Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1876-04-27
@eadiug fer the Sabbath.
CONDUCTED By 1850.
REV. ROBERT LATHAM.
(ohginal..
DEAD.


[ohginall
81 know thy works, that thou hast name tha
thou livest, and art dead" Rev. 8:
The above is minute description of mul
titudes of individuals of the present day who
are called Christians. Not few congrega
tions, scattered all over the Christian world
may be described by single word, and thai
monosyllable of four letters. They are
dead. Enter the church where such con
gregation has assembled to worship, and g
cold sensation passes over the soul as if We
had entered moral iceberg. 1t seems as il
multitude of strangers, by some strange and
unaccountable coincidence, had all been
thrown under the same roof, no one having
any idea what brought any other one of the
company to the place. A formality, as rigid
as death, is perched upon every countenance
The worship is conducted in such manner
as to make the impression on the mind that
the multitude are only strangers, who have
for the first time in their lives, been in a
church. Every body seems to be in pain
not bodily pain, but mental pain. Every
body seems to be out of place, and all are
glad when the congregation is dismissed and
the door is reached. Then feeling of ease
fits over the soul and lights up the counte!
nance with natural smile.
This is not an overdrawn picture. Looks
seldom speak falsehoods. Multitudes look at
their own church as bashful country boy
looks when he enters parlor filled with in-
dividuals, all of whom are strangers to him.
A feeling of awkwardness is experienced by
all present. Just so it is with multitudes in
church. They 60 to church regularly, but
they always look awkward, seeming as if they
were at strange place, and among strangers
For this deplorable condition of things
there must be some cause. 1t is widespread
evil, affecting the church in every section Of
the country. 1t is not confnedt to any partic.
ular denomination, but is alike common to all
denominations. One of the many causes
which has had much to do in bringing about
this state of lifeless formality in the church,
is the manner in which the gospel is preached.
There is too much formality in modern
preaching. In too many instances, preaching
nowadays is nothing more nor less than a
sophomore exercise. The preacher gets up
and reads beautiful composition. It's fig.
ures are beautiful, and its periods full and
we'll rounded. The audience listen only to be
pleased. To be moved BY such preaching, is,
in ninety-nine cases out of every hundred,
absolutely impossible. 1t is miserably poor
preaching that is not better than the best
reading. .... '. ~
Another defect about modern preaching, is
the high estimate that 80 many ministers put
upon metaphysics. They seem to think that
the way that leads to honor and distinction is
through metaphysics. In every sermon they
must give their hearers something to digest.
This is all nonsense. A mans mind is not
like his body, furnished with a stomach.
Whenever a minister of the gospel gets so
"deep" that his hearers cannot understand
him, he might as well stop; for under his
preaching his congregation; although it may,
from various causes, increase in numbers, still;
spiritually, it will die. b.
Another grand defectabout modern preach
ing is, that in many instances, it is strainiug
point to call it gospel. Its proper name is
either reading or speaking, as the case may
be-mere moral addresses to the people. Not
long ago we heard sermon delivered, and
neither the name of the Saviour nor his work
were mentioned from beginning to end. Such
sermon may, with great propriety, be called
Christless sermon. The woof and warp of
every sermon must be Christ. Take Christ
out of the Bible, and it is worthless book.
In fact, you would have no book at all. All
the history of the Bible leads US to Christ {;
all prophecies lead US to Christ; all the prom.
ises of the Bible are made either by Christ or
through Christ; the theme of all the poetry
of the Bible is Christ. In one word, Christ
is all in all in the Bible. So it should be
with every sermon. Under any other kind of
preaching, congregation must die.
The last defect in modern preaching that we
will mention, is the great aversion to doctrinal
sermons. Speculations are more in taste with
the genius of the age. If there is any specu.
lation in the Bible, we confess we have never
yet found it. 1t is all facts, and the practice
deduced from these facts. In other words,
the Bible teaches us, in plain language, what
we are to believe and then what we are to do.
So should every Christian sermon be charac.
terized. The people should be taught, first,
what the Bible teaches; and then what they
must do. Doctrine first, then practice.
The whole blame of the present dead state
of the church, or rather of many churches,
does not lie at the door of the ministers of the
gospel. The other officers of the church and
the private members cannot wash their hands
in innocence. This is an age of sham-out-
side appearance and laziness. Everything is
done for appearance, or because somebody else
did so. Men and women join the church for
what purpose, or with what intent we dare not
say but at that point their religion begins,
and here it ceases, until they find that death,
with his powerful grasp, is hurrying them Of
to the grave. They connect themselves with
the church and then float with the current
down to the grave. For the sake of appear
ances, they live morally, and thatis all. They
are content to let some one else do all their
thinking on religious subjects. They either
have no time to read the Bible, or they are