Dear Friends,
Numerous are the qualities that once characterised the Church of Christ in this land that have now fallen into disrepair or complete mis-use. Among the most notable qualities of the past no longer very evident amongst us, was that ability (or, perhaps it was courage) to speak with prophetic voice regarding the church’s, or even an individual’s future in relation to the path that that church or that individual was taking.
Lachlan MacKenzie, “Mr. Lachlan” to all and sundry. minister of the parish church at Lochcarron, well illustrates the point, and time and time again he proved himself to be in the van of the men of prophetic foresight in the 17th century.
Speaking about the man who would succeed him to the work of the ministry at Lochcarron, he said that he would be “a dumb dog that would not bark.” And in order to substantiate his utterance, and vindicate the gospel that he preached there as being the whole counsel of God, he declared that two trees would grow, one on either side of his pulpit, that their branches would intertwine above the pulpit causing them to choke one another, and that they would then fall to the ground before the pulpit. When the old church was vacated for a newer building following Lachlan’s death, two trees did begin to grow in the ruins just where the old pulpit had stood; they soon locked their branches, fell to the ground, and up until a few years ago, the decayed remains of the two witnesses to God’s truth lay in their place appointed, to bear silent testimony to the validity of the old man’s gospel.
Such incidents are legion; like the spiritual perception of James Matheson of Dornoch. A young woman by the name of Ann Mackenzie had set out from Ullapool to walk to Dornoch at the time of the Communion. She was greatly burdened with a sense of her sinfulness before the Lord, and having read John chapter 13 on her journey, she covenanted with the Lord that if this was the very first passage of scripture that she heard read over the communion season she would take it as a token that God was going to deal mercifully with her. On reaching the pre-communion prayer meeting, over which James Matheson was presiding, the young woman took her seat but was saddened to hear the visiting preacher announce that he was going to read from the prophecy of Isaiah. Just at that moment, however, James Matheson interrupted the preacher: “You may read that chapter on another occasion,” he told him, “but for the present, read the 13th chapter of John, for there is someone here to whom that passage is speaking.”
On another occasion, this same James Matheson endeavoured to speak to his housekeeper about her soul’s salvation. It was late at night and the woman pretended to be asleep rather than face the rigours of interrogation regarding her eternal welfare. “Betsy, are you awake?” asked the man. But the only reply was a feigned attempt at being asleep. “Betsy,” he asked again, “are you awake?” Still no reply. And a third time he asked, but without success. “Oh, poor Betsy,” said James Matheson in his final word, “I saw Satan and yourself concocting this plan, and for each time you refused to answer, you shall have a year when sleep shall depart from your eyelids.” When the old housekeeper was finally brought under conviction of sin it was of the most severe nature, and for three whole years, she confessed, she never slept a full night through, and for most of that time, never closed her eyes at all.
Such was the ministry of many of the men of the past, and we might well ask what has become of such ministry, of such foresight, of such discernment, of such spiritual courage today? How few are the voices that we hear raised in the denunciation of sins national, personal, and ecclesiastical? To hear some evangelicals tell it, one would almost believe that we were living in days of religious revival instead of in days when evil runs rampant and “the salt” has almost entirely lost its savour. We are persistently being told that “God is doing wonderful things in these days.” What an absolutely empty, meaningless use of words. Murders, riots, rapes, drug addiction, drunkenness, adultery, sodomy, uncleanness, strikes, vandalism, violence and vice. The whole catalogue of evil which advertises the state of our nation in these days in which we live is an open invitation to look and see what terrible things the devil is doing today.
The Lord is Sovereign; of course He is, and the evil one doesn’t take one step that is out of the control of Him who sitteth upon the Throne. But the state of things in the nation today is on account of the state of things in the churches today; and the state of things in the churches today is on account of God having turned His face away from a people bent on having their own wills satisfied. Years of banner-waving evangelism and “factory farming” methods in conversion have neither stemmed the tide of corruption nor increased the flow of godliness by one iota.
How much we could do with the spirit of Bunyan’s “Old Mr. Honest.” To see what the present trend of things is and to have courage to denounce the course fearlessly, proclaiming what a continued following of that course will result in, for ourselves, for our churches, for our denominations, for the whole church in this land, for the land itself. We will be no better off for simply calling barrenness, blessing; neither will we be any worse off for seeing and confessing that the “pleasant places” have become desolate. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord.” Do we really believe that great things are happening today? “Now therefore, thus saith the Lord of hosts; consider your ways. Ye have sown much and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes. Thus saith the Lord of hosts; consider your ways.” (Haggai chapter 1 verse 5-7)
One ounce of spiritual perception, my friends, will show that this is our state today. One ounce of spiritual foresight will undoubtedly show us the consequences of remaining in that state of blissful unawareness.