“Well, sir, what would you have a christian do in regard to rulers and civil governments?” says one. When acting as a citizen in the kingdom of God, or in the house of God, “Pray for kings and all that are in authority, that we may lead a peaceable and quiet life, in all godliness and honesty.” “Be subject to the powers that be,” remembering that “we have no continuing city here,” and that “this world is not our home.” When acting as a citizen of the civil government, be candid, quiet, peaceable, and kind, and do just what you think right, allowing every man the same privilege, as Christ has left us all free here, and leave the event with God.
There are spiritual-minded persons in almost all the parties around us; and if we determine to know nothing but Christ, nothing but pure Christianity, and confine ourselves strictly to the clear revelations of heaven—preach the pure gospel of the grace of God—preach Christ, and determine to know nothing else, while a mere carnal and worldly priesthood harangue their assemblies on politics, mix up church and State, law and gospel, turning their religious organizations into mere political engines, the very thing we have condemned the Romish priesthood for, thus wounding the feelings of all the more spiritual-minded members and splitting their parties asunder, thousands of them will seek a church where the name of Jesus has charms, where the Lord is loved and worshipped, and where the true worshippers worship the Father in spirit and in truth. Let us keep the way clear for such, receive them to the fold of Christ, and show them how they can serve God and get to heaven, whether they can ever understand the slavery question or not.
Many of us have labored long and hard and sacrificed the main energies of our lives in gathering the many thousands to the fold of Christ that now throng places of public worship, and we can not remain silent and see them scattered by the indiscreet and imprudent course of brethren, in thrusting upon them, and seeming to think that their souls’ salvation is suspended upon their rightly understanding the question of American slavery. We admonish the brethren to have nothing to do with any such question in the church. The Lord has not required the church, the preachers, or religious editors to make any decision, or to hold any particular class of opinions on the subject, nor can any man be blameless and push any such question into the kingdom of God. We will stand square upon the Bible, by the Lord, the apostles, and every man who will stand by them. The Lord direct us!
[PRAYER BOOKS.]
THE Church of England has abounded toward her people in all wisdom and prudence. In doing so she has supplied them with the “Prayer-Book,” not only for weak members, who can not pray, but for her strong members, specially the clergy, giving the very words they must pray on all occasions. In this exuberance of her benevolence she has supplied a deficiency in the will of God, an omission in the law of God, an item that Paul overlooked when he “shunned not to declare the whole counsel of God;” an item not in the “all things that pertain to life and godliness,” mentioned by Peter, nor in “all Scripture given by inspiration,” mentioned by Paul, to “perfect the man of God and thoroughly furnish him for all good works.” There are many among them that can read prayers, as they have them in print in the “Prayer-Book,” and do read them, but we are not aware that they have any more that can pray than those who have no such “Prayer-Book.”
If we can not learn from the Lord and the apostles how to pray; from the Scriptures, so that we can pray we would not learn from all the prayer-books ever printed. Read the prayers of the Lord and holy men, recorded in Scripture, and the instructions of the Lord and the inspired writings; take the “Concordance” and run through the Bible, read and study all you find about it, and practice it daily, and you find not only that you can learn how, but to love to pray, and to be impressed continually with the importance of it. Let the desire be in the heart in the words, “Lord, teach us how to pray,” and you will soon learn to ask for any thing you need.