The Lutheran visitor. (Columbia, S.C.) 1869-1904, May 04, 1870, Image 1
OffE LORD, OEE FAITH, ONE BAPTI8M."-EPEE8IAH8 IV: 5.
fifcW SERIES, VOL. 2-NO. 55
COLUMBIA, S. C_ WEDNESDAY, MAY 4, 1870
OLD SERIES, VOL. IV.-NO. 88
■WWPLl. Hl
^Visitor
Vfe repent It, therefore, the greet
need at Uh' time* ta tatth In
GoiF* character, in his word, in the
doctrine fit Me npeoial provide nee, in
tW aiilliitkm mA *apn-in*ev of!
Jeena t’hrtat—faith to lay M<1 upon
Gwr* “covenant and strength,* and
to “commend him coocertiing the
work of bin hand*.* f’lrll govern
neat, national perapcrity, tocithkIuI
ugricnltnn« and ewotncrvc—a *alu ]
tary social system, ami aortal, civil
and political institutions, jwoliflc of
p*aw aa<l happlnra* to man—a sal
Mary Vocational system—* church,
effective aa the ebnrrh qf Oral ought
to be, in moulding governing princi
ples tar society, and bringing every
thing into the obedience of faith—all
u» works of God's hand, cuiieecultig
which wo must command him by a
faith which lay * bold an hia row
naat. The want of such a faith hi a
terrible evil—M ia a dead pa lay to
(hr coniaannlty where It exists.
“Help Lord; for the godly mau
erasrth: for the faithful fail from
imperfect and Ha piognaa to perfre
tK*n gradual. tt la like the maatard
need which when planted la the
aaaaHeat of all seeds, hat which in
erataeo by an onward growth nntH
It heroawo an largo that the btrda
Ltfltot |m ilg Kmitoltna f h*» ULa fi.. m m
WUJv In M" iHnlirUrn, UT imp H*ftTPt)
which dictates it* influence* (bom
one part of the gtamral mono to
•nnther on til the whole to \eo ren
t'd. Tbtae atatiUttatlea, employed by
I'hrist to shadow forth the adrancr-
aaent of religion hi the hearts of
epiritoal strength and fife. Let him
aaC doubt that hia Mlleaeeo, ia the
■•atter of godly work, moat aggra
vate the malady from which it flows;
attifle, while many have found mac
and atom wore deateoyeri hy Are; a
peotilcnee raged tbrnngh the colony ;
and in the political boricon, a dark
and omintern (toud wm gathering.
Tbeoe circa motanoea led the Qeaeral
Court, In Hay, 1*70, to eall upon the
rhnreltea to appoint meoaengera to
meet in Beaton, for the solemn din
rnsamn of tbeoe two questiuejs -
“Whnt are the provoking evils of
Mow Ragland T* and “What la to be
•tone ao that those crib may be re
taant depemkare an God. We can
m* hoar the poor widow, whose bar
rrl of meal has tailed, and whose
rtnae of oil ia spent, ahoukl and can
nak thru humbly and urgently tha
day’s provender; bnt it seems strange
to na at first, that nock a petition
abould auit as wdl the rich—the
owner of house* and tarns ami bank
rtock—the man whose garners cun-
flpily styles indolence,) it stands to
reason that no one can ever find
health there. Let him not play the
port of the man benumbed with cold,
who aits still shaking, when with a
Uttle stirring be might send Hie
wanu blood coaming through his
veins, and “he himself* again: bat
let him straightway enter upon every
form of Christian labor within the
power of hia hand, according to that
“working of Christ which worketh
mightily* in the saints—even the
weakest of them. Let him cry to
the Lord for help against the spirit
of sloth, that “idleness, the sepal
•Are of a living man,* may entomb
him no longar-that, through the
quickening of the Holy Ghost, he
may experience a reaarrectioa to new
activity in the cbrUtion Ufe.. JL
jam UiaaaiV Vmroa to atmtoto'i *> mta
■ m H1 ft sa per year, if r*id hi siiraam.
Outrun- ■Mr WiJows, »u4 Soxkuu df
\tiiltiS-~ darpvd fl.aa par j «*r, If p«i4 Is
T1k**> who do sot fay wilLin Ibrss
*3^1/0* to tboir rrsr Uyln*. will, ia
nut ta ctoM|ad aflyoafe addliiuaat
urn «* AwtanaiKa:
,Mho< **mmh»
IVOiMMtos-y $ »
though he was “that light,» yet the
world wonld know him, and form
their impression of him and the dor
tritoca he taught, to a targe mcasnrr
from the way In which he was exhib
itod to the lives of Ida disci plea,
nance the command, “Let year
light ao ahioc before men that othera
seeing your good worts may glorify
yo«r Father which is in heart*.*
The rfariattan has ao innate light,
hut ia only “the light," inaamm-h as
hr reflects tha Lord Jeans. Kerry true
Christian la a minor which reflects
( brim's glory, his power ami love;
and a consist rail rhristhra example
at Aral, whim-tided in a am all degras.
and that he grows in gram* antil he
antra* at the fullrn** of the stalner
of Christ. He is at flrnt a babe :
nfterwaid* he forgets the things that
are behind, and pranara forward to
wards the mark of the prise of hia
calling hi (fertta Jiass '■
The word mortification hi employ
V in the lb Mr to dearrihe that
rot of grace hy which men are
made holy. It is not ward to signify
something In its nature distinct
from regeneration or cun version,
far .myriads of months besides his
own, »ttd this not for to-day only,
bnt far yearn heuee—the merchant,
it may be, whom groaning ware-
bonne would victual whole navies.
We eao see how Itarkl might, na
turully and moat argently, offer anch
a prayer as to ear text, on tiie day
when he aad his soldiers wore hun
gering, and the show-bread was
given them; bat how Bulomoa his
son could use it, when his purveyors
sent him, month by month, such pre-
flue mppUos tar his tabic and pabme,
acenm not ao easy to hr nnderetood.
And yet this very language would
equally auit both—the hunger bitten
father In the day of his want, and
the luxurious sun in the acxaon of
hia imperial opulence. Job in bis
palmy days, alien he was tha richest
of all the mru of the East, aad when
hia son* were feasting anch in bis
own house; aud Joseph, when open
mg the granaries of Egypt, where
he had laid up the food of seven
|4ent«o«* years, for an entire natiou
—each needed the spirit, if not the
terms, of this pcayer; and we doubt
not each was wont to ait down to kis
own well atoned board la the tetuper,
dependent and gretefnl, which ia
lueulcaled by (hia very prayer. Do
nut the rich depend t Let an in-
reused and tatgoOrn Ural send but
pervading aentiment of thorn* times
that the “Lord reigned;» that when
there was evil In a etty, the Lord did
it; that God was jnet, and afflicted
communities for their Mas; and that,
when ao afflicted—when blasting and
mildew come a|wn thrlrfieMto— when
their ships were wracked at am—
their !tonnes and stores were burned
up—when jieetilenee raged siul po-
lltictil dangers thrrateued—it wss
the righteous God i-ontending with
them for their rina; and that it wan
the duty of the rulers of the land to
call for a nrnnrhing out of the pro
dneing causes of such evils; and that
all, Ixtth high and low, rich ami |ioor,
shonld huinlde them selves under the
mighty baud of Oral, that He might
take away from them the blow of
bis baud, by which they were likely
to be cou*ume<L "
Was this sn|ierstitioMf If it wua,
it (deius'rl God, at all events; for we
are told that immediately following
the deMs-ratioiM, fastings, confer
sions and prayers of the eouven
tion railed by the General C'onrt.
there waa a remarkable Wrrain; of
Gral came upon the land In the form
of u general swnketttug ami a great
revival aud reformation.
Another fnct will serve to show
what kind of flHth, uml what degree
of it, isi'VMhd iu tboMc days. There
wss a .lodge Hewel, of Hnlem, who
on one occasion, at the Court of flyev
aad Tcrmluer, had fmrtieipoteil In
condemning «wtsin prvnmis to he
executed for witeberafl. AflerwunG.
iietlule;
Rev. A. K RUM;
Ural, and of grratiy promoting their
highest gaud. It wonld he tar better
for both the church and the world
if Christiana felt tbia more keeuly,
aud wen- more careful in their,
example. A nvwnt address says,
"ChrmttoMa at* um carries* about
srparatioa from the evil that Is ia
the World. It must be a separation ’
work of which regeneration to the
i-ommenceaseot. They diflbr not in
kind, lint la degree. The efficient
ageut la both ia the same ; the mean*
used are the taaae ; the result aeeom
plMbcd Is substantially the same.
In the beginning of the work by
which men ate transformed into the
moral likeness of their Maker, holy
(Uapo^it KiQJi and priufliilfn mtv In-
[dasteil in the soul; to aanctifleeth*
they are n>s*risked and devetoprd,
until by a gradual |itogrraa, all shi
Ail <Iis|mmiIhxis being mortilicii. and
all holy dispositions bring tally nm
In red. the aul^ert of this grace is hn
mralistriy. ups death, si rale perfret
in holiness sad therefore meet for
the Inheritance of the satnts hi
light.
It is God who works In ns both to
will mid to do of hi* good | drawn nr
He begin* the good work, and he
|ierfann* A snMt the day of Jeans
Christ. "Then will I aywmkb- cleari
water npoo von sral re *balI he draw -
from all yonr fflthtnras. and from all
Religious,
1 am not to enter upon a crnamle
against the pernanl of works of fic
tiuu. I should he ao ry to debar the
child from “Hohmsou Cnuoe* or the
“Pilgrim's Progress,” or to prevetit
any one from hecomiug acquainted
with the character of “Jennie Doans"
B«t I da proto*
against that coast oat gad iadioerim-
itrnte perusal of routanem in wiudi
oo many indulge. In the use of such
atiuiuionts I am an allocate nut of
fotof storfacaee, hut of temperance
principles. I am not afraid of an,
ocro-suwial glam of fiction, provided
iwraons be not constantly sipping at
it, aad prnviiled they be taking solid
food in Ar larger measure. For ererv
novel devoured, h-t there be eaten
and digested several books of his "
lory or of biography, several books
of voyages and trai els, several books
01 ftol riwyhaavand at, least a tamk
or two of newoce. If yon examine
some of our circulating libraries you
. 4.00 a.m.
. 9.40 a* m.
. i 1 40 % m.
. 1.40 p. ik.
. 4.20 p. in.
mm of North
iuifcwL
IIoHaras la tlie opposito of ain.
“Hia la the transgression uf the law *
Holiness ia obedience to the law. Sin
is the opposition of tlie heart ami
the life to God : holinesa is conform
ity to God, or os Christ is the image
of the invisible Oral, holiness is con
fortuity to Clirint In moral character,
“/fr war AWj, harm lent, wudejUrJ, ami
trparnir from sinner*.* He did mi
sin, raw was guile found in his mouth.
The spirit of his mlud, and the deeds
of Us life were all In perfect agtee
meat with the taw of righteoafocra
The love of God rulrtl ia his heart,
and he always did those things wbirh
were pleasing to kis Pother. All God's
people are predesrinntnl to lie cun
binned to Ike Image of his Hon. They
are to let the same mind be in them
wMch was iu Christ, and to walk as
be also walked : and they are holy
only in so fur as they nwemblc him
iu the temper of their mind, and iu
their outward curat net. Cwnfonuttr
to Christ iu moral rlmrui ter b hob
fidieter*. I suppose I will uot
■its the mark for, when I say that
every eomudcralde iuten-st of the
church, «f the State, of families and
af individuals, is suffering more at
the present time from iuAdehty aud
its near kinsman, practical atheism,
than from any other cause ;*or. per
haps, from all other moral causes,
■whatever. I do not mean that there
are more open mouthed, speculative
infidels or atheists of the school uf
Home, aud Voltaire, and Paine, aud
Hobbes, than there has bt*eu at uuy
previons period uf the lust three cere
tarini; but I do mean that there is
leu effts tive faith of tlie great truths
which infidelity bates sml assails
than at any time during that |ieri<sl.
The truth uf God's character, rather
thag of this existence ; the truth that
he, by and through Jesus Christ, is
the effective Administrator of the
ratire affairs uf the universe; that
he is constantly exercising a deter-
airing power ujion the cnrrvnt
events of time; that he orders, in
•inate detail, everything that takes
phtee, and diapi'iiscs awards and
pUBtohnteuts, setting up and pulling
down at pleasure; that he ix. holy
aad hates all sin, aud does cLunitise
men and nations for their sins ; that
his favor is essential to success iu
»ay enterprise, and that, that favor
Wttd be conciliated, by eonductiug
that enterprise according to his will;
that the Bible, which is the word of
h “profitable to direct," in
«v«y department of human activ-
'ty; and that tlie supremacy of Jesus
Christ aud his mediatorial functions,
aad Utility, both as the meritorious i
catae and medium of all divine
favor, most be practically acknowl
edged, h. order to a safe, prosperous,
and healthy gtate of affairs in this
world—are, almost all of them, mere j
"Pewlative notions, having almost
ao Atennining poorer over the great
Public aiind. Hence it is, I have no
doubt at all, that God is striving
with this laud by aoiuany judgments
**d terrible things—judgments, so
Palpable, aud ao unequivocal and
Pwutcd, that “a man, though a fool,
PMd not err therein.*
I repeat it, therefore, that helieren
j* **** great want of the times. It
*** very popular for some years
j*»*t to flout and rail at New Eng
land Puritanism, and to hold it np
p* a hideous monster of hypocricy
and every abouinntiou. That New
England Puritanism, like the rc-
every other section of this
ho* fofgely deteriorated, I
“fo^no doubt The wild olive, no
TT/**** h"® enffrafled upon the
**°ek, and as a consequeuoe,
Eitfov fruit is borne; bat at
.MI.X0 S. U}.
. IJL5 )» lu.
. 2.57 p, m.
. 5 07 p. m.
9.50 |i. Rly
ain* of Oi>-
truth, ami
tu JUM, li out
bid, CltatUi-
iflc, Ciuciiw
fond Wwt
-bl Trams.
[ c hecked tu
man; tt may be torture to do ao,
awl I toright get away from him
withuM v mint mg duly, bnt remain
tag in his society affords op|Mrtn
■Hy Aw akowtag the ehsrweter and
temper of the Christian *
Moreover, tko light of thr Hub
linn life mwy show whnt awivntioa
in. Mnlration in not to be kept an
wptkennrd in nn atabnater box. The
salvation provided for a* ia n sal
vation from sin, and tar tl*e prra-
tire mt Holiness. "Know ye not that
the nnrighteasm ahnll not inherit the
king*Him of God f The Christian's
lire mnkra Christ manitest. “When
thry saw them tbrv took knowledge
;ng Noimr,
rrtS.
intyStnL
«U<1 Ticket
the garners of wraith oral pride, and
hour aoon, and how tardy, ia ail
their acrumnlaled abundance am-
verted into rottewissw. let him
allow tbnr tried sagacity to be at
fault, oud bow easily one rash sperm
tattoo sweeps off, as with thr besom
of itaotructiou. the galas of a life
time, and writes them buukropt aud
iw-nullcss.
A man mwy be praad of his indus
try and eeouaray and skill; n nation
may exult over its enterprise sml
energy; bat aw not these, or the
qnolHtas that win bread, aad win tt
sbwndantly, thernsrlrw gift* of Htor
m. “la it not lie that giveth time
power to get wraith V The states
man or political economist, who
overlooks this palpable tenth, baa
master at pointing, aratfitarr. or ar-
i hitiv lare, makes manifest the com
I will take away the atony heart
oot of roar flrxh and I will give ran
an heart uf drah. And I will pat my
spirit within yon, and ranae yon to
walk in my statute*, and ye shall
keep my jsilgmsntw and do them.*
la this psrange ia n hrtet 8erai;t hm
uf that work of grace by which ato
nes* are converted and mart toed.
It to eminently the work af God ; o
work wbirh he promises gr at tonal v
to perform on bte bring inquired of
by the honor at Israel to do H for
them. If wr woo hi he part ah in of
that kriiaras mil hoot which wo con
not see the land, wo may spread oot
i) «!ie under
Bit a Wrpe
Lt »ge, Ims
witliout »
k rt*tn
[xi*t ra
t: therclM*
i more can-
pot be too
I u ch ota ; for
him to ids gUwhnu i'restnr, awd
ptonged tola sin and mtarry-. Ait
hm pawtertly aw Imrw to his oww
likeness. “Thnt wkirh is born af the
flesh to Atwh.* All are by nature
chridren uf wrath, conwiwil ia ata,
ami fhMtitnto of bottom*, tint has
con-opted their moral rirararter and
conatitntfon, awl brought them os
JiT tin* dominion of tafluenra* which
are Impair In their nntnra wild ten
deucy; awl thna K lUaqaaMflcs them
cially thr Father wkirh ia to heaven.
The candle is not pat under n bushel.
The Christina's light may be ob-
atrnrted by such things as (bear,
•fellowship with the works of dark
ness j* silence when he shoo hi speak
oat j intentional rourenlment of Ida
relation to t*krtat; abumee from the
post of duty, Jtc., Ac. Conduct
which to the reverwe of this gives
light, aad H to light wbtrh ran not
hail done tlie wrong; oral thnt it
was the way to escape from such 1
chastisements, to pdidMy con ft**
bis sins and implore the pardon of
God.
Was this superstition f Verily, it
looks very much like whnt the Bible
enjoins upou men in authority.-—
“Wherefore,!) King, let my comma ud
tic acceptable uoto thee, ami luvak
off thy wickral works by righteosu*-
ness, aud thine iniquities by ahowiug
mercy to the poor, if it may he a
lengthening of thy tranquility." (Don.
ivs 27.) Aud yet whnt would be
thought and said of the Judge now
who did as Judge Howel did 1 Wonld
he not bo laughed to scorn t True
it in, in those days there were some
absurd notions uud practice*. Judge
Hewel, and increase, and Cotton
Mother, believed in witchcraft, and
at one time thought it right to put
witches to death. But even aueh
absanlities aa these reveal con
sciences tally alive to the authority
of what thry understood to be the
win of God. This, indeed, waa the
great leading characteristic of those
times. Mrn’s consciences bowed to
the will of Gral as they thought it
was taught iu his word.
Now it to not generally So. There
are ten thousand tilings about which
men seem to think neither Gral nor
eon science has anything to do. Ia
ten thousand matters of affection, of
purpose, and of action, wo never
consult God nor eonactanec, bat fid-
low the sight of oar own eyes* The
great truth of a special l'rovideDcc—
that the current eveuts of any period
prom tar. and snyt “ITash me thor
oughly from mine iniquities, and
cleanse Mr from my tana. Create in
nr a c-lraa hrart, O God ; and rrnrw
n right spirit within me.* J.
seated io Script ore as bmrotag to-
ceonr to Ida net and drag. Ia it not
Ho that bestowed all the material
roost it neats of wealth, the ores and
gram kM in the wocanra of the earth,
mi aril oa the harvest* reaped flam
Ha field; sod to H not Hia Provi
deoee that diarwveca to man. m the
fitting age and hour, the treasures of
oaf too, and mtggetas all the inven
tion* of art I If lie bs forgotten ar
deffed, U to bat far him to speak, and
the blight oa tha wheat, or the
blasting of the root oa which n
whole people (beds, ahull send torn
toe, and perhaps pctattaoce through
wit Ha border*; «r leaving to a na
tion these stores, ho amr florae them.
shonld glorify oor Father. \V« are
made for thta. NT* are saved for
this. We are mheoni onto God.
We ate to think of uorurivwa oa
Tha Dying fialdiar.
“I’M toe down,* raid a wounded
aohlirr in the Crimea, to his comrade*
who were carrying him, “pat me
down; do not take thr trouble to
carry nm any further; I am dying.*
They |mt him ilowa and returned
to the field. A few minute* after an
officer raw the man weltering In hia
I dural, wad said to him, “ran 1 do
anything for yon f*
“Nothing, thank yon."
•Shall I get yon a little water I*
raid thr kind-hrarttsi officer.’
“No, thank yon ; f am dying"
“In there nothing Icon do for yont
Shall 1 write to yo*vr friends t*
“1 have no friends that yon ran
write to. Bnt there hi one thing for
which I wonld be mneh obliged. In
my knapsack yon will Aud a Testa
ment ; will yon open it at tho four
teetith chapter at John, and nenr the
rad of the chapter yon will find n
.serve God acceptably, or mjny the
happincm of his kingdom. “With
out holme**, no man shall see the
Lord.” “Except a man bo born
again, ho ran not see the ktogvtum of
God.”
Huhitens begin* to regeneration.
partK-ubtly
\A. Tbi*i»
let M be only in roar Bible, or hyma
book, ar any other thing. Be a
light, and take heed feta the light
that Is in you be dorkjmaa Be a
tight b the right plesr. Horne Is a
right place for the Christian to shine,
now nnlmppy is H when n man Is
nN hrigbtewaa In n rtaigbm* service
sad nil ffkrknew at home. The shop,
the coanting-honar, the rtrrte of
friend*, thr bnl of dnfamt, the
rhsmber of death, ore all right place*
few the chriattan'* tight to shine ; aod
•o U The place of Innocent enjoyment
and pore recreation, as well as the
church aad the Lord’s table. Make
» knit by
trouble c»c
.ie-threail,
jwinfT Ma-
“1 had rather be tack than Idle,"
«y« Seneca- Bnt the Christian who
tapHrs fate kBeoeos, na regard* “the
work oT Otith ond tabor of fore,*
•uffctalWim both evils at once: souic
airkneos of the son! has amitten him
already, and this akKhtalncss is the
symptom of Ha presence and power.
The malady must be one of rat ion*
type, too; for no aMght ailment,
rarely, coald chill into Inaction Ike
love and ardor that hojw to pour
their grntotal tide through eternity,
and that wait far the “word* which
H Is not poariNr for man to utter,"
u thr only vebide of adequate ex
prarahm to tbtar overflow of faHness.
Whnt avafls to Beena these, until
thrir cwreut runs cold and atuggiah
under the tee-crutfof formality, must
Mods Iff of moat grave aad malign
^TeTthe alofhftil Christian, then—
fitritef that he is rm-ehriattan so far
fifrth as fre is stotiiful—rat vigorous
srIT marchtflg on fi»t. to ferret *rait
habitual attention to exhibitions of
fictitious distress is in every view cal
culated to check our moral improve
ment. It diminishes that uneasiness
which we fee! at the sight of distress,
and which prompts ns to irtfeveit.
It strengthens that diggnst which
the loathsome concomitants of dis
tress exrite ia the mind, and which
prompts ns to avoid Hie sight of
misery; while at the same time It
haa no tendency Iff etatflm those
habits of active tmoffrotooce without
which the beta dispositions are ana
lean*—Dr. MeCath. , & ‘
any of out*
rlbeokJgi*
id vantag©
J versa that begins with -Pracc.’ Will
you n od It r
The officer did so, and rand the
words “Pence 1 leave with you, my
pence I give nnto yen: not ee the
world givoU, gtr* I onto yon. Let
not yonr heart be troubled, neither
tat It be afraid.'
“Thank yon, air,* said tbo dying
man. I have that pease; I em going
to tfata ItaTionr ; God U with me j I
want no more.* Thera we*n hia lata
words and his spirit nseendsd to to
j with Him he loved, ^ ;
• Be gratetal for torery aetof kind-
‘ oesa shown, and always to ranflv to
prove yonr gratHnde by doing alt
yon ran to help these who have
}done yon good.
v l a Z\ most thc ***■
^ faith of Puritanism, a* it existed
•* huiHlred years ago iu New Eng
w °dld to of incoieulabie bene-
1 tow, in bringing us buck to God,
»d filling us that reverence
light af tha wodd. Ton may be
railed to some doit place to to a
light that*, and yaw ora to go. If
the workTs light ta not with the
rhriatiuu, it in nowhere. It ia not
with men of actaame. Their power
ta ia showing na God's Warts; the
arj m, “flhow na the fbtaar " Xto
•.xtesmeu, not with acholart, U
they have some light lo gifffe
light thnt ia oearatinl to the wo
with the Christian. Itm the lq
life. “ Tt are fhe liyht af the «r*r
Thera is not a grace thnt can
adorn the Christian character hot
you will have need to appear iu at
some time at other.
stoat ho line**. Thta new amttoa to the
with begiuuing of religion in the heart.
The wort, in its commencement, is