Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1879-05-09

the Masters rule and order. And o how
much pastor prizes II true yoko-fellow His
soul is knit to him as Jonathans was to David.
When the battle with sin RACES hcrccly, and
the stragglers are falling to the rear, and brave
comrades are dropping wounded around him,
how it cheers his heart to see brethren com
ing up to the help Of the Lord against the
mighty But if any face about and turn back
or desert to the enemy he feels somewhat as
his Master felt when 'mHny Of his disciples
went back and walked 10 more with Him."
and He turned to the twelve and uttered that
pathetic appeal "Will ye also go away
And about the first way to cooperate with
the pastor is to join the church. 1 mean Of
course, those that are fit to Join. For we must
never lose sight of that great Bible and Bap-
tist principle that only the regenerate nre to
be church members. III thou bclicvest with
all thy heart thou maycst" not only be bap-
ti2ed, but have place among the Lords chill
dren in His church. But to those who do be-
lieve in Christ | sny Come in, ye blessed of
the Lord wherefore stand We without? Some
of you are already members elsewhere but
live and worship here. Here, then, We eX-
hort you to iindyour spiritual home and school
and workshop.
Another way to cooperate is to attend all
the meetings of the church and bring in as
many as you can. All the members of this
church have sOlemnly coyenanted with God
and each other that they will not forsakc
the assembling Of themselves together" Let
that vow be kept sacred, not only on the Sab
BATH but in all the appointments of the
church A part Of your church work is to
sustain its meetings. And do not come alone.
Bring your children with you, and invite your
neighbors and if need be, and you can do it,
provide a way for them. Fidelity in this
work would prove a blessing to many besides
your own soul
And then be fellow w-htlpers in the asst m
blies Of the saints They are not for enjoy
ment only but for work, work in prayer IN
praise. in teaching, and exhorting. and
strengthening one another and bringing sin
ners to repentance. Prayer is n great church
work even as the Apostle calls it ''laboring
in prayer" and the burden of il should not
rest on the pastor alone. Think how much
we have to pray for the sick, the weak the
tempted the tried. the shining the SORROW
ing, the anxious, the wanderers and the per
ishing. Surely all hearts should he in it and
at it with one accord and without ceasing
Then there is the word of testimony, of eX-
hortntion, the confession of Christ and the ex-
ercise Of that fellowship that has so much TO
do with our growth IN grace. But do not
imagine that all the churcl's work can be
done in the sanctuary. There is family work,
and field work. and shop work, and wayside
y
fuence. you shed there, all tells upon the
prosperity of church and pastor. 1t is very
easy to be n stumbling block to both by u
careless or worldly or wicked life And if you
want to make your pastors heart sad and
PROSTATE his work, Just slack up on your watch
ing and praying and 60 heedlessly into world
ly amusements, or money making, or drink
ing. Pass by the prayer meeting on your
way to the party; spend your spare change
Il. IL
for the next missionary collection or let
your tongue run in foolish or profane talk
when it ought to be confessing Christ. But
if you regard the honor of God and the wei
fare of souls you will do no such thing. You
are not working for your pastor, but for Christ;
you arc fellow helpers in the cause of COM
mon Savior. But the more you love and
serve Him, the more you will gladden. and
strengthen his under shepherd.
Especially will the pastor need your hearty
help in time of revival. When God pours
out His spirit and fills the community with
His special presence, then let all hands be
ready for the Lords work. If extra meetings
are needed, let them be appointed and atto nd
cd, even if they come in the day time and de-
mGnd the stoppage of your work. II your
pastor calls you to special fasting and prayer,
come. unless you are pretty sure the Lord
calls the other way. II in the name of the
Lord he bids you break up the fallow ground
and remove the stumbling blocks, and so pre-
pare the way Of the Lord, don't hesitate about
il. And beware, at such time, how you
grieve the Holy Spirit by standing in the way
of His servant and hindering His work. II
you criticize his preaching, or tind fault with
his plans or interfere with his appointments,
you may do damage to souls. Far better is
it to pray for him. and, like Aaron and Hur,
hold up his hands while he holds out the rod
of God for victory 10 Israel
=. Along with this cooperation comes an
other duty: 10 stand By him. There will be
times of trial for him and the church-times
when his bold utterance of unwelcome truth
will arouse opposition-when his faithful tes-
timony against rumselling, or rum-drinkng,
or Righteousness, or Sabbath breaking, or
worldly amusements, or something else, will
bring down upon him the wrath of the wick
cd. Perhaps his own friends will turn against
him. Then let the church prove its fidelity
TO Christ by standing up for His Word. Let
them gather closely round His servant with
sympathy, prayer, and brave words Of cheer,
and if need be, suffer with him. There will
be times Of difficulty in the church, too, for
"ofTenccs must come" 1t may be his duty to
rebuke some offender there, perhaps some
leading member and may have to suffer for
it. Then, too, he needs the support of his
brethren, and, they should stick to him as long
as he sticks to the Word of God. 1t may be
that some 'child of the Devil will start an
evil report against him, and it will spread like
wild-fre through the community. Have such
confidence in your pastor that you will not be-
lieve it till it is proved. And if he be a true
and honest man, rally round him like men,
and shield him from the poisonous assaults Of
slanderous tongues. Let his reputation be as
dear to yOu as it is to hinl, and guard it as a
precious jewel.
Finally, if you have such a man, keep him.
l have no sympathy with short pastorates.
They are unscrptural and damaging to Christ's
cause. IT, according to Scripture, we know
our pastor, and remember him. and esteem
him very highly in love, we will be in no hur-
~ to part with him. If he be a good man,
the longer he lives among you the greater
will be his influence over you and the people.
II will take years for new man to acquire
his knowledge of the people and draw out
their confidence as he holds il. Nothing short
of time can give the love, the respect, the in
fuence of long pastorate. have in memory
now the form of one whom i'll childhood
venerated as a father He served one church
for many years and died in its pulpit twenty
years ago. To-day his son is pastor of that
same church, and alongside of him stand the
gray haired deacons and brethren who stood
by his father. That fathers name and inhu-
ence is perpetuated in that church to-day
How would it have been if he had stayed but
two or three years
You will discover faults in your pastor by
and by. His preaching will not suit every
body and may not suit all of yOu. He will
have enemies for it has been said, perhaps
too strongly that 'the man who hasn't an en-
emy in the world isn't worth a sixpence."
And some viii begin to whisper that it is bet
ter to have a change. But remember the old
adage Let well enough alone" 1t is pos
sible change would be for the better, but it
is also possible it may be for the worse. If a
new man can influence some whom the old
one could not reach, the old again may have
hold on some hearts which the new can never
get. So that there ought to be cogent reasons
for a change, before it is ventured upon or
even talked about. For in almost every
church there are elements of discomfort enough
to make an opposition, if only they are famed
instead of being smothered.
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