Clarence E.N. Macartney: Come Before Winter

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Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me…Do thy diligence to come before winter (2 Tim. 4:9, 21).

The most famous sermon delivered by Clarence E.N. Macartney (1879-1957) was Come Before Winter, a sermon he first preached at the Arch Street Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on October 3, 1915 — and every October thereafter. It was a sermon about the need to take advantage of the opportunities given by God before those opportunities pass away. A 30th anniversary edition of this sermon was added to Log College Press earlier this summer and on this first day of October, 2022, it seems good to highlight what he had to say.

Before winter or never! There are some things which will never be done unless they are done “before winter.” The winter will come and the winter will pass, and the flowers of the springtime will deck the breast of the earth, and the graves of some of our opportunities, perhaps the grave of our dearest friend. There are golden gates wide open on this autumn day, but next October they will be forever shut. There are tides of opportunity running now at the flood. Next October they will be at the ebb. There are voices speaking today which a year from today will be silent. Before winter or never!

What are those voices to which Macartney refers? He names three:

  1. The Voice Which Calls For Reformation

  2. The Voice of Friendship and Affection

  3. The Voice of Christ

To each of these we ought to give heed and not delay to respond. None of us knows what the year ahead may bring. But we know that we are called to repent, to serve, to believe.

The greatest subject which can engage the mind and attention of man is eternal life. Hence the Holy Spirit, when he invites men to come to Christ, never says “Tomorrow” but always “Today.” If you can find me one place in the Bible where the Holy Spirit says, “Believe in Christ tomorrow,” or “Repent and be saved tomorrow,” I will come down out of the pulpit and stay out of it — for I would have no Gospel to preach. But the Spirit always says, “Today,” never “Tomorrow.” “Now is the accepted time.” “Now is the day of salvation.” “Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” “While it is called Today.”

Let not the beautiful colors of October pass into grey November without responding to the call.

Once again, then, I repeat these words of the Apostle, “Come before winter”; and as I pronounce them, common sense, experience, conscience, Scripture, the Holy Spirit, the souls of just men made perfect, and the Lord Jesus Christ all repeat with me, “Come before winter!” Come before the haze of Indian summer has faded from the fields! Come before the November wind strips the leaves from the trees and sends them whirling over the fields! Come before the snow lies on the uplands and the meadow brook is turned to ice! Come before the heart is cold! Come before desire has failed! Come before life is over and your probation ended, and you stand before God to give an account of the use you have made of the opportunities which in his grace he has granted to you! Come before winter!

Consider the words of Dr. Macartney and hear the voice of Christ which calls us to follow Him in season and out.

What's New at Log College Press? - August 16, 2022

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There is always a lot going on at Log College Press. Here is a brief report to get you up to speed.

In July 2022, we added 349 new works to the site. Today we aim to highlight some of the new free PDFs available as found on our Recent Additions and Early Access pages, two features provided to members of the Dead Presbyterians Society.

Early Access:

  • In 1760, a letter authored by Gilbert Tennent and signed by seventeen other Presbyterian ministers was sent to the Archbishop of Canterbury concerning William McClanachan (1714-c. 1765), a sometime Anglican, Congregational and Presbyterian minister, which proved to be somewhat ecclesiastically messy for the writers. What is particularly interesting about the “eighteen Presbyterian ministers” who jointly signed the letter is that this is one occasion when Samuel Davies and the Tennent brother (Gilbert, Charles and William, Jr.) united in a literary production. Others who also signed include John Rodgers, Abraham Keteltas, Alexander MacWhorter, John Blair, Robert Smith, John Roan, Charles McKnight; all together at least seven alumni of the Log College signed this letter, which is now available to read on our Early Access page.

  • Speaking of the Tennents, we have added a volume by Mary A. Tennent titled Light in Darkness: The Story of William Tennent Sr. and the Log College (1971) to the William Tennent, Sr. page. It is a valuable study of the Tennent family and the Log College.

  • In the course of our research, we came across a volume of sermons once owned by Samuel Miller. Many of the individual sermons bear his handwritten signature on the title pages. Some of the sermons were delivered in connection with the May 9, 1798 fast day appointed by President John Adams (William Linn, Ashbel Green and Samuel Blair, Jr.). Also included was another separate fast day sermon preached by Nathan Strong and an 1815 thanksgiving sermon preached by James Muir (following the end of the War of the 1812).

  • We added some interesting works by John Tucker (1719-1792), including a noted 1771 election sermon and two editions (one published and one handwritten manuscript) of a 1778 sermon on the validity of Presbyterian ordination.

  • Robert R. Howison, author of a noted history of Virginia, wrote a history of the War Between the States in serial fashion which was published in the Southern Literary Messenger from 1862 to 1864. We have compiled each installment into one PDF file comprised of almost 400 pages.

  • Perhaps the most famous sermon delivered by Clarence E.N. Macartney was Come Before Winter, first preached in 1915 and then annually for many years after. We have added the 30th anniversary edition of that sermon to his page.

  • We have also recently added more sermons and letters by Samuel Davies, some of which are now at the Recent Additions page.

Recent Addtiions:

Be sure also to check out the quotes we have been adding at our blog for DPS members: Though Dead They Still Speak, including some by John Murray on the regulative principle of worship; David Rice on religious controversy; and Louis F. Benson on early Presbyterian psalmody.

As we continue to grow, please avail yourself of the many resources (both digital and in print) at Log College Press, and be sure to tell your friends about us. We hope that brushing off these old tomes will indeed enrich the 21st century church - that is our prayer. Thank you, as always, for your interest and support, dear friends.

Log College Press Audio Resources

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It is well known that J.G. Machen delivered radio addresses, utilizing a medium that was new at the time, to advance the gospel. In recent years, much of this material has been reproduced as audiobooks or in print/digital format: The Person of Jesus: Radio Addresses on the Deity of the Savior (2017); Who Is Jesus?: Radio Addresses on the Deity of the Savior (2017); What Is Predestination?: Radio Addresses on the Election of God's People (2017); Is the Bible Inspired?: Radio Addresses on the Origin of Scripture (2017); and Things Unseen: A Systematic Introduction to the Christian Faith and Reformed Theology (2020).

There are others on Log College Press whose voices may be heard today. Below we have assembled a few links for those who enjoy hearing as well as reading voices from the past. Certainly, there are more, but the resources below will be of interest to some.

As mentioned, more such audio resources are certainly available out there, and we hope to keep expanding on this material to let our readers and hearers know where to find them. It is one thing to read, and another to hear, voices from the past. Take a listen to these recordings, and enjoy!

Log College Press Remembers Thomas Chalmers

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Who is Thomas Chalmers, and what was his significance to 19th century American Presbyterianism?

Thomas Chalmers (1780-1847) was a Scottish Presbyterian churchman and a leader of the Free Church of Scotland, founded after the 1843 “Disruption.” A man of many interests and gifts, he contributed much to the church and the community in which he served. He is known for his eloquent sermons, his voluminous and edifying theological writings, and for his “West Port Experiment” in Edinburgh (1844-1847). He died on May 31, 1847.

J.W. Alexander highly commended the sermons of Thomas Chalmers and Samuel Davies (Letters, Vol. 1, p. 74).

Charles A. Aiken, in his 1879 Tribute to Charles Hodge, wrote that

It was my high privilege to spend with Dr. Chalmers the last evening but one of his life, Saturday, May 28, 1847. At sunrise on the ensuing Monday, the cry rang through Edinburgh, Dr. Chalmers is dead! Not to go into the details of that memorable interview, let it suffice to say, as bearing upon the passage in the text, that I have never received a more cordial and hearty greeting than that with which, taking both my hands in his own, he welcomed me to Morning-side. He had returned from London only the day before, and spoke of himself as being in unusually good health. All the benevolence of his character came out in his genial smile. His courtesy, his affability, the tones of his voice, the graciousness and even warmth of his whole manner, as he talked with me of grave questions with which the Free Church Assembly, then in session, was likely to be agitated, and the kindliness with which, on my rising to leave, he pressed an invitation for us (the ladies of my party had remained at the hotel that evening) to breakfast with him, first on Tuesday and then on Monday morning — all this made a lasting impression upon me so grateful and so vivid that I cannot at all take in that disparaging estimate of his own social nature which I have quoted from his "Sabbath Readings."

While Chalmers lived, and after his death, American Presbyterians wrote often to him and of him. Below are just some of the writings available on Log College Press that concern Chalmers directly.

  • Archibald Alexander, The Works of Doctor Chalmers (1841) and Chalmers’ Mental and Moral Philosophy (1848);

  • J.W. Alexander, The Works of Doctor Chalmers (1841) and Chalmers on Education and Ecclesiastical Economy (1842) [“Chalmers’s experiential preaching and active social philanthropy were of special interest to Alexander in the urban ministry settings where he labored.” — James M. Garretson, Thoughts on Preaching & Pastoral Ministry: Lessons From the Life and Writings of James W. Alexander, p. 296, note 46];

  • Charles Hodge, An Earnest Appeal to the Free Church of Scotland, on the Subject of Economics (1847);

  • Clarence E.N. Macartney, Thomas Chalmers (1919);

  • James McCosh, A Tribute to the Memory of Dr. Chalmers, By a Former Pupil (1847);

  • Alexander McLeod, Review of Thomas Chalmers on Astronomy (1817) and Review of Two Sermons by Thomas Chalmers (1818);

  • James C. Moffat, Life of Thomas Chalmers (1853)';

  • John Holt Rice, August 14, 1819 Letter to Thomas Chalmers (1819, 1835);

  • Thomas Smyth, The Character of the Late Thomas Chalmers, D.D., LL.D. and the Lessons of His Life From Personal Recollections (1847-1848) in Vol. 3 of Smyth’s Works (1908); and

  • William B. Sprague, On the Life and Death of Thomas Chalmers (1847).

Some notable American Presbyterians were, presumably, named for the great Scottish churchman, such as John Thomas Chalmers and Thomas Chalmers Vinson.

Respect was directed both ways across the Atlantic. According to William B. Sprague, Chalmers thought of Samuel Miller’s 1831 essay on The Warrant, Nature, and Duties of the Office of the Ruling Elder as “the very best work that has been given to the church on that subject.” (A Discourse Commemorative of the Rev. Samuel Miller, D.D. (1850), p. 29). (An extract from Miller’s February 28, 1831 letter to Chalmers may be read in The Life of Samuel Miller, Vol. 2, p. 167.)

Chalmers was beloved by both Scottish and American Presbyterians, and many others. We remember him today as we recall his entrance into glory nearly two centuries ago. Read more about him, starting with Moffat’s Life of Chalmers, and the tributes to him by James McCosh, Thomas Smyth and William B. Sprague.

Log College Resources

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At Log College Press, we aim to survey the broad landscape of American Presbyterianism, from mainstream denominations to dissenting branches, both conservative and liberal, to provide insight into the history and claims of those who speak for Presbyterianism in America. But we have a special place in our heart for the original Log College, which served as the first Presbyterian seminary in the colonies.

A 19th-century sketch of the Log College with an interesting background described here.

A 19th-century sketch of the Log College with an interesting background described here.

Here is an effort to provide resources for further study on that Log College and specially connected to it. This is not a complete survey, but it is hoped that readers who wish to study the Log College more in-depth can do so ably with the material referenced below.

The Founders of the Log College (c. 1726) were William Tennent, Sr. (1673-1746) and Catherine Kennedy Tennent (1683-1753). Each of their male children were among the graduates of the Log College program of education: Gilbert, William, Jr., John, and Charles. Other famous Log College alumni include Samuel Blair, John Blair, Samuel Finley and Charles Beatty. The Log College planted seeds which later resulted in the founding of Princeton, the Log Colleges of John McMillan, David Caldwell and others.

There are many valuable works about the Log College and its alumni and influence available to read at Log College Press, including:

  • Archibald Alexander - Biographical Sketches of the Founder, and Principal Alumni of the Log College (1845) and Sermons and Essays by the Tennents and Their Contemporaries (1855)

  • Elijah R. Craven - The Log College of Neshaminy and Princeton University (1902)

  • Nathaniel Irwin - Memoirs of the Presbyterian Church of Neshaminey (1793, 1904)

  • Guy S. Klett and Thomas C. Pears, Jr. - Documentary History of William Tennent and the Log College (1940)

  • Thomas Murphy - The Presbytery of the Log College; or, The Cradle of the Presbyterian Church in America (1889)

  • Douglas K. Turner - History of Neshaminy Presbyterian Church of Warwick, Hartsville, Bucks County, PA, 1726-1876 (1876); Sketch of Log College (1886, 1909); and The Log College (1889)

Also of interest is Charles Spencer Richardson, Jr., A Week in Log College Country (1903), available to read here. William B. Sprague’s Annals, Richard Webster’s History of the Presbyterian Church in America, and many other biographical and historical literature is also available to read at Log College Press.

Other works known to the writer, but not yet available on Log College Press include:

  • George H. Ingram - The Story of the Log College (1927) and Biographies of the Alumni of the Log College (1929-1930)

  • Clarence E.N. Macartney - The Log College and the Beginning of Princeton (1946-1947)

  • Richard McIlwaine - The Influence of the Log College in the South (1889)

  • Thomas C. Pears, Jr. - History by Hearsay or New Light on William Tennent: A Footnote on the 'Documentary History of William Tennent (1940)

  • Gary E. Schnittjer - William Tennent and the Log College: A Common Man and an Uncommon Legacy (1992) and The Ingredients of Effective Mentoring: The Log College as a Model for Mentorship (1994)

Books which directly treat aspects of the Log College from the Secondary Sources page at Log College Press include:

  • Milton J. Coalter, Jr. - Gilbert Tennent, Son of Thunder (1986)

  • S. Donald Fortson III - Colonial Presbyterianism: Old Faith in a New Land (2006)

  • John F. Hansen - The Vision That Changed a Nation: The Legacy of William Tennent (2007)

  • Margaret Adair Hunter, Education in Pennsylvania Promoted by the Presbyterian Church, 1726–1837 (1937)

  • Alexander Leitch - A Princeton Companion (1978)

  • Howard Miller - The Revolutionary College: American Presbyterian Higher Education, 1707-1837 (1976)

  • Mary A. Tennent - Light in Darkness: The Story of William Tennent, Sr. and the Log College (1971)

There is a great deal of literature on Princeton which can be read online at Log College Press, or ordered from the Secondary Sources page, which touches on the history of the Log College. Many titles are not mentioned here, but could be included in a more thorough compilation. But it is hoped that the resources highlighted here will provide the student of colonial American Presbyterian history with readily available information to assist in their studies of a remarkable chapter of church history.

And let us remember that “the past is not dead,” because the story of the Tennents and the Log College is but prologue to the present. The William Tennent House Association continues its work in a different direction to make this history and legacy alive and accessible to visitors as well. One Log College, and the many others which followed, did so much to leave a godly legacy for America. We are glad to help others learn more about the story, and we are thankful to God for the legacy.

Family Religion in Clarence E.N. Macartney's Boyhood Home

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Clarence Edward Noble Macartney (1879-1957) was an American Presbyterian clergyman and author who played an important role in the PCUSA’s “fundamentalist-modernist” controversy of the 1920s and 1930s. Macartney is known, for example, for his famous 1922 sermon “Shall Unbelief Win?” — a response to Harry Emerson Fosdick’s "Shall the Fundamentalists Win?” Both of these significant sermons have recently been added to Log College Press.

From his posthumously-published The Making of a Minster: The Autobiography of Clarence E. Macartney (1961), pp. 63-64, we glean some insight into the background of this staunch defender of the faith. What is particularly interesting is the place that family worship held in his home as he grew up in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania. His family was members of the RPCNA congregation pastored by Robert James George (whose address on family religion is available to read on Log College Press). In this extract, Macartney speaks of his first religious impressions.

I received my earliest and most abiding religious impressions where they are always first received, in the home. Family worship was universal in the homes of our neighborhood, and we had “worship” every morning before breakfast and at night before going to bed. Father would say to one of the children, “Bring the books,” whereupon the black-bound Bibles were brought from the shelf in the dumbwaiter which now serves as a closet. After we had sung a Psalm we then read around the circle the verses of the chapter for the day, after which we knelt for prayer, by Father when he was at home, or, if he was away, by Mother. My first lessons in religion and in reading I had on those mornings at family worship, sitting on my father’s knee as he, with his long forefinger, pointed out the words to me. The 121st Psalm was a favorite. We always sang that great “Traveler’s Psalm” when any of the family was starting off to college, or on a journey. The benediction of that family altar has, I am sure, followed all of us through life thus far, and will, I hope, follow us up to the gate of heaven. Father was wont to conclude his petitions at the family altar with the prayer, “May we all get home at last!” Still on life’s pilgrimage, the children who remain can hear the music of that grand 121st Psalm as we sang it in the Scottish metrical version:

“I too the hills will lift mine eyes,
From whence doth come mine aid
My safety cometh from the Lord,
Who heaven and earth hath made.”

The most treasured recollection of my mother’s religious training is that of singing by our bedside at night in her clear, sweet voice the words of the hymn,

“There is a happy land,
Far, far away.”

On Sabbath afternoons in the springtime and summer mother took us down to a moss-covered rock under the sassafras trees on the hillside and told us the deathless tales of the Bible. She had a little red-bound hymn book out of which we sang with her some of the hymns. Covenanters were not supposed to sing the hymns; only the Psalms of David, and those Psalms are, indeed, the sweetest music this side of heaven. Yet Mother was always free in her religious life, and did not hesitate, on occasions, to sing the hymns. I am sure that the singing of those hymns on the summer afternoons on that moss-covered rock on the hillside in the long ago did much to introduce us to the warmth and tenderness of personal religion.

Family worship as boy left a deep impression on the man who later devoted his life to the ministry of the gospel, and as a witness to Old School, Biblical religion. Seeds planted early may, in the providence and mercy of God, bear much good fruit.