FROM

THE

MILLENNIAL HARBINGER,

NEW SERIES.

VOLUME III.-----NUMBER IX.

B E T H A N Y, VA. SEPTEMBER, 1839.

      IT is truly distressing, to the pious mind, to contemplate the manifest carnality of Christian society--so called. We can hear and see every thing attended to but Christianity. If, therefore, out of the [392] abundance of the heart we speak and act, our stock of heart religion--of spiritual sentiment and devout affection, must, indeed, be very small. We can scarcely hear a word of it in any family. I speak of professors in general. It is true, we may sometimes hear sectarian controversies, and what is called the religious news of the day--a sort of religious politics. But what Christianity is in these things? What spiritual edification? The four grand cardinal points, which concentrate the entire intentional effect of Christianity, are personal holiness, family education, church edification, and public reformation;--the latter the combined extrinsic effect of the former three. Matth. v. 16. Whatever, then, does not directly and properly tend to promote these, is foreign to the benevolent and blissful design of our holy religion. Now certainly nothing can have a direct and proper tendency to promote personal holiness, which is but another name for supreme love to God, but what goes to promote the knowledge, belief, and retention of the holy scriptures. And what means, in our power, are calculated to do this, but reading, thinking, and conversing about their divine contents, (as directed, for this very purpose,) accompanied with prayer to God? And, as personal holiness is essential and fundamental to the three following comprehensive and blissful effects of our holy religion, that being duly secured, all is secured, that is necessary to our present saving utility, and also to our future happiness: "For without holiness no man shall see the Lord." Consequently, every one possessing this, shall enjoy his presence. These things being demonstrably so, how disgusting and mortifying to hear and see, in professing families, almost nothing but the concerns of this world!!--the paltry affairs of a present life!!! They have not time to make an educational and edifying use of the scriptures in their families, by reading them connectively and attentively, with suitable interrogations, observations, and exhortations, for the edification of all concerned, according to their respective abilities; but, if read at all, they close the book without a single remark; and leave it as ignorant and unaffected as before they opened it; and so pass on to something else. Besides they never think of reading it regularly, in its proper connexion, as they do other books they want to understand; or, of assisting one another by conversing with each other familiarly and interestingly about it. Many of these indevout triflers are not ashamed to tell you, that they have not time: that they cannot afford to make such a sacrifice of their precious hours;--thus to waste their time in reading, and praying, and conversing about the sacred contents of the Book of Life. Are not such professors confessedly carnalists;--minders "of the things of the flesh,--earthly things?" Surely;--"For they that are after the Spirit do mind the things of the Spirit." But the things of the Spirit are all Bible things. They are no where else to be found but in the Good Book:--no, not one of them. In so far, then, as we neglect the Bible, we despise and neglect spiritual and heavenly things. But not so the good and happy man--the blessed man,--"for his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night." Wherefore, "whatsoever he doeth shall prosper:" but "the ungodly are not so." Psalm i. 1-4. Yea, says another good man, "I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food." Job xxiii. 12. And another--"Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart." No wonder, then, that the godly [393] Daniel and David, and other such lovers of the divine word, should be as careful to enjoy it, as they were to enjoy their necessary food, even three times a-day, in their family worship: see Psalm lv. 17., with Dan. vi. 10. Nay, the latter did it at the risk of his life. And all these were but Old Testament saints, whose scriptures were as far inferior to ours, as moon-light is to sun-shine; yet they were to make them their constant theme: "they were to talk of them when they sat in their house, when they walked by the way, when they lay down, and when they rose up--teaching them diligently to their children,--that their days might be as the days of heaven upon earth": see Deut. xi. 18-21. Alas! then, of what a heaven upon earth do we deprive ourselves and our children, by neglecting, as we do, our vastly superior privileges! And we have not time to take our three spiritual meals per day, as Joshua, and those other Old Testament worthies did, who, like him, were determined, that, let others do what they pleased, as for them, and their families, they would serve the Lord. And why not, brethren? Can we possibly make a better choice? Can we possibly spend our time to better purpose? Certainly not. But some will, perhaps, say, 'We feel at a loss how to proceed, for we have never seen such a practice.' This excuse, though not sufficient, it must be confessed is lamentably true. Still, however, we have the Book, and in it the proper directions for using it. We are to read it, to study it, to get it by heart, to make it the subject matter of our conversation, of our exhortation, of our meditation, of our prayer, and of our praise, day and night. Thus are we directed to use it. Now what remains, but that we use it accordingly, every one according to his peculiar circumstances, as he does his daily food; some at one hour, some at another; yet all generally three times a-day: those that have families, also thus providing for the nourishment of their families; thus training them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord: that so they may be seminaries of God--nurseries for heaven. And this, it is humbly suggested, may, for the most part, be conveniently and happily effected in the following manner:--

      As the demands of our sensitive nature generally bring us together thrice a-day for bodily refreshment, let us avail ourselves of those opportunities for our spiritual refreshment also. For this purpose let every Christian family keep two tables; the one furnished with Bibles for feeding their souls, as the other is with the products of the earth for their bodily food. Thus provided, when they meet for breakfast, let them first take their spiritual meal, thus socially beginning the day with God--by reading a certain select portion of his word, with suitable questions, remarks, and exhortations for this purpose; thus rightly dividing the word of truth, that each may get his proper portion. This may be conveniently done by asking the following pertinent questions according to the respective capacities of the guests, viz.--1. Who is the writer or speaker of the portion read, or of any particular part of it? 2. To whom is it written or spoken? 3. What historic facts are contained in it? 4. What commands are contained in it? 5. What doctrinal declarations? 6. What invitations? 7. What promises? 8. What threatenings? Lastly, the why, when, and where those things were spoken or written, still remain to be considered, and are circumstances sometimes worthy of particular attention, in order to a correct understanding of particular passages. These things duly [394] attended to according to the ability and discretion of the heads of families, and the capacity of the respective members, with pertinent observations and exhortations, accompanied with appropriate prayers and praises, could not fail to make the scriptures forthcoming for the edification and instruction of every capable subject. These blissful exercises repeated thrice a-day, viz.--before breakfast, after dinner, and after supper, we would begin, continue, and end the day with God, as a family; that is, in our social capacity. And these exercises continued, the word of Christ would dwell in us richly, so that we should be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, and thus we should never fall. "For so an entrance should be ministered to us abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." 1 Peter i. 5-11. For this is the highway of personal holiness--from which all good and happiness proceed. And which, of course, being carried out into the church, by its duly qualified Elders, those heads of families who had thus successfully taught and ruled their own families well, the church would shortly resume its proper character, the school of Christ, with his one Book, Christian disciples, a family of families, taught and ruled by a selection of its own proper elders, instead of scientific college-taught clergy; every member furnished with his own proper book--the Book of life; which, being duly read and studied as above, would make every believing student "wise to salvation, thoroughly furnished for all good works." May the good Lord hasten that happy time! Amen.

THOMAS CAMPBELL.      

[The Millennial Harbinger (September 1839): 392-395.]

      Thomas Campbell's "On Personal and Family Devotion" was first published in The Millennial Harbinger, New Series, Vol. 3, No. 9, September 1839. The electronic version of the essay has been produced from the College Press reprint (1976) of The Millennial Harbinger, ed. Alexander Campbell (Bethany, VA: A. Campbell, 1839), pp. 392-395.

      An edited version of the essay was published posthumously in the Millennial Harbinger, Fifth Series, Vol. 3, No. 11, November 1860, as "Personal and Family Devotion."

      Pagination in the electronic version has been represented by placing the page number in brackets following the last complete word on the printed page. I have let stand variations and inconsistencies in the author's (or editor's) use of italics, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling in the essay. Emendations are as follows:

            Printed Text [ Electronic Text
 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
 p. 393:    of profossors [ of professors
            is nesessary [ is necessary
 p. 394:    upon earth: [ upon earth":
            uot sufficient, [ not sufficient,
 p. 395:    words." [ works."
 

      Addenda and corrigenda are earnestly solicited.

Ernie Stefanik
Derry, PA

Created 11 March 1998.
Updated 9 July 2003.