J
186
ZION’S LANDMARKS
Publican, when they P'H}’, ami
uiost likely will in tliese clays ; but
these Avords uttered from a proud
heart are no better si^ns of justifi
cation than ifwe should thank God
we are not as other men, &c. Words
are nothing only as they develop
our judgment and feelings. Phar
isees used to say, we be Moses’ dis
ciples, but novv the same sect says
Ave be Christ’s dsici[)les ; however,
they manifest as Avarm attachment
for Moses noAv as then. It is also
manifest to the enlightened mind
that if they understood Moses tliey
Avould have as little fellowship for
him as they have for Christ ; it
they believed Moses they would be
lieve Clirist, for Moses Avrote of
Cnrist, (see John 5 : 46) and he al
so trusted in Christ, and this Phar
isees Avill not do, nay, cannot do;
not that Christ hinders them, the
objection is in ihemseives, they Avill
iicjt come to Christ that they might
have life, and as they will not they
need not go elsewhere. It is vain
to talk about sinners performing
conditions of eternal life, except
some work of the flesh should be a
condition of it, Avhieh if it should,
then it could not be said as it is,
that the flesh profiteth nothing.
JOHN HOWE.
Dr. Hooper’s Challenge.
Ellaville, SciiDEA’ Co., Ga., )
November, 1870. \
Dr. Hooper challenges nur Avhole
body to put our finger upon one
sentence out of the million of pages
annually poured forth by the Amer
ican. Tract S(!ciety—“the organ
and representative of the collected
or hodoxy of America”—to put
our finger upon one sentence out of
all tin's orthodoxy, “reaching good
Avorks as earning and meriting sal-
vatio n.”
This reminds me of a circumstance
told raeby Elder Nathan Bussey, of
Talbot county, Georgia : One night
an intelligent Methodist called on
him, to stay all night with him,
and they discussed the method of
salvation at cormidcrable length,—
Bussey maintaining salvation by
grace, the other, salvation by—by
something ejse; finally, however,
Bussey picked up the Methodist
Conlessiou of Faith, and read it to
him, i)remi.sing, that ‘T am now
goi igto read you what I believe.”
And afttr he had laad to the Meth
odist his own professed faith, he
(the Methodist) said that he didn’t
believe it. He did not know that
it was the Methodist Faith Bussey
was reading to him, but thought it
was the Baptist fauh. The truth
is, all these “leading denomina
tions,” profess to hold salvation to
be by grace,—they are obliged to
profess that or throAv the Bible
away ; but still Ave are taught how
to judge them—by their works—by
their Avorks ye sliall kuoAv them.
ThePharisees of olden limes prayed,
but it was a jiretence.
Every denomination has a form
of godliness. Now, Dr. Hooper
professes to believe that all Avho will
ever get to heaven, have been loved
Avitli an everlasting love—have been
chosen to salvation before tiie Avoidd
began—have been redeemed bv
Clirist, and have been or will be
quickened and langlit by the Sjiirit,
because they are the heirs of God’s
promise. “And Ave, brethi’en, as
Isaac was, aretlie children of jirom-
ise and it is impossible for God
to lie, therefore impossible for any
of theseheirsofllisproraise to fail of
their inlieritance. And thepnunise
is confirmed by an oath, that these
heirs might havestrong consolation.
And tlie means to effect their salvas
non IS in
sooner the sinner is turned away
from his own Avorks and tlie Avoiks
of all men, the sooner he will trust
in Christ ? And who can turn him
but God alone? And if lie is or
dained to eternal life and is an heir
of promise, who dare be so presump
tuous as to say that he Avili not be
turned ?
But is education necessary in ll.e
preacher? If it is, avIio knows it
so well as God? And Avho so able
to supply it ? Did Israel in Egypt
send Moses to Piiaraoh’s court to
have him educated ? But it Avas
needful lor Moses to be educated,
and God knew it and he AVas pre
pared out of Israel s sight, and Js-
1 ael could thank God for it. But
had slie prepared him, she wonld
have been thankful to her own fore
sight. And Moses done his work
well and Avas succeeded by Joshua.
And uo.v sufipose Isratd had re.*son-
ed thus : Brethren, Moses Avas edu
cated at Pharaoh’s court and was a
good leader, and Joshua now is ap-
[lointed to lead, and let us now
ihercfore send him hack to Egypt
to be better prepared for the great
work of leading the people of God
against their enemies. Cou;d they
ly Avisdoiu, but by the grace of G > I
Ave have had our con versation in the
world and more abundantly to you
i Avard. And noAV, I ask Dr. Hooper,
I hoAYcan you in god'y sincerity com
bine with men who teach by your
own confession tlie Arminian faitli
—a salvation dependent upon the
act, in some sort, of the creature;
and who teach Sfirinkling for bap>
tism, and who lord it over their
flock by prelates? Can tAvo Avalk
togetlier except tliey be agreed? Are
you equally yoked togetlier? And
then Avliy not commune together,
and combineand all be I^kthodists at
once. It lias seerped strange to rno
that Missiomiry Baptists and Pres
byterians could not see -that tliey
have fur the last halfcenturA' been
aiding to build up the Method.ist
church at their own eXiiense. Look
at the groAvtii of Merhudisrn in so
snort a time, and behold Ikiaa' tou
have helped her, and sbcAvill even
tually swalloAv you U[i. The small
matter of baptism is a barrier at
present, i ut there is no barrier in
doctrine.
But more anon.
J. B. PtESPESS.
God’s hand alone; and this Pharaoh’s qourtever liave taught
rt} • 1 - T 1 A , _ .
means is, Christ in you, the hope
of glory, and Christ the poAver of
God and the Avisdoin of God to all
the chosen. And as sure as they
are chosen so sure Avill Christ be
formed in them, so sure Avill they
be swathed, and sujqjled, and salted
and AA'ashed with Avater after their
naved is cut, and they are separated
from the corruptions of tiieir fii'st
mother, and grafted into Chrisr the
root. This, Dr. Hooper believes,
so to sjieak. And then, what need
for any means outside the Avonl, it
we believe this ? But Paul labored
as though the sal ration of the heirs
of promise depended on him ! Oh,
no, Paul labored because it Avas
“Woe is me! if I preach not.” The
poAver that made Paul preach Avas
of God, and that power sustained
Paul in prison, in sliipAvreck, in
Joshua iioAv to take Jericho?
Would they not have taught
Joshua that it Avas no better
than presiimplion to be marching
around the Avails of Jericho in that
style and doing nothing? A’ea,
verily. They would have said to
him, build Egyptian bulwarks,
[dant your battenng rams, use all
the means of Egypt, or else you
will come to nothing right here lie-
fore the city! But wlio knew
Egyptian means ’setter than the
citizens of Jericiio ? They Avere not
dreading Egyptian means, they
Avere dreading the mighty God of
Israel. It AA’ould have been ploying,
so to speak, into the hands of ttie
Jericlioitestoliaye fbuglit tliem Avith
Egyptian means. And the devil,
I speak it AA’itii soirjA\q lias iiev'er
probably been better pleased, than
Maco.aib, It.L., ]
November 1870. /
Fragmeats. No. 13.
" ' I' -5 i ^ 1 -
liunger, cold and nakedness. But j when tlie churcli turns aside to
do we object to preaching? Oh, no!! woi’dly means to overcome the
Do not our Avorks testify of our faith !''’‘Oi'ld. And Avhat is tlie result?
m that particular : who preaches so j Wlio is overcome ? But there is a
cheap, Avlio preaches at so great ex-1 remnant saved ! And God needed
pense tiie expense of eartlily hon-' another educated man and Paul
or and ambition; Aviiois moreanxi
oms for sinners to be cut off, and
was on hand in time. But Avhat
does Paul say about it? For ouj.
and swaddled, and washed rtqoicing is this, the testimony of|
in water and salted, than Ave, and | our conscience, that in simplicity'
who know better than Ave that the and godly sincerity, not AvithflesL-
DAAUD AND GOLIATH.
Brother Bodenhamer:—The good
old Book lies before mo, opened at
the 17tli chapter of I. Samuel, audit
strikes rne tiiat the vouthfal David,
meeting and slaying the cliampion of
the enemy’s army, sets forth, typical
ly, in many respects, Jesus, the son
of David, meeting and overthrowino-
tiie enemy and accuser of his bre
thren. I shall, by your permission,
very briefly notice a few of tiie par-
I ticuiars in the character and life of
I David, Aviierein he appears to be a
type of Christ.
In tiie lirst place, Davdd, Aviien he
AA'as anointed by Samuel to be King
over the national Israel of God, aa^is
I but a youtli in humble life, that of a
shepherd boy, wlio Avould iiave been
over looked by the Avorld. by bis OAvn
countrymen, and was about to be
over looked by tlie piophet; but
God, Aviio looketh on the licart, ras
ther than on the outAvard appearance,
pointed him ont to tlie prophet as
the future King over His people.
Sec chapter l(i; 6 : t. So Jesns, our
spiritual David, Avas rejected by his
countrymen and brethren, as of too
humble a birth and condition in life.