Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1858-01-01

| '.e!' Vi 'ithldity,anu entirely self-pOsseS8-
cd, he talks to his hearers like a friend.
Even in his most impassioncd utterances.
there is no pulpit tone--no clerical man
nerism-nothins that you might not look
lot IN the secular orator, or the scientific
lecturer.
2 He says nothing that the younges:
and most illiterate of his hearers cannot
perfectly understand His language 10
good idiomatic Saxon. There are no
LatlnIsms, no Germlnisms, no long and
d!flcu!t worda,no tangled and high press
ure sentences-only such as may in.
s'antly be comperchended by the boot
black and the newsboy. He never aims
at ornament, nor uses two words where
one VIII answer. In this respec: he re-
scmb!es Wesley or Whitefeld.
3. He is highly dramatic. Every
thing lives, moves aud speaks in his SER
mons. The whole discourse, indeed. il
only series Of pictures, brought vividly
before the aulience There are no cold
and dry distractions. Every truth is
clothed with life and power. Metaphors
and s.mles crowd upon enc another as
thick as jeremy Taylor's or Edward Ir-
wing $; though notas graceful as the for.
mcr. nor as gorg oas as the latter. But
his chiei forte is the apostrophe, in the
use of which certainly he has seldom
been excelled. His dramatic power.
though inferior undoubtedly to White.
fields Or lrvins's, is confessedly very
great.
4. He is manifestly in earnest. No
man perhaps was ever more 80, He
seems to pat his whole soul into every
sermon. He speaks as if he stood with
his audience upon trem bling point
between heaven and he'll. His great
desire evidently is TO do Gods work
WE'LL and save as many souls as he can.
Hence that directness of application,
that f'rvid nortatory style, which rivets
the attention, f1rc2s home the truth.
and makes every hearer feel himself
personal addressed by the preacher
Hence also that holiness and fidelity
which rebukes sin in high places, and
speaks TO my noble lords and lalie.''
as plainly as the ca5-d ivcr and the
hitchen-maid. The last time that
heard him, the Dachess of Sutherland
was present, and several other noble
pcrsoaages, who perhaps had never
listened to dissenting preacher before:
and if he did not deal faithfully with
their souls that day, then Nathan did
not detI faithfully with David, nor Paul
with Felix or Agrippt. O, but he did
thre3h them with the gospel fail O,
but he did grind them, as with mill
stones, between the two tables of tho
law He seemed to draw the string
more tightly, and point the arrow more
accurately, because he was aiming high.
You will read these passages some day
IN his reported sermons. l never heard
anything nobler from human lips. II
was worthy OF an Elijah or Peter
.. lie breaches the doctrines of the
gospel. Human depravity. Christ cru
cited, Justification by faith, spiritual
reSenaratlon, AMI judgment to come, are
his constant themes. 1t is the good old
gospel, and nothing new, that he keeps
6etore tie people. do not say, for 1
do not think, that he breaches this good
Old gospel in the very best form. All
wheat has chaf. Mr.. Spurgeon breaches
Ca,vlnlsm gone to seed. He is more
Calvinistic than Calvin himself. But
among the chaH there is so much wheat
that hungry souls cannot fail of nourish-
ment under his ministry. In short, al.
though he breaches Calvinism in form
which would DC offensive to nine-tenths
OF the Caivanists of Christeniom, he
breaches Arminianism vcrv much more.
tie is Theoretically Cal anist, but prae.
tically an Arminian. He has a Caivan.
istic head, but an Arminian heart; and
his heart is so much greater than bis head
that 1t atways carries the day. He in
variab'y tells the sinner that he can do
nothing, and must wait for God to do all:
but waan he falls to AMI urges him with
such irresistible energy t. immediate re-
pentaace and faith in Christ, that the
poor man fortunately forsets the former
statement, and is carried captive by tho
preachers impetuous exhortation. Thus
Mr.. Spurgeon is constantly contradict
ing himself in the most remarkable man.
ncr, and it seems strange to me that
every hearcr does not see the incompati.
bility of his theory AMI his practice. In
one Of his sermons to which I listened:
after having stated the doctrine of pre.
destination and election in the strongest
possible form, he exhorted his hearers
with most genial warmth to turn i'm.
medlately to God; when all at once he
! seemed to recollect himself. but the heart
still carried it over the head, and he ex-
claimed; "You may accuse me of preach.
in. Armin ianism: care MOTT is Whist
| love to preach, and am b, und to preach.
and will by the help OF God !" and still
he went on with greater fervo, than ever.
5. But the best of all is. Cod is with
him. Who can doubt it !! This is the
chief reason of his success. 1t is not By
might; nor by power, but by the Spirit
of the Lord Mr.. Spurgeon is sincere
and supplemented man deeply concern.
ed for the salvation of his fellow-men
and Go1 is owning and blessing his laboss.
Go on, Mr.. Sturgeon, and don't -.
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