earth; and their places will be filled by men of another generation and of a superior character. The same Holy Spirit that rested in such rich abundance upon the Head, while he was personally ministering on earth (See Isa. xi. 1-9, and lxi. 1-5), will descend and abide without measure, when compared with any thing we have witnessed, upon all the members. Under such an influence, another and a continued pentecost will be enjoyed. All who shall be employed in the work of the ministry will of course understand and feel the importance of Divine truth in all its fulness and in all its varied applications, to an extent perhaps far beyond what even apostles enjoyed. See Jeremiah xxxi. 31-34; Isa. xxx. 26; Zechariah xii. 8. They will particularly understand and feel the value of immortal souls, and the suitableness of God's plan of salvation, and the suitableness of all the means which God hath appointed for applying this salvation to our fallen race. They will further be men who will be exclusively devoted to their proper work. They will understand fully the epistles to Timothy and Titus, and the other passages of Scripture describing the nature and the importance of the sacred office. Add to all this, they will be men of ardent piety, and will, generally, have every ministerial and Christian gift and grace on all occasions in lively exercise. And one of their distinguishing characteristics, as men of ardent piety, will no doubt be, that while they shall stand high as men of literature and science, they will possess the happy art of making all their attainments subservient to the salvation and edification of immortal souls. All that may be found valuable in the whole range of human investigation will thus be made to bear upon the development and application of Jehovah's great plan.

And though the preachers of the gospel will then be greatly multiplied, and though their field of operation will be greatly extended, far beyond any thing of any former period, yet there will be also a unity and a harmony of thinking and of feeling, and particularly a unity and harmony of action, equally beyond all that has ever yet been witnessed. This unity will be produced by the powerful operation of God's Spirit upon the understanding, and upon the heart and conscience. Isa. lii. 7, 8. Hence it will be of a very different kind from any thing which has been called by that name under any human arrangements. It will be decidedly the work of God, and will carry along with it its own evidence. It will be the keeping of the unity of the Spirit in the bonds of peace, with all lowliness, and meekness, and long-suffering, and with forbearing one another in love.

There are a great variety of circumstances, as well as some passages of Scripture, which are favorable to the belief, that the movements of Providence in bringing in the glory of the latter day, will be uncommonly rapid, and will far exceed the ordinary march of history. (See Isaiah lxv. 24, and lxvi. 8–19, 20, Zechariah xii. 6–8, Malachi iii. 5.)

It is also extremely probable, that our Lord and Master will, by the dispensations of his providence, and by the operations of his Holy Spirit, provide a generation of servants of this elevated character, at the same time, in nearly all the nations of the earth; and having stationed each company and each man in his proper place, the word of command will be given. And then the advance will be made in united and solid columns upon every point in every line of the fortifications of the enemy and usurper. Then will be completely fulfilled that which was spoken-"The Lord gave the word, and great shall be the company of those that publish it." And at that very moment also, the shout of victory will be raised all round the globe, "Alleluia! for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth."

Hence, in conclusion, we may infer that there never was any former period in the history of the world, in which there was such encouragement for young men of piety, and talent, and enterprise, to devote themselves to the work of the ministry, as there is at present; nor was there ever any former period in which there was greater encouragement to good people of every name, and of every land and nation, to contribute liberally for aiding pious young men in a course of preparation for this great and good work. The sound is already heard in nearly every land,—“ Awake, awake, put on thy strength, O Zion, put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city, for henceforth there shall no more come unto thee the uncircumcised or the unclean."

SERMON CXLVIII.

Delivered in the city of New-York, at the ordination of Leonard Woods, jun., May 12, 1833.

BY LEONARD WOODS, D.D.

PROFESSOR IN THE THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AT ANDOVER.

APOSTOLIC PREACHING.

ACTS xx. 17-21, 25-27.-And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church. And when they were come to him, he said unto them, Ye know, from the first day I came into Asia, after what manner I have been with you at all seasons, serving the Lord with all humility of mind, with many tears, and temptations which befell me by the lying in wait of the Jews:how I kept back nothing that was profitable, but have showed you and have taught you publicly, and from house to house, testifying both to the Jews and also to the Greeks, repentance towards God, and faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ. And now, behold, I know, that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more. Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.

THIS passage of Scripture exhibits an example peculiarly worthy of imitation. The apostle preached in Ephesus three years. His labors were great and constant. He ceased not to warn every one, night and day, with tears. He declared all the counsel of God. And his labors were not in vain. While he planted and watered, GoD gave the increase. Many souls were converted. There was, emphatically, a revival of religion.

The present day is, in a most remarkable degree, a day of salvation. God is showing the riches of his grace in reviving his work, and enlarging the church. And, as we have reason to hope that he will carry on his work more and more gloriously, till the whole earth shall see his salvation, it becomes a most interesting question, especially to ministers, how they may most success. fully co-operate with God in advancing his kingdom. We know it pleases God to save sinners, through the efforts of men devoted to his service. He allows us the high honor of being employed in turning sinners from darkness to light, and training them for the kingdom of heaven. We should, therefore,

endeavor to form just conceptions of the nature and extent of the work devolved upon us, in the economy of redemption; so that we may keep our proper place, neglecting nothing which comes within our province, and confiding wholly in God, as to every thing which appropriately belongs to the sphere of his agency. What we are called to do, is perfectly clear from the instructions God has given. And it is equally clear what is the work which peculiarly belongs to Him. Our work is one adapted to the attributes of our minds, and to the dependent and limited agency which we are capable of exerting. The peculiar work of GoD is a work suited to His infinite perfections, —a work which is entirely distinct from our agency, and entirely beyond it,— though frequently conjoined with it. To give efficacy to the truth, to renew the heart, is His work exclusively. Our preaching has, of itself, no power to accomplish it, either in whole or in part. In the natural world, the work of planting and cultivation is assigned to us. But who does not see, that the vegetation and growth of corn is effected by a cause entirely distinct from our agency? The highest exertion of the power which belongs to us cannot cause the earth to bring forth fruit. We do not even know how the effect is produced; so that if we do in fact put forth that agency which truly causes the vegetation and growth of corn, we do it ignorantly. By such a case as this the apostle illustrates the agency which the servants of Christ have in the conversion of sinners, and the peculiar agency which God has. Our appropriate work is the same as the work which Paul performed at Ephesus, where he preached the unsearchable riches of Christ,-where he labored three years, by faithful instruction, and earnest, affectionate exhortation, to bring sinners to repentance. And God's work is the same now, as that which he accomplished among the Ephesians, when he effectually enlightened the eyes of their understanding, and by giving spiritual life to those who were dead in sin, made known the exceeding greatness of his power.

But I propose, in this discourse, to confine my remarks to a single question: What is the preaching best suited to promote the conversion of sinners, and the building up of Christ's church?

Among the general characteristics of the preaching which is adapted to promote these great objects, the following are of special importance :

First: It must be Scriptural. I do not say merely that it must contain no principles contrary to the word of God; but that it must exhibit fully the very truths which are exhibited in his word, and as they are exhibited in his word. How did Peter preach on the day of Pentecost, when so many were converted? Just examine. About half his sermon, as recorded by the sacred historian, was made up of texts quoted from the Bible, and the other half of plain reasoning from those texts, and a pungent application to his hearers of the truth, thus drawn from the word of God. And who ever delivered a better sermon, or one more successful? What we preach should be derived from the Bible;-derived directly and munifestly. The more evident we make it that our preaching is scriptural, the higher authority do we give it, and the deeper the impression it is likely to make. Away, then, with all the speculations of man, the offspring of human imagination, or mere human reason. We go out of our place, if we attempt to say any thing on the great subjects of Christianity, except what we learn from the Scriptures. If we would honor God, and secure that influence of his Spirit which alone gives efficacy to our labors, we must preach his word, and nothing else. The word of God is the sword of the Spirit. It is the instrument which the Holy Spirit uses in converting

sinners and sanctifying believers; and it is the instrument we must use, if we would not disobey God, and labor in vain. "Preach the preaching that I bid thee," saith the Lord.

Secondly: Preaching must be plain and intelligible. A considerable part of our public assemblies are youth and children. And the principal part of those farther advanced in years, have but little time and few advantages for the cultivation of their minds. Now there is a great deal in the common strain of preaching which is utterly useless to the bulk of the people, because it is not understood. There is something in the words employed, something in the structure of the sentences, in the propositions, arguments, and illustrations, which greatly obscures the sense, if it does not wholly conceal it. If we would profit our hearers, we must make every thing plain. Even when we reason on the subject of religion, we must make our arguments plain :—strong and conclusive they must indeed be, but still plain, clear,—so that every one who hears may feel the force of our reasoning.

Thirdly: Our preaching must be characterized by earnestness. Nothing on earth is so important as religion. The salvation of the immortal soul, the success of the gospel, the reign of Christ, the eternal glory of God; these are objects which infinitely outweigh all the interests of time. If, then, earnestness is called for anywhere, it is here. If any thing in the universe should excite the full ardor of our minds, it is the message we bring to an assembly of immortals. If we deliver it with sluggish feelings, we are chargeable with an inconsistency which must be seen by all men, but the evils of which no language can describe. God commands us to be in earnest. Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord. And dare we engage in a work which demands the fervor of angels, with a cold, unfeeling heart? Indeed, a higher, far higher degree of pious fervor and earnestness, pervading our prayers, our preaching, and all our labors, seems to be one of the chief things now called for, in order to the universal prevalence of religion. If ministers should come to possess a holy earnestness, corresponding with the importance of their work, their success might, with the blessing of God, be increased a hundred-fold. Let these vast objects, then, my brethren,-the honor of God our Savior, the spread of the Gospel, the redemption of souls from death, and the incorruptible glories of heaven, more powerfully move our hearts, and rouse us to greater, far greater earnestness.

I might mention other general characteristics of preaching, as really important as those I have specified; such as tenderness, boldness, discretion, fidelity, &c. But I can only name these; as the plan of discourse which I have contemplated will lead me to dwell upon other views of the subject.

We may, then, I think, be much assisted in forming definite and satisfactory ideas of the best kind of preaching, by a careful attention to the particular ends of preaching; or the particular points of light in which the great end of preaching may be considered.

The great end of preaching is to promote true religion, in distinction from that which is false. False religion exhibits itself in an endless variety of forms, all of them agreeing in one way or another with the feelings of the unrenewed heart. Mankind are exceedingly prone to fall in with some scheme of error; and if the doctrines they receive are right, they are still inclined to satisfy themselves with false or defective experiences. Awakened sinners, so long as they continue unrenewed, are always in danger of indulging delusive affections. Multitudes rest in a spurious conversion, which leaves them the

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servants of sin, and heirs of perdition. It is no easy thing to preserve men from false religion. What I now say is true at all times, and particularly in a revival. When the Spirit of God specially exerts his power, the enemy will to the utmost exert his power. He will strive to get access to the field where the wheat is sown, and there, among the wheat, to sow tares. When the rain moistens the earth, and the sun warms it, and the wheat springs up and grows, the tares will grow also. Thus Jesus taught his disciples. While we strive then with all our hearts to promote true religion, let us never forget that men are greatly exposed to delusion; and surely the promotion of this can be no part of our proper work. This is the work of the enemy. Should our preaching be the means of ten thousand spurious conversions, and should we bring ten thousand mere pretenders to piety into the church, it would do no good either to them, or to the church, but be imminently dangerous to both. In our preaching, then, we must constantly aim to promote true religion, in distinction from false; and for this purpose we must make the distinction between true and false religion very apparent. We must show clearly what false religion is, and in how many ways men are exposed to it: we must guard our hearers against its seductive influence; must beseech them and warn them to avoid it as ruinous to the soul; must follow them through all their dark retreats with the lamp of divine truth; must lay open the windings of the deceitful heart, and sweep away all the refuges of lies. We must make this a great object both in revivals and at other times, always remembering that by guarding men against delusion, we do that which is highly important to them, and wellpleasing in the sight of God.

Thus much as to false religion. True religion is holiness. To promote holiness, we must clearly describe the nature of holiness, as consisting essentially in right affections or dispositions of heart. We must exhibit the objects of these affections, the glorious character of God and of Christ,—the divine law and the divine kingdom,-man as rational, accountable, and immortal,and other objects set forth in the Scriptures. We must hold forth in all their variety and weight the motives to holy affection; and by these must rouse the dormant energies of conscience, and touch the feelings of the heart.

One of the primary requisites in true religion is conviction of sin. All Christians have it. It results from the illumination of the Holy Spirit, which gives just apprehensions of our duty and of our real character. It is necessary even in case of a sudden conversion. Those who were converted on the day of Pentecost were deeply convinced of sin.

Repentance is a prominent part of true religion; and our preaching must be suited to promote it. In order to this, it is not sufficient to tell sinners that they ought to repent; and ought to repent now. We must show what repent

ance is, not mere sorrow for sin, nor any moving of the natural sensibilities in view of the consequences of sin,—but actual turning from sin;—not merely resolving to repent,-for resolving to do a thing is not doing it. We must show that repentance is being grieved for sin as committed against God, and really forsaking it,-ceasing to do evil, and learning to do well. We must exhibit the present and unceasing duty of all men to repent, and must earnestly urge them to an immediate compliance with this high obligation by the motives which the Scriptures furnish.

Another essential element, indeed the groundwork of all evangelical religion, is faith in Christ. But we are far from accomplishing our work as ministers of the Gospel, when we merely reiterate the exhortation and command, to