"Return Unto Thy Rest": A Sermon by Charles Wadsworth

George Burrowes once said of Charles Wadsworth (1814-1882) — known particularly today to students of the life of Emily Dickinson — in his book Impressions of Dr. Wadsworth as a preacher that “His preaching is eminently practical. It shows great shrewdness and penetration into the heart and into the motives operating in daily life.” There are many examples of this in his four volumes of Sermons. One such practical example appears in the fourth volume, posthumously published in 1905: “Return Unto Thy Rest.”

The Psalmist in Psalm 116:7 wrote “Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee.” To return home after a long and hard journey is joyous and serves as cause for thanksgiving. After a season of adversity, how welcome is rest and peace? Although there is, as Wadsworth notes, no permanent rest for the Christian on this earth, there are times given to us during this pilgrimage that allow us to reflect, take note of and give God the glory for his mercies, and to renew our strength for the days ahead. We rest so that we can continue to go forward in life.

Physical rest is precious indeed, but spiritual rest in God is of the utmost value. Thus, the Psalmist primarily refers “to Jehovah, the soul’s great refuge and rest.” As we journey through this world to our heavenly abode, it is right to meditate upon the place of our eternal rest. There is a symbolism in the return from the captivity of Babylon to which this Psalm may have reference. After the great struggle of Christian life, heavenly rest awaits the saint, which is a great encouragement to our souls.

”In its reference unto God's own dear children it is altogether comforting and enrapturing. Oh ! blessed homegoing! when the rest is in God! And as emblemized in this record, such a home-going is mortal life. Every Christian is on the returnward to the Heavenly Zion, and the significant and joyous emblem is to-day all around us….And so setting himself to bring all the ineffable glories of heaven into conditions of sweet familiar life, so that death might seem a home-going, a ‘return to our rest.’…Here we are only pilgrims; there we shall be at home. And good as may seem these mortal dwellings, so that from all the grandeurs of broader landscapes and princelier mansions we come back to them gladly, yet for each redeemed spirit there is a brighter home in heaven.”

This is a sermon worth reading if you are a weary Christian who longs to see the light at the end of a tunnel, or if you have climbed to the top of a mountain after a time in the valley of the shadow. Take heart, then, dear Christian. God has rest in store for his faithful ones. And he gives us a taste of that rest in the seasons of life when we need to feel it. The Lord has been good and gracious. So give thanks to God and keep your eyes heavenward.

Cortland Van Rensselaer on Numbering Our Days

In January of 1860, an article appeared in The Presbyterian Magazine by its editor, Cortlandt Van Rensselaer, Sr., and it was included posthumously in his Essays and Discourses, Practical and Historical (1861), edited by his son, Cortlandt Van Rensselaer, Jr.. Titled “On Numbering Our Days,” it was based on the text from Moses in Psalm 90:12: “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”

It is a meditation on the brevity of life and our need, consequently, to seek after wisdom. The time that is given to us is precious. He highlights especially the value of Sabbath-time, noting that 52 Sabbaths, or roughly seven weeks, each year amount to a special opportunity to glorify God. Are we making use of the time given to us? Are we improving the opportunities, temptations, afflictions and experiences of our lives consistent with our purpose on this earth as we look ahead to our permanent abode in heaven?

Our days indeed are numbered, but we do not know the number. Seven months after his meditation on numbering our days was published, Cortlandt Van Rensselaer, age 52, entered into his eternal rest. One does not know when that final numbered day will come, but Van Rensselaer’s meditation on the wisdom of Moses should ever be before our eyes. Take time to consider his counsel to number our days and apply our hearts unto wisdom.

”God has made our days long enough and short enough; certain enough and uncertain enough ; with joys enough and sorrows enough, to adapt life to the purposes of his grace and providence. May he, in his infinite mercy, so teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”

Alexander MacWhorter on Family Worship

Alexander MacWhorter (1734-1807) was an important leader in the early American Presbyterian Church. He served as a chaplain during the American War of Independence; served as President of Liberty Hall Academy in Charlotte, North Carolina; ministered to the First Presbyterian Church of Newark, New Jersey for many years; was a founder of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (PCUSA); and served as a trustee of Princeton for 35 years.

Many of his sermons were collected into two volumes and published in 1803 under the title A Series of Sermons, Upon the Most Important Principles of Our Holy Religion, each volume contained 42 sermons.

The second volume contains sermons on prayer in general, on private prayer and on family worship. We draw your attention to his sermon on family worship because it is a duty just as important in our day as in his, and even more prone to be neglected in our day than his.

MacWhorter’s text is Joshua 24:15: “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” He begins by reinforcing the Scriptural basis for this duty: “If it be the duty of Christians to pray everywhere proper and convenient, to continue in prayer, be instant therein, and to pray always with all prayer, and that without ceasing, these things clearly show, that at all times we should possess a praying frame of heart, and be ready on all fit occasions to perform devotional service. Then it evidently follows that they ought to worship God in their families.” Many examples from both the Old and New Testaments are given of this practice. And the warning from Jeremiah 10:25 that God will pour out his fury upon the nations and families that call not upon his name is highlighted.

The reader is reminded of both of the benefits of family worship and the unhappy consequences that proceed from failure to do so. He quotes Richard Baxter, “A holy, well-governed family is the preparative to a holy and well-governed church” and adds that “When we begin the day with God, there is ground to hope we will ‘be in his fear all the day long.’” Encouragement is given to the heads of households charged with this duty. MacWhorter reminds us again and again that great blessings are in store for the families that do call upon his name.

Take time to read this sermon by Alexander MacWhorter (Sermon IV, “The Duty of Family Prayer,” in Vol. 2 of A Series of Sermons). It will remind you why you undertake this daily devotional practice or else it will encourage you to take up this daily devotional practice. It is never too late to begin. God seeks families to worship and praise him, as this remarkable colonial Presbyterian minister teaches us.

James Kennedy on the Song of Solomon

James Kennedy (1818-1898) was born in Northern Ireland and ministered in the Reformed Presbyterian of Ireland for many years before moving to America in 1870 and assuming the pastorate of the Fourth Reformed Presbyterian Church of New York City, which he served until 1894.

Perhaps his most notable work is his study of the Song of Solomon: Christ in the Song: An Explanation of all the Figurative Descriptions of Christ in the Song of Solomon (1890). Like George Burrowes, he takes the allegorical interpretation of the SoS.

In this volume, he examines specifically particular figurative descriptions of Christ used by Solomon in some detail. The table of contents illustrates his approach:

• The Principle on which the Song of Songs is interpreted

• The Excellency of the Knowledge of Christ

• Our Lord's Complexion

• Our Lord's Pre-eminence

• Our Lord's Head of Gold

• Our Lord's Bushy Raven Locks

• Our Lord's Dove Eyes

• Our Lord's Aromatic and Brilliant Cheeks

• Our Lord's Lily Lips Dropping Myrrh

• Our Lord's Jewelled Hands

• Our Lord's Ivory, Sapphire-set Body

• Our Lord's Marble Limbs in Sockets of Gold

• Our Lord's Countenance as Lebanon with its Cedars

• Our Lord's Mouth Most Sweet

• Our Lord Altogether Lovely

• Our Lord our Beloved and Friend

This, then, is Kennedy’s aim in this exposition: “Our chief object in preparing [this] is a desire to exalt the ‘Glorious One’ of whom they treat, make him better known, endear him more to the children of God, and attract others to him as the great object of their confidence and love.” May his study of the SoS stir us up thus to more dearly love our precious Savior.

T.B. Balch on the Agency of Providence in Small Events

Have you heard it said — or perhaps said it yourself — “That was providential!"? We often apply this expression to cases where the extraordinary providence of God is evident. But are not the small things in life as well as the great all part of God’s providence?

Thomas Bloomer Balch explores this thought within The Ringwood Discourses under the title “The Agency of Providence in Small Events” using Matt. 10:29 as his text: “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one shall not fall to the ground without your Father.”

As Balch notes, the glory of God was promoted by Galileo looked upward to the heavens to take of celestial bodies with his telescope; but God would be equally glorified had he instead looked downward through a microscope at the small, invisible things all around us. Each has its meaningful place within God’s creation and providential plan.

In the providence of God, as Balch shows, “from diminutive incidents, great results have arisen.” Thus, our view of providence ought not to be restricted to those great results, but should encompass the little things as a marvelously-fashioned chain that connects all.

In this way, God is most glorified, when we see His hand in the mundane, the accidental, the seemingly inconsequential, as well as the earth-shaking and life-changing events that mark our lives and mark history.

Peruse this discourse by Balch and follow along as he helps us to trace God’s providence from the small to the great. His insights are worthy of consideration. May God be glorified as we better understand what His providence means for us all, even in every-day things.

Thoughts on Literature by Thomas Bloomer Balch

“Some have well and truly observed that the interest of religion and good literature hath risen and fallen together.” – Increase Mather

“Visit many good books, but live in the Bible.” — Charles Spurgeon

These two maxims were certainly taken to heart by Thomas Bloomer Balch, a Southern Presbyterian (1793-1878). Son of the well-known Georgetown Presbyterian minister, Stephen Bloomer Balch, both men were graduates of Princeton. T.B. Balch was ordained to the ministry in 1816, and served pastorates in Georgetown; Maryland; and northern Virginia. Carrying forward Princeton’s goal of providing for “an able and faithful ministry,” Balch did much to promote a love of pious learning (“Daniel Webster said of Dr. Balch that he was the most learned man that he had ever known,” Thomas Willing Balch, Balch Genealogica, p. 364). He contributed articles both to the Southern Literary Messenger and The Christian World. He wrote Christianity and Literature: In a Series of Discourses (1826). Also, one of his Ringwood Discourses (1850) is titled “An Outline of Christian Reading.”

Consider the table of contents for Christianity and Literature:

• Discourse I: The Temptations of Literature

• Discourse II: The Literature of the Scriptures

• Discourse III: Obstacles to the Piety of Literary Men

• Discourse IV: Christianity Miscellaneously Applied

• Discourse V: The Relation of Christianity to Polite Literature

• Discourse VI: The Superior Value of Christianity to Literature

• Discourse VII: Humility an Ornament to Literary Men

• Discourse VIII: The Church a Field for Literary Men

Balch’s “Outline for Christian Reading” was written with the aim of guiding Christians in the choice of their evening or Sabbath afternoon reading. He encourages the Christian reader to consulate the best commentaries on Scripture (“for individuals, no commentary is to be preferred before old Matthew Henry’s”). To Balch, the study of the early church was important, but he cautions against delving into the early church fathers directly; he does commend Samuel Miller’s Presbyterianism the Truly Primitive and Apostolic Constitution of the Church of Christ. He recommends histories of the Reformation, and Robert Baird on the Waldenses. Among the great Christian classics, he commends Richard Baxter, A Call to the Unconverted and The Saints’ Everlasting Rest; Joseph Alleine, An Alarm to the Unconverted; and John Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress. Further, he highlights the writings of Anglican divines, Scottish Covenanters, French Huguenots, and Seceding Scottish divines, such as Thomas Boston, and Ralph and Ebenezer Erskine. And he commends the reading of Christian biographies, such as those of Thomas Halyburton, Robert Leighton, Thomas Boston, Thomas Scott, Henry Martyn, John Calvin, David Brainerd and many others. Additionally, for Balch, who was a poet himself, Christian poetry is to be included in the reading list - for example, he cites James Grahame on the Sabbath. (A suitor to his daughter Julia, E.P. Miller, was inspired to write Ringwood Manse: Pastoral Poem (1887), as a tribute to T.B. Balch.)

“This, my Christian friend, is a reading age,” Balch wrote in 1850. And hence, the Christian has every reason to “give attendance to reading” (I Tim. 4:10, his text for this particular discourse). With a view toward extending his usefulness to the kingdom of God, equipping himself in defense of the faith, discerning error from truth, and promoting the glory of God and the happiness of man, the reading of edifying literature is a necessary component of the Christian life.

As one of his recommended writers, Richard Baxter, said, "It is not the reading of many books to make a man wise or good, but the well-reading of a few, could he be sure to have the best." Balch has given principles and specific guidance to attain this goal, which we would do well to heed even in this internet age. Log College Press very much shares this vision.

There is Another King, One Jesus: A.A. Hodge

After observing the events in Washington, D.C. this week, the words of warning from the 19th century Presbyterian theologian A.A. Hodge come vividly to mind:

In the name of your own interests I plead with you; in the name of your treasure-houses and barns, of your rich farms and cities, of your accumulations in the past and your hopes in the future, — I charge you, you never will be secure if you do not faithfully maintain all the crown-rights of Jesus the King of men. In the name of your children and their inheritance of the precious Christian civilization you in turn have received from your sires; in the name of the Christian Church, — I charge you that its sacred franchise, religious liberty, cannot be retained by men who in civil matters deny their allegiance to the King. In the name of your own soul and its salvation; in the name of the adorable Victim of that bloody and agonizing sacrifice whence you draw all your hopes of salvation; by Gethsemane and Calvary, — I charge you, citizens of the United States, afloat on your wide wild sea of politics, There is Another King, One Jesus: The Safety Of The State Can Be Secured Only In The Way Of Humble And Whole-souled Loyalty To His Person and of Obedience His Law. (Popular Lectures on Theological Themes, p. 287)

A Word on Patience from J.W. Alexander

The life of a Christian is one of tribulation and suffering in this vale of tears. Yet, the joy of the Spirit of the Lord is our strength (Neh. 8:10). And therefore, we may “glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience” (Rom. 5:3).

James W. Alexander wrote a volume in 1852 titled simply Patience that is designed to help Christians better understand this patience to which we are called in the midst of tribulation. How is it that patience may have her perfect work (James 1:4, the verse upon which Alexander’s work is based)? Here is a good word from a wise pastor on what Christian patience really is, which we would all do well to consider.

In one view the suffering life of many Christians, and those the best, is hard to understand, for it seems at war not only with God's fatherly goodness, but with his gracious covenant. (Read Jer. xii. 12, and Psa. lxxiii.) But we must never lose our hold of two cardinal pillars, the very Jachin and Boaz of our temple: (1) that happiness in this world is not the chief good; the affirming of which is the radical error of all the common public economy, and much of the philanthropy of the day; and (2) that the education, or discipline, or training, or perfecting of a soul is so great and divine a work, that it is worth a lifetime of distress; so that no redeemed saint will look back on the longest sufferings of the present life as more than the scarcely perceptible moment before an eternity of holy delight. Angels look down and see poor sin-wounded creatures fighting against their chief medicine. As has been said, God does not afflict nor grieve the children of men "willingly," arbitrarily, out of any love to see them suffer, or any indifference to their sorrows; but with a wise and definite end, which will be revealed hereafter. The entire process of Christian endurance, pain-bearing, or patience, from beginning to end, in all its connection of parts, is more deeply interesting to one who could read it, than any drama ever enacted on the stage. So it will one day appear, when not only the particular sufferer, but all the company of God's elect in heaven, shall look back and see many a mystery of providence resolved. They will rise to higher admiration of the divine plan, when they shall be instructed why Joseph had his youth oppressed by cruelty, exile and imprisonment; why David was a persecuted fugitive, and a bereaved father; why the apostles were as sheep appointed to the slaughter; why the early Christians were mowed down by the sword; and why to this day they that will live godly suffer persecution. They will recall ten thousand cases, (for eternity has neither limits nor weariness,) in which some of the best of men have lain under pangs, or in languishing from sore diseases; or journeyed through a valley of gloom and depression; or been marks for arrows from the bow of wicked fellow-creatures, and more malignant demons; and why others, with hearts sickened by hope deferred, waited years and almost lifetimes without seeing the accomplishment of their strongest desires. When these several circles are complete, and every covering removed, and God's light thrown on dark places of the spiritual temple, it will appear, that this very divine product, to wit, holy patience, has been as dear to the great Architect of the Church, as is the costliest sculpture to the most devoted enthusiast in art. And therefore we are exhorted not merely to have patience, but to let patience have her perfect work.

Henry Rowland Weed's 19th Century Presbyterian Study Guide

Among the 19th century American Presbyterian works on the Westminster Confession of Faith, one by Henry Rowland Weed (1789-1870) stands out: Questions on the Confession of Faith and Form of Government of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America (1842).

In question-and-answer format, Weed’s study guide tackles both the Confession of Faith and the Form of Government of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, delving into both its ecclesiological history and principles. Further, there is a brief section on admission to the sacrament of baptism. His questions are not always followed by an answer — sometimes the reader is just meant perhaps to go back to the source document, or discuss, or ponder. Sometimes his questions are answered with a simple Scripture reference. And at other times, the answers given are more full.

An extract from the section on the Confession relating to the chapter on God is given as a sample:

Q. 1. Are there more Gods than One? Deut. vi. 4. 1 Cor. viii. 4.
Q. 2. What is God? John iv. 24.
Q. 3. Why do the Scriptures ascribe bodily members and organs unto God?
A. It is an accommodation to our weakness, to express those perfections and acts, of which those bodily parts are known emblems: as hands, of power; and eyes and ears, of knowledge. Q. 4. How is God distinguished, in Scripture, from idols? 1 Thes. i. 9. latter part.
Q. 5. What are some of the attributes of God? Ex. xxxiv. 6, 7.
Q. 6. Are the divine attributes really distinct from God himself, or separable one from another? A. Certainly not; such ideas would be inconsistent with the infinite perfection of the divine nature.
Q. 7. How are the attributes of God commonly divided ? A. The most commonly received division is, into Communicable and Incommunicable.
Q. 8. What are the Communicable attributes? A. Those of which some resemblance may be found in creatures ; as wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, truth.
Q. 9. What are the Incommunicable attributes? A. Those, of which there is no resemblance in the creature ; as Independence, Infinity, Eternity, Unchangeableness.

From the section on the Form of Government, another sample extract pertaining to ruling elders is given:

Q. 1. What is the office of the Ruling Elder? 1 Tim. v. 17.
Q. 2. By whom are Ruling Elders to be chosen?
Q. 3. How is this office designated in Scripture? 1 Cor. xii. 28. 1 Tim. v. 17.
Q. 4. How are they distinguished from Pastors? 1 Tim. v. 17.
Q. 5. While inferior in rank to Ministers of the word, have they an equal vote in the Judicatories of the Church ? A. Yes.
Q. 6. What are the duties of this office? A. Excepting the administration of the word, and sacraments, they are the same as those of the pastoral office. Heb. xiii. 17. James v. 14.
Q. 7. By what arguments does it appear that this office ought to be maintained in the Church? A. 1. Christian Churches were formed after the the model of the Jewish Synagogue, in which there was a class of officers of this kind. 2. It appears from a careful examination of Rom. xii. 6—8. 1 Cor. xii. 28, and other passages already referred to, that there was such a class of men in the Churches organized by the Apostles. 3. The early history of the Church; and 4. The necessity of the case.

Appended to this exposition of the standards of the Presbyterian Church is Ashbel Green’s Questions and Counsel for Young Converts. Altogether, Weed’s work is a valuable 19th century compendium of information about what the Presbyterian Church believes and how it is to be governed. Download it here for your own edification, study and reference.

He Shines in All That's Fair - Maltbie D. Babcock

Presbyterian minister Maltbie Davenport Babcock (1858-1901) lived a short life on this earth, all of his works were published posthumously, but what a treasure one can find in reading them.

One of his most famous compositions was originally written as a poem (“My Father’s World”), but was later, in 1915, set to music as a hymn (“This Is My Father’s World”) by his friend Franklin L. Sheppard. First published in Thoughts For Every-Day Living from the Spoken and Written Words of Maltbie Davenport Babcock (1901), it is a beautiful expression of the wonder of God’s creation and a reminder that God is on the throne over this world. It was inspired in part by the view from his regular hikes along the Niagara Escarpment. Before leaving on such hikes he would often tell his secretary, “I’m going to see my Father’s world.”

The original poem is comprised of sixteen stanzas of four verses each. Sheppard’s hymn-version contains three stanzas of six verses each. Sheppard’s version is given below, but take time to peruse the original poem in Thoughts For Every-Day Living, which is a remarkable collection of devotional thoughts filled with many other precious gems. One line from Babcock’s poem is also highlighted in 2001 book by Richard Mouw, He Shines in All That’s Fair: Culture and Common Grace.

1 This is my Father’s world,
and to my listening ears
all nature sings, and round me rings
the music of the spheres.
This is my Father’s world;
I rest me in the thought
of rocks and trees, of skies and seas;
his hand the wonders wrought.

2 This is my Father’s world;
the birds their carols raise;
the morning light, the lily white,
declare their Maker’s praise.
This is my Father’s world;
he shines in all that’s fair.
In the rustling grass I hear him pass;
he speaks to me everywhere.

3 This is my Father’s world;
oh, let me not forget
that, though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the Ruler yet.
This is my Father’s world;
why should my heart be sad?
The Lord is King, let the heavens ring!
God reigns; let the earth be glad.

Two Companion Books on the Christian Life by Joseph B. Stratton

New Jersey-born Joseph Buck Stratton, Sr. (1815-1903), after graduating Princeton and practicing law for three years, spent the next five decades in the pastoral ministry in Natchez, Mississippi. A prolific writer, two companion volumes published by him in the 1880’s show the warmth of his pastoral ministry. Both volumes were written as aids to those within the scope of his local pastorate, but have a wider and long-lasting sphere of influence.

The first is Confessing Christ: A Manual for Inquirers in Religion (1880). This is a work designed to persuade men to come to Christ, to profess his name and to embrace the life of a true believer. Also, he addresses matters which can be stumbling-blocks to the new believer, such as the tendency to fall into the pit of unnecessary theological controversies early in the Christian walk or “to ‘look back’ after you have been led to ‘put your hand to the plough,’” thus proving oneself unfit for the kingdom of God. It is a work of great practical value and encouragement to take up one’s cross and confess Christ.

The second is Following Christ: A Manual for Church-Members (1884). In this volume, Stratton helps those who have confessed the name of Christ to come to understand the necessity of joining with the local body of believers, and following the rules of Christian community, including worship in the public, family and private spheres, as well as what it means to live a religious life outside the church. Again, this is a work of practical value coming from a writer with decades of experience in the pastoral ministry.

These two books were appreciated by Stratton’s original audience, and they are worthy of study and consideration by a 21st century audience as well. Take time to download them and ponder the wisdom of a 19th century under-shepherd who had a heart for his flock to lead them in confessing and following the Great Shepherd.

The Pseudonyms of Samuel Miller

Students of the writings of Samuel Miller (1769-1850) have several places to go to find a bibliography of his writings.

• Jeremiah Chamberlain (1794-1851), “Catalog of Books by the Rev’d Samuel Miller D.D.” (n.d.) in Papers, Presbyterian Historical Society;

• William Buell Sprague, “List of Dr. Miller’s Publications” in A Discourse Commemorative of the Rev. Samuel Miller, D.D. (1850);

• Miller’s granddaughter, Margaret Miller, prepared his bibliography for The Princeton Theological Review (Vol. IX, No. 4, October 1911);

• Wayne Sparkman of the PCA Historical Center prepared an annotated bibliography for The Confessional Presbyterian Journal (Vol. 1, 2005); and

• Nicholas T. Batzig prepared a bibliography for Feeding on Christ (Sept. 11, 2012).

Miller’s writings are voluminous, and Log College Press is working to add as many as possible to the site. Careful distinctions have to be made between the writings of Samuel Miller the Elder, and his son, Samuel Miller, Jr. (1816-1883); Samuel Miller of the German Reformed Church (1815-1873); Samuel Miller of Glasgow (1810-1881); etc. Some of our Miller’s writings, it may be observed, were published under pseudonyms. They are varied and curious.

• The Doctrine and Order of the Waldenses. Signed, Historicus. Five articles in The Virginia Evangelical and Literary Magazine, pp. 259-264, 297-301, 370-374, 514-520, of 1820, and pp. 57-63 of 1821. Richmond.

• Open Letter on the observance of Christmas. Signed Biblicus.  Commercial  Advertiser, Dec. 29, 1825. New York.

• Remarks on a Certain Extreme in Pursuing the Temperance Cause. Signed, A Friend to Temperance Societies. Ibid., vol. II, 1830, pp. 242-250. Philadelphia.

• Open Letter on Voluntary Societies, signed Pacificus. The New York Observer, Dec. 3, 1837.

• Micae Ecclesiasticae, signed Biblicus. Three open letters. The Presbyterian, Feb. 9, 16, 23, 1839. Philadelphia and New York.

• Open Letter "To T L, Esquire," signed Apostolus. The Presbyterian, Feb. 29, 1840. Philadelphia and New York.

• Licentiates. An open letter, signed Clericus. The Presbyterian, May 21, 1842.

• Rights of Ruling Elders. An open letter, signed Canonicus. The Presbyterian, May 21, 1842. Philadelphia and New York.

• Rights of Ruling Elders. A series of five open letters, signed Calvin.  The  Presbyterian, Nov. 26, Dec. 3, 10, 17, 24, 1842. Philadelphia and New York.

• Remarks on Clericus. An open letter, signed S.M. The Presbyterian, Feb. 19, 1848. New York and Philadelphia.

• The Bishop and the Bible, or, the nail driven home, by “Old Covenanting and True Presbyterian” and Samuel Miller (Albany [NY]: Munsell & Rowland, 1858), 35pp.; 23cm. Under the pseudonym, some 60 works, published between 1714-1981, can be located; the section attributed to “Samuel Miller” is an outline of a sermon on women’s rights, or rather, the rights of women in all ages, stations and nations. Given the date of publication, the work is more likely authored by some other Miller, perhaps his son. Copies of this particular work were located at the Upper Hudson Library System and at the Wisconsin Historical Society.

These pseudonyms tell us something about the writer, and the emphasis he wished to place on particular writings. The full survey of Samuel Miller’s written corpus has yet to be assembled, but we are working at Log College Press, along with others, to advance that worthy project.

Three Indian Catechisms by American Presbyterian Ministers

The Reformed Faith has long been a missional faith, and America’s early Presbyterians had an interest in propagating the Gospel among the Native Americans. The first Presbyterian minister America sent as a missionary to Indians on Long Island was Rev. Azariah Horton (1715-1777).

Another early Presbyterian minister, Rev. Abraham Pierson (c. 1611-1678), composed a catechism for Algonquian Native Americans, in the Quiripi language of Connecticut and Long Island, under the title Some Helps For the Indians. The catechism was designed to show them that there was one God, and then to teach them about Gospel of Christ. It is an interesting piece, and a helpful one in understanding how Catechisms have been used to help people of every tribe and tongue to understand the Gospel of Christ. Like John Eliot’s A Primer or Catechism in the Massachusetts Indian Language (1654), Pierson’s catechism borrows much material from William Perkins’ The Foundation of Christian Religion Gathered Into Six Principles (1558).

In the 19th century, Stephen Return Riggs (1812-1883) served as a missionary to the Sioux or Dakota Indians of the Great Plains. He did much to translate the Scriptures into their language, and published a Dakota Catechism as well. His autobiography — Mary and I, or Forty Years with the Sioux — is a fascinating account of his missionary endeavors.

Additionally, Amory Nelson Chamberlin (1824-1894) is worthy of mention. In the War Between the States, Chamberlin served as a scout and quartermaster for Brigadier General Stand Watie, a Cherokee leader who fought for the Confederacy (together with his brother Buck Watie, later known as Elias Boudinot, Stand Watie had earlier written articles for The Cherokee Phoenix, the first Native American newspaper). After the War, Chamberlin followed in his father’s and grandfather’s steps to become a Presbyterian missionary to the Cherokee Indians, who typically preached his sermons bilingually. After persistent requests, he received a press which used the Cherokee font (the written alphabet was developed by Sequoyah only in 1821) and he used that to publish such valuable works as The Shorter Catechism With Proofs in Cherokee (1892), and the Cherokee Pictorial Book: With Catechism and Hymns (1888), a partial PDF of which may be found at Log College Press.

Catechisms have long been a useful tool to inculcate knowledge, and these Quiripi, Dakota and Cherokee catechisms provide a window into the lengths to which American Presbyterian missionaries have gone historically to help Native Americans to better understand Scriptural truths in their own languages. For further study on 19th century American Presbyterian missionary labors on behalf of the Indians, see Michael C. Coleman, Presbyterian Missionary Attitudes toward American Indians, 1837-1893.

The Storm Is in His Hand

William Cowper once famously wrote:

God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm.
…
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break
In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.

Samuel Jones Cassels, whose pastorates ranged from Norfolk, Virginia to Savannah, Georgia, was a 19th century Presbyterian minister and poet who was acquainted with coastal storms. The imagery of tempests figures often in his poetry. In fact, his gravestone in Midway, Georgia was badly damaged by a storm in 2012.

Like Cowper, he knew who was sovereign over the wind and the waves. In Providence he wrote:

Himself an ocean wide of purest bliss
…
O’er Ocean’s face He drives the storm along,
And at his bottom deep He counts his pearls;
…
The storm that raged He held in firmest grasp,
And to it gave its power, and course, and end.

The Providence of God is Our Consolation

Some words of wisdom from two Princeton men on how a right understanding of and faith in the Providence of God is a great comfort to us amidst the troubles and trials of our daily pilgrimage in this earth.

“A firm faith in the universal providence of God is the solution of all earthy troubles. It is almost equally true that a clear and full apprehension of the universal providence of God is the solution of most theological problems.” — B.B. Warfield, “God’s Providence Over All” in Selected Shorter Writings of Benjamin B. Warfield, Vol. 1, p. 111

*******

”Men are prone to think of God, says the excellent Melancthon, as of a shipbuilder, who, when he has completed his vessel, launches and leaves it. In opposition to this error of the Epicureans and Stoics, we are to be reminded that God never abandons his work, but is as much with it the last day as the first. This governing presence of God with all his creatures and all their actions, is called Providence, from a Latin word which means to see beforehand….

The view which we here take of Providence, regards the universe of mind and matter, not as a machine, wound up and left to run its career of centuries, without the Maker’s care, but as requiring and receiving at every moment his mighty influence, a stream of power perpetually proceeding from the Godhead. The very essence of God is, therefore, everlastingly present with every atom and every spirit. This is exactly accordant to those places in Scripture where God is spoken of as the universal cause, and is said to do those things which are done, secondarily, by creatures. Ps. 104:8, 30. And to this is referred the supporting of life in the most insignificant birds. Matt. 10:29. Enough has been said in regard to this primary acting of divine Providence, in preserving all things. How God does this it would be madness for us to inquire. The simplicity of the divine acts causes them to elude our faculties. He wills it, and that is enough; just as at the beginning he willed creation. What we chiefly need is to bear this in mind, with daily faith, awe, and thankfulness. Such is God’s preserving of the creature, as a part of Providence….

It is our privilege, not only to hope in Providence, with regard to the lesser affairs of life, but to recognize it — to see God’s hand in our daily walk, with wonder and love. ‘They that observe providences, shall have providences to observe.’ The simple faith of the patriarchs saw God’s hand in every thing that befell them; and so might we. I appeal to aged and observant Christians, whether the happiest persons they ever knew, have not been those who were most ready to eye God in all the events of life: in health and sickness, in business, and in family occurrences. Let us hope in Providence. Let us hope mightily. ‘But I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more.’ Do days look dark? O remember, every cloud is governed by the God of truth and the God of power. The house in which you dwell is not without a master.” — James Waddel Alexander, “The Providence of God a Ground of Consolation” in Consolation, pp. 37, 40-41, 54-55

It's Never Night in Heaven

Louis FitzGerald Benson was not only, as a scholar and an historian, "America's foremost hymnologist," he was also a poet in his own right. This composition is from his 1897 volume titled Hymns and Verses. It is a sweet meditation on Revelation 22:5. 

"And There Shall Be No Night There"

THERE'S a red burst of dawn, and a white light of noon,
[And the hues of the rainbow are seven;]
But the best thing of all, when the dark comes so soon,
Is to know that it's ne'er night in Heaven.

There's a break in the clouds, and a sheen on the rain,
[And the hues of the rainbow are seven;]
But the sweetest of lights that can brighten our pain
Is to know that it's ne'er night in Heaven.

There's a calm' of the heart through the long after- noon,
[And the gifts of the Spirit are seven,]
When there floats on the dusk, like a leaf-whispered tune,
"Did you know that it's ne'er night in Heaven?"

There's a gleam through the night of a throne set afar,
[And the hues of its rainbow are seven;]
But it stands not so sure as God's promises are. Who has said,
"There is no night in Heaven."

Has God Given Rules for the Government of His Church and for Worship?

B.B. Warfield addresses a fundamental question about whether God has given rules for how His church is to governed and how He is to be approached in worship in an address titled "The Mystery of Godliness" in Faith and Life, pp. 375-378. Taking I Tim. 8:16 for his text ("And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness"), Warfield responds to the idea that God has given no such direction. 

It is of the more importance that we should note this, that there is a disposition abroad to treat all matters of the ordering of public worship and even of the organization of the Church as of little importance. We even hear it said about us with wearisome iteration that the New Testament has no rules to give, no specific laws to lay down, in such matters. Matters of church government and modes of worship, we are told, are merely external things, of no sort of significance; and the Church has been left free to find its own best modes of organization and worship, varying, doubtless, in the passage of time and in the Church's own pas sage from people to people of diverse characters and predilections. No countenance is lent to such sentiments by the passage before us; or, indeed, by these Pastoral Epistles, the very place of which in the Canon is a standing rebuke to them; or, in fine, by anything in the New Testament. 

On the contrary, you will observe, Paul's point of view is precisely the opposite one. He takes his start from the inestimable importance of the Gospel. Thence he argues to the importance of the Church which has been established in the world, so to speak, as the organ of the Gospel — the pillar and buttress on which its purity and its completeness rest. Thence again he argues to the proper organization and ordering of the Church that it may properly perform its high functions. And, accordingly, he gives minute prescriptions for the proper organization and ordering of the Church — prescribing the offices that it should have and the proper men for these offices, and descending even into the details of the public services. His position, compressed into a nutshell, is simply this: the function of the Church as guardian of the truth, that glorious truth which is the Gospel, is so high and important that it cannot be left to accident or to human caprice how this Church should be organized and its work ordered. Accordingly, he, the inspired Apostle — "an Apostle of Christ Jesus according to the commandment of God our Saviour and Christ, our Hope" — has prescribed in great detail, touching both organization and order, how it is necessary that men should conduct themselves in the household of God — which is nothing other than the Church of the Living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. In other words, it is God's Church, not man's, and God has created and now sustains it for a function; and He has not neglected to order it for the best performance of this function.

To imagine that it is of little importance how the Church shall be organized and ordered, then, is manifestly to contradict the Apostle. To con tend that no organization is prescribed for it is to deny the total validity of the minute directions laid down in these epistles. Nay, this whole point of view is as irrational as it is unbiblical. One might as well say that it makes no difference how a machine is put together — how, for example, a typewriter is disposed in its several parts, — because, forsooth, the typewriter does not exist for itself, but for the manuscript which is produced by or rather through it. Of course the Church does not exist for itself — that is, for the beauty of its organization, the symmetry of its parts, the majesty of its services; it exists for its "product" and for the "truth" which has been committed to it and of which it is the support and stay in the world. But just on that account, not less but more, is it necessary that it be properly organized and equipped and administered — that it may function properly. Beware how you tamper with any machine, lest you mar or destroy its product; beware how you tamper with or are indifferent to the Divine organization and ordering of the Church, lest you thereby mar its efficiency or destroy its power, as the pillar and ground of the truth. Surely you can trust God to know how it is best to organize His Church so that it may perform its functions in the world. And surely you must assert that His ordering of the Church, which is His, is necessary if not for the "esse," certainly for the "bene esse" of the Church.

Samuel Miller on Spiritual Weapons for the Christian Soldier

In an 1826 sermon delivered at the Second Presbyterian Church in Baltimore, Maryland, on the occasion of the installation of John Breckinridge in the pastoral office there, titled Christian Weapons Not Carnal, But Spiritual (based on the text from 2 Corinthians 10:4: "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds"), Samuel Miller explains both the defensive and offensive spiritual weapons that Christians have at their disposal in the spiritual warfare that all saints must face in this earthly pilgrimage. 

After first discussing the carnal weapons which Miller says the Apostle means to exclude from the Christian's armament, he delineates the Christian's defensive spiritual weapons from Ephesians 6. 

The same apostle who penned our text, in the sixth chapter of his Epistle to the Ephesians, speaks at large of the christian armour; describing its several parts, and showing the use of each. In that place it served his purpose to speak chiefly, though not exclusively, of the christian's DEFENSIVE ARMOUR; such as the girdle of truth, the breast-plate of righteousness, the shield of faith, and the helmet of salvation; which belong to all believers. 

But in the passage before us, he had occasion to refer partictularly to the weapons of CHRISTIAN MINISTERS, and more especially to those of the OFFENSIVE kind; or those which are important, not merely for the protection and defence of their own persons; but also for attacking and vanquishing the enemies of their Master.

The offensive spiritual weapons at the disposal or Christians, or Christian ministers, for overcoming the spiritual forces that wage war against the Church, according to Miller, include the following:

• The Christian's "grand weapon" is the WORD OF GOD, which is the "sword of the Spirit" spoken of in Ephesian 6;
• The RIGHT ADMINISTRATION OF THE SACRAMENTS, whereby "the 'sacramental host' of God's people are embodied and arrayed, in the sight of the enemy's camp; and an epitome of their religion, as it were, addressed to the senses of every beholder";
• The HOLY DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH is the outworking of the keys of the kingdom given to Christ's ambassadors;
• FERVENT, IMPORTUNATE PRAYER is one of the most powerful tools in the arsenal of every believer, whereby God is called upon to act and to defend his own cause, while saints are thereby strengthened; and
• HOLY EXAMPLE, as Miller says: "It was long ago enjoined by the Saviour himself — Let your light shine before men, that others, seeing your good works, may glorify your Father in heaven." Thus have many enemies of Christ been converted from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light after seeing the faithful example of believers and martyrs. 
  
  The whole sermon by MIller was a fitting word for one beginning the pastoral ministry, and remains a powerful exposition of what is meant by carnal and spiritual weapons. This division between defensive and offensive spiritual weapons is a good one for believers to keep in mind since we have need of both to protect ourselves from the evil one, and to do what we can, by the grace of God, and the power of His Spirit, to advance the work of the kingdom of Christ on earth. 

A Presbyterian Minister's Rebus Letter

In the second (1904) edition of Frank Rosebrook Symmes' History of the Old Tennent Church - a valuable resource for the study of colonial American Presbyterianism - his daughter Marion has included some interesting prefatory material, including a biographical sketch of her father, and a sample of his personal correspondence. 

This two-page sample reveals a side of the respected Presbyterian minister and historian that shows his creativity and (to this writer) a loveable quirkiness. He enjoyed writing rebus letters. Here, both one of his letters and the interpretation are given. Enjoy, and read more by his hand here. 

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit to Unbelievers and Believers

What is the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of believers? Does the Holy Spirit give gifts to unbelievers as well as to believers? These are among the important questions tackled by Clement Read Vaughan (1827-1911) in The Gifts of the Holy Spirit to Unbelievers and Believers (1894). 

Famous for editing the Discussions of his life-long friend Robert Lewis Dabney, and noted for his biographical sketch of Thomas Ephraim Peck, Vaughan was also a beloved minister and theologian who was Dabney's successor at Union Seminary in Richmond, Virginia. According to Morton Smith, Studies in Southern Presbyterian Theology, p. 295, he was "an Old School Presbyterian." Thomas Cary Johnson wrote a very useful biographical of Vaughan in the Union Seminary Magazine (which uses the name 'Vaughn' throughout). 

In this particular study of the Holy Spirit, Vaughan looks first at the ways in the Holy Spirit performs His work amongst unbelievers. These "common operations of the Spirit" (Westminster Confession of Faith 10.4 and Westminster Larger Catechism Q/A #68) include the restraint of depravity in man, and awakening and convicting influences that work in the conscience of men, even the reprobate. 

Next, with a view towards helping saints better apprehend "the comfort of hope," Vaughan explores how the Spirit gives knowledge to believers, seals, witnesses, leads, intercedes, comforts, and gives graces to those who are thereby become the children of God. 

The practical benefits of such a study of this cannot be understated. This is a valuable 19th century American Presbyterian contribution to our understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit both within and without the spiritual kingdom of Christ. Bookmark this volume for further prayerful study, and be comforted, dear saints.