USA > New York > Rensselaer County > East Greenbush > History of the Reformed church, at East Greenbush, Rensselaer County, New York > Part 3
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It is a delightful truth, that all the dispensations of this world, all its events of joy or sorrow, are beneath the sway of the God-Man, our brother, Jesus Christ. It reminds us of that charming truth in natural science which reveals to us those manifold obligations of our lives to the agency of the natural sun; that not only does he keep the planets in their orbits; not only does he daily warm and illumine and beautify the world; not only does the life of every man and beast and plant depend on his genial rays; not only does he pen- cil every hue of earth and sky, but through unnum- bered ages of the past he has been storing up his own heat and light in all the fuel of our globe, so that not a gas-jet burns, not a furnace glows, not an engine moves, not a train rushes across the land, not a steamer ploughs the ocean, but all comes from the light and heat which the sun long ago stored up for us in those primeval forests which have made the coal-beds of the world.
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And has the great Sun of righteousness now on the throne treasured up nothing for us in the past ? Was it not in the far past eternity that His love looked down on our ruin? Was it not then that He espoused our cause and covenanted with the Father to be our Redeemer ? Was it not well-nigh two thousand years ago that He tabernacled in our nature, bore our griefs, died for our sins, and rose for our justification ? Is it not of His fulness that all we have received, and grace for grace ? And is He not on that glorious throne just now for the very object of carrying out the eternal purposes of His grace and dispensing the daily and hourly blessings of His love ?
Yes, Christ reigns over nature, animate and inani- mate, over men and devils, over friend and foe, over joy and sorrow, reigns over every event that befalls us, reigns in righteousness to all, reigns in everlasting love to His saints. " Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb forever and ever."
3. A conspicuous characteristic of this throne is its peculiar relations to the church.
Its great design is the welfare, triumph and ever- lasting glory of the church. It is as Head over all things to the church, that Christ fills it. Everything else is subordinate to this. Christ's own reward
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and glory for the suffering of death, are involved in the Christ's final victory and splendor. Therefore " in Zion is His throne."
When God led Israel through the wilderness He was King of all the earth, yet not in that peculiar way in which He was King of Israel. That taber- nacle and mercy-seat, that pillar of cloud and fire, that Urim and Thummim and covenant were not for Egypt or Moab or Philistia, but for Israel alone. Even the prophet of the enemy looking upon the chosen people from the top of Pisgah exclaimed, "Jehovah his God is with him, and the shout of a King is among them."
If the other would share in these special privi- leges, they must come into Israel's camp and wor- ship Israel's God, for only there was the throne and the glory. So to-day, while Christ is King of Kings, His throne is pre-eminently in His Church and for His Church. To the final glory of that Church He guides all the movements of time with an unerring eye and unwearied hand.
" And all the kingdoms of the earth Shall worship or shall die."
4. The bond which binds Christ's Church to His throne is one of spiritual life and love. "I founded an empire on force," said Napoleon, looking back on the wreck of all his greatness. So stand most of the kingdoms of this world; their pillars are
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their soldiery, their arm is an arm of flesh, and in the struggle the strongest takes the throne.
Not so in the Kingdom of Christ in its relation to His saints. The Eternal King communicates His own life to every loyal subject, makes it par- taker of His own spirit, kindles within it the flame of a pure and immortal love, and thus unifies the Kingdom in one body, of which the Sovereign is the Head, and the Church the members. There are thousands of parts in that Church, with thousands of nerves and arteries and veins, but one life-blood, one heart-beat, one warmth, one sympathy, one interest in all. The life reaches not only through every land and age of earth, but goes on into heaven and eternity. It binds all the saints, past, present and to come, in one great phalanx of life and love. It kindles in all hearts the purest and highest enthusiasm of gratitude and loyalty to the Lamb in the midst of the throne. The universal cry is, " Thou art worthy, for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kin- dred, and tongue, and people, and nation."
The world has seen many a noted instance of soldiers' devotion to military leaders, as when one of Napoleon's heroes said to the surgeon who was probing near his heart for a musket-ball, "Go a little deeper and you will find the emperor there." A few weeks ago in Berlin, at the anniversary of
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the death of Marshal Blucher (who saved Wel- lington at Waterloo), an aged soldier who had fought under the Marshal laid a wreath of oak leaves at the feet of the statue of his old com- mander.
It is well that earthly love and gratitude from man to man should be expressed. But all this is nothing to the purer emotions of the true believer for the Lord who bought him. The smoke of stake and scaffold ; the horrors of the amphitheater; the agonies of the rack; the tortures of the Cross have told the world the story of christian love for Jesus, the King and Captain of Salvation.
"They met the tyrant's brandished steel, The lion's gory mane, They bowed their necks the death to feel; Who follows in their train ?"
The whole church of the truly regenerate and sanctified-millions upon millions of faithful hearts who have been willing, if need be, to lay down their lives for their Redeemer. If we are not heroes and martyrs every day, as some days have seen them, it is not that the spirit of heroism and martyrdom does not exist. There are as many true hearts in the army to-day as ever, and more. The same spirit, developed sometimes in one form of fidelity and sometimes another, according to cir- cumstances, pervades all the ranks of the sacra-
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mental host. Let the occasions come, and Eng- land's Smithfields and Spain's Inquisitions and Rome's wild beasts would find as splendid conse- crations to Jesus as the world ever saw,-that the spirit of that King who once himself hung on the Cross, is in the breast of all His followers.
So the armies of the Lamb move on from genera- tion to generation, from century to century ; so church after church celebrates the memorials of its history and sings the triumphs of its King.
That was a sublime scene in our National Capital at the close of the late war, when the different loyal armies met and held their grand review. For two days the tramp of that mighty host was heard from morning to night. The broad avenue was filled from morning to night with their outspread ranks, from side to side, and as far down as the eye could reach, on and on they came, company after com- pany, regiment after regiment, corps, army ; soldiers from East, West, North, and from the South too. Many of them born in foreign lands, many were the languages of the mighty host. Thousands of miles apart had their battles been; tens of thousands of their comrades had fallen in the strife. But from year to year the ranks had been replenished with new recruits. In one great cause had they fought; in one great victory they had shared ; one Union had they saved. In its glad Capital they
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were met, and on and on they came; one incessant shout of a Nation's thanks fell every moment on their ears. Before the eyes of the nation's ruler every soldier marched. To the enjoyment of the rewards of their victory, in homes of love and a land of peace, they all passed on.
It was a picture of higher things. A grander march is ever going on ; an army not composed of one nation alone, but of all nations and kindreds and peoples and tongues ; not in one land alone, but in all lands ; not for two days only, but for day and night through endless years. At this very moment the sun on our side of the globe and the stars on the other are looking down on these hosts. Every language, every shade of color, every condi- tion of social life are represented in those ranks. But in the same great cause are they enlisted, one great Commander is over all. In one great triumph shall they share. Before one great throne shall they pass in final review, and in one great land of peace and glory shall they reap their everlasting reward.
In this great march of Christ's army, this church has joined one hundred years. Its battle-flag at the beginning and now is that which its King gave it, with the charge, "Be thou faithful unto death and I will give thee the crown of life." Many of its officers and members have kept that charge and
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won that crown. Not one of its original veterans remains. The last of these long ago passed into the joy of the Lord. Over and over again have its ranks had to be renewed. But there is no change in the cause, commission or nature of the conflict ; the Great Commander is the same and His throne is forever and ever.
Standing then at the end of this church's century and amid such relations to the throne of the Mes- siah, what is the lesson which should impress itself on every heart ? Surely it is Loyalty.
In the recent centennial celebration of our National Independence, and later of our National Constitution-in every monument erected on bat- tle-fields and every statue of the heroes of those battles, one great design has been to stimulate the spirit of patriotism, of love and loyalty to our coun- try. And surely in a day like this, we can adopt no lower formula of duty towards the throne of our Lord and Saviour. Loyalty thus renewed, loyalty to Jesus Christ is the lesson of this hour.
But how shall this loyalty be described ? First, it is loyalty to His Truth. This is the Church's first duty. The Word that comes from that throne is her supreme and only rule. Her law is what Christ commands-her faith what Christ reveals. Her unchangeable commission is to keep His words and preach His Gospel, not fancies of presumptu-
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ous ministers, nor the unsanctified conceits of foolish members, but the glorious Gospel of the ever-blessed God. The army's marching orders are not from the ranks, but from the Commander. The dreams of men vanish with the night that cre- ates them. The Great King says, " Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away." What malignant assaults has infidelity made upon this Word during this past century, and what changes in the weapons and mode of assault ! Yet what harm has all this bitter warfare done to this Word of Christ ? What statement has it dis- proved ? What doctrine impaired ? There it stands firm as the rock of ages, and true as ever in the language of the King, " Whosoever shall fall upon this stone shall be broken, but on whomsoever it shall fall it shall grind him to powder." Science has made and is constantly making many noble discov- eries, but none as yet have shaken this great rock. The hypotheses unfriendly to Revelation which some illustrious names have announced and along the line of which they thought they saw a refuta- tion of some of the teachings of the Bible, have not on further investigation worked out the results which they expected. So that a learned scientific professor recently said, "Much of the work of Hux- ley has already become obsolete ; some of it con- demned by himself; and there are few prominent
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scientists who have not frequently found the searcher unpleasantly detecting their errors."*
And all this rise and fall of boasted theories within a dozen years ! But during the nearly two thousand years since Jesus spoke, what word of His has become obsolete ? What error of His has "the searcher " found ?
It is to this high and immortal truth of its Eternal Lord that the Church of Christ and the ministry of Christ are dedicated -- " separated unto the Gospel of God," as Paul describes himself. It was in fidelity to this Gospel and against the tradi- tions and commandments of men that the Mother Church in Holland gave her sixty thousand martyrs to her Lord, fought the armies of Romanism in a war of eighty years, cut the dykes and let the ocean roll over her fields and towns rather than the tide of a false faith ; and her worshipers even gathered in an upper room to hear the preaching of the Word of Christ, when the only light they had for their service was that which came from the fires outside, which were burning one of their number at the stake for fidelity to this same Word.
Oh, with such an ancestry and with such exam- ples before them, there is no church in the world which ought to be more loyal to the Word of the Lord than this Daughter of Holland-the Reformed
* Professor Macloskie, Presbyterian Review, October, 1887. [4]
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Church in America. Amid the evanescence of all earthly things, here is the incorruptible Word which liveth and abideth forever. "For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth and the flower thereof falleth away : but the Word of the Lord endureth forever. And this is the Word which by the Gospel is preached unto you." It has already, as we have said, the dominion of universal power, but it seeks the dearer dominion of universal love.
Another vital element of loyalty to the throne of Christ has aspect to the aggressive spirit of that throne. It is a throne of conquest not over bodies merely, but hearts. Its aim is universal victory. Manifold and malignant are its foes, but "as I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me." This world has been redeemed; it shall be re- claimed. The trophies of the Cross shall all be brought before the throne. The provisions are sure. Sin and Satan shall be vanquished. Right- eousness shall reign ; salvation shall triumph; the whole world shall acknowledge the Lord whom once it crucified. We know not when nor exactly how, but we do know the fact that-
" The King who reigns in Zion's towers Shall all the world command."
To accomplish this end, His Church is to pray and labor night and day. As He ascended that throne,
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He gave as His last great commission, "Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature." To every disciple He says "Go." To the sinful and sad, He says "Come." But when one has come and received His mercy, then He says "Go." To the leper, the blind, the demoniac, the guilty, the lost-" Go tell what the Lord hath done for thee ; go tell other lost ones of the love and the salvation ; go be a witness and a messenger of my mercy to a perishing world."
To this high end every disciple is called in some way to diffuse the knowledge of his King and Saviour. For this purpose the Church exists ; not merely to enjoy its own comfortable sanctuaries and sweet Sabbaths and precious hopes and happy centennials, but to be ever active and aggressive in winning the world to Christ-as light to shine, as a witness to testify, as an army to advance and conquer.
Every church and every believer in christendom to-day owe their spiritual life and hope to the aggressive and faithful labors of some who had gone before. How came this church in existence ? How came you and I to be Christians ? We are all the fruits of missionary, and foreign missionary labors. We are all the results of somebody's obedi- ence to the King's command, " Go." For what was our ancestry ? Not very long ago they were brutal
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savages, "having no hope and without God in the world." Imagine your ancestors standing closely in a row in front of this pulpit down yonder aisle. How far would that line extend before it would contain a half-clothed savage worshiping an image of wood or stone ? Not as far as yonder threshold, and that savage would be one of your forefathers ! But a faithful missionary brought to him the mes- sage of Christ's love, and so the Gospel from gen- eration to generation came on, until to-day you are a child of God, and so this church arose and has lived a hundred years !
What is the lesson which gratitude suggests but that of a larger and gladder consecration than ever before to that great work by which and for which the church exists. Proclaim the glories of your King throughout the world. Lay your prayers and offerings at His feet. Lay your hearts and lives there. Bring your trophies of salvation there. Let not only this surrounding community know how you love and serve your King-let distant lands know it; let India, China and Japan know it ; let Heaven know it; let it be such that you yourself shall know it when you shall come to appear before the throne of your King, that He may give you everlasting rewards for your devoted loyalty to Him.
Dear friends, this is a day of gladness, of grati-
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tude and of lofty impulse. A century of God's goodness and grace to this church has passed. What shall the next century reveal ? what growth ? what power ? what fidelity to Christ ? Shall it live with a new fervor, give with a new liberality, and labor with a new zeal ? Shall it be so conse- crated to Christ and such a co-worker with Him in His Kingdom, that "when His glory shall be re- vealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy ?" For be assured that glory shall be revealed. These centuries are rapidly bringing in the crowning day of earth's great King. There is no doubt about His splendid and universal triumph. Earthly kings may be dethroned or die; earthly kingdoms may be wrecked. The world is full of shattered thrones and crowns in the dust. One of the saddest but most beautiful pieces of modern sculpture is that statue of Napoleon which represents the sick exile in his arm chair with the map of Europe on his knees. The keen eye and stern brow and com- pressed lip are still there, but health has gone, power, glory. That map was once his chess-board, where he moved kings and queens and knights and crowns as he chose. But soon not an inch of its soil and not a soldier could he call his own. And since that hour what new dethronements and changes have there been on that same map!
But amid all the upheavals of human thrones the
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throne of Jesus widens its sway and expands its glory every year. Never were its predicted splen- dors so near their manifestations as at this very moment of our celebration. As we speak the glory draws nigh. Perhaps long before this church shall celebrate its second century the King himself shall come, and heaven and earth shall join in the shout, " The kingdoms of this world are become the king- doms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever !"
Dr. Berry was the grandson of the first pastor. He died suddenly at Asbury Park, N. J., on Friday, June 5, 1891. On Wednesday evening, June 3d, he had preached the synodical sermon as the retir- ing President of General Synod, and on Thursday evening, June 4, he had joined in the Communion service. Suddenly he was bidden to go up higher and take his seat at the marriage supper of the Lamb.
After the sermon, the Rev. P. Q. Wilson, the only one of the two living pastors present, deliv- ered the following address.
REV. P. Q. WILSON'S ADDRESS.
The centennial came in with a sharp breeze. The mountain tops were covered with snow. But although a little late in the season, we are glad
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that it has arrived. Smiles and good cheer beam forth from every countenance. And the people ! Multitudes upon multitudes ! Just like East Green- bush. Everyone seems to be impelled by a grand motive. Even the bell-ringer gave the old bell an extra swing.
" Ring, sing, ring, sing, pleasant Sabbath bell, Chime, rhyme, chime, rhyme, over dale and dell; Rhyme, ring, chime, sing, pleasant Sabbath bell, Chime, sing, rhyme, ring, over field and fell."
And upon this bright autumnal morning many pleasant thoughts come trooping up upon the field of memory. Our hearts are full of the great and good things of the past and present. From the vista of by-gone years we evoke the moral grandeur of consecrated lives-it shall speak to the living.
When I entered upon my ministry here in 1861, I noticed that this congregation exhibited a great deal of good common sense. Their economy was seen in the design and the execution of this sub- stantial edifice-a church built for time. From foundation to dome the whole structure, in its material and style, may well remind us of the solid Dutch people, and the old-fashioned Calvinistic theology. There was a look of thrift and intelli- gence, that commanded the attention of thoughtful minds, upon surrounding things. The salary was sensible ; there was money in the treasury ; we sold
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the pews and paid the debt. There were twelve pastors in the century and each minister contrib- uted some good things towards making this church in her pride and beauty. I was the first pastor in the new church-beautiful for situation. East Greenbush affords a commanding view of the sur- rounding country.
On the north, there nestled beneath the hills, the famous city of Troy and the proud capital of your own State. On the west the wide sweeping valley of the Hudson charms the eye. Beyond the river the Helderberg and the Catskill mountain ranges present a bold prospect; and here, all around, are the homes of plenty and farmers living in comfort and opulence. And your church, so complete in all its apartments, has been reared and adorned by the sturdy farmers, the sons and daugh- ters of the soil. And as I survey your recent work of repairs, I readily conclude that this is the fullest, the brightest and the handsomest centennial that I have ever attended. There is the iron fence; the children sang and we gathered together the money. It stands firm and strong. Always remember the children ; don't forget the poor. They will be your coadjutors by and by. The attendance upon our Sabbath services was praiseworthy, almost every pew occupied upon the Lord's day. And it is ex- pected that the rising generation, stimulated by the
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noble record of former years, will vigorously main- tain, in its pristine beauty, the name and character of this Reformed Church.
I also witnessed your hospitality. This church has always been noted for its care of the pastor. The tables were loaded; the hearts overflowed in kindness and good will. I do not wonder that so many clergyman are looking towards East Green- bush. No one prays here, "Keep our minister humble and we will keep him poor." The donations were the outbursts of generosity-long may they live. Our social gatherings, our wedding feasts, and our presents will be remembered. Our young people in all their relations gave great promise for the future. "The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world."
This church not only gave gifts, but she has given more. Three of her sons within a few years have been equipped for the ministry. They are here to-day. And the Methodist Church and par- sonage are a credit to the property and religious character of the village.
I am at home to-day ! Familiar faces, familiar things. And this celebration will note an import- ant era in the history of each of our lives. An epoch in the history of your church to which you and your children will turn with fond remembrance; and at every advance of your progressive religious
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life, you are forcibly reminded of two things closely knit together-faith and works. Liberal hands spread the table to-day. The young women, sharing the disposition of their good mothers, have given largely from basket and store. 'Tis work, work, work, and hence we have here a succession of devoted people following on in the line of religious duties. This is the hope of your church. The centuries are thus welded together by an unbroken chain of men and women actuated and regulated by the scriptural ideas of truth and duty. You stand to-day upon an eminence of privilege and prospect.
But while we all rejoice, the feelings of sadness rise unbidden in our hearts because so many of our friends and neighbors have departed to return no more. The cemetery is filling up.
" I like that good old Saxon phrase,
Which calls the burial ground God's acre. 'Tis just. It consecrates each grave within its walls,
And breathes a benison o'er its sleeping dust."
The fathers, where are they ? The mothers, where are they ? The exuberance of our joy is restrained by the collection of the vast harvest which death has gathered here.
" When we remember well The friends so linked together,
That we have seen around us fall, Like leaves in wintry weather."
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