unto God. And however any may now be distressed, by looking unto Him, they will obtain relief. DIDYMUS. On preaching the Gospel. HE Gospel is stated by St. Paul, to be "the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth." In other words, it is a dispensation in which the power of God is strikingly manifested by the manner in which the salvation of man is effected. The object of the Gospel is the recovery of man from the state of guilt and misery into which he had sunk by the fall, and his restoration to the Divine favor and to eternal happiness. The whenever they looked unto God he relieved their distresses. After they were settled in their promised land, though they provoked God with their counsel, and were brought low for their iniquity, yet he regarded their affliction, when he heard their cry. He remembered for them his covenant, and repented according to the multitude of his mercies. The psalmist has recorded many instances, in which God afforded him relief under his troubles. He.. says " "I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. This poor man cried and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles." Again he says "The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me : I found trouble and sorrow.— -means by which this great change Then called I upon the name of is effected are made known by the Lord; O Lord, I beseech the Gospel. Properly speaking, thee, deliver my soul. I was Christ, who, by his death, takes brought low and he helped me. away the guilt of man, and the Thou hast delivered my soul Holy Spirit, who, by his operafrom death, mine eyes from tion, sanctifies the heart, are the tears, and my feet from falling." grand agents in accomplishing When Christ was on earth many this work. The Gospel only looked unto him when distressed makes known their agency, and with the heaviest burdens, and is used by them as an instrument were relieved. When three thou- of effecting their great design.sand in the day of Pentecost They require, therefore, faith in were distressed in view of their the Gospel, and they employ guilt and danger, they obtained that faith as the medium by relief by looking unto God.- which they operate in changing The power, and truth, and grace the condition of man. And of God are unchangeable. "He hence the Gospel is said to be is able to do exceeding abund- the means of salvation. antly above all that we ask or The Gospel evidently suppothink." They who trust in his ses man to be in a state of sin name, will soon find his grace and guilt, under the just displeasufficient for them, and his sure of God, and liable to eternal strength made perfect in their condemnation. It supposes him weakness. None can be more further to be incapable of extridistressed than such persons as cating himself from this state, have obtained relief by looking' by the exertion of any powers which he possesses in himself; and it implies that there is no other law or dispensation given by God by which man could be saved; every law of God being too pure and holy to be sufficiently kept by the weakness of man. pel who represent man in a different state from that which the Scripture supposes. If ministers do not speak of him as fallen and corrupt, as naturally under the power of sin, and therefore subject to the just displeasure of a holy God; this is to give such a view of man as would render the Gospel unnecessary. If allowing the corrupt state of the human race, they assert that there is power in man to restore himself by his own exertions, without referring him to the Divine power and grace, they do not preach the Gospel; because thus the sanctifying influences of the Holy Spirit are rendered useless. If exalting the merit of any righteous acts which man can perform, they In this state of the uller ruin of man, we are informed by a revelation from God, that he has been pleased, in compassion to his creatures, to appoint a Saviour for them. He has sent his own Son to take upon him our nature, and to make atonement for our sins. He has likewise sent his Holy Spirit from above to testify this Saviour, and to communicate the benefits of his salvation to the souls of men. Through this Saviour men are to be restored to the Divine fa-suppose them capable of counvor, and to be made partakers terbalancing his transgressions, hereafter of the blessed kingdom and rendering him acceptable in of heaven. In the mean time, the sight of God, they do not through the influence of the Ho- preach the Gospel; for thus ly Spirit, they are to be fitted they make the cross of Christ and prepared for that holy state, of none effect. If they repreby the renewal of their nature, sent Christ only as a pattern and by the sanctification of their example to mankind, and not as souls, by the mortifying of the making atonement for sin by his body of sin, by their growth in blood; or as being only a man, grace and in a conformity to the instead of the Son of God come Divine image. down from heaven to redeem us, Such is the brief outline of the they do not preach the Gospel Gospel. To preach the Gospel for great is the mystery of godis to make it known to men in a liness; that is, of the Gospel; full and perfect manner, and al- "God was manifest in the flesh." so to enforce and apply the sev- If they fail in pointing out, that eral branches of it to the con- the great end of Christ's coming science. From this outline, then, in the flesh was to purchase to form some judgment of himself a holy people, who, be the true method of preaching ing made partakers of a divinė the Gospel. A more distinct nature, and delivered from the view of the subject, however, corruptions of the world, should may be obtained by considering be zealous of good works, they what it is not to preach the Gos- do not preach the Gospel; their pel. preaching is at variance with the Those do not preach the Gos-main design for which that Gos we may It seems hardly necessary to observe, that in order to all this, much knowledge and wisdom are required. The Gospel, indeed, is of itself plain and simple. It was meant to be so, being expressly intended for the poor and unlearned. In this, as in all the other works of God, a noble plainness and simplicity bespeak the perfection of his skill. Christ and his apostles," pel was given. In a word, if, and direct application of scriptuthey do not represent man as in tural truth is not made to the absolute need of a Saviour; if conscience. they ascribe to him the power to save himself; if they keep the great and only Saviour out of view, or substitute any thing whatsoever in the place of his meritorious death, perfect rightcousness and prevailing intercession; if they do not insist on the sanctifying influences of the Holy Spirit as indispensably necessary to the great end of the Gospel, the renewal of the soul in the divine image; or if, allow-by whom it was delivered, came ing this to be the end, they do not point out the appointed means of attaining it; they do not preach the Gospel; they give false views of the state of man, and of the means of preparing him for eternity. not with excellency of speech or worldly wisdom: they were the very models of plainness in all their discourses. However high the subjects of the Gospel may be, they are made so plain by the inspired writers, that he who rùns may read. Besides which, the Holy Spirit has been promised to enlighten the mind.What is required, therefore, in order to understand the Gospel, is only an humble and teachable spirit, a diligent study of the sacred oracles, and earnest prayer to the Giver of all wisdom for his illumination. In these several cases, the Gospel may be said not to be preached at all; because either some doctrine contrary to it is introduced, or some essential part of it is omitted. But besides this, the Gospel may be preached imperfectly, and may thus fail in a considerable degree to fulfil the great ends which it was designed to accomplish.- But though the truth will be This is the case when the sev- made clear to those who use eral points already stated as these ineans, and are thus duly characterizing the Gospel are prepared to receive it, it must not exhibited in the full and be acknowledged that there is proper proportion; when a lucidin men, in general, an unhapview of the whole is not present-py blindness of mind, a pervered; when a distorted represen- sity of judgment, a corruption tation is given of it, one part of heart, a prevailing regard to being unduly magnified, or its worldly interest, or an obstinate connection with the rest not spirit of prejudice, which renders sufficiently marked; when the them indisposed to its reception. outline is not filled up; when Hence it is that ministers with the points more immediately re- the same documents in their quired by the peculiar circum- hands, with the words of our stances of a congregation are not Lord and the writings of his insisted upon; or when a close apostles before thein, have dif fered so widely in the views, plying, the general truths of the Gospel to the particular cases of their hearers. It is not the constant repetition of the same form of sound words, however excellent, which can be regarded as a complete delivery of the truth. It must be elucidated: it must they have given of religion; while plain and illiterate men have been perplexed, and have been at a loss to know what really was the Gospel of Christ. Some have dwelt almost exclusively on the evidences of it must be explained and ampli. fied: it must be brought to bear on the peculiar circumstances of the congregation, so that they may clearly understand and feel its force. In this way only can a minister of the Gospel be said rightly to divide the word of God, and to give to each his portion in due season. The grand and distinguishing doctrines of the Gospel are, as has been observed, exceedingly plain and easy, but at the same time they are most comprehensive; and fully to understand all their bearings, and the whole detail of their application, requires more than the study even of a whole life. The sinfulness of our nature, for example, a most important doctrine of Christianity, is readily seen and admitted. But what avails the general acknowledgment of this truth? The effects of sin must Revelation: an important sub-be branched out into particulars: ject, doubtless, if it be considered as only introductory to a knowledge of the Gospel itself; while others have entirely overlooked the external proofs of our -faith. Some have dwelt chiefly on man's moral obligations, sinking those doctrines which constitute the foundation of all Christian practice, and especially keeping out of view that Saviour by whose blood alone we are cleansed from our sins. Others, sensible of this error, have gone into the opposite extreme; they have perpetually dwelt on points of doctrine, while what related to Christian practice has been either omitted or hurried over in general terms and without sufficient explanation. Another class has failed in not applying the truths they have delivered. They have preached the grand doctrines of Scripture indeed; but they have preached them as matters of speculation, as if be pointed out in all their the bare and cold knowledge of the truth could be effectual to salvation. The warm and animated appeal to the feelings; the close application to the conscience; the affectionate address as from a father to his children, over whom he was tender-workings. Pride in its several ly watching in Christ Jesus: branches of self-conceit, vanity, these have been wanting; and ostentation, and such like affecthe preaching, though specula- tions must be held up to view. tively correct, has been unfruit- The love of money, with its difful. Others again have failed ferent indications; the love of in particularizing, that is, in ap-worldly honor, the desire of hu various forms. The numerous lusts of the flesh which lurk disguised in the human heart must be stripped of their disguise and exposed to view. The love of ease and the love of pleasure must be exhibited in all their man applause, the operations of a secret spirit of impatience, envy, resentment; all these must be fully explained, if we would know the true meaning of that corrupt state from which it is the design of the Gospel to set us free. He, therefore, who is thus exposing sin, with the view of more clearly shewing the necessity of the Divine work of Christ on the soul, is preaching the Gospel as truly and effectually as if he were proclaiming the glad tidings of forgiveness in Christ Jesus. In like manner, he who explains in detail the holy tempers and dispositions which characterize the "renewed" man; he who illustrates the fruits of the Holy Spirit, (not neglecting also, either in this or in the former instance, to give a clear and full view of the other great branches of Christianity;) may be truly said to be preaching the Gospel. It is a narrow and confined view of the Gospel which would confine it exclusively to a particular doctrine, as that of faith in Christ Jesus, without embracing all those other points which were equally taught by Christ and his apostles. the extent of its requisitions. He observed the apostles to be worldly minded and ambitious; he therefore frequently inculcated heavenly mindedness, and deadness to the world and the things of it. The Epistles likewise (to say nothing at present of the preaching of John the Baptist) are di rected against prevalent errors or vices. And it is this particularity in the Epistles which renders them at once interesting and instructive. The Apostle's command to Timothy, and thro' him, to every minister of the Gospel, is not only to preach the word, but to reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all long suffering and doctrine; to watch in all things, and thus do the work of an evangelist, and make full proof of his ministry. The Gospel was intended not only to convert men, but also to build them up in the faith, the love, and the obedience of Christ. We find, therefore, a difference in the strain of the Apostles' preaching at different times and to different persons. When preaching to those who were unacquainted with the truth as it is in Jesus, they declare unrereservedly the grace of the Gospel. If any afterwards abused that grace to licentiousnesss, we hear an apostle sharply reproving them, and telling them that faith without works is dead, and that a man could not be justified by faith if it were alone; that is to say, barren and unproductive. Thus did the apostle's It appears to have been the practice of our Lord and his apostles to direct their peculiar attention to the prevailing faults of the people whatever they were. These they attacked in a forcible manner. Our Lord saw that the Pharisees were the chief opposers of religion: He therefore constantly reproved them, and exposed their hy-accommodate their preaching to pocrisy. He perceived that false the circumstances of their hearinterpretations were put upon ers, leaving an admirable pattern the law and he took occasion of the true manner of preaching fully to explain its purity and the Gospel. And surely they as VOL. VI. No. 11. Eee |