Mnctsa&e of ilje ^Unistrji.
A SERMON,
PREACHED IN
ST. MICHAEL'S CHURCH, CHARLESTON,
IN BEHALF OF
mmmwm ^iuiramija
FOR THE
Advancement of Christianity in South-Carolina.
ON THE OCCASION OF
ITS FORTIETH ANNIVERSARY,
February 19, 1850.
BY
THE REV. W. W. SPEAR,
RECTOR OF GRACE CHURCH, CHARLESTON,
CHARLESTON, S. C.
MILLER & BROWNE, 5 BROAD-STREET.
1850.
TO THE
RT. REV. W. M. GREEN, D. D.
LATE PROFESSOR IN THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH-CAROLINA,
BISHOP OF THE DIOCESE OF MISSISSIPPI:
THE PASTOR OF MY YOUTH,
THE FRIEND TO WHOSE INFLUENCE, UNDER GOD,
I OWE BOTH THE DESIRE FOR THE OFFICE,
AND THE PREPARATION FOR THE WORK OF THE
MINISTRY:
THIS SERMON IS AFFECTIONATELY
DEDICATED.
A SERMON.
Matt, ix: 38, 39.
The harvest truly is plenteous, hut the laborers are few; pray ye therefore the
Lord of the harvest that He will send forth laborers into His harvest.
The Society, whose Anniversary we this day celebrate, proposes
for its object the education of those who have resolved to devote their
lives to the service of God in the Ministry of the Gospel, and the sup¬
port of those who are already engaged in that good work. Its opera¬
tions must of course have reference primarily if not exclusively to the
collection and disbursement of funds, for the benefit of those who are
already either candidates for, or incumbents of, the sacred office.
But it is impossible for the officers and members of such an Insti¬
tution to confine their thoughts, and wishes, and hopes within the nar¬
row range of their present operations. They cannot meet for delibe¬
ration upon any of the concerns of the Church, without having their
attention directed to the necessity, not only of supplying the wants,
but of increasing the numbers of those who desire to enter upon this
good work, without being reminded that if their resources are limited,
their facilities also far from numerous, that it would require a very
small effort of liberality to enable them to meet all the demands which
are ever made upon their treasury; and that if this were done, the
amount of missionary labor would be miserably small, and the wants
even of that portion of the field which they profess to cultivate, after
all, most inadequately supplied. We need more efficient means to the
great end in view, than simply a continuance and increase of pecuniary
contributions; and we may well inquire if any other means are ap¬
pointed or important for its attainment. I shall therefore extend my
remarks to the whole subject, which is naturally suggested to our
minds, viz : the interest, the necessity, and the duty of the Church, with
respect to the increase of the Ministry.
This subject is clearly indicated by the text itself; but it will be more
impressively conveyed to your minds by observing the connection of
the passage: " And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teach¬
ing in their synagogues and preaching the Gospel of the kingdom, and
1
6
The Increase of the Ministry.—A Sermon.
healing every sickness and disease among the people. But when He
saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion on them, be¬
cause they fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep having no
shephard. Then saith He unto his disciples, the harvest truly is
plenteous, but the laborers are few; pray ye, the Lord of the harvest
that He will send forth laborers with his Lord. And when He had
called to Him his twelve disciples, He gave them power against un¬
clean spirits to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and
disease, and said unto them, as ye go preach, saying, the kingdom of
heaven is at hand." The topics which this narrative leads us to con¬
sider are, the deplorable condition of mankind without the knowledge
of the Gospel—the indispensable necessity of ministerial effort for the.
diffusion of that knowledge—the inadequate supply of this important
instrumentality—and the means which may be used for the increase
of it.
1st. Let us observe the deplorable condition of mankind without the
knowledge of the Gospel. Our Lord describes the multitudes which
He saw around Him, as sheep having no shepherd. It was their des¬
titute and dying condition which moved Him to compassion, and lad
Him to the adoption of means for their relief, by sending His disciples
to prosecute the work which He had begun. The principal work of
Christ and His disciples at that time was doubtless to heal all manner
of bodily disease—but (we know) that was the type employed by
our Lord of the spiritual maladies of our race. In this respect, the
multitudes before Him were emphatically " the lost sheep of the house
of Israel," and the same is the condition of all "the tribes of Adam,"'
while they are without a shepherd to lead them to the green pastures-
of Christian knowledge, and the still waters of Christian comfort.
The condition of mankind without the Gospel is as strongly repre¬
sented by another metaphor, which is contained in the text. Where
they are compared to grain ready to be reaped, but without any man
ready to gather it. For what, though the field be ripe to the harvest,,
if there be no laborer to secure the result ? You need not be told that
under such circumstances all would be lost. Nay, the condition of
mankind is still worse than this, for in general there is no preparation
of heart to receive the Gospel. The ground is barren of all good, for
men are without God in the world ; yea, more, it is fruitful of all
evil, bringing forth thorns and briars, overspread with rank luxuri¬
ance. Even when the day-spring from on high visits them who sit in
darkness, the darkness comprehendeth it not. Christ may come
to his own, but his own receive Him not, and but for the special in¬
fluence which the Gospel brings with it, He would be universally
despised and rejected of men. The adoption of these figures in Holy
Scripture ought to inspire us with awful apprehensions of the state of
those, who live and die in ignorance of the Gospel. All admit that
nothing is so necessary as religion, for the world at large. Whatever
e se they may be disposed to question, they seldom deny the moral¬
izing effects of the Gospel upon the major part of society, however it
may be perverted and abused, as is every thing that is good, by indi¬
viduals. But more than this, if men are already lost, and there be
none other name whereby they may be saved, what shall the end be
The Increase of the Ministry.—A Sermon.
7
of those who are not made acquainted with the way of life % Con¬
demned they must be, and that "without excuse;'''' not indeed for the
rejection of the GrospeZitself, but for the cherishing of that evil heart
of unbelief, and the commission of those acts of sin, which render the
truth and power of the Gospel necessary to their conviction and salva¬
tion. Since faith in Christ is the only hope for fallen and sinful man,
the apostle's inquiry becomes a demonstration, "how shall they believe
in Him of whom they have not heard, and how shall they hear without
a preacher, and how shall theypreach, except they be sent1?"
2. We are led to consider the necessity of ministerial effort for the
diffusion of tfye knowledge of the Gospel. On the occasion of uttering the
text, our Lord had it in His heartto select some for this purpose. First,
He ordained twelve, and then appointed other seventy also. After He
ascended, amongthefirst fruits of the Spirit, there were " some Apostles,
Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers." In the first age, their oral instruc¬
tions were the only channel of the truth in Jesus. The Canon of Scrip¬
ture not being written, it was only " by their mouth that the Word of
the Lord sounded out into all lands." Since that time, indeed, inspira¬
tion h^s ceased in the living ministry, and with it all pretence to infal¬
libility. The written Word has thus become the only certain source
of wisdom and knowledge to Ministers and people; but still this office is
important and apart from all questions as to its constitution, there is
no doubt that it was intended to be perpetual. The blessing of Jesus,
the presence and power of the Great Head of the Church may be ex¬
pected to rest upon their efforts, in proportion as they are made in
conformity with the instructions derived from their Lord and Master.
The necessity of this appointment would seem to have been obvious ;
for as we could not anticipate a harvest in the natural world, without
the agency of laborers, so we could not expect the extension of the
Gospel without some such instrumentality. But we forget what a
special Providence there was in it. This institution is itself one of the
most original features of the Gospel; so much so, that it may be num¬
bered among the evidences of its Divine authority.
"No religion (says Bp. D. Wilson,) was ever attempted to be spread
through the world by means of instruction and persuasion, but Chris¬
tianity. The idea never came into the minds of men to propagate a reli¬
gion, having for its exclusive object the enlightening of mankind, till
Christ said to his apostles " go ye into all the world and preach the
Gospel to every creature." It was worthy of the compassionate Spi¬
rit of Him, who is indeed the good Shepherd of our lost race, to send
forth His disciples to seek for his sheep who are dispersed abroad,
that as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so Christ might
be lifted np by their word, in the sight of the world, and all the ends
of the earth might be persuaded to look to Him and be saved.
3. But though the design was so wise and good, we hnve still to re¬
mark the inadequate supply of this important agency. The harvest truly
is plenteous, but the laborers are few, said our Lord in the days of
His flesh, and what portion of the world does not even after so long a
time exemplify the same lamentable truth. It was true of the multi¬
tudes that followed his personal ministry, how much more true of the
multitudes in every successive generation, who have been scattered
8
The Increase of the Ministry.—A Sermon.
abroad in the midst of this naughty world, or even of those now living
on the earth, who need to return to the Shepherd and Bishop of souls.
The disciples stood alone amid the people of Israel; and if we should
compare the number of those who are now casting out devils in His
name, with the population of the globe, we should discover a dispropor¬
tion quite as great as it was, when our Lord Himself remarked it.
The harvest truly is plenteous, for "the field is the world," and the
work of the Ministry will not be fulfilled till the Gospel is preached
among all nations for a testimony, if not a triumph; but the laborers
are few, there remaineth very much land to be possessed, nay, even to
be surveyed, We seem not entered within some of its borders, yea,
our Pisgah view is of a land afar off.
It is even a grave question whether this disproportion is in any degree
diminishing—whether the increase of population is not much larger
than the increase of the Ministry, and whether, therefore, the Church
is not in the position of the shipwrecked mariner travelling upon a
floating iceburg, whose destination is southward, but who finds, never¬
theless his latitude increasing every day, and who is really receding
from, instead of as he supposes, approaching the spot where he would
be. In our own- day, the demand for Ministerial labor is perhaps
greater than it ever was, since our Lord first sent forth his disciples.
Not only is the field more extensive by reason of the increase of popu¬
lation, but the facilities for its cultivation are greatly increased. We
have but to lift up our eyes and look on the fields,' for behold they are
white indeed to the harvest. The political condition of the world, and
the prevailing state of the human mind, are preparing the way for the
universal diffusion, if not reception of the Gospel. Paganism, Ma-
hometism, and Romanism, seem tottering to their fall. Even the
proud boasting of the last, and the temporary advantages which it is
now gaining, cannot make it stand. It may nerve itself for a desperate
struggle, and exhibit prodigious strength, but that struggle will be its
last. Our National Society, for the dissemination of the Bible, finds
it impossible to supply the demands now made upon its depositories
for copies of the Scriptures. Great doors, and effectual, have been
opened to them of the Lord, where a few years since no probability of
access existed. We are told in prophecy that nations shall be born in
a day, and surely it is a wonderful Providence, that so soon after China
became an object of Christian sympathy and zealous effort,' its towering
wall should have been laid low, and one-third of the human race
brought within reach of our help.
But where is any proportional increase in the company of the
preachers ? Where is even that measure of increase which was wit¬
nessed in other days 1 Where are the revivals in colleges and else¬
where, which once caused so many to leave the care of their farms
and merchandize, and take upon them the office of the Ministry—which
brought the flower of American youth and bound them as living sa¬
crifices with cords of love to horns of the altar] There are no longer
such "times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord." Our re¬
cent increase seems only like the droppings from the sky, after the
windows of heaven have been shut up from rain.
The disproportion of which I speak is especially manifest within
that portion of the great harvest field, which constitutes the sphere of
The Increase of the Ministry.—A Sermon.
9
our own peculiar anxieties and responsibilities. Throughout our na¬
tional territory the harvest is great, but the laborers are few, and the
Macedonian cry cornes to us from every quarter. Where hundreds
might be usefully occupied, perhaps only one will be found enga¬
ged in preaching the Gospel, and many promising districts are left
unguarded, uncultivated, to grow barren under the arid influences of
open irreligion, or rank beneath the bad culture of ill-instructed hus¬
bandmen. We, my brethren, are responsible for the extension of the
Gospel, according to the rites and discipline which we believe to be
most accordant with the intimations of the Divine will, and best adapt¬
ed to the promotion of the permanent interests of Christ's religion.
And whatever may be thought of the claims of our polity and the
advantages of our worship, we believe that in spite of strong prejudices
here and there, scarce any denomination in this land has such faci¬
lities for entering the harvest as our own. While on the other hand,
we must confess that the extension of our borders and the increase of
our Ministry bears no proportion to the facilities we enjoy, and is not
. equal to that of some others, who possess far less advantages than
ourselves. How frequently have we had occasion to know that our
lukewarmness and procrastination have discouraged and alienated our
friends, and given to those who follow not us, opportunity to preoccu¬
py the ground which might have been exclusively our own, if we had
been equally prompt and energetic with themselves. In the great
majority of such instances however, this loss has been occasioned not
by neglect on the part of our Ministers, but by the paucity of their
numbers. With us, indeed, the harvest is plenteous, and generally
ripe for the sickle, but the laborers are few, and therefore the result is
seen that the harvest is passed, summer ended, and souls are not saved,
at least, so as to be our crown of rejoicing in the day of our Lord
Jesus.*
4. We are prepared, therefore, to consider in the last place, the
means of securing an increase of the Ministry. " Pray ye the Lord of
the harvest, that He will send forth laborers into His harvest."
Here we are reminded, that it is the prerogative of the Lord of
the harvest to send forth laborers into His harvest. Who would
be allowed to usurp the prerogative of the husbandman in tem¬
poral things 1 Who will venture to do it in spiritual things 1 It is
vain and worse than vain for any to run upon this sacred errand, with¬
out being sent by Him ; without being •' truly called, according to the
will of our Lord Jesus Christ."f The Ministry is an office which re¬
quires the special operation of the Holy Ghost to qualify a man for
it, and no human influence or "authority, no social or intellectual ad¬
vantages can supply the want of those Divine credentials, " written
not with pen and ink, but upon the fleshly tables of the heart."
* The prospects of our Church in this Diocese, with regard to the increase of
the Ministry, are gloomy indeed at the present time The whole number of Candidates
for Orders, as reported by the Bishop to the Convention, is only four, and one of these
has little hope of entering on the work, on account of ill health for many years. The
Trustees of the Advancement Society inform us that both the Scholarships in their
gift are vacant, and that scarcely a single application was made for aid to students ot
Theology the last year.
t Ordination Service.
10
The Increase of the Ministry.—A Sermon.
But while it is God's own prerogative to send laborers, He is plea¬
sed to work by human instrumentality in preparing their hearts, en¬
lightening their minds, and sustaining their hands. It is for us to
" prepare the way of the Lord, and here as elsewhere, to plant and
water, though looking to Him for the increase." God's purposes are
not the rule of our duty, but His precepts. His promises are not the
substitutes for our prayers and efforts, but the very incentives to them.
He could cause the natural and spiritual harvest to mature itself under
the rain and dew of His blessing, or He could cause blight and bar¬
renness to attend our best efforts in the most fertile soil; but in the
revelation of His will, the means and end are indissolubly connected, and
the rule of His kingdom, both of nature and grace, is, whatsoever a
man soweth, that shall he reap.
The means to which He has Himself here directed our attention,
is earnest an! constant prayer. Christ Jesus is Himself the Lord of
the harvest, Head over all things to the Church. He sitteth at the
right hand of the Father, throned in light inaccessible and full of
glory, having all power in heaven and earth. Prayer to Him, there¬
fore, prayer for His own prevailing intercession, the prayer of those
who are accounted righteous before God, because they make mention
only of the righteousness of Christ—is the great instrument of this and
every other blessing If He give the Word, great will be " the com¬
pany of the preachers." But for this, He will be inquired of, to do it.
If He is unchangeable, He is unchangeable in this very determination,
that if we ask not, we need not expect to obtain.
This means was at once prescribed and blessed from the beginning.
When Christ gave the injunction of the text, He was ready to fulfil the
petition which He directed them to offer. " This He said to prove"
them, not to influence Himself, " for He Himself knew what He
would do." They doubtless obeyed the injunction, and while they
were speaking, He hearkened to their voice, and calling them to Him,
sent them forth into the harvest. Surely this circumstance was writ-"
ten for our admonition and encouragement—yea, for ours especially,
since we are living in an age, when we may confidently hope that the
kingdom of God is indeed nigh at hand ; when from the language
of prophecy, compared with the signs of the times, we may expect
soon to reap that which is emphatically styled " the harvest of the
earth," when God will pour out His Spirit in a degree never before
paralleled. We received long since "the former rain," and with
confidence, we may "ask for the latter rain in His season." We have
seen at least " the first fruits" of this harvest gathered in our own
day, and this is enough to show us what the Lord can do. If then we
ask, " Lord, how long till all these things be fulfilled," although we
we may not presume to determine, much less to control " the times and
seasons which the Father hath put in His own power," we have only to
accept the gracious challenge of the Lord Himself, " prove me now
herewith, if I do not open the windows of heaven and pour you out a
blessing, till there be no room to receive it."
But prayer to God, though the best, is not the only means of secu¬
ring this desired object. We must ask in faith ; but a true faith will
ever show itself by works of love to God and man. It would be idle
The Increase of the Ministry.—A Sermon.
11
for us to expect a harvest from the natural soil, by simply asking God
to give it, without planting the seed and cultivating the earth—though
after all our efforts, we depend on Him for the increase ; and so, prayer
for the increase of the Ministry, would be an idle mockery if we should
neglect to make those efforts and improve those means which God
is pleased to bless to our use, in the ordinary course of his Provi¬
dence. It will not then be a deviation from the spirit, though it is an
addition to the letter of the text, if we consider the means in general
which are adapted to this end.
Pastoral influence must be exerted for the increase of the Ministry.
Ministers must be foremost in every good work, and apply to them¬
selves especially every injunction of their Lord. This object, particu¬
larly, they ought to have deeply at heart. They ought not to be satis¬
fied with numerous attendants in the sanctuary where they minister, or
increasing communicants at the table of the Lord, which they are ap¬
pointed to serve, without constant accessions from among their people,
to the ranks of the Ministry. Every congregation should furnish re¬
cruits for the service of the Lord, who shall go forth from among the
mselves to regions solitary yet, to sow the seeds of piety and love, and
gather the harvest of immortal souls. And Ministers may hope greatly
to promote this object, by calling upon Christian men to come up to
the help of the Lord, and directing the minds of serious youth to this
best method of promoting His glory upon earth. " Brethren pray for
us," that we may in this respect make full proof of our Ministry.
Parental influence is a means within reach of a much larger
number of those who hear me. Christian parents should keep this
object in view in the education of those committed to their care. Let
them dedicate their sons to this peculiar work, and as far as in them
lies, prepare them for the discharge of its high duties. True, it is not
in man alone to secure a fitness or implant a desire for this work. But
if any value this object, and yet feel inadequate to its attainment, then
" pray ye the Lord of the harvest,"—and surely the Hearer of prayer
and Giver of every good gift, will accept such sacrifices, and in many
instances give success to your good desire, and at least cause it to
return seven fold into your own bosom.
Is there no mother who, like Hannah, is ready to " lend" her son
to the service of her Master 1 Is there no wife or sister anxious to
lead a husband or brother's mind to the blessed Ministry of the Gos¬
pel 1 Is there no father willing to devote his most promising child to
Him, who is the only source of blessing to him and his ? Poverty and
trial are indeed usually its attendants, and the difficulty of providing
for their households may be trying to flesh and blood. But the pros¬
pect of these things is a necessary trial to the strength of their faith,
and the poverty of their desires—and if parents and friends (notwith¬
standing these things) are willing to seek this office for those they love,
the probability is greater that their offering is sincere, and will be ac¬
cepted of the Lord. And to sustain them in the sacrifice of parental
pride and domestic ambition, let them remember, that though the in¬
cumbents of the Ministry may not acquire fame, or enjoy abundance,
neither of these might be their lot in any other calling—but that if they
are anointed to preach the Gospel, they shall have the honor that
12
The Increase of the Ministry,—A Sermon.
cometh from God, save souls from death, and filially shine as the fir¬
mament in the kingdom of their Father.
Personal self-dedication also is requisite to the increase of the Min¬
istry. This, of course, is far easier to be done in the morning of life,
before we became entangled with the cares of other things ; and hence
the call to enter upon this work, is addressed peculiarly to those who
have learned to remember their Creator and love their Saviour in the
days of their youth. True, we want pious physicians, and lawyers,
and merchants, and planters ; but we want an increase of the Ministry
infinitely more. And though I would have none adopt it as a profes¬
sion, I think it the duty of every young man who is deemed by others
qualified, or capable of qualifying himself for the Ministry, to inquire
seriously, whether it is not the will of God that he should aid in sup¬
plying the wants of the Church.
But it is not only to these, that this providential call of God is ad¬
dressed. The first preachers of the Gospel, the same perhaps who
were here enjoined to pray for the increase of laborers, were called
away from the midst of lucrative callings and interested friends. And
so has God separated many, and we trust will separate many more to
the Gospel, who were reared and educaled for far other purposes.
He who made man's mouth and gave him wisdom, has caused the elo¬
quent orator to preach the faith he once destroyed, and set the wise
jurist for the defence of the Gospel. He who holds the scales of com¬
merce, and disappoints the hope of man, has turned many from the love
of gain, and taught them to lay up treasures in heaven, by seeking to
win souls to Christ. He has called the beloved physician from the
cure of bodily disease, and given him a more sovereign remedy, the
elixer of life, to administer to the dying sons of men. He has bro¬
ken in upon the ranks of military combatants, and made some of them
willing to endure hardness as good soldiers of Jesus Christ, in promo¬
ting the interests of that religion, which, if universally diffused, would
soon teach men not to " learn war any more."
And how many might be spared from the overstocked professions
of this world, to augment the comparatively little company of the
preachers. How many ought long ago, to have disappointed the
wishes of parents, diminished the luxuries of wife and children, to have
sold their lands, and brought themselves and their possessions to the
Apostles' feet, leaving the dead to bury their dead, while they go to
preach the kingdom of God. And whenever the Spirit of God is
poured out as in other days, these will be seen "flying, as doves to
their windows."
To all, therefore, who desire the increase of Christ's kingdom,
we may address the inquiry,- " who will go for us, and whom shall
we send V and perchance God will put it into the heart of some
one to answer to this appeal,—" here am I, send me." What, though
the responsibility and difficulty of this service be great, He who sends
you into his harvest will give you all needed implements and strength,
and finally crown your labor with wages better than you could ask or
think—for " no man hath forsaken any thing for Christ's sake and the
Gospel, but the Word of the Master is pledged that he shall receive
manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come, eternal
life.
The Increase of the Ministry.—A Sermon.
13
Theological education is a means to the same end. God uses means
as well to secure the qualification as to excite the desire for this work.
Fitness for it as for any other office, involves previous training. In the
absence of miracles, nothing but mental discipline and cultivation can
enable men to bear the mental exertion incident to the work of the
Ministry. As we have no inspired ministry, we must have an educa¬
ted Ministry. They must indeed be called of God and taught of God,
if they are to make any adequate proof of their Ministry, but this does
not supersede the necessity of intellectual cultivation and theological
learning. Many arguments might be adduced for this—from the very
nature of the work and the state of the world in our day ; but one sin¬
gle fact speaks volumes—that whereas the first disciples were forbid¬
den to take any thought beforehand, what they should speak in behalf
of the cause which they espoused—the apostle charged his own son
in the faith, to give "attendance to reading," to "meditate upon
these things, and in so doing, to save himself and those who heard
him." Of course, the work of the Ministry has become more intricate,
and the difficulty of discovering truth and error, much greater than in
that age. Now especially, must the Minister be "not a novice," lest he be
lifted up with pride and beguiled from the simplicity which is in
Christ. His mind must be disciplined by reflection, stored with
knowledge, guided by experience. To obtain this, the mass must re¬
sort to some school of the prophets, and sit at the feet of some master
in Israel. Thus may they obtain that knowledge of things human and
divine, which the Priest's lips are expected to keep, and which the
people will otherwise seek in vain at his mouth. There they may be
prepared to take their station at the entering in of the gates of the
crowded city, or go out into the highways and hedges of our far spread
country, and be to the tribes of our people, " the chariot of Israel,
and the horsemen thereof." The object of all their learning, is to en¬
able them not to have absolute dominion over other's faith, but to be
efficient helpers of their joy, not to be mediators between God and
man, but to testify the Gospel of the grace of God, and rightly to divide
the Word of truth; and as a means to this end, all their researches and
reflections must be conducted in conformity with the teaching of the
sure Word of God, and in dependance upon the aid and control of
His Spirit.
Pecuniary assistance also must be afforded. Many of those whom
God hath chosen to this work, are the " poor of this world, rich in
faith." To send them into the harvest, thoroughly furnished for this
work, is the privilege and the duty of those who ai'e " rich in this
world ;" and no object of liberality can be more interesting, to those
who understand the true interests of religion and their own respon¬
sibility.
And let me not omit to add the remark in reference to the
more immediate object of our assembling—that pecuniary assistance
is necessary, not only for the increase, but the support of the Ministry.
Many who have been sent forth into the harvest, and have borne
the burden and heat of the day, are " fainting by the way," because
they cannot " provide things honest in the sight of all men,"—or
wasting their precious time in laboring for the meat that perisheth, to
14 The Increase of the ijerMOm
«
provide for the famine of their households. They would have enough
and to spare, if their Christian Brethren would remember the words
of the Lord Jesus, how he said, "the laborer is worthy of his hire."
And if any need encouragement to the performance of this work of
faith and labor of love, let him remember that other Scripture which
saith, " whoso shall give to drink a cup of cold water to one of these
little ones in the name of a prophet, shall receive a prophet's reward."
Such are the means to be used for the increase of the Ministry. In
commending them to your attention, I will only observe, how often
have they been blessed of God. How many a Samuel and Timothy
have risen up as monuments of parental faithfulness! How many a
Moses and Paul have promoted the cause of God with their varied
attainments! How many are now occupying "the high places of the
field," who were yesterday dependant upon the bounty of the Church!
How many laborers would have been lost to this work, but for the
efficacy of a mother's prayers, the faithfulness of a pastor's care, the
liberality of Christian friends !
It only remains that I exhort and encourage you all here present, as ye
love the Lord Je3us Christ, and your own souls, to promote the in¬
crease of the Ministry according to your abilities and opportunities.
Give your prayers and your efforts, and be assured they shall not be
in vain in the Lord.