The voice of freedom. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1839-1848, 1839-09-07

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preach the gospel" Very WE'LL but is this thei
only business +? If you say it is, then you aceel
the deck at once, and must acknowledge, that Chris
has no ministers in our land, or that they have tc
man turned aside from their only business. Fo
have never known a minister, that was wholly
devoted to preaching the gospel for any length o
time, If you say that preaching the gospel should
be the main business of every minister of Christ
but not their only business, then you yield the
point, admit that he has other duties, to which he
man, to decide for himself what duties have the
strongest claims upon him.
Here we might leave the sub ject; but we have
somewhat more to say. The minister of Christ
is like his Master has his spirit, and will follow
his example He will preach such gospel as
Christ preached, and will not be man-pleaser
The gospel that Christ preached, was good hdings
Of great jog to all people, to the poor as well as
the rich, to the slave we'll as his master, TO the
black man as well as the white man. 1t was a
free salvation; without money and without price
1t was eminently suited to the circumstances and
wants of the poor. To them it was preached by
Christ and his apostles. And while scrbes and
priests contradicted and blasphemed, the common
people heard him gladly. 1t is written, lsa. 81,
l. "The spirit of the Lord God is upon me be-
cause the Lord hath anointed me to preach good
tidings TO the meek; he hath sent me to bind up
the broken hearted to proclaim liberty to the cap
tives, and the opening of the prison doors to them
that are bound" And when he began to preach
he called on his hearers TO Repent because the
kingdom of heaten was at hand" Had he been
among shareholders, would he not have called
upon them to repent, to break every yoke and let
the oppressed go free Would he not have said
to them, Blessed are the merciful, for they shall
obtain mercy - Thou shalt love thy neighbor as
myself" "ln much as we have not done it I'M
to the least of these my BRETHREN we have not done
it unto me-" And had some proud scribe said,
Who is my neighbor would not Christ have re-
peated the beautiful story of the man who fell a
mong thieves, and who was neglected by the Le-
vite and the Priest, but kindly taken care of by
the Samaritan And would he not have said to
. him with emphasis, Go thou, and do likewise 2"
If Christ condemned the hyporitical scribes and
pharisees, who made long prayers and devoured
widows houses; what would he say to those pro-
fessed Christians and ministers, who deyour not
only widows houses, but widows and their chill |
dren together? 1.-The drove out ofthe temple those
money spectators, who sold sheep and oxen for
lawful purpose, would he not with holy ndig-
nation drive out of his church those spectators
who sell men, women and children, and live by de-
frauding those who labor for them?
Christ commanded that his gospel should be
preached to every creature. His ministers will
obey him and preach to the poor as well as to the
rich preach, not as pleasing men, but God preach
the preaching that they are bidden-preach that
men should repent and bring forth fruits meet for
repentance; preach that those who have stolen
should steal no more preach Masters give unto
your servants that which is just and equal; preach
GO to now, we rich men, weep and howl for your
miseres that shall come upon you. Your riches
are corrupted, and your garments motheaten.
Your gold and silver is cankered and the rust of
them shall be a witness against you, and shall
eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped
treasure together for the last days. Behold the
hire Of the laborers who have reaped down your
fields, which isof you kept hack by fraud, crieth,
and the cries of them which have reaped are en-
tered into the ears Of the Lord of Sabbaoth"; yea
they will preach Remember them, that are bound,
as bound with them, and them that suffer ADVERSE
ty as being yourselves also in the body" Such
is the preaching which the ministers of Christ are
required 10 preach. And sure am, that am
willing, that they should preach such preaching
in season and out of season, through evil report
and good, whether people will hear, or whether
they forbear.
But there was in the days of the apostles anoth-
er gospel and men that gloried in preaching it.
A gospel, from which the offence of the cross was
excluded, and a religion incucated, suited 10 the
carnal heart and evil desires Of ungodly men. Has
this gospel come down to our days? And is this
- Il Al Ill