Pay Attention!

A bit astray from anything Presbyterian, but this is an interesting story that I had noted in an old issue of Christianity Today [original series, 1930-1949]. Adolf von Harnack was a noted Lutheran theologian and church historian [1851-1930]; not one to emulate in his theology, but an interesting fellow, nonetheless.

LIBRARY OF ADOLF von HARNACK

The library of the great German theologian, Professor Dr. Adolf von Harnack has been bought by the Prussian Ministry for Public Worship and divided between the National Library and the theological faculty of the University of Berlin. Amongst the treasures of this collection is a very costly edition of the works of St. Augustine on parchment, which came into the possession of Professor Harnack in a strange manner. He was one day buying oranges in the market-place of Messina in Italy when his attention was attracted by the paper in which the fruit-seller packed his wares. A brief examination convinced him that the parchment belonged to a very rare edition of St. Augustine’s works. He bought up all the packing paper and as it happened that von Harnack was the first customer for whom the paper was used, he came into the possession of the complete edition.

[excerpted from Christianity Today, 3.8 (December 1932): 24.]

Lesson learned: Get to the market early! Or, on a more obviously spiritual note, I am strongly convinced that the Lord expects us to watch daily to see His hand at work, to see His blessings as they transpire, to see how He convicts us of sin and brings us to repentance, to watch carefully to see His every provision, and most importantly, to live in continual praise to our God for all that He does for us.

The Covenant Daughter Who Saved Mount Vernon
by Rev. David T. Myers

Born August 15, 1816, Ann Pamela Cunningham had all the luxury of wealth in Laurens County, South Carolina. Her parents, Robert and Louisa Cunningham, were thus enabled to offer many refinements to their daughter with their upper class environment. But their saving faith was not lacking either, as they were members of Liberty Springs Presbyterian Church, now a member of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). Ann Cunningham was a covenant daughter.

When Ann was a teenager, she was thrown from a horse, which in turn left her with chronic pain the rest of her life. To ease that pain, Ann received regular treatments from a Philadelphia specialist, Hugh Hodge, brother of Charles Hodge! On one of those trips, her mother and Ann were returning to South Carolina on a steamer traveling on the Potomac River. Awakened by the sound of the ship’s bell, Louisa Cunningham walked to the deck to find out the reason for her interrupted sleep. Evidently the captain was in the habit of sounding the bell in honor whenever he passed the home of our first President. Louisa looked ashore to discover the ruin and desolation of Mount Vernon. Distressed by what she saw, she communicated to her daughter Ann in a letter to make this her calling in life, despite her disability.

And so, a life work was impressed upon the crippled daughter to restore George and Martha Washington’s house by the raising of funds and people to bring the historical site back to prominence. She became the chief leader of what became known as the Mount Vernon Ladies Association.

Our readers might remember that all of this occurred right before the War Between the States in 1861 – 1865, But fund raising continued all throughout this period, from both private and public sources. Mount Vernon was preserved for the American people. Today, the property is still under the oversight of this same Ladies Association.

In 1874, she was forced through her deteriorating health to give up the duties of being the leader of this movement. She died the following year.

Words to Live By: To our women subscribers, what ministries do you have in the cities and towns in which you live? As God’s Spirit gives you strength, why not make them a spiritual calling in addition to your home. The family is your first duty. But this can be a second area of ministry. Talk and pray with your sisters in Christ, using this post as an encouragement for action. Then get the approval of the Session of Elders in your local church to minister with the love of our Lord Jesus Christ to the needed ministry.

For starters, what about countless adoptives who are looking for a home in our states and private adoption agencies, or of poverty stricken families who need rescue, for starters. The Lord reminded his followers that they “are the salt of the earth” and “the light of the world.” (Matthew 5:13,14 NASB)

The gravesite of Ann Pamela Cunningham [1816-1875], pictured below, is located in the churchyard of the First Presbyterian Church, Columbia, South Carolina [First Presbyterian, Columbia is a member church of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian denomination]:

He Shouldn’t Have Been Elected
by Rev. David T. Myers

Given his political choice of party, which was Federalist, in the early nineteenth century in Delaware, he should have been a Methodist or an Episcopalian.  Those denominations usually won office to the position of governor in the state.  But John Clark was a Federalist Presbyterian, an oddity to be sure.  Obviously Someone higher than those in earthly roles was directing this race and subsequent win to the governor’s chair.

John Clark was born in 1761 on the family farm in New Bristol, north of Smyrna, Delaware.  He had limited schooling in his younger days, but made up for it with an insatiable desire for the knowledge in books.  He was “well read,” as the papers put it at that time.  In 1784, he married Sarah Corbit, a daughter herself of a governor of Delaware.  They had one daughter and possibly others, which history doesn’t name for us.

John Clark obviously had the gifts of leadership.  He was the Colonel of the Third Regiment of Militia for a year in 1807 – 1808.  He served as a sheriff, a state treasurer, a member of the State House, and then as governor of Delaware.  His accomplishments included improvements in educational opportunities.  His argument was that Delaware is a small state and not suitable for increased opportunities in business.  Better plans must to be made to develop the mental capabilities of its citizens.

After serving for his term as governor, he became involved in banking business in Smyrna, Delaware.  He died on August 14, 1821 and is buried in the cemetery of Duck Creek Presbyterian Church in Smyrna.

This contributor looked in vain for any quotable quotes on the significance of personal Christianity in the state or country, and his beliefs on those topics.  The only hope we have for a credible profession of faith is that his membership was in the Presbyterian church and his burial was in a Presbyterian cemetery.  Usually in those days, such inclusion would not have taken place unless there was a credible testimony in Christ as Lord and Savior.

Words to live by:  Both words and spiritual fruits  must be found in Christians to declare that redemption has taken place in a believer’s life.  They may have been found at the time with respect to John Clark, but were simply not recorded in the usual sources we  have available today.  Let it not be said of you though, that no expressions of Christianity are found lacking in your mouth.  Let there be no doubt that you are a professing and confessing Christian to all who observe what you say and do.

STUDIES IN THE WESTMINSTER SHORTER CATECHISM
by Rev. Leonard T. Van Horn

Q. 87. What is repentance unto life?

A. Repentance unto life is a saving grace, whereby a sinner, out of a true sense of his sin, and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, doth, with grief and hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God, with full purpose of, and endeavor after, new obedience.

Scripture References: Acts 11:18. Acts 2:37. Joel 2:13. II Cor. 7:11 Jer. 31:18, 19. Acts 26:18. Psalm 119:59.

Questions:

1. Why is repentance called a “saving grace”?

It is called a saving grace because it is inseparably a part of salvation and is worked in the heart of the sinner by the Holy Spirit through the instrument of the Word of God.

2. Who is the subject of repentance?

The sinner is the subject of it for the person who is saved needs no repentance as is taught in Luke 15:7.

3. What is meant in this Question by “a true sense of sin?”

A true sense of sin is the recognition on the part of the sinner of the danger of his position along with the filthiness of his sin. He knows he is in danger because he knows his sinful condition is contrary to God’s holiness and is offensive to God.

4. Why is the mercy of God connected with Christ?

The mercy of God is connected with Christ because God’s mercy extends to the sinner through the obedience and satisfaction of Christ in His death on the Cross.

5. Is it possible for repentance to be separated from faith?

No, it is not possible to separate the two. These are both by the grace of God and therefore can be distinguished but can not be separated.

6. What is this hatred of sin mentioned here?

It is both the loathing of sin and ourselves because of that sin (Isaiah 6: 5).

7. What is this new obedience to which the repentant person turns?

It is the obedience as is found in the Gospel and proceeds from the new nature in man. The new man recognizes that he must have a new purpose, a new way of walking. He will not be perfect but he will be diligent in his endeavors to walk after righteousness.

TURNING FROM SIN UNTO GOD

True repentance causes a change to take place in a man. True repentance is a fruit of regeneration and it is a gift of the Spirit. When the word “Repent!” is used, many times the change of heart is neglected. But the Bible teaches over and over again that genuine repentance consists not only of a man being humiliated for his sins but also of change in the whole man.

Repentance causes a man to change his mind about a lot of things. Before a man is saved, he takes a worldly look at things, the old man is all that is present within him. After a man is saved he wants to please God, give Jesus Christ the pre-eminence in his life. Further, it causes a man to change his attitude toward sin. Sin no longer is a delight to him as it was before he knew Christ. Sin now becomes something for which he sorrows. He prays daily, “Lord, teach me more and more to hate sin in my life.” Further, repentance causes a man’s heart to change and this spreads out into his whole life. Note the change that took place in Paul. His conversion was not simply that his sins were forgiven but it meant his life changed completely. He turned around in his way of living. Paul knew full well that he had to break off with sin and turn to the Lord. He knew he would never be the same again.

“A contrite and a broken heart, O God, thou wilt not despise” states the Psalmist in Psalm 41:17. But the Psalmist also stated, “I hate every false way” in Psalm 119:104. In these two verses the two parts to repentance are noted. The heart is broken before the Lord and the heart begins to hate sin. A divorce with the life of the world takes place and will continue throughout life. In the wonderful hymn book compiled by Ira D. Sankey are found these words that so wonderfully tell the story of genuine repentance:

“I come, O blessed Lord, to Thee I come today;
I am no longer satisfied to stay away.
I will not wait until my life like Thine shall grow;
I’ll come at once-I know I’ve sinned:
I’ll tell Thee so.
Help me that I forget myself in loving Thee;
And let Thine image on my heart reflected be.”

Published by The SHIELD and SWORD, INC.
Dedicated to Instruction in the Westminster Standards for use as a bulletin insert or other methods of distribution in Presbyterian churches.

Vol. 6, No.4 (April, 1967)
Rev. Leonard T. Van Horn, Editor.

In today’s post we will look at a portion of a sermon that Dr. Cortlandt Van Rensselaer delivered in memory of the Rev. George Washington Doane, an Episcopalian Bishop.

Dr. Van Rensselaer served four years as a pastor in Burlington, New Jersey, and it was during this time that he came to know Bishop Doane. Leaving the Burlington pulpit, Van Rensselaer was called to head the  PCUSA’s Board of  Education, and there he served for  fourteen years. Some measure of the friendship between these two men is thus marked  by the fact that this sermon came thirteen years after Van Rensselaer left Burlington.  Bishop Doane died in April of 1859;  Van Rensselaer would himself pass into eternity just fifteen months later.

Over the last ten or twelve years, I have gotten the impression from my reading that nineteenth-century American Protestants tended to be evangelical Christians first, and only attached to their various denominations in a secondary way. A number of examples could be produced, and this sermon is  another good example. A strictly evangelical sermon, delivered by a Presbyterian, in memorial to the life and ministry of an Episcopalian! Would or could we even have such a thing today?

The closing comments of Van Rensselaer’s sermon follow:

LESSONS AT THE GRAVE

Before separating, it is well for us, as immortals, to try to learn a few lessons at a Bishop’s grave.

I. Death comes alike to all. My hearers, are you ready to die? Ye of gray hairs, or in vigorous manhood, or in sublime youth, are ye prepared to meet your God? What a solemn thing to be coffined away from human sight, and then lowered down into a chamber, digged out for our last abode, with six feet of earth thrown on to roof it in? Ye living mortals, your funeral day is at hand. Come, prepare for the change; for the change is coming.

II. The honours of this world are fleeting nothings. Crown and crossier, sceptre and cross, vestment of distinction and laurel of renown, are all left behind. When the spirit enters its new existence, if it has been redeemed by blood, it carries with it graces of righteousness, which abide forever. But earthly honour and power, the elevation of outward position, the distinctions of learning and rank, all the superficial framework of the vanity of the world, and all its real glory, whatever there be of it, sink away like a vision of delirium. O, godly poor, be contented! Worldly, or unworldly high ones, fear!

III. Let us grow in circumspection, both ministers and people. Religion cultivates prudence. It enjoins its disciples to “walk in wisdom towards them that are without.” In our unguarded moments, we are in danger of going astray, and often are led to do what we have charged ourselves to forbear. Human resolutions are frail; but God can, and will, give strength to all whose eyes, in tearful penitence, plead for help and mercy. A single act of indiscretion, or of guilt, may be followed by the heavy retribution of embittered calumny, or unrelenting exaggeration. The officers of the Church, above all others, should be above suspicion. “See that ye walk circumspectly; redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”

IV. Let us not be weary in well-doing. Activity is the law of Christian life. The new birth inspires high motive, and nurtures the spirit of self-denial and suffering. Church idlers are a spectacle to the profane. Shall Christians be “created unto good works,” and not perform them? Shall the grace of the Spirit plead in vain? Shall the example of Christ and the blood of his cross be without efficacy to those who profess to follow the one and to be washed in the other? Brethren, “be not weary in well-doing; for in due time ye shall reap, if ye faint not.”

V. “Charity is the bond of perfection.” Love binds all the graces together; and all the graces are formed out of love. The same Divine likeness is impressed upon them all. Charity covereth a multitude of sins. Charity suffereth long, and is kind. If our fellow creatures transgress, can they not be forgiven? Does not God, for Christ’s sake, pardon the penitent? And shall man be forever hard-hearted and unrelenting against his fellow-sinners? May the Lord clothe us, dear brethren, with every grace, and girdle our garments with love! Charity is compatible with Truth and Justice. “Put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.”

VI. A man’s work survives his life. A useful and active Christian leaves imperishable memorials. Good done in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, can never be buried. It survives with a multiplication of its power. It sends down accumulated influences to distant generations. It lives forever. Sermons preached, institutions established, catechisms taught, aid given to the poor—all virtue, of whatever kind, lives in perpetuity. And so, alas! does evil, unless counteracted and circumvented by Providence and grace.

VII. Let us learn, as Churches, to sympathize with each other more. If we all love Christ, what interests have we apart? Why need we misrepresent each other’s doctrines, depreciate each other’s worthies, and call in question each other’s piety. If there be separate folds, is there not also a large field in common where all the good Shepherd’s sheep may feed on the green pastures and drink the pure waters? I have had my share of controversy, but have never relished it, and dislike it with increasing aversion. We need not, we must not surrender our principles; but what is called principle is often nothing more than denominational interest. Brethren, our hearts beat together today. We mourn in sympathy. Can we not in sympathy live together and work together?

VIII. The passport to Heaven consists, not in merit or station, but in simple faith. The Gospel condition of eternal life is the same to men of all nations and generations. The Bishop enters heaven in the same way with the sexton. The saints become one in Jesus Christ, in the same true and living way, opened alike to every creature. In dying, the Christian goes back to the first principles of his religion. As he began with Christ, so he ends with Christ. The conquest of death is won through faith. No forms and ceremonies; or liturgical repetitions; or imposition of hands; or baptismal, or immersional regeneration; or Church connection; or office-bearing, be it that of Pope, Bishop, Priest, Deacon, or Minister, Elder, Superintendent, or Class-leader—ever have, or ever will, or ever can, save a single soul. Bishop Doane, in his dying hour, had a clear conviction that Christ was the only hope for a sinner, lost by nature. This doctrine was fundamental in his theology; and no one taught it more beautifully than in that immortal hymn of his own composition:

“Thou are the Way; to thee alone,
From sin and death we flee;
And he who would the Father seek,
Must seek him, Lord, by thee.

“Thou are the Truth; thy word along
True wisdom can impart;
Thou only canst inform the mind,
And purify the heart.

“Thou art the Life; the rending tomb
Proclaims thy conquering arm,
And those who put their trust in thee,
Nor death nor hell shall harm.

“Thou art the Way, the Truth, the Life;
Grant us that way to know;
That truth to keep, that life to win,
Whose joys eternal flow.”

May Heaven grant to us all, brethren, the right to live and die in the truth of the Apostolic Church, and to find our title to Heaven in the apostolic words: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shall be saved.”

[excerpted from A Funeral Sermon on the Occasion of the Death of Bishop Doane. Preached in the Presbyterian Church, Burlington, N. J. , on May 1st, 1859, by Cortlandt Van Rensselaer. Published by J. M. Wilson, Philadelphia, 1859.]

COMMENTS:
As some may have noticed, we have a problem with access to the Comments section on our blog. Haven’t been able to solve that problem. But my friend Walt writes today to add the following on today’s post:

I agree with Wayne about being Christians first and denominational second, although I noted it more after the Civil War than before.

Other thoughts

·       The Van Rensselaers were an important and powerful family in New Netherland. They were able to get a son of theirs (Wouter van Twiller) appointed governor of New Netherland. His previous experience was a warehouse clerk for the Dutch West India Company in Amsterdam, but he had some familiarity with the New World.

·       Burlington Island and what later became Burlington were the site of an early Dutch settlement that was closed and the colonists relocated to New Amsterdam to bolster that city. A few years back while digging up the city streets some European bones were found that predate the founding of Burlington, the experts say “North European” and think Swedes but I think they were Dutch. The ethnicity was not pursued once it was confirmed that they were not Native American Indian bones.

·       Burlington was the capital of the colony of West Jersey and set up soon after the English takeover. A number of important families lived there – the Coopers (as in James Fennimore Cooper and Cooperstown, N.Y.), the Shreves (who founded Shreveport in Louisiana), and it was the birth place of naval hero James Lawrence, can’t think of any others off the top of my head.

·       An early public works project was to link Burlington with the only other community of size in the colony, Salem, and became known as (The) Kings Highway, still in use today.

·       Burlington had a very early fire company that is still in existence today, but younger that the ones in Mt. Holly and Haddonfield.

·       Rockefeller wanted to restore Burlington but being rebuffed he focused on Williamsburg in Va. Instead

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