; and the false prophets provided the supply
according to the demand.

We cannot flatter ourselves that this is a danger which belongs
entirely to the past. There will always be a demand for smooth things,
and an appropriate reward for him who is willing to supply them in the
name of God. Popularity is a thing which will always be coveted; and
under certain conditions it is a thing to be thankful for. If it means
that the truth is prevailing and that men are yielding their minds to
its sway, it is a precious gift of heaven. It is a good thing to see
many coming out to hear the Word of God, and to both preacher and
hearers there is a great deal of exhilaration and inspiration in a
full church. But popularity may be purchased at too dear a rate. It
may be bought by the suppression of the truth and the letting down of
the demands of Christianity. There will always be a demand for a
religion which does not agitate the mind too much or interfere with
the pursuits of a worldly life.

I have seen a very trenchant article from an American pen on the power
of the moneyed members of a church to dictate the tone of the pulpit;
and it is a common accusation against ministers, that they flatter the
prevailing classes in their congregations. If their congregations are
wealthy, they are afraid, it is said, to speak up for the poor, even
when justice is calling out on their side; and, if their congregations
are poor, they take the side of the working-man, right or wrong. I
should question whether temptations so gross as these are much felt.
Far more dangerous are the subtler temptations--to truckle to the
spirit of the age, to keep at all hazards on the side of the
cultivated and clever, and to shun those truths the utterance of which
might expose the teacher to the charge of being antiquated and
bigoted. Let a preacher dwell always on the sunny side of the truth
and conceal the shadows, let him enlarge continually on what is simple
and human in Christianity and pass lightly over what is mysterious and
Divine: let him, for example, dwell on the human side of Christ but
say nothing of His deity, let him enforce Christ's example but say
nothing of His atonement, let him extol the better elements of human
nature but say nothing of its depravity, let him preach frequently on
the glories of the next world but never mention its terrors: and very
probably he may be popular and see his Church crowded; but he will be
a false prophet.[40]

W