The New York herald., 1872-07-08
WEST TwRNTY-F1rTH STREET o. P. CHURCH

The New Pastors First Sermon.
tolerably full congregation assembled in the
West Twenty fifth street United Presbyterian
church yesterday forenoon, to listen to the first
sermon Of their new pastor, Rev. Samuel J. Stewart
young clergyman apparently not yet on the shady
side OF thirty, but OF good delivery and evident
culture, and who has been hitherto ministering In
the State Of Illinols. The Scriptural lesson was
tho FIRST chapter 0I the First Epstc OF Paul to the
Corinthians and the text was the first clause o.
the seventeenth verse of the same" Christ sent
me not to baptze, but to preach the Gospel" BY
these words, lie said, Paul did not
reject baptism; for he himself at times baptized,
though lie generally left that work to his associates
His words rather subordinated external ordinances
to spiritual forms, and the Quaker need not quote
him against baptism, for he was not. Baptism
should not be put aside for 1t was upon the same
authority as preaching, occupying, however,
secondary position. But while the minister is sent
primarily to preach, he was not sent to live for
literature alone; yet for the sake OF his calling e
his faculties not relying entirely upon his pety for
the conversion OF sinners and the salvation OF
souls. In the present day there was TOO much
IGNORANCE IN THE PULPIT,
and too much trusting to piety without mental cu
Worldly s and tSe to Cod
learned In all the logic and rhetoric Of the East
and his great success was largely attributable TO
preached with pure simplicity, but its beauty and
effect should not be destroyed by ignorance In tue
guse Of simplicity. Political principles should not
be preached from the pulpit; but when questions
OF morality were concerned the pulpit should
take stand on the side OF truth
and right. Intellectual or dOctrinal preaching
should be combined with emotional preaching, or
that which touched the heart; but a gospel all ar
gument or oil sentiment would not satisfy There
were those who delighted in hairsplittng dogmas !;
but the minister was not sent to preach mere phos-
Ophy, even though 1t be a religious philosophy, and
one intellect should not be fed to the starvation OF
the simple Gospel but who likewise had
AN ITCHING EAR FOR sENsATIoNALIsM.
Such desire was wrong, but while doctrine was
necessary 1t should be Interestingly stated. There
was too much milk and water piety--a piety which
could not be explained by its pOssessors no matter
how well they could illustrate all other matters.
The old ROmish notion, that ignorance was the
mother of devotion, was false, and an educated
Church was necessary for Christian progress
Preaching the Gospel was the great work to which
all others should be made secondary; but 1t
would be OF no more use to preach Christ
unless the sins OF the people were point
cd out to them and they convinced OF
their need OF Him than 1t would to tell man of q
good phy ysician unless the man could be convinced
that he needed physician. During the sermon
and In conclusion the preacher announced that
endeavor TO preach Christ and Him crucned, and
to take stand on the side oftemperance and social
reform, though never In a political sense, and that
he should not hesitate to point out sin wherever he
might discover It, lie knew that he could not boast
of long years OF experience, and was conscious Of
weakness yet, feeling that Christ had sent him, he
believed that Christ would give him strength.