UC-NRLF 
 
 SB 2T5 Tflfl 
 
 JHE HOMEWORK 
 
 D.L.MOODY 
 
IN MEMORIAM 
 BERNARD MOSES 
 
THE HOME WORK 
 
 ■OF- 
 
 D. Ia. MOODY, 
 
 THE SCHOOL FOR YOUNG MEN, THE COLLEGE FOR 
 
 YOUNG LADIES, THE SUMMER SCHOOL FOR 
 
 BIBLE TEACHING. 
 
 TOGETHER WITH MR. MOODY S 
 
 Pointed, Practical and Helpful Talks. 
 
 FULLY ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 FLEMING H. RSVELL, 
 
 CHICAGO: NEW YORK: 
 
 148-150 Madison Street. 148-150 Nassau Street. 
 
'Z7?7 
 
 COPYRIGHT, 1886, BY 
 FLEMING H. REVELL. 
 
 g**AKD WUH 
 
PUBLISHER'S NOTE. 
 
 A larger work than the present volume, of which 
 this is an abridgement, may be had of the publisher. 
 The larger volume contains in addition to the con- 
 tents ot this work a number of addresses by eminent 
 pastors and other Bible scholars upon practical 
 topics, all given at Mr. Moody's summer gather- 
 ings. The title of the larger work is D. L. Moody 
 at Home, price $1.00. 
 
 887816 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Northfield and its Schools >. 9 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 The Northfield Summer Gatherings 28 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 A Convention Talk 41 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 More about Personal Work ■••••••• 55 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 Prayer Meetings and other Topics 76 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Mr. Moody's Bible Nuggets 87 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 A Call to Work 91 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 Enduement for Service 97 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 Gems of Thought from Northfield Mines 104 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 NORTHFIELD AND ITS SCHOOLS. 
 
 A Charming Village— The Old Moody Homestead— Mr. Moody's 
 Residence— Origin of His Educational Work— Its Magical De- 
 velopment — Description of the Two Institutions — Faith Realized 
 in Brick and Stone — Practical Courses of Study— Hives of Cheer- 
 ful Industry — Special Preparation for Christian Service. 
 
 John Wesley used to say, " The world is my parish." 
 If there is any man at the present day who is entitled to 
 utter the same words in their most literal sense, that 
 man is D wight L. Moody. When, in 1872, Mr. Moody, ac- 
 companied by Mr. Sankey, crossed the Atlantic to begin 
 that wonderful campaign in Great Britain and Ireland 
 which was to render their names famous throughout the 
 civilized globe and mark an epoch in modern evangel- 
 ism, it was probably with the expectation that they 
 would return to Chicago and resume their customary 
 work. But the moment they reached America it be- 
 came evident that henceforth they could have no abid- 
 ing city on earth, and that the life before them must be 
 the itinerant activity of evangelists at large. In these 
 circumstances it was natural that Mr. Moody's thoughts 
 should turn to the place of his birth and the home of his 
 youth. Somewhere he must retire now and again for a 
 brief respite from his all but incessant labors. Some- 
 where he must provide a shelter for his family, and ful- 
 fil as best he could the duties of a husband and father. 
 And it is a coincidence which has been deemed remark- 
 able by not a few, that if he had searched the whole Con- 
 1* (9) 
 
IO D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 tinent for a locality perfectly adapted'to these purposes, 
 and to the many others which have since arisen, he could 
 not possibly have found a place combining so many ad- 
 vantages as the spot which it pleased God should afford 
 his first environment. 
 
 Northfield is a typical New England village at the 
 point of junction of three States — Massachusetts, New 
 Hampshire, and Vermont. A glance at the map will 
 show that at this point the Connecticut River bisects a 
 portion of Massachusetts and separates Vermont from 
 New Hampshire. Along the east bank of the river and 
 south of the State-line, lies the ancient settlement of 
 Northfield, bordering the stream for more than a mile 
 and half-hid among giant elms. The region has been 
 under cultivation not far from two hundred years. The 
 first settlers were harassed by hostile Indians. The trail 
 of the savages ran along the river, and for a long period 
 the pioneer farmers dwelt among the mountains, where 
 the oldest houses are still to be found. Increasing tran- 
 quillity led to the formation of the present village. In 
 Jonathan Edwards' account of the great revival center- 
 ing at Northampton in 1733, Northfield is included 
 among the places affected. Like most New England 
 hamlets, it reached the limit of its growth about fifty 
 years ago, and since then there has been little change. 
 Meanwhile, the trees which line the long, wide avenue in 
 double rows on each side have attained a towering 
 height and prodigious girth, and in the most ardent 
 summer days they cast over the grassy meads an ample 
 shade. The quaint white houses stand some distance 
 from the road and from each other, and the spacious 
 grounds around them are in many cases neatly mown 
 and adorned with beds of flowers. Crossing the avenue 
 are several country roads, pursuing any of which, a few 
 minutes' walk will lead the city-stained stranger into 
 
NORTHFIELD AND ITS SCHOOLS. II 
 
 leafy nooks and fairy dells as sequestered and primeval 
 as his heart can desire. 
 
 The old homestead which was Mr. Moody's birth 
 place is still occupied by his mother. The house fronts 
 a country road which, branching from the main street, 
 winds in an easterly direction up the hill-side toward a 
 mountainous district. It is a plain old farm-house, look- 
 ing out upon orchards and meadows, and containing in 
 its door-yard a fine tree under which Mr. Moody is said 
 to have thought out some of his most useful sermons 
 Mrs. Betsy Moody is now (1886) in her eighty-second 
 year, yet her activity, mental and physical, is hardly 
 abated. She does most of her own housework, and 
 could not be persuaded to relinquish her daily tasks. 
 " If I gave up work," she says, " I might as well lie down 
 and die." It is evident that from her much of the untir- 
 ing energy of the evangelist is derived, though she told 
 the writer once in conversation that while her husband 
 lived he was just as hard a worker as she was. She is a 
 great reader, and by means of several newspapers regu- 
 larly taken, is at all times thoroughly informed upon 
 the events of the day. She is now a devout member of 
 the Congregational Church, having with the whole 
 family abandoned the Unitarian for the orthodox faith. 
 Proud as she must be of her honored son, that son is if 
 possible even more proud of his venerated mother. At 
 the celebration of her eightieth birthday, loving friends 
 arranged conspicuously the motto : " Her children arise 
 up and call her blessed." 
 
 When Mr. Moody decided to establish his household 
 in Northfield, he purchased, for about $3,000, a plain but 
 roomy frame house, with grounds, at the north end of 
 the town, near his mother's house. The building fronts 
 upon the main road, and is rather too near it for com- 
 fort or privacy. Mr. Moody bought it only because it 
 
12 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 was available at the time, and says that if he were to 
 build to suit himself he would rather be situated on the 
 hill some distance from the dust and publicity of the 
 roadway. To the structure as he found it, he has made 
 additions from time to time as they were required. His 
 study is on the first floor near the entrance. A glance 
 at his library confirms the impression that he is a man 
 of one book. The only books of value to him are the 
 Bible and whatever publications will help him to under- 
 stand it better. A fine clock shown to visitors was sent 
 to him by a lady in England who was relieved and en- 
 couraged on the question of Christian continuance by 
 the illustration of the pendulum. Everything about the 
 house is characterized by simplicity and regard for the 
 conditions of effective work. 
 
 In the heart of the town stands the commodious resi- 
 dence of Dr. Pentecost, of Brooklyn, while still farther 
 south can be found the modest white cottage which Mr. 
 Sankey has recently purchased for the purposes of a 
 summer home. 
 
 No sooner was Mr. Moody fairly domiciled in North- 
 field than he observed the absence of adequate educa- 
 tional facilities for the neighborhood. Having always 
 lamented the deficiencies of his own early education, he 
 was unable to see the young people of the village and 
 vicinity growing up under similar disadvantages with- 
 out considering whether it would not be within his 
 power to improve their opportunities. There were many 
 farmers' daughters who were qualified by intelligence 
 and earnest industry to fill positions of the highest use- 
 fulness if their talents were properly developed, but 
 who had no prospect whatever of securing a suitable 
 education. Their fathers, eking a scanty living from 
 the rocky and reluctant soil, could not send them to any 
 of the excellent institutions already established for the 
 
NORTHFIELD AND ITS SCHOOLS. 1 3 
 
 higher education of young women, because the expense, 
 moderate indeed to persons in easy circumstances, was 
 entirely beyond their reach. Touched to the heart by 
 an acquaintance with these facts, and well aware of the 
 demand for trained Christian women as city mission- 
 aries, and as foreign missionaries, Mr. Moody began to 
 devise liberal things. At the outset, however, he never 
 dreamed of the dimensions to which the work he was 
 thus led to initiate was destined to attain. In the mid- 
 dle of the town stands an old frame hotel, which is now 
 used partly as a tenement-house. Thought Mr. Moody 
 to himself : " If I could only buy that building and turn 
 it into a school, that is just about what I should like." 
 Nothing larger than that had yet entered his mind. But 
 the old hotel was not for sale, and he was obliged to turn 
 his attention elsewhere. 
 
 NORTHFIELD SEMINARY FOR YOUNG LADIES. 
 
 Like Topsy in " Uncle Tom's Cabin," it would be dif- 
 ficult to say exactly when and where the Northfield 
 Seminary was born. It just grew. When the idea be- 
 gan to take form in Mr. Moody's mind, he constructed 
 a small addition to his own house, with rooms for eight 
 girls; and when twenty girls had been admitted into 
 these cramped quarters, with others besieging the house 
 for accommodation, he built a small brick dormitory and 
 class-room on the other side of the street. This too 
 soon became overcrowded; and it was evident that 
 what had been done was but an index to what ought to 
 be done. While Mr. Moody was feeling his way toward 
 "room and verge enough," it was so ordered in the 
 good providence of God that a large hill-side farm ad- 
 joining his own and his mother's holdings to the north 
 could be purchased for a reasonable amount. The land 
 was bought, and plans were outlined looking to the 
 
14 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 erection of a building of considerable size. About that 
 time Mr. Moody was joined by a most sympathetic and 
 efficient coadjutor. This was Mr. H. N. F. Marshall, a 
 retired Boston merchant, who, having been led to conse- 
 crate himself and all his property to the work of the 
 Lord, and feeling a strong personal attachment toward 
 the evangelist, to whom he was a spiritual debtor, found 
 that no occupation could be more congenial than to as- 
 sist the educational schemes of his friend. For this 
 purpose he took up his residence in Northfield; and 
 having had large experience in supervising the construc- 
 tion of buildings, and managing property, he soon 
 found himself in his element. 
 
 In 1879 the handsome brick building, now known as 
 East Hall, was erected. Its situation is more command- 
 ing than that of any of the subsequent structures. 
 From the eminence on which it stands the view to the 
 west and north is superb. The foreground is the east- 
 ern slope of the Connecticut valley. The river itself 
 gleams at intervals throughout many miles of its wind- 
 ing course. The western slope of the valley, partly 
 wooded, rises gently, and culminates in a range of 
 verdure-crowned hills. In the direction of Vermont 
 the range of vision is almost unlimited. The color of 
 the landscape changes gradually from bright green to 
 pale and still paler blue, till at last the actual horizon 
 becomes indistinguishable as mountain peaks melt into 
 hazy sky. J^ast Hall cost about $30,000, and was de- 
 signed as a dormitory. It is capable of accommodating 
 sixty students. The smaller brick building near Mr. 
 Moody's house was for some time used in connection 
 with it as a recitation hall. A large dwelling-house 
 on the roadside farther north, was remodelled and 
 turned into an additional dormitory, and named Bonar 
 Hall, after the Rev. Dr. Bonar, of Glasgow. Its capacity 
 
NORTHFIELD AND ITS SCHOOLS. 1 5 
 
 was about forty students. This building was destroyed 
 by fire in March, 1886. In 1881 Mr. Moody was over- 
 whelmed with applications for admission to the Semi- 
 nary, and at the same time realized the economic 
 advantage of conducting its operations upon a larger 
 scale. The expense to the institution for each student 
 was then about $160 a year, while he estimated that with 
 another large dormitory, the cost could be considerably 
 reduced. The charge for board and tuition has always 
 been $100, the balance being made up by benevolent 
 contributions. Merely mentioning the project to a few 
 friends, he went to England, and was absent, except at va- 
 cation intervals, for about three years. In the interim the 
 residuary legatees of the Marquand estate,doubtless chief- 
 ly through the instrumentality of Mr. D. W. McWilliams, 
 of Brooklyn, one of their number, undertook the erection 
 of the much-needed dormitory. In 1884 the building 
 was completed, at a cost of about $60,000. Its site is to 
 the northwest of East Hall, somewhat nearer the road. 
 In appearance it is handsome and substantial. The 
 material is dark red brick, with granite trimmings. The 
 style is a modification of the Queen Anne, with the 
 close-cut eaves, low ceilings, and small-paned windows 
 of that order, combined with many modern features. 
 The building is used entirely as a dormitory, and is 
 capable of accommodating eighty students, with office, 
 drawing-room, dining-hall, etc. About midway between 
 Marquand Hall and East Hall stands a handsome build- 
 ing of Northfield granite, called Recitation Hall, or 
 more popularly, on account of its gray material, Stone 
 Hall. It was completed in 1885, and is intended to 
 serve as the recitation hall of the Seminary. The cost 
 of this building, like the recitation hall at Mount 
 Hermon, was borne by the hymn-book fund. Mr. Moody 
 says, when pointing to either structure, " Mr. Sankey 
 
l6 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 sang that building up." Stone Hall is very massive- 
 looking, and somewhat after the Egyptian order. The 
 first story is divided into class-rooms. In designing the 
 second story the original plan was to use it for recita- 
 tion-rooms ; but Mr. Moody concluded that he must 
 have some place for congregational purposes, and ac- 
 cordingly this floor was rendered capable of a double 
 service. On ordinary occasions it is divided into three 
 apartments : a chapel in the middle, and two recitation 
 halls, one at each end. On special occasions the whole 
 can be thrown into one great auditorium. When so ar- 
 ranged the hall will accommodate a larger gathering 
 than any church in the village, and during the summer 
 conventions its capacity has often been taxed to the ex- 
 tremity. Within the building are chemical, physical, 
 and botanical laboratories. A problem which until 
 recently remained unsolved was to find suitable accom- 
 modations for the Seminary library, which consists at 
 present of about 4,000 volumes. The only place avail- 
 able for the purpose seemed to be some part of Stone 
 Hall, and yet in that building all the space was likely 
 soon to be required for class-rooms. A liberal friend 
 of the work, however, Mr. James Talcott, of New York, 
 has cut the Gordian knot by offering to erect a Library 
 building at a cost of about $20,000. A like amount has 
 been subscribed by Mr. D. M. Weston, of Boston, for an 
 additional dormitory building. 
 
 All the buildings are admirably suited to their various 
 purposes. Outside or inside they look bright, cheerful, 
 and attractive. The interior finish is in light-colored 
 hardwood throughout. The furniture is substantial and 
 comfortable. Improvements have from time to time 
 been made upon the grounds, until now they present 
 almost the aspect of a park. Winding macadamized 
 drives connect the buildings with the main thorough- 
 
NORTHFIELD AND ITS SCHOOLS. 1 7 
 
 fare. To the north is a romantic ravine, called Bonar 
 Glen. The Seminary grounds include over two hun- 
 dred and fifty acres, and afford conditions for every 
 form of outdoor recreation. A pretty lake has recently 
 been added to the property. It is two and three-quarters 
 t*cres in extent, and has been dammed and otherwise 
 improved at an expense of about $4,000. The entire 
 cost was borne by Mr. John Wanamaker, of Philadelphia, 
 through whose generosity the young ladies may enjoy 
 excellent boating in Summer and skating in Winter. 
 Along a roadside in the rear of the Seminary stand two 
 frame houses, which are to be fitted up as dormitories, 
 in the endeavor to accommodate a few among the many 
 importunate applicants for admission who have hither- 
 to been turned away for lack of room. 
 
 In admitting students, great care is exercised to ensure 
 that the advantages of the institution shall be granted 
 only to the most worthy. The process of exclusion is 
 rigid, and results in the " survival of the fittest." Appli- 
 cants must be fifteen years of age, and in good health. 
 They must pass satisfactory examinations in arithmetic, 
 English grammar, and geography. **' It is desired that 
 only those shall apply who have a thirst for knowledge 
 and such an aim as will lead them to improve every op- 
 portunity, and enter heartily into the spirit of the in- 
 stitution." All the household work is performed by the 
 students. There are two courses of instruction, the one 
 Latin and the other English, each covering three years. 
 In both, English composition is a leading feature. Greek, 
 French, and German are elective studies. In mathemat- 
 ics, algebra and geometry are required, and trigonome- 
 try is elective. Other branches are mental and moral 
 philosophy, history, natural sciences, music, and the fine 
 arts. The study of the Bible is continued throughout the 
 course, since it is believed that a knowledge thereof 
 
1 8 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 should underlie and overlie ail education. Much time is 
 spent on the life of Christ^" It is desired to surround the 
 students with such religious and social influences as are 
 fitted, with the blessing of God, to bring them to the re- 
 sponsibilities of life in a spirit of earnest consecration to 
 the Master." As a rule, the students seem happy, healthy, 
 and busy. To illustrate the tone of their daily life, the 
 following pledge-card may be reproduced, which is to be 
 found tacked inside the doors of most of the rooms in 
 the dormitories: 
 
 GOD HELPING ME, 
 
 I, a disciple of Jesus Christ, agree : i. "To Judge Not." 2. To try to 
 bring at least one soul to Christ each year. 3. To observe regular 
 seasons for secret prayer, asking to be made more Christ-like, and 
 praying especially that some unconverted personal friend may be 
 saved. And that in my work for the welfare of others 1 may depend 
 upon the Holy Spirit to make me successful. 4. To engage in no 
 amusement where the Saviour could not be my companion. 5. To 
 stand up for Jesus always and everywhere. 6. To do in a kindly spirit 
 all in my power to help others to keep this pledge. 
 
 Signed, 
 
 \JLr 
 
 The motto of the institution is this Bible text (Isaiah 
 xxvii. 3): "I the Lord do keep it; I will water it every 
 moment: lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day." 
 At present there are two hundred and seventeen stu- 
 dents in attendance. They come from all parts of the 
 Continent, and indeed from Europe. Several years ago a 
 band of Indian maidens were brought from Indian Ter- 
 ritory. They were apt learners, and are now toiling as mis- 
 sionaries and teachers among their people. Of the many 
 graduates, some are engaged in city mission work and sev- 
 eral are in foreign fields. The principal is Miss Evelyn 
 S. Hall, a graduate of Wellesley, who is assisted by twelve 
 lady teachers and four matrons. Mr. D. M. Weston 
 is President; Colonel Estey, of organ fame, is Vice-Presi- 
 
NORTHFIELD AND ITS SCHOOLS. 1 9 
 
 dent; Mr. H. N. F. Marshall is Treasurer; and the Board 
 of Trustees embraces several of the best known names 
 in this country. 
 
 At the Convention of 1886 a Ladies' Aid Society was 
 suggested by one of the visitors, and immediately formed. 
 Any lady or gentleman may become a member on pay- 
 ment, annually, of $2.00, or a life member on payment 
 of $30.00. Mrs. Moody is treasurer. The purpose is to 
 lend money to needy and deserving students, to enable 
 them to meet the expenses of the course without impair- 
 ing their independence. It was reported that wherever 
 the experiment has been tried elsewhere the students 
 gladly meet the debt at the first opportunity, in order 
 that others in the condition from which they have 
 emerged may likewise be helped. Thus $300, the ex- 
 pense of a three years' course, may be kept constantly in 
 circulation, and become the perpetual support of one 
 student. 
 
 MOUNT HERMON SCHOOL FOR YOUNG MEN. 
 
 While the Northfield Seminary was still in its infancy, 
 Mr. Moody decided to commence also a school for boys. 
 With characteristic promptitude and large faith he hesi- 
 tated not to assume the double burden. No land suit- 
 able for the purpose could be had in the immediate 
 vicinity of Northfield; and it was desirable that the 
 school should be located at some distance from any 
 town to secure the greatest possible immunity from evil 
 influences. What was wanted, therefore, was a tract of 
 land not many miles away, within easy distance of some 
 railroad station, and yet in a measure isolated. " God 
 moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform." 
 Through a train of circumstances which it is needless 
 here to recount, but in which the hand of Providence 
 was most clearly apparent, at this juncture of affairs a 
 
20 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 certain parcel of property which exactly met the require- 
 ments of the proposed establishment came into the mar- 
 ket. Itf was a splendid farm of four hundred acres, in 
 the town of Gill, about four miles from Northfield, in a 
 southwesterly direction, across the Connecticut. This 
 land had been held by one family for several genera- 
 tions, and was supposed to be unpurchasable at any 
 terms. In the whole region no domain could have been 
 found more eminently desirable for the purposes in 
 view, and it was a coincidence little less than miraculous 
 that just when Mr. Moody was in search of a site for his 
 intended boys' school, this fine place was on the point 
 of falling under the hammer. At first two hundred 
 acres were sold. These he bought for $7,000. The 
 timber standing thereon was alone worth that amount. 
 A little later he bought the other two hundred acres for 
 $5,500. Thus the whole tract cost him $12,500 — a mere 
 fraction of its estimated value — while at no time within 
 the preceding fifty years could it have been bought for 
 love or money. The soil had been under systematic till- 
 age by intelligent farmers, and was thus in excellent 
 condition for the industrial department which was to 
 form so prominent a feature of the projected institution. 
 The situation of the place was such that the boys could 
 be effectually secluded from the contaminating influ- 
 ences of towns, and guarded from injurious companion- 
 ships. At the same time railway communication was 
 within easy reach. The Connecticut River Railroad 
 traverses the neighborhood, and a station, chiefly for 
 the accommodation of the school, has been provided 
 The elevated and undulating plateau affords numerous 
 admirable building sites. 
 
 The height upon which this property is situated is 
 now called Mount Hermon. From it the view is far- 
 reaching and variegated. If compared with the view 
 
NORTHFIELD AND ITS SCHOOLS. 21 
 
 from the Seminary buildings it might be said that while 
 that is peaceful and beautiful, this is wild and sublime. 
 Nature is gentle or rugged, placid or energetic, as befits 
 the sex at either place. The drive from Northfield to 
 Mount Hermon is picturesque at every turn. The river 
 is crossed by a wire-rope ferry. Communication between 
 the several buildings of both institutions is maintained 
 by telephone. 
 
 The money with which the farm was purchased and 
 rhe school commenced, was the gift of Mr. Hiram Camp, 
 President of the New Haven Clock Company. He wrote 
 a check for $25,000, and has since declared that no act 
 of his long life has yielded him greater happiness. Said 
 he recently: " If I could have that money back again, and 
 see the school reduced to nothing, would I take it ? A 
 thousand times no ! There's no joy like the joy of giv- 
 ing." He has since contributed liberally toward the 
 development of the school, and from year to year he 
 watches its progress with ever-increasing delight. 
 
 At first the old farm-houses which were found upon 
 the place were used as dormitories. In connection with 
 them a small wooden building was put up to serve as a 
 recitation hall. When it became necessary to enlarge 
 the dormitory accommodations, it was deemed best to 
 preserve the family system. Instead of congregating a 
 large number of boys in one large building, the plan was 
 preferred of dividing them into groups of not more than 
 twenty, and housing them in small cottages, each under 
 the charge of two matrons. In 1885 four brick cottages 
 had been erected, with a dining hall of suitable propor- 
 tions. In that year, also, the fine, large building called 
 Recitation Hall was dedicated. This structure is built 
 of brick and granite. In the basement are three class- 
 rooms. The office of the superintendent, and eight reci- 
 tation-rooms, occupy the first floor. The principal fea- 
 
22 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 ture of the second floor is the library, containing 1,400 
 volumes. Additions to the collection of books, of suit- 
 able character, are greatly desired. Space is here found, 
 also, for four recitation-rooms. On the third floor is a 
 handsome chapel, capable of seating 400 persons ; and 
 a museum department, devoted partly to musical in- 
 struction. A magnificent view is obtained from the 
 cupola. 
 
 In course of time Mr. Moody found reason to change 
 in some degree the plan of the school. The boys he 
 had taken were many of them too young to have formed 
 any definite purpose in life, or to entertain while study- 
 ing anything but the vaguest notion of their future. 
 Experience proved that the results would be much more 
 satisfactory if the age of admission were raised to six- 
 teen, and the course of study adapted to youths who are 
 almost young men. This, of course, lessened the force of 
 the considerations favorable to the family system of 
 housing; and when the number of students grew so 
 rapidly that accommodations upon an extensive scale 
 must needs be contemplated, plans were prepared for 
 the erection of a large dormitory and a dining hall. In 
 the Summer of 1885 ground was broken for the new 
 buildings, and they were dedicated in June, 1886. The 
 dormitory, called Crossley Hall, is of brick and North- 
 field granite. It is 167 feet long, 50 feet wide in the 
 middle, and 40 feet wide in the wings; and the flag- 
 staff on the main roof is 105 feet high. The style 
 of architecture is modern and strikingly handsome. 
 All the interior is finished in ash, with furniture to 
 match. The first floor is marble-tiled. Glancing at 
 the building from the outside it is observed that the 
 middle portion rises four stories, with granite-capped 
 gables, and the wings to three stories, with brick dor- 
 mers. The central feature of the front facade is an 
 
NORTHFIELD AND ITS SCHOOLS. 23 
 
 imposing cut-granite arch, fronting the vestibule. A 
 broad hall leads across the building, and this is crossed 
 by a corridor which runs to the ends and connects with 
 twenty-five sleeping-rooms. To the right of the en- 
 trance is a comfortable office, rendered cheerful by an 
 open fire-place. The second floor contains a large par- 
 lor and twenty-five sleeping-rooms. The third and 
 fourth floors have twenty-seven sleeping-rooms each. 
 As there are two beds in each room, the entire dormitory 
 will accommodate 208 persons. Two windmills pump 
 spring water into a large tank in the attic. 
 
 The Dining Hall is a solid brick structure 100 by 40 
 feet, with a wing 62 by 30 feet extending back for the 
 culinary department. From the north front corner there 
 rises to the height of 64 feet a massive tower, under 
 which is the entrance. This tower is to be utilized for 
 a bell and clock, and will also afford means of ventila- 
 tion. The main hall is 80 by 40 feet in size, lighted by 
 thirteen double-arched windows, and the ceiling, 17 
 feet high, is enriched by deep-paneled wooden beams. 
 The arrangements for the comfort of the students are 
 in every respect complete. 
 
 Mr. Moody's own definition of the object of the 
 Mount Hermon School has been thus given : " Mount 
 Hermon is a school for young men of sound bodies, 
 good minds, and high aims — not for the physically or 
 morally weak. It undertakes to furnish for earnest 
 Christian young men, who desire to serve the Master, 
 opportunities to secure a better preparation than other- 
 wise would be within their reach. It also provides a 
 place where young men whose early education has been 
 neglected can be instructed according to their individual 
 needs. In the admission of candidates reference is had 
 to character and ability, rather than to scholarship. 
 Then, it aims to care for the physical welfare of its 
 
24 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 pupils, to train them to industrious habits, and to give 
 them some practical knowledge of work, by requiring 
 of each one a certain amount of manual labor daily. 
 It costs $100 per year for board and tuition." X -S 
 
 If the ideas' of its founder as they have at various 
 times been expressed were to be further summarized, 
 they might take this shape : There is a distinct need for 
 a class of Christian workers so trained as to be adapted 
 for labor among the masses in the destitute parts of 
 great cities, and in other fields not reached by the or- 
 dinary means of grace. At the same time there is a 
 large class of young men, earnest and consecrated, who 
 would be glad to enter upon such work if they could do 
 so after a short and special course of study. While the 
 full course of the regular colleges and theological semi- 
 naries may be requisite for those entering the regular 
 ministry, a simpler and briefer course is quite sufficient 
 for the purposes of an humble class of toilers. In fact, 
 if a young man does not readily receive a high polish, 
 and is likely in his sphere of endeavor to have mostly 
 to do with the illiterate, or the " common people," it is 
 not desirable to educate him away from their mental 
 level. If he talks to them in the language of college- 
 bred men, he is as one dropped out of another planet. 
 The more familiar he is with their habits of thought, 
 the greater will be his success among them. Seeing, 
 then, that young men whose only ambition is to toil 
 among the lowly poor are as well, if not better, without 
 a seven years' course, and at all events would consider it 
 out of the question, is it not wise to provide a school 
 suited to their peculiar wants ? And if any of the stu- 
 dents feel drawn toward the regular ministry, will they 
 not be better prepared to profit by the regular college 
 course after a period of severely practical training ? 
 
 The standard of admission is such that the attendants 
 
NORTHFIELD AND ITS SCHOOLS. 25 
 
 are a body of picked young men. Careful scrutiny is 
 made of the antecedents and disposition of each appli- 
 cant. " Lazy, ignorant, or vicious boys will not be re- 
 ceived knowingly, or long retained if received ignorant- 
 ly." Pupils are taken only on probation. Such ques- 
 tions as these are asked: "Has the candidate shown an 
 ambition to excel in anything ? " " Has he formed any 
 purpose in life?" "What are his prominent traits of 
 character?" "Has he had any bad companionships?" 
 " Why do you wish to send him to this school ? " IjJ may 
 easily be imagined that after running the gauntlet of a 
 series of inquiries of this searching description, the 
 general morale of the students must be high. There is 
 one thing which this institution specifically is not — it is 
 not a reform school. Schools designed for the wayward 
 or vicious certainly have a place in our present civiliza- 
 tion; but the Mount Hermon School is meant, first and 
 last, to furnish the Christian education craved by multi- 
 tudes of Christian young men. The students are re- 
 quired to engage in some form of useful labor two or 
 three hours a day. Some are employed on the farm, 
 some in the laundry, and some in attending to the num- 
 berless chores around the buildings. All the housework 
 is performed by them. Those occupied upon the farm 
 become proficient in sowing, reaping, and harvesting, as 
 well as in the care of cattle and sheep. If there is noth- 
 ing else to be done, one resource always remains — the 
 time-honored New England amusement of clearing some 
 field of its superfluous stones. The allotted tasks are 
 performed with conscientious and cheerful fidelity. Each 
 student realizes that whenever he is unwilling to con- 
 tribute toward the cost of his education by partially 
 "working his passage," there are numerous less fortun- 
 ate youths waiting to take his place. Besides the econo- 
 my effected, the manual labor accomplished by the young 
 
26 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 men greatly aids in preserving the healthful condition 
 of mind and body without which their studies would be 
 of dubious benefit. The students illustrate the harmony 
 and beauty of true Christian living, and seem " diligent 
 in business, fervent in prayer, serving the Lord." 
 
 There will now be room for 300 young men, while 
 heretofore the limit of accommodation has been but 
 slightly over 160. The students come from all quarters 
 of the earth, and have represented several races. While 
 most of them are Americans, not a few have been sent 
 hither from England, and among the number there 
 might, at different times, have been seen Germans, 
 Scandinavians, Turks, American Indians, and Japanese. 
 The latter, when they graduate, return to their native 
 lands as missionaries. 
 
 The course of instruction is substantially a thorough 
 grounding in English. The usual studies of a high- 
 school or academy are pursued so far as is considered 
 judicious. Above all text-books is placed the Book of 
 books. Mr. Moody, when at home, lectures upon Bible 
 topics five times a week. Clergymen distinguished for 
 their mastery of the practical use of the Bible — such as 
 Dr. Gordon, of Boston; Dr. Pierson and Dr. Wayland, 
 of Philadelphia ; Dr. Pentecost, of Brooklyn ; and Dr. 
 Brookes, of St. Louis — visit the school in rotation, and 
 deliver courses of lectures. They compose what has been 
 humorously termed " the faculty." Prof. Henry E. Saw- 
 yer, formerly associate principal of the Connecticut 
 Normal School, is principal. He is assisted by an able 
 corps of instructors and officials. The Board of Trus- 
 tees is headed by Mr. Hiram Camp, and its treasurer is 
 Mr. Wm. F. Lee, of 679 Madison Avenue, New York. 
 About $10,000 remains to be subscribed to complete the 
 furnishing of the new buildings. The cost of furnishing 
 one bedroom is $50. 
 
NORTHFIELD AND ITS SCHOOLS. . 2J 
 
 In July, 1886, at the suggestion of Mr. L. D. Wishard, 
 College Secretary Y. M. C. A., Mr. Moody invited all the 
 colleges of this country and Canada to send delegates to 
 a "Summer School of College Students," at Mount 
 Hermon. It was presumed that many Christian young 
 men attending college would be. willing to spend a part 
 of their vacation in " searching the Scriptures." The re- 
 sponse was most gratifying; 250 students, representing 
 eighty colleges, came together from all sections of the 
 continent. The school continued for nearly a month, 
 with constantly heightening interest. Lectures were de- 
 livered by Mr. Moody, Major Whittle, Dr. Pierson, Dr. 
 Gordon, Dr. Brookes, Dr. Morehead, and Dr. Clark. Prof. 
 Towner conducted the singing. Toward the end a mis- 
 sionary spirit developed, which grew in intensity from 
 day to day. Missionaries and sons of missionaries spoke 
 with glowing countenances of the rewards of faithful 
 obedience to the injunction of Christ bidding us proclaim 
 the Gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth. Meetings 
 were held for special consecration, at which in a won- 
 drous manner prayer was answered for a special descent 
 of the Holy Spirit and enduement of power for service. 
 Before the school was disbanded fully ninety-five, and 
 perhaps one hundred young men yielded themselves to 
 the life of missionaries of the cross in foreign lands. 
 Never in the religious history of America was there a 
 parallel to this Pentecostal spectacle. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE NORTHFIELD SUMMER GATHERINGS. 
 
 Summer Pursuits of a Busy Man — Mr. Moody at Home— Confer- 
 ences of Christian Workers — Their Manifold Advantages — Out- 
 lines of Four Conventions — Bible Study, Consecration, and 
 Anointing from on High. 
 
 Mr. Moody's conception of the meaning of the 
 word " vacation " must be peculiar to himself. With 
 most men the word signifies a period of absolute repose, 
 or at least of separation from serious work. With him 
 it rather implies a much-coveted opportunity for the ful- 
 filment of some of the schemes with which his fertile 
 brain is always teeming. It was in his vacation intervals 
 that the educational work, already vast, with which he 
 is identified was projected and year by year pushed to 
 its present proportions. Institutions in which nearly 
 half a million of dollars have been invested, and which 
 are, perhaps, only the earnest of what shall be, will per- 
 petuate one phase of his influence, and remain as a monu- 
 ment to his memory, if the Lord tarry, during genera- 
 tions yet unborn. Had he accomplished nothing else, it 
 would have seemed wonderful _that so many buildings 
 could have been reared and so many forces set in motion 
 within seven short years. Yet all these weighty and 
 multifarious occupations have been, so to speak, but the 
 pastimes of the play-hours of a giant. During nine 
 months of the year Mr Moody is engrossed in the ardu- 
 ous evangelistic labor which he still considers the princi- 
 (28) 
 
THE NORTHFIELD SUMMER GATHERINGS, 29 
 
 pal mission of his life. Recently his campaigns have 
 been of such a nature as to require almost constant 
 travelling, in addition to preaching and toiling for souls. 
 In former years it was his custom to preach in some im- 
 mense tabernacle in the heart of some great city. If he 
 had cared for personal distinction, it would plainly have 
 been good policy for him to have continued that prac- 
 tice. But with increasing experience he realized more 
 and more the desirability of closer contact with the 
 people than was possible in the mammoth conventicles 
 that had resounded with his voice. Baltimore was the 
 scene of a complete change of plan. The city was divided 
 into districts. In each district the Gospel was preached 
 for a stated period, a large force of trained workers was 
 kept busy among the inquirers, and arrangements for 
 " drawing the net " were much more efficient than under 
 the old plan of assaulting a whole city at once. Upon 
 leaving the district the local clergy were expected to 
 follow up the work. In this manner district after dis- 
 trict was dealt with till the whole community was 
 thoroughly canvassed. The results of this altered method 
 were so satisfactory that Mr. Moody has followed it ever 
 since. During his last visit to London, instead of preach- 
 ing as he had done before to 14,000 people in the Agri- 
 cultural Hall and similar multitudes in other places, his 
 system of action was to attack the city in detail by sec- 
 tions. Two portable iron tabernacles capable of holding 
 just as many people as he thought he could most advan- 
 tageously address, were moved from time to time along 
 the line of a predetermined circuit. If the work was less 
 conspicuous and less available as a sensational topic in 
 the newspapers, it was probably much more fruitful in 
 profound and eternal results. Since his second return 
 to America, Mr. Moody has still further developed the 
 same tendency; and during the season of 1884-85 and of 
 
30 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 1885-86, he has bestowed his attention upon the smaller 
 cities so numerous throughout the continent. His habit 
 is to arrange a course of travel, consisting of a chain of 
 cities across some important belt of territory, and remain 
 about three days in each place. During those three days 
 he will preach, perhaps, three sermons a day, in which 
 he endeavors to concentrate what he has found by ex- 
 perience to have been the most effective arguments and 
 appeals in his entire arsenal of weapons; and whatever 
 time is not thus occupied is for the most part spent in 
 inquiry work. Other evangelists precede and follow him, 
 and in each place the ministers garner the harvest and 
 utilize the spiritual awakening. Thus with Caesar-like 
 rapidity of movement Mr. Moody has, within two years, 
 been able to visit cities of from ten to one or two hun- 
 dred thousand population in New England, New York, 
 Pennsylvania, Canada, the Northwestern States, the 
 Western States, the Empire of Texas, the Gulf States of 
 the South, the Southern seaboard States, and in fact rep- 
 resentative points in nearly the whole of the most dense- 
 ly peopled portions of North America. In June he usu- 
 ally hies to his beloved Northfield, and upon his arrival 
 instantly plunges into the business pertaining to the two 
 schools. In addition to his concern for their material 
 welfare he assumes the role of a theological professor. 
 The students have the rare privilege of hearing him un- 
 fold his own methods of Bible teaching and the princi- 
 ples upon which he frames his discourses to the uncon- 
 verted. It must surely be of inestimable benefit to them 
 to hear his words of advice, encouragement, and stimu- 
 lus, and to see such a living embodiment of robust faith, 
 sanctified common-sense, and unquenchable zeal. 
 
 Whenever his presence in this country and other con- 
 ditions render it possible, Mr. Moody is wont to summon 
 to Northfield, some time in the month of August, a Con- 
 
THE NORTHFIELD SUMMER GATHERINGS. 3 1 
 
 vention of Christian Workers. Precisely what his ob- 
 ject is in so doing has never been exhaustively explained , 
 but it may be conjectured that among the excellent pur- 
 poses sought to be effected are these: Mr. Moody himself 
 can have very little opportunity to hear other men preach 
 or deliver expository lectures. When he wishes to gain 
 some knowledge of the treasures others have reached in 
 exploring Bible truths, or of their style of expression 
 and illustration, how is he to obtain it ? He can ex- 
 amine books, but books rarely convey the freshest 
 thoughts of their writers, nor can there be the same ad- 
 vantage in reading a disquisition as in conferring with 
 its author. And the views of several persons on the 
 same subject, if in books, cannot be compared without 
 inconvenience. But let the best Bible scholars and 
 evangelists in the land be assembled in conference for 
 mutual profit. Let them bring their ripest and latest 
 wisdom, and let them exchange whatever discoveries 
 they have made or whatever ideas have been found of 
 practical utility. Could there be any way in which Mr. 
 Moody might acquire so much information, if that is 
 among his wants ? In the second place, to the many 
 evangelists who are similarly engaged throughout the 
 year, and to such pastors and Christian workers as may 
 be able to attend, a like advantage must accrue. It is 
 safe to say that many of these have learned more with 
 respect to the capital and essential truths of Christianity 
 within one month than they would be likely to learn in 
 a whole year of unaided study. In the third place, 
 many are enabled to become acquainted with the North- 
 field Seminary and the Mount Hermon School by per- 
 sonal observation who would otherwise only know of 
 them through the medium of print. The buildings are 
 comparatively empty during August, and may as well 
 be turned into temporary hotels for the entertainment 
 
32 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 of a concourse of friends from abroad. Mr. Moody al- 
 ways impresses upon his visitors that the schools are 
 theirs as much as his ; and the fact that the Christian 
 public at large is responsible for their sustenance is real- 
 ized by several individuals whom the Lord has blessed 
 with large wealth. In the fourth place, Mr. Moody is 
 afforded an unequalled opportunity of indoctrinating 
 other laborers in the Master's vineyard with the ideas 
 upon which he lays such emphasis, and to stir them up 
 to more vigorous and sagacious effort. One of his favorite 
 principles is, that it is far better to set others to work than 
 to try to do all the work oneself. That is perhaps the 
 most potent consideration behind his exertions in the 
 educational field. And it can hardly be without a place 
 among the considerations impelling him to call the series 
 of summer conventions. Although he takes but little 
 time himself in comparison with the time he allots to 
 others, what he says when in some degree he does lessen 
 his self-imposed restraint is of the highest value, not 
 merely to the eclectic company present, but to the whole 
 Christian world. He believes the ordinary church-life 
 of to-day must be revolutionized in several directions 
 before it can be at all adequate to cope with the civiliza- 
 tion of this swift-working age. Such changes as he con- 
 siders most imperative he proposes and commends with 
 all the momentum of deep conviction. Church workers 
 and evangelists gain from him numberless keenly practi- 
 cal suggestions with regard to the best method of con- 
 ducting meetings and winning the unsaved. And in his 
 discourses they discern elements of that original theolog- 
 ical system which has contributed to place him among the 
 most influential spiritual teachers in either hemisphere. 
 Finally, no one feels more than does Mr. Moody the need 
 of what he terms the enduement of power from on high, 
 as an indispensable requisite to success in preaching the 
 
THE NORTHFIELD SUMMER GATHERINGS. 33 
 
 Word. Hence, much of the attention of the convocation 
 is always turned to the nature and offices of the Holy 
 Spirit, His relation to preaching as a vital factor in its 
 influence, and the importance of seeking His aid in 
 abundant measure. All are led to engage in prayer for 
 a special anointing of power for service, and on many 
 sacred occasions earnest pleading has been answered by 
 most awful and blessed visitations of the Holy Ghost. 
 No one who has passed through such an experience will 
 ever forget it. To many that Massachusetts hill has be- 
 come a very Mount of Transfiguration, and they have 
 gone down into the world with faces glowing and with 
 hearts burning in new-born devotion to their Saviour- 
 King. 
 
 The first Convention was called in 1880. From be- 
 ginning to end it was a period of heart-searching, of 
 consecration, and of humble supplication for an out- 
 pouring of the Holy Spirit. The only large building 
 then constructed was the one now known as East Hall, 
 behind which a capacious tent was pitched. Under 
 this canopy, from day to day, were held meetings of the 
 most thrilling character. Confession of unworthy mo- 
 tives issued from men prominent in Christian work, 
 mingled with strong crying and tears that they might 
 be purged from every taint of evil and " filled with the 
 Holy Ghost." For ten days these exercises continued 
 with increasing fervor. When they culminated it seemed 
 as if the windows of Heaven were opened, and to each 
 waiting soul was granted even more of the Spirit than 
 he felt able to bear. The results of this transcendent 
 blessing were soon apparent when the delegates re- 
 turned to their diverse spheres of labor. 
 
 In 1881 a Convention was called for the purpose of 
 Bible study, and continued for thirty days. At the invi- 
 tation of Mr. Moody the Rev. Dr. Andrew A. Bonar, of 
 2 * 
 
34 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 Glasgow, Scotland, who had just served as Moderator 
 of the General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland, 
 crossed the Atlantic to visit Northfield. The venerable 
 chieftain was a picturesque figure at all the gatherings. 
 His addresses were characterized by the accuracy of 
 scholarship and precision of statement peculiar to the 
 Scottish intellect, combined with a profound insight 
 into the deeper meanings of the sacred text, and an in- 
 describable sweetness and tenderness of manner which 
 immediately endeared him to all with whom he came in 
 contact, and won for him their unlimited deference and 
 regard. He was accompanied by his daughter, whose 
 musical talents were frequently called into exercise. 
 Among the speakers, in addition to Mr. Moody and Dr. 
 Bonar, were the Rev. Dr. Pentecost, of Brooklyn ; the 
 Rev. Dr. Gordon, of Boston ; Major Whittle ; Mr. Geo. C. 
 Needham; Mr. R. C. Morgan, of the London Christian; the 
 Rev. Dr. Brookes, of St. Louis ; the Rev. Dr. Goodwin, 
 of Chicago ; the Rev. J. W. Erdman, and many others. 
 The singing was conducted, and many special pieces 
 sung, by Mr. Sankey, Mr. and Mrs. James MacGranahan, 
 and Mr. and Mrs. Geo. C. Stebbins. The forenoon and 
 evening meetings were held in East Hall. The after- 
 noon meetings were held in the Congregational church 
 of the village, necessitating a walk or drive of about a 
 mile and return. Occasionally meetings were held in 
 Bonar Glen. When time permitted, knots of people 
 would stroll into secluded places and improvise meet- 
 ings for the closer study of God's Word. During the 
 whole month the interest never flagged, but rather seemed 
 to deepen. The range of study was extensive, closing 
 with a season of personal consecration and waiting for 
 the Spirit. 
 
 Owing to the absence of Mr. Moody in England no 
 Conventions were called during the three summers fol- 
 
THE NORTHFIELD SUMMER GATHERINGS. 35 
 
 lowing. But in 1885 a call was sent out for a Conven- 
 tion, to occupy ten days, in the early part of August. 
 When the visitors arrived most of them were astonished 
 to behold the changes that had been effected during 
 their absence. Two new buildings — Marquand Hall 
 and Stone Hall — had arisen as if by a touch of Aladdin's 
 lamp. New drives had been laid out, and the grounds 
 artistically beautified. The metamorphosis was at first 
 bewildering. Marquand Hall became the principal ho- 
 tel. The class-rooms of Stone Hall afforded lodging 
 for a number of men who took meals at the Marquand 
 dining-room. East Hall as a hotel had the advantage 
 of being slightly retired. Accommodation was found 
 for many guests in the homes of the villagers, though 
 the pressure in that direction was not as great as on 
 previous occasions when the Seminary was still in em- 
 bryo. The general meetings, forenoon and afternoon, 
 were held in the great auditorium of Stone Hall. Devo- 
 tional meetings were held morning and evening in the 
 chapels of the two dormitories. At some of these smaller 
 meetings interesting addresses were made by mission 
 aries or persons engaged in unusual work. A tent was 
 pitched on the green near the road, in which additional 
 meetings were convened when demand arose. One of 
 the most striking incidents of the Convention was an 
 address by Mr. J. E. K. Studd, of the class of 1883, Cam- 
 bridge University, England, and distinguished in athletic 
 circles as having been captain of the University Cricket 
 Eleven. Mr. Studd gave an account of the visit of Mr 
 Moody to Cambridge, and the wonderful religious move- 
 ment in the English and Scotch universities. He nar- 
 rated the circumstances leading to the departure of a 
 band of Cambridge's best men for China, headed by Mr. 
 Stanley Smith and his own brother, Mr. C. T. Studd. 
 His rehearsal of their apostolic tours in Great Britain 
 
36 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 of their voyage to the East, marked by numerous con- 
 versions on shipboard, and of the marvellous blessing 
 attending their first exertions in China, was received 
 with exclamations of amazement and delight. An hon- 
 ored guest of Mr. Moody was the late John B. Gough, 
 who spoke at a special evening meeting in Stone Hall, 
 few supposing that he was so soon to be caught up from 
 earth. At the same meeting a vigorous address was 
 made by Mr. William Noble, whose work has led to the 
 erection of Hoxton Hall, in London, England. Among 
 the lecturers on Bible topics were the Rev. Dr. Gordon, 
 of Boston ; the Rev. Dr. Pierson, of Philadelphia ; the 
 Rev. Dr. Pentecost, of Brooklyn ; Dr. L. W. Munhall, of 
 Indianapolis ; Mr. Geo. C. Needham ; the Rev. W. W. 
 Clark, of Staten Island ; and several others. The sing- 
 ing was conducted by Mr. Sankey, Mr. and Mrs. D. B. 
 Towner, and Mr. and Mrs. James MacGranahan. The 
 themes of discussion were all practical, and such as held 
 direct relation to aggressive evangelical work. The last 
 day was devoted to the contemplation and invocation of 
 the Holy Spirit. Dr. Gordon spoke in the forenoon, and 
 in the afternoon Mr. Moody gave an address which must 
 have been superhuman, whether in wisdom or power. 
 Prayer followed for a special blessing upon each one 
 present. Many a withered rod was thereafter made 
 mighty in the hand of Jehovah ; many a vessel was re- 
 filled from the ever-flowing fountain. 
 
 In 1886 another Convention was held, continuing 
 for ten days, from the 4th to the 15th of August. On 
 this occasion the central figure among the visitors 
 was the Rev. Marcus Rainsford, incumbent of Belgrave 
 Chapel, in London, England. Two sons of his have 
 attained distinction in the Episcopal Church. One of 
 them — the Rev. William S. Rainsford — is the succes- 
 sor of the elder Dr. Tyng, as rector of St. George's 
 
THE NORTHFIELD SUMMER GATHERINGS. S7 
 
 Church, New York. Mr. Rainsford, who came from 
 London especially to attend this Convention, is portly 
 and dignified in appearance, with a bright, genial face, 
 and ruddy color. He is of Irish birth, and his earlier 
 ministry was in the Emerald Isle, as chaplain to the 
 Earl of Roden. Consequently, there is a quaint flavor 
 in the literary form of his addresses, which at times 
 he does not hesitate to irradiate with Hibernian humor. 
 His later life has been spent among families of rank, 
 which renders it all the more noteworthy that his dis- 
 courses are so uncompromising in declaring " the whole 
 counsel of God " without regard to the feelings or pref- 
 erences of his hearers. He is singularly gifted in Bible 
 exposition, especially in bringing out the full meaning 
 of episodes in the earthly life of our Saviour, and in 
 elucidating the mysterious doctrines of the Christian 
 revelation. Mr. Moody presided at all the meetings, and 
 at the close of some of his suggestive addresses suffered 
 himself to be made the target of countless questions 
 from all parts of the house. Among the other speakers 
 were the Rev. Dr. Pierson, of Philadelphia ; Major 
 Whittle ; the Rev. Dr. Gordon, of Boston ; the Rev. Dr. 
 West, of St. Paul; the Rev. A. F. Schauffler, of New 
 York ; the Rev. J. W. Erdman ; Mr. Geo. C. Needham ; 
 the Rev. H. M. Parsons, of Toronto, and Mr. Wm. E. 
 Blackstone, of Chicago. On the last day several ad- 
 dresses were made upon the work of the Holy Spirit, 
 Mr. Moody supplementing what had been said with 
 observations of his own as they occurred to him. 
 Prayer, silent and vocal, ascended that every disciple 
 present might receive the Divine unction and be clothed 
 anew with power for service as never before. The air 
 trembled, as it were, with the unmistakable brooding of 
 the gracious Spirit, and it was in a subdued and hallow- 
 ed mood that the company dispersed. Those who re- 
 
38 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 mained till the farewell meeting in the evening were 
 doubly blessed. 
 
 The attendance at these various Conventions has 
 reached from 300 to 500, if those only are included who 
 travel from a distance. The people of the village and 
 vicinity enlarge the throng, which at times must rise in 
 number to 1,500. Mr. Moody never announces his pro- 
 gramme more than one day in advance. Cut-and-dried 
 programmes he eschews as an obstacle to the free course 
 of the Spirit, and depends almost momentarily upon 
 guidance from above. One result of this habit is that 
 attention must be constantly on the alert. He insists on 
 hearty singing and plenty of it. Mr. Towner has brought 
 a male choir consisting of Mount Hermon youths to a 
 high point of proficiency, and Mr. Moody regards their 
 performances with almost childish delight. When they 
 finish one piece he will say, " Now, while you are on your 
 feet, sing something else " — usually indicating the selec- 
 tion. Mr. Sankey, Mr. MacGranahan, and Mr. Towner 
 are ever composing new melodies, and they are greatly 
 aided in determining the value of these by observing 
 the degree of readiness with which the people assembled 
 are able to join in singing the choruses. Mr, Moody 
 sees that an abundant supply of vehicles is in readiness 
 during the intervals between the meetings, whose owners 
 are willing, at a moderate charge, to enable visitors to 
 enjoy the exhaustless beauty of the surrounding country. 
 In his own conveyance he carries as many as practicable 
 of his personal friends, new and old, and points out to 
 them the limits and adjuncts of the Seminary property. 
 He is particularly pleased when the pleasure-seekers in 
 their afternoon drives turn in the direction of the school 
 for young men, four miles away, over the river. He is 
 wont to say, "Your education isn't completed till you 
 have seen Mount Hermon." Now that the Seminary for 
 
THE NORTHFIELD SUMMER GATHERINGS. 39 
 
 young ladies is so well established, he feels that it de- 
 mands less of his care than formerly ; and if there is one 
 thing upon earth upon which his heart is set inordi- 
 nately, it is the prosperity of the newly-founded "school 
 of the prophets." 
 
 So far as can now be known, similar Conventions will 
 be held in succeeding years. Mr. Moody desires to en- 
 courage the attendance of ministers of the Gospel 
 engaged in regular pastoral work, and to this end he 
 purposes diminishing to the utmost the cost of their 
 ■entertainment. At the last Convention a number of 
 college students who had attended the Summer School 
 at Mount Hermon, and greatly desired to attend the 
 August assembly also, solved for themselves the prob- 
 lem of cheap living. The frame buildings on the hill- 
 side, intended for dormitories, were appropriated to 
 their use. By clubbing together in a somewhat primi- 
 tive fashion, they contrived to live at an expense per 
 head of only thirty cents a day, and " live well." In 
 some such manner as this it is hoped that a great num- 
 ber of ministers throughout the country, who would 
 otherwise be debarred from so doing, will be enabled to 
 visit Northfield, and have part in the seasons of refresh- 
 ing on that mount of privilege. 
 
 The ultimate influence of the Conventions already 
 held cannot be comprehended, much less computed, by 
 finite minds. Included among their attendants have 
 been missionaries from every clime under the sun, 
 students in preparation for antipodean fields, evangel- 
 ists of Pauline activity, clergymen in charge of great 
 citadels or forlorn outposts in the name of the coming 
 King, editors of metropolitan newspapers in America 
 and beyond sea, city missionaries, superintendents 
 and teachers in Sunday-schools, church officials, conse- 
 crated business men, and followers of Christ of every 
 
40 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 description and degree. If each of these received a 
 new impetus and a breath of heavenly inspiration, and 
 then in turn set other souls in harmonious motion, 
 what mathematician can estimate the myriad conse- 
 quences ? 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 A CONVENTION TALK. 
 
 Mr. Moody on the Importance of Personal Work — How it Should be 
 Done — Inquirers and How to Meet their Needs — No Two Cases 
 Alike — Backsliders — Without Conviction — Penitent Ones — Ques- 
 tions and Answers. 
 
 [The intensely practical character of the talks given at the Northfield 
 Conventions, renders them of far more than transient interest; and hence 
 a general demand has arisen that they be couched in permanent form, 
 and given a larger hearing. That the reader may judge of their value, 
 several are herewith presented. Among the most suggestive was that by 
 Mr. Moody on ''■Personal Work."] 
 
 Personal dealing is of the most vital importance. No 
 one can tell how many souls have been lost through lack 
 of following up the preaching of the Gospel by personal 
 work. It is deplorable how few church-members are 
 qualified to deal with inquirers. And yet that is the 
 very work in which they ought most efficiently to aid 
 the pastor. People are not usually converted under the 
 preaching of the minister. It is in the inquiry-meeting 
 that they are most likely to be brought to Christ. Some 
 people can't see the use of inquiry-meetings, and think 
 they are something new, and that we haven't any au- 
 thority for them. But they are no innovation. We 
 read about them all through the Bible. When John the 
 Baptist was preaching he was interrupted. It would 
 be a good thing if people would interrupt the minister 
 now and then in the middle of some metaphysical ser- 
 mon, and ask what he means. The only way to make 
 
 (41) 
 
42 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 sure that people understand what he is talking about is 
 to let them ask questions. I don't know what some 
 men, who have got the whole thing written out, would 
 do if some one should get up and ask : "What must I 
 do to be saved ? " Yet such questions would do more 
 good than anything else you could have. They would 
 wake up a spirit of inquiry. Some people say, all you 
 want to do is to make the preaching so plain that plain 
 people will understand it. Well, John the Baptist was 
 a plain preacher, and yet he asked : " Have you under- 
 stood these things ? " He encouraged them to inquire. 
 I think people sometimes would be greatly relieved, 
 when the minister is preaching way above their heads, 
 if he would stop and ask whether they understood it. 
 His very object is to make the Word of God clear. 
 Christ was a plain preacher ; but when He preached to 
 Saul, the man was only awakened. Christ could have 
 convicted and converted him ; but He honored a human 
 agency,. and sent Ananias forth to tell the Word whereby 
 he was to be saved. Philip was sent away into the des- 
 ert to talk to one man in the chariot. We must have 
 personal work — hand-to-hand work — if we are going to 
 have results. 
 
 NO UNIFORM RULE FOR ALL. 
 
 I admit you can't lay down rules in dealing with in 
 quirers. There are no two persons exactly alike. Mat 
 thew and Paul were a good ways apart. The people we 
 deal with may be widely different. What would be 
 medicine for one might be rank poison for another. In 
 the 15th of Luke the elder son and the younger son 
 were exactly opposite. What would have been good 
 counsel for one might have been ruin to the other. God 
 never made two persons to look alike. If we had made 
 men, probably we would have made them all alike, even 
 
A CONVENTION TALK. 43 
 
 if we had to crush some bones to get them into the 
 mould. But that is not God's way. In the universe 
 there is infinite variety. The Philippian jailer required 
 peculiar treatment. Christ dealt with Nicodemus one 
 way, and the woman at the well another way. It is dif- 
 ficult to say just how people are to be saved, yet there 
 are certain portions of Scripture that can be brought to 
 bear on certain classes of inquirers. 
 
 I want to say, I think it is a great mistake, in dealing 
 with inquirers, to tell your own experience. Experience 
 may have its place ; but I don't think it has its place 
 when you are dealing with inquirers. For the first thing 
 the man you are talking to will do will be to look for 
 your experience. He doesn't want your experience. He 
 wants one of his own. No two persons are converted 
 alike. Suppose Bartimeus had gone to Jerusalem to 
 the man that was born blind, and said : "Now, just tell 
 us how the Lord cured you." The Jerusalem man might 
 have said: "He just spat on the ground, and anointed 
 my eyes with the clay." " Ho ! " says Bartimeus ; " I 
 don't believe you ever got your sight at all. Who ever 
 heard of such a way as that ? Why, to fill a man's eyes 
 with clay is enough to put them out ! " Both men were 
 blind, but they were not cured alike. A great many 
 men are kept out of the kingdom of God because they 
 are looking for somebody else's experience — the expe- 
 rience their grandmother had, or their aunt, or some one 
 in the family. I knew an old man who used to tell peo- 
 ple to go down to a certain bridge and get on their 
 knees, and the Lord would meet them there. Some 
 Christians take the ground that sinners are not saved 
 unless they are saved just in their way. Then it is very 
 important to deal with one at a time. A doctor doesn't 
 give cod-liver oil for all complaints. No ; he says, " I 
 must see what each one wants." He wants to look at 
 
44 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. • 
 
 the tongue, and inquire into the symptoms. One may 
 have ague, another typhoid fever, and another may 
 have consumption. What a man wants is to be able to 
 read his Bible, and to read human nature too. 
 
 DIFFERENT CLASSES. 
 
 Now, it will be a great help to some of us to divide 
 inquirers into classes, and I would like to say a few 
 words about some of these. In the first place, there is a 
 class of people who lack assurance. Of course they are 
 church-members, but there are plenty of people inside 
 the church who need inquiry-work just as much as those 
 outside. For example, there are a great many church- 
 members who are just hobbling about on crutches. 
 They can just make out that they are saved, and im- 
 agine that is all that constitutes a Christian in this nine- 
 teenth century. As far as helping others is concerned, 
 that never enters their heads. They think if they can 
 get along themselves they are doing amazingly well. 
 They have no idea what the Holy Ghost wants to do 
 through them. 
 
 BACKSLIDERS. 
 
 I would like to take up the class of backsliders. You 
 always find when Christians are awakened there are a 
 great many returning backsliders, and you want to 
 know how to deal with them. Backsliders are doing 
 a vast amount of injury. One backslider will do more 
 harm than twenty Christian men can do good. Uncon- 
 verted people say : " Here are some men who have tried 
 this way. If there is as much joy in it as you make out, 
 how is it that so many people are dissatisfied and go 
 back into the world?" It's a hard argument to over- 
 come. It is very important to get these stumbling- 
 blocks out of the way. Now, in dealing with backsliders, 
 
♦ A CONVENTION TALK. 45 
 
 I use Jeremiah more than any other book in the Bible. 
 Some use only the New Testament, but I want the Old 
 Testament as well as the New. It seems as if the whole 
 Book of Jeremiah was written for backsliders. See Jere- 
 miah i. 17 : "Thou, therefore, gird up thy loins, and 
 arise and speak unto them all that I command thee." 
 It is God speaking through Jeremiah. In the second 
 chapter and thirteenth verse, He says : " My people have 
 committed two evils ; they have forsaken Me, the foun- 
 tain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, 
 broken cisterns, that can hold no water." That goes 
 right to the heart of every backslider— that is, every 
 true backslider. A great many people are not true back- 
 sliders. As the old chaplain in the army said, they never 
 slid forward. They have been clinging to some minis- 
 ter, some church, some choir ; they never were converted 
 at all. But a man that has ever known the Shepherd — 
 ah, he will hear the voice. When you find a real back- 
 slider, who has once known the Lord and loved Him, 
 take him to the Word as quick as you can—" My people 
 have hewn out cisterns, broken cisterns." And then just 
 turn right around to him and say : " Isn't that your 
 difficulty ? Does the world satisfy you ? Does the water 
 of this world quench your thirst ? " And if he is a true 
 child of God, he will shrink and say : " Don't ! oh 
 don't ! " He can't bear to hear it. Then in the nine- 
 teenth verse of the same chapter : " Thine own wicked- 
 ness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall re- 
 prove thee." I have known men whose backslidings 
 have been ruin to their families, and their children have 
 grown skeptical. When you read this passage to this 
 kind of backsliders, they will say: "What! does the 
 Bible say that ?. That is my case. Darkness and sor- 
 row have come into my family." There is nothing like 
 bringing the word of God to bear upon these people. 
 
46 IX L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 I remember when I was in St. Louis the last time, there 
 was an old man who had been away off on the moun- 
 tains of an ungodly life, but in his early manhood he 
 had known Christ. There he was in the inquiry-room, 
 literally broken down. About midnight that old man 
 came trembling before God, and was saved. He wiped 
 away his tears, and started home. Next night I saw 
 him in the audience, with a terrible look in his face. As 
 soon as I'd got done preaching, I went to him and said : 
 " My good friend, you haven't gone back into darkness 
 again ? " Said he : " Oh, Mr. Moody, it has been the 
 most wretched day in my life." "Why so?" "Well, 
 you know, this morning as soon as I got my breakfast, 
 I started out. I have got a number of children, mar- 
 ried, and in this city, and they have got families ; and I 
 have spent the day going around and telling them what 
 God has done for me. I told them how I had tasted 
 salvation, with the tears trickling down my face ; and, 
 Mr. Moody, I hadn't a child that didn't mock me." That 
 made me think of Lot down in Sodom. It is an awful 
 thing for a man who has been a backslider to have his 
 children mock him. But it is written : " Thy backslid 
 ings shall reprove thee ; know therefore, and see that it 
 is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the 
 Lord thy God." Then look at the thirty-second verse : 
 " Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire ? 
 yet My people have forgotten Me, days without number." 
 You know very well if you lost an earring you would 
 hunt for days to find it. Yet you may lose your Chris- 
 tian hope, and you won't hunt for it. If you lost a dia- 
 mond ring, how you would hunt for it ! I have met a 
 great many backsliders in that way. I remember say- 
 ing to a lady : " Madam, you think more of that earring 
 than you do of the kingdom of God. Don't you know 
 that ? " " Why, no ! " " Yes ; if you lost it, wouldn't you 
 
A CONVENTION TALK. 47 
 
 hunt for it ? " "Yes." " Have you thought as much of 
 the peace you have lost ? You have lost the peace of 
 God, and the joy of your salvation. Have you sought 
 it ? " In that way you are likely to bring them back. 
 Take Jeremiah iii. 12-14: "Return, thou backsliding 
 Israel, .... for I am merciful." Then the nineteenth 
 verse : " How shall I put thee among the children ? 
 .... Thou shalt call Me, My Father ; and shalt not 
 turn away from Me." Then read Hosea xiv. 1, 2, 4, 5, 
 and a great many others. There is one peculiarity about 
 backsliders. They have got to get out the way they got 
 in. " Repent, and do the first works." " Turn from your 
 backslidings." "Turn from your sin." Take the same 
 road that took you away from Christ to bring you back. 
 I once remember once talking with a backslider, and I 
 said : " If you would treat Christ as you would treat any 
 earthly friend, you would never go away from Him." 
 " How is that ? " " Did you ever know a backslider to 
 go in his closet, get down on his knees, tell the Lord he 
 was tired of His service, and bid him good-bye, and 
 then go back into the world ? When you are leaving a 
 friend you bid him good-bye, don't you ? Then you 
 treat Christ as you would not treat an earthly friend." 
 
 Q. What would you say to a backslider who wanted 
 to get back his old experience ? A. He doesn't want 
 his old experience; he wants a new one. God doesn't re- 
 peat Himself. That is the very pit a great many tumble 
 into — they want the same experience. But God will give 
 them a fresh experience, and perhaps a better one. You 
 remember how God used Peter after He restored him. I 
 don't believe David was used before he fell as much as 
 he was used afterward. Look at that 51st Psalm. What 
 a help it has been to multitudes — written by a restored 
 backslider ! If you have fallen and come back, God may 
 use you far more in the future than He ever did before 
 
48 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 Q. What would you do with a man who thinks he has 
 backslidden so far there is no hope for him ? A. The 
 devil tells him chat. He says: "There is no chance of 
 your being renewed," etc. Why, there's no one but has 
 backslidden. I have backslidden many times. Thank 
 God, I never lost my hope. But I have gone away from 
 the Lord. There isn't a Christian on the face of the 
 earth that hasn't backslidden. 
 
 Q. Would you advise men who have backslidden, and 
 been restored, to go into Christian work again ? A. 
 Yes; by all means. Sometimes they make the best work- 
 ers. They are apt to go very softly and carefully. 
 
 Q. Is it wise to have them go forth as Christian preach- 
 ers and teachers? A. Well; David taught, I think, a 
 great deal better after he was restored than before. 
 Peter taught. His great sermon at Pentecost was after 
 he had been restored. Some one might have said to 
 him: "Didn't I hear you denying Christ and swearing 
 the other night ?" " Oh, yes; but God has forgiven me." 
 Peter spoke out of a full heart, because he had been for- 
 given. When God forgives a man, that is the end of it. 
 He is forgiven — justified. 
 
 Q. Would you discriminate in the matter of testimony 
 after a man has fallen ? A. Well, let me tell you about 
 confession. Every man ought to make a public confes- 
 sion if his sin has been public. Suppose, now, I have 
 done this man a wrong, and no one knows it but us two. 
 Then the confession ought to be between us two alone. 
 I don't believe in making confession of such a thing 
 publicly— it isn't called for. Suppose I had a difficulty 
 with my family. It ought to be settled with my family. 
 It needn't go forth to the world. But suppose I have 
 been a public blasphemer — have been seen reeling in 
 the streets of Northfield a drunkard — it is known by all 
 the people here — I ought to make my confession so that 
 
A CONVENTION TALK. 49 
 
 the whole town will hear it. and the chances are they 
 will receive my testimony. 
 
 PERSONS NOT CONVICTED. 
 
 Now, let me speak about another class — those that 
 have not been convicted of sin. When we preach the 
 Word it falls upon all kinds of ground; and we must 
 preach right along, no matter what the soil is. Some 
 men cultivate rich soil, but some of us have to do what 
 we can in stony ground among these old hills of New 
 England. We must not sit in judgment upon men that 
 we think are hard to impress, and say: "These men are 
 not worth offering the Gospel to." Our business is to 
 offer the Gospel to every one. We are to sow beside all 
 waters. But in dealing with these men in the inquiry- 
 room, it is a great mistake to give certain passages to a 
 man who has not been convicted of sin that were never 
 meant for him. The law is what the man wants. It is 
 no use talking peaceful words when he doesn't know 
 there is war; no use offering medicine when he doesn't 
 know he is sick. The Pharisee on the housetop was 
 just as far from God as he could possibly go. The pub- 
 lican was just at the threshold of the kingdom before 
 he went in. Look at those two men. They are types 
 of two classes in the inquiry-meeting. Give one the 
 law, nothing but the law. Don't give ^comforting pas- 
 sages. I wouldn't say: " Come unto Me, all ye that labor 
 and are heavy laden." He isn't heavy laden. He has 
 got his head so high that he is likely to tumble over 
 backward — full of his own conceit, his own righteous- 
 ness. That man needs the law. Give him Galatians iii.; 
 and Romans iii. 10: "There is none righteous; no, not 
 one"; and the 53d chapter of Isaiah: "We all, like sheep, 
 have gone astray." Read to him descriptions of his own 
 heart, and let him see himself as God sees him. But re- 
 
50 . D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 member that it is the work of the Holy Ghost to pro- 
 duce conviction. I am simply to present the truth, and 
 let the Holy Spirit do His work. It isn't my fault, if I 
 have preached faithfully, and the man isn't convicted. 
 "When He comes, He will convince the world of sin." 
 I don't believe there is any power on earth that can con- 
 vince a man of sin without the Holy Ghost. 
 
 INVITATIONS TO THE PENITENT. 
 
 There is another class of inquirers, and that is, those 
 who are deeply convicted of sin. For those I would 
 take, first, the nth chapter of Matthew: "Come unto 
 Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will 
 give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of 
 Me; for I am meek and lowly of heart; and ye shall find 
 rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My bur- 
 den is light." This comes with great tenderness and 
 great power when a man is awakened. Then use texts 
 that say: " Come." The word " come " occurs 1,900 times 
 in the Bible. It begins away back in Genesis, and 
 runs right through to the last chapter of Revelation — 
 " Come," " Come." In talking to an unconverted per- 
 son, make it as plain as you can. Sometimes I talk 
 this way: " ' Come ' is the first thing a mother says to her 
 little child. When she wants it to learn to walk, she 
 places it beside a chair, goes off a little distance, and 
 then says 'Come,' and the little thing lets go of the chair 
 and runs to its mother. That is what coming means. 
 If you can't come as a saint, come as a sinner. If you 
 feel that your heart is so hard you are not fit to come, 
 God wants you just as you are. He can soften your 
 hard heart. If you are weary and heavy laden, come, 
 and the Lord will bless you." I remember a man in the 
 north of England, a few years ago, the last time Mr. 
 Sankey and I were there. He fell into the hands of a 
 
A CONVENTION TALK. 51 
 
 good worker — a Scotchman. He said he felt he was 
 bound by a chain so that he could not go to God. U Eh, 
 mon," said the Scotchman, "why don't you go, chain 
 and all?" "Why, I never thought of that !" And he 
 went. One text you can make great use of is John v. 
 24: "Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth 
 on Him that sent Me hath everlasting life," etc. An- 
 other is John vi. 37: "Him that cometh unto Me I will 
 in no wise cast out." I remember laboring with a 
 man in Chicago. It was past midnight before he got 
 down on his knees, but down he went, and was con- 
 verted. I said: " Now, don't think you are going to get 
 out of the devil's territory without trouble. The devil 
 will come to you to-morrow morning and say it was all 
 feeling; that you only imagined you were accepted by 
 God. When he does, don't fight him with your own 
 opinions, but fight him with John vi. 37. Let that be 
 the ' sword of the Spirit.' " The struggle came sooner 
 than I thought. When he was on his way home the 
 devil assailed him. He used this text, but the devil put 
 this thought into his mind: "How do you know Christ 
 ever said that, after all ? Perhaps the translators made 
 a mistake." Into darkness he went again. He was in 
 trouble till about two in the morning. At last he came 
 to this conclusion. Said he: "I will believe it anyway; 
 and when I get to heaven, if it isn't true, 1 will just tell 
 the Lord 7" didn't make the mistake — the translators 
 made it." So he trusted in Him who His own self bare 
 our sins in His own body on the tree. 
 
 Q. Is it right for a man to mourn over his non-success 
 in preaching if he fails ? A. If a man doesn't have any 
 fruit in his ministry, he may well mourn. " Herein is 
 My Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit." But 
 then, if a man delivers the message faithfully, and 
 doesn't see any fruit after one sermon, he isn't to lash 
 
$2 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 himself because he hasn't got power. If I am right with 
 God there will be fruit to my labor. 
 
 Q. Is the aid of the Spirit ever arbitrarily withheld ? 
 A. What do you mean ? 
 
 Q. Cannot a man preach faithfully for a long time and 
 still see no fruit ? A. Ah ! but don't you know there 
 is sometimes something that is obstructing the work of 
 the Spirit — like a row in a church choir? The Holy 
 Spirit can't do anything in a church that has got a row 
 on hand. The difficulty with a great many churches in 
 this land is that there are so many old stumps in the 
 way of the plough. There are family feuds — church- 
 members who won't speak to one another. How is the 
 Spirit of God going to work there ? The minister blames 
 himself ; but he needn't, except for one thing : He ought 
 to get up and get out. I wouldn't waste my life preach- 
 ing to a church like that. I'd rather go into a city and 
 organize a church of my own — get men off the streets. 
 
 Q. A preacher may give a sermon and see no results 
 at the time ; but afterwards he may go into families and 
 find conviction there — isn't that true ? A f Yes ; there 
 has got to be personal work. Sometimes I have preached 
 and asked people to raise their hands. Not a soul. Then 
 1 have gone down into the audience and said to some 
 man, " Don't you want to become a Christian ? " — and 
 found a great many ready to be talked to. Sometimes 
 a splendid work can be done among people who don't 
 like to express themselves before the whole audience. 
 You can't always tell. But there are times when you 
 feel as if you were preaching against a brick wall. 
 There doesn't seem to be any power in your words. 
 They come back in your face. The people are not in a 
 condition to receive the Word. 
 
 Q. What would you do with persons who go into the 
 inquiry-room to work, and yet their record is not clean ? 
 
A CONVENTION TALK. 53 
 
 A. I wouldn't have them there. Some of the inquirers 
 would be likely to say, " Physician, heal thyself " — " Take 
 the beam out of your own eye before you try to take out 
 mine." I haven't a doubt in my mind, if we are to have 
 earnest, faithful, honest dealing with souls, we must keep 
 these men away from inquirers. I know it is a difficult 
 thing to do, but I've done it many a time. If there is a 
 man who isn't right, just go to him and say that he must 
 straighten out a few things in his life before you want 
 him there. If he gets angry, that settles it — shows he is 
 not right. But if it breaks him down, then it is differ- 
 ent. " Faithful are the wounds of a friend." The best 
 friend will tell you your faults. If I haven't got grace 
 enough to be told my faults, the less I say about the 
 Lord Jesus Christ the better. Christ was always telling 
 His disciples their faults. 
 
 Q. How far would you carry your instruction from 
 the Bible, aiming at conviction ? A. A man ought to be 
 able to handle his Bible, and give as many passages as 
 he thinks are needed. 
 
 Q. How are you going to know where to turn the 
 scale ? A. If a man acknowledges himself lost, then I 
 go on another line. But there must be a breaking 
 first. We must give enough of the law to take away all 
 self-righteousness. I pity the man who preaches only 
 one side of the truth — always the Gospel and never the 
 law. 
 
 Q. Is it right to tell an inquirer just to believe on the 
 Lord Jesus Christ and be saved, and leave out convic- 
 tion ? A. I don't tell a man to feel that he is a sinner 
 before God. We don't feel we are sinners really till 
 afterward. The question is: "Do you believe you are 
 lost — alienated from God — and that your only hope is in 
 Another ? " 
 
 Q. Is a man convicted of the sin of drunkenness, for 
 
54 D- L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 example, by any other means than the Holy Ghost ? A. 
 No. He may know he is a great sinner, but yet the 
 Holy Ghost must give him a conviction of the exceeding 
 sinfulness of sin. 
 
 Q. Is it possible for a man who has been convinced 
 by the Holy Spirit to keep some sins ? A. If he doesn't 
 know they are sins, yes. But the next thing will be, the 
 Holy Spirit will show him that they are sins. His con- 
 science will become quickened, and he will get light. I 
 did a great many things twenty years ago that I wouldn't 
 do now any more than I would stick my hand into the 
 fire. I got light. Most of my repentance came after I 
 knew Christ. I never saw sin in its exceeding sinfulness 
 till I knew Christ. The first thing the Spirit of God 
 does is to let a man know that he is a sinner. If the 
 Spirit has taken up His abode in his heart, he sees what 
 an awful thing sin is — loathes it, hates it. Then he is 
 ready to preach the Gospel of Christ who came to put 
 away sin. 
 
 Q. What would you say is the greatest sin ? A. Un- 
 belief. That is the mother of all sin. There wouldn't 
 be a drunkard, or a harlot, or a thief, or a murderer, if it 
 wasn't for unbelief. It brought forth all the misery in 
 this world. Only the Holy Ghost can convince a man of 
 that sin. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. 
 
 Mr. Moody on Individual Cases — Peculiar Difficulties — The Divinity 
 of Christ — About Holding On and Holding Out — The Weak Ones 
 — Are Feelings Safe Guides? — Confessing and Forgiving — Ques- 
 tions and Answers. 
 
 I want to take up some other classes. Here in New 
 England we meet a great many who are troubled about 
 the divinity of Jesus Christ. Very often they want to 
 discuss the question, but don't discuss it with them. I 
 have never known any good to come that way ; gener- 
 ally you are farther apart at the end than at the begin- 
 ning. I would just give them the Bible. If that and the 
 Holy Spirit won't help them, I don't know what will. 
 There are several passages specially adapted for this 
 purpose. Take i Cor. xv. 47 : " The first man is of 
 the earth, earthy ; the second man is the Lord from 
 heaven." That is Paul's testimony. Then 1 John v. 20 : 
 "We know that the Son of God is come," etc. Some- 
 times they ask, "Where did Christ ever say He was 
 God ? " Give them John xvii. 3 : " This is life eternal, 
 that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus 
 Christ, whom Thou hast sent " Then see His testimony 
 before the high-priest, in Mark xiv. 61, 62: "Art thou 
 the Christ, the Son of the Blessed ? And Jesus said, I 
 am," etc. It was this testimony which cost Jesus Christ 
 His life, for the council cast a verdict of guilty of blas- 
 phemy, and by Jewish law the penalty of that crime is 
 
 (55) 
 
56 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 death. He made out that He was more than man. If 
 He was not what He claimed to be— if He was a mere 
 man — then it is idolatry to worship Him. It is breaking 
 the first commandment, ." Thou shalt have no other gods 
 before me." I ask these people, " Where shall we put 
 Him ? You say He was a good man, but how can that 
 be, if He tried to deceive us ? If He was not what He 
 claimed to be, He must have been an impostor, How 
 could He be a good man and let us make Him an idol ? 
 Moses and Elijah never did that, and was He less good 
 than they ? If He was a bad man, then it is very strange 
 that He should have forfeited all for a malefactor's 
 cross and a pauper's grave." He declared that He was 
 equal with God, in John v. 21, 22, and John xvi. 15. How 
 could a good man, a mere man, say that ? He declared 
 that He was omnipresent in Matt, xviii. 20 and xxviii. 20. 
 Moses and Elijah couldn't have said that. Look at John 
 xiv. 6 : "I am the way, the truth, and the life : no man 
 cometh to the Father but by Me." No mere man ever 
 said that. Here is another verse, 1 Matt, xxviii. t8 : 
 " Jesus came and spake unto them saying, All power is 
 given unto Me in heaven and in earth." What man ever 
 said that ? Then in Mark ii. 7, after He had forgiven 
 the man sick of the palsy, the question was raised, " Why 
 doth this man speak blasphemies ? Who can forgive 
 sins but God only ? " No man ever claimed such power 
 till Christ came. Then, again, He allowed men to wor- 
 ship Him. No good man, no angel, ever allowed himself 
 to be worshipped. If any man had done so, he could not 
 have been a good man. In John ix. 38, the blind man 
 who had received his sight, said ; "Lord, I believe," and 
 worshipped the Saviour. . Christ didn't rebuke him. See 
 Revelation xxii. 8 : " And I John saw these things, and 
 heard them. And when I had seen and heard, I fell down 
 to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me 
 
MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. $7 
 
 these things. Then saith he unto me, See thou do it 
 not, for I am thy fellow-servant." In Acts xiv., when 
 Paul and Barnabas healed the cripple at Lystra, the peo- 
 ple came bringing sacrifices, and wanted to worship them 
 as gods, but they wouldn't allow it. Yet Christ allowed 
 men to worship Him. In Matt. xiv. 33 we read : "Then 
 they that were in the ship came and worshipped Him, 
 saying, Of a truth Thou art the Son of God." He didn't 
 rebuke them. In Matt. viii. 2 : " Behold, there came a 
 leper and worshipped Him, saying, Lord, if Thou wilt, 
 Thou canst make me clean." Again, in the 15th chapter, 
 in the story of the woman of Canaan (v. 25): "Then 
 came she, and worshipped Him, saying, Lord, help me ! " 
 There are many other passages, but I give you these to 
 show that Christ was worshipped, and that He never re- 
 buked it. He claimed to be God-man. He claimed that 
 He was before the morning stars sang together. " Before 
 Abraham was, I am." " He is the only-begotten Son 
 which is in the bosom of the Father." And how men can 
 read this book and not see this, is a mystery to me. I don't 
 know anything that will do these people more good than 
 just to give them the Word of God. If you have any 
 one troubled about the divinity of Christ, don't com- 
 plain and scold and condemn him, and then leave him. 
 There are some people who, if they saw one of this 
 class in our inquiry-rooms, would say : " Why ! this man 
 doesn't believe Jesus Christ is divine. He is a heathen. 
 We won't talk to him at all." Now, that isn't the way. 
 Christ was constantly dealing with men that had the 
 same views. How tenderly and gently He dealt with 
 them. And how are we going to deal with them but by 
 showing Christ as the God-man ? Sometimes the part of 
 His nature we see is human, sometimes not. When He 
 commanded the waters to be still, and the winds to cease, 
 He spoke as God. When He cried, "My God, my 
 3* 
 
58 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 God, why hast Thou forsaken Me ? " He spoke as man. 
 But I must pass on. 
 
 "holding out." 
 
 A great many are afraid they won't hold out. It is a 
 good thing to press upon these people that they haven't 
 got to hold on to Christ ; it is Christ holding on to them. 
 See John x. 28: "I give unto them eternal life; and they 
 shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out 
 of My hand." Then you can use Hebrews vi. 18; Isaiah 
 xli. 10-13; 2 Cor. i. 10; the 121st Psalm — "Hethatkeep- 
 eth thee will not slumber "; 2 Tim. i. 12 — " I know whom 
 
 1 have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep 
 that which I have committed unto Him against that day "; 
 
 2 Tim. iv. 18 — "The Lord shall deliver me from every 
 evil work, and will preserve me unto His heavenly king- 
 dom." What is it that protects the crown of Victoria? 
 It is the army. The army keeps the crown perfectly 
 safe. I remember in London holding meetings in the 
 East-End, and as we were going along the streets one 
 night, we met some soldiers marching. I said: "Where 
 are those soldiers going?" "They are going to the 
 Bank of England." It was the law of the land that just 
 as soon as the sun went down, a certain number of sol- 
 diers went to the Bank of England and stayed there till 
 daybreak. That made the bank perfectly safe. There 
 was no chance for thieves to get in there. So, if our life 
 is hid in Christ, how are the powers of darkness going 
 to get at it ? Oh, the security of the believer in Christ, 
 if we only trust Him — that is all we want. What we 
 want is to believe He is able to keep. What we want 
 is just to trust Him. In 2 Cor. i. 10, we find three " de- 
 livers " — " Who delivered us from so great a death, and 
 doth deliver : in whom we trust, that He will yet deliver us ." 
 A great many people are troubled about the future. God 
 
MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. 59 
 
 will take care of the future. What they want is to trust 
 Him to-day. 
 
 THOSE WHO FEEL WEAK. 
 
 Another class of people say they haven't got strength. 
 Well; it is a good thing they haven't. The weaker we 
 are the better. What is faith ? " Our weakness leaning 
 on God's strength." It is a good thing for one to wake 
 up to his own weakness. " I am as weak as water," says 
 some one. Then God can hold you. That is the way 
 God's grace is magnified. I remember when we were in 
 New York- -in the Hippodrome — there was a poor mis- 
 erable man in the inquiry-meetings; and a good Chris- 
 tian lady was toiling and working with that poor fellow. 
 After she had explained to him the way, the man went 
 out into the great city. In those days we had scrip for 
 small currency, and as this man put his hand into his 
 pocket he found ten cents. He hadn't been able to carry 
 so much money in his pocket for many years. He 
 couldn't pass a saloon if he had any money — some in- 
 sane power would seize him and he would spend every 
 cent for whiskey. As he took out this bit of paper he 
 just prayed that the Lord would enable him to hold 
 on to that ten cents for twenty-four hours; then he would 
 have no more doubt that God was .able to keep him. 
 And he did hold on to the money. Next day he came 
 into the meeting, told the story, and held up the scrip as 
 a token that God was keeping him. Every time I go to 
 New York, I ask, " How is the ten-cent man getting on ?" 
 and Mr. McBurney always tells me he is getting on first- 
 rate. If you feel you haven't any strength, remember 
 the weaker you- are the better. What is it that holds 
 that little vine all the way up, seventy or a hundred feet 
 above the ground ? It can't stand alone. It is the great 
 oak it is clinging to that holds it up. If we just lay hold 
 
60 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 of the Cross it will hold us. Any man that belongs to a 
 strong government can stand, can't he ? Our ambassa- 
 dors can stand in foreign courts with a great government 
 back of them. I have a great admiration for the Irish- 
 man who said it didn't matter how weak he was as long 
 as he had a rock to stand on. If you make the Cross 
 your foundation you are going to stand. 
 
 FEELINGS. 
 
 Then there is another class that are in great trouble 
 about their feelings. They are afraid they don't feel 
 right, or don't feel enough. So they get into doubt, and 
 the devil will keep them on that plank for a few weeks, 
 and then let them down into the pit again. I want to say 
 there isn't a word about feeling in the Scriptures in ref- 
 erence to salvation. It doesn't say, "He that feeleth." 
 It is "he that believeth." Not one word about feeling. 
 I do a great many things that I don't feel like doing. 
 Obedience means marching right on whether we feel 
 like it or not. Many times we go against our feelings. 
 Faith is one thing; feeling is another. What was it that 
 made the slaves free ? Was it their feelings ? Suppose 
 they had tried it — just imagined they were free and acted 
 on that feeling. They would very soon have heard the 
 crack of the slave-driver's whip. No; it was Abraham 
 Lincoln's proclamation. Now, the proclamation of the 
 Gospel is : " He that believeth .... hath everlasting 
 life." I remember some years ago — oh, how I used to 
 pray for feeling ! I thought faith was feeling, and that 
 some strange kind of feeling would come stealing over me. 
 But it wasn't that at all. Then I found in Romans x. 17, 
 this text — and how it came upon me like a flash of light — 
 " Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of 
 God." Sometimes we go right against our feelings. I 
 remember once when I went to Cleveland — I had been 
 
MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. 6l 
 
 eighteen years in Chicago, and when I got to Cleveland 
 I found Lake Erie was on the west side of the city. I 
 was completely turned around. The sun rose in the 
 West and set in the East all the time I was there. If I 
 had gone according to my feelings, I would have gone 
 right into Lake Erie and been drowned for it. But I 
 didn't go according to my feelings; I went according to 
 knowledge. Knowledge is better than feelings. One 
 time I went across the corner of this county, and I was 
 driving along some roads where I had never been before. 
 When I had got, as I thought, within about five miles of 
 Conway, I began to think: "Now, you are going accord- 
 ing to your feelings. Hadn't you better have a little 
 knowledge about this thing ? " So I reined up to the first 
 house and called: " Hello, there ! " The man came out; 
 and when I asked him about the road I found that in- 
 stead of going to Conway, I was going right away from 
 it. First I thought the man was wrong. Then I thought: 
 " This man has lived here for years. He knows the way 
 better than I do." So I turned around and drove my 
 horse right against my feelings. Don't mind your feel- 
 ings. Let feelings take care of themselves. What you 
 want is to obey. When people begin talking about their 
 feelings, bring them right to Scripture. 
 
 Q. Have we not feeling in these two passages: "With 
 the heart man believeth unto righteousness "; and Philip 
 to the eunuch — " If thou believest with all thine heart, 
 thou mayest." A. That isn't feeling, is it ? You may 
 believe with all the heart without feeling. Suppose I 
 send my boy for a pail of water. He may not feel like 
 it, but he goes whether he feels like it or not. He obeys. 
 
 Q. Has the heart anything to do with feeling? A. 
 A man may have feeling or may not. What God wants 
 is strict obedience. I can't always feel just as I want 
 to. If I could I wouldn't have the toothache, wouldn't 
 
62 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 have a headache, wouldn't have a pain in my body. I 
 can't control my .feelings. The devil can play upon 
 them as on a harp with a thousand strings. But there 
 is one thing I can do. By the grace of God I can obey. 
 A great many men are waiting for feeling, but feeling 
 never saves, and the most unsatisfactory Christians are 
 those who are governed altogether by their sentiments. 
 
 Q. Doesn't it say, we are to believe with the whole 
 heart ? A. I think the whole heart means the whole 
 man — hands, feet, mind and everything. We are not to 
 wait for feeling. I heard of a man who was lying under 
 a tree on a very cold day, and some one asked him what 
 he was doing there. Says he: "I am waiting till I feel 
 warm enough to get up, and then I will cut down this 
 tree." If he had got right up and gone on cutting, he 
 would soon have been warm enough. In every case 
 where Christ healed the infirm, it was act first and get 
 feeling afterward. He said to the man with the withered 
 arm, " Stretch forth thine hand." The man didn't stop 
 to find out whether he was believing with all his heart 
 or half his heart. He just stretched out his arm, and 
 the Lord healed him right there. He said to Zaccheus, 
 " Come down." Zaccheus didn't say, " I don't feel right, 
 Lord." The .Lord had said, "Come down." That 
 brought him. What God wants is obedience. What 
 men are to do is to surrender their will — do what God 
 tells them, and let feelings take care of themselves. 
 
 Q. Where does repentance come in ? A. What is repent- 
 ance? Turning around. A great many people are all 
 the time analyzing their feelings. It is a great deal bet- 
 ter just to look at the Master, and obey Him. Feeling 
 comes — repentance comes — after we have received 
 Christ. A soldier once said that according to his idea 
 repentance was : " Halt ! Attention ! Right about face ! 
 March ! " That is about the best definition of repent- 
 
MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. 63 
 
 ance. " Attention ! "—listen to God. " Turn ! "— " why- 
 will ye die ? " If I am not going toward God, but 
 going the opposite way, the quicker I turn about the 
 better. Conviction is not repentance. A man may go 
 right straight on and know he is wrong. 
 
 Q. Which is the best to rest upon for your salvation, 
 feelings or the Word of God? A. The Word of God. 
 Because the devil can move my feelings at his will. 
 He can make me feel different twenty times a day. 
 
 Q. In repentance isn't sorrow involved ? A. A man 
 may be very sorry and not repent. There are a great 
 many men in Auburn Prison who are sorry enough that 
 what they have done has brought them there ; but if 
 they got out, they would do the same thing right over 
 again. 
 
 Q. What about the text, "Godly sorrow leadeth to 
 repentance " ? That is for Christians. How can a man 
 have godly sorrow before there is anything godly in 
 him ? With me — grief on account of sin didn't come 
 till I knew Christ. Then I had sorrow for sin. When 
 you tell a man that he has got to feel sorry for sin, you 
 are putting something between that man and God. 
 The cry is, " Turn ye, turn ye ! " I have seen men in 
 the inquiry -room crying because they were not anxious 
 enough. Did you ever hear of such a thing ! The 
 devil tells them they must be sorry before they can 
 come to God. My commission is to command all men' 
 everywhere to repent. If a man is willing to let Christ 
 reign in his heart, that is all God wants. Let that man 
 know Jesus Christ, and the sorrow will come. Get men 
 to Christ, and repentance will take care of itself. In Scot- 
 land they used to ask such questions as these when per- 
 sons applied to join the Church : " Have you repented 
 enough ? Have you felt your sins enough ? Do you 
 feel as worthless as that toad ? If you don't you can't 
 
64 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 come." That was put into a book and used in Scot- 
 land, where they hedged the Lord's table around and 
 thought people couldn't join the Church till they were 
 about so old. I believe Heaven is the natural right of 
 every soul in this community. They may have Christ 
 this very hour if they will. We want to hold Jesus 
 Christ up, and nothing else. 
 
 believers' sins. 
 
 Now, there is another class who are afraid that they 
 will sin again. But who doesn't sin again ? It isn't a 
 sign that a man isn't converted if he falls into sin. On 
 the contrary, he is more likely to realize his sinful na- 
 ture after conversion than before. I am ashamed to tell 
 it, but before I was converted, I got so I could swear and 
 it didn't trouble my conscience. But after I knew Jesus 
 Christ, when one time I got an oath out of my mouth, 
 it cost me more sorrow and agony than I can describe. 
 For months I never got over it. I have never done it 
 since. Before, when I swore, I never thought about it. 
 Now, how could I utter such words ? My Saviour has 
 done so much for me that I don't want to grieve His 
 heart. Some young converts say, " I am afraid I have 
 sinned again, and I can never be a Christian." Let 
 such as these turn to the ist Epistle of John, 2d 
 chapter : " My little children, these things write I unto 
 -you that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have 
 an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the right- 
 eous." I don't want to make light of sin, but it is to 
 me a comforting thought that my Master has made 
 provision for my sin. This was written in John's old 
 age, when he knew well enough by his own experience 
 whether the Christian sins or not. So he tells us that 
 Christ is gone up on high as a priest. He was here as 
 a prophet, now He is a priest. His office is to intercede 
 
MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. 65 
 
 for our sins. When I go wrong it is useless to try to 
 justify myself ; but T can go into my closet and tell it 
 all out, and it is all settled — all put away. See 1 John 
 i. 10 : " If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him 
 a liar." We have all sinned. When you tell an uncon- 
 verted person who wants to become a Christian that he 
 is to live without sin, you discourage him. Of course 
 that is his aim — that is his object. But if he does fall 
 into sin afterward, he is likely to say, " Oh, I am not 
 converted at all." How the devil tormented me, and 
 told me I was not converted because I did things I 
 loathed and hated. I didn't understand that I had a 
 battle on hand — that I had the old Adam still in my na- 
 ture. "The flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the 
 spirit against the flesh." I thought when I became a 
 Christian I had nothing to do but just to lay my oars in 
 the bottom of the boat and float along. But I soon 
 found that I would have to go against the current. And 
 then it was such a sweet thought that I had got One to 
 represent me, so that when I sinned I could go to Him 
 as my Advocate; and, thank God, He never lost a case 
 yet. Just commit the whole case to Him. He will take 
 good care of it. 
 
 CONFESSING AND FORGIVING. 
 
 There is another point: Very often a young convert 
 will go off with a light heart, full of ecstasy and joy, 
 and then inside of twenty-four hours you will find him 
 in great darkness. He thinks he hasn't been converted. 
 If you don't know how to use the Bible, and know the 
 workings of that man's heart, he will remain in dark- 
 ness. Now I have found that there are two reason s-^-it 
 is always one of two reasons that has brought him into 
 bondage. One is that he is ashamed to go home and 
 confess Christ, and the other is that there is some one 
 
66 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 he cannot forgive. I have never seen it to fail in my 
 life. You can use Rom. x. 9-1 1 : "If thou shalt confess 
 with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in 
 thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, 
 thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth 
 unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is 
 made unto salvation. For the Scripture saith, Whoso- 
 ever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed." Now, 
 if a man is ashamed, don't you see darkness comes; 
 and he will never get into the light till he is ready 
 to confess Jesus Christ. Then, in the Sermon on the 
 Mount our Saviour teaches the great doctrine of for- 
 giveness. If the Holy Spirit reveals some one who 
 has got aught against me, or I have got aught against 
 him, and I am not ready to forgive, of course dark- 
 ness will fall. It will help these young converts a great 
 deal to show them the 18th chapter of Matthew on the 
 question of forgiveness; and the 10th of Romans on 
 being willing to confess Christ. 
 
 UNBELIEF. 
 
 I want to say a word right here about unbelief. Some 
 people tell me that it is a hard thing when I say that 
 unbelief is the greatest sin — greater than blasphem)', 
 drunkenness, and the like. But just turn to 1 John v. 9, 
 10: "If we receive the witness of men, the witness of 
 God is greater: for this is the witness of God, which 
 He hath testified of His Son. . . . He that believeth not 
 God hath made Him a liar, because he believeth not the 
 record that God gave of His Son. . . . He that hath the 
 Son hath life, and He that hath not the Son of God 
 hath not the life." You can't offer a man a greater in- 
 sult than to accuse him of telling a wilful lie. Many a 
 man has been knocked down because he called another 
 man a liar. That is the sin of unbelief ; giving God the 
 lie — calling Him a liar. 
 
MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. 67 
 
 "I CANT BELIEVE. 
 
 There is another class. Some persons say, " I can't 
 believe." I like to press them on this point. I was once 
 talking with a man, and he said, " I can't believe." Said 
 I, "Who?" " But I can't believe." "Who?" "You don't 
 understand my case. I can't believe." " Who ?" The 
 man began to color and squirm around, and he said, 
 " Mine is a peculiar case. I can't believe." " Who ?" The 
 man became more and more embarrassed, and said he: 
 " You don't understand my case at all. I have a great 
 many intellectual difficulties. There are a great many 
 things I can't believe." I kept on asking "Who," and 
 finally the man broke down, and said* "I can't believe 
 myself." " Thank God for that ! " When a man says he 
 can't believe, the question is whether he can believe the 
 Lord, and I just press him on that one point. I challenge 
 any infidel to put his finger on any promise which God 
 has not kept. For 6,000 years the devil has been trying 
 to find that God has broken His word. What a jubilee 
 there would be in hell to-day if they found God had 
 broken His word ! Didn't He keep His word with Adam, 
 and Abraham, and Moses ? Isn't every Jew a monument 
 of God's word ? " Come, my friend," you can say; " did 
 you ever know Him to break His word ? " Press the 
 unbeliever on that point. It is so easy. A man said to 
 me once: "I think the doctrine you preach is the most 
 unreasonable I ever heard." " What part ? " " Why, you 
 teach that pernicious doctrine, that a man is saved by 
 simply believing." "Yes," says I; "thank God I do. It 
 is Scripture, and I try to preach Scripture." " But," says 
 the man, " it is against reason." " I can't help that. God 
 is above reason." Says the man: "I don't see how any 
 rational man can stand up before an audience and say 
 they are saved by simply believing, when a man's life is 
 
68 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 not affected by what he believes." " Is that your diffi- 
 culty ? " I said. " I can show you in three minutes that 
 you are affected by what you believe. If some one came 
 and shouted that this building was on fire, and you and 
 I believed it, we would get up and get out pretty quick, 
 wouldn't we?" "Yes." " Then I suppose you can't deny 
 that you are affected by what you believe ?" If a man 
 believes this Book, it will change his life quicker than 
 anything else. 
 
 ^Sometimes a person will say: "You can't make me 
 believe a man can be saved all at once." Well; as I 
 read the Bible, I don't see how a man can be saved in 
 any other way. If you take a gift, there must be a min- 
 ute when you haven't taken the gift and another minute 
 when you have. There must be a minute when you take 
 it. In passing from one territory to another, there 
 must be a minute when you cross the line. Take the 
 cases of the men converted under Christ ; weren't they 
 instantaneous ? M Ah," you say, " but that is when Christ 
 was on earth." Then come to the days of the Apostles. 
 When Peter preached at Pentecost there were 3,000 con- 
 verted in one day. Then, again, at Caesarea, when Peter 
 preached to the Centurion and his family and friends, 
 they were all baptized that very day. First came in the 
 Jews, then the Gentiles; and as soon as the door was 
 opened to the Gentiles they came in with a rush. You 
 just want to take Scripture, and when one doesn't be- 
 lieve that sinners can be converted all at once, the best 
 thing is to go right to these instances of immediate con- 
 version recorded in the Bible. You will find plenty of 
 them. 
 
 Q. Wasn't Zaccheus converted instantly ? A. Yes. 
 As soon as he heard the word of Jesus he came down 
 
MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. 69 
 
 from the tree. I don't know just the moment of his con- 
 version. I suppose it must have been somewhere be- 
 tween the branches and the ground. It was very quick, 
 I know. 
 
 There isn't any subject I am more interested in than 
 this personal dealing with individuals. Just preach 
 Christ, and the Spirit of God will bear witness. When 
 you are talking with an inquirer, it is a good thing to 
 get him on his knees. But don't get him there before 
 he is ready. You may have to talk with him two hours 
 before you can get him that far along. But when you 
 think he is about ready, you can say, "Sha'n't we ask 
 God to give us light on this point ? " Sometimes a few 
 minutes in prayer have done more for a man than two 
 hours in talk. But there is great danger in trying to get 
 a man on his knees before he is that far on. When the 
 Spirit of God has led him so far that he is willing to 
 have you pray with him, he is not very far from the 
 kingdom. 
 
 Q. Would you ask a man to pray for himself ? A. I 
 think it is a good thing in dealing with inquirers to get 
 their lips open on their knees. If they don't want to 
 pray, make a prayer and get them to repeat it. Make an 
 easy prayer, or take one of the short prayers of the Bible; 
 for example, " Lord, help me ! " Tell the man: " If the 
 Lord helped that poor heathen woman, He will help you 
 if you make the same prayer. He will change your heart 
 if you make it from the heart." I don't send a man home 
 to pray. Of course he should pray at home, but I would 
 rather get his lips open in the inquiry-room. It is a good 
 thing for a man to hear his own voice in prayer. It is 
 a good thing for him to cry out, "God be merciful to 
 me a sinner ! " 
 
 Q. In your experience what has been the most fre- 
 quent turning-point of the soul ? Isn't it when the man 
 
JO D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 is on his knees ? A. It is when the man says, " I will." 
 It is the surrender of the will. The battle is fought on the 
 will. Very often the act of getting on his knees has an 
 effect on the man's will ; but generally the will is given 
 up before he gets there. There should be more preach- 
 ing on the will ! Men don't act up to the light they have 
 got. Tens of thousands know the way to the kingdom, 
 but they don't want to give up the will. 
 
 Q. Do you believe in preaching to the heart ? A. If 
 I have had any success it has been in going right to the 
 heart — not at the head. Others may thunder away at 
 the head all they want to: I would rather get a man's 
 heart right than his head. The shortest way to a man's 
 heart is the best way of preaching. 
 
 Q. What would you say to a professed convert who 
 can't forgive somebody ? A. I wouldn't give a snap of 
 my finger for his hope. It is utterly impossible for a 
 man to be a disciple of Christ if he doesn't cultivate the 
 spirit of forgiveness. 
 
 Q. Wouldn't you empty a church if you preached 
 that ? A. Yes ; and fill it up with other people. 
 
 Q. How do you explain that word ? believe " ? Isn't 
 the belief spoken of partly intellectual ? A. It is sub- 
 mission of the will. I might sayl "Will you take this 
 horse? It is worth $1,000." You might believe my 
 offer ; but it wouldn't do you any good if you didn't take 
 the horse. I might believe the proclamation of salva- 
 tion, but that alone would do me no good. I have got 
 to appropriate it. 
 
 Q. For the inquiry work how do you get trained 
 workers ? A. Go right to work to get them and train 
 them. 
 
 Q. When would you train them ? A. Whenever you 
 can. At the prayer-meeting is a good time. Turn the 
 prayer-meeting for a while right into a training-class 
 
MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. 71 
 
 By-and-by this man and that woman will catch the 
 spirit, and you will have a band of workers. It is a 
 thing to weep over that we have got thousands and 
 thousands of church-members who are good for nothing 
 towards extending the Church of God. They under- 
 stand bazaars, and fairs, and sewing-circles, and all that 
 kind of work ; but when you ask them to sit down and 
 show that man or woman the way into God's kingdom, 
 they say : " Oh, I am not able to do that. Let the deacons 
 do it, or some one else." It is all wrong. The Church 
 ought to be educated on this very point. 
 
 Q. When would you have the inquiry-meeting ? A. I 
 think there ought to be three kinds of services in all the 
 churches. One service is just to worship — to offer 
 praise, and to wait on the Lord in prayer. Another 
 service is for teaching. The great lack of this country 
 is teaching. At this kind of service there needn't be a 
 word to the unconverted, but let it be for the church 
 people. We want to get the church up on a higher 
 plane. Let there be teaching out of the Scriptures, and 
 the church will grow. Sunday morning is the best time 
 for teaching. Sunday afternoon is the best time in cities 
 for Sunday-schools. But Sunday night is the best night 
 in the whole week to preach the simple Gospel of the 
 Son of God. When you have preached that, and felt 
 the power of the unseen world, and there are souls 
 trembling in the balance, don't say, as I have heard 
 good ministers say : "If there are any in this place con- 
 cerned — at all concerned — about their souls, I will be in 
 the pastor's study on Friday night, and will be glad to 
 see them." By that time the chances are the impression 
 will be all wiped out. The devil will snatch away the 
 seed. How is it at most of our evening services ? The 
 minister preaches the Gospel with great effect , then he 
 pronounces the benediction ; the music strikes up, and 
 
72 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 the golden opportunity is lost. I tell you, we want a 
 revolution in this thing ! We are not making any in- 
 roads upon the unconverted. A great many churches in 
 this country hardly expect to gain in numbers. If they 
 hold their own they think they are doing pretty well. 
 A gentleman said not long ago : " We have had the 
 most successful year we ever had. We have paid all the 
 bills, and have several hundred dollars in the church 
 treasury." " How many conversions ? " "I don't know. 
 You mustn't ask me about that. But we have paid our 
 pastor's salary, and are out of debt. We have had a 
 very good year." That is what is called prosperity. 
 Some people have an idea that inquiry-meetings are — 
 oh, well, a sort of meetings evangelists have, a sort of 
 new-fangled notion, and all that. I don't believe a man 
 can preach the simple Gospel faithfully anywhere in this 
 country and not have inquirers inside of thirty days, 
 and there will be those added to the Church daily of 
 such as shall be saved. 
 
 But then if you are going to hold an inquiry-meeting 
 there is one way to kill it. I remember when we went 
 to Edinburgh, I wanted to start an inquiry-meeting. 
 One of my friends said : " Well, you know, Mr. Moody, 
 the Scotch people don't like inquiry-meetings. It is an 
 American idea. It doesn't take with the Scotch people. 
 We tried it, and utterly failed." I said : " I needn't tell 
 you how you tried. You said : ' If there is any one 
 that would like to engage in religious conversation, will 
 you go into the pastor's study/ You called that out be- 
 fore the whole congregation, and made people uneasy. 
 That is the way not to get any one. You couldn't have 
 done anything better calculated to kill the meeting." 
 Take this way : Put the " if " in the right place. You 
 remember the case of the father who wanted Christ to 
 cast the dumb-spirit out of his son. He said, "If thou 
 
MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. 73 
 
 canst do anything"; but the Lord answered him, "If 
 thou canst believe." Christ got the " if " straightened 
 out. There was a prominent minister in New York city 
 — a good man too — and one of his elders said to him: 
 "Why can't we have an inquiry-meeting? It seems to 
 me we might have a great many converts just now." 
 The minister said: "Well; just to please you I will try 
 one, but I don't believe any one will come to it." So 
 the next night he announced that if there were any per- 
 sons concerned about their souls, the session would be 
 in the session-room, and meet them. Why ! he might 
 as well have asked them to go before a justice of the 
 peace. Asking an awakened soul to go before the whole 
 session ! If you want to get these people to talk with 
 you, put yourself in their way, and make it easy for 
 them to come and see you. 
 
 When you give the invitation, be careful how you 
 do it. After you have preached twenty or thirty minutes 
 — and here let me say it is a good thing to stop before 
 people think it is time to close ; then they are willing to 
 stay longer, they are not worn out — after a short sermon 
 I would say : " If any one has got to go, will you please 
 rise and go, while we sing this familiar hymn." Put the 
 " if " in the right place. A few will drop out. You have 
 got nearly the whole audience there. Then I would give 
 the notice a second time — " If there is any one that has 
 got to go, will you go while we are singing this hymn, 
 so as not to disturb us in the after-meeting. There are 
 two classes we want to remain. We want the Chris- 
 tians that are willing to talk to some of these unsaved 
 ones. And then if there is any one that has got the 
 least desire to become a Christian, we want you to re- 
 main." Sing a little. Have one or two prayers — special 
 prayers for those people then and there. Pass among 
 the people, and if it is your own congregation, say : 
 4 
 
74 D - L - MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 "Brother Brown, won't you speak to this man"; and, 
 "Brother Jones, won't you speak to that man." That'll 
 wake up your church more than anything else ; and you 
 can keep it going fifty-two times a year. I know a 
 church in Chicago, where they have this kind of work 
 right along. They have inquirers every Sunday night, 
 because they look for them. I do think it is a great 
 mistake to give up the Sunday night service for any- 
 thing that comes along. I would hold that night just 
 sacred to preaching the Gospel. 
 
 Q. Suppose you have a large church; would you have 
 inquiry-meetings in the same building where you have 
 the preaching ? A. It makes very little difference. I 
 wouldn't have any cast-iron rules. I wouldn't have them 
 always rise for prayer or always come forward. I would 
 say sometimes: " Any one in this audience that would like 
 to become a Christian, will you kneel right where you are." 
 I remember once in a meeting there was a father who 
 didn't know his son was at all concerned; but when I made 
 this request the young man dropped right down by his 
 side. We don't want any cast-iron rules. That's one 
 reason I don't like Popery — when you go in anywhere 
 you know just where you are coming out. Sometimes 
 Mr. Sankey wants to know what hymn I am going 
 to give out next; and if I tell him, very likely I will 
 give out something altogether different. If you ask the 
 Spirit of God to lead you, you can't have any cast-iron 
 rules. 
 
 Q. Do you ask for an expression of anxiety ? A. Ex- 
 pression is a good thing. It involves the surrender of 
 the will. If you can get a man to walk across a church 
 before all the people and go into an inquiry-room, it 
 means a great deal. No human power can get a man to 
 do that. Only the Spirit of God can do it. Nine-tenths 
 of the men surrender their will before they get there. 
 
MORE ABOUT PERSONAL WORK. 75 
 
 That is the advantage of the Methodist altar. People 
 surrender their will before they get that far. 
 
 Q. Is it a good thing to sing in the after-meeting ? A. 
 Yes; before the personal, individual work begins, espe- 
 cially while people are going out and you are trying to 
 get anxious ones into the inquiry-room. It is a good thing 
 then to sing, because it makes the work easy. Sing some- 
 times softly, sometimes loudly. When people are going 
 out it is a good deal better to drown the noise. Other 
 times it is best to sing very, very softly, so that the words 
 will go to the heart. 
 
 Q. Would you go among the people ? A. I generally 
 go around and get the workers assigned, but you have 
 to be very quiet. 
 
 Q. Would you always have an inquiry- meeting ? No. 
 If you have not had power, don't hold this after-meet- 
 ing. Ask the Christians to remain. It is a great set- 
 back to ask people to go into an inquiry-room, and not 
 one go. It is a great discouragement. There is nothing 
 like keeping the people stirred up all the time — full of 
 courage — full of hope. Nothing succeeds like success. 
 We are more likely to have results if we expect them 
 right on the spot. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 PRAYER-MEETINGS AND OTHER TOPICS. 
 
 Mr. Moody's Question-Drawer — "Get Out of the Ruts" — Cottage 
 Meetings — Attracting Non-Church-Goers — Mothers with Infants. 
 
 Q. What is the best way to conduct the weekly prayer- 
 meeting? A. There is no trouble about getting the 
 people to attend the weekly prayer-meeting if it is made 
 interesting. It should be the best meeting of all, and 
 you can make it so. First, you want plenty of fresh air. 
 You can't do anything in a close, stuffy room. If a 
 farmer comes in after a hard day's work, and the room 
 is close, he falls asleep. The people say he wants spirit- 
 uality; what he wants is fresh air. Let the room be 
 clean, neat, cheerful, and well-lighted. Make the place 
 attractive. Don't have a cold minister behind a box to 
 lead. Sometimes a minister reads a long Scripture les- 
 son and delivers a lecture. He takes pains to say he is 
 unprepared, and you find that out for yourself before 
 he has gone very far. Break up this coldness and life- 
 lessness. Let the leader get out of the ruts and be free 
 and sociable in his manners with the people. If the 
 minister is determined to keep in a rut, invite him to 
 tea with you some evening, and have a serious talk on the 
 subject, so as to break ^up the monotony. Above all, 
 don't have any long prayers. All the prayers should be 
 brief. We don't hear of long prayers in the Bible, ex- 
 cept at the dedication of Solomon's Temple, and that 
 comes but once in centuries. No one likes to hear a 
 long prayer, and when a man is making one, very likely 
 (76) 
 
PRAYER-MEETINGS AND OTHER TOPICS. 77 
 
 the people are praying that he will stop. Long prayers 
 may have been all right in other times, but they are not 
 now. Men think quicker than they used to, and act 
 quicker. A man used to take ten foolscap pages to send 
 an order for goods to New York ; to-day he sends it by 
 telegraph, and puts it into ten words. See how short 
 are the prayers recorded in the Bible. " Lord, help 
 me ! " is one. " Lord, save, or I perish ! " is another. 
 Why; a man said that if Peter had had as long a pre- 
 amble as men put into prayers nowadays, he would have 
 been forty feet under water before he would have got as 
 far as the petition for rescue. Prayer isn't praise; it is 
 asking God -for something. You can ask God for some- 
 thing in a few words. If a man will pray fifteen minutes 
 in a prayer-meeting, he will pray all the spirituality out of 
 it. I'd rather have a man pray three times and only five 
 minutes at a time, than to have him take fifteen minutes 
 at once. When I was in charge of a work in Chicago, I 
 used to say: " I am going to take up the Good Shepherd 
 to-night," and then get the people to quote texts or 
 make remarks on that subject. If the minister leads, he 
 shouldn't exhaust the subject in his opening address, 
 and leave the people nothing to say. He had much 
 better try to draw them out. Then again, it is a good 
 thing for him to bring in fresh voices, even if he has to 
 go and hunt them up. That is the way Dr. Kittredge 
 has done in Chicago, and he has an. average attendance 
 of 800 at his prayer-meetings. I think I never met Dr. 
 Kittredge but he would say: "Where are you going to 
 be Wednesday night? Will you be here?" "Yes." 
 "Well; I just wish you would come into our prayer- 
 meeting." He is always looking out for help that way. 
 He has kept it up for fifteen years, and I wish you could 
 see his prayer-meeting. When you have men ready to 
 speak, there needn't be any long pauses. These awful 
 
?8 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 pauses will kill any meeting. The minister should put 
 in a word here and there to keep the interest going. 
 But he shouldn't take up much time. Any minister that 
 preaches twice on Sunday and then gives a long lecture 
 in the prayer-meeting will kill any church in this coun- 
 try. Put that down for a fact. It isn't the man that 
 does everything himself that accomplishes the most 
 work, but it is the man that gets others to work. 
 
 Q. How can you get those men from outside ? A. 
 Have the meeting in your mind so much that when you 
 meet any one of the kind you want, you will invite him. 
 Get one on Monday, another on Tuesday, and so on. 
 I wish we had greater variety in our prayer-meetings. 
 Make a plan, and have it all thought out before Wednes- 
 day comes. It means work. You can't get anything in 
 this world without working for it. There can be life in 
 our churches if we aim for it. 
 
 Q. Wouldn't a man feel a little restraint if he was 
 called upon publicly to speak on a certain subject ? A. 
 You needn't call upon him publicly. When you see 
 him in advance you can say : " We are going to have 
 such a subject, ' Grace,' or 'Assurance.' You have a 
 few days to look it up, and I want you to be ready to 
 speak when there is a good chance." I'd rather not call 
 a man. out. Have the meeting so perfectly free that 
 they can't help getting up. If you like, give a man a 
 whole chapter of the Bible to speak on. That is broad 
 enough, isn't it ? Anything to get men to open their 
 lips. Make it easy for them. 
 
 Q. Do you think it is best to have young people's 
 meetings ? Is there not danger of having too many 
 meetings ? A. My experience is that the more meetings 
 we have, the more interest there is. Some people say 
 that if you have one meeting you don't want another ; 
 that you oughtn't to have too many irons in the fire. 
 
PRAYER-MEETINGS AND OTHER TOPICS. 79 
 
 But one iron keeps another one hot, doesn't it ? If you 
 have a meeting for the young people on Monday night, 
 and they are fired up, they will come around to your 
 meeting on Wednesday night. What you want is to 
 develop the whole talent in your church. One person 
 has a talent to lead a meeting ; others have talents for 
 speaking and singing. If we could get all the talent 
 out that we have got in our churches, there couldn't be 
 too many meetings. I believe the time is coming when 
 in many of our churches there will be a meeting every 
 night in the week. 
 
 Q. Would you have the pastor lead the meeting all 
 the time? A. No; for if he leads all the time, the 
 moment he goes away the whole thing will collapse. 
 One man told me that his church had a wonderful 
 minister — he preached twice on Sunday, led the prayer- 
 meeting all the time, and did ever so much other work. 
 But that is a very unhealthy state of things. Every- 
 thing shouldn't depend on the minister. What you 
 want is to bring out all the talent you have got in the 
 church. 
 
 Q. How should the singing be conducted in the 
 prayer-meeting ? A. It is a very good thing to have 
 one leader, because then the people get to understand 
 his ways, and you know he will pitch the tune right. If 
 you leave it to any one, one person will pitch the tune 
 too high, or another too low. Have one leader if you 
 can. Then it is a very good thing to have such liberty 
 in the meeting that this leader will break right out and 
 sing one verse, or two verses. Have everything short 
 and right to the point. Make it easy for the people to 
 sing everything that is started. Let every one take part. 
 Then about new tunes. It helps a meeting wonderfully 
 to introduce new tunes as fast as the people will learn 
 them. Say the meeting begins at half-past seven. Give 
 
80 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 it out that the place will be open at seven o'clock, and 
 that you will spend half-an-hour in learning new pieces. 
 Sing new tunes as well as old ones. There ought to be 
 more effort made for good music in all our churches 
 and Sabbath-schools. 
 
 Q. Would you encourage young people to take part 
 in the prayer-meeting, or would you have only staid 
 people take part ? A. " Staid people ! " They are ex- 
 actly the kind we don't want. Get the young people to 
 take part, of course. That is the very way to break up 
 your stiffness. When we have a " staid " prayer-meet- 
 ing the best thing to do is to break it up. Get out of 
 the ruts. Do you know what a rut is ? It is where the 
 wheel gets so deep that you can't turn it this way or 
 that. What we want more than anything else is to get 
 out of the ruts ! 
 
 Q. Suppose there are two Scotch elders that are not 
 on good terms, so that one won't take part if the other 
 does ? A. Ask them to tea with you, and if there is any 
 difference get it out of the way. There is no better man 
 in the world than a Scotchman if he is headed right, but 
 he is very troublesome if he is headed wrong. The best 
 man you can have in your church is a Scotchman if he 
 is right ; and you can afford to spend some time to get 
 him right if he is wrong. 
 
 Q. What would you do if a man in your church didn't 
 like to hear young converts testify ? A. I should doubt 
 his Christianity. Of course if a young convert is con- 
 ceited and egotistical, and talks a great deal about him- 
 self, people don't like that. Tell him it is offensive for 
 any one to talk much about himself. But if a convert 
 has the true ring in his testimony, if he has got Heaven 
 in his soul, and some man doesn't like to hear him, the 
 man hasn't got the right spirit himself — there must be 
 something wrong. 
 
PRAYER-MEETINGS AND OTHER TOPICS. 8 1 
 
 Q. What would you do with him ? A. Make it too 
 hot for him. If a man doesn't like to hear the testimony 
 of young converts, make it so that he won't hear anything 
 else. If he can't stand it, he ain't converted. You 
 mustn't let that man control the church, or have your 
 whole work spoiled because he doesn't like to hear young 
 people. 
 
 Q. Which do you think is the best city missionary, a 
 man or a woman ? A. Give me the women every time. 
 I'll tell you why. Now, there is a good reason for 
 it. I know all about it, for I was a city missionary for 
 years. Most of the visiting has to be done in the day- 
 time, when the men are away from home. If a woman 
 goes into a house she can sit down with the wife and 
 family, and talk and pray, and when the man comes, 
 home in the evening he won't get mad and rage as he 
 might if a man had been there. A woman can go into 
 any of the people's homes anywhere, and talk with the 
 women and children. Not only that, but the women 
 have got more tact. They have got advantages that 
 men haven't got. I firmly believe that if we had to-day 
 in these great cities hundreds where we have one lady 
 missionary, we would soon break up this Nihilism, and 
 Communism, and all such things. I don't know any 
 agency so powerful as these godly women. They are 
 like angels when they go into dark cellars and garrets, 
 and just hold up Jesus Christ. I tell you, I pray the 
 Lord of the harvest that He will just raise up thousands 
 of women to do this work. When I see so many women 
 that are gay, frivolous — with nothing in the world to do 
 but to go into gay society — and God has given them 
 great talents, I think it is a great calamity, a great pity, 
 that such women do not offer themselves for the work of 
 the Master in this direction. I'd like to see women used 
 a thousand times more than they are. You hear men 
 
82 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 cursing and swearing, and if a man comes along they 
 don't stop ; but let a woman come, and see the respect 
 they will show her. 
 
 Q. Do we want strong-minded women ? A. No; God 
 uses the weak things of the world. Sometimes the 
 weakest women accomplish the most. I suppose the 
 weakest woman in her neighborhood was Mary of Beth- 
 any, and yet she has outlived all the women of that 
 age. What she did has outlived all they ever did. I 
 suppose if any of our newspaper reporters had been 
 there, and had seen Mary open that alabaster box 
 and anoint the feet of Jesus, they would have thought 
 it wasn't worth putting in the papers. They would have 
 said, "There's nothing in that." But that act has out- 
 lived all the monuments in the world. Mary loved the 
 Master, and at last her heart became so full that she 
 just broke that alabaster box and poured out the costly 
 ointment. As the Scotchman said, it was the only thing 
 she could give to Christ that He could not give away 
 again. If she had given Him the alabaster box, He 
 would have given it away; but she broke it, and poured 
 the ointment on Him as the greatest compliment she 
 could offer. We can all do something. You can have 
 it said of you: "She hath done what she could." Let 
 the women do what they can, and righteousness will 
 run through our streets like a river in a very short time. 
 I would like to see more of our women catching the 
 missionary spirit, and consecrating themselves to this 
 work. 
 
 Q. How can we get non-church-goers to attend church? 
 A. That is a big question. I would like half-an-hour to 
 talk upon it. I can only say this: Take this town. In 
 these country towns the difficulty is that people have so 
 far to go that, if they have no conveyance, they think 
 they must stay at home. A year ago, at a meeting we 
 
PRAYER-MEETINGS AND OTHER TOPICS. 83 
 
 had in the church one Sunday, a plan was suggested 
 that we get some wagons, and you will see them around 
 here now. One was called "Church Wagon No. 1," and 
 another " Church Wagon No. 2." We arranged to have 
 the farmers hitch their horses, and then we were all 
 right. There are some people at the foot of the moun- 
 tain and on the mountain-side that have got no horses, 
 and they are two miles away. So we hitch the horses, 
 and just bring sixteen non-church-goers in each of those 
 wagons. We have one wagon at this end of the town, 
 and one at the other end, over the river. In that way 
 we get the people out that haven't been in the habit of 
 going to church. It doesn't cost much — just the wagons 
 and harness. Take up a subscription in your church to 
 cover the expense. I want to say, that if a man has got 
 a heart to reach these non-church-goers, God will open 
 up the way. But you must let these people know that 
 you want them. People won't come if they think you 
 don't seem to care for them. If it gets noised around 
 that we want these people, we are going to have them. 
 We must be in earnest about it. Let these farmers that 
 have got horses go around and carry people that haven't. 
 Let them put themselves out. If they go out of their 
 way, people will say, "That means business." Then 
 there is another thing. In our cities this accursed pew 
 system has got to be changed. I call it accursed, and 
 I'll tell you why. A great many people hire a pew, 
 and then think they own it as much as they own their 
 house. If a stranger comes into the pew, they think he 
 is just as much out of place as if he had gone into their 
 house. When a church has that system, men say, " I 
 am not going in there, and feel as if I am not welcome." 
 Did you ever go into a church in some strange place, 
 and have the sexton put you into some one's pew? The 
 people that own the pew take a good look at you, as 
 
84 t>. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 much as to say that you are in somebody else's place, 
 and it gives you a very awkward feeling. I have been 
 there myself. I know just how you feel. I never go 
 into church in my life that I don't feel very awkward 
 till the services get going. I tell you this is all wrong. 
 The pews should be free. If you think you can't have 
 free pews, then let us come to a compromise — let us 
 have them free every Sunday night. Let it be known 
 that the seats are perfectly free on Sunday night; let 
 the strangers have the best seats that night; let it be 
 well advertised, and make the people welcome when 
 they come. If you do this, you will soon have all the 
 non-church-goers you can deal with. " Oh, but," says 
 some one, " that will wear the carpets." What if it does ? 
 Did you ever see a church worn out ? I would travel 
 all over the world to see a church worn out. You can 
 get the people to come if you want to. But they won't 
 come and sit in rented pews. I remember hearing a 
 story of a man that owned a pew, and didn't seem to 
 like it when a stranger took his seat there. He wrote 
 on a slip of paper: " This is my pew," and handed it to 
 the stranger, who wrote back, "What do you pay for 
 it?" The man wrote, "I pay $75"; and the stranger 
 wrote back, "It's a good pew. It's worth it." Now, the 
 idea that men have — " I hire this pew; it belongs to me" — 
 stands right in the way of all our efforts to reach non- 
 church-goers. The whole system is wrong — no doubt 
 about it. What if some crusty bachelor wants to have 
 things stay as they are — never mind him. Get the peo- 
 ple in. It's no good preaching to empty seats. If a man 
 makes up his mind that he is going to have his church 
 filled, he'll have it. A good many people are afraid of 
 doing anything out of the regular lines — of doing any- 
 thing out of order. Now, you will find perfect order in 
 a cemetery. You will find perfect order where there is 
 
PRAYER-MEETINGS AND OTHER TOPICS. 85 
 
 death. Where there is life you will find something out 
 of order. 
 
 Q. How do you start a cottage prayer-meeting ? A. 
 The way we used to do in Chicago was this. We would 
 go around from house to house till we found a woman 
 who was willing to have a meeting in her house — it 
 might be an unconverted woman. It takes a good deal 
 of moral courage for any woman to have a meeting in her 
 house, where all the people in the street know her; but 
 if you get her consent, ask the neighbors to come in — 
 a great many people who won't go to a church will go 
 to a cottage prayer-meeting. Some of the best hours I 
 have spent in my life were in the cottage meetings. If 
 I have had any success, that is where I learned to preach. 
 Get twenty or thirty mothers together with their chil- 
 dren or their babes in arms. Read a portion of Scrip- 
 ture. Get the children to sing; it will always interest a 
 mother to hear her child sing, even if it doesn't sing as 
 well as Mr. Sankey. Talk comforting words to the moth- 
 ers. I tell you what — I'd rather, a thousand times, talk 
 to these mothers than to Gospel-hardened sinners. When 
 a young mother is just beginning to feel her responsi- 
 bility, it isn't very difficult to reach her heart. Never 
 mind the babies. When we were holding meetings in 
 London, in the Circus, I remember there was a special 
 meeting appointed for the mothers, and they were told 
 to bring their babies. The meeting was just for mothers 
 and babies — that was the ticket of admission — a baby. 
 Well; I never saw so many babies in my life. If a baby 
 cries, the preacher should raise his voice a little louder 
 than the baby can cry. Encourage the mothers to bring 
 their babies. It is delightful to see a mother with a 
 baby in her arms going right into the house of God. If 
 some fidgety people don't like to hear a baby cry, let 
 them go. Others will come and fill up the church. When 
 
D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 Mr. Sankey and I were in Liverpool we saw a woman in 
 the place where the meetings were held, an hour before 
 the time, and she stayed right through the meeting. She 
 was all worn out; looked like a poor woman, and I sup- 
 pose she had carried that baby two hours. During the 
 meeting the baby got restless and began to cry. Some 
 of the people looked cross, and I saw the woman was 
 very uneasy and nervous; she didn't want to disturb the 
 meeting, and yet didn't want to go. She did her best to 
 quiet the baby, but it would cry, and at last she started 
 to go out. I said: " Let that baby cry if it wants to. I 
 can speak as loud as the baby can cry. Now, don't look 
 at that mother, but just pray that the Lord will bless 
 her. Remember, she hasn't any one to take care of that 
 baby, and perhaps she hasn't been in church for years." 
 By-and-by the baby got asleep. How she listened to the 
 preaching ! with tears coming down on her dress. At 
 the close of the sermon I asked those who had any de- 
 sire for salvation to rise, and the first one was that 
 woman. With her baby in her arms she presented her- 
 self for prayer. It touched my very soul. I asked those 
 who wanted to become Christians to go into the inquiry- 
 room while we were singing. The baby woke up and 
 began to cry again, and the mother got very nervous. 
 Then a great, manly six-footer came up and said to her: 
 "Let me take that baby while you go into the inquiry- 
 meeting." Perhaps he had never had a baby in his 
 arms in his life; but he took it, and walked up and down 
 before 8,000 people. That man was a hero. The mother 
 went into the inquiry-room, and found peace in her soul. 
 Then she took her baby and out into that dark city she 
 went. I will never forget that scene, and I don't sup- 
 pose she will ever forget it — 8,000 people praying for 
 that mother that wet night. You can reach the masses 
 by just laying yourself out for it, and God will bless you. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 mr. Moody's bible nuggets. 
 
 A Compact Presentation of Some of the Leading Truths of Scripture 
 — Symmetrical Outlines of Doctrine — Hidden Treasures Brought 
 to Light. 
 
 The following are a few of the results of Mr. Moody's 
 system of Bible-marking, as exhibited by him on various 
 occasions at the request of friends : * 
 
 SEVEN NEW THINGS. 
 
 Justification : a change of state; a new standing be- 
 fore God. 
 
 Repentance: a change of mind; a new opinion about 
 God. 
 
 Regeneration: a change of nature; a new heart from 
 God. 
 
 Conversion : a change of life; a new life from God. 
 
 Adoption: a change of family; a new relationship to- 
 wards God. 
 
 Sanctification : a change of service ; separation unto 
 God. 
 
 Glorification : a change of place; a new condition with 
 God. 
 
 * Many other (over 600) suggestive outlines of Bible-marking and 
 Bible-reading, by Mr. Moody and others, will be found in the vol- 
 ume " Notes and Suggestions for Bible-Readings," price $1.00, F. H. 
 Revell, Chicago or New York. 
 (87) 
 
88 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 WHY CHRIST BECAME MAN. 
 
 i. To bear sin— i John iii. 5-8; John i. 29. 
 
 2. To obey God's law — Heb. x. 7; Rom. v. 19. 
 
 3. To destroy death — Heb. ii. 14; John x. 10. 
 
 4. To sympathize with us — Heb. ii. 17. 
 
 5. To give us an example — 1 Peter ii. 21. 
 
 6. To reveal God to us — John xiv. 9; Col. i. 15. 
 
 7. To unite God and man — Rom. v. 10. 
 
 CHRIST GAVE HIMSELF 
 
 i. For many — Mark x. 45. 
 
 2. For the Church — Eph. v. 25. 
 
 3. For me — Gal. ii. 20. 
 
 GOD IS FAITHFUL 
 
 1. To fulfil the hope of my calling — 1 Cor. i. 9. 
 
 2. To establish the believer — 2 Thess. iii. 3. 
 
 3. To succor the tempted — 1 Cor. x. 13. 
 
 4. To fulfil all His promises — Heb. x. 23; xi. 11. 
 
 THE SINNER IS 
 
 Without God; without Christ; without hope; without 
 strength; without remedy; without faith; without ex- 
 cuse. 
 
 JESUS ONLY. 
 
 The light of heaven is the face of Jesus. 
 
 The joy of heaven is the presence of Jesus. 
 
 The melody of heaven is the name of Jesus. 
 
 The harmony of heaven is the praise of Jesus. 
 
 The theme of heaven is the work of Jesus. 
 
 The employment of heaven is the service of Jesus. 
 
 The fullness of heaven is Jesus Himself. 
 
 The duration of heaven is the eternity of Jesus. 
 
 If Christ you know, enough all else unknown ; 
 If Christ unknown, vain though all else you learn. 
 
D. L. MOODY'S BIBLE NUGGETS. 89 
 
 THE SAINT'S PLACE. 
 
 In Christ's hand — safety. 
 At His feet — learning. 
 At His side — fellowship. 
 Between His shoulders — power. 
 In His arms — rest. 
 
 WEAK THINGS MADE STRONG, IN JUDGES. 
 
 Left-handed, iii. 21 ; ox-goad, iii. 31 ; woman, iv. 4; 
 nail, iv. 21; piece of a millstone, ix. 53; pitchers and 
 trumpets, vii. 20 ; jawbone of an ass, xv. 15. 
 
 IN RUTH — BOAZ A TYPE OF CHRIST. 
 
 Lord of the harvest. Supplier of wants. Redeemer 
 of the inheritance. Man who gives rest. Near-kins- 
 man. Bridegroom. 
 
 DO THE KING'S BUSINESS 
 
 Heartily, Col. iii. 23. Diligently, Ezra vii. 23. Faith- 
 fully, 2 Chron. xxxiv. 12. Speedily, Ezra vii. 21. 
 
 ESTHER TEACHES - 
 
 The wonderful overruling providence of God 
 The love of God for His own people. 
 The power of God to overturn the devices of the 
 wicked. 
 
 THREE THINGS IN JOHN. 
 
 The Gospel of John opens with Jesus Christ in the 
 bosom of God, and closes with the sinner in the bosom 
 of Jesus Christ. 
 
 John vi. 21: "For Him hath God the Father sealed" 
 — that is, Christ. In the Mosaic ritual the lamb of the 
 sacrifice was stamped and sealed by the priest as fit for 
 sacrifice. So the Son of God was sealed. [Mr. Needham 
 
90 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 — The Jews in London seal their meat. As soon as the 
 meat is unfit for food they take the seal off. Jesus Christ 
 is sealed as the food of His people. The seal has never 
 been removed because He is a fit food for His people 
 always.] 
 
 John xix. 15: The Jews chose Barabbas, a murderer 
 and robber. They have been murdered and robbed ever 
 since. They chose Caesar as their king, and the Caesars 
 have pillaged and robbed them ever since. 
 
 THE NAME OF JESUS. 
 
 Phil. ii. 9: "Wherefore God also hath highly exalted 
 Him, and given Him a name which is above every name." 
 What the name of Jesus is: 
 
 1. It is the only source of salvation — Acts ii. 12. 
 
 2. Faith in it gives life — John xx. 31. 
 
 3. Faith in it gives remission of sins — Acts x. 43. 
 
 4. Faith in it makes a man whole — Acts iii. 6. 
 
 5. Faith in it makes us sons of God — John i. 12. 
 
 6. Faith in it gives power in prayer — John xiv. 13. 
 
 7. Faith in it gives victory over devils — Luke x. 17. 
 
 8. It is the motive power of the Christian life — 2 Tim. 
 ii. 19. 
 
 9. It is the object of this world's hatred — Acts iv. 17. 
 
 10. It is the test by which the world is condemned — ■ 
 John iii. 18. 
 
 11. It is the crowning glory of the redeemed in heaven 
 — Rev, iii. 12, 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 A CALL TO WORK. 
 
 Mr. Moody on Christian Activity— Getting People Stirred Up — The 
 Two W's : Word and Work — Beginning at Home — Nothing Small 
 — Different Ways of Doing Good. 
 
 Let me read a few verses in the second chapter of 
 Titus : 
 
 " For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all 
 men, Teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we 
 should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world : 
 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the 
 great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ : Who gave Himself for us, 
 that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself 
 a peculiar people, zealous of good works." 
 
 I want to call attention to these words : " Who 
 gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all 
 iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, 
 zealous of good works. " A great many people are stirred 
 up by hearing what other people are doing. You re- 
 member the great revival of 1858, when half-a-million 
 people were brought into the kingdom of God. That 
 was done by one town hearing what another town 
 was doing — just merely hearing reports of what God 
 was doing in other places. You know very well a great 
 many people in our churches are sound asleep. They 
 haven't got any idea that they have any mission in the 
 world — that they have any work to do for the Lord. If 
 we can do anything to get these people stirred up that 
 have been in the church a long while, and get them act- 
 (91) 
 
92 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 ively engaged in the Lord's work, that is what we 
 ought to do. It is very pleasant to sit and listen while 
 Mr. Rainsford expounds the Word of God, but that 
 won't amount to anything unless we put two things to- 
 gether: Word and Work — the two W's. You will soon 
 get spiritually gorged if it is all Word and no work. If 
 you want to be healthy Christians, there must be both 
 Word and work. If we can get people to work, how 
 rapidly they will grow. My experience is that a man or 
 woman who is engaged in the Lord's work and feeding 
 on the Bible is growing all the while. Whoever is not 
 working is sure to become stunted. The Christian life 
 means progress and growth. And I think there is no 
 better place for people to begin Christian work than 
 right at their own homes. There has been quite a mis- 
 sionary spirit kindled at Mount Hermon, but I have 
 recommended those young men to begin at home first 
 before they go out to foreign fields. The best place to 
 begin is in the home field — in your own parish. If a 
 man hasn't got a good enough record to have any effect 
 at home, he won't be of much account in the foreign 
 field. You will notice this is Christ's order. In Acts i. 
 8, He says : " Ye shall be witnesses unto Me, both in 
 Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto 
 the uttermost part of the earth." I will venture to say, 
 the hardest place for those disciples to begin to preach 
 was in their own city — Jerusalem. Then Judea was the 
 next hardest place. Then Samaria was the next hardest 
 place. The hardest place to begin is at home, in your 
 own church, your own family. But that is what we 
 want. We want to say : " My lot is cast here, and here 
 is the place I must go to work." And if every Christian 
 man and every Christian woman would sincerely pray, 
 " Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do ? " what a mighty 
 work would be accomplished ! If you have got a heart 
 
A CALL TO WORK. 93 
 
 for the work, God will qualify you. There will be no 
 trouble about your finding something to do. If each 
 one of us is doing some little thing, it isn't little in 
 the Master's sight. If we keep at it 365 days in the 
 year, there will be a good deal of work done at the end 
 of the year. The men that have been permitted to do 
 higher things are the men that began with small things. 
 If you are not willing to deal with one man about his 
 soul, and labor with that one man, you are not fit to go 
 into the pulpit and preach to others. Some of Christ's 
 greatest discourses were given to one person or two per- 
 sons. It was to Nicodemus He preached that great ser- 
 mon on regeneration. He delivered that wonderful ser- 
 mon at the well when the disciples were off to the city 
 — delivered it to one poor fallen woman. Don't wait 
 for something to turn up, but go and turn up some- 
 thing. 
 
 There are a great many different ways of doing good. 
 A lady once visited an hospital, and noticed with what 
 pleasure the patients would smell and look at the flowers 
 sent to them. Said she, *' If I had known that a bunch 
 of flowers would do so much good I would have sent 
 some from home." As soon as she got home, she sent 
 some flowers out of her garden. It was a little thing — 
 a bouquet of flowers. It was a very insignificant work 
 — very small. But if it is done in the right spirit 
 God accepts it. A cup of water given in His name is 
 accepted as given to Himself. Nothing that is done for 
 God is small. When Elijah sent his servant to see if 
 there was any sign of rain, and when the servant saw 
 the cloud no bigger than a man's hand, perhaps he 
 thought it was a very insignificant thing. But Elijah 
 knew what it meant; and he told the man to go and warn 
 Ahab that he had better make haste and get home or 
 he would get a good drenching before he got there. 
 
94 D. L- MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 Elijah knew God was in the cloud. Anything that God 
 is in isn't small. If we go to work right at home we 
 will have success. There isn't a child of God but can 
 do something if he will. Go home on fire, and see if 
 you can't get people to go to church. If you can't 
 get grown people, get the children. If you can't get 
 people to church, go to their homes. Hold meetings in 
 school-houses. Go up into these mountains, and visit 
 the families. All along in New England, and all through 
 this country — through Pennsylvania and the Middle 
 States — look at the thousands and thousands of families 
 in the outlying districts that are not in the habit of 
 hearing preaching, and as things are now there is no 
 way of reaching them. I'd like to see laymen preaching 
 to these people. I don't believe they are ever going to 
 be reached till the laity go to work. You haven't got 
 to wait till you are ordained. Christ's commission is to 
 everyone: "Go ye into all the world, and preach the 
 Gospel to every creature." If we are the branches we 
 are to bring forth fruit. Make up your mind you are 
 going to bring forth fruit. When I was in London, an 
 old woman of eighty-five came and begged to be given 
 something to do. I gave her a district, and how joyfully 
 she took it and went to work. People who would have 
 closed the door on a young man wouldn't close the door 
 on an old woman of eighty-five. If every one would do 
 as much as she did, what a difference there would be ! 
 I find a good many men as I travel over this country 
 who never know what it is to be cold — never know what 
 it is to be lukewarm. Why ? Because they are at work 
 for the Lord all the while. I heard of a man in Pitts- 
 burgh who gave away $500 a day. I thought I would 
 like to see that man. There was a line of beggars at 
 his door every morning; and he would spend from nine 
 to twelve o'clock with them every day. So I took my 
 
A CALL TO WORK. 95 
 
 place in the line. I wanted something for Mount Her- 
 mon. As I talked with him, I said : " Do you never get 
 discouraged at this kind of work ? Don't you find so 
 much ingratitude that you get disheartened ? " " Oh," 
 said he, " I haven't time to look for that." That man 
 was just doing it for the Master; and he hadn't time to 
 get discouraged. Said I : " Haven't you any doubts 
 about the wisdom of this way of doing ? " Said he : "I 
 haven't time to doubt." If you are busy about the 
 Master's work, you won't have time to grow lukewarm. 
 Perhaps you say : " If I had $500 a day to give away, 
 wouldn't I be a happy Christian." Well; you have got 
 better than that. Give yourself. Money is of very small 
 account in the sight of God. 
 
 When Mr. Sankey and I were in London, there was a 
 lady who attended our meetings, and was brought into 
 the house in her carriage, being unable to walk. At 
 first she %as very sceptical; but one day she said to her 
 servant, " Take me into the inquiry-room." After I had 
 talked with her a good while about her soul, she said : 
 " But you will go back to America, and it will be all 
 over." " Oh, no," said I, " it is going to last forever." 
 Well; I couldn't make her believe it. I don't know how 
 many times I talked with her. At last I used the fable 
 of the pendulum in the clock. The pendulum figured 
 up the thousands of times it would have to tick, and 
 got discouraged, and was going to give up. Then it 
 thought, " It is only a tick at a time," and went on. So 
 it is in the Christian life — only one step at a time. 
 That helped this lady very much. She began to see 
 that if she could trust in God for a supply of grace for 
 only one day, she could go right on in the same way 
 from day to day. As soon as she saw this, she came 
 out quite decided. But she never could get done talk- 
 ing about that pendulum. The servants called her 
 
96 d. l. moody at home. 
 
 Lady Pendulum. She got a pendulum stuck up in her 
 room to remind her of the illustration; and when I 
 went away from London she gave me a clock — I've got 
 it in my house. That lady can't go out visiting, and so 
 she just makes needlework texts for framing, and sends 
 them wherever they will do good. One I received was 
 " This is Not Your Rest." The one she sent me before that 
 was, " Zealous of Good Works." Thank God, we have 
 got all eternity to rest in. This is the place to work. I 
 pity any child of God that wants to sleep all the time 
 down here. Brothers, sisters, wake up ! We have got 
 plenty of time to rest hereafter. Well, now, that lady 
 has made four hundred of these texts, and she sends 
 them to the poor people of London. I suppose she 
 thought I belonged to that crowd. So I do. There 
 she is in her house working out these texts, and praying 
 that God will bless them. When they go out they are 
 covered with prayer. The question is not what Gabsiel 
 can do, or what we will do when we get to Heaven ; 
 the question is, What can you and I do before we get 
 there ? 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 ENDUEMENT FOR SERVICE. 
 
 Mr. Moody on the Special Gift of the Holy Spirit — Experience of the 
 Apostles — Repeated Anointing — Why we Lack Power — The Great 
 Need of Modern Christians — Are we " Filled with the Spirit," and 
 Ready to Go Anywhere ? 
 
 I suppose if I could put the question and ask those 
 who . are filled with the Spirit to respond, very few if 
 any would be heard from. And yet we read in Ephe- 
 sians v. 18 that this is a command: u Be ye filled with 
 the Spirit." God commands us to be filled with the 
 Spirit; and if we are not filled, it is because we are 
 living beneath our privileges. I think that is the great 
 trouble with Christendom to-day: we are not living up 
 on the plane where God would have us live. In the 20th 
 chapter of John's Gospel, and the 2 2d verse, are these 
 words: "And when He had said this, He breathed on 
 them, and said unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost." 
 Now, those men had already the Holy Ghost dwelling 
 in them. They would never have left their fishing- 
 smacks and followed Christ during those three years of 
 humiliation and suffering if it hadn't been for the Spirit 
 of God working in them. But almost the first thing 
 after the resurrection, when our Lord appeared to His 
 disciples and showed them His pierced hands and His 
 wounded side, He breathed upon them and said: "Re- 
 ceive ye the Holy Ghost." Yet again, after that, as we 
 see in Luke xxiv. 49, He said : " Behold, I send the 
 promise of My Father upon you: but tarry ye in the 
 
 (97) 
 
98 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from 
 on high." If those men needed to be endued with power, 
 do you think we are going to be used without it ? The 
 great trouble with many of us is, that we are working 
 for God without power. We are sons of God — no doubt 
 about that — and daughters of God. We can " read our 
 titles clear to mansions in the skies"; but we are sons 
 and daughters without power. That is the trouble. 
 
 Now look at Acts i. 8: "Ye shall receive power, after 
 that the Holy Ghost is come upon you." Notice, Christ 
 said that to the Apostles after they had been with Him 
 three years, and after He had breathed upon them and 
 said: "Receive ye the Holy Ghost." There are two 
 ways in which the Holy Spirit comes to a man. The 
 Spirit dwelling in him is one thing, and the Spirit on him 
 for power is another thing. I think that is where Chris- 
 tian people are misled. The trouble is, they are not 
 looking for the Spirit of God for service. When the dis- 
 ciples were about to begin their great work, our Lord 
 said: " Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost 
 is come upon you." How many, do you suppose, would 
 have been converted on the day of Pentecost if Peter 
 had gone and preached without this power ? Not one. 
 The disciples were commissioned to go and preach, but 
 they were to wait till they were re-commissioned and 
 endued with power by the Holy Ghost. " Ye shall re- 
 ceive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon 
 you: and ye shall be witnesses unto Me, both in Jerusa- 
 lem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the 
 uttermost part of the earth." How quickly this whole 
 world would be reached if we were just looking to God 
 for this same Apostolic power ! Turn to the second 
 chapter of Acts and see how the promise was fulfilled. 
 They tarried as they were bidden, waiting and praying 
 for the Holy Ghost, when suddenly the power came, and 
 
ENDUEMENT FOR SERVICE. 99 
 
 they were ready for work. And there was more work 
 done in one day than in all the three years while they 
 were with Christ. The Lord had said: "He that be- 
 lieveth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and 
 greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto 
 My Father." " If I go not away, the Comforter will not 
 come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto 
 you." When the power came upon the Apostles, they did 
 greater things than the Master ever did. There was a 
 time when I thought the raising of Lazarus was the 
 greatest work ever done on this earth. But I think the 
 conversion of those 3,000 Jews on the day of Pentecost 
 was more wonderful still. Those hard-hearted Jews 
 were full of hatred and unbelief; many, no doubt, were 
 the same men who murdered Christ. And yet they 
 were swept down by the mighty power of the Spirit. 
 We have got the same obstacles to contend with as the 
 Apostles had. Our Gospel that we are preaching is a 
 supernatural Gospel, and we have got to have super 
 natural power to preach it. 
 
 There is a class of people who say: "Yes; I know the 
 Spirit came on the day of Pentecost, but He came in 
 miraculous power; and we are not warranted in looking 
 for anything like that to-day." If you turn to the fourth 
 chapter of Acts you will find that this wonderful work 
 went right on after the day of Pentecost. Peter and John 
 were cast into prison, and brought before the Sanhedrim. 
 The Council didn't dare to stone them to death because 
 there were so many young converts. So they gave them 
 this order: " Now, you can preach in the Temple or 
 wherever you like, but upon one condition — don't you 
 preach any more in this man's name." The Apostles 
 went forth from the Sanhedrim to the other disciples, 
 and they had a little prayer-meeting. What was the re- 
 sult ? " The place was shaken where they were assembled 
 
100 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, 
 and they spake the word of God with boldness." In the 
 second of Acts it says that " they were all filled with the 
 Holy Ghost"; and here, in the fourth of Acts, it says 
 again, " they were all filled with the Holy Ghost." They 
 had either lost their power or had got greater capacity — 
 I don't know which. There are a great many men who 
 had power five years ago that haven't got it now. They 
 are like Samson robbed of his strength, or like fishermen 
 working with old, broken nets. Notice, again, that about 
 ten years after, Peter went out to Csesarea and told Cor- 
 nelius the words whereby he and his house were saved. 
 While he was speaking, what happened ? " The Holy 
 Ghost fell on all them that heard the word." That was 
 about ten years after the day of Pentecost, and yet they 
 received the special gift of the Holy Ghost. I firmly 
 believe that if we had this building filled with men and 
 women expecting the Pentecostal power, we would get 
 it. I believe if this building was filled with men and 
 women hungry for the Spirit of God, we would have this 
 place shaken, and there would be an influence felt not 
 only in this land, but in foreign lands. It wouldn't take 
 long to reach the whole world. Talk about twenty years. 
 It needn't take twenty years if the Church of God is 
 baptized and quickened. 
 
 Notice that those who are filled with the Holy Ghost 
 immediately begin to testify of Jesus Christ. Elisabeth, 
 when visited by the Virgin, was " filled with the Holy 
 Ghost," and spoke of the coming Lord. Zacharias also 
 was " filled with the Holy Ghost," and quoted Scripture 
 in reference to the Messiah. Stephen was " filled with 
 the Spirit," and received such unction that the men of 
 the synagogue " were not able to resist the wisdom and 
 the spirit by which he spake." He was able to stand be- 
 fore the whole Sanhedrim, and the power of God was on 
 
ENDUEMENT FOR SERVICE. IOI 
 
 him in a wonderful degree white ]\& testified of Christ. 
 When Peter was "filled with the -Spirit "'he went out to 
 preach Christ— he couldn't help & All tfrr^ugU thfe : New 
 Testament we are told that the Apostles w£re again and 
 again filled with the Spirit. And as they preached " much 
 people were added to the church." That always follows. 
 There will be conversions breaking out in all the churches 
 if we are filled with the Spirit. Let us pray that we may 
 receive power for service. Let us not be satisfied with 
 only the power by which we are " sealed unto the day 
 of redemption "; but let us pray that we may be bap- 
 tized with that power from on high by which we can do 
 great things for the Master. 
 
 It is important to know whether the work we are do- 
 ing is the work God would have us do. I remember 
 that one time when Dr. Kirk came to Chicago, his old 
 power came back upon him, and he just shook that city 
 as I had never seen it shaken. I suppose if he had 
 stayed, there would have been thousands and thousands 
 converted. The Mayor of the city and the leading men 
 all came to hear him, and they said: "If we could have 
 that kind of preaching we would be glad to hear it." 
 But he went back to his pastoral work. I believe that 
 man was meant for an evangelist ; yet he went back to 
 visit the widow and the fatherless. That was an im- 
 portant work, but others could have done it. Some men 
 are gifted one way and some another. One man has 
 got gifts as a pastor, and another has got gifts as an 
 evangelist, while another is specially qualified to stir 
 up Christians. Let every one ask, " Am I in the right 
 place? Am I where God wants me to be?" If we 
 would do that, it might break up a good many pastor- 
 ates. Are you ready — ready to cut the tie? When I 
 was in Chicago I used to take a circuit out in the coun- 
 try, and preach during the week evenings; but I think 
 
102 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 I made a great mistake in binding myself too closely to 
 my regular work-. '•■ There was time after time when 
 there would be & hundred inquirers in the country, and 
 yet I would hurry away so as to preach in my own place 
 in the city on Sunday night, and then perhaps only find 
 myself beating against the air. Let us be ready to go 
 anywhere — to go wherever the Master calls. 
 
 If you want this power for service God will give it to 
 you. Just say : " Here I am, Lord. Send me where you 
 please — only give me souls. Give me power to win souls 
 for Jesus Christ." When that is the uppermost thought 
 in our hearts He won't disappoint us. " He that spared 
 not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how 
 shall He not with Him also freely give us all things." 
 If He gave us His Son, will He withhold the Spirit? 
 " Herein is My Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit." 
 Are you toiling all night and catching nothing ? Cast 
 the net on the right side. Come, my friend, are you 
 ready to go anywhere ? Can you say : " Lord, send me 
 to whom you will — only send me. Let that power come 
 upon me, that I may win souls for Jesus Christ " ? May 
 we have no will but God's sweet will. Oh, that our wills 
 may be swallowed up in God's will. I believe if Gabriel 
 should tell me that for the rest of my days I could have 
 my way, I wouldn't have it. I don't know enough about 
 the future. I want to pray : " Father, not my will, but 
 Thine." May we all be ready to run if He wants us to 
 run, or to stand still if He wants us to stand still. May 
 we say: " Here we are, Lord; take us — take us— fill us — 
 use us." I think, if I know my own heart, I would rather 
 die at once and be buried right off than to live with- 
 out power. Oh, it is an awfully sad thing for a man 
 to outlive his usefulness — to be laid aside as a vessel no 
 longer meet for the Master's use. There are a good many 
 Christians God can't use as He used them once. He has 
 
ENDUEMENT FOR SERVICE. IO3 
 
 got a good many children that were full of power a year 
 ago or five years ago, but they are ^ot right now. How 
 He wants to use them ! Oh, I pray from the depths of 
 my soul that as long as I live I may be filled with the 
 Holy Ghost. Let us pray that we may be filled with 
 this power from on high ; and that we may be always 
 ready — ready for anything. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. 
 
 Best Thoughts of Various Conventions — Nuggets from the Addresses 
 of Mr. Moody, Dr. Bonar, Dr. Gordon, Dr. Pentecost, Dr. Pier- 
 son, Major Whittle, and others. 
 
 Paul says: "Be not drunk with wine, wherein is ex- 
 cess; but be filled with the Spirit." Evidently he had in 
 mind a contrast between the sensual effects of strong drink 
 and that Divine intoxication which comes from being 
 filled with the Holy Spirit. What are the effects of alco- 
 holic inebriation ? An expansion of vision, followed by 
 blurring of sight; unnatural exhibitions before the brain; 
 great hilarity, followed by moroseness; on the muscular 
 system, in stimulating to efforts; upon the speech, in 
 muddling language. How different the effects of the 
 Holy Spirit ! What are they ? The eyes see with truth 
 and power; the mind is aroused to grand efforts of 
 thought; the faculty of speech to most gracious and 
 eloquent utterances; while the whole person is strength- 
 ened and the disposition attuned to the Spirit of Christ. 
 The effects of drink in excess are disastrous; no man can 
 ever be filled with the Holy Ghost to excess. — Pierson. 
 
 The service of the Israelites was very similar to that 
 of surrounding nations; but whereas the latter kindled 
 the fires upon their altars, God distinguished His service 
 by sending down fire from Heaven. That is the differ- 
 ence between true religion and its counterfeit. Natural 
 religion depends on the energy of the flesh. Supernat- 
 (104) 
 
GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. lO$ 
 
 ural religion depends on the energy of the Spirit of 
 God, which comes down from above. It is quite possi- 
 ble to be perfectly right in the forms of our service, and 
 yet destitute of Divine power. — Pentecost. 
 
 We need to realize more the personality of the Holy 
 Ghost. A Brooklyn clergyman lately defined the Holy 
 Spirit as a shadowy effluence proceeding from the Father 
 and the Son. How would it sound if he should baptize 
 a child " in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and 
 of the shadowy effluence," etc.? Deny the personality of 
 the Holy Ghost and you deny everything. — Pierson. 
 
 The Divine energy, as finally manifested to the Church, 
 was in the form of tongues of fire. But beware of strange 
 fire ! In Lev. xvi. 12, Aaron was bidden to take a censer 
 of live coals from off the altar of the Lord, and use it 
 to offer up incense. He must not kindle the censer with 
 any other fire but that which had come down from 
 Heaven. It was the neglect and contempt of this com- 
 mandment which constituted the sin of Nadab and 
 Abihu. They dared to worship God with strange fire. 
 Suppose the Apostles, who had been told to tarry at Je- 
 rusalem till fire was sent down from Heaven, had dared 
 to disobey. Suppose Peter had said to John: "John, 
 four or five days have passed, and how do we know the 
 Spirit is coming ? Perhaps it has come. We know the 
 Gospel; we are witnesses of the crucifixion and resur- 
 rection; why not go and preach?" What would have 
 happened ? The message would have been an utter fail- 
 ure. We have the Gospel, we have right forms, but oh ! 
 let us beware of preaching in the energy of the flesh. 
 We must have Holy Ghost power. Nadab and Abihu 
 were slain at the very beginning of the Mosaic dispen- 
 sation. Ananias and Sapphira were struck dead at the 
 very beginning of the history of the Church. I some- 
 
106 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 times tremble lest a strange fire have crept unawares 
 into my own service. We need to watch. —Pentecost. 
 
 I'm glad there are things in the Bible I don't under- 
 stand. If I could take that book up and, read it as I 
 would any other book, I might think I could write a 
 book like that, or that you could. I am glad there are 
 heights I haven't been able to climb up to. I am glad 
 there are depths I haven't been able to fathom. It's the 
 best proof that the book came from God. I suppose 
 there are a good many things in the prophecies concern- 
 ing Christ that no one could understand till Christ came 
 and fulfilled them. Just look at some of those proph- 
 ecies. He was to be born in Bethlehem, and carried 
 into Egypt. When that announcement was made, how 
 strange it must have sounded ! But when the time came, 
 God put the whole world in motion to bring Mary to 
 Bethlehem so that Jesus might be born there. Caesar 
 issued a decree that the whole world should be taxed. 
 All this was done just to bring that virgin up to Beth- 
 lehem. I believe that God would have created a world 
 rather than that any prophecy should be unfulfilled. — 
 Moody. 
 
 I believe the reason people won't come more than 
 they do into our churches is because we don't feed 
 them enough on the Word of God. They have been fed 
 on sawdust long enough. For men who have nothing 
 but essays it is hard to get pulpits, and it will be harder. 
 The reason there are so many pulpits vacant is that there 
 ain't men enough willing to give the Word of God. Go 
 into one of our city parks in winter to feed the birds and 
 throw down a handful of sawdust. You may deceive 
 them once, but you won't a second time. But throw 
 down crumbs, and they'll sweep them up. So in the 
 churches, give people the Word of God and they will 
 
GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. 107 
 
 know the difference. A man once made an artificial 
 bee, and thought no one could tell the difference be- 
 tween that and a real bee. But another man said he 
 could show the difference. He put the two bees down 
 on the table, and then put a drop of honey before them. 
 The real bee went for the honey. There are a great 
 many artificial Christians, and they don't want the 
 Word of God. They'll go somewhere else. Well, lei 
 them go. For every one that goes, five will take his 
 place. What we want is to give people the Word of 
 God in season and out of season. — Moody. 
 
 Isaiah is divided in the original into three portions, 
 each ending with a mournful refrain concerning the 
 wicked. These refrains will be found at the end of the 
 48th chapter, of the 57th and of the whole book. When 
 God divided the book into three portions He must have 
 meant something ; and so in the centre of the middle 
 portion we find that wonderful piece of poetry, the 
 crown-jewel, the blood-red ruby — the 53d chapter. In 
 the British Navy there is a scarlet thread running 
 through every line of cordage, and though a rope be cut 
 into inch pieces, it can be recognized as belonging to 
 the Government. So is there a scarlet thread running 
 all through the Bible — the whole book points to Christ. 
 In the promise made to Adam appears, as it were, the 
 first twig of a tree. Twig after twig is added, till we 
 can count not only 200 direct promises of the Messiah, 
 but 1,500 direct and indirect. Then, as history comes to 
 fulfil these predictions, each little twig in turn is set on 
 fire, yet not consumed, till finally the whole tree becomes 
 a great burning bush, and we take off our shoes and 
 stand in awe, for it is holy ground. — Pierson. 
 
 Under the old dispensation a man was righteous 
 at the end of works and sacrifices ; under the new, 
 
108 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 Christ having done all, He is righteous at the beginning, 
 and thence proceeds to work on. It is now possible to 
 be righteous at the beginning of one's life rather than at 
 the end of it. — Gordon. 
 
 Let it be clearly understood that we can and do make 
 it hard for Christ to confess us. For as the devil of old 
 came into the presence of God accusing Job, so now the 
 devil in a sense enters the courts of Heaven accusing us 
 before the Father. Here is some poor trembling, falter- 
 ing sinner who walks unworthy of the vocation where- 
 unto he is called. The devil comes before God, and 
 says: "Ah, yes ; that is one of Yours — who promised to 
 serve You and be faithful, and yet see how he is living." 
 Christ's reply is : " Well, he has confessed Me before 
 men, and I promised to confess him before My Father. 
 Yes; he is one of Mine, and I am hoping that this and 
 that will remove every trace of evil." It is a hard thing 
 for Christ to confess us in the face of our many inconsist- 
 encies, but He is faithful to His promise. — Gordon. 
 
 I think there can be little doubt that Joseph of Ari- 
 mathea was a rich man, and that before his conversion 
 he had a good deal of pride and ambition, which wealth 
 so often gives to a man. And it was the fashion among 
 the rich people of that day to have a tomb at Jerusalem. 
 I suppose Joseph thought, " I would like to have a 
 sepulchre too, to perpetuate my name." It was not easy, 
 however, getting sites; and all the good places had 
 been taken. But at last he found a place for his tomb 
 at a point you would never have expected him to fix 
 upon — near Calvary. There was a spot to be bought 
 there, and Joseph bought it; and being near the place 
 of execution, he took care to have a garden round it. 
 Little did he know, at that time, and less did he care, 
 what was to come of this. God often has a plan in the 
 
GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. IO9 
 
 lives of unconverted men which they know little of.— 
 Bonar. 
 
 -It is written, "Not many wise, not many rich, not 
 many noble are called"; yet the Lord always has some 
 wise, some rich, some noble, among His followers. 
 When Joseph of Arimathea came to Christ and believed 
 in Him, Christ did not tell him to give up his position 
 in society, and become as a fisherman. No; Christ 
 evidently intended him to remain where he was, as a 
 counsellor and witness for Him among those with whom 
 he daily came in contact. You know it is far more 
 difficult to speak to your own flesh and blood, and bear 
 testimony for Christ, than to go to those who do not 
 know you. When a young man is converted, he is al- 
 most always inclined at first to say: " I shall give up 
 my position. I know I could do far more good if I was 
 a preacher; so I'll leave my business and become a 
 preacher of the Gospel." Now, before any one does a 
 thing of that sort, he should be very careful that God 
 wants him to do it. Very often mistakes are made just 
 in this way. God may have given you some work to do 
 in the position in which He has placed you, which no 
 one could do if you were to leave it undone. — Bonar. 
 
 " I will go to Pilate," says Joseph, " since I can do 
 no more, and ask for the body; and I will bury my 
 Master in my own tomb." So he finds his way to 
 Pilate's house, and he se*eks an interview. And here his 
 well-known good character stands him in good stead, 
 for the answer comes from Pilate at once — " Yes, let 
 him come in, by all means." Then Joseph tells his 
 errand. "Ah, is He dead already?" "Yes," says 
 Joseph. Well, Pilate would rather have the official 
 testimony as well; so he calls upon the officers; and 
 when he finds their report agrees with Joseph's, he is 
 
HO D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 quite ready to grant him what he asks. Then Nico- 
 demus joins Joseph, and they two — two councillors, two 
 rich men—bring with them spices and fine linen; and 
 they come to the cross. They don't care who is looking 
 for them; nor how they are scorned. And in that hour 
 the prophecy is fulfilled. There is not only one rich 
 man, but two, at the cross. — Bonar. 
 
 "God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast 
 them down to hell." The sin was one sin, and God 
 spared them not. What was that one sin ? They "kept 
 not their first estate." They " left their own habitation." 
 The idea seems to be that in pride of heart they were 
 discontented with the position God had placed them in, 
 and they left it. Like Adam taking the forbidden fruit, 
 it was the simplest act possible, and we know what it 
 entailed. The lesson for us is a very solemn one. How 
 often we say, " Oh, this is only one sin." You trifle 
 with one sin. But we see here that one sin may bring 
 eternal wretchedness— eternal wrath. Again, it was the 
 first sin. As when Adam took the forbidden fruit, the 
 moment they sinned their first sin, God spared them 
 not. — Bonar. 
 
 Never trifle with one sin. It is like the little cloud, 
 which, as a poet has said, may hold a hurricane in its 
 grasp. The next sin you commit may have a mighty 
 effect in the blighting of your life. You do not know 
 the streams that may flow from that fountain; for sin 
 is a fountain — not a mere act, but a fountain of evil. — 
 Bonar. 
 
 God "spared not the angels that sinned, but cast 
 them down to hell." Correctly this should be trans- 
 lated, " turned their faces hellward, and reserved them 
 for chains of darkness." They were not to have those 
 chains put on till Christ should come to bind Satan 
 
GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. Ill 
 
 with all his followers. They were, however, immediately 
 turned hellward. God saw it just and righteous to visit 
 them with this wrath. Anything less would have shaken 
 the throne of His holiness. He must show His abhor- 
 rence of sin, and make the universe to know, and know 
 forever, what sin is, and what sin deserves. Whenever 
 ♦we get a glimpse of these fallen spirits they never com- 
 plain. Now and then in the Gospel history we find 
 they crossed Christ's path. They never say: " Thou 
 hast deatt too severely with us." No; it is, "Thou Holy 
 One of God." — Bonar. 
 
 A godly priest in the Middle Ages preached the Gos- 
 pel to a listless audience. A dark-looking stranger came 
 up to him after the service — so goes the legend — and 
 said: "Come down to hell, and make us one such offer." 
 But there is no such offer in hell. What will become of 
 the sinner who does not accept the atoning blood ? The 
 Son was, for our sakes, put in the position of the angels 
 whom " God spared not," and we are eternally free if we 
 choose to be so. No doubt the spirits below cry, "Oh, 
 that we could recall the first spark that fired all that train 
 of evil and wrath." Then beware of the next sin. It may 
 cause your eternal ruin. — Bonar. 
 
 There is nothing the world so wants as holy men. The 
 cause of Christ is paralyzed because of sin — sin in be- 
 lievers. The natural man will always take sides against 
 God when you press him close, and say, " God isn't going 
 to punish sin. He wouldn't do this or that." But the new 
 man ought always to justify God, and take sides with Him 
 against sin. There ought to be that difference between 
 God's children and the children of the world; and when 
 people say the punishment is severe and unjust, we should 
 side with God, and say, " Shall not the Judge of all the 
 earth do right ? " God will do right. Every one will say 
 
112 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 "Amen " when it comes to the punishment of sin. And 
 we should all condemn sin as God condemns it, the mo- 
 ment we see it. It is in ourselves, though sometimes it 
 is hid from us. It may be some hidden sin that keeps 
 God from using us more. Let us be honest with God, 
 and ask Him to search us and show us ourselves. Let 
 David's prayer be ours: " Search me, Omy God" — not my 
 neighbors, nor other people, but " Search me ! " — Moody. 
 
 My little boy, since taken to Heaven, once-asked me: 
 " Papa, how is it that one person, Christ, could atone for 
 the sin of millions of men ? " We were in a garden at the 
 time. Said I to the boy: "Suppose there was on the 
 ground there a handful of worms; don't you think you 
 would be more valuable than those worms?" "Yes." 
 "Suppose that wheelbarrow was full of worms; would 
 younot.be more valuable than them all?" "Yes." "Sup- 
 pose all the millions of worms in the earth were gathered 
 together, would you not still be more valuable than they, 
 no matter how many?" "Yes; I am sure I would." 
 " Then, is there not a far greater difference in the scale 
 of being between Christ and man than between man and 
 the worm ? We are creatures. God is the Creator. Had 
 many other worlds sinned as well as ours, the blood of 
 Christ would be more than sufficient to atone for them." 
 — R. C. Morgan. 
 
 If you do not indulge in godly sorrow, is it not likely 
 you are losing a good deal of sanctification ? Have we 
 nothing to repent of ? No wasted hours ? How little 
 we have done for God ! Ah, that we had prayed more ! 
 If we had prayed more we need not have worked so hard. 
 We have too little praying face to face with God every 
 day. Looking back at the end I suspect there will be 
 great grief for our sins of omission — omission to get from 
 God what we might have got by praying.— Bonar. 
 
GEMS FROM NCRTHFIELD. 113 
 
 If we really believe that God loved us with His whole 
 heart, what a help it would be to us in our daily lives ! 
 We would then feel that we could go at any moment into 
 the presence of a loving Father, who cared as much for 
 us as if He had nothing else to care for. A child may 
 come into the presence of its earthly father, except 
 when the parent is occupied. Our Heavenly Father is 
 never so occupied. At all times He will bestow on us 
 the same attention. A child likes to play in the presence 
 of its earthly parents, even though they take no notice 
 of it, and is happy simply because it is with them. How 
 much more ought we to be joyous in our Heavenly 
 Father's presence. We need not be always singing. The 
 heart has a silent language. There is too little of adora- 
 tion—simple worship— at the present time.— Bonar. 
 
 We have a seat at the King's table, and that seat is 
 kept waiting for us. Sometimes God longs to see that 
 seat filled, and so He removes His child from this world 
 to a better. We wonder why such and such Christians 
 are taken from among us; but God was weary without 
 them. — Bonar. 
 
 Whatever may have been the faults of the Old Testa- 
 ment characters, no mention is made of them in the New 
 Testament. There they are always referred to as saints 
 without blemish. It seems that God delights to praise 
 His saints. He keeps His promise that He will not only 
 forgive but forget their iniquities, and He remembers 
 only their good qualities. — Bonar. 
 
 An infidel said tome: "In the eleventh chapter of He- 
 brews we see the Old Testament characters spoken of as 
 saints of the very first order. Now, from what we read 
 about them in the Old Testament, they must have been 
 a nice lot of saints. Is that all your religion can do ? " 
 I told the objector he was going a little too fast; that 
 
114 . D« L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 the eleventh chapter came after the tenth, and that to 
 understand the eleventh he must read the tenth. In that 
 chapter God said: "Their sins and their iniquities I will 
 remember no more." Well, after He had said that, He 
 couldn't say anything about their sins, for He had for- 
 gotten them. — Pentecost. 
 
 Although God forgave the sins of Jacob and David, 
 and the other Old Testament saints, yet there were cer- 
 tain consequences of their sins which those saints had 
 to suffer after they were forgiven. If a man gets drunk 
 and goes out and breaks his leg, so that it must be am- 
 putated, God will forgive him if he asks it, but he will 
 have to hop around on one leg all his life. A man may 
 sow thistle-seed with grain-seed in a moment of pique 
 against his master, and the master may forgive him, but 
 the man will have to reap the thistles with the grain. — 
 Moody. 
 
 We don't thank and praise God half enough. That is 
 one reason why so many of our churches are so dull and 
 gloomy. When churches get into a backslidden state, 
 they hire singers to stand away up in some organ-loft 
 and praise God for them. How can we expect God to 
 give us further blessings if we don't thank Him for what 
 He has given us ? There ought to be more of thanks- 
 giving in our prayers, and there ought to be more of 
 thanksgiving from the heart in our singing. One of 
 the best ways to wake a church up and start a revival, 
 is to hold a praise-meeting. — Moody. 
 
 One Christmas morning my little boy awoke at about 
 four o'clock, and got up to see what was in his stocking. 
 He found a box of paints and a little book. Said he: 
 "Santa Claus knew just what I wanted,' and went off 
 contentedly to sleep. When he arose at the usual time, 
 he was shown, in a lower room, a whole tree full of 
 
GEMS FfcOM NORTHFIELD. HJ 
 
 presents for him. He was satisfied with the trifles, which 
 he thought were all he was to get; and what was the joy 
 of the mother to lead him into the place where greater 
 things were prepared for him. When Christians are grate- 
 ful for what they have already received, the Lord de- 
 lights to give them far greater blessings. — Sankey. 
 
 Communion with God has the effect to make us joy- 
 ous. The Lord does not like to see any of His disciples 
 looking sad. If you cannot do anything else for the 
 Master, then shine for Him. Some people you cannot 
 drive from you any other way. There are those who 
 seek to entice you to follow the world with them. They 
 cannot be induced to see Christ as you do. Let your 
 face shine with the brightness that comes from com- 
 munion with God, and they will not trouble you. Chris- 
 tians can sometimes do more by shining for God than 
 by speaking for Him. — Bonar. 
 
 There is no power like love. I loved my little boy 
 long before he loved me. One night I heard him say to 
 his mamma, when he thought me asleep, " I love papa." 
 What a thrill of joy that gave me ! I had loved him 
 from infancy, but now he was beginning to love me. A 
 few weeks before, he might have seen me carried out of 
 the house in a coffin, and perhaps, not knowing better, 
 have thoughtlessly laughed about it. But now my love 
 for him had found a response. Something like this is 
 the feeling God has when a sinner melts under His love. 
 Love produces love. What a power it might become in 
 our pulpits and Sunday-school classes and meetings ! 
 The reason we have so little love for Jesus Christ is that 
 we are so little acquainted with Him. The more inti- 
 mately we get acquainted with the Son of God, the more 
 shall we love Him, and we may get acquainted with 
 Him by reading about Him in the Word. — Moody. 
 
Il6 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 One reason why we should be intensely interested in 
 the coming of Christ is that we are enjoined so often 
 to have regard to it. I don't know that there is any 
 one matter of duty — indeed, I am sure there is no mat- 
 ter of duty we are so often pointed to with the finger of 
 God as this: to look forward to the coming of Christ. 
 You will find fifty times, I am sure, the coming of Christ 
 adduced and enjoined on us as a reason for the practice 
 of special duties and the cultivation of special graces. 
 Even that one word "Watch" the Lord uses 198 times. 
 If you don't let the thought of Christ's coming interest 
 you, in all the variety of ways in which it is presented 
 to us in the Epistles, and by the Lord Himself, your 
 holiness will suffer great loss. — Bonar. 
 
 In Edinburgh, when our Queen first came, the vessel 
 that brought her landed in the even/ng. It was con- 
 cluded — " Oh, she will not come ashore till nine in the 
 morning," and our Lord Provost had that idea. But 
 what happened ? The Queen was very famous — used 
 to be when she was active — for taking people by sur- 
 prise, and she landed between six and seven. The Chief 
 Magistrate was sadly ashamed of himself. He didn't 
 lose his place; he was still what he was before; but he 
 bitterly regretted that he had not been waiting for her, 
 to welcome her when she set foot upon the shore. I 
 think that will be the way with those who are not look- 
 ing out for Christ's kingdom. They will regret not hav- 
 ing been waiting for Him, when they might have been 
 there to give Him a hearty welcome. — Bonar. 
 
 Christ says He will take us by surprise. Dr. Payson 
 has a striking idea about it. He says : " Yon is a great 
 city. It is a busy market-day. They are all busy in the 
 market-place. Some one looks up, and is struck with 
 an unusual appearance in the sky, He keeps his eye on 
 
GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. 117 
 
 it. He touches his neighbor and says, 'What is yon?' 
 As they are looking, a third and fourth join. The ap- 
 pearance seems getting redder and redder — brighter and 
 brighter. A dozen or twenty join the group. As they 
 are all gazing up, the hum of the market ceases. The 
 whole market looks up, and cries, * What is this in the 
 sky ? ' The brightness is becoming an exceeding bright- 
 ness — brighter than the sun at noon. The sun is dark- 
 ened. The brightness becomes insufferable. * Look ! 
 Our shadows are all cast in an opposite direction from 
 what they were a little while ago.' A human form is 
 seen. It is the coming of the Lord again. He has 
 burst upon us in an hour when we were not thinking." 
 Well, I dare say something like that will occur in many 
 a city of our world in that day. When He does appear, 
 it will be a glorious appearing. — Bonar. 
 
 In a town of Switzerland a few years ago, some work- 
 ingmen going early to work, walking along the street, 
 saw a white figure on the top of a high house. What 
 was it? A lady in her night-dress; and she was sitting 
 looking down, quite happy, smiling in perfect security. 
 She was a somnambulist. She had risen in her sleep 
 without any one in the house knowing it, and had taken 
 her station, and was pleasantly looking about, and no 
 doubt dreaming — dreaming pleasant dreams. Well ; 
 they didn't know what they could do to save her from 
 her peril. Just as they were talking together, the sun 
 rose. A bright beam of the sun fell upon her eyes; she 
 saw where she was ; gazed one moment around, and 
 then fell headlong— killed on the spot. It was an awful 
 awakening. Fellow-sinner, if you are out of Christ, and 
 the day of His coming overtakes you — oh, what if the 
 first beam of that bright day be the first moment of your 
 awakening, and it is too late ! — Bonar. 
 
Il8 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 All believers have been set apart to Christ. But, 
 when vessels are set aside, dust settles on them. Daily- 
 cleansing, therefore, is needed. Observe how careful 
 and particular were the injunctions concerning the 
 cleansing of vessels under the Levitical law. When any- 
 creeping thing touched a vessel after it was dead, the 
 vessel had to be placed in water until the even. We 
 are constantly touching the dead things of the world. 
 We may be unconscious of it, but the touch contami- 
 nates us. Therefore we must make daily application to 
 be cleansed from all defilement. — Needham. 
 
 A telegraph wire must be completely insulated be- 
 fore it can convey the electric communication. So we 
 must be separated from the world before God's message 
 to sinners can have free course through us. When Sa- 
 ladin looked at the sword of Richard Coeur de Leon, he 
 wondered that a blade so ordinary should have wrought 
 such mighty deeds. The English king bared his arm, 
 and said, " It was not the sword that did these things ; 
 it was the arm of Richard." In like manner we should 
 be instruments that the Lord can use, and when He has 
 used us, the glory should all be His. — Pentecost. 
 
 In the economy of redemption it was arranged by the 
 three persons of the Godhead that the Spirit's work was 
 to be unseen and silent. He was to be like the wind. 
 You cannot see it, but the effects of it you can see plainly. 
 The Spirit has all along, in the most wondrous kindness, 
 consented — if I may use the expression — to be thus hid 
 while doing His work. No jealousy of the Son; no 
 jealousy of the Father. He delights to take of the things 
 of Christ and show them to us — and because they are the 
 things of the Father, too. But He does it all quietly — 
 so silently and quietly that very generally a soul is 
 brought to Christ without thinking very much about the 
 
GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. 119 
 
 Spirit, and it is only afterward that the soul says, "Well, 
 I would never have known this but for the Spirit. It 
 was He that took the seals from my eyes." Isn't there 
 amazing love in this ? — Bonar. 
 
 In the last chapter of the Bible see how the Spirit is 
 waiting for our complete joy— waiting along with us for 
 the hour when we shall be glorified; for that is the 
 meaning of the first clause of the seventeenth verse, 
 " The Spirit and the Bride say, Come." The Spirit and 
 the Bride say, " Come, Lord." And the Spirit and the 
 Bride also say, " Whoever hears, take up the cry, Come, 
 come, Lord Jesus"; and while you do this, look around 
 upon a perishing world, and tell them to make haste and 
 come to Christ. Tell them not to lose their opportunity 
 of such blessedness. " Let him that is athirst come, and 
 whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely." 
 These are the Spirit's last words, and aren't they full of 
 l OV e_full of grace ? Do you not see His heart flowing 
 out to us in every syllable ? — Bonar. 
 
 God has a niche for every one of His children. Happy 
 the man or woman who has found his or her place. A 
 great many men want to do big things. That is the 
 mistake I made when I started out. I wanted to preach 
 to intelligent people, but I found the people didn't like 
 to hear me. So I began with the children. They liked 
 to hear me, and I got along very well— I grew right up 
 along with them. But it was years before I could talk 
 profitably to grown people. I talked to the children, 
 and it was a grand school. It was the preparation I 
 needed. That was my theological seminary.— Moody. 
 
 I remember preaching in Liverpool in a certain church, 
 and the results were astonishing. In ten days that 
 church took in 400 new members. I was amazed. But 
 I learned that a poor old bedridden woman had been 
 
120 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 praying about it. When we get to the other world, 
 and find out the secrets of Heaven, we will find that 
 some people we never hear of now — some bedridden 
 saint, some one living way up near the gates of para- 
 dise — will have accomplished a great deal more than 
 some men who have been heralded through the press. — 
 Moody. 
 
 A man asked me once: "Isn't conscience a safer guide 
 than the Holy Spirit?" I just took out my watch, and 
 said: " Isn't my watch better than the sun ? " Suppose I 
 said to you: "I will tell you the hour by my watch, and 
 you must always take the time from me." That is con- 
 science. But it is the sun that is to rule the time. 
 Conscience is fallen and corrupt. If we had an unfallen 
 conscience, like holy Adam, it would be as if my watch 
 were always to agree with the sun. But now it is a 
 most unsafe guide. Sometimes we hear men say: " Oh, 
 I don't see any harm in this. My conscience doesn't 
 condemn me." It isn't your conscience, or your con- 
 sciousness, that is the rule of right and wrong. The 
 law is the standard. By the law is the knowledge of 
 sin. Sin is the transgression of the law; not of con- 
 science. — Bonar. 
 
 A person does not commit the unpardonable sin by 
 any one act. It is by a course of resistance against 
 God. God, by His Spirit, shows the man the way of 
 life, and presses him to enter upon it, and he resists. 
 How long the Spirit of God will wait upon that resist- 
 ing man, it is not for us to say; but it is an awfully 
 perilous thing for a man, even for another minute, to 
 resist Him. For He may say: "I will strive no more. 
 I withdraw." And then the sin is never forgiven. The 
 Spirit takes a final farewell of the man who has so resist- 
 ed Him; and then the man has no more care for pardon. 
 
GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. 121 
 
 He will not care about the coming judgment. He will 
 never, I suppose, be troubled till the trump sounds and 
 he is summoned into the presence of God, all unpre- 
 pared. — Bonar. 
 
 It is said that "Pharaoh hardened his heart "; and it 
 is also said that God hardened Pharaoh's heart. The 
 children of Israel, when in Egypt, had a great deal to 
 do with bricks — working clay into bricks. Now, they 
 say that if you want to harden blue clay, there is a very 
 simple way to do it. The worker in the brick has just 
 to withhold water, and leave the clay where it is in the 
 sunshine. If he leaves it there without pouring water 
 on it, it becomes as hard as a stone; whereas, if he 
 wishes to soften it, he takes care to water it, and to 
 water it often, and the clay keeps soft, and can be 
 moulded into any shape. Now, when God by His 
 Spirit works upon the soul, He is just pouring water 
 upon the clay; but when He must leave the soul, what 
 He does is just to withdraw the water and the soul 
 hardens. When the sinner reaches that state, sermons 
 affect him no longer. God just says of him: " Ephraim 
 is joined to his idols; let him alone." — Whittle. 
 
 A gentleman once came to my friend, Dr. Somerville, 
 and said: "My son is going away to South America. 
 He will not be within reach of the ordinances of re- 
 ligion. I know he will have no Sabbath; and he is to 
 be away three years. Now, I want you to pray for him, 
 that he may not lose all the good disposition he seems 
 to feel." Dr. Somerville looked at him and said: "Ay; 
 you are going to put your son's head into the mouth of 
 a lion, and then going to stand and pray, ' May the lion 
 not crush him ! ' " — Bonar. 
 
 John the Baptist was only six months a preacher. No 
 more. Thirty years' preparation for six months' preach- 
 
122 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 ing ! But those were months of mighty blessing. . The 
 effect of it was of this nature : It shook the whole of Judea; 
 it shook Jerusalem; it shook the Temple. Men came 
 out to him. He never went to them; they went out to 
 him — there was such an amazing power in his preaching 
 and character. And you know the effects to this day. 
 Some of the things said about the effects of his preach- 
 ing are very interesting. " Since John began to preach," 
 says Christ, " the Kingdom of Heaven suffereth vio- 
 lence, and the violent take it by force." That is to say, 
 men are determined not to lose their opportunity; they 
 snatch at the offer when it is within their reach. It 
 must have been a mighty uprising. I wish we had such 
 days again. When we get men of such fellowship with 
 God, I think we may expect days like those to dawn. 
 Men will be coming to us from every side, and saying, 
 " What must we do to be saved ? " — Bonar. 
 
 One of my elders said in prayer-meeting: "As I was 
 coming along Argyle Street " (one of our busiest streets 
 in Glasgow), " I saw a crowd at a shop-door, and I had 
 the curiosity to look in. There I saw an auctioneer 
 holding up a grand picture so that all could see it; and 
 when he got it in position, he stayed behind and said to 
 the crowd, ' Now, look at this side of the picture, and 
 now at this other side,' and so on, describing each part 
 of it. Now," said this good man, "the whole time I 
 never saw the speaker; it was just the picture he was 
 showing"; and turning to us he said, " That is the way 
 to work for Christ." He must increase, but we must be 
 out of sight. — Bonar. 
 
 It sometimes seems hard to find out any reason for 
 God's dealings with His children. We may not be able 
 to find out what it is, and think that perhaps it is be- 
 cause of some undiscovered sin; but I don't think God 
 
GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. 1 23 
 
 often acts in that way. He generally likes to let His 
 people know their faults, when He chastises them. You 
 remember when Absalom could not get Joab to come 
 and talk with him, he burnt up his corn-fields, and then 
 he came. Now, the Lord often sends sore afflictions 
 upon His children in order that they may come and talk 
 with Him more. You know Christ took away Lazarus 
 in order that the sisters might send for Him, and that 
 the people through all ages might get a wondrous dis- 
 covery of Him as the Resurrection and the Life. And 
 you remember how John the Baptist was taken away 
 from his disciples in order that they might rather go to 
 Christ.— Bonar. 
 
 A great many object to the noise of revivals— the 
 unhealthy excitement. Why, there is more excitement 
 in a race-course in one day than you will see in a church 
 in fifty days. Get into a political campaign, and you 
 will see more excitement than in a hundred religious 
 meetings. "Undue excitement!" they say. "Some 
 people will get out of their minds." The fact is, the 
 world is out of its mind, anyway. Again, some ob- 
 ject to revivals because, they say, they are " not in the 
 regular order." Remember that it was church dignity 
 that crucified Christ. The Sanhedrim were very careful 
 of church dignity, and so they had to put Christ out of 
 the way. He didn't come in the " regular " order. You 
 never find a single prophet that comes in the regular 
 line. God will always work in His own way. He will 
 mark out channels for Himself. We need to learn this 
 lesson, and just stand aside and let Him work— work as 
 He pleases.— Moody. 
 
 Whenever we see troubles in congregations, it is a 
 sign that those congregations have not been doing their 
 full duty in presenting Christ to a lost world. I will 
 
124 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 not say without exception, but as a rule, the troubles 
 are not found in congregations that are busy with revival 
 work. They get so busy in the work of God that they 
 give no more attention than is needful to minor matters, 
 and everything goes on harmoniously. — Bonar. 
 
 Revival work must come home to the individual be- 
 liever. I suppose .you have read of the rain-tree in 
 Mexico. It is a very remarkable tree. Travellers tell 
 us about it. It grows to a height of sixty feet, and it 
 will be, perhaps, about three feet in diameter at the root. 
 Well, that tree has a singular quality. It imbibes and 
 condenses moisture from the atmosphere as no other 
 tree does. On that account it is called the rain-tree. 
 Generally the bark of the .tree is dripping wet. It is 
 very remarkable that this rain-tree not only takes in 
 moisture in the damp season; but in the midst of sum- 
 mer, when the rivers run low, and the brooks round 
 about are nearly dry, then it is that it imbibes the most 
 moisture, and is dripping the most with it. So you see 
 we have here a picture for believers. You may be la- 
 menting the want of life in your congregation or neigh- 
 borhood. Will you be a rain-tree? Will you imbibe 
 moisture ? The Holy Spirit through the Word is giving 
 it to you. Will you take it in ? The drier others are 
 around you, will you take in the more for their sake ? 
 But another thing. It is a good thing to see a dozen 
 rain-trees together. If we had that in every neighbor- 
 hood, if those trees would pour out their streams to- 
 gether upon this country, we would soon see an altered 
 country-side. — : Bonar. 
 
 The father's and mother's example has a very great 
 deal to do with the whole tone of the family ; so much 
 so, that I think before there can be a blessing in the 
 family upon the children, we may lay it down as essen- 
 
GEMS FROM NORTttFIELD. 12 J 
 
 tial that the parents be cheerful and happy people. It 
 is the duty of the parents to be cheerful and happy — to 
 let the children see what they have got that carries them 
 through all the cares and difficulties of life. Let the 
 children see this without their being told it. — Bonar. 
 
 To parents let me say that you are to be all along ex- 
 pecting the conversion of your children from their very 
 earliest years. I believe in early conversion. I cannot 
 tell how soon it may appear. I think there are conver- 
 sions from the womb. Indeed, we have one instance of 
 this in the case of John the Baptist But we are to do 
 our part. We are to let our children see Christ reflected 
 in us, and lead them to love Him. Parents, would it 
 not be a dreadful thing if you should be taken away and 
 leave behind you children who cannot tell whither you 
 have gone ? You don't live a happy Christian life. You 
 don't fill your household with the light of rejoicing. 
 And when you are gone — oh, they like to think you are 
 in Heaven; but you can make it unmistakably sure that 
 you are. If you can do that, you may expect that they 
 will all meet you there. — Bonar. 
 
 The accidental miracles of our Lord are among the 
 most remarkable — those that, as it were, He spilled over 
 by the way. While He was on His way to do one mira- 
 cle He dropped another, almost as if He didn't intend 
 it. He was going to heal the daughter of Jairus, when 
 the woman with an issue of blood reached out her hand, 
 touched the hem of His garment, and was healed. When 
 an electric jar is filled, only a touch will unload it. So 
 it might be in the experience of every believer. I think 
 I know some Christians who have done good without 
 knowing it — without intending it. I don't know but 
 that, if we were fully the Lord's, the greater part of the 
 
126 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 good we did would be that of which we were not cogni- 
 zant. Service would overflow from us. — Gordon. 
 
 The first thing said of the disciples after Pentecost 
 was that they were " filled with the Holy Ghost." When- 
 ever there was anything important to be done, it says, 
 for example, "Paul, being filled with the Spirit," spake 
 thus; "Peter, being filled with the Spirit," did this. It 
 was characteristic of the Apostolic Church that they 
 were men full of the Holy Ghost. Is that our privilege ? 
 It is not only our privilege; it is our duty. "Be filled 
 with the Spirit " is a command. " Be not drunken with 
 wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit, 
 speaking unto one another in psalms, and hymns, and spir- 
 itual songs." If a man is drunk with wine, he will speak 
 out. He won't have to be educated before he will let 
 loose his tongue. If a man is filled with the Holy Spirit, 
 he won't have to learn much before he can deliver his 
 message — it will come spontaneously. In Germany a 
 man was once so holy that the neighbors called him the 
 " God-ixtoxicated man." We want a God-intoxicated 
 Church. — Gordon. 
 
 I wonder how many have read the life of James Brain- 
 erd Taylor. He was a graduate of Princeton, and only 
 twenty-eight when he died; yet he did a work that any 
 man might envy. He got hold of the idea that there 
 was something in this doctrine of the enduement of the 
 Spirit. Studying the subject, he became perfectly sure 
 that the Holy Ghost might come upon him as upon the 
 disciples. So he prayed, and his prayers were answered. 
 Whenever he went out he stirred all with whom he came 
 in contact. Sinners used to fall before his preaching as 
 grass before the scythe. He couldn't help speaking to 
 men, and his words were mighty. One day he was out 
 driving, and he drew his horse up to a watering-trough. 
 
GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. 1 27 
 
 It so happened that another young man was doing the 
 same thing. While the two horses' heads met in the 
 trough, he turned to the young man and said: "I hope 
 you love the Lord. If you don't, I want to commend 
 Him to you as your best friend. Seek Him with all your 
 heart." That was all; they turned and went their ways. 
 But what was the result ? The young man thus spoken 
 to was converted, was educated for the ministry, and 
 went as a missionary to Africa. — Gordon. 
 
 " Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." 
 Some people think that means liberty for them to do 
 just about as they please. The real meaning is very 
 different. The Spirit is to do just as He pleases. I 
 never shall forget how I was startled when a young 
 man — a stranger, but a very good Christian man — asked 
 me this question: "Do you always have a programme 
 made out for the Holy Ghost in your church ? " That 
 was all he asked; but it stuck to me. Everything was 
 fixed very exactly — a voluntary here, a response here, 
 a sermon here, and so on — all fixed from beginning to 
 end. I don't think the Spirit of God has anything to 
 do with that. Let us have more liberty. It is the lack 
 of this liberty that causes so much deadness in the pul- 
 pit, and deadness in the pew. Oh, for the liberty of the 
 Spirit ! — Gordon. 
 
 When the people of a church become thoroughly 
 consecrated, a revival is sure to follow. Once the great 
 Athenian General, Themistocles, was about to fight a 
 naval battle. All were ready when the sun rose, but 
 the order to advance did not come. Hour after hour 
 passed — no command to advance. Some of the officers 
 murmured, saying: " Is Themistocles afraid ? " " Is he a 
 traitor ? or is he going to fight that battle ? " But The- 
 mistocles knew what he was about. According to the 
 
12$ D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 geography of that country, at nine o'clock a land-breeze 
 sweeps down from the mountain. He thought: " Now 
 if I wait till nine o'clock, instead of having half of my 
 men at the oars and the other half at the spears, I can 
 let the wind do the business." So he waited; the wind 
 filled the sails; and he won the battle, because every 
 man was a warrior. In our churches there are too many 
 men at the oars. There is a committee on music — three 
 or four men to attend to the music, and that is all they 
 have to do year in and year out. Then we have a com- 
 mittee on credentials, and a committee on finance, and 
 a committee to attend to the social wants of the young 
 people. Thus our churches are all divided up into com- 
 mittees, so that when we come to the great work to be 
 done — the conversion of souls — our men are all engaged 
 at the oars. Oh, that we might understand that it is 
 possible to have this heavenly breeze, to fill our sails, 
 and release us from the oars. Let our motto be, " Every 
 man a warrior ! " — Gordon. 
 
 I believe a man who is full of the Holy Ghost will 
 have liberty. What we want in our churches more than 
 anything else is this liberty. Why, look at the stiffness 
 in most of our churches. Put a man in an audience 
 where men and women are going to criticise, and he 
 won't have much liberty — much freedom. In the day 
 of Pentecost, how many do you suppose criticised ? I 
 don't believe Peter would have preached near as well as 
 he did if people had been criticising him. But while 
 he was preaching the people were listening in a proper 
 frame of mind, and they helped him right on. He just 
 had liberty that day — great liberty. When you see a 
 minister in the pulpit who doesn't have liberty, pray for 
 him. You will find he will get on much better than if 
 you were to sit there and criticise him. When a man 
 
GEMS FROM NORTHFIELD. 1 29 
 
 has the Spirit in him, he will have liberty. It won't be 
 hard for him to speak and testify. There's many a man 
 toiling hard in the pulpit, with no liberty— bound hand 
 and foot. Oh, my friends, where the Spirit of the Lord 
 is, there will be liberty. — Moody. 
 
 You may be as dry as Gideon's fleece— all dried up— 
 no power at all; but it is the privilege of each one of 
 us to have the dew of Heaven resting upon us all the 
 while. That is what God wants. Are you thirsty ? I 
 sometimes wish we had in every church a meeting for 
 hungry and thirsty Christians. I would put a man at 
 the door so as not to let any one else in. Let him ask 
 every one: " Are you hungry ? Are you thirsty ? " They 
 wouldn't know what you meant, some of them. Lots of 
 people go to prayer-meeting because it is customary. 
 They go year after year — go for nothing, and get noth- 
 ing. They are not in earnest about anything. Now, it 
 seems to me that if we t:ould have a meeting in all our 
 churches of two, three, four, or five Christians, dead in 
 earnest— wanting the power of the Spirit, and the power 
 of God resting upon them — there would be a wonderful 
 difference. If they were really in earnest in asking for 
 the gift of the Holy Ghost, they would get it.— Moody. 
 
 I have heard a great many people say we should 
 empty our hearts so as to let the Holy Spirit come in. 
 Well; I know I can't empty my heart. I can't get pride 
 out of my heart. I can't get jealousy out of my heart. 
 I wish I could. I haven't got the power. But if a man 
 desires above everything else that he may grow smaller 
 and smaller as John the Baptist did— if it is his desire 
 that he shall decrease and Christ increase; then I be- 
 lieve the Lord will pour the water down so that it will 
 crowd out those things. Sometimes in trying to make a 
 pump work I used to see if I could pump all the air out 
 
130 D. L. MOODY AT HOME. 
 
 so as to get all the water up. After trying a while 
 that way, I would get some water and pour it in from 
 the top, and that would crowd the air out. When a 
 man finds that he can't empty his heart, what he wants 
 is just to let the water in from above. Get under the 
 fountain. — Moody. 
 
 Elijah says to Elisha : " Is there anything you want ? 
 Don't be afraid to ask. You seem to be very timid." 
 Elisha says: "Yes; there is something I want." "Well; 
 don't be afraid to ask. You shall have whatever you 
 want." A blank check ! Well ; what did he ask ? Did 
 he ask for as much of the Spirit as Elijah had? That 
 would have been a great thing. Talk about kings ! 
 Elijah had power over kings. Kings are in the habit of 
 ordering their subjects around. Here was a subject 
 who was in the habit of ordering kings around. Talk 
 about the power of Caesar, Napoleon, Alexander — the 
 great generals and warriors of this earth. Why, it is 
 nothing to the power of the man who is in communion 
 with God. Elisha isn't going to ask for a small thing. 
 He says: " I want a double portion of thy spirit." I can 
 see Elijah turn round to him in surprise, and say: "You 
 have asked me a hard thing." But he says : " If you 
 see me when I am taken from you, you shall have it." 
 " Then," says Elisha, " you'll not get away without my 
 seeing you." He wanted a double portion of Elijah's 
 spirit, and he was determined to get it. So he took 
 good care to see him in the chariot, and he did see him. 
 Elisha performed just twice the number of miracles that 
 Elijah did. Jesus Christ has come down from Heaven 
 since then, and is it so wonderful to ask for the influence 
 of the Spirit ? We ought to have a hundred times more 
 power than Elijah and Elisha had. — Moody. 
 
Works of D. L. Moody. 
 
 Prevailing Prayer; What Hinders It. Paper covers, 30 cents, 
 cloth, 60 cents. 
 
 An earnest and solemn work, full of helpful hints on the aids 
 and hindrances to prevailing prayer. 
 
 TO The Work ! To The Work ! A Trumpet Call. Exhortations 
 to Christians. Paper cover, 30 cents; cloth, 60 cents. 
 
 This new work by Mr. Moody is in the line of his most success- 
 ful effort, that of stirring Christians to active, personal, aggressive 
 work. 
 
 The Way to Cod, and How to Find It. Thirty-fourth thousand. 
 Paper cover, 30 cents; cloth, 60 cents. 
 
 An excellent manual for the soul-winner and the awakened sin- 
 ner, which we trust will be the means of leading thousands to Chris- 
 tian life and heaven— -Zion's Herald. 
 
 Heaven; its Hope; its Inhabitants; its Happiness; its Riches; its 
 Reward. Eighty-fourth thousand. Paper cover, 30 cents; cloth, 
 60 cents. 
 
 While adapted to the humblest capacity, it will command the 
 attention of the mature and thoughtful.— National Presbyterian. 
 
 Mr. Moody's unfaltering faith and rugged enthusiasm are mani 
 f ested on every page.— Christian Advocate. 
 
 Seoret Power; or the Secret of Success in Christian Liflfend Work. 
 Paper cover, 30 cents; cloth, 60 cents. 
 
 A deeply earnest and helpful book on the work of the Holy Spirit 
 in the believer, inciting to more diligent effort and to a more perfect 
 use of the privileges of the "Sons of God." 
 
 Twelve Seleot Sermons. One hundred and thirtieth thousand. 
 Paper cover, 30 cents; cloth, 60 cents. 
 
 With the effect of these addresses, when spoken, the whole land 
 is acquainted, and now that they are printed, they will tend to keep 
 in force the impression they have already made.— Methodist. 
 
 Daniel* the Prophet. 64 pp., i6mo. Paper cover, 20 cents ; cloth, 
 flexible, 40 cents. 
 
 The Full Assurance Of Faith. Some thoughts on Christian con- 
 fidence. Paper cover, 15 cents; cloth, flexible, 25 cents. 
 
 The Way and the Word. Sixtieth thousand. Comprising "Re- 
 generation," and "How to Study the Bible." Cloth, 25 cents; 
 paper, 15 cents. % 
 
 How to Study the Bible. Forty-fifth thousand. Cloth, 15 cents; 
 paper, 10 cents. 
 
 The Second Coming of Christ. Thirty-fourth thousand. Paper 
 cover, 10 cents. 
 
 Inquiry Meetings. By Mr. Moody and Maj. Whittle. Paper cover 
 15 cents. 
 
 Small Gospel Booklets. By D. L. Moody. 12 separate sermons. 
 Published in small square form, suitable for distribution or enclosing 
 
 in letters. 35 cents per dozen, $2.50 per hundred. May be had assorted 
 
 or of any separate tract. Sold only in packets. 
 
 Any of the above sent postpaid to any address on receipt of price. 
 Special rates for distribution made knownon application,, 
 
 H"P t?\7TTT T Chicago: 148 and 150 Madison Street. 
 . SS.tL,ytLL,L. i Nkw Yobk; 148 and 160 Nassau Street. 
 
HOW TO OBTAIN ANY BOOK IN THIS LIST. If your 
 Bookseller does not have these books on hand you can obtain 
 them Promptly and Safely by sending direct to the pub- 
 lisher, enclosing the price as marked in the list. Send money in 
 postal note (to be had at any post office for 3 cents) or, if prefera- 
 ble, small amounts may be sent in postage stamps. 
 
 A CLASSIFIED LIST OF 
 
 BOOKS OF PRACTICAL WORTH 
 
 SELECTED FROM THE CATALOGUE 
 
 — OF — 
 
 Fleming H. Revell, 
 
 Publisher of Euangelical Literature, 
 
 148 AND 150 MADISON ST., CHICAGO. 
 
 8pech0 Terms are offered on many of our publications when used 
 in quantities for gratuitous circulation. 
 
 HELPS IN BIBLE STUDY. 
 
 Notes and Suggestions for Bible Readings. Twenty-first 
 thousand. Compiled by S. R. Briggs and J. H. Elliott. Large 
 i2mo, 262 pages, with complete index, cloth, fine, $1.00; flexible 
 cloth, traveler's edition, 75 cents ; cheap edition, paper covers, 
 50 cents. 
 
 Acknowledged to be the very best help for Bible readings in 
 print. Containing, in addition to twelve introductory chapters on 
 
 Elans and methods of Bible study and Bible Readings, over six 
 undred outlines of Bible readings by many of the most eminent 
 Bible students of the day. 
 
 This is a book which every Bible student should possess. Those 
 who conduct Bible readings will find it most suggestive.— Christian 
 Progress. 
 
 Symbols and Systems In Bible Readings. By Rev. W. F. 
 Crafts. 64 pp., 25 cents. 
 
 Giving a plan of Bible reading, with fifty verses definitely as- 
 signed for each day, the Bible being arranged with much labor in 
 the order of its events. The entire symbolism of the Bible also 
 explained concisely and clearly. 100 hints upon Bible markings 
 and Bible readings are added. 
 
 A year of work upon such a system would yield rich harvests of 
 Bible knowledge and spiritual experience.— Sunday School World. 
 
 ■p XT "Rttvttt t Chicago: 148 and 150 Madison Stre«t. 
 x • xx. xvn.vr.x.1^, Nkw yoek: 148 and 150 Nassau Straat. 
 
HELPS IN BIBLE STUDY. 
 
 The True Tabernacle. A series of lectures on the Jewish Taber- 
 nacle and its typical signification. By George C. Needham ; 
 illustrated, cloth, neat, 75 cents. 
 
 C. H. M's Notes. By C. H. McIntosh. Genesis, 75 cents ; Exo- 
 dus, 75 cents ; Leviticus, 75 cents ; Numbers, 75 cents ; Deutero- 
 nomy, 2 volumes, each, 75 cents. Complete set, in box, $4.50. 
 
 The notes breathe a very sweet and reverential spirit, and the 
 author shows wonderful insight into the heart of truth.— Evangelist. 
 
 Mr. D. L. Moody says of these books : They have been to me a 
 very key to the Scriptures. 
 
 Major D. W. Whittle says: Under God they have blessed me more 
 than any books, outside of the Bible itself, that I have ever read, 
 and have led me to a love of the Bible that is proving an unf ailing 
 source of profit. 
 
 Life and Times of David, King of Israel; or, The Life of 
 Faith Exemplified. By C. H. M. Third edition, revised, i2mo, 
 200 pp. Cloth, 60 cents. 
 
 The Gospel According to Moses, as seen in the Tabernacle and 
 Its Various Services. By Georoe Rogers. New edition, en- 
 larged i6mo, 124 pp. Paper, 50 cents; cloth, 75 cents. 
 
 This work is specially commended as a most striking unfolding of 
 the gospel in the old testament. An absorbingly interesting volume. 
 
 No preacher or teacher should be ignorant of the truth which this 
 small volume very simply but forcibly enunciates.— The Record. 
 
 Outline of the Books of the Bible. By Rev. J. H. Brookes, 
 D. D. Invaluable to the young student of the Bible as a First 
 Lessons in the study of the Bible. 180 pp.; cloth, 50 cents; paper 
 covers, 25 cents. 
 
 How to Study the Bible. By D. L. Moody. A valuable little 
 work which should be carefully studied by all who desire to enjoy 
 the study of the Book of books. Cloth, flexible, 15 cents; paper, 
 10 cents. 
 
 Ruth, the Moabitess; or, Gleanings in the Book of Ruth. By 
 Henry Moorehouse. A characteristic series of Bible readings, 
 full of suggestions and instruction. Neat i6mo, paper covers, 
 20 cents; cloth, gilt stamped, 40 cents, 
 
 Contains many fresh and original remarks, all tending to practical 
 usefulness; a capital bit of commenting on a favorite book.— Spur- 
 geon's Sword and Trowel. 
 
 Bible Readings. By Henry Moorehouse. A series of eleven ser- 
 mons of comment and exposition, by one pre-eminently the man 
 of one book — an incessant, intense, powerful student of the Bible. 
 Neat i6mo, paper covers, 30 cents; cloth, gilt stamped, 60 cents. 
 
 The Date Of Our Gospels. A critical argument and examination 
 of evidences, particularly regarding their authenticity and author- 
 ship. By Samuel Ives Curtiss, D. D., Union Park Theological 
 Seminary, Chicago. Square i6mo, neat, flexible cloth, 50 cents; 
 paper edition, 25 cents. 
 
 The argument is winnowed of superfluous words, and presents a 
 luminous and brief case.— New York Tn dependent. 
 
 FIT r> t^vitt t Chicago: 148 mad ISO Madison Street. 
 • -"■• JV&VJCLili, Kbw York: 148 and 150 Nassau Street. 
 
HELPS IN BIBLE STUDY. 
 
 Current Discussions In Theology. By the Professors of Chicago 
 Theological Seminary. Vol. I, cloth, i2mo, 248 pp., $1.00. Vol. 
 II, 328 pp., cloth, $1.50. Vol. Ill, 360 pp., $1.50. 
 
 There is nothing in our language of this kind. The American 
 student has had to choose between the exhaustive and unremitting 
 labors which are the price of first-hand knowledge, and reviews 
 which rarely fail of being colored with partiality or prejudice. The 
 volume before us is a helpful, fair and trustwerthy statement of the 
 present position and recent movements of theology.— The Independ- 
 ent. 
 
 It may be safely said that from no one book in the English lan- 
 guage can ministers gather so much recent information concerning 
 the topics treated.— Presbyterian Witness. 
 
 A New Catechism. By Rev. J. T. Hyde. A manual of instruction 
 for students and other thoughtful inquirers. Cloth, i2mo, $1.00. 
 
 Short Talks to Young Christians on the Evidences of Chris- 
 tianity. By Rev. C. O. Brown. Cloth, neat, 168 pp., 50 cents; 
 paper, 30 cents. 
 
 Books that are really useful on the evidences of Christianity could 
 almost be counted on one's fingers. One which is singled out from a 
 host of others by its plain straight-forward sense is Short Talks to 
 Young Christians on the Evidences, by Rev. C. O. Brown. This little 
 work is systematic without being technical, chatty without being 
 needlessly diffuse, and it is written in a style suitable for the reading 
 of elder youth.— Sunday School Times. 
 
 Practical and helpful, iust the thing to put into the hands of the 
 recent convert. They will richly repay perusal.— Interior. 
 
 The Life of Christ. By Rev. James Stalker, M. A. A new edi- 
 tion. Introduction by Rev. George C. Lorimer, D. D. 166 
 pp., neat, cloth, 60 cents. 
 
 This work is in truth a "MultuminParvo," containing within small 
 compass a vast amount of most helpful teaching, so admirably 
 arranged that the reader gathers with remarkable deflniteness the 
 whole revealed record of the lif e-work of our Lord in a nutshell of 
 space and with a minimum of study. 
 
 Christ and the Scriptures. By Rev. Adolph Saphir. Cloth, 
 l6mo, neat, 75 cents. 
 
 To all disciples of Jesus this work commends itself at once by its 
 grasp of truth, its insight, the life in it, and its spiritual force.— Chris- 
 tian Work. 
 
 In these days of doubt and hypercriticism such a volume breath- 
 ing a spirit of earnest devotion, lifting the mind to a better concep- 
 tion of the immeasurable worth of the Person and the Word, and 
 written too, by a son of Israel, cannot but be welcome and helpful. 
 
 Clifton Springs Bible Readings. Containing the Bible Reading, 
 and addresses given at the Conference of Believers at Clifton 
 Springs, N. Y., by Messrs. Brookes, Erdman. Whittle, Needham, 
 Parsons, Clark, Marvin and others. Square i6mo, 144 pp., cloth, 
 fine, 50 cents; paper covers, 25 cents. 
 
 FIT T> rvrT T Chicago: 148 and 150 Madison Street. 
 • ■"■• ■tN.Ji-ViLi.Jj, Nkw Yobx: i 48 and 15 o Nassau Street, 
 
HELPS IN CHRISTIAN WORK. 
 
 Children's Meetings and How to Conduct Them. By Lucy 
 J. Rider and Nellie M. Carman. Introduction by Rev. J. H. 
 Vincent, D. D. Contains contributions from over forty well- 
 known workers among children, and gives the cream of their 
 experience. The outline lessons (over sixty in number) diagrams, 
 and music will especially commend it to the thoughtful teacher. 
 208 pp., cloth, $1.00 net. 
 
 The volume will be heartily welcomed by many having this most 
 important part of the religious instruction of the young in hand.— 
 Zion's Herald. 
 
 Secret Power ; or, the Secret of Success in Christian Life and Chris- 
 tian Work. By D. L. Moody. Fifty-fifth thousand. i2mo vol- 
 ume, 116 pp., rich gilt and black stamp, cloth, 60 cents; cheap 
 edition, paper cover, 30 cents. 
 
 Every page is full of stimulating thought for Christian workers.— 
 Christian Commonwealth. 
 
 It is a good statement of the secret of success in Christian Life, by 
 one who has some claim to speak on such a theme.— The Outlook. 
 
 This series of earnest and solemn addresses bear throughout that 
 stamp of honest, eager earnestness, which is so striking a character- 
 istic of the writer's labors as a preacher.— Clerical World. 
 
 Thus Saith the Lord. Compiled by Major D. W. Whittle. 134 
 pp., cloth, flexible, 50 cents. 
 
 This little work is a hand-book for the Christian worker — a 
 manual of texts collected upon the leading subjects necessarily 
 treated in evangelistic and other Christian efforts, especially in 
 personal work. 
 
 How to Conduct Inquiry Meetings. By D. L. Moody, and 
 The Use of the Bible in Inquiry Meetings. By D. W. 
 
 Whittle. 40 pages and cover. Price 15 cents. 
 
 The Work of Preaching Christ. By Bishop Charles Pettitt 
 McIlvaine. A revised edition of an important little work. 
 Paper covers, 15 cents. 
 
 The Prayer Meeting and Its Improvement. By Rev. Lewis 
 O. Thompson, with introduction by Rev. A. E. Kittredge, D. 
 D. Sixth edition, revised. i2mo, 256 pp., $1.25. 
 
 A valuable, because a very suggestive book.— S. S. Times. 
 
 * * * This is so good a book that we wish we could afford to give 
 a copy of it to every young minister. Revive your prayer meetings 
 and the churches will be revived. Mr. Thompson says some capital 
 things in a telling manner, and, as his pages are full of Are and gun- 
 powder, we hope certain old, worn-out things among us will be 
 exploded, and good things set on fire. A brother who has this book 
 handy will be nelped to lead lively meetings, conducting them in 
 varied ways, and expatiating on different topics, so as to keep up 
 freshness and avoid monotony and dullness.— C. H. Spurgeon. 
 
 Revivals; Their Place and Power. By Rev. Herrick Johnson, D. 
 D. Cloth, flexible, 25 cents. 
 
 An admirable discussion of the subject.— Interior, 
 
 We know of no publication that covers the ground so briefly and 
 
 satisfactorily.— Baltimore Presbyterian. 
 
 Dr. Johnson's experience has qualified him to speak upon this 
 
 subject.— Indepenc lent. 
 
 Ftt p t?vt?t T Chicago: 148 and 150 Madison Street. 
 • -"■• JVU.Vil.J-.lj, Nkw York: 148 and 150 Nassau Street. 
 
HELPS IN CHRISTIAN WORK. 
 
 To the Work! To the Work! By D. L. Moody. Exhortations to 
 Christians. Paper covers, 30 cents; cloth, gilt dies, 60 cents. 
 
 This new work by Mr. Moody is in the line of his most successful 
 efforts, that of stirring Christians to active, personal, aggressive work 
 for the Master. Mr. Moody has frequently been heard to say that it 
 was much better to set 100 men to work than to do the work of 100 
 men. This little volume will, we confidently believe, be a means of 
 inspiring not hundreds but thousands to more efficient effort in Chris- 
 tian life. 
 
 HELPS FOR ENQUIRERS. 
 
 Life, Warfare and Victory. By Maj. D. W. Whittle. 124 pp., 
 cloth, neat, 60 cents; paper, 30 cents. 
 
 This book has been prepared in the midst of evangelistic work, to 
 meet the wish often expressed to the writer— that instruction given 
 in Bible readings to young converts might be made available 
 for their more careful study and permanent use.— Extract from 
 Preface. 
 
 The Way to Cod and How to Find It. By D. L.Moody. Fifty- 
 fifth thousand. A book for the inquirer and Christian worker. 
 Cloth, rich black and gold stamp, 60 cents; paper, tinted covers, 
 30 cents. 
 
 "Very earnest and powerful, abounding in apt illustrations, striking 
 thoughts, and helpful, encouraging words. This book is written in 
 the same plain, simple and pointed style that lends such force to his 
 spoken words. The volume should find many readers. Those that 
 buyit will not be disappointed.— Baptist National. 
 
 The way of salvation is made as clear as simple language and forci- 
 ble, pertinent illustration can make it. In two features it is equal to 
 anything that Mr. Moody has produced— in close adherence to the 
 Word of God, and in profound earnestness— while in simplicity, 
 directness of appeal and originality it is superior. It is a great matter 
 to send such a work, so full of Christ, all over the churches, where it 
 may, by the work of the Spirit, arrest the careless and move the un- 
 godly.— Lutheran Observer. 
 
 The Way and the Word. By D. L. Moody. Forty-fifth thousand. 
 Paper, 15 cents; cloth, 25 cents. 
 
 This little work contains a very clear statement on the important 
 subject Regeneration, to which is added Mr, Moody's valuable 
 hints on Bible reading. Mr. Moody has used this book by the 
 thousand, placing them in the hands of young converts at the close 
 of his meetings. 
 
 Grace and Truth Under Twelve Different Aspects. By W. 
 
 P. Mackay, M. A. Forty-eighth thousand of American edition. 
 The English edition has reached a sale of over two hundred 
 thousand, besides being translated into German, Spanish, Swed- 
 ish, Arabic, Italian, Dutch, Gaelic and Welsh. i2mo, 282 pp., 
 paper, 35 cents; cloth, fine, 75 cents. 
 
 Mr. D. L. Moody says of this work : I know of no book in print 
 better adapted to aid in the work of him who would be a winner of 
 souls, or to place in the hands of the unconverted. 
 
 FTT "RttVTTT T Chicago: 148 and 150 Madison Street. 
 
HELPS FOR ENQUIRERS. 
 
 My Inquiry Meeting; or, Plain Truths for Anxious Souls. By Rob 
 ert Boyd, D. D. Being the experience of a pastor during man- 
 years of personal dealing with anxious and careless souls. 64 pp 
 15 cents. 
 
 For simplicity, clearness and, force of statement, we have met 
 with nothing that equals this little volume. We can think of no bet- 
 ter service a pastor could render to Sunday-school teachers, and 
 other guides of souls, than to secure their reading of these pages. 
 Nor cculd inquirers have any better help in their search for truth.— 
 The Interior. 
 
 Glad Tidings. By Robert Boyd, D. D. A book for inquirers. 
 i2mo, 100 pp., cloth, neat, 50 cents; cheap edition, for circula- 
 tion, 25 cents. 
 
 This book has been used largely in connection with the great 
 revival meetings both in Great Britain and this land. 
 
 The Soul and Its Difficulties. By H. W. Soltau. Paper, 108 
 pp., 8 cents. 
 
 HOW to be Saved; or, the Sinner Directed to the Saviour. By J. H. 
 Brookes, D. D. 120 pp., paper cover, 25 cents; cloth, 50 cents. 
 
 Cod's Way of Salvation. By Alexander Marshall. A brief 
 statement of the Way of Life, with answers to popular objections. 
 Each brief page complete in itself, and containing a sermon in a 
 nutshell. 48 pages and covers, 5 cents. Per hundred, $2.50. 
 
 Doubts Removed. By Cesar Malan, D. D. Paper covers, 5 
 cents; per dozen, 50 cents. 
 
 It contains the clearest statements and illustrations on the subject 
 treated we have ever read. 
 
 Welcome to Jesus. By Rev. C. H. Spurgeon. A series of 4 page 
 tracts, with first page in attractive illuminated designs, etc. Four 
 different series, each containing 32 assorted. Price per pack- 
 age, 25 cents. Four different packets issued, Nos. 1, 2, 3 and 4. 
 
 POPULAR WORKS FOR ALL CLASSES. 
 
 Prevailing Prayer: What Hinders It? By D.L.Moody. Cloth 
 uniform with To the Work! Heaven, etc. Cloth, 60 cents; paper 
 covers, 30 cents. 
 
 An earnest and solemn work, full of helpful hints on the aids 
 and hindrances to prevailing prayer. 
 
 This great subject has been the theme of apostles and prophets, 
 and of all good men in all ages of the world ; and my desire in sending 
 forth this little volume is to encourage God's children to seek by 
 prayer "to move the arm that moves the world."— Extract from 
 Preface. 
 
 Full Assurance Of Faith. Being some Thoughts on Christian Con- 
 fidence. By D. L. Moody. Paper Covers, 15 cts.; cloth, 25cts. 
 
 FTJ T3 ttvitt t Chicago: 148 and 150 Madison Street. 
 • **• XUfcVJtlili, Nbw y 0BK . U8 and 150 NagBau Street 
 
POPULAR WORKS FOR ALL CLASSES. 
 
 Heaven; Where It Is; Its Inhabitants; and How to Get There. By D. 
 L. Moody. Eighty-eighth thousand. Tinted covers, 30 cents; 
 cloth, 60 cents. 
 
 While adapted to the humble capacity, it will command the atten- 
 tion of the mature and thoughtf ul.— National Presbyterian. 
 
 Mr. Moody's unfaltering faith and rugged enthusiasm are mani- 
 fested on every page.— Christian Advocate. 
 
 Eminently scriptural, earnest and impressive, will be welcomed by 
 thousands.— Zion's Herald. 
 
 Characterized by his apt, homely illustrations and not a few pithy 
 anecdotes, such as few can equal.— The Advance. 
 
 Twelve Select Sermons. By D. L. Moody. 110th thousand. 
 This volume contains those special sermons, which have appeared 
 to be most useiul, and under which there have been the greatest 
 results. Paper covers, 30 cents; cloth, neat, 60 cents. 
 
 Carefully revised by Mr. Moody, they present a volume of choice 
 and striking addresses, sure to command a large sale. 
 
 With the effect of these addresses when spoken, the whole land is 
 acquainted, and now that they are written, they will tend to keep in 
 force the impressions they have already made.— Methodist. 
 
 Mr. Moody's happy style, abounding in striking anecdote and 
 illustration, make it a most readable and convincing volume.— The 
 Watchman. 
 
 Full of earnest enthusiasm which characterizes everything Mr. 
 Moody does, and will be read with interest.— Detroit Free Press. 
 
 Daniel, the Prophet. An amplification and extension of Mr. Moody's 
 various lectures on the Life of Daniel. Paper covers, 20 cents; 
 cloth, 40 cents. 
 
 A small book, but big as regards the truth it contains. Every 
 worker in the Lord's vineyard would be helped by reading it.— Bail- 
 way Signal. 
 
 Birth-Day Memorial Text-Book. A handsome little volume with 
 a short text for every day in the year, with blank space opposite 
 for autographs. Especially attractive for children. 32mo, cloth, 
 black and gold stamp, 25 cents; per dozen, $2.50. 
 
 The Practice of the Presence of Cod. By "Brother Law- 
 rence." Being a small collection of remarkable letters and con- 
 versations of a monk. 64 pp., 241110, paper cover, 10 cents ; per 
 dozen, 75 cents. 
 
 Envelope Series of Tracts. By H. W. S., from "The Christian's 
 Secret of a Happy Life," comprising the following: 
 How to Enter into the Life. Faith: What it is. 
 
 Difficulties Concerning Consecration. Is God in Everything? 
 Difficulties Concerning Guidance. The Joy of Obedience. 
 
 Difficulties Concerning Faith. Practical Results. 
 
 Sold only in packets of one dozen copies. May be had either 
 assorted or all of the same kind. Price, per packet, 20 cents. 
 
 They will form an excellent collection of tracts for distribution 
 by those who wish their friends to share the "Life that is hid with 
 Christ." 
 
 Ft! p ■c"i7T?T t Chicago: 148 and 150 Madison Street. 
 • xx « XVH-VJ^l,!^ New Yokk . U8 and 150 Nassau street. 
 
POPULAR WORKS FOR ALL CLASSES. 
 
 The Scarlet Line. A most suggestive tract upon Joshua II and VI, 
 showing the close connection between the type of the Old Testa- 
 ment and the Antitype of the New. 36 pp. and cover, 5 cents ; 
 per hundred, $3.00. 
 
 Words Of Worth, from the Chicago Christian Convention. A verba- 
 tim report of the addresses before the Convention of October, 1882. 
 i2mo, 134 pp., paper, 25 cents. 
 
 The addresses by such men as Rev. Marcus Rainsf ord, Rev. Charles 
 Spurgeon, Dr. W. P. Mackay, Rev. A. T. Pierson, D. D. and others, 
 will be welcomed by many. 
 
 The Ministry of Healing; or, Miracles of Cure in all Ages. By 
 Rev. A. J. Gordon, D. D. Third edition, i2mo, fine cloth, 250 
 pp., $1.25. 
 
 Proofs of the practice of healing by the prayer of faith gathered 
 from all ages, with well attested instances from Augustine, Luther, 
 Baxter, Bengel, Irving, Erskine, Christlieb and others. 
 
 The history of the doctrine as held by Waldenses, Moravians, 
 Covenanters, Huguenots, Friends, Baptists, Methodists, etc. A full 
 account of the recent exercise of the ministry of healing through 
 faith, by Dorothea Trudell, Samuel Zeller, Pastor Blumhardt, Pastor 
 Rein, Pastor Stockmayer, Dr. Cullis, and others. With all this is 
 joined an extended examination of the subject in the light of Scrip- 
 ture, Church history, theology and experience. 
 
 In Christ; or, The Believer's Union with His Lord. By Rev. A. J. 
 Gordon, D. D. i2mo, fine cloth, 210 pages, $1.00. 
 
 We do not remember since Thomas a Kempis a book so thoroughly 
 imbued with great personal love to Christ. It is evidently the happy 
 result of hours of high communion with him.— Boston Courier. 
 
 The Two-Fold Life; or Christ's Work for Us, and Christ's Work in 
 Us. By Rev. A. J. Gordon, D. D. i2mo, fine cloth, 285 
 pages, $1.25. 
 
 This is a powerful and timely defence of Christian doctrine, experi- 
 ence and practice; of experience resulting from sound doctrine, and 
 of practice resulting from heart-felt experience. It is not contro- 
 versial, but a living testimony to the renovating power of the faith 
 once delivered to the saints. * * * Its perusal will amply repay 
 the reader who wishes to become a full-grown Christian.— C. H. 
 Spurgeon. 
 
 Grace and Glory. Sermons for the Life that Now Is and That which 
 Is to Come. By Rev. A. J. Gordon, D. D. i2mo, fine cloth, 
 
 355 P a g es > $ l -5 - 
 
 Here we have power without sensationalism ; calm thought, living 
 and earnest, expressed in forcible language; the doctrine orthodox, 
 evangelical, practical. We shall be surprised if these discourses are 
 not reprinted by an English house.— C. H. Spurgeon. 
 
 Abundant Grace. By W. P. Mackay, M. A., author of Grace and 
 Truth. With preface by Rev. J. H. Brooks, D. D., and brief 
 biographical sketch of the late author. 250 pages, fine beveled 
 cloth, $ 1. 00. 
 
 The Holy Life. A book for Christians seeking the " Rest of Faith." 
 By Rev. Evan H. Hopkins. Fifth thousand. i8mo, 115 pp., 
 cloth, beveled edge, 60 cents. 
 
 FTJ T> t?t7"i?t t Chicago: 148 and 150 Madison Street. 
 . n. JS.iJ.Vh.LI,, New Yorx . 148 and 150 Na88au street. 
 
POPULAR WORKS FOR ALL CLASSES. 
 
 The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life. By Hannah Whit- 
 all Smith; author of The Open Secret." Revised edition from 
 entirely new plates. i2mo, 240 pp., paper 50 cents; cloth, 75 
 cents ; cloth, gilt, $1.00. 
 
 A book we unhesitatingly recommend. We have not for years 
 read a book with more delight and profit.— Southwestern Christian 
 Advocate. 
 
 We are delighted with the book. It reaches the very core of 
 Christian experience.— Baptist Weekly. 
 
 Worthy of universal circulation.— Christian Union. 
 
 The Open Secret. By Hannah Whitall Smith, author of "Chris- 
 tian's Secret of a Happy Life," etc. 320 pp., cloth, $1.00. 
 
 That the author of this work has a faculty of presenting the "Secret 
 Things" that are revealed in the Word of God is apparent to all who 
 have read the exceedingly popular work "The Christian's Secret of a 
 Happy Life," and such will not be disappointed in expecting to find 
 in this new volume a fulless and sweetness in the unfolding of God's 
 Word, in its application to the practical daily duties of christian living. 
 
 Walking Worthy of Cod. A reprint from the works of Rev. John 
 Flavell, with an introduction by (and published at the request 
 of) Maj. D. W. Whittle. A valuable book for circulation — an 
 incentive to Christian living. Square, i6mo, 43 pp., 15 cents. 
 
 Gems from Northfield. A Record of the best thoughts exchanged 
 at the Conference for Bible study, convened at Northfield, by D. 
 L. Moody. i2mo, 116 pp., cloth, $1.00. 
 
 The thoughts and expositions of Scripture which are presented in 
 this volume are of rare practical value.— Herald and Presbyter. 
 
 Recollections of Henry Moorehouse, Evangelist. By George 
 
 C. Needham. 240 pp., i5mo, cloth, beveled, $1.00. 
 
 Mr. Moorehouse, the young English evangelist, was well-known 
 throughout this country, and the volume is the most interesting 
 biographical sketch of this remarkable man — a real inspiration. 
 
 Christians of every name gathered about him: and ministers with 
 long years of successful work, and young converts just entering the 
 field alike sat at his feet to study the Word, * * * I hope that the 
 story of his life will lead many who have not come under his per- 
 sonal influence to e more thorough study of God's word.— D.L.Moody. 
 
 Plain Talks About the Theatre. By Rev. Herrick Johnson, 
 
 D. D. Fifth thousand. 84 pp., cloth, 50 cents; paper, 20 cents. 
 
 Probably the modern theatre never received such a raking fire. - 
 Zion'8 Herald. 
 
 As crushing as a charge of cavalry, and as convincing as logic can 
 make truth. A terrific indictment of the theatre— The Advance. 
 
 Way Christian's Dance? By Rev. J. H. Brookes, D. D. 144pp., 
 i6mo., cloth, 50 cents; paper covers, 25 cents. 
 
 An able and wholesome consideration of the question from a 
 Christian point of view.— Zion's Herald. 
 
 Ft! T> -wfUTrt T Chicago: 148 and 150 Madison Street. 
 • **• J^-lfiVJtlyli, N , w y OEK . U8 ftnd 150 Naggau g trett 
 
POPULAR WORKS FOR ALL CLASSES. 
 
 Fred's Dark Days. By Rose Hartwick Thorpe. A story of hero- 
 ism in boyhood, written in an attractive style by the author of 
 "Curfew Must Not Ring To-night," and "The Yule Log." An 
 excellent book for the young. 139 pp., cloth, 75 cents. 
 
 Fifty Years and Beyond; or, Old Age and How to Enjoy It. Com- 
 piled by Rev. S. G. Lathrop. Twenty-fifth thousand. One 
 large i2mo volume, of over 400 pages, $1.00. Presentation edi- 
 tion, gilt edges, $1.50. 
 
 The object of this volume is to give to that great army who are 
 fast hastening -toward the "great beyond" some practical hints and 
 helps as to the best way to make the most of the remainder of the 
 life that now is, and to give comfort and help as to the life that is 
 to come. 
 
 Songs for the Service of Prayer. Compiled by R. S. Thain, 
 assisted by A. E. Kittredge, D. D., E. P. Goodwin, D. D., and 
 W M. Lawrence, D. D. A book specially adapted for use in 
 the social meetings of the church. Cloth, 240 pp.. 60 cents. 
 Special terms to churches for introduction. 
 
 Revell's Record for Church Treasurers. The most convenient 
 record yet published. Weekly envelope system. Simple, prac- 
 tical and systematic. Bound in half leather, quarto, $1.50. 
 
 The Wlan Traps of the City. By Rev. Thomas E. Green. 
 
 A book of timely warnings, where sin and crime are shorn of 
 their mask. The life of the profligate is not presented in attrac- 
 tive colors, but in such a way as to stand forth in its true light— a 
 thing to be abhorred. 
 
 140 pages, cloth, rich gold stamp, 75 cents. Same in illumin- 
 ated paper covers, 35 cents. 
 
 Woman's Ministry, and other Expository Addresses. By Mrs. 
 George C. Needham. 137 pp., i6mo, cloth, 75 cents. 
 
 The first expository address gives character to this book. It is 
 literally an exposition bearing on the question of woman's relation 
 to preaching and teaching. 
 
 Interesting and Instructive Readings for the Young. By 
 
 C. H. Jones. Illustrated. A collection, original and selected, 
 of Stories for Children and Youth. 357 pp., carmine cloth, rich 
 gilt stamp, $1.00. This collection is not only entertaining, but is 
 practically helpful and instructive. 
 
 F H RFVET T Chicago: 143 and 150 Madlgon Street. 
 
 r. n. XS.JJ.VJCLL, Nbw Yobk . U8 and 160 Na „. u \~ 5 ; t 
 
 150 Nassau Street. 
 
 "icT"" 
 
PREMILLENNIAL WORKS. 
 
 Pre-Nllllennlal Essays. A series of papers on prophetical subjects 
 by eminent writers. Edited by Nathaniel West, D. D. Issued 
 in one large i2mo volume of 500 pages, $1.50. Among the con- 
 tributors to this volume are are Rev. S. H. Kellogg, D. D.; Rev. 
 A. S. Gordon, D, D.; Rev. H. M. Parsons, D. D.; Bishop Nich- 
 olson; Rev. J. H. Biookes, D. D.; Dr. W. P. Mackay, M. A. 
 
 Those who desire to have, within the compass of a single volume, 
 all that is necessary to an intelligent consideration of the subject, 
 will find it here in a very readable form. It is certainly the ablest 
 work that has appeared on the pre-millennlal side.— Canada Presby- 
 terian. 
 % The best treatment of this subl ect from the pre-millennial side that 
 
 has ever been published.— The Standard. 
 
 Are Pre- Millennia lists Right? or, Reasons for Believing in the 
 Pre-Millennial Advent of Christ, with a Brief Review of the 
 Objections of Dr. Brown and others. By S. H. Kellogg, D. D. 
 Paper, i2mo, 84 pp., and cover, 25 cents. 
 
 Maranatha; or, the Lord Cometh. By Rev. J. H. Brookes, D. D. 
 445 PP'*> cloth, $1.25; paper, 50 cents. 
 
 Second Coming of Christ. By Rev. J. H. Brookes, D. D. Price 
 15 cents. 
 
 The Blessed Hope; or, The Glorious Coming of the Lord. By 
 Willis Lord, D. D. New and cheaper edition. A practical 
 treatise; a volume well adapted to lead to a more joyous Christian 
 life. 250 pp., cloth, $1.00. Cheap edition, for circulation, paper 
 covers, o»ly 25 cents. 
 
 Second Coming of Christ. By George Muller, of Bristol, Eng. 
 A neat little tract of 32 pages, suitable for circulation. Per dozen 
 40 cents; 100 copies, $2.50. 
 
 Jesus Is Coming. By W. E. B. A most popular hand book. Six- 
 teenth thousand. Giving seven arguments in favor of the pre- 
 millennial coming — stating the distinction between the Rapture 
 and the Revelation, and between the Church and the Kingdom — 
 and containing a diagram, with explanations. New, enlarged 
 edition, 160 pp., cloth, 50 cents; paper covers, 15 cents. 
 
 Twenty Reasons for Believing that the Second Coming of the 
 Lord is Near. 34 pp. and cover, neat, 15 cents. Per dozen, $1.00. 
 
 Epiphainia. A study in Prophecy. By E. J. Edgren, Professor of 
 Biblical Interpretation in the Morgan Park Theological Seminary. 
 i6mo, 112 pp., cloth, neat, 75 cents. 
 
 Dr. Edgren writes as one who both loves and reveres the Sacred 
 Word. He has altogether made a book creditable in a literary not 
 less than in an evangelical point of view.— Chicago Standard. 
 
 Waiting for the Morning, and Other Poems. By the author of 
 "Twenty Reasons for Believing the Coming of the Lord is Near." 
 Square i6mo, 54 pp., red line, cloth, 50 cts.; paper covers, 25 cts. 
 
 The Second Coming of Christ. By D. L. Moody. Revised. 
 Forty-second thousand. 32 pp. and cover, 10c. Per doz., $1.00. 
 
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