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March 9: William Morrision, D.D.

9 March, 2013 in March 2013 by Wayne Sparkman | No comments

William Morrison, a son of Daniel and Janette (McFarland) Morrison, was born in Perthshire, Scotland, in the year 1748. Raised in near poverty, William overcame difficult circumstances to obtain a good education and eventually was able to prepare for the ministry, studying under the guidance of the Rev. Robert Annan, who was then living near Philadelphia.

By God’s providence, Rev. Morrison came to be the pastor of the congregation in Londonderry, New Hampshire, being installed as their pastor in 1783. And here he remained till the close of his life. Some eight days before his death, he preached a funeral sermon for a member of his congregation, preaching on the text of Psalm 39:4, “Lord, make me to know mine end.” The next week, while visiting a nearby school, he became ill. Then within a few days, the illness turned grave and it was apparent that the end was near. “On Sabbath morning, he said to his wife—’You know that the Sabbath has always been my best day, and my employment then my best employment. But this is the last Sabbath I shall spend on earth. In a short time, I shall be spending an everlasting Sabbath.’ He added with a smile,—’Will not that be a blessed exchange?’ Late that same day, he died, just as the words “Come, come, Lord Jesus,” had passed from his lips,—on March 9, 1818, at the age of seventy.

In his funeral sermon, the Rev. Dr. Daniel Dana said of Rev. Morrision:

“Dr. Morrison ranked well with the excellent preachers of his day. It was in the pulpit that his perceptions, his acquisitions, and the energies of his mind had full scope, and the affections of his heart poured themselves forth in a tide of devout and benevolent feeling. His sermons were full of Gospel truth; were luminous and instructive; faithful and searching; awfully alarming to the wicked, yet encouraging to the sincere, and tenderly consoling to the mourner in Zion. His prayers were no less impressive than his sermons. Replete with reverence and affectionate devotion; the breathings of a soul apparently in near communion with God; full yet concise; adapted to occasions and circumstances; they could scarcely fail to impress and edify the hearers. His manner in the pulpit was peculiar. It had something of patriarchal simplicity; something of apostolic gravity and authority. Yet it was mild, affectionate and persuasive. It indicated a mind absorbed in Heavenly things, deeply conscious of its awful charge, and anxiously intent to fasten eternal truths on the hearts and consciences of men.”

“As a Pastor, Dr. Morrison was faithful, assiduous and tender; instant in season and out of season; watching for souls as one that must give account; and finding his delight in the discharge of the most laborious and exhausting duties of his office. Little did he spare himself, even in those closing years of life, in which his emaciated form proclaimed the ravages of disease; and infirmity, combined with age, seemed to demand repose. Without exaggeration, it may be said that he was truly the father of his beloved people. He rejoiced in their joys, sympathized in their sorrows, counseled in their perplexities, adapted himself to their infirmities, and, without sacrificing dignity, or independence, or faithfulness, ‘became all things to all men.’ that he might promote their spiritual good.”

Words to Live By:
It has been said that pastors are often a good mirror of the congregation they serve.
Lord, give us pastors with hearts that burn with the Gospel of grace, who long to serve Your people, to see them raised up in greater maturity in Christ as Savior and Lord. But first, Lord, make us to be a people who hunger and thirst after the righteousness which is found in Christ alone.

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September 30: George Whitefield

30 September, 2012 in September 2012 by davidtmyers | No comments

This Day in Presbyterian History:

There is None to Replace Him

It was so thought by John Wesley, co-founder of  Methodism.  The person Wesley referred to in the quotation of our title was George Whitefield.  And it was strange that John Wesley thought this, considering that he as an Arminian Methodist differed greatly from George Whitefield, who was a Calvinist Methodist.  The occasion of the above quote was the death of George Whitefield on September 30, 1770 in Newburyport, Massachusetts.

You say, wait a moment, isn’t this devotional website given over to Presbyterian persons, places, and things?  Yes it is, and George Whitefield was an Anglican, not a Presbyterian.  But he died at the parsonage of a Presbyterian minister by the name of Jonathan Parsons, who was the pastor of Old South Presbyterian Church, which church had been founded by George Whitefield after one of his revivals.  Confused?  Don’t be!  Whitefield worked with all the denominations in the American Colonies, especially with those who were involved in the First Great Awakening.  And the Rev. George Parsons was a Presbyterian evangelist in that Great Awakening which shook the colonies in the 1740’s.

George Whitfield was “The Apostle of the British Empire.”  He made for the gospel sake some 13 Atlantic Ocean crossings to many of the countries of the empire, including seven trips to the American colonies.  It is estimated that he preached some 18,000 sermons, or 500 per year, which translated out to ten per week.  The crowds at these meetings could top thirty thousand, all of which could hear the preacher.

On his way to Massachusetts in 1770, preaching as he traveled, George Whitefield on the day before he died, prayed a prayer which said, “Lord Jesus, I am weary in Thy work, but not of Thy work.  If I have not yet finished my course, let me go and speak for Thee once more in the fields, seal Thy truth, and come home and die.”  That last sermon was on the steps of George Parson’s home, to thousands who clamored for him to preach the Word to them the evening before he died. He did so for two hours until the candle burned down in its socket to nothing, and he stopped.  The next morning at 6:00 a.m., he went to be with his Savior.

On October 2nd, Anglican George Whitefield was buried in the crypt beneath the pulpit in the Old South Presbyterian Church, in Newburyport, Massachusetts, where it can be seen today.  There is a steady stream of visitors to the memorial site two centuries later.

Words to live by:  Being weary in the work, but not being weary of the work of Christ’s church.  That is the testimony of every faithful minister of the gospel in our evangelical and Reformed churches.  So, church member, you must be mindful that your pastor has a day off each week, a four-week vacation away from the ministry  (and no calling up at his vacation cabin to ask him where the communion cups are found, which happened to this retired pastor once!), and a Sabbatical every number of years for a longer time of rest and relaxation.  We who have been called for the sacred task of ministry will never weary of the work, but will frequently be weary in the work.

Through the Scriptures:  Esther 1 – 3

Through the Standards: Proof Texts of Lawful Oaths and Vows

Deuteronomy 6:13  “It is the LORD your God you shall fear.  Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear.” (ESV)

Matthew 5:34 – 37 “But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.  And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.  Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.” (ESV)

James 5:12 “But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your ‘yes’ be yes and your ‘no’ be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.” (ESV)

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September 26: Jackson Reviews Dabney’s Sermon

26 September, 2012 in September 2012 by davidtmyers | No comments

This Day in Presbyterian History:

A Soldier Remembers a Sermon

To countless secular Civil War authors, they  seem to take delight in ridiculing the spiritual side of Thomas Jonathan Jackson, better known as “Stonewall” Jackson on the battlefield.  Not knowing or caring that this Presbyterian church deacon was not a mere Christian in name only, but a genuine born-again Christian, some of these authors are embarrassed by his Christian conversation and conduct. Especially do they take delight to record the number of times in which General Jackson fell asleep in a worship service!  And while that happened, there are of course many occasions when he was not only awake, but also took notes in his heart and mind of the sermon preached on that Lord’s Day.  One such occasion was a sermon preached by the Rev. Robert L. Dabney, a Presbyterian chaplain,  on September 26, 1861.   Listen to Jackson’s words, written to his wife Anna Jackson:

“I did not have room enough in my last letter, to write as much as I desired about Dr. Dabney’s sermon yesterday.  His text was from Acts, seventh chapter, and fifty-ninth verse.  [Note: And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” — Acts 7:59, King James version; compare the ESV translation: “And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”]

He stated that the word “God” being in italics indicated that it was not in the original, and he thought it would have been better not to have been in the translation.  It would then have read, ‘calling upon and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’  He spoke of Stephen, the first martyr  under the new dispensation, and  like Abel, the first under the old, dying by the hand of violence, and then drew a graphic picture of his probably broken limbs, mangled flesh and features, conspiring to heighten his agonizing sufferings.

“But in the midst of this intense pain, God, in His infinite wisdom and mercy, permitted him to see the heavens opened, so that he might behold the glory of God, and of Jesus, of whom he was speaking, standing on the right hand of God.  Was not such a heavenly vision enough to make him forgetful of his sufferings?  He beautifully and forcibly described the death of the righteous, and as forcibly that of the wicked.”

That was on this occasion an understanding of both the sermon and the sermon’s application.  For believers who may possibly suffer the loss of their lives, or various limbs of their bodies, as Jackson did later in 1863 regarding both of these cases, that heavenly vision was sufficient to make him forget his earthly sufferings.

Further, another application was that of the blessed gospel, preaching the death of the righteous in contrast to the death of the wicked.  Civil War chaplains always included sincere invitations to believe the gospel and return in commitment to the Lord.  That is why there was such a mighty spiritual awakening of sinners and revival of believers during this years of the War Between the States.

Despite all secular commentators to the contrary, it is obvious on this occasion that we had a close listening to the preached Word with an understanding of the two-fold application of that sermon.  Divine worship was alive and well in Jackson’s heart and life.

Words to live by: It was said of our Lord Jesus, that his custom or habit was always to be found in the Jewish synagogue on the Sabbath.  And the writer to the Book of the Hebrews enjoined believers to not forsake their assembling together as some were already doing in his day and age.   We must be in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, worshiping in His house the Triune God

Through the Scriptures:  Daniel 1 – 3

Through the Standards: Interpretation and Obligation of Oaths

WCF 22:4
 “An oath is to be taken in the plain and common sense of the words, without equivocation, or mental reservation.  It cannot oblige to sin; but in anything not sinful, being taken, it binds to performance, although to a man’s hurt.  Nor is it to be violated, although made to heretics, or infidels.”

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August 28: WSC Q. 40

28 August, 2012 in August 2012 by davidtmyers | No comments

This Day in Presbyterian History:

The Moral Law

Presbyterians must have still been on vacation during the latter days of August as there is very little national Presbyterian history recorded on these last days, including today August 28!  So following up our recent post in the Westminster Shorter Catechism, we look at another catechism which really goes along with it, namely, question and answer number 40.  It reads, “What did God at first reveal to man  for the rule of his obedience?”  And the answer reads, “The rule which God at first revealed to man for his obedience, was the moral law.”  The next answer in the Catechism tells us that this moral law is summarily comprehended in the ten commandments.

The moral law, definition wise, is the declaration of the will of God to mankind, directing and binding every to personal, perfect, and perpetual conformity and obedience. (See Larger Catechism no. 93)  As such, it applies to every part of our being, body and soul.  It instructs us to perform duties of holiness to God and righteousness toward man, especially those of the house of faith.

Now it is easy for us — for you and for me — to glibly say those words in the above paragraph.  And yet, we immediately understand that it is utterly impossible for us to fulfil this moral law personally, perfectly, and perpetually.  If anything, this law immediately convicts us of our sinfulness.  And yet it clearly reveals the person and work of the Lord Jesus who kept this law personally, perfectly, and perpetually.  It was this which was imputed to us, even as our sinfulness was imputed to Jesus on the cross of Calvary.  We then seek to conform our lives to this moral law, not to gain salvation, but rather with a thankful spirit to all He has done for us.

Words to live by:  The moral law is summarized up for us in Exodus 10:1 – 17.  Choose any faithful Bible version you wish, and make it your aim to memorize the Ten Commandments, or review them from memory if you have done so before.  All Christians should have on their hearts and tongues an understanding of the moral law of God.

Through the Scriptures:  1 Chronicles 24 – 26

Through the Standards: Lawful and unlawful subjects of prayer in the catechisms       

WLC 183
“For whom are we to pray?  We are to pray for the whole church of Christ upon earth; for magistrates, and ministers, for ourselves, our brethren, yea, our enemies; and for all sorts of men living, or that shall live hereafter; but not for the dead, nor for those that are known to have sinned the sin unto death.”

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August 18: Dr. & Mrs. Marcus Whitman

18 August, 2012 in August 2012 by davidtmyers | No comments

This Day in Presbyterian History:   

First Presbyterian Church West of the Rockies

We have mentioned Henry Spaulding and Marcus Whitman before in this historical devotional on February 29 and June 29.  They, and their wives, were Presbyterian missionaries to the  Oregon Territory, seeking to win two Indian tribes to Christ.  To accomplish that, they established the first Presbyterian Church west of the Rocky Mountains on August 18, 1838.

The Rev. Henry Spaulding was chosen as its pastor, with Dr. Marcus Whitman as its elder.  The charter members were Mrs. Eliza Spaulding, Mrs. Narcissus Whitman, Joseph Maki, Mrs. Mared Keana, and Charles Compo.  The only member outside the missionary force was the last one, Charles Compo, who was a convert from Roman Catholicism.  They would add nine new names on September 1, 1838, but again all these new members were missionaries and helpers to the mission station.  So for the first decade, its only members were the white Presbyterians and assorted helpers of the missionaries who had come to bring the gospel to these needy people.  In fact, there was nary one soul who came to the Lord Jesus in the first nine years of existence, despite faithful worship services twice on the Lord’s Day, and Bible studies during the week.  After years of faithful sowing of the Word, there were a few Indian names on the roll of membership.  And in 1870, a revival took place within the area which brought many Indians to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus.

However, in the midst of this time, what has become known as the Whitman Massacre took place in the late fall of 1847.  Dr and Mrs Whitman, along with several others, were attacked and killed by the Cayuse Indians.  The reasons were said to be two-fold, if there is ever justification for murder.  There was resentment against Dr. Whitman that he was leading more and more white settlers across the Oregon Trail into the Northwest, taking them right by the mission station.  In one wagon train, there were over 1000 settlers.  And second, a measles outbreak among their people caught from the many immigrants brought charges against Dr. Whitman that he was responsible for this disease among their Indian children.  It was an Indian tradition that if the local “medicine man” could not cure the disease, then he would be physically removed from life.  That tradition became tragic for the Whitman’s.   The site in the state of Washington is today a national monument.

Words to live by:  It is so easy to substitute another purpose in place of our chief purpose in life to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.   Before we can know it, we can be seeking the things that are of this earth rather than heavenly things.  In hindsight,  that is what happened to Dr. Whitman.  He became more interested in being a guide to the countless settlers on the Oregon Trail than being a guide to the souls of the Indian tribe to which he had been called.  Let us examine ourselves continually, using natural or spiritual birthdays, anniversaries, or New Year resolutions, to make sure that we are on the Lord’s track first and foremost.

Through the Scriptures:  Jeremiah 43 – 46

Through the Standards:  Proof texts for Christian liberty:

John 8:36
“So if the Son sets your free, you will be free indeed.” (ESV)

Galatians 5:1
“For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit to a yoke of slavery.” (ESV)

1 Peter 2:13 – 15
“Be subject for the Lord’s side to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.  For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.” (ESV);

Hebrews 13:17
“Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give  an account.  Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.” (ESV)

Image sources:

1. Henry Spalding.

2. Marcus Whitman : The Church at Home and Abroad, March 1896, p. 210. [Portrait of Marcus Whitman : “No likeness from life has been found and none is known to have been in existence except a silhouette, once in the possession of Rev. Samuel Parker, and for which all search has been thus far in vain….The likeness now presented conforms to good recollections of his appearance and his time…His expression was grave, earnest, lighting up pleasantly in conversation; but he was a man of deeds rather than words.”]

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