A funeral sermon for the Rev. Joseph Kinghorn: preached in St. Mary's Meeting-house, Norwich, on Sunday afternoon, September 9th, 1832 — John Shaqi
A funeral sermon for the Rev. Joseph Kinghorn: preached in St. Mary's Meeting-house, Norwich, on Sunday afternoon, September 9th, 1832Alexander, John
Religion
A funeral sermon for the Rev. Joseph Kinghorn: preached in St. Mary's Meeting-house, Norwich, on Sunday afternoon, September 9th, 1832
Alexander, John
Funeral sermons; Kinghorn, Joseph, 1766-1832
son was dead and is alive again, he was lost and is found!”
Secondly, You should cherish the remembrance of these things by ADHERING
to the gospel which he preached. For as it respects you who have,
through grace, believed the gospel which he preached, his endeavour was
that, after his decease, you might have these things ALWAYS in
remembrance—and the Lord grant that his joy concerning you may be
fulfilled. There are, I doubt not, many persons, once blessed with the
ministry of our beloved friend on earth, who are now his companions in
the skies; and of whom he has said already, “Behold here am I, and the
children thou hast given me.” And there are, I trust, many now present
who will be “his hope, and his joy, and his crown of rejoicing in the
presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming.” You, my dear brethren
in the Lord, can no longer enjoy the living instructions of your revered
pastor, but it becomes you, as members of his church, to have the things
which he once taught you always in remembrance. Adhere steadfastly and
perseveringly to the doctrines, and to the spirit, and to the practice of
the gospel of Jesus Christ, “by pureness, by knowledge, by
long-suffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned.”
Imitate your deceased minister’s excellencies, and avoid his
imperfections. Endeavour to equal him—endeavour to surpass him in all
that is holy, and just, and good. Above all, let the same mind be in you
which was in Christ Jesus; and repose, with unshaken confidence, on that
grace which is sufficient for you, and on that strength which is made
perfect in your weakness. You are now in circumstances such as require
all the sympathy and consolation that the gospel can supply. Your
minister is a corpse—the house of God in which he has been accustomed to
meet you is become his sepulchre—and all your future meetings will be
held around his grave. May the God of mercy be your comforter. May all
the grace and tenderness which fills and flows from HIS heart who wept at
the grave of Lazarus, flow into your own. And when you begin to look out
for a successor to your deceased pastor, may you be directed to one who
shall appear among you clothed with his mantle, and blessed with a double
portion of his spirit. In all your future intercourse with each other,
and in all your social meetings for devotion or for the business of the
church, I beseech you, by the mercies of God, to adhere always to the
gospel of Christ. Never lose the praise which you have in other churches
of the saints, by destroying peace among yourselves. LET BROTHERLY LOVE
CONTINUE. Let each individual among you determine, for the sake of
Christ and of his people, to cherish it in his own heart and to exhibit
it in his own conduct, and then its fragrance will perfume and bless the
church. “It will be like the precious ointment on the head of Aaron,
which went down to the skirts of his garments; and like the dew which
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account