February 5th marks the birthday of two notable colonial American Presbyterian ministers: Gilbert Tennent (Feburary 5, 1703 - July 23, 1764) and John Witherspoon (February 5, 1722 - November 15, 1794).
Gilbert Tennent, known as the "Son of Thunder" (George Whitefield described him thus: "He is the son of thunder and does not regard the face of man”), was the son of William Tennent, the founder of the Log College, and brother of William Tennenet, Jr. Most famous for his sermon "The Danger of an Unconverted Ministry," he was a New Light Presbyterian who did much to challenge what he viewed to be the dead orthodoxy of the day, and he became one of the leaders of the Great Awakening. Be sure to visit his page, but also see Archibald Alexander's Biographical Sketches of the Founder and Principal Alumni of the Log College (1845) and his Sermons and Essays of the Tennents and Their Contemporaries (1855, published posthumously by his brother Samuel Davies Alexander) for biographical information and examples of his preaching.
John Witherspoon was a Presbyterian minister, a teacher of Moral Philosophy, a President of the College of New Jersey (Princeton), and a signer of both the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation. He lived in tumultuous times, and played an important role in the founding of the United States of America.
For more modern perspective on both men highlighted here, S. Donald Fortson, II, edited a volume on Colonial Presbyterianism: Old Faith in a New Land (2007), which contains helpful chapters on their lives and lasting influence - C.N. Wilborn wrote on "Gilbert Tennent: Pietist, Preacher, and Presbyterian"; and L. Gordon Tait wrote on "John Witherspoon's Prescription for a Nation Strong, Free, and Virtuous."
Samuel Davies Passed Into Glory on This Date in History
Readers of this blog will recall that on January 1, 1761, Samuel Davies (1723-1761) preached "A Sermon on the New Year" (see Sermons on Important Subjects, Vol. 2, Serm. 34, pp. 139 ff), based Jer. 28:16: "This year thou shalt die." In that sermon, he said:
"Thus it appears very possible, that one or other of us may die this year. Nay, it is very probable, as well as possible, if we consider that it is a very uncommon, and almost unprecedented thing, that not one should die in a whole year out of such an assembly as this. More than one have died the year past, who made a part of our assembly last new year's day. Therefore let each of us (for we know not on whom the lot may fall) realize this possibility, this alarming probability, 'this year I may die.'"
As it turned out, less than three weeks later, Davies, who is known to history as "the Apostle of Virginia," caught a severe cold, and under the care of his physician, was bled with leeches. He seemed to improve briefly, and was able to preach again, but by January 23, he relapsed and was overtaken by a fever and chills. At that point, in and out of delirium, he spoke of his earlier sermon as "his own funeral sermon." (In a remarkable providence, this was the exact text that Aaron Burr, Sr. (1716-1757, the second President of the College of New Jersey) preached as a New Year's sermon right before his death, which Davies knew, yet which inspired him somehow to choose for his own text. The same was also true, by the way, of both Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758, the third president of the College of New Jersey) and his son, Jonathan Edwards, Jr. (1745-1801).)
After 13 days of illness, at 38 years of age, at 2 pm on February 4, 1761, in Princeton, New Jersey, where he served as fourth President of the College of New Jersey, Samuel Davies passed into glory, leaving behind his bereaved second wife (Jane Holt Davies, known to readers of Davies' poetry as "Chara") and five living children, and many others who lamented the loss of a remarkable man. The story of his life and final days is well told by Dewey Roberts in Samuel Davies: Apostle to Virginia (2017).
What he once wrote to his brother-in-law, John Holt, who lived in Williamsburg, from his rural retreat in Hanover, Virginia, has special meaning for those who appreciate the work of Log College Press: "I am as happy as perhaps creation can make me: I enjoy all the necessaries and most of the conveniences of life; I have a peaceful study, as a refuge from the hurries and noise of the world around me; the venerable dead are waiting in my library to entertain me and relieve me from the nonsense of surviving mortals. I very much question if there is a more calm, placid, and contented mortal in all of Virginia." (Letter dated Aug. 13, 1751)
Would you like to help Log College Press grow?
We at Log College Press are thankful for you, our readers. It is for you that, beginning in 2017, we have assembled a growing body of works by 18th and 19th century American Presbyterians for your reading pleasure. We have so far accumulated on our site over 500 such works, and the number continues to grow. The list includes works by colonial, Northern, Southern, Reformed Presbyterian, Associate Reformed Presbyterian, and other branches of the Presbyterian family.
Additionally, in 2017, we published two booklets: 1) Thomas Dwight Witherspoon, The Five Points of Presbyterianism: The Distinctives of Presbyterian Church Government; and 2) C.W. Grafton, A Forty-Three Year Pastorate in a Country Church. A new booklet containing the inauguration addresses of William Swan Plumer, Christ All in All: The Right Temper of a Theologian, is coming out soon, and more publications are planned. We desire to publish quality works that have been overlooked in the last 150+ years. There are many to choose from, and we are interested in your input and feedback as we consider future publications.
The costs associated with website maintenance and book production are not negligible, and if the free materials and blog posts that we provide are of interest to you, we would be grateful for your contributions to the work that we are doing. If you are interested in helping to build this project to its fullest potential, please visit this page to learn more about crowdfunding the work of the Log College Press. Thank you for your interest, and your support, whether that is through prayer or by financial contributions or otherwise. We are grateful!
Happy 200th Birthday to T.V. Moore!
It was on February 1, 1818, that Thomas Verner Moore (1818-1871) was born in Newville, Pennsylvania. He would grow up to study for the ministry at Princeton Theological Seminary, and later succeed William Swan Plumer (1802-1880) as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Richmond, Virginia, before ending his ministry in Nashville, Tennessee.
He is, perhaps, most famous today for his well-regarded commentaries on Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, which have been republished by Banner of Truth as part of the Geneva Commentary Series. He is less well-known for his poetry. But another noteworthy work of his would be his history of The Culdee Church (1868), in which he traces the Presbyterian links in the chain between the ancient and Reformation-era Church of Scotland.
His grandson, Thomas Verner Moore (1877-1869), was a Roman Catholic monk and pioneer of modern psychology. Three other members of his family would go on to share the same name. But today we honor the bicentennial of a 19th century Presbyterian minister who left his mark as a pastor, a Biblical commentator, and as a church historian.
The Story of the Psalms
Henry Van Dyke, Jr. (1852-1933) writes of true religion that it is "the same in every man and in every age." As the Psalter exemplifies that spirituality that is timeless and common to all the saints, his aim in The Story of the Psalms (1887) is to "bring these ancient and sacred poems into close connection with the men who wrote them, -- men of like passions, and sins, and trials, and hopes, and aspirations, with ourselves."
In this volume, after a brief list of notable reference works on the Psalms and an overview of the Psalter, Van Dyke focuses on these particular Psalms, devoting a chapter to each: 23, 24, 31, 32, 42, 46, 51, 57, 63, 72, 90, 107, 118, 127-128, 133, 134, and 137. He analyzes the authorship and context of each Psalmist, and the lessons that we can glean through circumstances to which we, the reader, can relate.
Van Dyke was, besides a being a famous minister in his day, a student of literature, and a lover of poetry, being a notable Tennyson scholar and an accomplished poet himself. He also authored The Poetry of the Psalms (1900). It has been said of him that he brought literature into his preaching, and preaching into his literature. In The Story of the Psalms, Van Dyke has ably developed edifying meditations based on important themes that connect the Psalmist and all the saints to Christ. Add this book of Psalm meditations to your digital library, for although it is not well-known today, it is rich in the spirituality of the Psalter.
A Sweet Devotional From a Blind Presbyterian Minister
Recently, we had occasion to take note of the James Waddel (1739-1805), the "Blind Preacher of Virginia." Today, we are highlighting another blind Presbyterian minister, in this case from Maryland, who became blind at the age of six, and who despite his handicap, graduated from Princeton, and faithfully preached Christ, though his life and ministry on this earth was brief: William Henry Fentress (1851-1880).
Shortly before he died of possible tuberculosis, he published a devotional that breathes of the exaltation of Christ: Love Truths From the Bible (1879). Indeed, this work exudes the love of Christ on every page. If you are looking for an encouraging Presbyterian devotional from the late 19th century, you have found such a one here.
This writer was particularly struck by the last chapter, "No Sea in Heaven," based on Rev. 21:1 ("There was no more Sea."). The words of Samuel Rutherford came to mind: "Believe God's love and power more than you believe your own feelings and experiences. Your rock is Christ, and it is not the rock that ebbs and flows but the sea." If your soul is restless like the sea, take time to read Fentress' sweet devotional which points like a compass to Christ.
Two "New" 19th Century Presbyterian Works on Ecclesiology Added to Log College Press
We are pleased to note that two additional works on Presbyterian eccclesiology have been recently added to Log College Press.
The first is by Alexander Taggart McGill (1807-1889): Church Government: A Treatise (1888), the product of four decades of seminary lectures on the major points of church government as affirmed by a 19th century Princeton Presbyterian (he taught at Columbia Seminary in South Carolina; served as Professor of Ecclesiastical History and Church Government at Western Theological Seminary (now Pittsburgh Theological Seminary) in Allegheny, Pennsylvania; and as Professor of Pastoral Theology at Princeton Seminary). There is a wealth of material here to digest for those interested in studying Presbyterian church government.
And second, Samuel Miles Hopkins, II (1813-1901), Manual of Church Polity (1878). He served as Professor of Ecclesiastical History and Church Polity at Auburn Theological Seminary. This too, is a volume rich in insights as to the workings of Presbyterian church government. Both of these works have much to say about the officers of the church, with discussion about many of the historical controversies that were the talk of the Presbyterian church in the late 19th century, including the role of ruling elders, the place of women in the church, innovations in worship, and more.
Both of these men, incidentally, "collaborated" (along with Samuel Jennings Wilson (1828-1883)) in a work that appeared posthumously titled A Short History of American Presbyterianism From Its Foundations to the Reunion of 1869 (1903).
Take time to read the table of contents of these works, and download them for further study. They represent a window into the study of church polity of late 19th century American Presbyterianism.
The National Reform Association
A movement that began among 19th century American Reformed Presbyterians, and included support from many other various Protestant denominations, was known as National Reform. This movement sought to promote the national recognition of the crown rights of King Jesus within the U.S. Constitution by the amendment process, and hence, it also came to be known as the Christian Amendment movement.
Meeting were held by interested parties in Illinois, Ohio and Pennsylvania in 1863, but the National Reform Association was officially founded on January 27, 1864, in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania, although its origin is traced to an 1861 resolution adopted by the Lakes Presbytery of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America (RPCNA) calling for the U.S. Constitution to be amended “to acknowledge God, submit to the authority of his Son, embrace Christianity, and secure universal liberty.” The organization’s original name was the National Association for the Amendment of the Constitution, but it was changed to the National Reform Association in 1875.
It is reported that members of the NRA actually met with President Abraham Lincoln before his death in an effort to advance their goals with his support. “A large and influential Committee was appointed to wait upon President Lincoln for an official endorsement of the work proposed by the Association. He responding said that in as far as he had opportunity to understand the purpose of the Association, he heartily favored it. Some time previous to this a number of Christian men had waited upon Mr. Lincoln and had requested of him the accomplishment of two measures. First, the abolition of American slavery, and second, the adoption of a suitable recognition of the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Constitution of the United States. To a few of the men who were on the Committee of the National Reform Association he privately said, ‘Gentlemen, in your former visit you requested of me two things. During the first term of my administration I was able to secure your first request. It is my hope that during my second term I will be able to secure your second request.’” (David McAllister, Christian Civil Government (1927), p. 24)
The list of early Presidents, officers and members include notable names such as William Strong (U.S. Supreme Court Justice and Presbyterian ruling elder); Archibald Alexander Hodge (Presbyterian minister); Charles Hodge (Presbyterian minister); Joshua Hall McIlvaine (Princeton Seminary professor); James Renwick Wilson Sloane (Reformed Presbyterian minister and Reformed Presbyterian Theological School professor); Thomas Patton Stevenson (Reformed Presbyterian minister); and Sylvester Fithian Scovel (Presbyterian minister and president of Wooster University); among other representatives and members from the Protestant Episcopal Church and other backgrounds, including Methodist and Baptist bodies.
The official publication of the NRA, The Christian Statesman, was founded by T.P. Stevenson and David McAllister in 1867. Proposed amendments to the U.S. Constitution received significant popular support in the latter half of the nineteenth century, resulting in the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives, which tabled the proposal in 1874, and in hearings before Congress in the 1890s and 1910s.
Over time, a number of issues have been the focus of the NRA’s labors, beyond its primary goal of advancing a Christian amendment to the US Constitution acknowledging national submission to the Lord Jesus Christ, including Sabbath laws, religion in public schools, pro-life concerns, and other matters of interest to those who hold to Christ’s mediatorial kingship over both church and state.
It is this fundamental doctrine of Christ’s mediatorial kingship over all things, publicly avowed by the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, and affirmed by many Reformed and Presbyterian ministers and churches in America over the years (Francis Robert Beattie, Alexander Craighead, Robert Lewis Dabney, Samuel Davies, Robert James Dodds, Robert James George, David McAllister, James Calvin McFeeters, Alexander McLeod, Gilbert McMaster, Alfred Nevin, Benjamin Morgan Palmer, William Swan Plumer, William Sommerville, David Steele, Thomas Patton Stevenson, James Henley Thornwell, Geerhardus Vos, Benjamin Breckinridge Warfield, James McLeod Willson, James Renwick Willson, Richard Cameron Wylie, and Samuel Brown Wylie, are among such men represented at Log College Press), that undergirds the mission of the National Reform Association.
Who can forget the profound words of A.A. Hodge, in particular, on behalf of the "crown rights of Jesus"?
"And if Christ is Lord of lords and King of kings, if he is really the Ruler among the nations, then all nations are in a higher sense one nation, under one King, one law, having one interest and one end. There cannot be two laws for Christians—one to govern the relations of individuals, and the other the relations of nations. We must love our neighbor-man as ourselves, so the Master says; therefore we must love our neighbor-man as our own. The rivalries, jealousies, antagonisms and cruel wars between nations are all hideous fratricidal contests and satanic rebellions against Christ our common King. How miserably small and narrow and selfish is the form of so-called patriotism which our poor children are taught is so great a virtue, in comparison with that holy, uplifting passion which comprehends all nations as inseparable parts of the one living universal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Suppose your enterprise in the great competitions of manufacture and trade surpasses theirs, and you grow rich and gild your palaces with the spoils of their poverty; suppose your sinews of war or your personal prowess and valor surpass theirs, and your empire grows great out of the ruins of their commonwealth,—what are you, after all, but the betrayer of your brother's peace or the destroyer of your brother's life and the disloyal render of the body of your common Lord? Alas, that we have yet to learn that the so-called code of honor among nations is just as mean and vulgar a thing as the code of honor among individuals!
And if Christ is really King, exercising original and immediate jurisdiction over the State as really as he does over the Church, it follows necessarily that the general denial or neglect of his rightful lordship, any prevalent refusal to obey that Bible which is the open lawbook of his kingdom, must be followed by political and social as well as by moral and religious ruin. If professing Christians are unfaithful to the authority of their Lord in their capacity as citizens of the State, they cannot expect to be blessed by the indwelling of the Holy Ghost in their capacity as members of the Church. The kingdom of Christ is one, and cannot be divided in life or in death. If the Church languishes, the State cannot be in health, and if the State rebels against its Lord and King, the Church cannot enjoy his favor. If the Holy Ghost is withdrawn from the Church, he is not present in the State; and if he, the only "Lord, the Giver of life," be absent, then all order is impossible and the elements of society lapse backward to primeval night and chaos.
Who is responsible for the unholy laws and customs of divorce which have been in late years growing rapidly, like a constitutional cancer, through all our social fabric? Who is responsible for the rapidly-increasing, almost universal, desecration of our ancestral Sabbath ? Who is responsible for the prevalent corruptions in trade which loosen the bands of faith and transform the halls of the honest trader into the gambler's den ? Who is responsible for the new doctrines of secular education which hand over the very baptized children of the Church to a monstrous propagandism of Naturalism and Atheism ? Who is responsible for the new doctrine that the State is not a creature of God and owes him no allegiance, thus making the mediatorial Headship of Christ an unsubstantial shadow and his kingdom an unreal dream?
Whence come these portentous upheavals of the ancient primitive rock upon which society has always rested? Whence comes this socialistic earthquake, arraying capital and labor in irreconcilable conflict like oxygen and fire? Whence come these mad nihilistic, anarchical ravings, the wild presages of a universal deluge, which will blot out at once the family, the school, the church, the home, all civilization and religion, in one sea of ruin ?
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." (A.A. Hodge, Popular Lectures on Theological Themes, pp. 284-287)
While Eph. 1:21-22 is considered by many to be the locus classicus showing Christ’s mediatorial reign over all things (sometimes Matt. 28:18 too), McAllister argues from several other Scriptural passages thus in Christian Civil Government, p. 158:
"The Scriptures Teach that Christ is Ruler of Nations
1. Jesus Christ as Mediator, has all power and universal dominion committed to him, which must include authority over nations.
MATTHEW 28:18. – ‘And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.’
JOHN 5:22, 23. – ‘The Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son; that all men should honor the Son even as they honor the Father. He that honoreth not the Son honoreth not the Father which hath sent him.’
ACTS 10:36. – ‘Jesus Christ, he is Lord of all.’
1 CORINTHIANS 15:27. – ‘He [the Father] hath put all things under his [the Son’s] feet.’
PHILIPPIANS 2:9-11. – ‘God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.’"
William O. Einwechter, “The Judgment is God’s” in Explicitly Christian Politics: The Vision of the National Reform Association (1997), p. 81, writes:
“The Judgment is God’s: Christ’s Reign
According to the Old Testament prophetic Scriptures and the New Testament revelation, the statement that the ‘judgment is God’s needs to be further defined to declare that in this age of fulfillment ‘the judgment is Christ’s.’ This declaration concerning the Lord Jesus Christ reflects the fact of His current mediatorial reign over the nations. At the time of the resurrection and ascension, the Lord Jesus Christ was invested with all authority in heaven and earth and given dominion over all the nations. The Father has committed all judgment to the Son who presently rules at His right hand. Let us briefly consider three important biblical texts that lead to the conclusion that now the judgment is Christ’s."
Einwechter (a Reformed Baptist mininster and former vice-president of the NRA) then goes on to discuss Psalm 2, Psalm 110 and Daniel 7 and how these particular passages teach that Christ, in his mediatorial office of king, has unlimited scope of authority and dominion over all things.
The current mission statement (2017) of the NRA includes this statement:
“In order to honor the commandment of Scripture to acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord over the nations of the earth (Psalm 2:7-12; Matt 28:18; Eph 1:20-22; Col. 2:10; Rev 1:5; Rev 11:15) and to progress with fulfillment of the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20), the mission of the National Reform Association since 1863 has been to work with political leaders, pastors, and lay leaders to promote reformation in government and society, and to secure an amendment to the United States Constitution modifying it as needed, particularly in its Preamble and First Amendment, to recognize Jesus Christ as King and Supreme Governor of the United States. The wording of the new Preamble would be proposed as such:
WE, THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES, recognizing the being and attributes of Almighty God, the Divine Authority of the Holy Scriptures, the law of God as the paramount rule, and Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Savior and Lord of all, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessing of liberty to ourselves and to our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
Thus, from the mid-19th century to the present, the NRA, organized with both Reformed Presbyterian leadership and ecumenical support, continues to testify on Biblical grounds that the United States has an obligation to acknowledge the kingship of Christ and to submit to his mediatorial reign over the nations. To read more about this organization and its principles, please consult 1) George Price Hays, Presbyterians (1892), pp. 420-421; 2) Robert Ellis Thompson, A History of the Presbyterian in the United States (1895), pp. 280-283; 3) David McAllister, Christian Civil Government (1927); 4) James H. Moorhead, Princeton Seminary in American Religion and Culture (2012), pp. 227-228; and 5) Explicitly Christian Politics: The Vision of the National Reform Association (1997).
Note: The author of this post serves on the Board of the National Reform Association as Secretary and Treasurer.
Our Newest Publication Will Be Available Soon!
Christ All in All: The Right Temper for a Theologian, by William Swan Plumer, is at the printers! This booklet contains Plumer's two inaugural addresses at Western Theological Seminary and Columbia Theological Seminary. In the first he beautifully portrays the person of Jesus Christ and the importance of keeping Christ at the center of the theological enterprise. In the second, he lays out several characteristics of a theologian after God's own heart. Both addresses are rich and significant for the church today.
We'll let you know as soon as you can purchase this booklet on our website. Until then, be sure to browse our library and subscribe to our near-daily blog posts. If you haven't checked out the Secondary Sources on American Presbyterianism in our Bookstore, it's worth a look. And if you appreciate all the free materials and blog posts we provide through our website, consider crowdfunding us here!
It's Friday, But Sunday's Coming!
It is never too early (or too late) in the week to prepare for the Lord's Day. One valuable 19th century Presbyterian work that aimed to assist both ministers and church members in preparing to make the most of the day apart by God for his worship is Gardiner Spring (1785-1873)'s The Power of the Pulpit; or, Thoughts Addressed to Christian Ministers and Those Who Hear Them (1854).
It is full of counsel to preachers concerning the highest task to which they are called as God's ambassadors, stressing the importance of personal piety for ministers, and a reliance upon the Holy Spirit in the work of the ministry. Spring puts the utmost stress of the need to view preaching of the gospel from the pulpit as a minister's highest duty, and consequently, he also highlights the need for church members to pray for their pastors, to give diligence to the hearing of God's Word, and consider that God's Word is being proclaimed to them. There are duties of the pulpit for ministers, and duties of the people who are present to give ear to God's Word. The counsel that Spring offers in regards to both comes from an experienced minister and with pastoral concern for the exaltation of Christ in the pulpit and in the hearts of the people. Be sure to download this work and read over it prayerfully as you seek to make the most of your next Lord's Day.
Happy 200th Birthday to Benjamin Morgan Palmer!
It was 200 years ago today that Benjamin Morgan Palmer (January 25, 1818 - May 25, 1902) was born. "One of the greatest of the Old School [Southern Presbyterian] preachers" (Hughes Oliphant Old, The Reading and Preaching of the Scriptures in the Worship of the Christian Church, Vol. 6: The Modern Age, p. 321), Palmer has also been described as "a Presbyterian of the Presbyterians, a Calvinist of the Calvinists, and a Christian of the Christians" (T.C. Johnson, The Life and Letters of Benjamin Morgan Palmer, p. 658).
A native of South Carolina, Palmer ended up serving as pastor of a Presbyterian congregation in New Orleans, Louisiana for 46 years. He was a faithful adherent of the American Westminster Standards, a supporter of the Confederate cause, and a believer in a Christocentric world-view in both religion and politics. "As a preacher of the gospel, he is to be ranked with the greatest in church history. He is in the class of Chrysostom, Whitefield and Spurgeon. A preacher of his caliber has not been heard since his death in 1902." (Joseph Morecraft III, Biographical Introduction to the Sermons of Dr. B.M. Palmer)
In analyzing two of Palmer's sermons, "Looking Unto Jesus" and "Love to an Unseen Christ," Old summarizes the Puritan style of Palmer's preaching, including the pattern recommended by the Huguenot minister Jean Claude (1619-1687), who advocated choosing as a text a single verse with a single theme for the auditors to comprehend. Palmer exalted Christ as He is revealed in the Scriptures, both as very God and very Man, as Servant and King, who ought to be the immediate object of our faith and worship. He appealed to the Scriptures to support this testimony and encourage his hearers in their faith. "Spurgeon and Palmer were masters at this," Old says.
We at Log College Press are thankful for the ministry of such a man, and he was a man indeed, with clay feet, and blind spots, as we all have, but of his humility, his love for Christ, and his eloquence in the Word, none can doubt. So on the bicentennial of his birth, take time to look over the growing body of works by Benjamin Morgan Palmer at our site.
"It is at Dr. Palmer’s feet we now come to sit, and through his writing at the feet of Christ Jesus, in order that we might become more grounded in Biblical faith and practice, and more ardent in our love for our Savior." (C.N. Willborn, Foreword, Selected Writings of Benjamin Morgan Palmer, 2014)
The Man Who Coined the TULIP Acrostic
Although many credit Loraine Boettner (1901-1990) in The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination (1932) with originating the acrostic for the Five Points of Calvinism known as TULIP, it is believed that the real originator was instead Cleland Boyd McAfee (1866-1944), who did so in 1905 (whose TULIP was a slightly different version than that of Boettner). More widely known for his study of the King James Version of the Bible, and other works, McAfee is a 19th century American Presbyterian worth getting to know. Visit here for more information on his life and works.
God Glorified by Africa
In recent days, derogatory comments have allegedly been made in the highest corridors of power of the United States about Haiti and the continent of Africa. As a counterpoint, consider a volume by a 19th century American Presbyterian minister who thought of Africa as a place of great potential to glorify God. Africa, Cortland Van Rensselaer (1808-1860) says, has an important place in God's providential plan. The millions of souls there are precious in God's sight. "The Religion of the Reformation is Africa's hope." Therefore, he concludes, "Where, and how, can a Christian minister of your race, do more than by preaching the cross of Christ to the millions of Africa?" We have, he adds, the promises of God to undergird our efforts at preaching the gospel to the continent of Africa: "Prophecy declares the things that shall be: 'The whole earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.' Every land shall become Immanuel's; and in holy union with tribes and people of every tongue, 'Ethiopia shall stretch out her hands unto God.'" Africa is precious in the sight of God, according to Van Rensselaer, and thus, ought to be the object of our prayers and our labors for the extension of the kingdom of Christ on earth both for the good of Africa and the glory of God.
Monday Morning Meditation
As the busy work week for many begins, consider this word from Robert Lewis Dabney (1820-1898) about the benefits of taking time for Christian meditation:
...the Christian life must have its seasons of quietude and calm meditation. Too much of even a religious bustle is unwholesome for the soul. Time must be allowed in sacred seasons for divine truth to steep the heart with its influence. Our hurry and externality has impoverished our graces. Solitude is essential to the health of the soul. Is not our modern life far too hurried? Surely we are in too much haste to be rich; we are too strange to self-communion; our very education is too stimulating and mercenary; and while we degrade the heavenly minister, science, to material uses, we teach our young men to forget that the true, the beautiful, and the good are in themselves the happy heritage of the soul. The clangor of our industry and the dust and glare of our skill have repelled the heavenly Dove and exhaled the dews of his grace out of our life. How woeful is the waste of our holiness and happiness by this mistake! Let us, then, learn to commune with our own hearts and be still. -- Discussions (Theological and Evangelical), Vol. 1 (1890), pp. 652-653
The Blind Preacher of Virginia
For your Lord's Day afternoon or evening pleasure, consider the latest addition to the Log College Press site: James Waddel Alexander (1804-1859)'s biography of his grandfather and namesake, James Waddel (1739-1805), also known as "the blind preacher of Virginia." Born in Ireland, he came to Virginia, was mentored by Samuel Davies (1723-1761), and would become renowned for his oratorical skills as a preacher (Patrick Henry and James Madison both spoke of his preaching eloquence in the highest possible terms), despite going blind at the age of 48. William Wirt's fictional Letters of a British Spy (1803) described him in largely non-fictional terms. Alexander talks about Wirt in his memoir, from which we learn that, if anything, Wirt underplayed the blind preacher's eloquence. Waddel preached throughout central Virginia and the Shenandoah Valley, and left his mark on the early American Presbyterian church, as well as in the remarkable family legacy of faithful ministers (it was his daughter Janetta Waddel who married Archibald Alexander (1772-1851), whose children include ministers such as J.W. Alexander, Joseph Addison Alexander (1809-1860), and Samuel Davies Alexander (1819-1894); and William Cowper Alexander (1806-1874), and Henry Martyn Alexander (1822-1899)). The life of "the blind preacher of Virginia," who left such an impression on so many of his hearers, is a story worth reading on the Lord's Day afternoon, or to be downloaded and saved for later.
Sermons on the Christian Life by John DeWitt
John DeWitt (1842-1923) was an highly-regarded pastor, and professor, who graduated from Princeton and served on the faculties of several theological seminaries, including Princeton. Church history was one of his specialties, but he was not just a scholar; he was a tender-hearted pastor who preached the gospel to his flock, along with lessons about many aspects of the Christian journey. His Sermons on the Christian Life (1885) bears this out. Take a look at the table of contents (and then download this work) of these 27 sermons for a glimpse into 19th century Presbyterian experimental piety.
I. Man's Danger in Sudden and Disappointing Transitions
II. The Persistence of the Christian Character
III. The Completion of Man in Christ
IV. The Universality of the Christian Benevolence
V. The Christian Casuistry
VI. The Gain of the Christian in Christ's Departure
VII. The Sanctification of the Secular Life
VIII. The Gospel a Hope
IX. The Burden of the Body
X. The Relations of Religion and Business
XI. The Value of a Religious Atmosphere
XII. The Cost of Discipleship
XIII. The Christian Contentment
XIV. The Earthly Life Viewed From Heaven
XV. The Heavenly Life Viewed From Earth
XVI. The Transformation of the Outward Life
XVII. The Christian Name
XVIII. Christianity a Religion of Joy
XIX. Keeping in the Love of God
XX. The Light Granted in Darkness
XXI. Praying the More Because Doubting
XXII. Casting Anxiety on God
XXIII. The Foundation and the Building
XXIV. The Reward of Love
XXV. The Judgment of the Spiritual Man
XXVI. The Relations of Hope and Purity
XXVII. Christ a Gift, Not a Debt
Lives in Review: Francis Landey Patton
As President of both Princeton University and Princeton Theological Seminary, Francis Landey Patton (1843-1932) served during a time of transition as many notable faculty passed away. It was Patton's place to give funeral sermons, memorial addresses and reviews of biographies for a remarkable number of Princeton luminaries, such as Charles Hodge, A.A. Hodge, Caspar Wistar Hodge, Sr., George Tybout Purves, and B.B. Warfield. They provide a unique insight into the lives of some worthy men as seen by one who knew them all well while memories were fresh. Tour their lives through Patton's heart-felt recollections here.
Happy birthday to Henry Martyn Baird!
Henry Martyn Baird (January 17, 1832 - November 11, 1906) was a member of the notable Baird family, including his father Robert (1798 - 1863) and his brother Charles (1828 - 1887), all of whom contributed significantly to the American Presbyterian church of the nineteenth century by their ministry and writings. Like his brother Charles, Henry was an highly regarded historian of the French Huguenots (Robert too wrote of the "Waldensian Huguenots"). He lectured before the Huguenot Society of America, he wrote one of the premier biographies of Theodore Beza, and his volumes of histories on the Huguenots in France (his brother specialized in the history of the Huguenot diaspora), and he took a special interest in the 1598 Edict of Nantes, which granted certain liberties to the Huguenots, and its 1685 Revocation. He also wrote his father's biography and a volume on his travels and experiences in Greece. Although born in Philadelphia, with their father both Henry and Charles spent many years in Europe and were more widely-traveled than most Americans. Their experiences aboard led them to focus on European history for an American audience. If it is true that one can travel the world by means of a book in hand (or downloaded), so may one traverse the centuries. There is still much to be gleaned in the 21st century from these works for lovers of church history in the homeland of John Calvin.
Don't Miss the Four-Volume Works of Francis Grimke!
Francis Grimke (1850-1937), the son of a white plantation owner and a slave, was the pastor of 15th Street Presbyterian Church in Washington, D. C., from 1878 until 1928 (with a brief pastorate in Jacksonville, Florida, in the middle of that period). He left his Charleston, South Carolina, home after the Civil War, and attended Lincoln University in Pennsylvania. From there he went to Princeton University, graduating in 1878. He was an ardent advocate for the rights of African-Americans, and helped to found the NAACP in 1909. His ministry was not only one of preaching, but of writing as well, and his collected writings are contained in the four volumes found here.
Here's a sample of what Grimke had to say on preaching: "In preaching are we seeking to impress the truth, or to impress ourselves upon others,—to draw men's attention to Jesus Christ or to ourselves? Too often it is of ourselves that we are thinking; and this is one reason why, though we may preach brilliant and eloquent sermons, they are attended with so little results in the development of Christian character, in the building up of those who listen in faith and holiness. The preacher's aims should be to get such a clear conception of the truth, and should be so impressed with its value, its importance, that in his effort to present it, he will not only lose sight of himself, but his hearers also will, in thought of the truth. It is of no importance whatever that our hearers should think of us, but it is important that they should
think of the truth of God presented." (Volume 3, page 3)
Lays of the Covenant
David McAllister (1835-1907) was a Reformed Presbyterian minister who labored tirelessly for the cause of "Christ's Crown & Covenant" in America. He also, as he tells us in the introduction to a volume he edited titled Poets and Poems of the Covenant (1894), had an admiration not only for the Scottish Presbyterian Covenanters who sacrificed so much during the "Fifty Year Struggle" for freedom (1638-1688), but also for the poetic tributes their story has brought forth from so many gifted poets over the years, among them Robert Burns, William Cowper and William Wordsworth (as well as, for example, the writings of Robert Louis Stevenson). McAllister's carefully compiled volume, like J.C. Johnston's Treasury of the Covenant (1887) and James A. Dickson's Poems of Fighting Faith (1988), show the inspiration given to so many poets by the Covenanters whose blood was shed for Christ.
Read the introduction for its personal reflections on how the history of the Covenanters has impacted the editor, and to better understand the principles that the Covenanters believed in and died for. Then read the fascinating biographical sketches helpfully contributed for each poet represented. If you can, read all the poems within this precious volume, but if your time is limited, consider especially James Hyslop's "The Cameronian Dream." As noted by McAllister, this is "the most popular of all poems ever written about the Covenanters."
It begins on p. 25 thus:
In a dream of the night I was wafted away
To the moorland of mist where the martyrs lay;
Where Cameron's sword and his Bible are seen,
Engraved on the stone where the heather grows green.