1804 MANUSCRIPT EXPOSITION OF LUKE. 61 Deeply Experimental Sermons on the Gospel of Luke. 100,000 Words!
1804 MANUSCRIPT EXPOSITION OF LUKE. 61 Deeply Experimental Sermons on the Gospel of Luke. 100,000 Words!
An exceptionally executed series of 61 unpublished manuscript sermons preached expositionally from, in sequence, Luke 13:1 through Luke 24:50-53 betwen July of 1804 and October of 1805.
The sermons, by an unnamed author, are deeply experimental, evangelical
227 pages bound handsomely in a 4to vellum custom binding and entirely legible, containing some 100,000 words of text. These are first-rate and worthy of preservation.
On the parable of the fig tree: "But nothing of this is knowto to a mere professor. Stan plants mere professors in the church, as we see by the parable of the tares, where it is said 'an enemy hath done this.'" Men may indeed be said to transplant themselves, for man is a free agent in all that is evil; and wherever there is a mere professor, there may be some appearance of fruit, some outward reformation, some of Zion's language may be heard, but i twill be found defective and partial, an intermperate man may become sober & the prophane men leave off their prophaneness, but if you could see the heart, you would find no love to God in it; you would find some secret and allowed sin prevailing, something concerning which the sinner would say, like Naaman, 'In this thing the Lord pardon thy servant.'"
"But does not the Scripture describe grace as a work of the heart and a new birth! Alas! many will say Lord, Lord to whom he will answer, Depart from me, I never knew you. Such are now conscious of what God knows, they are consious that they deserve to be cast down and they will eventually be convinced that none but such will be cast into hell, where there is no place for repentance. Oh what discoveries will the last day ake with respect to professors. You have perhaps envied the state of some whome yet you have lived to see quit their profession and if such have died suddnely, you would have believed them to be among the number of the saved. But we re told that the first will be last & the last first .Those whom we supposed to be on the last form will be found to be among God's peculiar ones. This day fortnight I pressed up your consideration the shortness & uncertainty of life. Since that time one who then worshipped with us is gone into eternity, one who sat on that day at my right hand & in health. I pray God we may feel this; we know not how soon we may be taken off. Perhaps within eight days and perhaps this may be the last time that we may speak, or you hear. Go to God then in simplicity of heart . . . "
Or on rendering to Caesar what is Caesars, "From this passage we may take an opportunity to remark how great a blessing is civil government. There was a time when it was said of Israel there was no king in Israel, and what was the consequence? Every man did that which was right in his own eyes; all was anarchy and confusion. It has been said that even a bad government is better than no government. Magistracy is of God and powers that be are ordained of God. It is therefore our duty to submit to all lawful commands of the government. It is possible indeed for government to command what it may not be lawful to comply with, as in the case of Nebuchadnezzar when he set up an image for worship. But if we live under even a bad government, which does not command any thing against the Scriptures, we are bound to obey and if so, surely much more under such a mild & happy government as we live under, which has been in so wondrous a way introduced & preserved . . . "
"What ever you enjoy here, and the more you understand your privileges, the more your heart will be filled with love. You will find it invariably true that religion is the best for any government, but is it not discouraging that those who adhere to the Lord are represented as unfriendly to government, yet you see from the text how old a device of Satan this is. It is indeed an old device, for it has ever been the lot of God's people to do good and to suffer evil. You should then esteem it the highest honour to walk in his steps who will eventually bring you to an inheritance incorruptible and that fadeth not away."
Additional:
"I am a god in covenant, and the abiding and unchangeable friend of my people. That covenant to which we often allude and which is the basis of all salvation comprehends every blessing, is made up of free and gracious promises; it has lasted from everlasting to everlasting; it was planned in eternity past and its fruits will be experienced by God's people in all eternity to come. It gives compleat security of compleat and everlasting salvation to God's covenant people."
While the author is unknown at present [further research may force him to appear], the sermons are intensely Evangelical with a strong emphasis the Covenant of Christ, the Providence of God, the Sufficiency of Christ, the Blessings of Trials, the Supernatural Nature of the New Birth, False Conversion, etc.,
While reading, it has very much the feel of something in the vein of Charles Bridges, Octavius Winslow, Robert Murray M'Cheyne, etc. Nearly every sermon ends with an urgency and earnest call for repentance, to close with Christ, etc.
Worthy of research, preservation, and potentially publication.