76 Sermon Illustrations on Authority of Scripture

It is stated, in the life of Ridley the reformer, that, in October, 1553, a closet council of Roman bishops was held at Bononia, to advise the pope as the best means of checking the progress of the reformation. After making many very curious concessions, the bishops of Termulae, Capralae, and Thessalonica, thus concluded their address to Pope Julius III:—"But we have reserved the most considerable advice, which we could at this time give your highness, to the last. And here you must be awake, and exert all your force to hinder, as much as you possibly can, the gospel from being read, (especially in the vulgar tongue,) in all the cities that are under your dominion. Let that little taste of it which they have in the mass serve their turn, nor suffer any mortal to read any thing more; for as long as men were contented with that little, things went to your mind, but grew worse and worse from the time that they commonly read more. This, in short, is the book that has, beyond all others, raised these storms and tempests, in which we are almost driven to destruction. And really, whosoever shall diligently weigh the Scripture, and then consider all the things that are usually done in our churches, will find that there is a great difference between them; and that this doctrine of ours is very unlike, and in many things quite repugnant to it."

An elderly female, of the Roman Catholic persuasion, residing near Montreal, in Canada, having obtained a Bible, was visited by her priest, who earnestly endeavored to prevail on her to give it up. Finding he could not persuade her to relinquish her treasure, he attempted to induce her to sell it; offering first five, then ten, fifteen, and at last twenty dollars. The good woman, after refusing these offers, at length consented to sell it for twenty-five dollars. The priest agreed, the money was paid, the obnoxious volume was given up, and he departed in triumph. But the old woman set off immediately to Montreal, and, with the priest's twenty-five dollars, purchased twenty-five new Bibles, for herself and her neighbors.

# 300. Idolatry.

The Rev. Mr. Temple, one of the American missionaries at Malta, has related the following fact:—My teacher, a native of Italy, came into my room one morning, and took up a tract, then lying on my table, and immediately cast his eyes upon the ten commandments, which I had inserted at the end. As soon as he had read the second commandment, he expressed much astonishment, and asked whether this was part of the decalogue. I immediately showed him this commandment in Archbishop Martini's "Italian Translation of the Latin Vulgate." He could not suppress his feeling of surprise on reading this in the Italian Bible, and in a version, too, authorized by the Pope. "I have lived," said he, "fifty years; have been publicly educated in Italy; have had the command of a regiment of men, and fought in many campaigns; but, till this hour, I never knew that such a commandment as this was written in the pages of the Bible."

Wherever religion has spread its banners and enrolled its armies, order, discipline, and efficiency have characterized its followers. A distime to examine every thing that appeared upon the subject, which, as I have told you, I could never explain or teach so as to produce conviction; but at length I have given up the point, most thoroughly assured, that without an express divine sanction attached to the laws of morality, and without positive laws, accompanied with determinate and urgent motives, men will never be convinced that they ought to submit to any such code, nor agree among themselves concerning it. From that time I have never read any book upon morality but the Bible, and I return to that always with fresh delight."

## ATION TO GOD.

woods at night, the rustling of a leaf would frighten me; terrified by I knew not what, fleeing when no man pursued, I galloped home as fast as my horse could carry me. Now, if I go to visit a poor dying man, or if I have been enjoying the word of life, I come home in a calm and peaceful frame of mind. I find that the Lord is present with me; and as I walk my horse gently along, I look up and see the bright stars above my head, and am happy in the assurance that the God who made them all is mine in Christ. O, what a mercy!—the loneliness of the wood, the rustling of the leaves, the stillness of night, no longer alarm me. I am, I trust, reconciled to my God, and at peace with him and my own conscience, through the death of his Son. He that fills the heavens with his glory, and the earth with his mercies, condescends to dwell in, and to comfort my poor sinful heart."

## FORMING POWER OF.

charged soldier had been a notorious Sabbath-breaker. He was often met on that day, ragged and barefoot, accompanied with one or two of his children, in a similar condition, strolling with a gun or a fishing pole to his accustomed employment of the day. His house was the picture of wretchedness. After the lapse of a few years, a gentleman in the town where he lived, noticed, one Sabbath morning, a decent wagon proceeding to church with a well-dressed family. He thought he knew the driver, who appeared to be the head, of the family, and accosted him. He was not mistaken. It was the identical Sabbath-breaker and idler. He had become a religious man, which his appearance evinced, while his tongue confessed it. His house was found to exhibit economy and industry. Its windows, which were once stuffed with rags, were now glazed. His children attended the Sunday school. He was himself respectable, clean, and thriving; at peace with his own mind, and living peaceably with his neighbors. Such are some of the trophies of religion, showing itself, as indeed it is, profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.

Laid hands on the ark. Preachers who lay hands on the doctrines of God's Word, thinking to save Christianity from overthrow. Dangerous to put unsanctified hands on Christ—His virgin birth, atonement, resurrection, etc

Wesley said, in substance: “I am a poor sinner wandering through this world of sin. There is a Book that points the way to Heaven. Give me that Book.”

A black prince arrived in England from Africa in 1791. The one to whose care he was intrusted took great pains to convince him that the Bible was the Word of God, and he received it as such, with reverence and simplicity. “When I found,” said he, “all good men minding the Bible, and calling it the Word of God, and all bad men disregarding it, I then was sure that the Bible must be what good men call it—the Word of God.”

A Hindoo had been brought to forsake idolatry through a leaf of the Bible that came into his possession, and upon which was the 51st Psalm, David’s prayer for cleansing. This was his gospel for twenty years. When a missionary gave him a New Testament, he exclaimed: Twenty years I walked by starlight, but now I see the sun!

A great many people seem to think that the Bible is out of date, that it is an old book, that it has passed its day. They say it was very good for the Dark Ages, and that there is some very good history in it, but it was not intended for the present time; we are living in a very enlightened age and men can get on very well without it; we have outgrown it.

Now, you might just as well say that the sun, which has shone so long, is now so old that it is out of date, and that whenever a man builds a house he need not put any windows in it, because we have a newer light and a better light; we have gaslight and electric light. These are something new; and I would advise people, if they think the Bible is too old and worn out, when they build houses, not to put windows in them, but just to light them with electric light; that is something new and that is what they are anxious for.

This Book is inspired as no other book is inspired, and it is time that all Christians avowed this conviction. I do not know whether you have seen Mr. Smiles' life of our late friend, George Moore; but in it we read that, at a certain dinner party, a learned man remarked that it would not be easy to find a person of intelligence who believed in the inspiration of the Bible. In an instant George Moore's voice was heard across the table, saying boldly, "I do, for one." Nothing more was said. My dear friend had a strong way of speaking, as I well remember; for we have upon occasions vied with each other in shouting when we were together at his Cumberland home. I think I can hear his emphatic way of putting it—"I do, for one." Let us not be backward to take the old fashioned and unpopular side, and say outright, " I do, for one."

The apostles, like their Master, were always very ready at quotations. As inspired men they could have always used fresh words, yet they preferred (and herein they are an example to us) to quote old words upon which the seal of divine authority had been set aforetime — "He hath said." Let us do the same, for, though the words of ministers may be sweet, the words of God are sweeter; and though original thoughts may have the charm of novelty, yet the ancient words of God have the ring and the weight and the value of old and precious coins, and they will never be found wanting in the day when we require to use them. "He hath said," not only chases away doubts and fears, but it also yields nourishment to all our graces. When the apostle would make us contented, he says,"Be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said "; and when he would make us bold and courageous, he puts it thus forcibly, "He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me." When the apostle would nourish faith, he does it by feeding us from Scripture with the examples of Abraham, of Isaac, of Jacob, of Moses, of Gideon, of Barak, and of Jephthah. When another apostle would calm us with a lesson of patience, he says, "Ye have heard of the patience of Job";.or if it be our prayerfulness that he wants to stir up, he says,"Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed" and prevailed. " He hath said ," is refreshing food for every grace and a decisive death blow for every sin. Here you have nourishment for that which is good and poison for that which is evil. Search, then, the Scriptures, for so shall you grow healthy, strong, and vigorous in the divine life. But besides searching them by reading, and treasuring them by memory, we should test them by experience, and so often as a promise is proven to be true, we should make a mark against it, and note that we also can say, as did one of old, "This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me." "Wait on the Lord," said Isaiah, and then he added, "Wait, I say, on the Lord," as if his own experience led him to echo the voice of God to his hearers. Test the promise; take God's bank-note to the counter and mark if it be cashed. Grasp the lever which He ordains to lift your trials and try if it possesses real power. Cast this divine tree into the bitter waters of your Marah, and learn how it will sweeten them. Take this salt and throw it into the turbid waters and witness if they be not made sweet, as were the waters of old by the prophet Elisha. "Taste and see that the Lord is good ... for there is no want to them that fear him."

Robert Barr, the author, has a part in an anecdote which throws light upon England’s present craze for the sinews of war:

When Mr. Barr was teaching school in Canada, an old college friend of his came along with a stereopticon, giving talks on Europe. The lecturer always finished with the thrilling recital of an anecdote about Queen Victoria. The Alake of Abeokuta visited her and asked, “What is the cause of England’s greatness?” The good queen handed him a Bible, which was in readiness to present him, saying, “This is the reason of England’s greatness.” The dramatic device was always exceedingly effective.

When the lecturer came around to Barr’s district, the lantern-operator was ill, and Barr was implored to take his place, which he consented to do. All went well until the grand finale arrived, when Barr maliciously substituted another picture for that of the Bible. “This,” cried the fervid orator, “is the secret of England’s greatness!” and was horrified on glancing up at the screen to see before him a picture of the gigantic battleship _Consternation_. The audience, which did not know the story of the Bible, cheered vociferously, rose to its feet, and sang “Rule Britannia” in a most warlike voice.

A woman went one day to hear Dr. — preach, and, as usual, carried a pocket Bible with her, that she might turn to any of the passages the preacher might happen to refer to. But she found that she had no use for her Bible there; and on coming away, said to a friend, "I should have left my Bible at home to-day, and have brought my dictionary. The doctor does not deal in Scripture, but in such learned words and phrases as require the help of an interpreter to render them intelligible."