The National Preacher, Vol. 2. No. 6., Nov. 1827 | Page 8

of this world's riches and glories, but of the glories
and victories of Zion.
Such, however, is the present power of the adversary in cities, that no
ordinary effort will dispossess him. Still it must be done. The triumph
of the cross, the salvation of the world can never be perfected without it.
I know there are difficulties;--that cities do congregate vast assemblies
of active depravity;--that they present multiplied enchantments to
ruin;--that in every city wickedness displays a stern and lofty front. But
I also know, that before the coming Spirit of God these obstacles shall

melt away like wax, and vanish like smoke; "for strong is his hand and
high is his right hand."
It was when revivals prevailed in cities, that the gospel spread with
such amazing rapidity: and so, when the Spirit shall again descend
upon them, will the work of reformation move forward with such
power and grandeur, as shall make manifest that God is in Zion; "that
the chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels;"
and that "the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place." Let all,
then, who love Zion, seek for the reviving influences of the Spirit upon
cities. While every hand is faithful in the discharge of duty, let every
heart be impressed with the sentiment, Not by might, nor by power, but
by my SPIRIT, saith the Lord of hosts; and let every eye be directed to
Him who hath promised, that _when iniquity cometh in like a flood, the
Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard_.
In urging the importance of special effort and prayer for the renovation
of cities, we do not overlook the interests of the country; but would
thus guard every town and village from an influence heavily
impregnated with moral poison and death. The merchants of the
interior, in the prosecution of their business, regularly visit the
metropolis. Many of them, on the enticement of friends and
acquaintance, attend the theatres, and other places of vain amusement
and sin; they become familiar with their glare and dissipation. They
return, and tell what their eyes have seen, and what their ears have
heard, and thus create in the bosom of the young, the ardent, the rich,
and the worldly, a thirst for similar pastimes, and a disrelish for sober
realities. Many faithful pastors in the land weep over the growing
immoralities occasioned by the influence of cities. Many churches
lament the defection of their members, having become worldly in their
spirit, and vain in their imaginations, by reason of their frequent
intercourse with cities. If such, then, is their influence upon the country,
well may the churches, planted throughout the land, feel deeply
interested in the moral character of cities, and pray for their conversion
to God.
Let our cities become places of holiness: let holiness to the Lord be

written upon the heart of every merchant, of every mechanic, of every
statesman, of every counsellor, of every officer, upon every hall of
legislation, and every splendid edifice; and an influence sweet, holy,
and happy, shall go forth to revive the hearts of God's people, to awe
and confound opposers, and to dress up the wilderness "like the garden
of God."
O, what a scene of grandeur and glory, when the thousands of the saints
shall wrestle in the spirit of Jacob for the blessing: when they shall rise
up in the spirit of their Master, and display an untiring zeal for the
salvation of man! O, what a scene, when the immense crowds of
immortal beings, who throng our streets, shall be deeply impressed
with the conviction of their accountability!--When every man shall feel
that he is acting continually under the eye of God, and in full prospect
of the judgment. Let these scenes be realized, and already I see "the
holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." And I hear "a great voice
out of heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and
he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself
shall be with them, and be their God."
Friends of the Redeemer, the hastening of this blessed consummation
depends very much upon your will. God has intrusted great power in
your hands. In the revelation of his Son, he has given you that word,
which is "as a fire, and like a hammer, that breaketh the rock in pieces."
In shedding down a spirit of union, and guiding to the formation of
great benevolent associations, he has given you facilities for extended
influence hitherto unparalleled. He has given you wealth, and
knowledge, and all the means for using these facilities. And in the
article of