The First Church, Orange, N. J. : one hundred and fiftieth anniversary, November 24 and 25, 1869, Part 2

Author: First Presbyterian Church (Orange, N.J.)
Publication date: 1870
Publisher: Newark, N.J. : Pub. for the session, by Jennings
Number of Pages: 190


USA > New Jersey > Essex County > Orange > The First Church, Orange, N. J. : one hundred and fiftieth anniversary, November 24 and 25, 1869 > Part 2


Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).


Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7


It is both pleasing and profitable to trace, as therein set forth, the peculiar individuality of the


31


SERMON.


church in its organic life and growth. Possessing much in common with its sister churches, being one with them in Christ Jesus, one in doctrine and polity, one in its animating spirit and in its pur- pose, it has had characteristics peculiarly its own, distinguishing it from all others. There has always been a certain puritan simplicity about it, which is quite in keeping with the source whence it had its origin. And yet it has been thoroughly indigenous, which is easily to be traced to the material of which it has been hitherto composed-a solid, substantial yeomanry, breathing the pure air of this most salu- brious region, but still so near the great commer- cial centre of the continent as to feel the influence of its activity, and of its large and broad way of viewing all matters. It has been distinguished for its vital energy, which has rendered it strong in itself and independent of externals, and but little shaken apparently by the various trying experi- ences through which it has passed. This was due to a most marked and abiding sense of its dependence upon the great Head of the Church, which is the true secret of its strength and stability. It has been characterized by a remarkable purity and sound-


32


FIRST CHURCH, ORANGE.


ness of doctrinal belief in a practical and living form, so that it has not been " tossed to and fro, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive," giving evidence, in this, of the fidelity with which a gifted and godly ministry have labored "in the word and doctrine," for its establishment and upholding. It has had a disposition to devise liberal things for the service of the Lord, as is clearly shown by this venerable structure, with it solid walls of hewn stone, so ex- cellent in its style and finish for the time when it was erected, so dignified, substantial and commo- dious, reflecting great credit upon those who were engaged in its construction, requiring, as it must have done, much of toil, self-denial and sacrifice at their hands, which is well worthy of imitation at the present day ; and also by a similar provision for the worship of God in the stone edifice which pre- ceded it; and likewise by the generous support which has always been given to those who were placed over them in the Lord, in the ministerial office.


But how much there is in the history of this our


33


SERMON.


venerable Zion, which is unwritten and can never be spread out upon the printed page, or even find expression in human language, and yet is by far the larger, and the most precious part, of the legacy which the past brings down to us. That which is thus unrecorded has had by far the most to do in making the church what it is to-day.


In this category must be reckoned the inner life and experiences of the saintly host who have be- longed to it through the century and a half of its existence. What these have been no man knoweth, save the Son of Man, whom the beloved disciple in vision beheld, holding the seven stars in his right hand, and walking in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks. They are all recorded in His book of remembrance, and there stand as a part of the his- tory of this church, in connection with which they have transpired. To Him only is it known how their unconscious influence has gone forth, silently and unperceived, to mould and give character, and determine what the future of this spiritual temple of the Lord should be. It is manifest that these must have been, for the most part, of a high order as to piety, fervor and devotion. Otherwise it


34


FIRST CHURCH, ORANGE.


would not be the strong, compact, and firmly estab- lished spiritual building which it now is, nor have lingering yet in its sacred precincts the fragrance of their christian character, and the precious aroma of their love for the dear Lord, which led them freely to devote their best and costliest to His ser- vice. From these holy men and women who have here lived, labored, and fallen asleep at last in Jesus, there have gone forth such influences as will never fail of their effective operation in this church, so long as the world stands. The good man never ceases to exist on earth, though every trace of him may be gone from the sight and memory of men. He has become a spiritual force, which the Master will always continue to employ, until the top-most stone of His living temple upon earth is laid, amid the shoutings of the angels and the redeemed.


Countless in number, and of every conceivable variety, are the fervent petitions which have gone up into the ear of the Most High, who heareth prayer, in broken utterance, with streaming eye and falling tear, from the hearts of God's people in all past time since this church began its existence. These have been offered, not for present blessings


35


SERMON.


alone, but for blessings in abundant measure to descend, in all future time, down even to the latest generation, upon this, the dearest object of their affection. From the secresy of the closet, where none but God could hear or see the praying saint on bended knee ; and from these fields, and wood- lands, and mountain slopes, and the streets even of this extended territory, which the parish has em- braced within its limits, there have been breathed supplications, which have been winged by strong faith, and have gone up on swift pinion to Heaven above. And all along through the rapid flight of years, these precious prayers have been receiving continual answer, from a covenant-keeping God. None can estimate what this church, for its quiet, its purity, its prosperity, its long continuance, its success, owes to these same prayers. But we all very well know that every blessing which it has enjoyed is due, in very large measure, to their won- derful efficacy. And they are yet laid up in store for us of the present generation, and for all who come after us, full of efficacy in procuring blessing as the clouds of rain, and ready under the Divine


36


FIRST CHURCH, ORANGE.


direction as they, to cause the grateful, fertilizing shower to fall upon us. In the hands of the four beasts, and of the four and twenty elders, whom the Apostle John beheld prostrating themselves before the Lamb, who was about to open the seven seals of the mystical book, there were golden vials full of odors, which are the prayers of the saints. Does not this signify that these prayers are a trea- sure laid up in Heaven to receive answer in abun- dant measure in all future time ? How does the past come down to us, then, laden with inexhaust- ible riches, in the fervent supplications of pious hearts, offered up in behalf of this church so dear to them, all unnoted and unrecorded upon earth, but held in precious remembrance on high !


Nor of less worth is another portion of our inher- itance in the past history of this church-the mani- fold and varied endeavors of the great company of Christ's servants who have occupied hitherto this vineyard of the Lord. With faith and prayer they have cultivated the soil, and sown the seed, which is yet to spring up and bear an abundant harvest, though something of the fruitage is already gath-


37


SERMON.


ered into the heavenly storehouses. The seed of the Word, which it is the christian's privilege to sow, is sometimes long in springing up. It lies dormant, awaiting God's time, as the seed of a former generation of forest trees lies in the rich loam until the right time for it to spring up shall come. And when it does shoot upward from out the soil in which it is planted, and reach its fruit- bearing, it is not of short life, but is like the tree " planted by the rivers of water, whose leaf also shall not wither." The abundant and faithful labors of Christ's ministers, who have here lived and died, think you that they have ceased to be fruitful of good to this church, sources of its vitality and power, hidden springs from which flow refresh- ing streams of holy influence ? By no means. Not while the world stands, shall this prove true. Nei- ther has God forgotten a single earnest endeavor for the upbuilding of this church, put forth in weakness by the feeblest member of the flock. Nor will He fail to render it also fruitful of blessing thereto, until the end of time. "He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubt-


38


FIRST CHURCH, ORANGE.


less come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him," when the long working day of the world's redemption is ended. The sowing is man's work. But the growing, and fruit-bearing, and harvesting, are God's care. And these latter pro- cesses will continue until the song of the angels, shouting harvest home, is heard resounding through the skies.


How very precious, then, is the past, by reason of these toilsome and tearful, yet trustful and loving labors of our forefathers for the salvation of souls, for the establishment and upbuilding of this church, for the honor of Christ and the glory of God. They each, under the Divine superintendence, are noiselessly working among the life forces of this spiritual building, which is slowly growing up "to an holy temple in the Lord, in whom we also are builded together, for an habitation of God through the Spirit."


Ye see then your inheritance, brethren, which the past history of this venerable church yields into your hands, as yours, and bids you take up, and employ, and transmit to future generations. We


39


SERMON.


are now engaging in a service, one purpose of which is the review of our priceless inheritance, which has come down to us from our godly ancestry, who were fellow members with us of this household of faith. We are bidden to look upon it, that we may see how it is enriched with their prayers and tears, and adorned by their holy walk and conversation, and fragrant with their benedictions, which they left behind them upon all who should come after, as they passed from earth to Heaven. We are sum- moned thus to behold it, that we may understand its real worth, its manifold resources, the many advantages which it affords, and the numerous bless- ings it confers. We are thus to contemplate it that we may fully possess ourselves of it, and make it all our own as our rightful inheritance. This is in part our answer to the inquiry which so naturally arises, " What mean ye by this service ?"


II. But this is not all. We would also cast our eyes forward into the yet unrevealed future, to dis- cover, if we may, what the possibilities are in reference to the future history of this church, what mission it yet


40


FIRST CHURCH, ORANGE.


has to perform, what place to fill, and what results to achieve. We must not sit down to content ourselves with what has been already, but explore what is before us, to see what may yet be in time to come, whereby the inheritance we have received may be enlarged, beautified, and enriched. To do other- wise is a most fatal error. "Precious indeed," says Liddon, in his Bampton Lectures, " precious indeed to every wise man, to every association of true- hearted and generous men, must ever be the inher- itance of the past. Yet what is the past without the future ? What is memory when unaccompanied by hope ? Look at the case of the single soul. Is it not certain that a life of high, earnest purpose, will die outright if it is permitted to sink into the placid reverie of perpetual retrospect ; if the man of action becomes the mere "laudator temporis acti ?" How is the force of moral life developed and strengthened ? Is it not by successive, con- scious efforts to act and to suffer at the call of duty ? Must not every moral life dwindle and fade away, if it be not reaching forward to a standard higher, truer, purer, stronger, than its own ? Will not the


41


SERMON.


struggles, the sacrifices, the self-conquests even of a great character, in by-gone years, if they now oc- cupy its whole field of vision, only serve to consum- mate its ruin ? As it doatingly fondles them in memory, will it not be stiffened by conceit into a moral petrifaction, or consigned by sloth to the successive processes of moral decomposition ? Has not the author of our life so bound up its deepest instincts and yearnings with His own eternity, that no blessings in the past would be blessings, if they were utterly unconnected with the future ?


A nation must have a future before it, a future which can rebuke its despondency, and can direct its enthusiasm ; a future for which it will prepare itself ; a future which it will aspire to create, and control. Unless it would barter away the vigorous nerve of true patriotism, for the feeble pedantry of a soulless archæology, a nation cannot fall back altogether upon the centuries which have flattered its ambition, or which have developed its material well-being. Something it must propose to itself as an object to be compassed in coming time, some- thing which is as yet beyond it. So it is also in the case of society. 3 The greatest of all


.


42


FIRST CHURCH, ORANGE.


societies among men at this moment is the church of Jesus Christ. Is she sustained only by the deeds and writings of her saints, and martyrs in a distant past, or only by her reverent, trustful sense of the Divine Presence which blesses her in the actual present ? Does she not resolutely pierce the gloom of the future, and confidently reckon upon new struggles and triumphs on earth, and beyond these upon a home in heaven, wherein she will enjoy rest and victory ; a rest that no trouble can disturb-a victory that no reverse can forfeit ?"


Assuredly we must give full and hearty assent to these sentiments, so eloquently expressed and en- forced, and feel that they have direct and most per- tinent application to us at the present time. It is our solemn duty to consider well the future, and ponder deeply what it has in store for the church with which we stand connected, if we and those who come after us do not fail of our duty and privi- lege in this matter.


It requires but the most cursory glance into the near future, to discover that we are upon the verge of something grander and nobler in concep- tion and execution than ever yet has been realized,


43


SERMON.


in every department of human activity. Though there may not be so much accomplished, perhaps, in the way of new discoveries, yet in the appli- cation of those which have been already made, to meet the necessities of men, an era of prodigious undertakings is dawning upon us. Nor are these such as cannot be carried through to completion, or, when consummated, likely to prove of little value. Enough has already been achieved to show that the energy of will which is brought into use, will be quite equal to the mighty strain put upon it ; and also that the judgment exercised will not be at fault in giving right direction to whatever is undertaken. The girdling of continents with iron roadways; the traversing of oceans which wash shores widely distant from each other with swift steamships ; the tying together of great countries by a wire thread stretched along the bottom of the wide sea, or in the thin atmosphere above the earth, through which intelligence can be flashed in the twinkling of an eye, we must regard as only the first instalments of what is yet to transpire, by which all the inhabitants of the world shall be made akin, and their material interests be greatly


44


FIRST CHURCH, ORANGE.


promoted. There are already half-defined prophe- cies of something greater shortly to follow ;- possibilities yet slumbering, waiting the touch of a master hand to evolve them into realities.


The age just at hand is to be one of the most radical changes in the condition of society, and of state. Even now there are beginnings of revolu- tions, for the most part peaceful, which foreshadow great overturnings, readjustments, and reforms ; the overthrow of erroneous and effete systems of legislation and government; and the removal of the great obstacles to human progress, which have hitherto stood in the way, like insurmountable bar- riers. No Ecumenical Council can avail to keep back the on-rushing tide of popular sentiment which is setting in the direction of freedom of thought and action. The Pope and his Cardinals and Bishops might as well take their stand at low water upon the sandy beach, and endeavor to force back the sea as it rises higher and higher, and rolls in farther and farther with every succeeding wave upon the main-land. No barricading of the streets of the French capital, so as to quell an uprising, will long preserve the sceptre and throne of the


45


SERMON.


Emperor Napoleon, unless he gracefully yields, to the stern demand of the people, the rights of which they have been so long defrauded. The questions of the separation of church and state; of the right to popular education; of participation in the affairs of government in some form or other by the people, are already virtually decided. Feudalism, caste, tyranny and despotism, are soon to become traditions of the past, rather than present realities. Labor and capital are seeking a new and more equitable adjustment of their relations to each other. The basis of standing in society, and of reputation among men, is gradually shifting from that of birth, or wealth, or any of the merely acci- dental and false grounds of social distinction, to that of real worth of character and life, such as has been displayed in one of our own countrymen, who has so recently departed this life. Of humble origin, and wholly destitute of any adventitious circumstances wherewith to win favor and distinc- tion, he has risen to the highest position of esteem and admiration among men, by the sheer force of simple, unpretending goodness in character, and of the most bountiful and loving liberality to the


46


FIRST CHURCH, ORANGE.


poor, the ignorant, the suffering, and the down- trodden. What a contrast to his life, and to the esteem in which he is held, and what an evidence also that the mere possession of money cannot buy the esteem of men, is exhibited in one of his com- peers in wealth who has recently had the doubtful compliment paid him of the erection of a magnifi- cent bronze statue in his honor, the unveiling of which was made the subject of such burlesque and ridicule the other day, among those who know him best, and where he had gained his fortune in large measure.


Nor less significant are present indications as to what the future is to be in its religious aspect. It always betokens a great advance in the kingdom of grace, when you find Satan setting up his throne of power, and actively engaged in rallying his forces to fresh onset, and to redoubled exertions for the overthrow of righteousness. When the Son of God came to earth, the evil one at once set on foot a project for his destruction ; and so it was at the time when he entered upon his public ministry, and thereafter. Satan was ever on the alert and most determined in his efforts of opposition to Him, and


47


SERMON.


to His work of grace. When the early church began to spread itself in every direction, what fierce persecutions he incited and set in motion, in order to forestall, and put down, and crush it out if possible. So has it ever been from that time to this. He scents danger to his rule among men from afar, and is quick to ward it off if possible. What we behold, then, of desperate assault upon the person and work of our divine Lord, and upon the written word of Revelation, and upon the church, by those in league with Satan, and obe- dient to his dictation, only betokens a movement already in progress which is destined to result in highly exalting Him in the esteem of men, and leading them to enthrone Him in their hearts as well as over their lives, the Lord of all, as never before. Even this great assemblage now conven- ing on the banks of the Tiber for the purpose of tightening the chains of spiritual bondage, in which Satan has so long held millions enslaved, through the instrumentality of a corrupt church, is most conclusive evidence that these slaves are threatening to break loose therefrom entirely, and foreshadows their emancipation as near at hand.


48


FIRST CHURCH, ORANGE.


What magnificent opportunities, also, are offer- ing for the spread of the kingdom of Christ, and for the wide diffusion of His gospel. What facili- ties also are afforded wherewith to accomplish what remains to be done to possess the world for Jesus, by reason of the proximity into which the most distant nations are brought in relation to each other, and the action and reaction which they are having upon one another in every possible way. The church, too, in its every separate branch, and throughout its entire membership, is beginning to awake, to put on its strength, and to gird itself for the great spiritual warfare which is before it. It is uniting its scattered and hitherto conflicting bands around their common standard, the Cross. It is inspiring itself with new zeal, and faith, and love, and is proposing to itself magnificent enterprises in the building up of the Redeemer's kingdom, such as the men of this world fearlessly undertake for the advancement of their material interests. It seems to be unwilling any longer that it should be said of itself, "the children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light."


It is upon such a future in the world at large,


49


SERMON.


which I have attempted to portray, but which no words of mine can adequately set forth, that this church is to enter. And it is a future wherein it may perform a most important part, and achieve results which it is given to few to attain. For if you will now turn your eyes from this broad out- look upon what is before us, to that which is nearer at hand and more immediately concerns this church in time to come, you cannot fail to see that its opportunities and facilities for service in Christ's name are, in common with those of its sister churches in this region, almost unparalleled. If the great metropolis of which we are in reality, though not in name, already a part, should con- tinue to be the grand commercial emporium that it now is-and nobody dreams of the contrary- increasing and overflowing from year to year, in the future as it has done in the past, then we are to be located in the midst of a dense population, for the most part intelligent, cultivated, full of busi- ness energy and skill. It bids fair to be a popula- tion second to none in the land, for the qualities of character and action which are needful in the ser- vice of Christ; one neither puffed up with pride


50


FIRST CHURCH, ORANGE.


by reason of great wealth, nor swallowed up by the eddying currents of the whirlpool of fashion, nor so extremely select and super-refined in their aris- tocratic notions that the lowly and humble work to which the despised Nazarene calls His disciples will be altogether too much beneath them. There is no grander field for christian activity than is thus opening more and more on every hand, right about us.


Then, too, we are placed near the heart, and not at the extremities, by our proximity to the chief city in importance of the western continent. It is one of the world's great marts for traffic and com- merce, and the center-point whither men congre- gate from every land and nationality under the heavens. Christians here, in their daily contact with these men, may make their own individual influence world-wide. A church situated as this is, and composed of those who, like the early christians, preach the Word wherever they go, by pure lives, by loving words of warning and en- treaty, and by good deeds of mercy and charity, may make itself felt with mighty power through- out the length and breadth of the earth. Truly


51


SERMON.


it is-to use the Saviour's own comparison-" a city that is set on a hill, that cannot be hid."


What ought not a church to be, and to do, which is thus favorably situated, and has such advantages and opportunities afforded it for making its power felt, both here and everywhere throughout the wide world ? How peremptorily is it called upon to summon its energies to accomplish its utmost, as it enters upon another half century of its existence, at a time like this! How ought it to be stimulated to activity when such a glorious era is dawning upon the world, so full of inspiration to high and holy endeavor, and lofty and sublime undertaking; when everything is conspiring to render what the people of God may do for the upbuilding of the Redeemer's Kingdom eminently successful ! Espe- cially, what is there that ought to belong to any church, that should not characterize our own, in the future which lies before us ? What a past history it has ! What precious legacies of holy example, triumphant faith, fervent prayer, and noble achievement! How it has, by these many years of experience and discipline, become estab- lished and settled, grown strong and stable, and




Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.