Chapter III: Part 3

“Then he said unto them, O fools (O unwise and blinded people) and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken; ought not Christ (ought not your Messiah prophesied of old) to have suffered these things and enter into His glory?” {102} Is it not clearly foretold by your prophets, by Isaiah especially in his 53d chapter, that the redeemer of Israel should be “despised and rejected of men,” should bear “their griefs and carry their sorrows,” “should be led as a lamb to the slaughter, should be numbered with the transgressors,” should make “His grave with the wicked (should die with malefactors) and with the rich in his death,” (should be buried in the sepulchre of the rich,) and after that “prolong His days,” and then that “the pleasure of the Lord should prosper in His hand?” According to your own prophecies then, and in order to their fulfilment, has not Jesus done that, as Messiah, which He was required to do? Instead of being offended, and giving up the cause, ye ought to be fully convinced, that He is “the Christ, the son of the living God.” {103a} Then, “beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded to them in all the sacred scriptures the things concerning Himself.” {103b} How enlightening and convincing must this discourse have been! But it is not preserved to us: with so complete a body of information and evidence, it did not please the Almighty to favour the world. We are left to gather the instruction by diligent observation and study; and thankful may we be, that there still remain most abundant sources of satisfactory knowledge on this head; that the prophecies and types of the Saviour in the Old Testament, when compared with their fulfilment, are sufficiently clear for the conviction of every honest and well-disposed mind.

After this, the disciples “drew nigh unto the village whither they went; and Jesus made as though He would have gone further. But they constrained Him, saying, Abide with us; for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And He went in to tarry with them.” {104a} And thus He still favours His disciples, and will do as long as the world stands; when they heartily desire His abiding presence, it will never be denied; wherever the place or whatever the occasion, their Lord, if wished for and welcome, will be of their company: in the domestic circle, in the converse of friends, in the sacred hour of solitude; “when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” {104b} We have only to lift our thoughts to Him; “to set Him always before us; and He will be at our right hand, that we shall not be moved.” {105a} At all times He will be found “a present help;” but especially when we are associated or assembled in remembrance of Him. Such is the promise of His word: “where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them:” {105b} gathered together for consultation, for worship, for any holy purpose.

Jesus, when He had entered into the house with the two disciples, acted in a manner which served to bring Him to their knowledge: “As He sat at meat with them, He took bread and blessed it, and brake and gave to them; (though a supposed stranger, He appeared as the head of the family; blessing and distributing, as His custom had been at their ordinary meals:) And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him: And He vanished out of their sight;” {105c} immediately left them to ponder upon the amazing things which they had heard. “And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the Scriptures?”

Cleopas and his friend were unquestionably favoured beyond the common lot of disciples: to hear the sacred oracles explained by Him, who was at once the subject and fulfilment of them; by Him, through whose spirit the prophets and holy men of old all spake; to hear them perfectly explained and illustrated by the voice of the Son of God, might well make a vivid impression upon their minds, and fill their bosom with fervent and rapturous delight: Yet, though we cannot be so singularly blessed, there may be communicated to us a measure of that knowledge, which these disciples enjoyed; there may be imparted to us no inconsiderable portion of the same holy animation.

Our merciful Lord, on withdrawing His visible presence from this world, sent, according to His promise, another Comforter; a Comforter, who should “guide His people into all truth;” should “give them a right judgment in all things,” and spread a holy influence over their affections and desires. And now, when we are reading His word, when musing upon it with devout meditation, and conversing with one another upon its exalted truths, its heavenly purposes, its abundant promises and blessings; and now, when we hear the word from the lips of those ministers, who, however unworthy in themselves, are commissioned to speak in His great name, our hearts may burn within us, and “our eyes may be opened to behold wondrous things out of His law;” {107} we may still be powerfully impressed, if we have, what we are taught by our church to pray for, “grace to hear meekly the word, and to receive it with pure affection, and to bring forth the fruits of the Spirit.”

May I not appeal, in justification of these remarks, to some of you here present? Have not your minds, when intent upon the doctrines of the gospel, and taking a view of heavenly things, been sometimes visited with a holy illumination, which has seemed to raise you above the world, and to make you feel more sensibly, that “you have your conversation in heaven?” {108} Have not the ties of earth been loosened, while your soul was expatiating on the deep things of God, on His wisdom and power and love, on the dealings of His providence and grace, on the glories of His eternal presence? Have you not, in some such moments, been so impressed, as to return to the world with a degree of reluctance; and, like the disciples at the transfiguration, almost tempted to say, of your spiritual and heavenly visions, “it is good for me to be here?” These are no enthusiastic imaginations; they are the sober and solid effects of the realized presence of our Redeemer; they are the burnings of heart, of which the disciples spake; they are the foretaste of our knowledge and joy and light and life above. Doubtless they are to be encouraged with humility and sobriety; doubtless they may degenerate into enthusiasm; for there is no spiritual good, which may not be abused: but the fear of enthusiasm is not to hinder us in gathering comfort and delight from the study of scriptural truth, from holy and exalted meditation. The world may call it weakness and folly; for it cannot be understood by the world; but the Christian knows for it a better name; and few eminent Christians have there been, who would not readily bear witness to the truth of these things, who have not felt the inspiriting, uplifting power of divine contemplation.

And this, like all other exercises of true faith and piety, is of great practical importance; it is fruitful in righteousness to all who “think soberly;” it serves them, when they return to the busy scenes of earth, as an animation to duty; it purifies their affections and renders the world little in their eyes; it arms them for conflict, and reconciles them to trouble: in the midst of trials, of disappointments and bereavements, of struggles and difficulties, of frowns and oppositions, they remember, with thankfulness and comfort, the spiritual joys they have experienced, and expect to be blessed with them again: yes, in their darker hours, they remember, that the Sun of righteousness, has shone brightly upon them, and the beams are still reflected; though they cannot at present perceive Him so clearly, though He seems, like Jesus with the disciples, to have “vanished out of their sight,” He has left a glory behind, and will again visit them with the fulness of His favour; and they go on their way “not faithless, but believing.”

To those who have been thus in the habit of pious and scriptural meditation; of intently dwelling upon the sublime mysteries, and the gracious promises, and the noble examples, and the striking histories of the word of God; to them it is needless to recommend a continuance of the good work; it is a christian obligation, which they can never think of declining; and besides this, the delight and improvement, which it affords, are its own sufficient recommendation. But upon all, who have unhappily neglected this their great privilege and duty, I would most earnestly press the importance of attending to this point, as a matter of bounden necessity. It is not enough to form an acquaintance with the leading truths of the gospel, as a matter of faith and profession; there is much to be learnt upon a nearer inspection, much indeed that can never be learned without it; much to enlarge and exalt the understanding; to renew the heart and regulate the life. The necessary intercourse, which most of us have with the world, is of a lowering and defiling nature; estranging the heart from a love of holiness and of God: and in order to correct this evil, scriptural study and spiritual consideration, as well as fervent prayer, are indispensable.

Let not any day pass over your heads without some portion of the Bible, some subject of divine revelation, being brought distinctly to your view. The exercise will interfere with none of your earthly duties, but will help you in the performance of them all; will smooth whatever there be of ruggedness in your way; will strengthen you in the hour of temptation, and comfort you in perplexity and trouble. Many an encouraging promise and many an enlivening assurance will recur to your memory; and “a word in season how good is it:” examples of suffering and patience, of striving and perseverance, of warfare and triumph, will kindle in your breast an emulous ardour, and you will say, ‘By the help of the Lord, I will “go and do likewise.”’ Thus will the Bible be a never-failing source of strength and consolation all the day long; as the waters, which flowed from the flinty rock, accompanied and refreshed the Israelites, ever and anon, in their journey through the wilderness, so will your spiritual musings, suggested by the very hardships or troubles of life, be a perpetual stream of refreshment to your souls, even “in a dry land thirsty land, where no water is.” {113a}

And by this means you will be preparing and training your souls for a happier communion with the Saviour in another world; where all the dealings of His providence, and all the wonders of His grace, will be more fully and gloriously manifested. And if the heart of the Christian now burn within him, at the contemplation of heavenly truth and redeeming love; now, in his frail tenement of clay; how unspeakable will be his delight, when these things are revealed to his pure spirit, in the realms of perfection and bliss. Then will he know more of “the love of Christ which passeth knowledge;” then will he see more of “the length and breadth and depth and height” {113b} of the mystery of mercy; he will see God “face to face” and “know even as he is known.”

SERMON VII. IF THEY HEAR NOT MOSES AND THE PROPHETS.

LUKE xvi. 31.

_If they hear not Moses and the Prophets_, _neither will they be
persuaded_, _though one rose from the dead_.

LET us advert to the occasion on which these words were delivered, to the parable of which they form a part. The case there presented to us by the description of the rich man is unhappily of frequent occurrence in every age. Surrounded by all the luxuries that wealth could furnish, he looked for nothing beyond them: how many fellow mortals there were near his dwelling, deprived of the necessities, while he was revelling in the superfluities of life, was no care, no consideration of his; the selfish enjoyment of this world entirely absorbed his affections, and threw a veil over all expectation of a world to come: satisfied, that he had “goods laid by for many years,” he imagined that he had nothing to do, but to “eat, drink, and be merry.”

But such ignorance and insensibility did not prevent him from being called to account; such forgetfulness of his latter end did not retard the evil day. He died—and was buried, we may conclude, with costly preparation answerable to the splendour in which he had lived. This however, was the last service which his riches were able to render him; and melancholy it was, when contrasted with the state, in which his soul was existing, while his treasures were employed in doing honour to the lifeless body. He found in that state, what he might have discovered before, that riches, if selfishly employed in purposes of vanity and pleasure, are a deadly snare; that earthly indulgences, if pursued with excess, to the neglect of duty towards God and man, instead of being a blessing, are paving the way to misery; he found, “what an evil and bitter thing it is,” to squander the favours of heaven without remembering “the author and giver of every good gift.”

Perceiving therefore, by sad experience, his own deplorable condition, he is represented as being moved with a feeling of pity for his brethren: his first anxiety, indeed, was naturally for himself—for some alleviation, at least, of the wretchedness of his fate; but when he was informed that such desire was fruitless, that even the assuagement of his pain was impossible, that there was no means of conveying even a drop of water to cool the thirst upon his tongue, that the great gulf was finally and irremoveably fixed, he then hoped that something might be done for his brethren who were still surviving; they had not yet passed the boundary of life and grace; and therefore he entreats that, while the far-spent day was shining upon them, Lazarus might be despatched from his abode of bliss, to warn them of the untimely end to which they were hastening; and induce them effectually to repent before “the night should come, in which no man can work.” {117a}

Abraham’s answer is, “they have Moses and the prophets, let them hear _them_.” A messenger from the court of heaven could tell them nothing new; they are already acquainted with their duty and the consequences of neglecting it: Jehovah has revealed unto them His blessed will, and clearly made known what is required of them, “to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with their God.” {117b} His covenant with their fathers, and the promulgation of His law, have been attested by a series of signal miracles, which they do not pretend to dispute; and in every page of their history are recorded God’s promised blessings to the good, and the execution of His vengeance upon the evil; and, therefore, in as far as knowledge is concerned, they have all the intelligence that can be desired.

But the wretched man, in the agony of his own feelings, and the earnest desire to preserve his family from such woe, still pursues his request. “Nay, father Abraham;” but, though they have neglected the ordinary calls of heaven, assuredly, if so astonishing an admonition were granted to them, as that of one risen from the dead, they would be thereby persuaded to repent. Then follows the answer of the text, “If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.” And thus the conference ended.

From this conclusion of the parables two important observations may be drawn _first_, that if men fail to be convinced and converted, to be led to their God and their duty, by those sufficient means of grace which are already vouchsafed to them, they would not be likely to yield to any extraordinary means; and, _secondly_, that no such additional means are to be expected.

1. In all cases of spiritual and practical unbelief, in all cases where the declarations of the Almighty are disregarded, the fault lies not so much in the understanding as in the heart. The revelations of heaven are at variance with those interests and pursuits, which the heart is inclined and resolved to retain; and on this account, and by this means, the mind is prejudiced and set against such revelations, and they are not fully and implicitly believed. They call men to the love and practice of holiness, to which our degenerate nature is averse; the pleasures of sin are preferred, and the voice of God is unheeded: they teach us, that all earthly objects and possessions, in themselves, are vain, and call us to prepare for an everlasting inheritance above; the sensual and worldly-minded think and feel, that “it is good for them to be here,” and are not disposed to place their affections upon the promise of an hereafter. We none of us professedly disbelieve the revelation of heaven, any more than the brethren of the rich man did; and therefore I need not stay to argue the point on that ground. The doctrine before us is this, that men, professing to believe, to have received abundant evidence of the truth, and yet refusing to act upon that belief, would not be induced so to act, by any violent appeal to their senses or natural powers, even though it were the work of a divine interposition in their behalf.

What do we believe? That, after this life, which experience tells us must soon terminate, and which may, at any moment, be unexpectedly and suddenly brought to a close, we shall immediately enter upon another and an eternal state of being; and that our condition, in the endless life to come, will be happy or miserable, according to the manner in which we have passed our short pilgrimage upon earth, whether in a belief of the gospel or in unbelief; in obedience or disobedience; in holiness or sin. Now, if we really and vitally believe these truths, their importance is so striking, that nothing could possibly suggest to the mind a weightier consideration. And if these truths be only superficially credited, it must be owing to some corrupt and perverted affections, which throw a veil over the understanding, and render it proof against all moral means of conviction. Perhaps some strange and startling occurrence, such as the re-appearance of a friend from the dead, might forcibly affect the imagination for a time; and, filling us with alarm and apprehension, might fill us also with vehement resolutions of amendment: but the imagination is a weak principle to build upon; the impressions it receives are commonly very transient; they gradually wear away on the presentation of fresh images, in our commerce with the world: and if there be not a solid spiritual conviction, in the mind and heart, of the awful realities of an hereafter, if the conviction does not rest upon the divine evidence accorded by the Spirit and the word of God, the effects of sudden surprise or consternation will soon vanish away; the latent dispositions of the soul will break forth again; the old habits, of recklessness and evil, be reassumed; the world again victorious.

For the truth of these things, I appeal, if not to yourselves, (as in many instances, I reasonably may) but if not, to those around you. How many examples have occurred, within the compass of your own experience, of extraordinary visitations having produced but a very short-lived influence upon the heart and character? How often have we seen the careless awakened by an alarming sickness, by an approach of the king of terrors, (which can hardly be supposed less convincing than an angel from heaven, or a spirit from the blest), and yet awakened only to return, on the removal of danger, to the slumbers of insensibility and sin. The solemn promises, which the terrified sinner made to his friends, his minister, and his God, were but the offspring of fear; the creatures of imagination; born only for the moment; soon disappearing, when the crisis was past.

And when the stroke of death has actually fallen upon a relative or friend, we have sometimes seen it overwhelm the soul of a heedless survivor, and bring him to himself, to serious thought and repentance; he began to sit loose to the remaining interests of life; he looked with anxiety to the world unknown, and formed resolutions of devoting his years to a constant provision for futurity; but all to no ultimate purpose; the subject had sued for his attention before, and been rejected. When his affections have had time to cool, he finds that no new importance has really been given to the truth; the evidences of it rest as they did; others have lost friends as well as he; it is the common lot of mortality; and he cannot keep alive the impression for ever; the world must be attended to; and one object after another continues to gain an ascendancy, till his new-born hopes and fears are extinct; till his principles and conduct and views return to their old level, from which they will in future become the more difficult to be raised.

It is unnecessary for me to insist, that this is no ideal picture, drawn for the mere occasion of placing the subject in a strong light; your own acquaintance with the world may furnish you with living resemblances of it; and it is unhappily the lot of Christian Ministers, who have more frequent opportunity of witnessing such impressions, to observe, in the end, their repeated and lamentable failure; to perceive how far they fall short of lasting conviction and salvation.

Well, therefore, in the affectionate and faithful discharge of our duty, may we call upon our hearers to weigh, in the dispassioned hours of health and tranquillity, the nature and the moment of those divine truths, which the gospel clearly reveals unto man; to judge rightly and truly of their everlasting import; and to embrace them, from the undeniable evidence already presented, with all the heart and all the soul. We call, however, upon our hearers, not as if the vital impression depended upon themselves alone, upon the exercise of their own judgment or the workings of their own conscience. We call upon them to pray for, and be guided by, the mighty operation of the Spirit of God: He is ever ready to enlighten and instruct and quicken and determine them; giving us His grace, “that we may have a good will, and working with us, when we have that good will.” {125} Listen to His teaching; obey His godly motions; follow up the convictions which He brings to the mind and heart. Light enough is perpetually given, to guide you into all truth; live in the light; walk in the light.

Thus, indeed, every additional admonition, which a gracious God may be pleased to vouchsafe unto us, will be turned to good account; our faith will be confirmed, our affections purified, our knowledge increased, our resolutions strengthened and settled; “unto him that hath, shall more be given;” the sincere and pious believer will advance, at every call, a step nearer to his Saviour and his God; the still small voice of heavenly warning will be heard, even amidst the ordinary occurrences of life; the wonderful dealings of providence and the manifold means of grace will be turned to godly account; the instructions and examples of the living, and the contemplation of the saints at rest, will alike afford materials for spiritual edification. But if the great call to liberty and life be habitually neglected, to liberty from sin and shame, and life to holiness and glory, then the mind and heart are not in a condition to take advantage of occasional excitement; it strikes, but it does not overcome; it rouses, but the stupor returns.

2. Proceed we now to the second observation which may be drawn from the text, that when men reject the abundant evidence of truth, and the gracious invitations of heaven already given, when they have resisted the strivings of the Spirit of God, they are not to expect Him to deviate from the ordinary rules of His providence and grace, for the sake of removing their wilful blindness, and overcoming their perverseness and obstinacy.

It is a part of the divine economy, in the salvation of man, that he should of his own free will, by the grace of God preventing and assisting, “refuse the evil and choose the good:” and therefore man is not to expect from the Almighty any such interference in his favour, as might absolutely overrule his will, and compel him to hearken and obey. God’s infinite mercy is sufficiently manifested in His offer and promise to save those rebellious sinners, who listen to the teaching of His Spirit, who are willing to be saved in His own appointed way. To save those who quench the light afforded them, who discover no such willingness, who unthankfully turn away and refuse the inestimable gift presented to them, would be in direct opposition to the whole tenour of the word of God. And experience concurs with Scripture to inform us, that no such extraordinary interposition is generally vouchsafed. The Jews, in our Saviour’s time, had read of the miracles of Moses and the prophets, professed to credit their inspiration, and their mission from on High; they had seen the astonishing miracles of Christ Himself; and might, if they would, have perceived the fulfilment of their prophecies in Him; many of them were eyewitnesses to the signs and wonders attendant upon His crucifixion; to the earthquake, and the supernatural darkness, and the rending of the veil of their temple; nor could they deny His resurrection from the dead. Against all this body of evidence, against all the means of conviction, they persevered in their rejection of Him. And the time came, when no further testimonial was to be granted; they were left “to fill up the measure of their fathers;” they died in their sins.

In addition to all these opportunities and advantages afforded to the Jew, we enjoy, at this day, the fulness of the manifestation of the gospel; the real nature of the Messiah’s kingdom is clearly and completely revealed unto us; the blessings of the gospel are set before us, in the most conspicuous and glorious light; we have all the certainty, which mortals can have, of a world to come; all the knowledge which our imperfect faculties could receive, of the nature of that world; and all the means of grace and hopes of glory. And if by all these mercies we are not convinced and persuaded, we can have no right or reason to look for any preternatural or overpowering interposition, even from the goodness and long-suffering of God. Rather may we fear that judicial infatuation, so frequently alluded to in Scripture, of the closed eye, the dull ear, and the gross obdurate heart. O let the sinner, instead of flattering himself with the delusion, that some extraordinary thing will one day be happening to him, which shall disengage him from earth, and fix his thoughts on heaven and eternity, O let him rather apprehend that the time is approaching, when the measure of his iniquity shall be filled up, and God will be no longer found.

I am not asserting, that such signal interferences have never been vouchsafed; that such loud awakenings have never been successful: I mean, that they are not in the ordinary course of divine providence, and are not to be expected. I mean to say, that where the grace of the gospel is continually resisted in the heart and life, the careless recusant is seldom reclaimed through the medium of any extraordinary visitation; whether of sickness, of accident, or any terrible calamity. The man, who entrusts his soul to the hope and operation of such occurrences, is placing it in imminent jeopardy. Whoever will save his soul alive, let him, without delay, “seek the Lord, while He may be found, and call upon Him while He is near;” {130a} peradventure God may “laugh at his calamity, and mock when his fear cometh.” {130b}

And in other ways also does the same evil principle work, the same evil habit of “resisting the grace of God:” many persons, who express themselves thoroughly convinced of the truth of the christian revelation, and the absolute necessity of a spiritual obedience and a holy walking with God, put off their work of righteousness, from year to year, in the hope, not of any great or appalling event, but that some new circumstances may arise, which shall make it more convenient for them to renounce the world, and attend, without let or hindrance, to the salvation of their souls; they will have gained a sufficiency of earthly comforts, or they will be tired of the world; they will be growing old and feeble, and naturally more inclined to think of heavenly things. But this is only the same temptation as the former, presented in another shape; the “convenient season” is hoped for in vain; Satan never suffers us to be without a hindrance, real or imaginary; our attachment to the world does not wear off; we grow older without growing more religious, without drawing nearer to God; and we never are, it is impossible we should be, _naturally_ disposed to “turn and seek after Him:” thus the delusion goes on; and we “will not be persuaded;” and thus, too frequently, the “expectation cometh utterly to an end for evermore.” There is no trusting to anything, but the _present_ conviction and determination, but the instant and unreserved “obedience of the heart unto righteousness;” “to-day, if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts.” {132}

In conclusion, I call upon you to think on the condition of the rich man in torment. His anxiety for a special interference in behalf of his brethren is represented as useless to _them_, but it may be salutary to _us_: It may assure us of the wretchedness of that place, to which he was condemned; may incline us, by the inspiration of God’s Holy Spirit, to value and improve His gracious gifts, while they are mercifully bestowed; may determine us, while we have the all-sufficient light of the gospel, to be guided thereby into the way of peace; we may learn from this awful lesson, that if (God forbid that it should be so) but _if_ any of us should be similarly doomed, we shall mourn for ourselves, and be anxious, that the companions we have left may be our companions no more; let us take heed for ourselves, and be anxious for one another in time, while the heed and anxiety may be crowned with success; may lead us to seek and find God’s favour and mercy, and so “escape from the wrath to come.”

SERMON VIII. PERFECT LOVE CASTETH OUT FEAR.

1 JOHN iv. 18.

_There is no fear in love_, _but perfect love casteth out fear_:
_because fear hath torment_; _he that feareth is not made perfect in
love_.

OF all the sources of happiness, which the merciful God has opened to us, the most pure and abundant are the feelings of affection and love. I appeal, for the truth of this, not to the understandings, but to the hearts of those that hear me; and they will at once testify, unless corrupted and perverted by selfish or vicious habits, that such, even with regard to earthly happiness, is undoubtedly the fact. Persons indeed of inferior principle, of irregular and irreligious lives, frequently draw from this source the most considerable portion of their pleasure, whatever abatements it may receive from their sin and folly: and when the passions are attempered, and the affections purified and exalted, by the influence of our holy religion, by the refining energy of the spirit of God, the delight naturally and necessarily becomes proportionably greater. “To love one another” is not only our first earthly duty, as injoined by the Saviour, but also our highest interest and advantage, as contributing to the happiness of all.

If then so much enjoyment is derived by mankind from the exercise of mutual love, how much more from the love of God—the pure, the gracious, the ever blessed God; “who loadeth us with His benefits;” who made us what we are, and gave us what we have; who created us for His glory, who redeemed us from sin and death, who sanctifieth all that trust in Him, that they may be happy for ever: in a word, whose goodness to us knows no bounds, but those which are set by our own perverseness and ingratitude. Almighty and most merciful Father, “whom have I in heaven but Thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside Thee.” {136} “Graft in our hearts the love of Thy name;” we cannot love Thee as Thou hast loved us; but give us the grace to love Thee with holy sincerity; with that devout and reverent affection, which shall render all other objects of desire comparatively indifferent to us, and make us satisfied with Thy favour, whatever else we want; which shall calm our apprehensions, when we think of an hereafter; and allay the uneasiness which arises in our breasts, when we reflect upon Thine infinite holiness, and our own degenerate condition.

Perhaps it may be imagined, that this is a state of blessedness attainable by few, if any, upon earth: some may urge the text against us, and say that this blessedness is promised only to perfect love, which mortals can never hope to attain; and that it is inconsistent with those numerous passages of Scripture, which admonish us of the necessity of fear; that in the admirable collect of our Church for this day, {137} we are instructed to pray for “a perpetual fear and love of God’s holy name.” How then can we possess the love which casteth out fear? I will endeavour to reply to these observations; and pray God that we may all derive, from the consideration of this subject, a more true and lively and abiding sense of the nature and necessity of that love towards Him, which, as His adopted children and the inheritors of His kingdom, we are absolutely bound to entertain.

Unquestionably true it is, that the fear of God is, and ever has been, indispensable to all His faithful servants; as well under the mild dispensation of the gospel, as under the severer discipline of the law. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” {138a} “Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear Him.” {138b} “Unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise, with healing in His wings.” {138c} And accordingly the Apostle observes, “In every nation, he that feareth Him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with Him.” {138d} “His mercy is on them that fear Him, from generation to generation.” {138e} But what is the nature of this fear? It is not a slavish principle, not a disturbing and distressful feeling. It consists in an awful sense of God’s glorious perfections; of His divine Majesty, unspotted purity, infinite knowledge and power; of His presence pervading every part of the creation, even the very mind of every intellectual being; such a sense, as to fill us with the deepest humility, perceiving ourselves unworthy even to stand in the sight of Him, “who is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity;” such a sense, habitually impressed upon the heart, as inclines and constrains us to “follow the good” which He loves, and “depart from the evil” which He abhors.

And this principle is plainly and entirely consistent with the sincerest love: our love indeed is powerfully increased by the reflection, that our heavenly Father, of whose attributes we form conceptions so awful and sublime, should condescend to bestow such regard upon His frail and fallen, His disobedient and rebellious children; it may teach us to exclaim with the liveliest emotions of gratitude, as well as with humble adoration and astonishment, “Lord, what is man that Thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that Thou visitest him?” {139} Good reason, therefore, had the framers of our Liturgy, for directing us to implore the united influence of a perpetual fear and love of God’s holy name.

But the fear spoken of in the text is of another kind; it relates to uneasy and distressful apprehensions respecting our acceptance with God; to a feeling of doubt and distrust, whether we are, in deed and in truth, partakers of the gracious promises of the gospel; whether we are living in a state of reconciliation with God; whether we have within us that earnest of the Holy Spirit, which is the pledge and seal of our redemption; whether, in a word, we are objects of God’s favour here, and have a well-grounded hope of his mercy hereafter.

That this is the state of mind represented to us by the beloved Apostle, is clear from his own reasoning; “for fear,” says he, “hath torment:” now the fear of God, as above described, has no torment at all; it makes us humble, and fills as with reverential awe, but it tends to comfort and peace. We could not entirely love a Being, whose manifestation inspired us with terror and dismay; and this is the very reason why many, when they come seriously to consider their condition, are filled with confusion and alarm; because they do not love God in sincerity and truth: their affections have been set on the world; and therefore their title to salvation, upon the terms proposed to them in the gospel, is clearly insufficient; they have served other masters, and have reason to tremble for their reward from the great Lord and Master in heaven; they have employed their talents for other purposes, than those for which they were committed, and therefore, when they think of making up their accounts, their lord presents himself as “an austere man,” exacting more than they will be able to render: no man can heartily love God, without an entire obedience of the heart; this they have never shewn, and therefore have never loved Him: how then can they expect His favour; how can they reflect upon their condition with composure and comfort?

Truly is it said, that such fear hath torment; for of all the uneasiness which the mind can suffer here, the most painful is that, which is produced from an apprehension of “the terrors of the Lord;” better not to have known the greatness of the salvation promised, than to neglect the means of securing it; better not to have heard of an hereafter, than to have a reasonable dread upon the spirits, what that hereafter shall be. They who have greater cause for fear than for hope, must, if they are given to meditate and look forward, find it cast a dismal shade over every scene and prospect of life; they may contrive to drown their serious thoughts, in the midst of worldly pursuits and intemperate pleasures; but this is only for the passing hour; they cannot possibly think, that their condition is thus really improved. But why take so much pains to mitigate or conceal a misery, which it is in our power, by God’s gracious mercy, effectually to prevent? Escape from these torments of the conscience by a sincere devotedness to the service of your Almighty Father, in the gospel of His beloved Son; by cherishing in the heart that “perfect love for Him, which casteth out fear.”

Yet is this possible, it may be said, for weak and imperfect man? Is it not rather a state at which we should aim, than one at which we can ever hope to arrive? Certainly the imperfect creature can never attain to actual perfection in any moral or spiritual duty; but his will and desire may be perfect, though his service is not; and in this sense, the duty of perfect love is equally binding upon all believers. It is a very common persuasion, and dangerous as it is common, that the standard of christian duty is raised much higher in the gospel, than it is necessary for the generality of Christians even to think of reaching; that some of the commands, there given, are intended only for the chosen few, more eminent than the rest of mankind in spiritual attainments; and thus too many professing disciples of our Lord, imagining themselves not bound by such extensive obligations, are content with measures of obedience, infinitely less than those, which are positively required; content with a state of heart and life, far short of that, which the gospel recognises and injoins. But this is a mere delusion, to suit the wayward fancy and the corrupt inclination of man: where do we read in the Bible of such limitations and exceptions? Where do we find one set of rules for eminent Christians, and another for Christians in general? Are not all its precepts, and all its principles, and all its instructions, of universal obligation? When the Saviour promised His divine blessings to “the poor in spirit,” to them that “hunger and thirst after righteousness,” to “the pure in heart;” were the conditions intended only for the disciples around Him on the mount? Were they not also designed for His followers in every age? And when the Lord commanded Moses to “speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Be ye holy, for I the Lord your God, am holy,” {144} does the precept concern only the people of old? Is it not equally applicable to Christians? Yea, it is urged upon us all by the mouth of an Apostle. {145} The same is true of every spiritual doctrine, every moral command recorded in the Book of Life: there is no means of grace, no measure of obedience ordained, which a Christian can safely neglect.

Whatever, therefore, be meant in the text by _perfect_ love, that love it is the bounden and necessary duty of us all to attain and to cherish. And what is really meant by this expression, may be most readily and fully understood from a precept of the divine law, as confirmed and enforced by our blessed Redeemer; “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with all thine heart and with all thy soul and with all thy strength.” This is the love described in the text; perfect in _kind_, as admitting of no rival principle, of no competition with “the world or the things that are in the world,” with any or all of them together; imperfect in _degree_, on account of the infirmity of our faith, of the weakness and corruption of human nature.

We cannot be at a loss to understand this distinction; yet it may be further illustrated by an example from ordinary life. The most affectionate and dutiful child will fail occasionally to please and obey its parent; but there will be a constant desire and endeavour to please: to have excited the parent’s displeasure, will bring uneasiness and sorrow; and therefore the violations of duty will be neither wilful nor habitual. And this sincere affection, for a kind and good parent, never ceases to produce delight; the child indeed, feeling so much respect and reverence, will be afraid of offending, afraid of the unworthiness, afraid of the dishonour; yet the service of obedience is rendered from choice, and not from constraint; with emotions of joy, with a grateful endearment of soul: slavish terror there is none; it is banished by the overpowering principle of love.

The case is similar, with respect to the love of God: whoever, from a sense of the relationship which he is privileged to bear to the almighty and gracious Creator; whoever, from a contemplation of the high and holy perfections of the Godhead; whoever, from a perception of the divine goodness and mercy, does truly love the great and glorious Lord of all, will constantly delight to serve Him; sensible indeed of his manifold weaknesses and deficiencies, and thereby brought to grieve, and rendered the more fearful to offend; but still entertaining no doubt, that his services, imperfect and unworthy as they are, are accepted at the throne of grace, through the merits of his Redeemer, and as the fruit of faith in His prevailing name. For no earthly consideration would he exchange this heavenly joy and satisfaction; and no earthly event or dispensation, however afflicting, can drive him even to distrust, much less to despair. Though nature feels her bereavements and her troubles, his faith is strong; and it assures him, that the very chastisements of the Lord are inflicted in mercy. “Who,” says the Apostle, “shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril or sword? Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” {148}

In speaking, however, of the holy confidence, with which we are inspired by the sincere love of God, far would I be, as far as possible, from confounding it with that self-sufficient and presumptuous tone into which some persons have been unbecomingly betrayed, when describing their spiritual condition. Humility is the foundation of the Christian’s confidence: he trusts, only because he is “strong in the lord, and in the power of His might;” he is sufficient, only because “all his sufficiency is of God.” And the purer his love, and the higher his attainments, the more humbly and modestly does he speak of them: he talks not of certainty, “as if he had already attained,” but delights himself with “full assurance of faith,” {149a} with “full assurance of hope;” {149b} his is not an extravagant joy, proceeding from the arrogant assertion of an elective claim, but a holy tranquillity of soul, arising from faith in the Redeemer’s undeserved mercy; from unfeigned love to the most benevolent and perfect Being; and reposing itself upon the unchangeable promises of Jehovah.

We do not question, my brethren, the claims of Almighty God to our perfect love. Is He not our Creator? and could He have formed us with any other design, than to make us happy? If reason could have doubted this truth, revelation makes it clear. And are we not preserved, every moment of our lives, by His infinite wisdom and mercy and power? And though we are forgetful of His sustaining hand, still He feeds us with the bounties of nature; and invites us to partake of the riches of His grace. What are the greatest blessings, which a human being, which any creature could possibly desire? To be delivered from evil, and to enjoy everlasting good. And did not the adorable Son of God take upon him the infirmities and sufferings of our mortal state, to redeem us from misery, and exalt us even to glory? And does not the Holy Spirit condescend to dwell in our tabernacles of flesh, that He may cleanse us from every sinful defilement, “purify unto Himself a peculiar people zealous of good works,” {150a} and make us “meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light?” {150b} Could we, even if we had been worthy, have desired, have imagined for ourselves, blessings so great and favours so exalted, as those which the good and gracious God is showering down upon us? Shall we not then be inclined, from every consideration, shall we not be determined, by God’s grace, to love this heavenly benefactor with all our heart—from a principle of gratitude; from an admiration of divine perfection; from the inspiring hope and prospect of our eternal salvation? Yes, let us give unto Him, not that divided affection, which is the vain offering of a degenerate and degraded world; but the full and unreserved energies of the soul. If a portion of our heart be engrossed by any other object, we are not the true people of the Lord; we render Him not a reasonable or acceptable service; our love is embittered with fear; with a fear that has, and will have, torment. Lord, let our affections be altogether devoted unto Thee; pour Thy spirit of love into our hearts, for the sake of Him “who loved us and gave Himself for us;” we cannot love Thee here upon earth as we would do, but be pleased to accept what Thou enablest us to give, the tribute of a sincere heart; and let it be to us a never-failing source of humble confidence and holy comfort; so that we may anticipate the joyful hour, when we shall be removed, from this imperfect state of being, to a purer and happier world; where, with affections exalted and understandings enlarged, we shall render Thee a more delightful and laudable service; with angels and archangels, and all the company of heaven.

“God is love;” and when the veil of the flesh is laid aside, and we are admitted into His glorious presence, “we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is;” {152} then will our felicity be complete, complete for ever; then, in the fullest sense of the words, we shall be “made perfect in love.” Here then, without a question, our true happiness lies; here is our all: let us pray that we may never lose sight of it; that the desire, now kindled, may never be extinguished; that every “heart may there be fixed, where true joys are to be found, through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

SERMON IX. HUMBLE YOURSELVES UNDER THE MIGHTY HAND OF GOD.

1 PETER v. 6.

_Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God_, _that He may exalt
you in due time_.

THERE is nothing, which more peculiarly marks the character of the faithful Christian, than the manner in which he submits himself to the appointments and dispensations of his God. The worldly and carnal spirit either frets and repines under the visitations of misfortune, or is disconsolate and cast down; or, at the best, bears up with a mere animal fortitude against them: it finds no comfort to flee unto, but such as is afforded by the vain world, in which it has already met with vexation und disappointment; and if the world is unable to secure a continuance in prosperity, still less is it able to provide a refuge in the dismal days of sorrow.

So lamentably indeed has this truth been experienced by many, that they have been driven to the fallacious and fatal expedient of attempting at once to drown their cares in intemperance; they have found nothing in the world sufficient to satisfy their reason, or to soothe their irritated feelings; and therefore have destroyed their faculties, that they might not reflect; and cut short the thread of that life, which they imagined themselves unequal to support: and some indeed have had recourse to a more speedy and awful means of delivering themselves from the burden of mortification and grief; ill prepared as they were, their own hand of violence has hurried them into the presence of their Judge. And even they, who have been preserved from these most miserable extremities, have sufficiently testified by their conduct, that the world has nothing satisfactory to offer, for the healing of a wounded spirit, or the removal of a load of sorrow.

Religion, the religion of the gospel, is the only source from which true comfort or support can possibly be drawn; and we see her triumphs manifested in the most blessed and remarkable manner when the faithful servant of God is overwhelmed with trouble; we perceive his mind in a state of tranquillity, under a conviction, that the Lord “doeth all things well;” and remembereth mercy, no less in chastisement, than in the time of prosperity; his unquiet emotions are subdued into holy subjection to the divine will; his affections are set the more earnestly on things above; the vanities of earth have lost their hold; and there ariseth in the heart that “peace of God, which passeth all understanding.”