Thomas Wood

“ Gospel ministers are as necessary to the moral world, during the present state of things, as the sun, moon, and stars are in the universe. A church without such helps, would be like a firmament deprived of globular lights. Ministers, with the bright rays of heavenly doctrine, dispel the darkness of ignorance, chase away the clouds of error, scatter the mists of prejudice, disperse the fogs of vice, from the human mind. ”

“ Ten thousand objects strike the attentive eye, and afford inexpressible delight to a contemplative mind. The blue ethereal arch is highly illuminated, and richly adorned with sparkling globes of light—whose number, distances, magnitudes, motions, and influences, elude the most diligent research: these millions of suns, the glory of other worlds, are equally the works of the Creator, and, with rays of dazzling splendor, irradiate the peculiar systems to which they belong: and, while they celebrate his wisdom and power, form a brilliant canopy over our heads. ”

“ Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain: who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind: who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire: who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be moved for ever. Thou coveredst it with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains. ”

“ With delight we reflect on the invaluable benefits which this lesser light confers on our globe. She sometimes appears visible in the presence of the sun; but how faint and pale is her shining! God has appointed her to rule the night, and give light to men. How cheerless and uncomfortable would our nights be, were we destitute of the light which this faithful and inseparable companion of our earth dispenses! ”

“ We can pass the boundaries of our own, and enter into other systems; and from thence, into eternity itself: ascending from region to region, from world to world, from the creature till we reach the abode of the great Creator, who is the first cause of all things; and then, with ravished eyes, gaze on that glorious Luminary of the moral world, till we are amazed, delighted, and overpowered, with the splendor of his infinite perfections. ”

“ The summer’s heat is necessary for ripening the fruits of the earth, and hastening the harvest: but the winter’s cold and hoary frost are subservient to prepare the earth for the seed, and render it fertile. Nay, this dreary season is serviceable both to man and beast; it tends to remove distempers contracted in the summer’s unwholesome air, and gives a new spring and vigor to nature. How great, then, is the Divine goodness in preserving the constant and regular revolution of these seasons, so pleasant and beneficial to mankind! ”

“ For though the revolution is that of the earth, yet both the hours of the day and night, the different lengths of the days and nights, and the seasons of the year, cannot be determined but by the heavenly bodies. Thus the earth has a two-fold motion, like a chariot-wheel; for while it goes forward on its annual journey, it is still in its diurnal motion turning upon its own centre. ”

“ He has assigned to each that plant, which is most proper for its nourishment and support. There is not a plant on the earth, but what has its particular destination and use. What sentiments of veneration and gratitude should we feel, at the sight of lawns, gardens, fields, and meadows! Here his beneficent care has collected all that is necessary for the comfort and preservation of the inhabitants of the earth. Here, oh God! thou openest thy hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living creature! Here every herb, ear of corn, flower, and tree, proclaims thy goodness! ”

“ They are not to shine with the glimmering light of fallable reason, the sparks of human wisdom, the glow-worm rays of vain philosophy; not with the subtlety of Aristotle, the penetration of Cartes, the eloquence of Cicero, the speculations of Plato, the propositions of Euclid; but with the correct and comprehensive knowledge of the Scripture, which is “given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness; that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.” ”

“ In the Owl we have a striking image of the sceptic, who loves darkness rather than light, and is more proud of his artificial ignorance than any man ought to be of the most useful knowledge: who could never find Divine truth, because he never loved it; as the Owl is offended with that glory which the sun diffuses over the natural creation. As the day has no charms for the Owl, so revealed religion has nothing wise or wonderful in its nature and design with the unbelieving philosopher ”

“ How amazing to consider, that this stupendous body, traversing the immensity of the creation with such rapidity, and at the same time wheeling about in that line which its great Creator prescribed to it, should move with such inconceivable velocity, and at the same time with such exact regularity! How spacious must the universe be, that, gives such bodies as these full play, without suffering the least disorder or confusion by it! ”

“ The soul has a power of thought, with which mere matter can never be endued. If it pass through all the changes, and assume all the shapes of which it is capable, thought will never be the result. It may be differently modified, framed, and disposed, but cannot think. “I find in me something that thinks,” says a celebrated author, “which neither earth, water, air, fire, nor any mixture of them, can possibly do. Something which sees, hears, smells, tastes, and feels, all which are so many modes of thinking.” ”

“ Are losses, affliction, and pain, not joyous, but grievous? mourn as one that weeps not: ease, health, and gladness, are in prospect, and will continue for ever. And how happy and glorious will that world be, where light and joy shall never cease! But how dreadful is that abode where darkness, despair, and anguish shall never end! ”

“ The analogy is very striking; for as the heart is the centre of the animal system, so is the sun in the centre of our world: as the heart is the fountain of the blood, so is the sun the source of light and fire: as the heart is the life of the body, so is the sun the life and heat of animated nature, and the first mover of the mundane system: when the heart ceases to beat, the circuit of life is at an end; and if the sun should cease to act, a total stagnation would take place throughout the whole frame of nature. ”

“ Does God allow men a day, a gracious season, and the light of his word, for the good of their souls? Of what extreme folly shall they be guilty, if they neglect the necessary business till the night of death come, and they drop into the grave, where there is neither work, nor wisdom, nor device! Now is the day of grace, and God is favoring them with the light of reason and revelation. May he give them wisdom to improve these advantages, to his glory, and their own happiness! They know not how soon their sun may set, and the night of death come upon them. ”

“ Who can contemplate the power which produced the solar system, at once so magnificent, beautiful, and delightful, without astonishment and admiration? The planets are kept in a regular motion, and retained in an invariable course round the sun, by the power of this luminary’s attraction or gravity. These bodies have a projectile force, being propelled forwards in a right line, which is the nature of all simple motion; but the sun’s attraction combining with their own projectile force, withdraws them from their rectilineal courses, and preserves the most perfect harmony in the system. ”

“ There is no creature of God that diffuses itself, and whose influence reaches so far and wide, and fills so large a vacuum, as light. All that inconceivable space between this globe and the fixed stars, a distance which numbers cannot reach, is replete with light. Nay, the space in which it is diffused is not less than the universe itself; the immensity of which exceeds the conception of human understanding. It is from this almost unlimited diffusion of light that the very remotest of the heavenly bodies in the solar system become discernible, either by the naked eye or by telescopes. ”

“ In the morning, after the weary limbs have repaired their exhausted vigor by the indulgence of soft repose, we are pleased with the blessing of light; and, after a few fleeting hours engaged in our diversified pursuits of the day, we begin to court the evening shades, pleased again to enjoy that balmy retreat which alone refits us for the fatigues of the ensuing day. When a few fleeting hours are spent, the day is no longer gratifying; but its light becomes burdensome, and we wish for the shadows of the evening to be stretched over us. ”

“ Adam was the common stock and root of all mankind; not only all his posterity were wholly contained in him alone, but also the first woman, the mother of us all, had her vital life in him, and was part of his living flesh and bones: he saw that she was of the same nature, the same identical flesh and blood, the same constitution in all respects, having the same physical powers, mental faculties, and inalienable rights. ”

“ Those who have been brought out of the darkness of ignorance, wickedness and misery, into the light of knowledge, holiness and happiness, by Christ, who is the light of the world, should be careful to walk in the light of his countenance all the days of their life. Does not the earth return the fructifying warmth of the sun, and all his genial effects, in a profusion of verdure, foliage, and flowers? ”

“ Dionæ Muscipula, or Venus’s Fly Trap, is a newly discovered sensitive plant; and shows that nature may have some view towards its nourishment, in forming the upper joint of its leaf like a machine to catch food. Upon the middle of this lies the bait for the unhappy insect that becomes its prey. Many minute red glands, that cover its inner surface, and which, perhaps, discharge some sweet liquor, tempt the poor animal to taste them; and the instant these tender plants are irritated by its feet, the two lobes rise up, grasp it fast, lock the two rows of spines together, and squeeze it to death. ”

“ Is it not a power constantly issuing from the Deity, and which if he should suspend but for one moment, the whole creation would sink into ruins? How inconceivably great and operative must that power be, that is present throughout the universe, with all the heavenly orbs to preserve them in their courses; and on this earth, with every creature, and every particle of matter, to preserve its present form!
In addition to the planets and their satellites, there are Comets, which revolve round the sun, and, consequently, are a part of the solar system. ”

“ Without looking into boundless space, where shine many thousand globes of light, or fixed stars, supposed to be suns like our own, and to have planets revolving round them, we may discover luminous displays of Divine wisdom in our own system, in the constant succession of the seasons, that may justly excite our wonder and adoration. How wise must he be who has so exactly proportioned the different magnitudes of the earth and the sun, and placed them at a proper distance from each other! ”

“ Without its aid, the world would have been an inhospitable wilderness, involved in sable shades of perpetual night. “Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold it.”
Light beautifies every delightful object which comes within the reach of its rays. ”

“ Viewing our sun in all his paramount qualities to every material object in nature, how is he eclipsed and surpassed by the Sun of Righteousness, of whose splendor, grace, and energy this is but a faint emblem, and from whom issues, in bright and gentle beams, all the light, life, joy, and hope received and enjoyed in the Christian world. ”

“ How amazing it is that this ponderous globe should be suspended in the fluid air, without any visible support, and upheld only by the sovereign will of its almighty Creator! His power, who “hangeth the earth upon nothing,” is inconceivably great; and the revolutions of this globe produce the most beneficial effects. The daily rotation of the earth causes the uniform succession of light and darkness; and its annual motion occasions the difference of the length of the days and nights, and the beautiful diversity of the seasons. ”

“ Were it not for the atmospheric air, which is the vehicle of light and sound, our eyes would be useless, and the pleasures which arise from the variegated prospects that now surround us, unknown. Sound would never strike our ears, nor convey the charms of language from one person to another; all the delights of mutual converse would be lost. The sense of smell would never be regaled with odoriferous sweets; nor annoyed with exhalations from putrid and morbid substances. In short, life would become extinct, and a chaos of darkness and emptiness ensue. ”

“ When we have seen that glorious lamp of heaven, the great ruler of the day, gone so far from us that we scarcely knew how to stand before the cold, how has his return revived and cheered us, visiting the frozen earth with his friendly beams, infusing a genial warmth into every creature, and inspiring us with the pleasing hope of once more enjoying those various fruits of the earth, which are the liberal gifts of an indulgent Providence! ”