If there be any minister of Christ, whose hap\u00adpiness I envy, it is he who is surrounded by a number of young Christians, to whom the Lord has blessed his message so as to effect a divine change in their hearts; such an one has a charge of vast importance, requiring the most vigilant attention, and from which he may reasonably expect the choicest fruit; I can enter somewhat into the anxious solicitude of such an individual, and I am not a total stranger to his pleasures: it is therefore my earnest desire to cultivate, prune, and water the tender plants, from whom I expect the fruits of righteousness.<\/p>\n
With this object in view, I present this little volume to the people of my charge, and to the whole household of faith, praying the Holy Spirit to honor it with his special blessing, that the reader may be \u2018rooted and grounded in the truth\u2019 and stand unmoved, amidst those winds of temptation, which may beat vehemently upon him, and unshaken; amidst all the convulsions which may yet be felt by the church of Christ.<\/p>\n
Such a work as this may seem unnecessary, when so many systems of divinity are extant; but, there are two important objects to which I have turned my attention in these pages, which have been overlooked by all the authors I have seen on doctrinal points, viz. brevity and experimental evidence; it is therefore attempted in the following letters to give a clear and condensed view of gospel truth, in an experimental form that the reader may, under the divine blessing, have his heart warmed, while he gets his mind instructed; finding the undeniable proof of every doctrine in his own experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe that believeth hath the witness in him\u00ad self\u201d and my hope is, that I shall be instrumental in making that witness speak in the Christian’s breast, the very language which the Holy Spirit has spoken in his word; so that the distinguishing doctrines of grace may not be rejected or held on the mere opinion of man, but bring their own testimony with them, that they are the truths of God which yield the highest glory to himself, and impart the most solid peace and satisfactory pleasure to every awakened sinner.<\/p>\n
The early experience of a child of God is of high importance, and much of the happiness of after years depends upon embracing right principles in spiritual infancy. The mind just awakened to serious concern is susceptibly of impression, and eagerly grasps every thing that presents itself in the form of religion, without being capable of discerning good, and evil: hence the necessity of obtaining an early acquaintance with the divine plan of salvation, to fortify the young believer against the errors by which he is surrounded.<\/p>\n
It would be difficult to persuade me, that, an experimental acquaintance with doctrines is dangerous to the interest of godliness, and moral excellence, because I have abundant evidence to the contrary, both in my own heart and in many living witnesses; nay, the very suspicion is an insult to God\u2014a piece of popish policy\u2014a libel upon scripture, invented by satan to strengthen the cause of infidelity.<\/p>\n
I write as \u201ca teacher of babes,\u201d anxious to communicate to the minds of young Christians, the sacred pleasures with which my own soul has been indulged; and it is natural for me to suppose, that the same effects will be produced by the same cause; nor can l conceal the fact, that my happiness arises from the very truths which form the substance of these pages, all of which have been rendered precious to my soul by the spiritual advantage they have yielded.<\/p>\n
There are many who are far advanced in years who are yet but children in spiritual knowledge, and I trust, I, may offer a little assistance to these without presumption, while I am willing to sit at the feet of my fathers in Christ to gain instruction for myself, and still more anxious to sit at the feet of Jesus and lean of him.<\/p>\n
The summit of my official emulation is to be a living instance of the fulfillment of God\u2019s promise to his church, \u201cI will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you: with knowledge and understanding,\u201d Jer 3:15, and to be able to say in a dying hour, as Paul said to the elders of the Ephesian Church, “I kept back nothing that was profitable.\u201d Reader, while you peruse the following pages, look up to the Holy Ghost for his blessing to rest upon you, and upon your soul\u2019s well-wisher,<\/p>\n
Joseph Irons<\/p>\n
Grove Chapel, Camberwell<\/p>\n
January 1, 1823<\/p>\n