p. 27 | Stereotypes in Prayer by New York Independent

Publishing Committee · Battle Creek, Mich. · Dec 3, 1857

Stereotypes in Prayer.

By New York Independent

Some men who are always at "opening the windows of heaven," "raining a rain of mercy," "laying down the weapons of rebellion," "stony hearts," "unclean hands," "blind eyes" "deaf ears," at length transfer the thoughts to the outward symbol, and quite hide the inward and spiritual state. Some men never say humble, or humility, except by such expressions as "on the bended knee of the soul," and "going down into the valley of humiliation." Many men have apparently forgotten the name of Christ. They always use the word Cross instead. They pray to be reconciled to the Cross, they exhort men to come to the Cross, to look at the Cross, to lay down their sins at the foot of the Cross. We heard an ordination sermon of great ability, upon salvation by Christ, in which that name was not once mentioned, the Cross becoming the synonym. Had a heathen stranger been present, he would have supposed the name of the God whom we worshiped, to be "Cross." This is the more unfortunate, because it not only sinks the power of a living personality, but presents in its stead a symbol which, however precious and historically affecting, may, by too great familiarity, lose entirely the Saviour, and leave only the wood, a relic worse than any which Romish superstition has presented.—New York Independent.