Donations and Subscriptions will be gratefully received on behalf of the Society by the Treasurer, J. R. BOUSFIELD, Esq., 128, Houndsditch; or by the Secretary,

THE REV. S. J. DAVIS, 33, MOORGATE STREET, LONDON; Collector for London.-MR. W. PARNELL. 6, Benyon Cottages, De Beauvoir Sq., Kingsland.

J. HADDON, CASTLE STREET, FINSBURY.

THE

BAPTIST RECORD

AND

BIBLICAL REPOSITORY.

FEBRUARY, 1846.

THE PROSPEROUS CHURCH.

THERE is an adaptation in the church of God to accomplish the great ends of its institution. As salt is adapted to season certain bodies to which it is applied, and the beacon-light to direct the mariner in his course, so the church, not only sustains a most important relation to the age, but is admirably adapted to accomplish the noble ends for which it was designed. The ultimate end of all divine arrangements is the divine glory. This is the great end of creation, of providence, of redemption. But, in the economy of redemption, the glory of God is intimately connected with the salvation of man; and this the church is fitted to promote. In illustration of this statement, it is necessary only to remark, that the church is in possession of all the means which God has appointed for the renovation of the world. No system of means has ever been used, or ever will be, for the salvation of men, but that with which the church of God is now entrusted. The body of the faithful are responsible for the wise and prayerful use of these means; and, as far as it respects human agency, the salvation of man depends on this. "How can they believe on him of whom they have not heard? and how can they hear without a peacher? and how can they preach except they be sent?" and, we may add, by whom can they be sent but by the church of God? The GREAT INSTRUMENT which God has appointed for the moral renovation of the world is, the WORD OF TRUTH. This is the sword of the Spirit; and it is for the soldier of the cross to wield it. They

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must illustrate its power in their own conduct, and always address those around them with the silent eloquence of a holy life. They must cherish an anxious solicitude for the welfare of men. They must uphold the ministry of the Gospel, which is God's ordinance for the conversion of sinners to himself. They must aid that ministry by their prayers, and their faithful co-operation. They must speak with seriousness and affection to those with whom they are acquainted, and they must pray for those to whom they cannot speak. They must thus wield the sword of etherial temper, for this work devolves on them; and they must, at the same time, abound in prayer and supplication, not only in, but for, the Spirit; for it is he alone who effectually convinces men of sin, and turns their hearts to God.

We propose to notice, in this paper, the GRAND CONDITION OF THE EFFICIENCY OF THE CHURCH; or, in other words, the state of mind which must generally prevail among Christians before they can be extensively useful.

The church must be inwardly prosperous before she can be really efficient. She must possess spiritual health and soundness before she can do much to glorify her God, and to benefit the age in which she lives.

We may remark, in passing, that the church consists of a number of individual believers, and that its spiritual prosperity depends on that of its members. The whole is but the union and combination of the parts of which it consists; and the whole can never be greater than all the parts. The church must present a spectacle of barrenness and desolation, unless its members are individually in a state of health and prosperity. One of the greatest wants of the present day is, a deep sense of personal consecration to God-of the necessity of living to God, and for the age, as individual Christians. We have societies in abundance, and for all purposes; we have committee-men and committee-ladies without end. We speak not against them; but we do wish that the weight of individual character were more deeply felt, and that the noiseless, but mighty influence, of personal effort were better understood, and more generally illustrated. Ere a state of moral healthfulness can be generally obtained, the prosperity of the church must be regarded by every Christian as a personal thing. We must all feel, that if the church be supine and faithless, we are the cause of it if the church is to awake from her lethargy, to put on her strength, and to assume her beautiful garments, this reviviscence must begin with ourselves; it must be sought in our own closets; it must be felt in our own hearts; it must be exemplified in our own spirit and deportment.

But what are the indications of a state of spiritual prosperity in the church of God, that grand condition of her efficiency? The first of these which we shall notice is, an ardent love of divine truth, leading to a deep and intimate acquaintance with the sacred volume. There can be no stability or soundness of religious character except it be based on a deep and intimate acquaintance with the great verities of the Gospel, an experimental and a practical knowledge of the fundamental truths of Christianity. A church, however great its numbers, however ardent its zeal, or rapid its increase, is not in a state of moral soundness, of spiritual prosperity, except it be animated by a pure love of divine truth, an intense desire for the unadulterated milk of the word. In proportion to the spiritual soundness of a church is its love of the whole truth which God has been pleased to reveal. It is felt, that whatsoever is not unworthy of God to teach, cannot be unimportant to a man to learn. There is no dread of any part of the revealed will of God. There is no preference for one part of the truth, to the rejection of another part. There is no love of that which is doctrinal, to the rejection of that which is practical, nor the reverse. There is no delight in the promises, to the rejection of the pure precepts of Scripture; nor the contrary. There is no hankering after comfort, to the forgetfulness of the necessity of Christian character and fruitfulness; nor any desire to confine the ministry to the edification of believers, to the neglect of the vitally important work of the conversion of sinners to God. In proportion to the moral healthfulness of the church, a desire prevails for the truth in those measures and proportions in which it is presented to us in the sacred volume. While the whole counsel of God is declared in Scripture, every truth is not revealed with equal clearness, nor is the same prominence given to every part of the Divine will. Truths appear to be revealed in Scripture with a clearness, a prominence is given to them, they are placed in various positions and lights, they are repeated with a frequency, and urged with an importunity, porportioned to their vital importance. The same principle is found to prevail, more or less, in every enlightened mind. As it is the study of every wise and efficient minister to fill the sanctuary with divine light, in every healthful church there is an ardent attachment to a really sound, luminous, and scriptural ministry. Spiritual prosperity is not indicated by the ardour with which crowds flock to listen to a fresh voice, or to an exhibition of certain novelties or peculiarities of manner or of sentiment; but by the seriousness and devotion with which they attend to the great truths of the gospel, and the readiness with which they yield to their benign influence.

In intimate connexion with the love of the truth is ardent attachment to the ordinances of religion. "God loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob;" and in every age his people have been distinguished by their love for the house of their God. Who has not exclaimed, with the Psalmist, "How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord God of hosts!" And when denied the privileges of public worship, who has not said with him, "As the heart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God! My soul thirsteth for God, the living God; when shall I come and appear before God?" Whenever the church is in a state of moral soundness, it is characterised by a general and ardent attachment to public ordinances. They are felt, by all the people, to be the means which God has appointed for their spiritual good; the means which he has promised to bless, and in the use of which they have often beheld his glory, and have been refreshed by his presence and his smile. When there is much laxity in attendance on public ordinances, it is a sure sign of a low state of religion in the church. If there be not that ardour of feeling, and that holy enjoyment in the sanctuary, which leads us to be there, not as seldom as may be, but as frequently as other duties will allow, it is certain that the domestic altar affords just as much divine light and genial heat as a painted fire does of warmth, while the closet has long ceased to afford any attraction, or to exhibit any symptoms of spiritual life. Coldness, backsliding, apostasy, with all their melancholy consequences, do not begin in the sanctuary; they invariably show themselves first in the closet; and long before his brethren marked the absence of the unhappy backslider from his place in the public assembly, the angels of God, the Saviour of men, the Judge of all, had missed him in the place of secret retirement. As piety declines in the church, its ordinances are carelessly attended, and a little thing avails as an excuse for the neglect of them; but as the power of religion revives, its ordinances are felt to be necessary and are found to be delightful.

A state of prosperity in the church is further indicated by the prevalence of a spirit of holy love. The great antagonist of religion is the heart, and not the understanding; so is it also the chief seat of vital piety. Love is above knowledge; it is superior to all the talents which are most esteemed in the world; it is superior to all the endowments which are most valued in the church, and to all the attainments and achievements which are held in the highest estimation amongst men. It is not only infinitely superior to all spiritual gifts, it is also the perfection of all Christian graces. "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not love, I am