SER. XXVI. REV. DR. LELAND.
SER. XXVII. REV. MR. BALDWIN

Vol. 2 No. 7 Dec. 1827.

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THE

NATIONAL PREACHER.

Go … Teach all Nations…. Matt. xxviii. 19.

VOL. II. NEW-YORK, DECEMBER, 1827. NO. 7.

SERMON XXVI.

BY AARON W. LELAND, D.D.

CHARLESTON, S. CAROLINA.

THE PURE GOSPEL REJECTED BY THE PERISHING.

I COR. I. 18.—For the preaching of the cross is, to
them that perish, foolishness.

In the Christian revelation, there is
an evident purpose of infinite wisdom, that in all the provisions
for man’s salvation, his moral agency should be left free and
uncontrolled. Instead of accommodation to human prejudices, there
is ample scope for captious objections. And if additional proof
were needed, of the divine origin of the Bible, it would be found
in this characteristic. Were it a system agreeable to the narrow
views, in unison with the selfish feelings, and gratifying to the
depraved taste of human nature, it would more resemble the
fabrication of man, than the workmanship of God. But as the current
of its doctrines is so entirely opposed to our natural
inclinations, as to render a moral renovation indispensable to a
perception of the glory of revealed truth; all such ground of
skepticism is removed.

Thus the obscurities and difficulties
of revelation are admirably adapted to exhibit human character, and
constitute this state of existence a real probation. For if the
light of truth came upon the mind with resistless energy, and the
operations of the divine government were clearly disclosed; if the
motives and designs of infinite wisdom were fully explained, and
the realities of the spiritual world completely laid open to view;
one principal aim of this dispensation would be frustrated. On the
one hand, there would be no field for the exercise of faith and
humble confidence on the part of Christians; and thus a precious
test of their submission and obedience would be destroyed. On the
other, there could not be a full disclosure of the true feelings of
the unrenewed heart. Because, as all would be evident as the
noon-day sun, there would remain no choice in the matter of
embracing the truth—no means of evincing whether its
reception were cordial or compulsory.

In this respect; there is displayed a
matchless skill, as well as a gracious condescension, in adapting
revelation to the actual character and condition of our race. While
sufficient light is afforded to guide the sincere inquirer, there
is an obscurity to perplex and offend the proud and self-confident.
While the truth is accompanied by evidence abundantly satisfactory
to every mind open to conviction, enough of mystery remains, to
form an impassable barrier to those who are inclined to disbelieve
the testimony of God. While to the eye of faith there appears a
glorious system of wisdom and mercy, depraved reason and prejudice
may discover little else than an assemblage of inconsistencies and
absurdities.

It is not without design, then, that
the great facts of revelation are made liable to misrepresentation;
that its essential principles are arrayed against the pride of
human wisdom; and that its blessed institutions are so obnoxious to
abuse and opposition. Such a constitution of things is evidently
intended to furnish a decisive criterion of human
character—to exhibit, in striking contrast, the humble
votaries of faith, who reverently bow to the authority of
Scripture; and the adherents of a haughty, self-confident
rationality, who will receive the testimony of God himself, no
farther than it accords with their opinions and
prejudices—and thus to elicit a fair and full manifestation
of every man’s real disposition and feelings.

Such, uniformly, has been the effect of
the Bible, wherever its sacred contents have been made known. To
all who have received it with penitence, humility, and confidence,
as the infallible word of God, it has proved their pleasure and
delight—their fountain of consolation—their guide to
peace: while the self-righteous and unbelieving have transformed it
into a subject of perplexity and disputation—a cause of
deeper guilt and more aggravated ruin. The Gospel has appeared
transcendently beautiful and glorious to all who have been savingly
enlightened by the Holy Spirit—while, to the impenitent and
skeptical, it seems obscure, irrational, and incomprehensible. The
former rejoice in the scriptures, just as they are, and willingly
yield to the obedience of faith: the latter are ever anxious to
lower the standard of divine truth to the level of their views of
fitness, and to mould its materials into a form suited to their
unholy inclinations.

On these principles it is easy to
perceive the real nature and causes of the insidious warfare, which
is maintained, in various forms, against the essential doctrines of
the Gospel. It is just an effusion of the malignity of the
unsanctified heart. Its prevalence is an exact fulfilment of
prophecy; and therefore an irrefragable proof of the truth and
divine authority of that system which it is labouring to destroy.
The emphatic declaration of the apostle, in the text, strikingly
describes the state of feeling which now actually prevails, among
many who enjoy all the external privileges of the Christian
dispensation—The preaching of the cross is, to them that
perish, foolishness.

In illustration of this passage, it
will be attempted, to explain the import of the phrase, the
preaching of the cross—to enumerate some of the
instances and causes of such preaching being
accounted foolishness—and to describe the fearful
state and prospects of those who hold it in such low
estimation.

The preaching of the cross is a plain
and full announcement of all the essential truths of that system
which provides pardon and salvation for the lost and guilty. The
cross is the symbol of that amazing expedient of infinite wisdom
and mercy, by which a treaty of reconciliation is offered to
convicted traitors against Jehovah’s government. Its exhibition
therefore must require a developement of the principles, and a
defence of the doctrines, peculiar to this gracious
dispensation.

The grand fact, which constitutes the
very essence and glory of the Gospel, and which it is the leading
object of the Christian ministry to announce; is, that He, who took
upon himself the form of a servant, and offered up the sacrifice of
Calvary, is God over all, blessed for ever. This gives to
the cross all its glory and efficacy. It is on the supreme Deity of
Christ—on the expiation made for sin by the Maker and
Sovereign of worlds—that the whole fabric of evangelical
truth rests. On any other supposition, the sacrifice of the cross
was a very ordinary affair. If the Saviour of sinners be not
God—if he be a created being, of whatever grade,—where
is the mystery of Godliness?—Where those unfathomable
depths of divine love, into which the angels desire to look?
If Christ be only a servant of God, however exalted, what was
there, in his appearance on our world, to constitute a new era in
heaven, and to fill its inhabitants with astonishment and ecstasy?
Did the heavenly host descend in rapture, and cause the mountains
of Judea to reecho with their acclamations, because a dependent
creature had consented to do his Maker’s will? Whence
the ascription of glory to God in the highest, and why do
the courts above resound with a new song of praise to God for his
redeeming mercy, if this redemption was effected by the labours and
sufferings of one inferior to the Deity? Was such a dispensation as
that of Moses, designed simply to prepare the way for a messenger
of God to declare his will, and to seal the testimony with his
blood, as many good men have done, both before and since? Why did
patriarchs and prophets foretell his coming, and celebrate his
praises?—Why did the continual offering of divinely appointed
sacrifices, for many centuries, typify his sufferings?—And
why did nature shudder, and shroud herself in darkness, at the
consummation of those sufferings? All these things are utterly
inexplicable, on the supposition that Christ is a created dependent
being.

But view him as God manifest in the
flesh—view him as voluntarily laying aside his glory, and
descending from the throne of infinite majesty, to assume the
nature, and expiate the guilt of a ruined race;—and we are
struck with the appropriateness of all the attending circumstances.
The splendid ceremonials of the Jewish ritual, and the raptured
songs of prophets and of angels were well employed to prepare the
way for the visible manifestation of Deity among men. The
annunciation of the divine nature of the Redeemer must, therefore,
be an essential part of the preaching of the cross.

Equally indispensable is a decided
testimony to that perfect atonement for sin, which was made
by this great offering. Here is the only foundation of human hope.
This was the grand object accomplished by the Saviour’s sufferings.
Thus was completely solved the mysterious problem, which all
created intelligences had deemed inexplicable—how sin could
be remitted, without infringing the rights and tarnishing the
honour of the divine government—and how the guilty could be
rescued from wrath, without a forfeiture of the divine veracity.
Never indeed was the divine law so completely vindicated, or the
claims of justice so awfully asserted, as when the Lawgiver offered
himself as a ransom. And no other possible manifestation of the
malignity and atrocity of sin, of the divine abhorrence of all
iniquity, and, at the same time, of the exhaustless treasures of
redeeming mercy, could equal that which was witnessed on Calvary.
As, therefore, Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so is
the cross to be held up now, by its heralds, to a perishing world.
Its atoning sacrifice is to be proclaimed, and its purchased
blessings offered to lost sinners, as their only hope—their
only remedy.

Another important part of the
preaching of the cross consists in a full disclosure of the
entire depravity and helplessness of our fallen nature. This
doctrine lies at the foundation of Christianity. It is from the
corruption of our race, the dominion of spiritual death, and the
actual sentence of condemnation, that the necessity arises for so
great salvation. If hope could have been afforded from any
other source, if there had been any possibility of the sinner’s
expiating his own guilt, and restoring himself to the divine
favour, the great Sacrifice would never have been offered. But
until men are convinced of their apostacy and corruption, they will
never be persuaded of the truth and necessity of the great
atonement. And until they feel themselves justly condemned, and
utterly helpless, they will never come as humble suppliants to a
Saviour’s feet.

The work of the Holy Spirit, in
enlightening and renewing the hearts of sinners, and thus
carrying on to their accomplishment the purposes of divine mercy,
forms also an important portion of the message of the Gospel. It is
the glorious achievement of the cross, to slay the enmity and
subdue the stubbornness of the sinful heart: and the infinite
blessing purchased by the Saviour’s blood, is the gift of the Holy
Spirit, to effectuate that transformation of character, that
spiritual regeneration, without which salvation is utterly
impossible. The preaching of the cross, therefore, must include an
unwavering declaration, that the working of regeneration and the
renewing of the Holy Ghost are indispensable to salvation.

It is moreover essential to a faithful
preaching of the cross, that justification by faith in
Christ, should be distinctly declared as the only ground of a
sinner’s hope. That view of the Gospel which represents it as
bestowing upon man a power of fulfilling God’s holy law—or as
so lowering its demands as to render his imperfect obedience
acceptable—is most dishonourable to God, and ruinous to the
souls of men. No such provisions are found in the treaty of
reconciliation sent from Heaven. So far from abrogating, the Gospel
exalts and honours the law. So far from diminishing its strictness,
it adds emphasis to its claims, and fully meets its unmitigated
requisitions. Most gloriously has Christ vindicated the divine
justice, by receiving its avenging sword in his own bosom, as the
Substitute, or surety for sinners; and most effectually has he
provided for their salvation, by rendering the exercise of
pardoning mercy consistent with the principles of the divine
government, and by working out for them a perfect righteousness,
which may render them just before God. By faith, the penitent
sinner receives all these blessings—is rescued from wrath,
delivered from the guilt and bondage of sin, and made a child of
God, and an heir of eternal life. Thus the triumph of the cross is
complete, the pride of human merit is humbled in the dust, and all
the glory of the salvation of sinners is rendered to the riches of
redeeming mercy.

In fine, the preaching of the
cross includes a faithful denunciation of eternal
misery, as the inevitable doom of all who pass from this state
of probation, unrenewed by the Spirit of grace, unwashed in the
blood of the Lamb.

Such are the essential principles of
that system of redemption, which engaged the counsels of heaven
from eternity; and which was carried into effect, not like the work
of creation, by a single word of the Son of God, but by his
assuming human nature, enduring a long exile of toil and reproach,
and humbling himself unto death, even the death of the cross.

With what gratitude, then, ought this
Gospel to be received by the guilty, perishing creatures, for whose
rescue from perdition it is designed. How should this display of
divine compassion melt and captivate the hearts of those, whose
sins have been thus expiated, and for whom an offer of free pardon
and endless blessedness has been thus dearly purchased.

But be astonished, O heavens, at
this—these tidings of salvation are received by many with
chilling indifference—the sufferings of the cross are
regarded with unconcern—the treaty of reconciliation, written
in atoning blood, is by some contemptuously disregarded—by
others repelled with determined opposition. These appalling facts
display more of the malignity of sin, its blinding, deadening
influence, and more of the rancorous enmity of the carnal heart
against God, than all the other enormities which blacken the
world’s history. All other crimes appear less atrocious than this
scorn of a Saviour’s love—this trampling under foot the
blood of the covenant. While no finite mind could have
conceived it possible, that Almighty love should be so slighted,
yet the Spirit of prophecy announced this impious ingratitude, long
before the incarnation. When Isaiah saw the glory of Christ, and
spake of him, he also saw that he would be despised and
rejected of men. And by all their hostility to the doctrines of
grace, sinners are only verifying the description, which
inspiration gave long ago, of their blindness and perverseness. By
all their vain reasonings and presumptuous objections, they just
corroborate revealed truth, and evince the desperate wickedness of
the natural heart.

As in the days of the apostles, so in
this period of increased light, the preaching of the cross
is esteemed foolishness. The message of redeeming mercy is
often received with utter listlessness—often with an evident
disgust—and sometimes with an openly avowed hostility. In the
apostolic age, it might be supposed that the resistance, with which
the Gospel had to contend, arose from the prejudices of a Heathen
or Jewish education, and from a very imperfect knowledge of
Christianity. But, at the present period, the undiminished
hostility, which is displayed against the pure doctrines of
redemption, can be attributed to nothing, but that hatred to the
ways of God, which the Scriptures represent as rankling in the
natural heart, and for which they contain the only remedy.

It requires but a transient view of the
religious state, even of enlightened and refined society, to see
that to very many, now, the preaching of the cross is
foolishness. While any temporal interest excites feeling, this
theme is listened to with apathy. O, how often are those
statements, which fill heaven with ecstasy, rehearsed to vacant,
listless hearers! How many weep at fictitious woes, who contemplate
the bloody scene of Calvary without a tear! How many hearts glow in
admiration of the benevolence or heroism of a fellow worm, while
entirely unaffected alike by the sacrifice or the triumph of the
Son of God! How often do men express sentiments of the most fervent
gratitude towards earthly benefactors, who would be ashamed of
uttering one emotion of thanks to Him who gave himself to
die for them! And is not this treating the Gospel as
foolishness? But this heartless unconcern, criminal as it
undoubtedly is, in the sight of God, is not so fearfully
impious—affords not so appalling a disclosure of depravity,
as the absolute disgust and contempt, with which the doctrines of
the cross are sometimes received. In almost every community, there
are those who utterly despise the whole system—who do not
disguise their abhorrence—and who evidently hate the very
mention of the subject. How indignant are such at any effort, in
private conversation, to urge upon their attention themes connected
with the dying love of Christ! How chilling is the effect, when
such discourse is attempted, in many circles of refinement and
elegance? And what a brand of infamy is affixed to the human
character, by the fact, that from most such circles all these
topics are absolutely excluded! Let a man confine his conversation
to such subjects as engaged the attention of Christ and his
apostles—such subjects as now employ the hosts of
heaven,—let him be accustomed in company, to bring forward
the holy mysteries of redemption,—and by how many would he be
shunned like a pestilence? And with what scornful hatred are those
churches avoided by many, where nothing is heard but Jesus
Christ and him crucified? Such are the open, unequivocal
expressions of contempt and disgust, with which many treat the
doctrines of the cross. Do not they esteem them
foolishness?

But there is a class of the contemners
of evangelical truth, characterized by more active zeal and decided
measures. Far from the giddy thoughtlessness of those who hardly
reflect upon the subject at all, and from the strange inconsistency
of such, as profess to respect what they really despise and
hate,—these feel and express a deep interest in religious
opinions; devote time and attention to theological studies; and, as
the result of their investigations, avow their utter disbelief of
the peculiar doctrines of the cross; and undertake to demonstrate
their falsehood and absurdity. They tell you, they have maturely
examined the whole subject—that they have brought to the
investigation all the aid that extensive reading and critical
research can furnish—that they have carried the lights of
science and philosophy into the dark regions of
fanaticism—and have become perfectly convinced, that the
whole system is an assemblage of the grossest errors. When,
however, the array of argument is produced, its force seems to
consist in the unwelcome impressions which the pure Gospel itself
makes upon their minds. They can see no wisdom or fitness in such
an atonement. They see nothing so very terrible in sin, as to
require such an expiation. Pardoning mercy, say they, is one of the
natural attributes of Deity; and the doctrine of eternal punishment
seems to them too horribly inconsistent with divine justice to bear
reflection. As for the substitution of the innocent for the guilty,
and satisfying the claims of law by the blood of a sinless victim,
they are amazed that any rational man can credit such absurd
notions. Tell them of the maladies and wounds of the soul, which
can only be healed by the Physician of Calvary—they can
hardly conceal their contempt. Tell them plainly, as the Bible
does, that they are lost, perishing sinners—that the wrath of
God is revealed against them—that the avenging sword is
uplifted, and that, unless they fly to the cross and embrace it by
a living faith, they must sink to perdition—and you will
witness the smile of derision or the frown of indignation. They
esteem the doctrine of the Trinity as a monument of human credulity
and folly. Their feelings are shocked beyond measure, at the
incarnation of Deity, in the person of Jesus Christ. The
personality and direct influences of the Holy Spirit appear useless
and incredible; and the necessity of a change of heart excites
their utter scorn. They cannot endure it. Their disgust is
inexpressible.

Instead, therefore, of these offensive
principles, they substitute a system, not modelled from the Bible,
but from what they consider reason and propriety. This they adorn
with all that is beautiful and attractive to the carnal eye. Before
this fair and flattering idol, of their own workmanship, they bow
down in delighted homage. This is a religion they can love, for it
flatters, exalts, and dignifies human nature! But as for human
depravity, and other hated doctrines of the orthodox creed, they
want words to express their aversion. The simple account of the
matter is, that the preaching of the cross, in their
estimation, is foolishness.

Such are the various grades of
hostility to the vital principles of the Gospel, from contemptuous
indifference, to malignant and rancorous opposition.

We now proceed to enumerate some of the
causes, of this deplorable state of feeling towards the truth as
it is in Jesus.

The depravity—the
unholiness—of human nature, may be considered the grand cause
of all the enmity which has appeared against the doctrines of
grace. It is true, nevertheless, that the various degrees and
forms, in which this enmity is manifested, depend upon the
peculiarities of individual character and situation.

Destitution of early religious
instruction, generally leads to an entire indifference to the whole
subject. Persons who are brought up in prayerless, worldly
families—whose young minds are not moulded by a pious
influence—are usually found very insusceptible of religious
impressions. In such hearts the power of ungodliness reigns
uncontrolled. Uncultivated and waste, they produce nothing but
thorns and briers. Nor is it surprising, that this numerous
class of the hearers of the Gospel should exhibit an utter
disregard and contempt of its authority. The preaching of the
cross is foolishness to them, because they do not understand
it, and will not take the trouble to examine it.

A similar apathy is frequently observed
in persons who have been well instructed, when their whole souls
have become engrossed in some worldly pursuit. Their heads and
hands are so entirely occupied, that serious reflection is
absolutely excluded.

Contempt of evangelical religion is
sure to be exhibited in places where its professors are asleep or
dead. In communities where real religion flourishes, where its
power is felt, and its votaries are consistent and decided;
whatever hatred may rankle in the breasts of opposers, they are not
apt to indulge in contemptuous derision. But where formality and
worldliness prevail, and no conspicuous standard of Christian
character is visible—the hearts of sinners will be
manifested. They will, without hesitation, avow, in how low and
degrading a light they regard the doctrines of the cross. Their
contempt and loathing are wholly irrepressible.

In many instances, the pride of rank
and intellect is the cause why the preaching of the cross is
utterly despised and accounted foolishness. The lofty
speculations of an aspiring intellect can with difficulty come down
to the simplicity of the Gospel. The command, to come to the
Saviour’s feet with the humility of a little child, fills the proud
heart of those who are wise in their own eyes, with
indignation. They cannot endure doctrines, which level all vain
distinctions, and require the noble, the affluent, and the learned,
to assume the same station of penitence and contrition, with the
lowliest peasant. They cannot consent to lay their honours in the
dust, and address themselves only to sovereign mercies. It is
beyond endurance, that the messages of grace should come to
them, as condemned, guilty, and perishing sinners; and that as
such they should be invited to the cross. Hence the scornful air,
the undissembled disgust, with which so many, in high life, turn
their backs upon the preaching of the cross. And hence,
encouraged by their example, multitudes cluster round the standard
of a haughty and malignant opposition to the Gospel.

While thus so many regard the
preaching of the cross as foolishness, and earnestly wish it
were utterly false; it is not wonderful, that efforts should be
made to prove that it actually is so. Probably some, engaged in
this opposition, are perfectly sincere, and actually suppose, as
Saul of Tarsus did, that they are doing God service, by
combating the doctrines of the cross. But whoever obeys the natural
dictates of his own heart, and submits himself to the guidance of
his own perverted, blinded reason, refusing to supplicate the
illuminations of divine grace, will be likely to come under the
power of strong delusion to believe a lie.

One other cause of opposition to the
Gospel is found in the absolute contrariety of its requisitions, to
the habits of life, which men have contracted, and which they are
resolved not to abandon. While the preaching of the cross
prescribes, as indispensable to salvation, conditions with which
many, who have no doubt of being saved, wholly refuse to comply;
and while it declares that eternal perdition will be the result of
a course, which they are determined to pursue; it must be the
object of their settled detestation. Hence the love of sinful
pursuits and gratifications, and an invincible repugnance to a life
of devotion, are the true reasons why many esteem the preaching
of the cross foolishness.

It ought, however, to be kept in mind,
while these causes are recounted, that the operation of each of
them is rendered more efficacious, by the agency of that spirit of
darkness, that worketh in the children of disobedience. To
increase disgust against the plan of redemption, to exasperate the
natural enmity of the carnal heart, to give a specious appearance
to objections, and to enforce, with seductive arguments, the cause
of unbelief, is the untiring employment of the grand foe of God and
man. It is indeed the darling achievement of infernal skill, to
inflate a poor worm with pride of talent, and fill his heart with
hatred to the Gospel, and then persuade him that his hatred arises
from its falsehood and absurdity. No event can afford the tempter
greater joy, than success in persuading perishing sinners to reject
the only possible way of escape from eternal death, and to contemn,
as foolishness, that doctrine which is the wisdom of God and the
power of God to salvation to every one that believeth.

It only remains, that we briefly
describe the fearful condition and prospects of all to whom the
preaching of the cross is foolishness.

And here we have only to repeat the
decision of the Searcher of hearts—the Judge of the quick and
dead. His infallible Spirit has, in our text, divulged the
tremendous fact, that the indifference, contempt, and disgust,
which have now been described, are characteristics of THEM THAT
PERISH. This authority, as well as the nature of the case, renders
it certain, that all, who indulge such feelings, are in the gall
of bitterness and under the bond of iniquity—dead in
trespasses and sins—treasuring up wrath against the
day of wrath. Nothing short of utter blindness of mind can be
insensible to the glory of the Gospel—nothing but entire
depravity of heart can render its doctrines offensive—and
nothing but the most obdurate impenitency can resist the melting
influence of a Saviour’s dying love. It is utterly impossible, that
a scornful neglect or disregard of the preaching of the cross
should exist, without fearful guilt and imminent danger. All those,
among the hearers of the gospel, who will finally be children of
wrath, are now characterized by such guilt. And all the lost
spirits in the world of wo, who once enjoyed the offers of mercy,
cherished the same fatal feelings towards the plan of redemption.
It was foolishness to them. Many, even in this land of
light, seem to be ripening for the same tremendous doom. Whether in
the ranks of open opposition, or under the false colours of
pretended regard, the deadly symptom is upon them—a settled
disgust and aversion to the preaching of the cross.

Say not, ‘It is no matter what a man
believes, provided he is sincere.’ God has settled this
question.—”Because they received not the love of the
truth, that they might be saved; God shall send them
strong delusion, that they should believe a lie; that they
all might be damned, who believed not the truth, but had
pleasure in unrighteousness.” Is there not then, appalling
evidence, that those, who hold such preaching in contempt, occupy
very perilous ground, and exhibit fearful tokens of the divine
abandonment? And especially might not the angels in heaven tremble
for those, who have enjoyed great light and privileges—have
witnessed rich displays of divine grace—and have once felt a
deep solicitude for their own souls—but who now despise and
hate those truths, and that cause, which they were once almost
persuaded to embrace?

How clearly and terribly, my hearers,
does this subject discover the ungodliness of the unrenewed heart.
Those feelings of contempt and hostility, towards what is most
precious and glorious in the view of God, constitute the summit of
human guilt. That feeble worms of the dust should thus dare to sit
in judgment on the divine administration, and pronounce that
needless which God has declared indispensable, and call that folly
which God esteems the highest wisdom, is not merely
presumptuous;—it is inexpressibly impious.

How resistless is the evidence, hence
arising, of the necessity of an entire change of heart—an
entire change of feeling—to prepare men to dwell with God. No
wonder then, that our Lord should declare with such emphasis, Ye
must be born again, or ye cannot see the kingdom of
God.

I beseech you, fellow sinners, lay
these things seriously to heart. Do any of you habitually hear the
preaching of the cross with heartless indifference—with a
light and trifling temper? Beware, lest your heart become fatally
hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

Are any of you conscious of disgust and
aversion, produced by such doctrines? O, beware, lest that come
upon you which is spoken in the prophets, Behold, ye dispisers, and
wonder, and perish: Beware lest you convert the bread of life into
the poison of death!

Have any of you already attained such a
degree of blindness and perversity, as to persuade yourselves that
the doctrines of the cross are really irrational and absurd, and
that you are doing right in opposing and deriding them? Recollect,
I pray you, with whose word you are contending;—whose wisdom
you are despising! Let the chaff contend with the tempest, and the
stubble with the devouring flame; let the glow-worm despise all the
lamps of heaven;—but Oh, let not a worm contend with
Omnipotence; let not dim reason reject all the splendours of the
Sun of righteousness. The redemption of the soul is
precious—Its rescue from perdition, and elevation to
God’s right hand, are objects too momentous, to be sacrificed to
the pride of intellect, or to the fashion of a world which passeth
away. Receive, then, with meekness the ingrafted word,
which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and
not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

SERMON XXVII.

BY ELIHU W. BALDWIN, A.M.

NEW-YORK.

THE FINAL JUDGMENT.

HEBREWS, IX. 29.—After this the Judgment.

Whilst another year is ending, and time
itself, as it respects us, is fast hastening to its close, the
question very naturally arises, What shall come after death?
The voice of inspiration replies, After this the Judgment.
There is no need of entering upon a laboured proof of the doctrine
so plainly declared, That there will be a day of Judgment for
mankind. It is what seems written by the finger of God himself
upon the consciences of men. The impression is nearly universal,
with Pagans and Mahomedans, as well as Jews and Christians, that
every one of us shall give account of himself to God. This
impression is strengthened by a view of the very unequal and
indiscriminate allotments of the present life. Here the virtuous
are often the objects of hatred and relentless persecution. Here
the man of ambition and dark intrigue, circumvents and treads down
his more honest rivals. Here Providence often afflicts even the
most pious; while the licentious, and proud, and oppressive, are,
perhaps, suffered to enjoy uninterrupted prosperity. Now we
believe, assuredly, that “God is just;” and we infer, that he will
so exhibit himself by another and more equal distribution of his
favours and frowns. We conclude with the wise man, “that God shall
judge both the righteous and the wicked.” Conscience and reason,
then, unite with revelation, in saying, that “God hath appointed a
day, in which he will judge the world in righteousness.” No
language can be plainer, and no event more reasonably
anticipated.

With this absolute certainty before us,
then, of a judgment for all mankind, it would be unnatural—it
would betray awful insensibility to eternal concerns, not to
inquire with all seriousness—When will this universal
judgment take place? What objects is it designed to accomplish?
What connexion will it have with our future and eternal condition?
We inquire then,

I. When will the universal Judgment
take place?

The precise time, God has wisely
concealed from every intelligent creature. “Of that day and that
hour knoweth no man. No; not the angels that are in heaven.” But
the text speaks of it, in general terms, as that which is to take
place after our death. Other passages are somewhat more
explicit, as to the time. The apostle Peter declares, “The heavens
and the earth which now are, by the same word are kept in store,
reserved unto fire, against the day of judgment, and
perdition of ungodly men.” According to this account of the
judgment, it will occur at the same time with the destruction of
the world; “when,” as the same apostle declares, “the heavens shall
pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with
fervent heat, the earth, also, and the works that are therein shall
be burnt up.” Paul gives a similar account of the time, as
he comforts the church at Thessalonica, under persecution, with the
prospect of the judgment, “when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed
from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking
vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel
of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Indeed, if God is to “judge the whole
world in righteousness,” what other occasion would seem so proper,
as when the last of our race have finished their work on the earth,
and the world itself is about to be destroyed? Would it not appear
most suitable, that the public and final decision of our destiny,
should immediately succeed the winding up of this world’s
drama?—the termination of all earthly allotments? When, if
not at that deeply interesting crisis, will all things be ready for
the great trial? The final judgment, then, will take place after
our death, and at the end of the world. We next inquire,

II. What are the objects, which the
Judgment is designed to accomplish?

On this point, it becomes creatures of
yesterday to speak with profound humility, and especially to beware
of contradicting what is revealed. The objects which Jehovah will
accomplish by the universal judgment, are unquestionably vast and
momentous, beyond all conception. Yet some of them are obvious to
reason, or are plainly revealed.

Every person has experienced
inconvenience and perplexity from the circumstance, that the real
characters of men, in the present life, are but partially
disclosed. Much the larger portion of human actions pass unobserved
by the world; or the motives which prompt them are concealed. One
design of the judgment, then, is to uncover these hidden springs,
and lay open every dark retreat of human conduct. We are told,
“there is nothing hid which shall not be revealed;” that “God shall
bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it
be good or whether it be evil;” that he “will both bring to light
the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels
the heart.”

Another design of the judgment, is
publicly to assign to men their proper deserts. This, we have
before suggested, is not done on the earth. “All things here come
alike to all.” “There is one event to the righteous and to the
wicked.” But the future judgment is characterized, as the day of
“revelation of the righteous judgment of God;” “in the which he
will judge the world in righteousness;” and will “render to every
man according to his deeds.” The mystery involved in the prosperity
of the wicked, and in the unequal allotments, which have here
marked the dispensations of Providence, will then cease for ever;
and it will then be seen and felt, that every one is treated
according to the strictest principles of wisdom and justice.

Another special design of the judgment,
is to manifest and gloriously exalt the perfections of Jehovah.
Revelation has indeed proclaimed his perfections, in language which
need not be misunderstood. But his providence has often interposed
a cloud between them and the eyes of men. We do not comprehend the
wisdom of present occurrences. We see not the end from the
beginning. A complete disclosure of both, will show to the universe
the deep counsels of God, and the consistent and benevolent
character of all his operations. He will then appear in the
greatness of his power, and majesty—as he
summons the dead from their graves, and folds up the earth and the
heavens, like a decayed garment, to be laid aside. He will then
appear in the glory of his justice, his holiness, and
his truth,—while he examines, before his dread
tribunal, the risen and assembled millions of our race, and renders
to every one according to his works. All his perfections will then
be illustriously displayed; for, says the apostle, “He shall come
to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that
believe.”

But this glory of the Divinity is
specially to shine forth in the person of the Son. He it was, that
“being found in fashion as a man, humbled himself, and became
obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God
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.” Accordingly, “the Father judgeth no man, but
hath committed all judgment unto the Son.” It is the Son who
will come “in the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory”;
whom “every eye shall see;” and who, “in his own glory, and in the
glory of the Father, and of the holy angels,” shall “judge the
world in righteousness.” Then will he who humbled himself, and
“became obedient unto death,” be publicly recognised as “the Mighty
God,” “by whom, and for whose pleasure, all things are, and were
created.” Then will “every tongue confess that he is Lord.” The
conviction will then be universal, “that all men should honour the
Son even as they honour the Father.” This leads us to inquire,

III. What connexion will the
Judgment have with our future and eternal condition?

Here let us not indulge in vain
speculations, but examine simply the word of God. According to the
Scriptures, the judgment will result in assigning to men very
different allotments. It will recognise among them two entirely
different and opposite classes of character. One of these classes,
which the Bible denominates “the righteous,” will be graciously
acquitted by the Judge, and publicly treated as his friends. The
other, comprising all the impenitent, will be as publicly
condemned, and driven from his presence. They “will have judgment
without mercy.” Such is plainly the account which Christ and the
sacred writers have given of the final awards to the righteous and
the wicked. We have the account in detail. Says the Saviour
himself, “When the Son of Man shall come in his glory, and all the
holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his
glory: and before him shall be gathered all nations; and he shall
separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep
from the goats; and he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but
the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his
right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” “Then shall he
say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed,
into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.” And
again; “The hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves
shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done
good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that
have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation“.
Thus broad and fearful is the discrimination which the great day
will make between the righteous and the wicked. So entirely
different are the awards in reserve for the two different classes
of mankind. The difference will be great, as between holiness and
sin; between cheerful submission to the will and providence of God,
and unyielding rebellion against him; between cordial faith in the
Lord Jesus Christ, and wilful rejection of the only Saviour;
between the splendour and joy of the celestial Paradise, and the
gloominess and misery of hell. No wonder, then, that “as Paul
reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix
trembled.” There will, indeed, be fearful reason for “weeping and
wailing and gnashing of teeth,” with those who shall then “see
Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets in the kingdom
of God, and themselves thrust out.”

We are not to forget, my hearers, that
these different awards of the judgment day will be
irreversible and literally endless. All admit this
conclusion, with respect to the righteous. But if the
righteous are finally acquitted at the judgment, so are the
wicked finally condemned. If the righteous are said to enter
into “life eternal,” so are the wicked to “go away into
everlasting punishment.” The Scriptures say not one word of
any reprieve from this condemnation, or of any other period of
merciful visitation. But they close with the most solemn assurance,
that, from that awful day, he that is unjust shall be unjust still;
and he that is filthy shall be filthy still; and he that is
righteous shall be righteous still; and he that is holy shall be
holy still. Other passages, of similar import, might be quoted: but
if men will pour contempt on a single declaration of
Jehovah—if they will make God a liar—they would
not be persuaded, though his voice from the heavens were a thousand
times repeated. And because they receive not the love of the
truth, that they might be saved, most justly may he
send them strong delusion, that they should believe a
lie, and be damned.

I have thus endeavoured, with much
brevity, to give a scriptural view of the final Judgment. On a
subject so tremendously awful, I have chosen to present simply
God’s testimony. A practical inference from the whole
is,—that the present life must be regarded as probationary.
We are living here as responsible agents, continually adding to the
number of actions, for which we must give account to God. How
solemnly interesting, then, is this scene of our earthly
pilgrimage! How inexpressibly valuable is time! How infinitely
precious are the means of grace!—particularly those
invitations of mercy, which meet us in the word of God, and address
us from the sacred desk.

You, my fellow sinners, are the very
individuals who must stand at the judgment-seat of Christ. You must
mingle in that vast multitude, which the voice of the archangel and
the trump of God shall assemble. And when your characters are all
laid open, you must pass off to the right hand, or to the left,
accordingly as it shall appear, that you have repented, and
believed on the Son of God, or have neglected this great salvation.
And are you diligently preparing for that day? Are you working out
your salvation with fear and trembling? Are you agonizing to
enter in at the strait gate? Are you escaping for your life?

Fellow mortals, your time of
preparation may be far more brief than you now think. A few,
very few more opportunities for prayer, and reconciliation
with God, and your account is sealed up. While you hesitate, the
recording angel may be writing your condemnation. In such
circumstances, what are worldly honours, or wealth, or all your
hopes of enjoyment here? The life, the eternal life of the
soul, is the one thing needful—the only
thing really important. You will realize this truth, when the last
trumpet is sounding through the universe, and, with increasing
agony or ecstasy, millions of ages after the final sentence is
pronounced. O, then, consider it now. Prepare for that
judgment, now. To-morrow! where is it? Repent
to-morrow! You may have far other work to do. God, and
conscience, and your immortal interests plead, “To-day, if
you will hear his voice, harden not your heart.” “Behold,
now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of
salvation.” Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from
the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. For he cometh, for
he cometh, to judge the world, in righteousness to judge the earth,
and the people with his truth.

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