Alexander MacLaren -- thoughts?

Any thoughts on the 19th century preacher Alexander MacLaren?

 

I have been reading Alexander MacLaren's sermon excerpts in the 17-volume series Expositions of Holy Scripture (1988, Baker). My goal is to read one exposition a day. I am currently reading expositions in Genesis. I highly recommend this series to anyone desiring some of the best expositional preaching from the 19th century.

https://www.amazon.com/Expositions-Holy-Scriptures-17-Set/dp/0801059674/ref=sr_1_1?crid=21FW8SXUA9JAI&keywords=alexander+maclaren+exposition+of+the+holy+scriptures+set&qid=1567699819&s=gateway&sprefix=Alexander+Maclaren,aps,152&sr=8-1

 

Link to an online biography: Dr. McLaren of Manchester: A Sketch, written by his cousin and sister-in-law Elizabeth McLaren and published a year after his death (1911). Click on the link to open the publication and click on the arrows to move through (i.e., read) the book. The book has a few pictures of Alexander McLaren and his Wife.

Dr. McLaren of Manchester, a sketch : McLaren, Elizabeth T : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

 

A few minutes ago, the U.S. mail brought a used book I ordered a few weeks ago from Texas.

Similes and Figures from Alexander MacLaren (1910). Compiled by Francis Edward. Clark, with a biographical appreciation by F. B. Meyer. New York: Fleming H. Revell Company.

My Alexander MacLaren collection is growing. F. E. Clark compiled several excerpts from some of MacLaren's sermons. Since the book was 110 years ago, and there is only one "fair" copy available for purchase today on the internet, I will take a few minutes and type a few similes from pp. 62-63.

The Evil Eye and the Charm.

"We often court the coming of the evil influence, and are willing to be fascinated and to turn our backs upon Jesus. Mysterious it is, for why should men cast away diamonds for paste? Mysterious it is, for we do not usually drop the substance to get the shadow. Mysterious it is, for a man does not ordinarily empty his pockets of gold in order to fill them with gravel. Mysterious it is, for a thirsty man will not usually turn away from the full, bubbling, living fountain, to see if he can find any drops still remaining, green with scum, stagnant and odorous, at the bottom of some broken cistern. But all these follies are sanity as compared with the folly of which we are guilty, times without number, when, having known the sweetness of Jesus Christ, we turn away to the fascinations of the world. Custom, the familiarity that we have with Him; the attrition of daily cares, like the minute grains of sand that are cemented on to paper, and make a piece of sandpaper that is strong enough to file an inscription off iron; the seductions of worldly delights; the pressure of our daily cares--all these are as a ring of sorcerers that stand round about us, before whom we are as powerless as a bird in the presence of a serpent; and they bewitch us and draw us away.

The sad fact has been verified over and over again on a large scale in the history of the Church. After every outburst of renewed life and elevated spirituality there is sure to come a period of reaction when torpor and formality again assert themselves. What followed the Reformation in Germany? A century of death. What followed Puritanism in England? An outburst of lust and godlessness."

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And probably at this point in MacLaren's sermon--the wooden church pews of the day began to creak and rock a bit.

Clark's published Similes and Figures from Alexander MacLaren began to receive recommendations in the press of 1911, a year after MacLaren's death. Like paragraph 3 from page 18 of the January 5th 1911 edition of The New York Observer.

New-York Observer

 

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Yes, I received all 17 Books (32 volumes). In fact, before I ordered the complete set, I ordered Book 17 from a seller who stated he only had Book 17 to ship. Thus, I have the complete set of 17 books (32 volumes) from Baker Book House (reprinted 1974); and an additional book 17 from another seller.

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Book 17 is an important volume in the series. The first part of Book 17 includes MacLaren's expositions of 1,2,3 John, Jude, and Revelation (400 pages).

Then what follows after MacLaren's Expositions of Revelation (p. 114-402), is an Index of the original 'Expositions of Holy Scripture'.

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The Contents of the Index in the back of Book 17 is as follows.

Dr. Alexander McLaren: An Appreciation by W. Robertson Nicoll (p. v.).
Preface to the Index by George Eayrs (p. xix).
Notes on the Arrangement and Use of the Index (p. xxiv).
The Index to 'Expositions of Holy Scripture' in Thirty-Two Volumes (p. 1-178).

The Index is compiled in alphabetical order:
Beginning with expositions on AARON (Index, p. 1).
Ending with an exposition on ZOAR (Index, p. 178).

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It looks like the current going price for the 17 Books published by Baker Book House (reprinted 1974, white hardback) begin around $120.00 (6561 pages) .MacLaren's 'Expositions of Holy Scripture' is also available in a Kindle edition (8852 KB). I also have the Kindle edition on my Kindle Fire reader.

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MacLaren's Exposition on Genesis XV.6 begins as follows (Book 1, Genesis, p. 116-117).

"And he believed in the Lord; and He counted it to him for righteousness."

It is remarkable to find this anticipation of New Testament teaching so far back. It is like finding one full-blown flower in a garden where all else is but swelling into bud. No wonder that Paul fastened on it to prove that justification by faith was older than Moses, than law or circumcision, that his teaching was the real original, and that faith lay at the foundations of the Old Testament religion....

1. The Nature of Faith....
2. The Object of Faith....
3. The Effect of Faith...."
​

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agedman, let me know if you have any questions.

 

That is good to know. Martin, thank you for your comments.