LIGHT OF SALVATION***


Transcribed from the 1810 Ann Kemmish edition by David Price, email
ccx074@pglaf.org





                           SPIRITUAL VICTORIES,
                               THROUGH THE
                          _Light of Salvation_.


                                * * * * *

                         BEING THE SUBSTANCE OF A

                                 SERMON,

                Preached on SUNDAY, March the 11th, 1810,

                                  AT THE

                             OBELISK CHAPEL,

                                * * * * *

                              BY J. CHURCH,
                          Minster of the Gospel.

                                * * * * *

                         _PUBLISHED BY REQUEST_.

                                * * * * *

      “O House of Jacob, come ye, let us walk in the Light of the Lord.”

                                * * * * *

                               _SOUTHWARK_:
              Printed by ANN KEMMISH, King-Street, Borough.

                                * * * * *

                                  1810.

                                * * * * *




_PREFACE_.


_TO those Friends who requested the Publication of this Sermon_—_I have
only to say_, _I have endeavored to recollect a considerable part of it_;
_many ideas I have omitted_, _and others I have introduced_, _as I had
not the least intention of making this public_, _nor should I but for
your very pressing solicitation_.  _I would remark by way of Preface_,
_that the success of Sermons_, _in point of usefulness_, _depends upon
the operations of God the divine Spirit_; _and these influences are
entirely sovereign_.  _That although this Sermon was blest to you in the
hearing_, _it may not be so to you in the reading_—_nevertheless_, _as
the friends of immortal truth_—_you being in the possession of that love_
(_which rejoiceth in the truth_) _will also rejoice in every attempt to
exalt the Person of Jesus as the truth_; _to comfort and establish
Believers in the truth_, _and to encourage all the heralds of truth_, _to
be faithful unto death_.  _I have sent forth the truth in a very plain
style_; _to you who know her excellencies she will shine with unfading
charms_; _while you adore the God of all grace_—_and I subscribe myself_,

                             _Your willing Servant in the cause of truth_,
                                                              _J. CHURCH_.




A SERMON.


                        JUDGES viith Chap. 20th Verse.

    “_And the three companies blew the trumpets_, _and brake the
    pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands_, _and their
    trumpets in their right_, _to blow withal_; _and they cried_, _The
    Sword of the Lord and of Gideon_!”

THE history of the church of God, in all ages past, as recorded in the
Scriptures, is intended by the Spirit to exhibit many things of vast
importance to us, on whom the ends of the world are come.

FIRST.—The rebellion, ingratitude, and idolatry of the Israelites, give
us an awful proof of human depravity, and teach an humbling lesson to the
spiritual Israel, who have the same sinful nature, are prone to the same
sins, and would often fall into them and their consequences, but for the
grace of God.

SECONDLY.—The patience and long-suffering of God, particularly marked out
in this history—he bare long with them; his mercy was extended,
prolonged, and manifested to them, notwithstanding all their
provocations, in forgetting his deliverances of them in times past, and
practising the same sins he had before resented.

THIRDLY.—His disapprobation of their conduct, and the means he took to
testify it, are set before us.  Our God is never at a loss for means to
accomplish his wise and holy purposes of justice or mercy, as is evident
from the history before us.  The blessed Spirit operating upon the souls
of his people, often by his influence reproves their consciences of sin,
as it is so opposite to the purity of that divine nature, or holy
principle he has blessed them with.  Sin, committed by a believer, is a
transgression of the law, or dictates of faith; for there is no sin,
condemned under the first covenant, but what, under the covenant of
grace, is pointed out in more odious colours.—Hence the idolatry,
rebellion, and ingratitude of the believer, are seen and lamented by him
as a child of God; and as God the Spirit communicates light to his
understanding, to discover it as sinful, he perpetually testifies that
his sins are more sinful than those who know not God.

FOURTHLY.—The inseparable connection between sin and sorrow, is felt by
all, both elect and non-elect.  By nations, families, and individuals,
the moral and penal evils of the Fall, will be, must be, and are felt by
all.  The non-elect feel it in many awful forms, as transgressors, in the
curse of the ground, in the calamities of war, in all the dreadful
horrors of a guilty conscience, and in the wrath of a sin-avenging God.
Nations feel it universally; this is evident by the calamities which
befell the land of Canaan—so the 6th Chapter begins: “And the children of
Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord delivered them
into the hand of Midian.”  Their sin was resented in this form, by the
Lord—the prevailing of their enemies, which forced them to hide in dens,
caves, mountains, and strong holds—their enemies destroyed the increase
of their country, and reduced them almost to a famine; “and Israel was
greatly impoverished because of the Midianites” and people of Arabia.

FIFTHLY.—The tender mercy of God the Saviour appears as remarkable in
their deliverance; in the remembrance of his covenant of old, with their
fore-fathers; his good hand was seen in bringing them out of trouble,
although they had brought these troubles on themselves—what a solemn, but
gracious proof; “O!  Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself! but in me is
thine help.”  And what encouragement does this give to poor backsliders
to return to Jesus, their first husband; for although they have brought
these troubles on themselves, yet Jesus is ready to deliver them!  What a
striking account does the pious Nehemiah give of the conduct of the
Israelites, and the goodness of God to man—9th chap. 28th verse; “But
after they had rest, they did evil again before thee, therefore thou
leftest them in the hands of their enemies, so that they had dominion
over them; yet when they cried unto thee thou heardest them from heaven;
and many times thou didst deliver them, according to thy tender mercies.”

SIXTHLY.—I remark again, that our God has ever manifested himself a God,
hearing prayer: the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, and the Lord
sent a prophet to them; and after reproving them, we have an account of a
deliverer, raised up by the Lord himself.  What encouragement does this
give to us in all our trials, without and within, whether in body, soul,
circumstances, family, or nation.  God has even condescended to hear the
cries of many who had no grace, yet, led by the light of nature to call
on him in trouble; and will he turn a deaf ear to his saints in trouble?
surely not.  Believer, the remedy’s before thee—PRAY.

In taking one more view of this history, we must admire the conduct of
God in over-turning all the schemes of men, their wisdom, counsel, and
power: that in providence as well as in grace, his wisdom, power, and
faithfulness, might be clearly seen and adored by his people.  His wisdom
in the permission of the Fall, and its awful consequences, seems to go
before, and make way for the displays of his love, mercy, power, and
faithfulness.  This is seen in his dispensations, generally, and
particularly in grace & providence.  How often has infinite wisdom
permitted heavy troubles to come on the Church, to wean her from the
creature—to shew her the value of Jesus, as a deliverer—and to lead her
to him by many intreaties; that while we feel our strength perfect
weakness, we may the more clearly discover the good hand of our God, in
our support and deliverance, and give him the glory due to his name for
it.  The principal end God has in view in all his dispensations, is his
own glory—this is the first cause and last grand end of all things—“for
of him, and through him, and to him, are all things.”  Had the victory we
are considering been gained by well disciplined men, led on by wise,
noble, valiant generals, who had often been successful in war—had this
been the case, the creature would have been extolled, and God nearly
forgotten.  But this victory was a display of the power of Jehovah—his
hand clearly seen, his mercy displayed, and all the honor given to him to
whom it is due.  The means, the feeble means the Lord made use of were
simply, a weak un-armed man, with only three hundred men, led by him,
with lamps, trumpets, and pitchers—to carnal reason a very unlikely
method to conquer two hundred thousand Midianites, well skilled in the
art of war.  But this was God’s method, and we have a right to submit our
wisdom to God’s plan; “for my thoughts are not as your thoughts, nor my
ways as your ways, saith the Lord; for as the heavens are high above the
earth, so are my ways above your ways.”  And this victory, through such
feeble means, is a confirmation of this truth—the angel Jehovah Jesus,
appeared to Gideon as he was threshing wheat, in a secret place, to hide
it from the enemy; and assured him