1. 132 Hymn 7s. 80807
2. 551 Hymn C.M.
3. 136 Hymn. L.M.
A discourse on the text:
"If our Gospel be hid, it is hid
to them that are lost." II Cor IV: 3.
In the estimate to be formed in
regard to the Revelation which God
has made to us, a due discrimination
is to be preserved between what
is [palpably] unquestionably mysterious and beyond
our mortal grasp, and what is
merely obscure to us through our
own indisposition to its study, &
our inability to appreciate it.
The former is in its nature unfathomable,
and not so because one
man's intellect is [more] less vigorous
than another's but the difficulties


which [they] Bible mysteries involve are precisely of
such a character as to be solved
by no vigor of intellect however
mighty & by no process of investigation
however patient, profound
and persevering. They are mysteries
because they are "the secret things
that belong unto the Lord our God."
We do meet such obscurities in
the course of our meditations
upon the plan of Divine Revelation.
Nor do we regard the
objection raised against the
Word of God on the score of
its mysteries, as anything more
than a childish quibble, the mere


futile effort of Infidelity to shake
off the pressing conviction of the
Truth of Revelation, which has
taken fast hold upon [his] the Conscience.
For whatever emanates from God
must partake to some extent of
His own character, and as He is
beyond our capacity to search out,
We naturally expect to find some
things in His revelation which
would be also beyond the grasp
of the most gigantic intellect. And
we do not object to this state of
things; for were it otherwise, it
would dethrone God, and destroy
our reverence for His character.


Since in the language of Dr Spencer,
"A comprehensible God, is no
God at all, for what is comprehensible
is not infinite."
This is one class of subjects which
are set forth in Scripture, concerning
which it may be said
they are hid from all, not
from those "that are lost" only,
but from all finite minds. But
there are many points of immense
weight and importance which
have no intrinsic mystery no
inherent obscurity about them
which are presented for our
consideration in the Word of God,


about which men, the majority of men
affect to find such darkness and
insolvable mystery, that to them
at least these matters seem
to be hidden in the gloom of
moral midnight. Now as we gave
the reason why the former Class
of mysteries were inscrutable, so
we say of this Class, that they
owe their apparently mysterious
character to nothing at all in
their nature inherently, but to
the fact that men will not
turn their thoughts with earnest
intensity upon them, and hence
the plainest representations of


these matters are so entirely disregarded by them
as to make it a necessary consequence
that they fail properly
to appreciate them. Hence of
course they are hid from them.
There is no occasion for this. I
conceive that this is what the
Apostle means to convey in the
announcement of the whole
verse: Oh! Ye who complain that
there is an unintelligible mystery
in our Gospel, notwithstanding
that in presenting it, we have
not handled the word of God
deceitfully, nor wacked in craftiness
but by manifestation of the truth


commended ourselves to every
man's conscience in the sight of
God," Know ye, that "if our Gospel
be hid, it is hid to them that are
lost."
And who are they? A momentous
question! In the terms of its answer are included
the immense majority of the human
race. All over the Earth
are found those who are lost and
to whom "the Gospel is hid." I
know you will readily admit
that in those dark and dreary
regions of the Earth where the
Light of the blessed Gospel has never yet
been kindled there the people


that sit in that region and shadow
of Death, are lost and ruined.
They are involved in ignorance
immersed in superstition, degraded
in idolatry, and sunk in
Barbarism, for "the dark places
of the Earth are full of the
habitations of cruelty." To these
wretched beings "The Sun of Righteousness"
has never yet arisen
"with healing in his beams," and
in their fearfully degraded
condition, it is obviously true
that to them that are [th??]
lost, the Gospel is hid. They
have no knowledge of its nature


or its Author, of its provisions, or
of its precious and unspeakable
importance to their soul's eternal
interests. And hence not only its
mysteries, but everything connected
with it remotely or more nearly
is hidden and unknown to them
We may add that it is the experience
of Missionaries who have
been laboring for years to bring
the Gospel to bear upon them
in their benighted condition, that
the mind of a heathen Idolater
covered over with this thick veil
or previously implanted superstition,
seems almost proof against


any impression which they strive
to produce. And now what is
true of these Heathen Idolaters
is found verified in many a
mournful instance, in thousands
of cases, in this Christian Land.
Change the name of the cause
from ignorance & Superstition
to "Pride, prejudice, and ungodly
lusts," and you will find here in
our very midst those upon
whose hearts rests a thick impervious
veil, that effectually hides
the Gospel from them. It is of
special importance to bear
constantly in mind that the veil


is not upon their Gospel. That is
unveiled, thanks to God, in this
glorious Protestant Land, where
we have an open Bible and a
free Press, and no State dare
as yet enact a Law forbidding
the people to obey the Sacred
mandate of Jesus Christ, to "Search
the Scriptures." No veil is on the
Gospel. But the veil is on the
hearts of men themselves. And
worst and most unpromising
feature of all, men are drawing
its folds more & more closely
over their hearts, that the Gospel
may be more effectually hid. Let


us look into the manner of the operation
of these causes and endeavor to
ascertain how it is 1st that Pride
prevents the access of the Gospel
to the heart. And I remark that
this constitutes one of the most
formidable barriers to the success
of the Spirit of God in His
operations upon the heart. It
was in full view of this fact, that
our Savior so often warned his
disciples against it. "Whosoever
is ashamed of me & my words
in this wicked and adulterous
generation of him will I be
ashamed when I come with the


glory of my Father and His Holy Angels
"Blessed is he whosoever shall not be
ashamed of me!" [*offended in me.*] When Christ
made His appearance upon the Earth,
so humble in his origin, and when
his condition was so lowly &
his associates were so mean in
the esteem of the World, and more
especially when He preached doctrines
so humiliating to the
Pride of the human heart, it
was so revolting to the haughty
spirits of the Jews that they
rejected Him, and all His instructions
and refused to receive
Him as the Messiah at all,


persecuted, crucified, & slew Him
as a malefactor. I have not
a doubt that the offended Pride
of the Nation more than any
other cause, led to this fearful
catastrophe. And still we find
men who are swayed by the
same Spirit, and who show most
clearly by their conduct, that had
they lived in that age, & had
they been Jews [too], they too would
have imbrued their hands
in the precious blood of this
humble Jesus of Nazareth.
And nothing proves this more
conclusively than their rejection


with so much bitterness, the doctrines
of the Gospel. The grand fundamental
doctrine of the total depravity of human Nature
is among those points which are
held in the utmost destestation
and abhorrence by the mass of
unrenewed men. And I pray
you to bear in mind that this
is hateful most of all to the
Pride of the human heart.
It is this which makes it hateful
The heart loves to cherish the
delusion, (it is flattering) that
there is something good & praiseworthy
in itself. And there is nothing
so objectionable to the impenitent


impenitent man, as to preach to him
that he is by Nature corrupt &
alienated from the Life of God.
He revolts at it. He pulls away
the shoulder, he stoppeth the
ear, he refuses to hear it. And
in many cases, the experience of
men would be that the greater
efforts made to prove the doctrine
and to convince men
of its truth, the greater resistance
is offered to it. And
yet this doctrine rejected &
disbelieved men must be lost
eternally. I would "that men could
understand that this is true


that the salvation of the soul is intimately
connected with a knowledge
and belief of the doctrine [& belief]
of the total Depravity of human
Nature. For then it would occupy
that position in the theological creed
to which its vast importance entitles
it. But alas! such is the Pride of the
human heart that it is one of
the parts of our Gospel which
seems to be "hid" from the men
of the world. But if the nature
of man be not radically corrupt
and depraved why does the Bible
tell us that "the imagination of
the heart of man is only evil and


continually?" That "God looked upon the
Earth, and behold it was corrupt?"
Why does God say of man "Who can bring a
clean thing out of an unclean?" Not one.
What is man that he should be clean?
Or he which is born of a woman that
he should be righteous? Why did
David exclaim in the bitterness of his
agony & remorse "Behold I was
shapen in iniquity and in Sin did
my Mother conceive me?" Why does
God say "The wicked are exchanged
from the womb. They go astray
as soon as they be born speaking
lies?" And what means the Apostle
when he tells the Ephesians "Ye were


by nature the children of wrath, even
as others?" I can understand nothing
at all from these passages except
that the Bible teaches that the
nature of man is totally & radically
depraved. And I would ask, upon
what other principle are we to explain
the universal prevalence of wickedness
all over the Earth, if not that there
is in the heart an everwelling
fountain of corruption which
every man brings into Life with
him? If, as some teach, the moral
character of every human being
is like a pure unsullied sheet
of paper, at his birth, upon which


each man with his own hand writes
his own character & destiny
how comes it to pass, that all
invariably without exception have
written in the same dark and
gloomy colors the character
he is to bear through Life?
Upon what principle is it to be
accounted for, that all are wicked
and that from the earliest demonstrations
of the disposition?
Why is that the world is desolated
by War, Society broken up by
envy & malignity, hatred, wrath
strife & variance? Why is "man
a wolf to man?" I account for


it on the scriptural doctrine of the
radical & universal depravity of
the human heart. And I have
not a doubt that were all the
restraints of God's Providential
Gov.t withdrawn, such would
be the fierceness of its course
and the violence of its exhibitions
that the Earth would become
a lazar house of misery
and a Pandemonium for the
residence of the Spirits of
Darkness. But present this
doctrine to be recd by men, &
the Pride of the human heart
(only one of the developments of


its native depravity) is at once
aroused, and the doctrine is
denounced as a slander upon
human Nature. And in many
cases it is best to restrain argument
with such cases. The surest
way to secure conviction
upon the mind is to leave them
to their own experience. And
the Word of God, and the
experience of men on this
subject is, that one of the first
effects produced upon the
mind by the Holy Spirit, is to
enlighten the seeking soul in
the knowledge of its own


deep & inveterate depravity. Until
this conviction is fastened upon the
heart, not one step can be gained
in the progress of the Soul towards
its Salvation. We must
Know it. We must feel it. We
will feel it. The very difficulties
which arise in the pathway of
the inquirer are all traceable
to this fundamental cause.
Hence until its existence is ascertained,
& believed no step
will be taken aright, & it is
in consequence of the Pride
of the heart, that the Gospel
is hid to them that are lost."


And no man need ever expect to have
the ear of God bent in listening
Condescension and Graciousness,
while he comes to the Throne of
Grace, under the impression
that in him "That is in his flesh
there dwelleth any good thing."
"God," we are told, "resisteth the Proud,
but giveth grace unto the humble."
Surely he scorneth the scorners,
but he giveth grace unto the lowly."
"Humble yourselves therefore under
the mighty hand of God, that
[He will] ye may be exalted [you] in due time."
The Gospel will remain hidden
effectually to you, until Pride is subdued.


But Pride rejects another doctrine
which is of vital importance, to
the Sinner, (i.e.) the Sinner's inability.
It is not to be wondered at that
men in their unregenerate state
are opposed to this doctrine, since
we find even Ministers of the Gospel,
who in dilating upon human responsibility
dwell with so much delight
upon the exalted faculties with
which men are endowed, &
thence deduce the obligation
to serve God, by turning to Him
of their own Will & by their own
power. This is the doctrine that
is so sweet to the unrenewed. And


hence when the True doctrine is
presented to them; when men
are told that "By the original
Corruption of our Nature, we are
utterly indisposed, disabled, and
made opposite to all good"
it is the most natural of all impulses
to reject the doctrine. It
cuts the roots of all pride &
self esteem. It brings down all
lofty conceptions of self, & subjects
the sinner to the most entire dependence
upon God as his only
Helper. No natural heart can receive
this doctrine with cordiality.
Let a Gospel sermon be based upon


and fairly & honestly develop the text
"No man can come to me except
the Father which sent me draw
him" Let a man preach upon
the other declaration of Xt. "Without
me ye can do nothing!" And
the carnal heart rejects it at once. This
Gospel is hid from those who are
thus lost. It requires too [hard a] costly a
sacrifice for them to yield up the
cherished thought that there
is something that they can do,
that will not only effect their
salvation, but by which they
can meritoriously purchase the
favor of God. This in the language


of a modern Divine is what they call
their "favorite doctrine of ability"
but which is on the contrary
"a favorite falsehood." Preach to
them if you will of "their obligation to
repent, their duty to be Xtians, & tell
them "that there is much to do, that
they must do freely & voluntarily,
and then add to this, that their
keep is in God, that they are
undone and dependent Sinners
to be saved if saved at all by
grace through Jesus Christ"
and this is the hardest of all things
to receive; they cannot understand
it. They do not believe it;" it


is hid from them through the
influence of the Pride of the
heart. The term "Lost" is well
applied to those from who our
Gospel is thus "hid." They are
indeed lost to all proper estimate
of their own truest
highest interest and happiness.
They are lost to all clear
understanding of the great
truths of the Gospel, and all
idea of the Way of Life thro'
the scheme of Redemption.
They are like travellers who
have mistaken their way, &
having wandered in a wilderness


wilderness of confusion, "Where wilds
immeasurably spread seem
lengthening as they go," they
become finally lost utterly
& irretrievably. So the man to
whom this Gospel is hid
has so long been treading
the devious paths of worldly
wisdom, & worldly enjoyment
that his mind is totally involved
in confusion, and
is so completely lost "stumbling
over the dark mountains
of perdition," that he has not
even a correct idea as to
the direction of the way that


leads to Life eternal. And unless
a Heavenly Light be shed upon
his pathway, and the Holy Spirit
the Divine Guide be sent to
him in his lost condition
his confusion & perplexity will
only deepen, and darken until
he finally reach the precipice
of Despair over which he will
sink into the bottomless pit of Perdition.
How sad the reflection that men
in this awfully lost condition
are so lost also to their
danger! "[Awake] What meanest thou, oh Sleeper
arise & call upon thy God, if so
be that God will think upon thee
that thou perish not!"


Nor is Pride the only influence that
casts a veil upon the heart, But
2dly Prejudice also hides the Gospel
from those who are lost.
A baleful influence is it that prevents
a man from examining for
himself a truth of vital importance
to him, and merely because he
has conceived improper views of it
from false representations [of]
[it,] chooses to reject it as false &
hateful. This influence Prejudice
exerts. Many of the doctrines of
the Gospel have been caricatured
and travestied so absurdly as
to present them in any other


than their true light. They have been
clad in such repulsive garb
as to drive men away even from
their slightest investigation.
[As] In proof that it is the influence
of Prejudice which thus prevents
men from embracing these truths
we need only reflect that very
frequently when the self same
doctrines are presented fairly
and these men have an opportunity
of considering them in their
true light, all objection vanishes
at once and they see their
entire reasonableness and
consistency. And furthermore, it is


a well known fact that certain great
doctrines of the Gospel have had
certain distinctive names affixed
to them by which they are known
and such objectionable features have
been supported without examination
to belong to these doctrines, that
the very utterance of the names by which they
are known, is sufficient to
arouse the opposition & hatred of
many men. And yet present
the substance of these doctrines
& conceal the name, or call
them by some other name, and
no objection whatever is raised
but the doctrines are admitted & received.


And I know not how else save by attributing it to Prejudice to account
for a phenomenon which is not
unfrequently exhibited by men
who in their unregenerate condition
reject these doctrines
and yet when a radical change
has been wrought in their natures
by the regenerating influences
of the Holy Spirit, the
same doctrines are insensibly
embraced as those most perfectly
natural and consistent
with the System of Divine
Truth, and the nature of
man, and the exigencies
of the Soul. They have been trained


and educated in the hatred of
these doctrines and no amount
of argument however profound
and unanswerable
will ever produce in their minds
a conviction of their truthfulness.
But, it has been found, in more
cases than one, that if left to
the[ir] influences of the Holy
Spirit if they ever are
regenerated at all, among
the very first doctrines received
& embraced by them
are these once so hateful.
The elements of this form of
prejudice as ignorance early


education, and intellectual
Pride. They are ignorant of
the true nature of the Gospel
& hence form incorrect notions
in regard to it. They are
trained from early youth, to regard
the Gospel [with] in some of
its parts, with abhorrence, and this
seems [one] of all barriers the most difficult
[barriers of all] to overcome.
And many men having conceived
the idea that they are possessed
of a most exalted Intellect, refuse
to receive any doctrine which
they cannot comprehend.
And as there are many things


in the Gospel hard to be understood
and which require an humble
and docile disposition in order
to their being properly understood,
they refuse to receive them & as
of old these are to the one set
"a stumbling block," & to another
"foolishness." The immediate
inevitable & inseparable effects
of Prejudice are that it contracts
the views, it hardens the
hearts, it blinds the understandings
and congeals the genial flow
of the social affections of men.
It is not to be wondered at
then, that to men thus lost to


"whatsoever things are true, honest, just
pure, lovely, and of good report"
our "Gospel is hid." I could
particularize, but deem it best
& most expedient to leave the
subject in its mere outline
so that each may have as
wide a margin as possible
for a personal application
to his own case. With one
remark I pass from this to [t?ie].
Whatever may be the form in
which Prejudice operates to
produce its dreadful effects
upon the mind, one thing is
certain, that if the veil it


draws over the mental vision
be not removed, while it surely
proves them in one sense
to be lost + ruined now, it
will ultimately terminate in the irretrievable
loss of the Soul.
But I have assigned, as a
3d cause why the Gospel
is hid, the dominion of some
ungodly lust. The operation of
this cause differs somewhat
from that of the two former,
in that along with this [existence] dominion,
and while cherishing some
lust sinful in its nature, there
may be some considerable intellectual


intellectual Light. Much of the Theory
of the Gospel may be Known, &
there are times when the facts
that the heart is depraved, that
we must be born again, that
God is angry, Heaven shut, &
Hell open for the sinner, are
far from being hid from the
man that is lost. And in the
time of some dire extremity
when he is brought nigh to
the eternal world, and the
tribunal of Eternal Justice
he sees enough to realize in
some good his imminent
peril. But alas! When the clouds


of terror are dispersed, and the
things of this goodly Earth
once more array themselves
in all their wonted smiling
& deceitful garb, then he forgets
his danger, and the veil is
again drawn over his hardened
heart, and the Gospel
is effectually hid from
him. The experience of the
man of God furnishes him
with melancholy instances of
the influence of such lusts
over men in Keeping men
from a correct appreciation
of the blessings of the Gospel.


It is recorded of one man that he
[The man] called upon his Pastor
"one evening in the greatest anxiety
of mind.... He had become suddenly
alarmed on account of his condition
as a sinner. His feelings
quite overcame him. He wept
much. He was an intelligent, well
educated man, who had seen
much of the world, & evidently
possessed a quick & ready mind...
He had a good degree of intellectual
knowledge on the subject of
religion. He was evidently
man of sound understanding.
He continued to call on his Pastor
for months: but he attained no


peace of mind no hope in Christ.
He appeared from the first so sincere,
so earnest, attended all the
religious services so punctually
and in all respects manifested
so much determination, that
the confident expectation was indulged
that he would become
a Christian. But he continued in
much the same mind, and not
even a conjecture could be
formed why a man who appeared
to know the truths of the
Gospel so well, and feel them
so deeply, should not make some
progress in his religious attempts.


A few weeks after this, his Pastor saw
him in such company as to suggest
to his mind the thought that
he might possibly be addicted
to the use of intoxicating drink.
On inquiry he found this to be so.
The man was told of this affectionately
by his Pastor & warned that
it was a device of Satan to hide
the blessed hope of the Gospel from
him. He at first acknowledged the
fact, but did not believe it injured,
afterwards promised to quit but
did not, he kept on he lost
all regard for religion he forsook
the Church and is for aught that


is known to the contrary, is still
an irreligious man." Now this
is but an illustration of the way
in which the cherishing of a sinful
lust blinds the mind to the
blessings of the Gospel. And
this is but one lust. The celebrated
Mr. Nettleton is said once to have
remarked "if a hard drinking
man gets a hope, it will be
likely to be a false hope!"
I care not what may be the
name or Xter of the reigning
lust - the love of the world -
in any of its forms, will just
as effectually as strong drink hide


the Gospel from the hapless
subject.
I will venture to conclude
what I have to say on this
subject, by repeating the remark,
that there is no veil on
the Gospel. Oh no! Praise [at] be
God! In this Land
where no [rude grasp] diabolical hand of Ecclesiastical
Tyranny dare lay its ruthless
& polluted grasp upon the
pure Gospel, here it is
open & uncovered & "he may
read that [???s]." "The wayfaring
man tho' a fool need not
err therein." Ten thousand fulfilled


through this broad land of civil
& Religious liberty, Sabbath after
Sabbath are holding it forth
in its purity, brightness,
simplicity & truthfulness, &
all are welcome to read
& understand. Over 40 millions
of copies of the blessed Volume containing
"Our Gospel" have been
issued since 1804. How then can
it be hid? It is not hid! There
is no veil upon it. And so
plain and simple and clear
is it in its heavenly instructions that we may well conclude
"If our gospel be hid, it is
hid to them that are lost."