SERMON XII.

RELIGIOUS RESOLUTION.

PREACHED BEFORE THE MASSACHUSETTS MISSIONARY SOCIETY, MAY 27, 1800.

BE strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak; for your work shall be rewarded. 2 CHRON. XV. 7.

THERE was such a peculiar and intimate connection between the civil and religious institutions in the Hebrew republic, that the cause of religion was necessarily and deeply affected, by both the good and bad administration of government. Hence it became a proverb in Israel, "When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn." Religion never failed to flourish under the smiles and patronage of wise and pious princes; nor, on the other hand, did it ever fail to languish and decay under the frowns and opposition of unwise and wicked rulers. This in some measure appeared, while the whole house of Israel were happily united in one civil as well as religious community; but it still more clearly appeared, after the revolt and apostacy of the ten tribes. In the days of Joshua, "Israel was holiness unto the Lord, and the first fruits of his increase;" but after his decease, and while there was no king in Israel, the cause of religion visibly decayed, and never revived until the days of David and Solomon. While they were in the administration of government, they made noble and successful exertions to promote the public worship of God, and diffuse a spirit of vital piety among all classes of people. But after Rehoboam the son of Solomon, and Jeroboam the son of Nebat, divided the nation, religion received a most fatal blow. In

the kingdom of Israel it was greatly corrupted, and in the kingdom of Judah it was generally neglected. Rehoboam and Abijah were both unfriendly to the cause of God, and did much to obstruct and retard its progress. Accordingly, when Asa ascended the throne of Judah, he found religion in a low and languishing state. Iniquity had long abounded, and the love of many had waxen cold. But this deep declension, instead of weakening, awakened his holy zeal, to revive the sinking cause which lay so near his pious heart. His first sincere and vigorous efforts in favor of religion, were highly pleasing to the God of Israel, who sent a prophet on purpose to strengthen his resolution and perseverance in accomplishing the good design which he had so nobly conceived, and so successfully pursued. This is the agreeable account which the sacred historian gives, of some of the first acts of his pious and prosperous reign: "So Abijah slept with his fathers, and Asa his son reigned in his stead. And he did that which was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God; for he took away the altars of the strange gods, and the high places, and broke down the images, and cut down the groves; and commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment." After he had proceeded so far, " The Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded; and he went out to meet Asa, and said unto him, Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; the Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you." "Be ye strong, therefore, and let not your hands be weak; for your work shall be rewarded." This seasonable message from the God of Israel, gave new life and vigor to Asa and all his pious subjects. For it is added, "And when Asa heard these words, and the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he took courage.” “And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and the strangers with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh, and out of Simeon; for they fell to him out of Israel in abundance, when they saw that the Lord his God was with him." In this connection, the words of our text naturally suggest this animating truth to our present consideration:

That the friends of God have good ground for unshaken resolution in promoting the cause of religion.

To set this subject in a proper light, I shall endeavor to show,

I. That resolution is necessary in promoting the cause of religion.

II. That the friends of God have good ground to be bold and zealous in promoting such a noble and important design.

1

I. Let us consider the necessity of resolution in promoting the cause of religion.

Resolution is the essence of that mental strength, which gives energy to all the powers and faculties of body and mind. It is composed of love, zeal and confidence, which are the most operative affections of the human heart. When a man has conceived a design which engages his supreme affection, which engrosses his whole attention, and which he firmly believes he is capable of executing, he then feels a strong resolution to call forth all his latent powers into vigorous exercise, to accomplish the object of his wishes. Such resolution has always had a principal influence in effecting all the great things which have ever been effected by the men of the world. Equal resolution, though of a different kind, is no less necessary in promoting the cause of religion, than in promoting any other great and difficult undertaking. Men of piety may have time, and opportunity, and learning, and wealth, and power, and influence, to promote the cause of truth, and yet never exert themselves in this great and good design, unless they possess a firm and unshaken resolution. But all good men, who have this noble quality, are properly prepared to espouse the cause of God, amidst a frowning world. Hence the inspired writers unitedly inculcate resolution as the principal thing necessary, in order to succeed in promoting the interests of religion. "Be ye strong, therefore, and let not your hands be weak," says the prophet to Asa and the men of Judah, who were engaged in this pious and important work. When Jehoshaphat visited his kingdom, and discovered the prevalence of vice and irreligion, he exhorted the proper reformers to be bold and zealous in the discharge of their difficult duty. "Behold," says he, "Amariah the chief priest is over you in all matters of the Lord; also the Levites shall be officers before you." But notwithstanding all this aid and protection, he adds, "Deal courageously, and the Lord shall be with the good." When Shecaniah, a bold and zealous friend of God, urged Ezra the priest to espouse the sinking cause of virtue and piety, for which he had been fervently praying, he plainly intimated that resolution was indispensably necessary to effect a religious reformation. "Arise, for this matter belongeth unto thee; we also will be with thee; be of good courage, and do it."

If we now turn our attention to those whom God has employed as eminent instruments of building up his kingdom, we shall find that a bold and persevering spirit was the most prominent trait in their character. Though Moses was a man of meekness, yet he was no less a man of firmness and resolu

tion. He feared not the wrath of the king, nor the frowns of his court, nor the murmurs of the false and faint hearted Israelites; but boldly pursued the cause of God, in defiance to the united opposition of all the enemies of the church. Elijah displayed peculiar courage and zeal in appearing on the Lord's side and espousing his cause, at a time of general, and, as he thought, of universal declension. He not only opposed and confounded all the prophets of Baal, but even dared to deliver the message of God to Ahab, whom he knew had been seeking his life. It was a firm and unshaken resolution, which enabled Nehemiah to carry on and accomplish the work of God at Jerusalem, in opposition to all the intrigues and threats of Sanballat and Tobiah, and their numerous confederates. For, being admonished to consult his personal safety, he nobly replied, "Should such a man as I flee?" What invincible firmness did Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego discover, when they maintained the worship and glory of the only true God, before the mouth of the lions' den, and the flames of the burning fiery furnace? A bold and undaunted spirit was the most striking lineament in the character of John the Baptist, who was sent as a pioneer, to prepare the way of the Lord. The meek and lowly Jesus himself was "the Lion of the tribe of Judah." He spake with a courage and boldness with which never man spake. His undaunted resolution in purging the temple, surprised even his disciples, until they recollected it was written, "The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up." The holy apostles imbibed the bold and zealous spirit of their divine Master, which rendered them superior to all opposition, in spreading the gospel among both Jews and Gentiles. This the enemies of truth most sensibly felt, and most explicitly acknowledged. For we are told, "When they saw the boldness of Peter and John, they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus." And when these two apostles were arrested in their work they bid defiance to the threats of their malignant opposers, and made this solemn appeal to their consciences: "Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." Paul, that chosen vessel to bear the messages of grace to those sitting in the region of the shadow of death, was a man of astonishing resolution and zeal. He dared the dangers of the sea, and the perils of the wilderness. He attacked the false religion and vain philosophy of pagan priests and moralists. He regarded not the terror of tyrants, nor the rage and violence of persecutors; but boldly declared the whole counsel of God. And though his friends frequently advised him to

avoid the dangers and evils to which he exposed himself in the cause of Christ, yet his persevering zeal and resolution would not suffer him to desert nor neglect the benevolent design which he had determined, at all hazards, to pursue. Hear his bold and undaunted language: "Behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there; save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me. But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God." Luther was raised up to purge away the errors and delusions of the Church of Rome, and to spread the pure truths of the gospel through many of the states and kingdoms of Europe. This was a most arduous and dangerous task. Accordingly, to fit him for his work, God inspired him with a bold, enterprising, unconquerable spirit. This animated and supported him amidst the greatest labors and contests that have ever, perhaps, fallen to the lot of any individual since the days of the apostles. As Calvin stood next to Luther in propagating truth in opposition to error, so next to that great reformer, he possessed the largest share of genuine resolution and fortitude. But though Zuinglius was a man of more penetration and knowledge, and commanded a more elegant and persuasive pen than either Luther or Calvin, yet, by his great timidity and irresolution, he often injured the glorious cause which he sincerely wished to promote. Thus it appears from the experience of ages, as well as from the testimony of scripture, that a pious and persevering resolution is indispensably necessary, in order to propagate the gospel, and build up the kingdom of Christ in the world. I now proceed to show,

II. That the friends of God have good ground for such unshaken resolution, in promoting such a great and good design. The precept in the text is connected with an animating promise. "Be ye strong therefore, and let not your hands be weak: for your work shall be rewarded." Here I shall mention a few of the weighty motives to bold and vigorous exertions in the cause of religion.

1. The friends of God have often been succeeded in their sincere attempts to promote his glory in the conversion of sinners. He has been pleased to allow them the privilege of being workers together with him, in strengthening and enlarging his spiritual kingdom. This privilege they have sometimes zealously improved, when they saw religion was declining, and multitudes of sinners were perishing in their sins. At such a time, Asa set himself to revive the sinking cause of God.

He