnished ; his talents be injure; his use- 
 fulness defeated by imprudencies ? Mathere not 
 be indulgencies at the table where there? no glut- 
 tony ? May there not be tippling wher there is 
 no intoxication? May there not be leties and 
 liberties where there is no violation of virtu? May 
 there not be, especially in the young mhster, an 
 assumption of consequence, a creation of truble, an 
 inattention to order and regularity, which, iiile he 
 supposes that it indicates genius, will not fail to 
 lower him in the esteem and love of the famiies he 
 deranges and disgusts ? If he avoid worldly dissi- 
 pation, may he not indulge in religious ; conSantly 
 going into festive circles of spiritual triflen and 
 gossips ; spending his evenings generally from 
 home ; retiring late to rest, and never rising early ? 
 If he be not chargeable with filthy conversation 
 which is not lawful, may he not err in foolish talking 
 and jesting which is not convenient ? May he not 
 be the rattle or the harlequin of the room ? If he 
 be not inflammatory, may he not be a mere neivs- 
 
226 jj^STORAL CHARGE. 
 
 monger^ or a n^dahhler in party politics ?"* We 
 occupy a very /lie station; like the angel stand- 
 ing in the s/we must be seen. The least 
 approach to i/uity, by us, will be seen by many 
 eyes, and pi^shed by many tongues. Do not 
 affect a haiAy indifference to public opinion. 
 WJiat othersAnk is wrong, avoid, even though you 
 should kno\l to be innocent. Conform to such 
 errors rathe/ian lessen the weight, or obscure the 
 beauty of yff character. 
 
 2. By tJuprosperous state of your personal piety. 
 Take heedi> the state of your own heart. Accus- 
 tomed as y are to treat religion as a science to be 
 theoreticay investigated ; an object of controversy 
 to be poMically defended, we are in danger, with- 
 out great/atchfulness, of merging the Christian in the 
 divine : ^d after all, he makes but a poor divine, 
 as to aiV practical effect, who is but a lukewarm 
 Christial. " The heart of the wise teacheth his 
 mouth iid addeth learning to his lips." " It is from 
 the pa|tor's defects considered in the light of a dis- 
 ciple, /that his principal difficulties and dangers 
 arise.'/ Do not, my dear brother, as many have 
 doneJmistake gifts for grace, and judge of the real 
 state of your own personal piety, by your readiness 
 in thinking and speaking upon holy things. No 
 man is in greater danger of self-deception, as to 
 
 * Rev. Wm. Jay's Sermon, delivered at the ordination of 
 the Rev. H. F. Burder, A. M. 
 
A PASTORAL CHAg. 227 
 
 the real state of his own heart, tn he who has to 
 deal officially with the hearts of Viers. This will 
 require the exercise of incessant rilance, close in- 
 spection, and keen discriminatic in the closet, 
 where I hope you will spend no innsiderable por- 
 tion of your time. 
 
 Here I cannot conceal my apprfension, that as 
 in many other respects, so especiallin vital godli- 
 ness and a devotional spirit, the esent race of 
 Christian ministers come far behind eir predeces- 
 sors. It has occurred to other and cler men than 
 myself, that in many, who of late yeai have enter- 
 ed into the pastoral office, a very conderable de- 
 fect of serious and spiritual feeling i lamentably 
 obvious. There is a frivolity of deportient, which, 
 though far removed from every thing iimoral, ap- 
 pears as if they wished to conciliate tht affections 
 of their people rather in the light of che rful com- 
 panions in the parlour, than as faithful preachers in 
 the pulpit ; and as if they sought to renter them- 
 selves more attractive, by displacing the loly seri- 
 ousness of the ministerial character, in order to 
 make way for a little nearer approximation to the 
 man of fashion and the world. It would be a cir- 
 cumstance to be deplored in tears of blood, if our 
 ministers should extensively lose the spirit of vital 
 piety ; for as they give the tone to their congrega- 
 tions, it would soon be followed by a general re- 
 semblance of our flocks to the palsied interests of 
 the church at Laodicea. 
 
228 A PilORAL CHARGE. 
 
 The principles (iidependent churches, although 
 they have no indirf connexion with a spirit of in- 
 quiry, and the cai/ of genuine liberty, derive their 
 chief value from ^ influence which they exert up- 
 on the interests Experimental religion, and when 
 they cease by a/ cause to exert that influence, 
 their value is d(reciated, their importance dimin- 
 ished, their glojfis departed. Let us look to the 
 fathers of dis^t from national establishments, to 
 the illustrious mconformists, not as authorities to 
 bind our cons^nce, but as examples to stimulate 
 our diligenceind especially our diligence as men 
 of God. Th/ponderous volumes of their learning 
 and divinity P not contain so much to confound us, 
 as the diaris of their religious experience. One 
 page of Ph/ip Henry's life, makes me blush more 
 than all th(/folios of his son Matthew's peerless ex- 
 position. / 
 
 AttendAhen, my brother, to the state of religion 
 in your oyn heart. Seek to have all your intellec- 
 tual attainments consecrated by a proportionate 
 growth /n grace. Let not your knowledge spread 
 over th^ upper regions of the soul like the Aurora 
 Borealis over the face of a wintry sky, while the 
 world spreads out below, cold, cheerless, and dark ; 
 but let it resemble the orb of day, which warms 
 and quickens the earth at the time he gilds and glo- 
 rifies the heaven. Endeavour to feel more yourself 
 of all that is involved in genuine religion. Feel 
 more, and you will speak better. All men are ora- 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 229 
 
 tors when they feel. The language of the heart 
 has an unction and an energy, especially a heart 
 that borroAvs its feeling from all that is eternal, 
 which no elegance or sublimity of composition can 
 reach, and which is more resistless than the thun- 
 ders of Demosthenes, or the vivid lightnings that 
 flashed from the genius of Cicero. 
 
 3. By exemplary diligence. 
 
 You are of course to be diligent in all the public 
 duties of your office. You are always to look like 
 a man that has much to do, and whose heart is set 
 on doing it. You must always act with the dili- 
 gence of one who feels the mighty impulse of im- 
 mortal souls giving speed to his feet and contrivance 
 to his thoughts. Indolence never appears in the 
 full display of its ugly form, nor in the exact dimen- 
 sions of its guilt, till it is seen in the garb of the 
 clerical character. Apply all the energies of your 
 soul to tlie duties of your office. Catechise the 
 young ; visit the sick ; search out the persons whom 
 your sermons have impressed, and deepen the im- 
 pression by private conversation ; encourage the 
 embarrassed to bring to you their perplexities ; 
 guide the young inquirer ; hasten to console the 
 aged pilgrim ; go any where, and at any time, to do 
 good ; in short, " watch for souls as one that must 
 give account." 
 
 Be diligent in the private duties of your study. 
 I enjoin this upon you with peculiar earnestness. 
 You cannot preach so as to edify your people and 
 
/ 
 
 230 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 secure their esteem, exoept you devote much time 
 to private intellectual toil. Whatever you may be 
 in the social circle, you never can long secure their 
 respect, without appearing respectable as a preach- 
 er. If you fail in this place that I now occupy, not 
 the sweetness, no, nor the piety of an angel would 
 keep you from sinking in their opinion. Congre- 
 gations in the metropolis, where the private inter- 
 course between a pastor and his flock must neces- 
 sarily be restricted by the distance of their abodes, 
 are raised and retained by the force of pulpit at- 
 tractions. Surrounded as you are by men of popu- 
 lar talents, unless you preach the word with ability, 
 " the Avays of your Zion will soon mourn, because 
 none come to her solemn feasts, and in the time 
 of her affliction she will remember all the pleasant 
 things she had in the days of old." 
 
 It is greatly to be regretted that very many 
 young men, wlio, during the early part of their pre- 
 paratory studies, appear the fairest blossoms in 
 the academic grove, disappoint the hopes they had* 
 excited, and yield, after all, but ordinary fruit. Two 
 reasons may be assigned for this ; the first is, they 
 are sometimes plucked too soon ; and the second, 
 that even when gathered in a state of maturity, instead 
 of improving, as they should do, by time and care, 
 they become corrupted by indolence, and then sink 
 in the public estimation by gradations as rapid and 
 as numerous, as those by which they seemed at one 
 time likely to ascend. Many young men unfortu- 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 231 
 
 nately cease to be students when they begin to be 
 ministers. They enter upon their office with a 
 stock of ideas, which would be a. sufficient capital, 
 if properly improved by indefatigable industry, for 
 attaining to intellectual wealth : but, unfortunately, 
 flattered by the foolish, and caressed, perhaps, for a 
 season by tlie wise, they act like persons who come 
 Suddenly into possession of a small fortune, who be- 
 gin to live immediately upon the principal, abandon 
 themselves to idleness, and sink to contempt. Dur- 
 ing the greater part of the week they may be found 
 any where but in their study ; running all over the 
 city or country to public meetings : — sauntering 
 about the houses of their flock in every body's way ; 
 — debating upon the conduct of the government 
 with every gossiping politician they can pick up ; 
 or else idly reading the fashionable, and, much of 
 it, worthless poetry of the age in their own par- 
 lours. Saturday arrives, and with it all the tre- 
 mors and dread, produced by the recollection that 
 it is to be followed by the Sabbath. A volume is 
 taken from the shelf, a text selected, perhaps a ser- 
 mon committed to memory ; or else a few meagre 
 thoughts, resembling Pharaoh's thin and blighted 
 ears of corn, are gleaned from the stubble of a mindi 
 whose scanty crop has long since been carried oflT. 
 Thus equipped, the preacher goes to his pulpit and 
 his people, with no higher ambition than to get 
 through without actually stopping. "The hungry 
 sheep look up and are not fed," till at length they 
 
232 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 are literally compelled, in order to save themselves 
 from starvation, to break the fences of their field, 
 and to roam in quest of pasture more suited to their 
 taste, and more adequate to their wants. 
 
 " Give attention then to reading, to exhortation, 
 to doctrine." St. Paul, brought ifp at the feet of 
 Gamaliel ; a proficient in all the knowledge of the 
 age ; and in addition to this, blessed with the power 
 of miracles and the gift of celestial inspiration, was 
 certainly the minister, if any one ever existed, who 
 might have dispensed with diligent application to 
 study ; and yet this great man, when imprisoned at 
 Rome, and looking forward to his approaching mar- 
 tyrdom, commanded his books and his parchments 
 to be brought him. Here then is an example 
 worthy your imitation. 
 
 If any thing more need be said to enforce this 
 duty, I might remind you of the present state of so- 
 ciety at large in regard to education. An ignorant 
 minister might have done very well in an age when 
 all knowledge was confined to the priesthood, 
 « when darkness covered the earth, and gross dark- 
 ness the people ;" but science and literature are 
 now so widely diflTused, even over the middling 
 classes, that no small measure of information is 
 requisite to enable a minister to converse with his 
 own flock. 
 
 Unless therefore you intend to devote eight hours 
 a day to your study, I have no very strong expec- 
 tation tha-t you will long retain this pulpit. To se- 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 233 
 
 cure such a portion of time as this, it will be neces- 
 sary to guard against the temptations to neglect, 
 with which a ministerial station in this mighty city 
 must ever be attended. You will of course be ex- 
 pected to use your influence in cherishing that 
 public spirit, which like the holy fire now burns up- 
 on the altar of the Lord. Still, however, you must 
 not suffer foreign duties to interfere with those to 
 be discharged at home. Public meetings and pub- 
 lic speeches are become very common, and are 
 certainly very useful: I am not by any means 
 reprobating them, but only reminding you, that they 
 should not be suffered to draw a young minister 
 too much from his study and his flock. Guard 
 against all unnecessary party visits. Never, never 
 become a political partisan ; this may render you 
 popular with a certain class, but it will eonsum«? 
 your time, embitter your spirit, diminish the weight 
 of your ministerial character, and obstruct tlie suc- 
 cess of your labours. 
 
 4. By prudence. 
 
 This is a virtue inferior in importance only to 
 piety, and still more rare even than that. It is al- 
 most the first grace we need, and generally the 
 last we acquire. Imprudence is one of the great- 
 est enemies of the pastoral office, and considering 
 the mischief which it frequently occasions when 
 exhibited in such a situation, approaches so near to 
 immorality, that the most skilful casuist might be 
 challenged to point out the line of distinction. 
 20 
 
234 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 'Tis a melancholy r§jElection, to think how often the 
 greatest talents, as to all their beneficial influence 
 upon society, have been completely neutralized by 
 the imprudence of their thoughtless possessor. On 
 the other hand, it is most encouraging and instruc- 
 tive to mark, with how slender a portion of knowl- 
 edge, many an individual has done extensive good 
 in the world, because what little stock of ideas he 
 possessed, was disposed of to the best advantage, 
 by a cautious and prudent temper. Thus while 
 the former blazed and wandered like a comet 
 through his eccentric career, to little visible advan- 
 tage, though attended for a season with much pub- 
 lic admiration, the latter, although dim, perhaps, 
 yet remained steady as the polar star, which has 
 often guided the mariner without astonishing him. 
 Our blessed Lord set a high value upon this qualifi- 
 cation, when he enjoined his disciples to be wise as 
 serpents, and harmless as doves. Without degen- 
 erating into an artful, crafty, intriguing disposition ; 
 or freezing by a cold, selfish, and calculating tem- 
 per, the genial current that flows through the soul 
 of benevolence, endeavour to acquire a cautious, 
 deliberative, predictive sort of mind, which, with 
 the quickness and the certainty of instinct, shall 
 show you the consequences of action before you 
 act 
 
 5. By a kind, affectionate disposition. 
 
 « God is love ; and hath commended his love to- 
 wards us," in a manner that will fill the universe 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 233 
 
 with astonishment through everlasting ages. Can 
 we approve ourselves the ministers of such a God 
 without that " charity which is kind ?" Is not his 
 love the theme of our ministrations ? Shall we car- 
 ry about with us this balm for healing the world, 
 and the vessel partake none of its odour? It is 
 of immense importance, that as ministers we should 
 be distinguished by " whatsoever things are lovely." 
 There should be a kindness of heart — a sweetness 
 of disposition — a gentleness of manners in those 
 who have to win souls to Christ, which shall 
 give attraction even to the very instruments of rec- 
 onciliation. Amenity of temper carries all the 
 gifts of the mind, and all the graces of the heart, 
 to their highest polish and beauty. There are some 
 men of very excellent preaching talents, but who, 
 acting as if courtesy were a heterodox virtue, are 
 unfortunately of such rough, and churlish, and petu- 
 lant dispositions, that it is really like pressing 
 through a thorn hedge to gather the luscious fruit 
 which hangs in rich clusters round their pulpit. 
 It was a beautiful picture which a deistical physi- 
 cian drew of the late Dr. Gillies, of Glasgow, when 
 he said, he believed that John Gillies would be glad 
 to carry all mankind to heaven in his bosom. 
 May no deist ever be able to say any thing worse 
 of you. 
 
 6. By a habit of importunate prayer. 
 
 I have no need to instruct you m the necessity of 
 a divine influence, to renew and sanctify the hu- 
 
236 A PASTORAL CHARGE, 
 
 man heart. Of this doctrine you have just publicly 
 avowed your entire conviction. But I would just 
 remind you, that on this important article of your faith, 
 rests the incumbent duty of prayer. Ah, my broth- 
 er, we want more of the spirit and grace of prayer. 
 The acknowledgment of the Psalmist ought to be- 
 long to us ; " I give myself to prayer." The spirit 
 of supplication should insinuate itself into all our 
 habits, oijr plans, our operations. Those who 
 honour God in secret, God will honour in public. 
 It has been very generally remarked, that the most 
 successful ministers have been the most eminent 
 as men of prayer. Luther, it is said, devoted 
 three hours every day to devotional exercises. 
 Mary, queen of Scotland, used to say of John 
 Knox, " I fear that man's prayers more than the 
 English army." The story of Mr. Bruce is well 
 J{:nown. One Sabbath, being unusually late before 
 he appeared at the house of God, a messenger was 
 sent to hasten him ; who, upon coming to his study 
 door, heard him distinctly and vehemently affirm, 
 " I will not go hence except thou go with me." 
 Unwilling to disti;;-b what he considered to be a 
 conversation, the messenger returned with the re- 
 port, that Mr. Bruce was not likely to come soon, 
 for he had heard him declare that he would not 
 stir unless a person, who was in his study, and 
 who seemed very reluctant to stir, would come with 
 him. At length the man of God appeared, when 
 such an unusual solemnity, unction, and effect, attend- 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 237 
 
 ed his words, as left no doubt upon the minds of 
 the great auditory who the stranger was, with 
 whom Mr. Bruce had wrestled, like another Israel, 
 and prevailed. 
 
 A man of prayer is ahvays knoAvn, without 
 erecting his oratory at the corners of the streets, 
 or proclaiming the hour of his retirement by the 
 sound of a trumpet. If we are much with God up- 
 on the mount, the effect, in a spiritual sense, will 
 be very similar to the vision of his glory upon the 
 face of Moses, when the people beheld the radiance 
 of his countenance, and gazed with veneration upon 
 the man who had seen the Lord. By such con- 
 duct and such habits, approve yourself as a minis- 
 ter of God. 
 
 I trust you have made up your account to meet 
 with trials. If Satan suffer you to go on without 
 any thing to try your faith and your patience, it is 
 a sign that he despises your efforts. If you bruise 
 the head of the serpent, he will hiss; if you attack 
 the lion in his den, he -vvill roar. The ivorld will 
 perhaps revile you, and even friends may desert 
 you. Your success may not be equal to your de- 
 sires, and oftentimes the fairest blossoms of your 
 ministerial hopes may be nipped. As a spiritual 
 father, some of your own children may be peevish 
 and rebellious : as a physician, who has to do with 
 the maladies of the soul, you must expect that under 
 the power of delirium, they will often treat you 
 with the greatest unkindness, when engaged in 
 
238 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 the tenderest offices to restore them to a " sound 
 mind." 
 
 Against these gloomy suggestions, I oppose 
 others of a more encouraging nature. You have 
 far more to enliven your hopes, than to ex- 
 cite your fears. Yours is the " ministi-y of recon- 
 ciliationy You are to be employed on an embassy 
 of peace. It is your honourable and delightful 
 business to be engaged as an instrument in recon- 
 ciling man to God, to himself, and to his fellow 
 creatures. 
 
 Nor are you left to labour alone and unassisted. 
 The promise of Jesus Christ, your great master, ac- 
 companies you to the spot you are to occupy and 
 to cultivate in his vineyard. " Lo, I am with you." 
 Yours is the ministration of the holy spirit. The 
 clouds of heaven, "big with blessings," are already 
 floating over the scene of your husbandry, ready 
 to descend in fertilizing showers upon the seed 
 you scatter. 
 
 Should your hopes be realized and your labours 
 blessed, though in ever so small a degree ; should 
 you be the means of saving but one soul from ever- 
 lasting death, you will « rejoice in the day of Christ 
 that you have not run in vain, nor laboured in vain." 
 It was a saying of Dr. Owen, that the salvation of 
 a single soul, was worth preaching to a whole na- 
 tion for, during a long succession of years ; but I 
 trust many will be given to you who shall be « your 
 joy and your crown of rejoicing I" Then what a 
 
A PASTORAL CHARGE. 239 
 
 scene awaits you. In that illustrious day, when 
 even the mighty achievements of Bacon, of New- 
 ton, of Milton, shall be consumed by the general 
 conflagration, and scattered with the ashes of the 
 globe ; — when the most splendid productions of 
 human genius, with all the choicest flowers of art, 
 of literature, and of science, shall serve but as a 
 garland to deck the funeral pile of expiring nature, 
 and leave the scholar and the artist without a single 
 ray of glory to distinguish them from the crowds 
 which throng the bar of judgment; when the 
 names of the philosophers, and warriors, and legis- 
 lators, that for thousands of years have emblazoned 
 the annals of mankind, shall all be passed over in 
 silence ; then shall your name, my brother, be an- 
 nounced to assembled worlds, as having accomplish- 
 ed an immortal work, and when observing millions 
 shall be waiting for the deed of renown, a glorified 
 spirit, dressed in the robes of righteousness and ar- 
 rayed in the garments of salvation, shall advance 
 from the right hand of the Judge, followed by 
 another, and another, and another, who, pointing to 
 you, with transports of delight shall exclaim, " Be- 
 hold the minister, to whose faithful labours, under 
 God, we owe the salvation of our immortal souls." 
 Then, when the eye of the universe shall be fixed 
 upon you, and the voice of a great multitude, as the 
 voice of many waters, shall exclaim, rejoice over 
 him, thou heaven ; the great Master whom you 
 serve will acknowledge all your labours with 
 
^ S40 A PASTORAL CHARGE. 
 
 smiles of ineffable complacency, and words of mys- 
 terious condescension — ^Well done, good and 
 
 FAITHFUL SERVANT, HAVING APPROVED THYSELF 
 IN ALL THINGS A MINISTER OF GoD, ENTER THOU 
 INTO THE JOY OF THY LoRD. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 *