DO THE FIRST WORKS by J. Clarke.

Publishing Committee · Battle Creek, Mich. · Sep 4, 1860

DO THE FIRST WORKS.

By J. Clarke.

This was addressed to the church of Ephesus, the apostolic age: the first works of this age were perfect, such as were witnessed on the day of Pentecost, accompanied with the power of the Holy Ghost, with mighty signs and wonders, and full consecration. It is worthy of notice that this command to do the first works was not given to any of the succeeding ages of the church; their first works were too imperfect to be repeated, and repentance is the general admonition.

Considering the low state of the church, and the gradual fall of the same for eighteen centuries, its standard trailing lower and lower, century after century, until the Laodicean age finds it fairly trailing in the dust, and as often in the hands of enemies as its friends; we can see the impropriety of applying this direction, Do thy first works, to this age, born as we have been and brought up in error, accustomed to see the standard soiled with clay, and bespattered with filth, we should indeed be poorly employed if we should do our first works.

No; it is the mission of this seventh church to be zealous, and snatch from the enemy the standard so

long disgraced by compromises, and betrayed by treason . We cannot go to our fathers for a pattern, nor can we recur to past experience, for such has been the moral darkness, so many mists and fogs have obscured the sun, that the air has been darkened by the smoke of the pit (as in the age of Mahomet), and being bred and educated under such influences we abhor many of our first works, and distrust others lest they were not perfect.

We need a daily experience, a new experience every day, advancing, progressing, onward, upward, leaving that which is behind, pressing forward; a daily experience, eclipsing the old by the depth and breadth of its power, eradicating the old leaven, a leaven generated, nourished, by a contact with evil for eighteen centuries.

J. CLARKE.