MESSIAH’S KINGDOM - Christmas Evans
SERMON VII.
MESSIAH’S KINGDOM.
“And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter; and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.”—Dan. ii. 44, 45.
In these words we have a prophetic description of the kingdom of Christ, as the fifth empire that should arise after the date of this prophecy. The wonderful image which so troubled the king of Babylon in his dream, and occasioned him so much solicitude when he awoke, denoted four of the great empires of the world. The head of gold represented the Babylonian empire; the breasts and arms of silver, the Medo-Persian empire; the belly and thighs of brass, the Grecian empire, under Alexander the Great; the legs and feet of iron, the Roman empire in its strength and glory; and the ten toes of mingled iron and clay, the same empire in its divided and enfeebled state. The last circumstance was intended to denote the same thing as the ten horns on the head of the Beast in the book of Revelation. As iron is firm and strong, and able to bruise and break all materials of a softer quality; so the Roman empire once crushed beneath its power all other kingdoms, and dictated laws to the world. As the beast with iron teeth trampled and rent to pieces all that came in its way; so the Roman tyrant, like a lion among the lambs of the flock, tore and devoured the followers of the meek and lowly Jesus.
The kingdom of Christ is represented under the figure of “a p. 141stone cut out of the mountain without hands:” that is, without human agency—without any wisdom or power of man, but by the Spirit of God; smiting the feet of the image, and shattering it into fragments; then becoming a great mountain, and filling the whole earth. In the history of Christianity we have the counterpart of the emblem. Messiah appeared in the form of a servant; born of a poor virgin, in the despised town of Bethlehem; lived a life of poverty, persecution, and various sorrow, from the manger to the tree; died the most painful and ignominious of deaths, even the accursed death of the cross; but rose from the dead on the predicted morning, the morning of the third day; commissioned his apostles, the fishermen of Galilee, to “go into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature;” ascended on high, and sent down the Holy Spirit, the promised Comforter, to give energy and efficacy to the word, to prove its divinity, and convince and save mankind. The apostles immediately commenced their work; persevered in the divine employment; were prospered by the power of God; and the stone, rolling forth from Mount Zion, and raising a dust which darkened the very heavens, smote the feet and legs of the image, until it shook, and the earth trembled around it; and that stone is still rolling on, and shall crush and demolish the image, and grind it to powder, and scatter it to the winds of heaven; and shall increase, till it becomes a great mountain, and fills the whole earth for ever.
In speaking of the accomplishment of this prophecy, we will notice—its certainty, its attendant glory, and the nearness of its approach.
I. The certainty of the accomplishment of this prophecy is founded, first, on the Father’s promise to the Son, made on the express condition of his pouring out his soul unto death. “I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thy hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles, to open the blind eyes, to bring forth the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison-house.” Christ’s universal dominion is the promised reward of his sufferings, and the Father speaks as if he intended to raise his wages. “Thus saith the Lord; It is a light thing that thou shouldst be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and restore the preserved of Israel; I will also give thee for a light of the p. 142gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the ends of the earth.” “Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.” Such is the promise. All nations shall come and worship before him. All that the Father hath given shall come unto him, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against them.
The certainty of Messiah’s universal dominion is founded, secondly, on his perfect qualification to accomplish the work which the Father hath given him to do. “No one knoweth the Father,” in all the perfection of his nature, all the wisdom of his counsels, and all the immutability of his purposes, “but the Son; and no one knoweth the Son, but the Father,” as he alone is of the same essence, and exhibits the same attributes. Christ is “God manifest in the flesh;” “the brightness of the Father’s glory, and the express image of his person.” None but a divine person could give, and none but a divine person could receive, such a privilege as is here promised. None but a divine person could be competent to the eternal redemption of countless millions of the human race. Christ “is the true God, and Eternal Life”—“the Faithful Witness, the First Begotten from the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the earth”—“the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the Ending, the First and the Last”—“the Root and the Offspring of David, and the Bright and Morning Star”—“Over all, God, blessed for ever.” These are Messiah’s titles, which evince his equality to the work which he has undertaken—the salvation of the world, and the subjugation of all things unto himself. He is able, not only to set up his kingdom, but also to establish it for ever. It shall never be destroyed, nor left to other people; but shall break in pieces and destroy all other kingdoms, and the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdom of our God and of his Christ.
Take courage, ye fearful saints! Your king is the Almighty God. He shall conquer all your enemies. The victory of Calvary is the pledge and earnest of his universal dominion. You shall soon be more than conquerors, through him that hath loved you, and given himself for you. He is able to protect you against the combined powers of earth and hell. Omniscient, he is well acquainted with all the plots of his enemies; Almighty, he can at any moment frustrate them. The prince of darkness, with all his hosts, cannot impede the progress of his kingdom. In all their councils, he is p. 143present, hearing their deliberations and discovering their malice. He overturns their schemes, or employs them for the accomplishment of his own gracious purposes. “His counsel shall stand, and he will do all his pleasure.” Too wise to err, and too powerful to be overcome, he marches in the van of battle, and will never forsake his soldiers. The very sight of his helmet and his plume is victory to his followers, and death to his foes.
Courage, ye friends of Zion! “Lift up your hearts and rejoice, for your redemption draweth nigh.” Take the whole armor of God; quit you like men; be strong; for the decisive conflict is at hand. Behold your General, clothed with a garment white as snow, girt about the loins with a golden girdle, his feet as fine brass burning in a furnace, his countenance as the sun shining in his strength, his eyes as a flame of fire, his voice as the sound of many waters, a sharp two-edged sword proceeding out of his mouth, seven stars in his right hand, and at his girdle the keys of death and hell. This is the Captain of your salvation, of whom the Evangelical Prophet inquires—“Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength?” This is Emmanuel; mighty to conquer, and mighty to save. Who can stand before the glory of his power? Who can hinder the universal triumph of his cause? The government shall be upon his shoulder, and he shall reign for ever and ever.
What has been said is deemed sufficient to show the certainty of Messiah’s universal empire. The promises of the Father to the Son are so many drafts of immense amount, upon the bank of heaven, which will be paid without discount at the appointed time; and the character of Christ is a sufficient guarantee that he will carry forward to its completion the work which he has begun. Having secured a title to the kingdom by his sufferings, he shall certainly come, and take possession, and reign for ever. The gospel is a lever, whose fulcrum is the Rock of Ages, and it shall yet lift our fallen world to heaven. Balaam knew that his curses could not injure Israel, whom Jehovah had blessed. The kingdom of Messiah is mightier than Moab. The people beloved of the Lord shall prosper in spite of their enemies—as gardens by the rivers, and willows by the water-courses. “There shall be a handful of corn,” not a sackful, only so much as the sower may hold in his p. 144hand—not on the bank of the Nile, nor in the valley of the Jordan, but “on the top of the mountain”—the wild, high, rocky, uncultivated mountain; “the fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon,” and the wind shall carry the seed to the uttermost parts of the earth, and young Lebanons shall grow up everywhere, and even the barren rocks and sands of Arabia shall become as the garden of God. It was but a handful of the seed of the kingdom, which Peter cast abroad on the day of Pentecost; it was but a handful he sowed in the house of Cornelius, the captain of the Italian band; but it soon spread throughout Judea, and even to the isles of the sea, so that nothing was more manifest or more abundant than its fruit. But the prevalence of Christ’s millennial kingdom shall be still more rapid and glorious; and “from the rising to the setting of the sun, his name shall be great among the Gentiles.”
Already the church is singing—“Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O thou Most Mighty; and in thy majesty, ride prosperously, because of truth, and meekness, and righteousness. Thine arrows are sharp in the hearts of the king’s enemies, whereby the people fall under thee.” The song has reached the ear of the Prince of Darkness, and he “hath come in great wrath” to the battle, “for he knoweth that he hath but a short time.” He knows that “the Desire of nations” is come; and that his kingdom, already begun, shall be established for ever, and extend from sea to sea, till the knowledge of his glory and the victories of his grace shall cover the earth. He sees the Stone rolling against the idols of India, and Africa, and the islands of the sea, and feels his kingdom shake beneath its progress. He sees the Bramins, the Karens, the worshippers of Juggernaut and the Ganges, plucked as brands out of the burning. He trembles to anticipate the announcement—“The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ!” He beholds the mighty angel, with the keys of the bottomless pit, and a great chain in his hand, descending from heaven, to bind him in his prison. He hates the church, with her various benevolent enterprises; for he sees in them the artillery of Heaven, playing upon his fortresses of infidelity, and idolatry, and vice—the enginery of God, setting up a kingdom which shall consume all others, and stand for ever. “The dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof is sure.”
II. We call your attention to the glory of Messiah’s universal p. 145reign. It includes three things; the victory obtained, the blessings bestowed, and the duration of the kingdom. Let us consider them distinctly.
First. The victory obtained. Here we behold the “stone cut out of the mountain,” rolling down the steep, rushing and leaping toward the great image, and smiting and breaking its feet of iron and clay, so that it falls like Dagon before the ark. And still the Stone, instinct with the power of God, and increasing in size and velocity, keeps rolling to and fro, bounding and rebounding, till it grinds the fallen image to powder, and scatters it as the dust of the summer thrashing-floor. It is endued with perpetual motion; keeping up a constant action and reaction, crushing whatever opposes its progress, and growing to such a magnitude as shall shortly fill the whole earth. This is the salt of Galilee, seasoning the nations—the leaven of Jerusalem, spreading through the world. This is the victorious reign of Christ, from the Tiber to the Thames, from the Euphrates to the Ganges, from Britain to Japan, from sea to sea, and from pole to pole. This glorious conquest is to be obtained by “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;” in connection with the vast machinery of Divine Providence, all the wheels of which are under the direction of Jesus the Christ. It is a victory over Satan, by bruising his head; a victory over sin, by destroying its power; a victory over death, by swallowing it up for ever. Emmanuel has already successfully engaged all these foes; and having routed them on Calvary eighteen hundred years ago, he still pursues their flight; and shall not turn again, till he has trampled “the last enemy” under his feet.
Satan is the prince and the god of this world. In the management of his affairs, he employs a policy similar to that of the Sultan of Constantinople, who sets up many pashas or governors under him, as the Pasha of Egypt, the Pasha of Aleppo, the Pasha of Damascus, all possessing the same despotic spirit, and carrying out the same tyrannical measures. The devil has established a great number of pashas throughout his dominion. Three of them are described by the Revelator, as unclean spirits, like frogs; one of them issuing from the mouth of Satan himself, representing undisguised Paganism; another from the mouth of the Beast, representing a persecuting civil power; the third from the mouth of the False Prophet, representing abominable and damnable heresies. p. 146But these shall all be conquered; these, and every other enemy of Messiah upon earth. Jewish impenitence and unbelief, which, for a period of eighteen centuries, has ruled with an absolute sceptre the lineal descendants of Abraham, shall be overcome. Mohammedism, the “king of fierce countenance, understanding dark sentences,” that has reigned over so large a portion of the world, practicing and prospering, deceiving millions of souls, and destroying the holy people, shall be broken without hand, and his kingdom shall come to naught. The drunken harlot of Rome, riding on her scarlet beast, that is, a cruel and persecuting civil government, and making all nations drink of the wine of her fornication, shall be obliged to drink the wine of the wrath of Almighty God; and all the saints shall clap their hands at her overthrow, and shout hallelujah to the Captain of their salvation. And all those Protestant pashas of Satan, who would undermine the gospel by denying its peculiar and fundamental doctrines—such as the Divinity of Christ, the merit of his sacrifice, the excellency of his offices, the personality and work of the Holy Spirit—and even the existence of his own infernal majesty, shall be destroyed by the brightness of Emmanuel’s coming, when he shall appear in the glory of his millennial kingdom. Then shall the song of the heavenly host break once more upon the ear of Zion—“Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee!” And “the Gentiles shall come to her light, and kings to the brightness of her rising.” “Her sons shall come from far, and her daughters shall be nursed at her side.” “The glory of the Lord shall be displayed, and all flesh shall see it together.”
Secondly. The blessings bestowed. Christ “hath ascended on high, and received gifts for men; yea for the rebellious also, that God may dwell among them.” The celestial reservoir is full; and the golden pipes are laid, for conveying the waters of life to every soul of man; and the time shall yet come, when all shall know the Lord, from the least to the greatest. The gospel salvation shall be an ocean, spreading over the whole earth; and there shall be no more ebbing and flowing of the waters, but a continual full tide from shore to shore. The Chinese, the Hottentot, and the American Indian, shall be as thoroughly instructed in Divine things as the Welshman; and the Welshman shall be seven times more intelligent than now. And this universally prevalent knowledge of p. 147Christ shall be, not merely nominal and theoretical, but experimental and practical. It shall be a “faith unfeigned,” “of the operation of God,” “working by love, and purifying the heart.” The light of the gospel shall be “as the sun shining in his strength,” scattering all clouds from the face of the world, and the moon and the stars shall be lost in its effulgence. Living waters shall flow out from the spiritual Jerusalem in summer and winter; neither frozen by the cold, nor evaporated by the heat. Like the deluge of Noah, they shall cover the mountains; but they shall save, and not destroy, all whom they shall overwhelm. “In that day, there shall be one Lord, and his name shall be one;” and he “shall be king over all the earth.” The cause of Christ shall be pre-eminent in the estimation of mankind. The duties and interests of Christianity shall constitute no secondary concern. “The mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the tops of the mountains, and exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it.”
Among the blessings of this happy period, shall be that of a universal and everlasting peace. There shall be no more contention and bloodshed upon earth. “Nation shall no more lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” The arsenals shall empty their contents into the foundries and blacksmith-shops, and the weapons of war shall be converted into scythes and plowshares. O, glorious day! when heaven shall be seen upon earth, and earth itself shall seem like heaven! Behold the ferocious wolf dwelling with the gentle lamb; the furious leopard lying down with the innocent kid; the cow and the bear feeding in the same pasture; the infant leading the lion by the mane, and playing upon the den of the adder and the asp; and no disposition to hurt or destroy. These are the scriptural emblems of that blessed peace. Holiness and happiness, more united than David and Jonathan, more inseparable than Ruth and Naomi, hand in hand, two heavenly twins, shall go singing over the world. All envy and jealousy and hostility, whether of nations, of churches, or of individuals, shall perish before Messiah’s kingdom, as perished the image in the vision before that wondrous stone.
Thirdly. The duration of the kingdom. This is the crowning circumstance of its glory. It “shall not be destroyed, nor left to other people.” Its enemies, however numerous and mighty, cannot overthrow it; and it “shall stand for ever.” Where now are the p. 148illustrious empires of Babylon, and Persia, and Greece, and Rome? Where are the Pharaohs, the Ptolemies, the Alexanders, the Cæsars, the Napoleons, whose voice terrified nations, and whose tread shook the world? Where—with all their power and splendor, their iron sceptres and golden crowns? Gone; mouldering in the dust; and their magnificence nourishes the worm. They are utterly demolished, and shall rise no more. But the King of Zion liveth through all time, and is himself “the Father of Eternity,” “the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the Ending, the First and the Last.” “His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and of his dominion there shall be no end.”
III. Let us consider the nearness of its approach. The language of prophecy, viewed in connection with the signs of the times, will lead us to the conclusion that it is nigh at hand, even at the door.
Many learned divines are of opinion that Popery and Mohammedism, the Antichrists of the east and the west, must fall about the year 1866. This notion is founded on the following words: “From the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and threescore days—Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days.” [148] Different writers on the prophecies, however, differ in opinion concerning the times of their fulfilment. All these speculations are very uncertain, if not utterly unprofitable. What matters it, if our watches do not exactly agree? We all know that the night is far spent, and the day is at hand, and the magnitude and importance of our duty requires prompt and earnest attention.
Five men were determined to rise early in the morning, to engage in a great work, upon which depended their future fortunes. The first was up before the morning star; and though uncertain as to the hour, immediately prepared for business. The second, when he rose, saw the star just above the horizon, and hastened to his work with animation and joy. The third slept a little too long, and awoke in great confusion and alarm; but hurrying through the day as well as he could, though with a heavy heart and many a blunder, he made out partially to redeem his delinquency. The p. 149fourth heard the cock crowing, but thought there was no need of being in a hurry, and composed himself to sleep again; and when his neighbors called him, turned in his bed, and answered—“A little more slumber;” and awaking about nine of the clock, found the day too far advanced, and abandoned his purpose in despair. The fifth, disturbed by the bustle of the others before daylight, got up and looked out of the window; and finding it as dark as it was at midnight, was very angry, called his neighbors a set of fools, and declared he would have nothing to do with the enterprise; and while all the others made themselves rich, he lived and died in deserved poverty; and some pitied him for his misfortune, and others ridiculed him for his folly. Mark the wise man, and follow his example.
The kingdom of Antichrist has of late been greatly weakened in many parts of the world. Providence is pouring the vials of wrath upon the Beast and the False Prophet. The idols and altars of Paganism fall before the advancing ark of God. The church, with its train of benevolent institutions—like the bride, with her attendant virgins, going forth to meet the royal bridegroom—proclaims the coming of the Prince of Peace. The Bible, Missionary, Sabbath-school, and Tract societies, are four heralds, running before Messiah’s chariot; rather, the four wheels of that chariot in which he rides victoriously.
The rise and progress of the British and Foreign Bible Society remind me of the stream in Ezekiel’s vision. This great river had its source in one of the mountains of Wales. In the year 1802, the Rev. Mr. Charles of Bala, an ordained minister of the established church, officiating in connection with the Calvinistic Methodists, deeply impressed with the preciousness of the Bible, and aware of the scarcity of copies throughout the principality, felt that some measures ought to be adopted to furnish it at a reduced price, and circulate it gratuitously among the poor. He wrote concerning it to his countryman, the Rev. Mr. Owen, an Episcopal clergyman in London. The subject was subsequently introduced to a circle of Christian gentlemen, who had met to transact other business. It elicited much conversation, and excited a lively interest. The Rev. Joseph Hughes, a Welshman, and Baptist minister at Battersea, near London, suggested that Wales was not the only part of the world that felt a want of the Bread of Life; and that it was p. 150desirable to awaken, if possible, a more extensive interest on the subject among Christians of every name; and stir them up to the adoption of some measure, which might lead to a general circulation of the Scriptures. The suggestion was heartily entertained, and warmly supported by the rest of the company; and its discussion led to those incipient efforts, which, in 1804, issued in the organization of the British and Foreign Bible Society. The little spring of Bala soon became a stream large enough for a man to swim in; and now it widens and deepens into a great river, on which float the merchandise of Zion, and the navies of God.
Welshmen! it is your privilege and honor, as well as your duty, to sustain this excellent institution. It is a native of Wales, born in your northern mountains. It is your own child, and you are bound to protect and support it to the extent of your ability. I call upon you as Welshmen, to aid an institution originating in Welsh philanthropy. I call upon you as Welsh Baptists, to help forward an enterprise which sprang from the heart of a Welsh Baptist minister. I appeal to you in the language of another:—
“The cause in which we are engaged is the cause of God, and must succeed. Divine goodness has inspired, divine wisdom and power will sustain it. The Bible will be carried throughout the habitable globe. Nor deserts—nor oceans—nor Alpine solitudes—nor Himalayan heights, will obstruct its progress. It will go through polar ice and equatorial fire, wherever a soul may possibly be saved. It will go on victorious, like the sword of the Lord and of Gideon, carrying every thing before it. Error and delusion must vanish as the mists of the morning before the rising splendor of the sun. The powers of darkness must recede like spectres before the bursting of the day-spring from on high. False gods and their altars must fall together in the dust. The followers of Confucius and Zoroaster will take up their cross and follow Christ. The wandering Arab will sit and sing at Messiah’s feet; and the deluded disciples of Mohammed, instead of going in painful pilgrimage to Mecca, will turn their penitent eyes to Calvary. The dark places of the earth will be enlightened, and the habitations of cruelty will become the abodes of love. Rivers will no longer roll with human blood, nor sacrificial fires be fed with human victims. Mothers will no longer destroy their innocent children, nor aged parents be immolated by their inhuman offspring. Marriage will be instituted p. 151in places where it is now unknown, and savage practices be supplanted by the virtuous institutions of the gospel. The Cannibal of New Zealand will be humanized, and the Caffre and the Hottentot clothed and in their right minds. The descendants of Abraham must be gathered from the four quarters of the earth; Jerusalem arise and shine; and the dejected Jordan roll his streams with joy. Barren climes will teem with life—dreary deserts blossom as the rose. Rivers of salvation will run down the hills, and fertilize the plains. The Saviour will ride forth in the chariot of the everlasting gospel, conquering and to conquer. Nations will fall down before him, and mountains melt at his approach. And thus nation after nation will be converted, and empire upon empire will be conquered; and Christianity will spread from clime to clime, and from pole to pole; until the final arrival of the blessed day, when the knowledge of the Lord shall literally cover the earth as the waters cover the deep—when there shall be but one people and one God—when the millennial day shall burst upon the earth, like a flood of glory from on high—when the trump of Jubilee shall sound, and countless millions of the redeemed shall sing, Hallelujah! the Lord God omnipotent reigneth!”
Such, brethren, is the approaching triumph of Emmanuel. The mighty angel, having found an old copy of the everlasting gospel, which the Pope had kept locked up in his bureau for many centuries, is flying in the midst of heaven, in sight of all the world. His progress is rapid as the wings of the wind, and his sweet strong voice is publishing the glad tidings to all people. But we look for greater things than these. Following, comes another mighty angel, casting a great millstone into the sea, and saying—“Thus shall Babylon, that great city, be thrown down, and found no more at all.” Another follows, crying with a loud voice—“Babylon is fallen, is fallen!” Another descends with the key and the chain, and binds the dragon in the bottomless pit. Then appears one “like unto the Son of Man,” sitting upon a white cloud, and wearing a golden crown. He thrusts in his sharp sickle, and reaps the harvest of the earth, and gathers the wheat into his garner, the church. Again the sickle falls, and the vintage of wickedness is gathered, and cast into the wine-press of the wrath of Almighty God. Then comes the voice of a great multitude, as of many waters and mighty thunderings—the blended p. 152minstrelsy of earth and heaven—ascribing salvation and dominion and glory to him that sitteth upon the throne, and to the Lamb for ever and ever.
The Prince of Darkness, with all his infernal hosts, and all his allies upon earth, is fearfully agitated, as he witnesses the preparation for the great decisive battle. “Why so much benevolence? Why so many societies? Why such extraordinary schemes and efforts?” Nothing disturbs them so much as the sight of Emmanuel’s troops, with their faces toward the field of Armageddon, led on by the Captain of their Salvation, on his white horse, with his vesture dipped in blood. They know that this is the Lion of the tribe of Judah; and the redness of his apparel, reminding them of their defeat when he bruised their heads on Calvary, shoots consternation and anguish through all their ranks; and the gates of hell tremble at the shaking of the iron rod in his hand, which shall dash them in pieces as a potter’s vessel. But the saints are rejoicing in his train; for they know that not one of the faithful shall perish—that not one of them shall be wounded—that each shall be more than conqueror, and all shall appear with songs of everlasting joy at the marriage supper of the Lamb.
And now, my brethren, children of my heavenly Father, of every name and order, loved with the same love, redeemed with the same blood, called by the same Spirit, clothed with the same garment, fed on the same manna, engaged in the same cause—the great Missionary enterprise—as you love the Savior, as you appreciate his salvation, as you desire the introduction of his millennial kingdom, we beseech you to give us a liberal contribution!
We are now ready to receive your money for Missionary purposes; and while you are casting it into the treasury, let me remind you that your gold and your silver are beautiful birds plumed for flight, that Christian liberality is the scissors with which you may clip their wings, and a short winged bird is better than none. May we all act to-day as stewards of the Lord, in the immediate presence of our Master, before whom we must soon appear to account for the use made of our talents; and when the time of reckoning shall come, may each receive the gracious plaudit—“Well done, good and faithful servant! thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many! Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord!” Amen.
Christmas Evans