SAMUEL BMdh WRITER OF THE FOUNDATIONS OF HISTORY, A SERIES OF FIKST "As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion forever and ever, Amen."-1 Pet. 4: 10. NEW YORK: BOARD OF PUBLICATION OF THE REFORMED 34 VESEY, CORNER OF CHURCH STREET, 1877. A WORD TO CHRISTIAN TEACHERS AND STUDENTS FOR THE MINISTRY. BELOVED IN THE LORD Jesus Christ: WE have great reason to thank the Lord that we are living in the world at this time, when His kingdom is making such rapid progress in it, and when so many facilities are placed in our hands to assist in advancing that kingdom. Within our day, the world, which had been for fifteen hundred years almost entirely closed to the gospel, has been opened for its reception. During nearly the whole of that period, the Bible was a sealed book, and to the masses inaccessible. Now it is published in almost every tongue, and is freely offered without money and without price. Never before have there been so many helps to enable us to study the word of God. Many of these helps, such as mar I ginal references, concordances, Bible textbooks, Bible dictionaries, no student of the scriptures can well do without; and these are within the reach of all. Never before have the evidences of the truth of God's word been so clear, and the power of that word in the hearts of men has never been more effec tive than now. In no period before this have there been so many teachers in the Church as there are now. Beside the regularly ordained ministers and parents, a vast number, a mighty army of teachers are laboring in the Sunday-schools throughout the world. Millions are being taught the way of salvation through them. We have reason to praise the Lord that there are so many, and with Moses to exclaim, "Would God that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!" (Num. 11: 29). And if any of them not regularly ordained be preaching and casting out devils in the name of the Lord Jesus, the Lord evidently working with him, let us remember Jesus' answer to John, "Forbid him not" (Mark 9: 39), but rather bid him Godspeed. Let us praise the Lord also for the great efforts made to quicken teachers and to assist them in their preparations, so that they may |