■
\>L^/% /.^"^ /\.-^/V
.0
5*.
tf1
5-
* ve» «i/ * ,H\ s» Al °
o A>«** o^%f^* c5^A -^fi3^» A>^ «%Mf^* ,9*
if %
; „4 q,
A
\
/2.
SERMONS
PREACHED IN CHINA,
BY THE
REV. WALTER M. LOWRIE.
NEW Y 0 K K :
CARTER & BROTHERS,
2 8 5 BROADWAY.
ROBERT
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1851, BY WALTER LOWRIE, In the Clerk's Office for the Southern District of New York.
STEREOTYPED BY TEOMAS B. SMITH, PRINTED BY E. O. JENKINS,
216 WILLIAM STREET. - NASSAU STREET,
PREFACE.
The following sermons were all prepared and preached in China, at Macao, Ningpo and Shanghai; as will appear by the times and places noted on each respectively.
For more than two years after they were received from China, there was no thought of giving any of them to the public. His father's family indeed perused them with interest, as memorials of one very dear to them. During the present year they were read by others, and they believed that if they were published, they would be acceptable and profitable to the religious commu- nity. An esteemed friend who cherishes the memory of the departed Missionary, assumed the entire charge of the edition, stipulating merely that the proceeds of the sale should be paid to the Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church.
The circumstances under which the most of these sermons were prepared and preached are thus given by himself in a letter to a friend, dated Macao, Dec. 27, 1844.
" Since April, 1843, 1 have preached in English, once a week, to a small congregation of English and Americans, some of whom are pious. It is the custom of most of the missionaries just to take printed sermons and read them off, which is well known by the people. I have done so myself several times, but never liked the plan, nor felt comfortable in adopting it. As the peo- ple who attend are very intelligent, I found it required a good deal of care to prepare sermons that would be profitable ; and that I could give most instruction in the fewest words, and with
PEEFACE.
least labor to myself, by writing out my sermons. I have done this commonly, and have now nearly fifty written discourses, besides several skeletons. As I lost all my written sermons when shipwrecked, the preparation of these has been attended with some degree of labor, and takes as much time as I can at present afford to give. I felt, indeed, some scruple about giving so much time to a work not directly the one for which I came here, but felt satisfied about it on considering that I am still young, and the labor and study of ^preparing sermons would be of essential benefit to me ; and I have found it so. Preaching is a very delightful work, and I have only regretted that I could not give more time to it." — Memoir, p. 283.
When he reached Mngpo, his preaching in English was less frequent, as the brethren of the Mission conducted the English service in rotation. His last sermon preached in Shanghai, it will be seen, was but a few weeks before his lamented death, which occurred on the 19th of August, 1847.
The last sermon he preached to the native Chinese in Ning- po, just before leaving that city to join the translating commit- tee in Shanghai, is also given, in a translation by the Eev. Mr. S. Culbertson, as well as the original Chinese, in the colloquial dialect of Ningpo, expressed in Eoman letters.
These sermons were neatly and plainly written, and they are published as they come from the pen of the author. Had they been revised by himself, they would doubtless have been im- proved. But this was not to be. They have been carried through the press by his father, and although the task has re- newed, and even deepened, many sad recollections, it has not been without profit to himself.
CONTENTS.
SERMON I.
Page
Christ made Sin for Us. 2 Corinthians v. 21 1
SERMON II.
Praise. Psalm cxvii , 10
SERMON III.
Healing the Ten Lepers. Luke xvii. 12-19 1*7
SERMON IV.
Resurrection and Ascension of Christ. Luke xxiv. 50, 51 26
SERMON V.
Influence of the Spirit. John xvi. 7 34
SERMON VI.
Jacob's Prayer. Genesis xxxii. 9-12 43
SERMON VII.
Plants of the House of the Lord. Psalm xcii. 13 51
SERMON VIII.
Terms of Discipleship. Luke ix. 57-62 58
SERMON IX.
Walking with God. Genesis v. 24 66
SERMON X.
I am a Stranger in the Earth. Psalm cxix. 19 75
vi
CONTEXTS.
SERMON XI.
Page
Coming unto Christ for Rest. Matthew xi. 28-30 ; 86
SERMON XII.
Messianic Prophecies in Genesis. Genesis iii. 15, ix. 26, 27, &c 94
SERMON XIH.
Emmanuel, God with us. Matthew i. 23 104
SERMON XIV.
Sanctification of the Sabbath. Exodus xvi. 22-30 117
SERMON XV.
Christ Crucified. 1 Corinthians i. 23, 24 129
SERMON XVI.
Human Nature Corrupt and Sinful. John iii. 5 138
SERMON XVII.
The Sufferings and Death of Christ. Matthew xvi. 21 147
SERMON XVIII.
The Law of God. Matthew v. 18 157
SERMON XIX.
Adoption. John i. 12 165
SERMON XX.
The Golden Calf at Sinai. Exodus xxxii. 34, 35 173
SERMON XXI.
Communion of Moses with God. Exodus xxxiii. 11 182
SERMON XXII.
The Blessing of Trusting in Christ. Psalm ii. 12 191
SERMON XXIII.
The Publican and the Pharisee. Luke xviii. 9-14 198
CONTENTS. vii
SERMON XXIY.
Page
Martha and Maey. Luke x. 38-42 .... , 207
SERMON XXV.
The Rich Man and Lazarus. Luke xvi. 19-31 , 215
SERMON XXVI.
Baptism of Christ. Matthew iii. 13-17 224
SERMON XXVII. The Uncertainty of Riches. 1 Timothy vi. 17-19 232
SERMON XXVIII. Believing Prayer. Matthew xxi. 22 , 241
SERMON XXIX.
Salvation by Grace. Ephesians ii. 8 251
SERMON XXX.
Saying Faith. Ephesians ii. 8 261
SERMON XXXI.
The Orace of God sufficient. 2 Corinthians xii. 9 271
SERMON XXXLT.
Connection of Divine Agency with Human Efforts. Philippians ii. 12, 13. . 281 SERMON XXXIII.
The Disciples in the Storm. John \l 16-21 289
SERMON XXXIV. Our Present Knowledge imperfect. John xiii. 7 297
SERMON XXXV. Invitation to come unto Christ. John vii. 37 308
SERMON XXXVI. Unwillingness to come unto Christ. John v. 40 , 317
viii
CONTENTS.
SERMON XXXVII.
Page
Oue Times in the Hand of God. Psalm xxxi. 15 325
SERMON XXXVIII. Christ as the Searcher of Hearts. John ii. 24, 25 335
SERMON XXXIX. The Propitiation of Christ. John ii. 1, 2 345
SERMON XL.
Our Offences. Matthew xviii. 7 355
SERMON XLI.
Preaching to the Gentiles. 2 Corinthians ii. 12-17 363
SERMON XLIL
Repentance. Acts ii. 38, 39 373
SERMON XLHI.
The Grace of Christ. 2 Corinthians viii. 9 .' 384
SERMON XLIV.
Departing from God. Luke xv. 18, 19 394
SERMON XLV.
Returning to God. Luke xv. 20 , 405
SERMON XLVI.
The Lord is our Judge. 1 Corinthians iv. 1-5 416
SERMON XLVE. Servants — Sons — Heirs. Galatians iv. 7 425
SERMON XLVHI. What think ye of Christ ? Matthew xxii. 43 435
SERMON TO THE CHINESE. The Punishment of Hell 448
SEEMON I
CHRIST MADE SIN FOR US.
He hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. — 2 Corinthians v. 21.
The writings of the Apostle Paul are distinguished by an uncommon vigor and animation. His whole soul was in every- thing he undertook; and whether we see him in social inter- course, or in his epistolatory correspondence, or in his great work of preaching the Gospel, his mind was still bent to the one object of proclaiming salvation through Christ and Him crucified. Hence his writings are distinguished by frequent emphatic sen- tences, which breathe out the ardor with which he engaged in his work. A remarkable trait in his epistles is the frequency with which he comprises an outline of the whole plan of salva- tion in a single sentence. They are outlines, it is true, which need to be filled up from other parts of his writings, yet are they complete outlines. Many examples could easily be given, among them are the following. Jesus Christ is, of God, made unto us, wisdom, and, righteousness, and sanctification and redemption, 1 Cor. i. 30. So also, these, Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us, Gral. iii. 13. Ye %oho sometimes were far off, are made nigh by the blood of Christ, Eph. ii. 13. It became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bring- ing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings, Heb. ii. 10. Not to multiply examples, it is sufficient to add, that the text is an example of the same kind. He hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. It is further re- markable, that all these compendious outlines of the plan of sal- vation, present it to our view, each in a different light. It is too glorious an object to be fully comprehended, if considered only in one aspect. So glorious is it, indeed, that it shall be an eter-
1
2
CHRIST MADE SIN FOR US.
nal subject of contemplation to the saints in heaven, and it is no wonder that the apostle felt as if he could not dwell upon it too long, or present it in too many aspects to his hearers and readers. And after all, how little do we know of it ! At present we see, but as through a glass, darkly. Hereafter, it may be our happy lot to behold with open face, the glory of the Lord, being changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the spirit of the Lord, 1 Cor. iii. 18. In the words before us there are three things worthy of notice.
1. The character of Jesus Christ. He hiew no sin.
2. The treatment he received by divine appointment. He hath made him to be sin for us.
3. The object of this treatment. That we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
He knew no sin. The expression is remarkable. There was no sin in himself, neither did he approve of it in others, or coun- tenance it in any way. His great object in coming to the world was to destroy sin, and how then could it be supposed that he would have any fellowship with it ? There is a nicety in the idiom of the original here, which is not susceptible of a literal transla- tion into our language. Not only does the expression used import that he never had sinned, and was in no proper sense a sinner — it also implies, that he was and is so holy, that the idea of sin cannot be conceived of, in connection with him. His name therefore is synonymous with holiness itself, and he is purer than gold seven times tried in the fire.
It is hard for us to conceive of a sinless being in human form, dwelling upon the earth. We see so much of sin around us, we feel it so constantly within us, intruding as it does into our most holy services, that we scarce can comprehend how any one par- taking of our nature can be free from it. How was it possible that Christ should never sin ? In conduct we can with little dif- ficulty suppose that his outward deportment was blameless. Nay, we can even conceive of one of our race who so carefully guards himself, that his tongue never errs — but how shall the heart be kept so pure, that no stain shall ever defile it ? How shall that mirror be preserved so bright, that the face of God may be seen therein, reflected with unclouded clearness? But let us not measure Jesus Christ by our own low standard. Partaking as he did of our nature, he was yet infinitely superior to us. The world tried to allure him, and Satan used all his efforts to tempt
CHRIST MADE SIN FOR US.
8
him to sin, but in vain. "We have the testimony of his nearest friends to this effect. The beloved disciple who leaned upon his bosom, declares, In him was no sin, 1 John iii. 5. Peter, who once in fear denied him, afterwards yielded up his life for him, and before he died, testified, He did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth, 1 Pet. ii. 22. But we are not left to gather this from the testimony of his friends alone. He himself, when surrounded by bitter enemies, who were seeking to kill him, and who even then had the stones in their hands with which they meant to stone him, could appeal to them, Which of you convinceth me of sin f John viii. 46. How brightly did his perfect innocence shine, even by the confession of his enemies, when they crucified him as a malefactor ! His accusers were obliged to seek false wit- nesses when they sought matter of accusation against him, Matt, xxvi. 59. One of his own disciples betrayed him, but even he repented himself saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the in- nocent blood, Matt, xxvii. 4. The judge who gave sentence against him took water and washed his hounds before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just 'person, Matt, xxvii. 24. The thief crucified along with him said, This man hath done nothing amiss, Luke xxiii. 41 ; and the centurion who executed him, declared, Certainly tJiis was a righteous man, Luke xxiii. 47. God himself, to whom he committed his spirit, accepted of him, and testified to his perfect holiness by raising him again from the dead, and exalting him to rule over all.
It was needful that our Saviour should be thus holy. He came to destroy sin, and therefore should have no fellowship with it. He came to be a sacrifice for sin, but the law required that the sacrificial lamb should be without spot or blemish. He came to satisfy the offended justice of God, and it was therefore necessary that justice should have no claims against himself. He came to teach the way of holiness, and to show by his own ex- ample what it really is — but how could he do this, if not per- fectly holy himself? He shall come to be our final judge, but the judge of all must be above every suspicion of evil. He will be the object of adoration and praise to the myriads of the heavenly host forever and ever : but this he never could be, if not perfect- ly holy, for those heavenly beings could not adore an unholy God.
2. Yet of this Being, thus pure and holy, it is expressly declared, he hath been made sin for us. This of course cannot mean, that any change was wrought in him, causing him to become unholy
4
CHRIST MADE SIN FOR US.
— for this is abhorrent to all our ideas of his character, and to all the declarations of the Scriptures respecting him. The meaning is not that in himself he became sinful, but that in the eyes of others, and especially of God the Father, he was made sin for us. Without entering into the various controversies regarding the meaning of this and kindred passages of Scriptures, it is sufficient to remark, that its obvious meaning is two-fold. He was made a sin-offering for us, and in order that he might become such a sin- offering, he was regarded and treated as a sinner. This last is the prominent idea, and as it completely includes the other, alone needs to be considered.
The object of Christ in assuming our nature was to make atonement for our sins, and thus rescue us from the condemning power of the law. This could be done only by his taking our place, and suffering the punishment due to our sins. In other words, by his becoming surety for us, and in being regarded and treated as if he and not we, had been the object of divine wrath ; — and surely it needs but little knowledge of his history to see that he was thus regarded and treated, for no human malefactor ever suf- fered such accumulated sorrows as met upon the head of Christ. The prophet who foresaw his advent so long beforehand, predict- ed that he would be a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief Is. liii. 8, and his whole history amply confirms the prophecy.
1. The very first step in his course on earth was one of the deep- est humiliation. He had been seated on the highest throne in the universe, and the splendors of the Godhead shone around his brow. Adoring angels bowed before him, and in the bosom of the Father he was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him, Pro v. viii. 30. But when the appointed time came, he left that throne with its adoring hosts. He tore himself away, in a measure, from his communion with the Father, and veiling for a while the glo- ries of his Divinity, he assumed the form of man, — the lowest, for aught we know, of all the rational creatures he had made. But this great humiliation cannot be better expressed than in the words of the apostle. Being in the form of God, and thinking it no robbery to be equal with God, he made himself of no reputation, and took upon himself the form of a servant, and teas made in the like- ness of man, Phil. ii. 6, 7. And when he came into the world, what station did he assume ? Not that of a wealthy and power- ful monarch. No troops of courtiers waited on his steps, — no human armies moved at his command. A few women ministered
CHRIST MADE SIN FOR US.
5
to him, — a few fishermen attended him, and the humblest fare supplied the demands of nature. No palace received him, for oftentimes, though the foxes had holes, and the birds of the air had nests, the Son of Man had not where to lay his head. And what treatment did he receive from those whom he came to save ? In the emphatic language of the evangelist, He came unto his own, and his own received him not, John i. 11. Although he moved in so humble a sphere, he enjoyed but little of the amenities of so- cial life, — for we read of but few families that loved to receive him, — of but few persons who dared to continue with him, when the rulers set their faces against him. He was an object of scorn, and contempt, or else of reproach ; of untiring malice, and of unceasing persecution to the bod}7 of the nation among whom he moved. Possessing the keenest sensibilities, and the liveliest sympathy for everything that is lovely among men, he was tried again and again with the unkindness and desertion of friends, — with being forsaken by his own disciples in the hour of his ut- most need, — and being betrayed by one who had often eaten of his bread, and seen his works, and done wonders in his name, and that too, for a sum that only equalled the pitiful price of a slave ! Desirous to do good to those with whom he associated, his kindness was often met by refusals or neglect, so that he could do no mighty works among them by reason of their unbelief. Possessing, as he did, the utmost conceivable abhorrence of sin, he was yet obliged to associate daily and hourly with those whom he himself described as being like sepulchres, full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness, Matt, xxiii. 27. Possessing as he did, the most perfect knowledge of the human heart, he saw that many of those with whom he associated, even while they professed kindness and respect, were thinking evil of him in their hearts, Matt. ix. 4, such knowledge could not but be painful to him, — but how much more painful was it, when they openly, and to his face, called him a blasphemer and a devil, Matt. ix. 3 ; John viii. 48 ; John x. 33. No wonder that in sorrow and in indignation, he ex- claimed, Say ye of him whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the vjorld, thou blasphemest! John xviii. 36. What is so hard to bear as misrepresentation and slander ? Even when supported by conscious innocence, it is a bitter thing to have one's character unjustly traduced; but who ever drank so deep of this bitter cup as did Jesus Christ ?
But passing by all the other sufferings of our Saviour, con-
6
CHRIST MADE SIN FOR US.
sider for a moment those that attended the close of his life. The copiousness of that most copious of all languages in which the New Testament is written, is exhausted in the effort to portray the sorrows of his soul. The sufferings of his body were great, when his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground, and when so great was his exhaustion, that the presence of a heavenly messenger was needed to strengthen him ; but as an old writer has well remarked, it was " the sorrows of his soul that were the soul of his sorrows." He began to be sorrowful and very heavy, and said, My soul is exceeding sorrowful even unto death, Matt. xxvi. 37, 38. Nor was this agony a mere temporary cloud that passed "over his mind. It lasted all that " dark and doleful night" and all the next day, when surrounded by the insulting priests and jeering crowd, — and when hurried through the forms of a mock trial, to the cross. Upon that torturing tree he gave vent to his sorrows in the exclamation, My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me f and as if even this strong exclamation did not ex- haust the intensity of his feelings, and human language were insufficient to express the sorrows of his soul, he cried again with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost, Mark xv. 34, 37.
Much comment is unnecessary here. What malefactor ever suffered, as Christ did ? Who was ever regarded and treated as a sinner, worthy of the severest sufferings, if he was not ? And be it observed too, that all this did not come upon him without the knowledge and consent of the Father. This we might know, even if it were not so revealed — but it is expressly so declared. Not to mention that Christ himself recognized this, when he prayed, Oh / my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me, the apostle in the text plainly asserts it to be the intention of the Father, that these things should come upon him. He hath made him to be sin for us, — although it was by wicked hands that Christ was crucified and slain, yet it was also by the determinate counsel and fore-knowledge of God, Acts ii. 23.
For what purpose, then, was Christ thus afflicted ? Why did God suffer all these evils to meet upon him ? For himself, as an innocent and holy being, he could not suffer. Some men may account for his sufferings by saying, that God in his sovereignty may inflict sufferings even on an innocent being. But this is not so. God may deprive an innocent being of the life he gave it, but, and I say it with reverence, God himself cannot, and will not, inflict one moment's suffering upon an innocent being, and
CHEIST MADE SIN" FOR US.
7
still less upon his own Son, unless that being be so connected with guilty creatures, that his sufferings are for their sakes. And this was the case with Christ. Not for himself, but for us, was he regarded and treated as a sinner. Not for himself, but for us, was his soul made an offering for sin, — not for himself, but for us, did he humble himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross. He was made sin for us, thai we might be made the righteousness of God in him. This was the great object of the suf- ferings of Christ, and to this, in the last place, is your attention invited.
Naturally, we are all sinners. I know that men are slow to believe this doctrine, for of all others it is the most unpalatable to our self-love. But if there be any confidence to be reposed on the universal testimony of experience, — if there be any truth in the word of God, then this doctrine is true. We are guilty in the sight of God ; we are exposed to his everlasting curse ; we are condemned already, and if a way of escape be not found, the punishment that divine and eternal justice demands will be inflicted on us. In order that we may escape, it is not suffi- cient that from henceforth we should live perfectly holy lives, even if that were possible, which for us it is not. There is a long catalogue of sins marked against us, which must be all wiped away ere we can go free. These sinful hearts of ours, too, must be thoroughly renewed, and strength be afforded us to persevere in the way of holiness, or there can be no hope for us. But how shall all this be done ? No efforts of our own could deliver us. No created power can perform all that is required. Ask the friendless and penniless captive, who lies chained in his deep dungeon, to pay his ransom and go free, and will he not say, that you mock him, by such a proposal ? So should we say, to those who tell us that our own righteousness can save us. No ; this work exceeds all the powers of nature, but it does not exceed the power of Christ. The object of his deep humiliation, and of all his intense and bitter sufferings, was to atone for our sins, and to procure a righteousness through which we might come with acceptance before God. All this he has done, by his obedience unto death; and now the only question that remains is, How shall we obtain the benefits thus procured for us ? The answer to this is contained in the words of the apostle before us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. By the words, in him, the apostle here refers to that intimate union which exists,
8
CHRIST MADE SIN FOR US.
and must ever exist, between Christ and all those who partake of the benefits of his salvation. It is a union so intimate, that Christ and his people are considered as one body, — he the head, and they the members, — and the work done by him is regarded as if it were done by them, and the sufferings endured by him as if endured by them, and the righteousness of which he is the pro- curer is considered as belonging to them. This union between Christ and every one of his true followers, so vitally important to the salvation of the soul, is effected by faith, — that living, saving faith, which receives Christ, and rests upon him alone for salva- tion,— which renounces all confidence in our own merits or works, and pleads only the merits of Christ, and which shows itself to be genuinely working by love, and producing those effects upon the heart and life which the word of God requires. Would you, then, be saved from sin, and be made the righteousness of God ? My direction to you, is that which the apostle gave to the jailer at Philippi, Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ So shall it be accom- plished, and ye shall be saved.
We may learn, from the review of what has been said: 1. The exceeding greatness of the love of God, and of Christ, You have often heard of the sacrifices that some have made for their friends, but who of you ever heard of sacrifices and sufferings endured for friends, such as Christ endured for his enemies ? Make the case 3^our own. Would you consent, even for a few years, to live in poverty and reproach for another? to walk in our streets with the finger of scorn pointed at you ? to bear the sneers and malice, and the insults and persecutions, of those in every way beneath you ? Christ has done more, infinitely more than all this, for his enemies ! Scarcely for a righteous man will one die. Peradventure for a good man, some would even dare to die : hut God commendeth his love to us, in that while ive were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Eom. v. 7. Surely, herein is love ! 2. We are also taught by it, very impressively, the vileness of sin, and its hatefulness to God, when, for its extirpation, Christ was willing to be made sin for us. Men may count sin a light matter, while they roll it as a sweet morsel under their tongues, — but Christ thought not so, when he left his high and glorious habitation to make atonement for it, — he thought not so, in his bitter agony in the garden, — he thought not so, when stretched upon the cross between heaven and earth. It ought to produce many serious thoughts in our minds, when we consider that it was not for himself, but for us,
CHRIST MADE SIN FOR US.
9
that lie suffered all this. And surely, if there is a spark of ingen- uousness left in our minds, it will occasion us bitter mourning that we have been the direct means of causing all this suffering to fall upon him. Suppose that the imprudence of any one of you had caused a beloved friend to lose property and life together, with what feelings would you reflect upon your conduct after- wards? It was in reference to such a feeling as this, that it was predicted by the prophet, They shall look upon him whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and they shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his first-born, Zech. xii. 10.
Finally. We learn hence the completeness of this salvation, and the importance of diligently seeking to secure an interest in it. It cannot be supposed that Christ would suffer so much, and yet leave his work unfinished. It cannot be supposed that any flaw is to be found in that which was devised in the councils of eternity, and wrought out in time, with such expense to the Son of God. He hath done all things well. And surely, if he has thought it worth his while to do all this for us, it is more than worth your while, my hearers, to see to it that you lose not the benefits of what he has done, and now so freely offers to you. Hoiu shall you escape, if you neglect this great salvation?
Macao, April 30, 1843.
SERMON II.
PRAISE.
Oh praise the Lord, all ye nations ; praise him, all ye people. For his merciful' kindness is great towards us ; and the truth of the Lord eudureth forever. Praise ye the Lord. — Psalm cxvii.
This is the shortest psalm, but by no means the least impor- tant in the whole book. Its author is not certainly known, nor the time of its composition. It is an exhortation to praise Jeho- vah, on account of his great goodness, and faithfulness in keeping his promises. But it is not merely an exhortation. It includes a prophetical address to all the nations of the earth, showing that all the human race is to be united into one harmonious body, and that not merely the Jews but also the Gentiles should engage in the worship of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This is manifest not only from an examination of the psalm itself, but also from the testimony of the apostle Paul, who quotes it in the Epistle to the Romans, xv. 11. After affirming that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision, that is, of the Jews, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers; he adds, that another object of his mission to the world, was that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy, — which he confirms by adducing this among other predictions of the Old Testament.
The first verse contains an exhortation to all nations, to praise Jehovah ; and this exhortation, according to the usual parallelism of Hebrew poetry, is immediately repeated in slightly different words. The following verse gives the reasons why Jehovah is thus worthy to be praised, and the psalm concludes with the ex- hortation with which it commenced, Praise ye the Lord. This address to the nations of the earth comes in the name of the united church of the Jews, and the Gentiles. Once there was no such union, — for the Jews, proud of their distinction, as the chosen people of God, refused all intercourse in religion with
PRAISE.
11
other nations ; and the Gentile hating such exclusiveness, and dreading a religion that required such holiness of heart and life, refused to associate with the Jew. But the cross of Christ has broken down the middle wall of partition, and made both one, and the writer of the psalm appears to have forgotten that such a distinction existed. The conception of the mercy of God through Christ has swallowed up every envious and jealous thought, and he is only anxious that all nations should praise that being whose attributes are so gloriously manifested towards our race.
Oh praise the Lord, all ye nations ; praise him, all ye people. Praise is the giving to another the honor due for his excellent qualities. When applied to God, it is the natural and unfeigned exhibition of our esteem for those attributes, which excite our ap- probation. It implies a right apprehension of the mighty acts, and the excellent greatness of the Lord. It implies that we possess some knowledge of the goodness of the Lord, and that his glory is above the earth omd the heavens. The command, praise ye the Lord, is one that is frequently repeated, and not simply repeated, it is also enforced with an array of motives which show it to be a command of great importance. In some of the psalms, the sole object seems to be to call upon men to magnify the name of the Lord ; and we meet but with few examples of devotion in the Scriptures in which praise does not form a part. There is a dis- tinction to be made between praise and thanksgiving. We praise God when we declare his glory, — we offer thanksgiving when we recognize his goodness as exercised towards ourselves. The former may be offered with acceptance, when the heart is overwhelmed with sorrow, for God is oftentimes glorified in the fires, Is. xxiv. 15, — but it is hard to offer the latter if the mind is not in a cheerful frame. Yet it is not possible to offer either aright, if the heart be at enmity with God. It is true that God makes even the wrath of man to praise him, and to show forth his own glory, but this is contrary to, or aside from their intention, and they are not therefore accepted. It was no merit in the Assyrian monarch, that he executed the commission and the charge against the peo- ple of God's wrath, for he meant not so, neither did his heart think so, Is. x. 7. It was no worthy action in Balaam, that he declared so truly of God, that he was not a man that he should lie, nor the son of man that he should repent, Numb, xxiii. 19, — or that he predicted so much good to Israel. His heart's design was to curse Israel — his wish was that God might repent — and it was only by
12
PEAISE.
constraint that he spake as he did. Jehovah obtained glory to himself, by the words of his mouth, but he punished him for the thoughts of his heart. None can praise God aright but those who truly love him, and the command with which the psalm opens, to praise the Lord, requires that we turn to him, with the whole heart, in order that we may praise him.
But why are we thus earnestly called upon to celebrate the praises of God ? Why should we, who are surrounded with so many pleasing objects, turn aside from them to worship a being we have never seen ? We need not turn aside. Everywhere there is a place to praise him, and every object around us answers our questions. The world we inhabit is one vast temple, erected for the glory of God, and every object it contains, bears an inscrip- tion that proclaims his excellency. It was the contemplation of the attributes of God, as displayed in the beauty and magnificence of our earthly home, with its varied ornaments and comforts, — and still more, in the wise and bounteous supplies provided for the necessities of our immortal souls, that called forth the psalm- ist's grateful adoration. But more than this. The child of God rejoices in his Father's attributes, not merely because of the in- terest he himself has in them, but because of their intrinsic and infinite excellence. We admire more, the fulness of a river, than the little stream which merely quenches our thirst ; so we adore the hand that bountifully supplies the wants of all, and scattering showers, even on the desert, has still an abundance left, — more than we should the same hand, were we the sole recipients of the benefits it conveys.
The attributes of God here mentioned, as worthy of our special gratitude and adoration, are mercy and truth. It is re- markable how often these two attributes are conjointly mentioned. All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and Ms testimonies, Ps. xxv. 10, and Abraham and Jacob, as well as David, and hosts of others, have found reason to say, Mercy shall he huilt up forever ; thy faithfulness shalt thou es- tablish in the very heavens, Ps. lxxxix. 2. By the mercy of God is to be understood his free and undeserved favor towards the hu- man race, which is especially manifested in the redemption of our race through Christ ; while by his truth, is evidently intended his faithfulness in performing all his promises, and in continuing to exercise towards his people the mercy which he once began to exercise. As Moses said to the Israelites, so may it be said in our
PKAISE. 13
days, The Lord thy God is a merciful God; he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he made unto them, Deut. iv. 31.
For his merciful kindness is great towards us. The kindness of God is that favor which he exercises towards all his creatures, and that compassion in supplying their wants which are both so conspicuously displayed in his sending his son to redeem us. There are various other ways in which his kindness to his crea- tures is shown, but none which contain such a high evidence of his love as this. It is the crowning proof and includes all the rest. It is merciful, for we had not the slightest claim upon him for any good thing. Nay, the very word mercy includes the idea that the persons towards whom it is exercised are offenders, and deserving of punishment, and such is really our case.
This mercy is not exercised towards us in that contracted manner, that our feeble conceptions might have anticipated. It is God who bestows it, and the gift is offered with a fulness and a freeness worthy of the giver. His merciful kindness is great towards us, but not after our ideas of greatness. The ocean is great when it reposes in the calm, or rolls in the tempest ; the earth is great in the vastness, and swiftness, and precision of its annual motion ; and the starry heavens, and the untold systems of worlds beyond them, are great, and these all declare his glory ; but his merciful kindness is greater far than these, for the fulness of the sea is but a drop compared with those wells from which the waters of salvation are drawn ; and the magnificence of the rolling world and shining stars but dimly twinkles when com- pared with the radiance that beams from the cross of Christ. Count not this language, mere exaggerated declamation. Lift your eyes to that bright world whose inhabitants dwell in the immediate presence of God. Behold the multitude which no man can number, of all nations, and kindred, and tongues, and people standing before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and with palms in their hands, Eev. vii. 9. "Who are these? Whence came they ? By what right do they thus stand before the throne ? Well may we ask such questions ! These were once men of like passions with ourselves, and compassed about with infirmities like our own. How came they to enter heaven and possess such a glorious inheritance ? Through no worthi- ness of their own, but through the mercy of God in Christ. That mercy was great, but who shall declare all its greatness ?
PRAISE.
It prompted the Son of God to assume our nature — to be made sin for us — to suffer and to die in our stead. Hear their own song of praise to him — Thou art worthy, for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thine own blood, Kev. v. 9. Surely man cannot fathom the depths of God's love, nor worlds exhaust the fulness of God's merciful kindness. Great as it is in itself, it is if possible still greater when we consider to whom it is exer- cised. Not to the angels, greater in might and excelling in power, who kept not their first estate — but towards us, worms of the dust enslaved by sin, exposed to all the miseries of this life, and to the pains of hell forever — towards us who had no deliverer and no hope, and who were rapidly hastening on to death — the death of the body, and more terrible still, the death of the soul — the second death. Yea, His merciful kindness is great towards us. No obstacles appalled the Son of God. No difficulties deterred him from completing the work he had begun. Strong in the might of his divinity, he stood alone against opposing hosts, and vanquished Satan and his legions, to bring salvation to us.
It was no merely temporary impulse that prompted him thus to act. It was no merely transient deliverance that he wrought. His merciful kindness is great towards us, and his truth endureth forever. Mercy prompts him to form his purposes of love, and to give us great and precious promises, and his unchanging truth and fidelity sustains those purposes, and fulfils those promises. There was gloom and sadness in our world when our first parents ate the forbidden fruit.
" Earth trembled from her entrails as again In pangs ; and nature gave a second groan. Sky lowered and, muttering thunder, some sad drops "Wept at completing of the mortal sin Original."
What hope could there be for man after such an offence? None, had not mercy filled the throne. But mercy prevailed, and in the sentence pronounced upon the serpent was contained an intimation that God had not utterly cast off the human race. It is most deeply interesting to trace the various steps by which mercy advanced in the design of saving men, and how amidst all difficulties, and obstacles, the faithfulness of God sustained the purposes that mercy first devised. At one time almost the whole human race had utterly apostatized from God, and it be-
PRAISE.
15
came necessary for him to sweep them from off the face of the earth. But there was one man who still retained his integrity, and mercy preserved him alive, when the flood of waters de- stroyed the rest of mankind. In his family the church was per- petuated ; and when, again, the posterity of JSToah had almost all departed from God, one of his descendants was chosen to be the depositary of the promise of God. To Abraham were the prom- ises made, exceeding great and precious ; for in him, and in his seed, were all the families of the earth to be blessed. Trace the history of his descendants till the time of Christ, and behold how the mercy of God bore with them in their provocations, and how his faithfulness to the covenant made with their fathers sus- tained them in the wilderness, and fed them in the desert ; how it delivered them from the hands of their enemies, and prospered them in the works of their hands ; how as a wise father, he chas- tised their iniquities, and as a covenant-keeping God he pre- served them a peculiar people, until the appointed time for the completion of the covenant. The Son of God appeared upon earth in due time, and the faithfulness of God still sustained him. Had it not been so, we might almost have feared, that great as was the love the Saviour bore for men, still when the trying hour came, and in his agony in the garden he prayed, Oh, my Father, if it he possible, let this cup pass from me, he would have shrunk back from the work of redemption. But no ! The truth of the Lord endureih forever. He would not make void his promises to Abraham, nor suffer his purposes to fail. The final results of all his mercy and truth to man, you may see, in the great multitude whom No man can number, who stand before the throne, having come out of great tribulation, and washed their robes, a nd made them white in the blood of the Lamb, Eev. vii. 14. The song they sing is known to themselves alone — but surely, if they could now ad- dress us, who meet in the courts of God's house below, it would be in the words of the psalm we are considering, His merciful kindness is great towards us, and the truth of the Lord endureth for- ever. Praise ye the Lord.
I presume there are few in this house, who do not admit the propriety of obeying the command contained in this Psalm, or who do not hope to experience the mercy and faithfulness of God, even in the highest manifestation of which it is capable, and of which we have just been speaking. But on what grounds do you hope to experience this mercy ? or be benefited by this
16
PRAISE.
faithfulness of God ? For, be it remembered, though the mercy of God is offered to all, it is not partaken of by all. Nay, there is too much reason to fear, that the great majority of nominal Christians never know by experience what it is. Men are in the habit of resting on some general belief that God is too merciful to condemn them forever. Some vague and indefinite notions of his goodness and grace float across their minds, and they do not trouble themselves to inquire farther. This is the error on which millions of immortal souls are lost forever. God is merciful, yea, infinitely merciful, — but he is merciful in his own way, and that way is so clearly delineated in his word, that men are utterly in- excusable if they do not see it, and walk therein. Common mer- cies are bestowed upon all without exception, the evil as well as the good, for he maketh his sun to shine, and sendeth rain upon the just and the unjust ; but this special mercy is to be obtained only by those who are in Christ. For to those out of Christ, our God is a consuming fire, Heb. xii. 29. There is none other name given under heaven among men, ivhereby we must be saved, but the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, Acts iv. 12. This is the reason why the saints in heaven ascribe so much honor to the Saviour, because he redeemed them by his own blood. Mercy does not wait for those who know him not ; but to those who have fled to him for refuge, as the only hope set before him, there is preserved, by the faithfulness of God, an inheritance that never ends, and a crown of glory that fadeth not away.
Macao, May 7, 1843.
SERMON III.
HEALING THE TEN LEPERS.
And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: and they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said, Go show yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass that, as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks : and he was a Samaritan. And Jesus answering, said, Were there not ten cleansed ? But where are the nine ? There are not found, that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole. — Luke xvii. 12-19.
It was always characteristic of our Lord Jesus Christ, that he went about doing good. Whenever we hear of him, be it in his youth, when sitting in the temple among the doctors of the law, or in his manhood, when his public ministry had commenced, he was still about his Father's business, and so faithfully, that the zeal of God's house even consumed him. The honor and glory of God, and the happiness and welfare of perishing men, were the great objects before him. "Like a current of vital air, he went through the length and breadth of the land, and his course was marked by long lines of light and gladness." Where he trod, the flowers sprang up beneath his footsteps, — where he looked, the dark clouds disappeared, — where he spoke, sorrow fled, and those who mourned were comforted. The number of miracles he per- formed was truly wonderful. We are not to suppose, that he wrought only those mighty acts which are either recorded or alluded to in the gospels. The evangelist John expressly assures us, There are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the boohs that should be written, John xxi. 25. It was not the object of the Holy Spirit, in recording those of which we pos-
18
HEALING THE TEN LEPERS.
sess accounts, merely to excite an empty wonder and astonish- ment,— they were written for our instruction. They were in- tended to be deeply pondered, and to be compared with other parts of the Scriptures, in order that we may fully comprehend them, and mark the evidences of divinity that illuminate every act of our blessed Lord.
The miracle here recorded seems to have been performed in the course of our Saviour's last journey to Jerusalem. He had previously been spending some time in Galilee, under the juris- diction of Herod. Luke xiii. 31, 32. The distance from the bor- ders of Gralilee and Samaria to Jerusalem, was about fifty miles, in a direct line ; but he seems to have gone in a circuitous direc- tion, sometimes visiting parts of Samaria, and at others parts of Galilee. Being his last journey, he was anxious to visit as many places as possible, and to proclaim in each the near approach of the kingdom he was about to establish. As he entered one of the villages on his route, he was met by ten of those melancholy and disgusting objects, some of whom are yet found as objects of curiosity and compassion in the East. They were lepers. Of the leprosy of the Scriptures, and in what respects it differed from the disease of that name in modern times, it is difficult to obtain a perfectly satisfactory account. It 'was a disease deeply rooted in the system, and affecting the whole body. At first, it commonly ap- peared in the form of a small reddish spot, either in the forehead or elsewhere. From this, it gradually spread over the body, accom- panied by ulcers and sores. The joints became distorted, — the fin- gers sometimes dropped off from corruption, — and the miserable being lingered on, sometimes for years, an outcast from all society, but that of beings like himself ; a mass of corruption, until the system was broken down, and he sank to the leper's grave. The body of one affected with this disease was covered with scales, or scurf, which were general^ white, — hence the expression, so fre- quently occurring, a leper ivhite as snow. It is somewhat uncer- tain whether it was infectious or not. In Judea, it was regarded as an immediate judgment of God. The leper was unclean, and no efforts were employed to heal him. The rules for the treat- ment of leprous persons, which are laid down with great minute- ness in the Levitical law, required that the leper be shut out from all intercourse with society. Even his parents or children, or the wife of his own bosom, did not dare to approach him. He was unclean, and his touch, like that of a dead body, polluted every-
HEALING THE TEN LEPERS.
19
tting he handled. He was obliged to wear mourning, and keep aloof from every uninfected person, himself warning them not to approach him too nearly. The leper, in ivhom the plague is, his clothes shall be rent, a,nd his head bare, and he shall put a covering upon his upper lip, and shall cry, Unclean, unclean. All the days wherein the plague shall be in him, he shall be defiled ; he is unclean ; he shall dwell alone ; without the camp shall his habitation be, Lev. xiii. 45, 46.
It is difficult to conceive of a more melancholy position than that held by the lepers. Afflicted with an evil and an unclean disease, and entirely uncertain when, if ever, it should be removed. Shut out from all society, and under the ban of the Divine dis- pleasure. Hope must have died away in the heart, when the priest looked upon them, and pronounced them lepers, — and the com- mand to depart and dwell alone, must have filled them with despair.
" Depart, depart, oh child Of Israel, from the temple of thy God, For he hath smote thee with the chastening rod,
And to the desert wild, From all thou lovest, away thy feet must flee, That from thy plague his people may be free."
Thus it was with these of whom we here read. Belief they could find from no human source ; but they had heard of the fame of Jesus, and hoping that he might compassionate their distress, and be able to relieve them, they put themselves in his way. They did not dare to approach near to him, and therefore stood afar off, — but they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. It was an appropriate prayer for a leper to offer. It was short, but it was heartfelt, and it was effectual, be- cause it was addressed to that compassionate High Priest, who was easily touched with the feelings of human infirmities, and who never turned away a needy suppliant. We are not told the feelings that filled his mind when he saw them, but it is not hard to conjecture. On a former occasion, a single leper applied to him for cleansing, and his heart was moved with compassion towards him ; but here was an accumulation of misery, that could not fail to awaken all his sympathies. He determined to relieve them, but he did it in a way that tried their faith, and showed their true characters. Instead of healing them on the spot, as he could easily have done, he simply commanded them to go, and
20
HEALING THE TEN LEPERS.
show themselves to the priests. This was a tacit promise to heal them. According to the Jewish law, the priests alone had a right to pronounce men clean from the leprosy, and as that law was still in force, Christ, who came to fulfil all righteousness, on all occasions obeyed its precepts. His sending them to the priests, therefore, was equivalent to saying, By the time you have ar- rived at Jerusalem, you shall be healed, and the duly authorized ministers of the law shall receive you again, to the privileges from which you have been so long debarred. It will be imme- diately seen, that this was quite a trial to their faith. The journey to Jerusalem, to men in their situation, was a long and fatiguing one ; if they should not be healed before their arrival there, it would be one of much trouble and inconvenience, for they could not associate with any whom they might meet ; and if they should not be healed at all (for such a suggestion doubtless occurred to them), then their labor would be in vain ; they would be laughed at, and sent away with renewed disgrace. To oppose all these considerations, they had only the simple words of Christ, Go, show yourselves to the priests. But their confidence in him, and their desire for healing were so great as to make them disregard all such suggestions, and in obedience to his command they went. How richly was their faith rewarded! As they went they were cleansed. They seem to have gone but a little way, when they found the scales fall off from their bodies, and felt the warm blood rush healthily through their veins, and the vigor of new life beating in all their limbs. Their flesh came again as the flesh of a little child, and they were clean ! Who shall describe their joy at this sudden and unhoped for change ? The sick man rejoices when his fever has left him, and he slowly regains his wonted health and vigor, — the exile rejoices when his eyes once more rest on the home, and the friends of his youth, — the con- demned criminal rejoices when his chains are struck off, and his prison doors opened and himself sent forth free, — but the joy of the lepers must have been greater than theirs. Here was deliver- ance from a loathsome, painful, and incurable disease, — one that shut them out from the society of friends, and which was indeed the condemning sentence of God himself. No longer exiles, no longer outcasts, — the temple of their God was reopened to them, and the scenes of their youth invited their return. Life, and health, and home, and friends, — these had been strange words to them, but they were strange no longer, for the rent garment, and
HEALING THE TEN LEPERS.
21
the covering on the lip, and the ashes on the head were removed, and the cry unclean, unclean, no longer proceeded from their lips.
]STo wonder that one of them, when he saw that he was cleansed, turned immediately back, for he does not seem to have waited till he went to Jerusalem, and with a loud voice glorified God. No wonder that he fell down at his feet, giving him thanks. Imagine, if you can, the words in which those thanks were expressed. Doubtless, language would be poor to picture forth the emotions that struggled in his breast, at such a time as that.
But who, or what was he who thus returned to glorify God? One who had never before read this account, would be disposed to say, Certainly he was a Jew, early trained to acknowledge the true God, and offer to him his thank-offerings and praise. For some great sin he had been thus sorely afflicted, but now the heavy hand of God is removed, and he has returned to own his renewed obligations ! But alas ! for the hardness of the human heart. Alas ! for its insensibility to the favors of the giver of all good. Of the ten who were cleansed, nine appear to have been Jews, and one alone, a Samaritan ; and yet he, of whom the least might have been expected, was the only one sensible of his duty. The Samaritans were a mongrel race, descended from the remnants of the ten tribes who were left in the land, when the nation was as a body removed, and the heathen whom the Assy- rian king sent to occupy the land. They corrupted the worship of God by the addition of numerous idolatrous rites, and in at- tempting to serve the Lord, and worship graven images, they became objects of greater detestation to the Jews than even the heathen themselves. The Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans, and our Saviour himself, declared that they worshipped they knew not what. It was therefore hardly to be expected that a Samaritan leper, should show more gratitude and true devotion, than those who had been carefully trained in all the laws of the Jewish faith. Hence, the expression of our Lord, Were there not ten cleansed f he exclaims, but ivhere are the nine ? It was a severe censure he cast upon them, when he added, There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. Yet, though he came alone, and though he was a stranger and an outcast, he was not therefore received with the less favor. He came to that good Shepherd, who cares even for the weak and diseased of his flock, — who does not refuse any, however despised by those that are strong. Our Lord looked upon him with favor, and graciously
22
HEALING THE TEN LEPERS.
said, ime, go thy ivay, thy faith hath made thee whole. By his faith in Christ in the first instance, he was cured of his leprosy, but by his living faith exemplified now in his gratitude, he was delivered from that more dangerous disease, the leprosy of sin. His soul was made whole, and he was henceforth numbered among the chosen people of Christ. We are not told anything farther respecting either him or his companions. Doubtless, they all proceeded to Jerusalem, in order to be received with due formality, to the rights and privileges of Jewish society, — and from what we have already seen of this Samaritan, we may well suppose, that as he went along, he would publish the matter much, and blaze it abroad, as did the first leper whose cleansing is recorded in the gospels, Mark i. 45.
There are many important lessons taught by this miracle, but space and time, allow the mention of only the following : —
1. We are taught here very impressively that all faith is not saving faith, — nay, that men may possess much of a certain kind of faith, and yet be very far from securing the approbation of God. It is perfectly manifest that all these lepers had faith in Christ, and even in a high degree. They believed that he was both able and willing to heal them, and when commanded by him to undertake a long journe}r, they unhesitatingly obeyed, though they had 'only his word to depend upon, as the ground of their hope for cleansing. Nor can we possibly suppose, that when they found themselves so completely cured, no joyful emo- tions passed through their minds. It is hard to believe that they were so depraved as not to feel at least a transient glow of grat- itude to him whose word had healed them. Perhaps they made many promises to themselves, and resolved that at some time or other they would show their sense of the obligation conferred upon them. But we do not hear that they ever sought again the face of their benefactor, while we do hear him censuring their in- gratitude, Were there not ten cleansed, but where are the nine ? And we hear him highly commending the conduct of the Samaritan, who acted so differently from his companions in suffering, and in blessing — Arise, thy faith ha th made thee whole. In what respect then did his faith differ from theirs ? In this, that it wrought by love, and purified the heart. The sense of obligation brought him back to the Saviour's feet, and the praises that were uttered from his lips, were only the expression of his heart's deep emotions. Their faith affected only the understanding, and therefore differed
HEALING THE TEN LEPERS.
23
in no respect from that possessed by Simon Magus, who believed and was baptized, and yet remained in the gall of bitterness and the bonds of iniquity, or that of the devils who believe and tremble. This affected his heart, and showed itself in his life; and the commendation which the Saviour bestowed on him, and the words with which he dismissed him, showed that his faith was acceptable to him.
2. The record of this miracle gives a melancholy picture of human nature, and of the insensibility of men to the favors they receive from their Creator. We are apt to think that those who receive great favors from God must be very grateful, and that those highly distinguished by him in outward advantages, will be pro- portionately zealous in his service. Certainly this should be so, for the natural impulses of the heart demand it. But, alas ! it is far otherwise. Great privileges do not show great grace. Often- times those most highly favored are least sensible of their obli- gations ; while true gratitude and zeal for God are found where least expected. In the case of the ten lepers, he alone, from whom the least was to be expected, was found to possess the right spirit. The conduct of the Jewish lepers, was but in minia- ture, that of the Jewish nation. No people on earth were so highly favored as they. What nation was there who had God so nigh unto them as the Lord their God was, in all things that they called upon him for ? and what nation was there that had statutes and judgments so righteous as theirs ? What nation was there that had received so many tokens of God's favor, or had made so many professions of zeal and gratitude and obe- dience as they ? Yet, when their own long-expected Messiah came among them, how did they receive him ? He came to his own, and his own received him not, John i. 11. The publicans and sinners believed, but they themselves in scorn exclaimed — Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed f From the east and the west, the Gentiles came and sat down with Abraham in the kingdom of heaven, but through their own madness the children of the kingdom were cast out. It was a terrible retribution that befell the highly-favored cities on the coast of the sea of Galilee. Woe unto thee, Ghorazin ! Woe unto thee, Belhsaida ! and thou Ca- pernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell ; for if the mighty works which had been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it ivould have remained unto this day, Matt. xi. 21, 23.
But while you wonder at, and condemn the criminal negligence
24
HEALING- THE TEN LEPERS.
and unbelief of the Jews, beware lest you seal your own condem- nation. The privileges of the Jews were no greater than those that we enjoy ; and there are but too few among ourselves who rightly improve the mercies granted to us. Who of you can say, I have rendered again unto the Lord according to the benefits re- ceived from him ? God hath but poor service from many who are most bountifully fed by him. He hath more rent, and better paid him from a smoking cottage, than he has from some stately palaces !
3. This miracle is especially important as showing the power and character of Jesus Christ, in pointing out to us the way for needy sinners to approach and obtain his grace. It has already been mentioned that the Jews considered the leprosy incurable by human skill. They never used any means to cleanse those af- flicted with it, but committed their case entirely to God, as the only being able to relieve them. The curing of the leprosy therefore was one of the strongest evidences of a divine mission. When Moses was sent to be the leader of the Israelites one of the proofs he gave, was the curing of the leprous hand. One of the most remarkable instances of the way in which the Israelites re- garded this disease is found in the account of JSTaaman the Syrian. When his royal master sent him to Ahab, that Elisha might cure his disease, the Israelitish king supposed that the Assyrian monarch wished, to seek a quarrel with him by requiring him to perform an impossibility. He rent his clothes, and said, Am I God to kill, and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to re- cover a man of his leprosy f 2 Kings v. 7. But when these men came to Christ to be cleansed of this incurable disease, he made no objection, — with a word he removed their plague, and sent them awa}7 rejoicing. By his own power he relieved their mala- dies ; and without reluctance, received the worship that one of them offered him in return. He was God, who had power to kill and to make alive, and to recover men of their leprosy ; and the worship they offered him, he received as justly his due.
4. The manner in which he received the lepers, and sent them away, affords us great encouragement, when we wish to make supplications to him. In but too many particulars our case is as miserable, and helpless, and hopeless, as that of the lepers them- selves. The poison of sin has so pervaded our whole nature, that we are by it utterly defiled. It shuts us out from the society of all holy beings, and utterly unfits us for communion with God,
HEALING THE TEN LEPERS.
25
or for engaging in his service. The leper did not dare to appear in the temple of God, or pollute with his touch the vessels of the sanctuary. Sin ruins the soul, and brings destruction upon it, as surely as the plague of the leprosy destroyed the body. It is also as totally incurable by human efforts as that was, and nothing less than divine power can remove it from us.
" Sin, like a venomous disease,
Infects our vital blood ; The only balm is sovereign grace,
And the physician, God."
But pitiable and hopeless as our case is, if we look only to our- selves, there is deliverance if we but seek for it. Jesus Christ is as able to save us from sin, as he was to cure the leprosy, Matt, ix. 6. He alone has such power. Under the ancient Jewish law, none but God could cleanse the leper ; none but the priest prooounce him clean. Christ as God forgives our sin; as our great high priest he both pronounces and makes us holy. This he is ever ready to do. If we but come to him as the lepers came, feeling our misery, feeling a desire to be relieved, believing that he is able to do it, then, though conscious guilt may make us stand afar off, yet if we lift up our voices, and cry unto him, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. He will hear our prayers, and grant our request. And this is our only hope, but, blessed be God, it is one that shall not be disappointed.
Macao, May 21, 1843.
SERMON IV.
RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION OF CHRIST.
And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands and blessed thern. And it came to pass while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. — Luke xxiv. 50, 51.
The object of the mission of Jesus Christ to the world was the sublimest that ever entered into the mind of any being in the universe. He came to overcome Satan and vanquish death. He came to rescue a race sunk in misery and enslaved by sin. He came to assert the honor of God, — to proclaim the glory of his character, — to show the excellency of his nature, and to recover his rightful dominion over the world. These were objects worthy of the might of him who came to save. If obtained, no tongue could declare their greatness ; but as well may be supposed, they were not easily accomplished, — for in this world, nothing great is ever effected without labor and sacrifice, and in this case especially, the way to glory led through, shades and sorrows. The day is bright beyond conception, but it was ushered in by a night of darkness and of storms.
Yery sad must have been the feelings of the disciples of Christ when they saw him ignominiously crucified, — but still more so, when they saw him giving up the ghost, and followed his lifeless and mangled body to the tomb. It was a sepulchre hewn in the rock, a great stone was rolled to the door, a seal set upon it, and a guard placed. That day was the preparation for the Sabbath. It was usually a time of solemn joy, — but not so now to the little band of Christ's followers. They had, strangely enough, misunderstood all that he told them concerning the kingdom he was about to establish. They utterly forgot his pre- diction that he must be put to death, and its cheering accompani- ment, that he should rise again. The great stone and the seal,
RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION OF CHRIST.
27
and the guard and death himself had removed the object of their hope from their eyes, and to their unbelief it seemed as though God's promise had now failed, and Christ's power been ended. It seemed as if Satan's victory were now complete, and hope for a while deserted them. We trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel, Luke xxiv. 21. But now our enemies say in their hearts, Ah, so would we have it. We have swallowed him up, Ps. xxxv. 25. It was the preparation, and the Sabbath drew on — the emblem of peace and rest, but it brought no rest to them, for the disappointment of cherished hopes is a bitter thing, and the dearer the hope, the bitterer the disappointment. Hope de- ferred even, maketh the heart sick, but hope utterly lost, is like the giving up of the ghost.
The Sabbath passed away with them in silence and sorrow, for though hope had apparently left them, they could not forget Him. His looks of affection were pictured on their hearts, and the music of his words yet lingered in their ears. As the next day dawned, several women proceeded to the place where they had seen him laid, with spices and ointment to embalm his body. Last at the cross, they were also first at the sepulchre. So com- pletely had they given up the hope of ever seeing him they loved alive again, that their only solicitude was to preserve the dead body from decay, and to lavish upon it the attentions they could no more give to him. Bat wonderful events had occurred. It was the Lord of life who had been laid in that lonely tomb, and death had no power to retain him a moment longer than he chose. By his own power he burst those bonds, John ii. 19. x. 18. In his late conflict he overcame and destroyed him that had the power of death, that is, the devil. True, he became obedient, even unto death ; but it was of his own accord, that he gave up the ghost, and it was but for a little time that he suffered the grave to possess his body. When the time appointed in the counsels of God, and fixed by his own predictions, had come, he rose trium- phant over death and the grave. Vain were all the efforts of his enemies to detain him. The stone and the seal, and the guard, and death itself were less to him than the cords with which Samson was bound, which were but as the flax when it toucheth the fire. There had been an earthquake, — an angel from heaven descended, to roll the stone away, — and he that was dead arose, not like Lazarus in his grave-clothes, again to die, — for he left the garments of mortality behind him, and lives for evermore. All this must
28
RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION OF CHRIST.
have happened before the dawn of day ; for Mary Magdalene, who seems to have come first to the sepulchre, came while it was yet dark, and even then saw the stone taken away. In her fear she left the companion with whom she came, and ran to call Peter and John. While she was absent, another company of women on the same affectionate errand came, and saw a vision of angels, who assured them that He whom they sought was not there. Why seek ye the living among the dead t He is not here, but is risen, Luke xxiv. 5, 6. When they had gone, Mary Magdalene returned with Peter and J ohn. The two disciples inspected the sepulchre, but saw no angels, and departed, wondering at what had taken place, and Mary remained alone, weeping at the sepulchre. It was then that Jesus appeared to her. Tears dimmed her eyes, and she knew him not, till in his own familiar voice he said unto her, Mary. She turned herself and saith unto him, Babboni — Mas- ter ! After this he appeared to the other women, and sent them also to inform his disciples of his resurrection. But it was hard for them to believe this announcement. The news was too good to be true ; and like Jacob of old, when told that Joseph was yet alive, their hearts died within them, and they could not believe. Eeturn from the dead was no common event; the grave is not easily satisfied ; death does not readily yield up his prey. Even after the Lord had appeared to Simon, and to the two disciples going to Emmaus, they could scarcely believe ; and it was not till he himself had come among them and upbraided them for their hardness of heart and their unbelief, that they were convinced, and even after they were convinced, astonishment and fear and joy so overpowered them that they were confounded, and scarcely knew their own minds. For very joy they believed not, and wondered, until from further and frequent intercourse with him, they were satisfied that there could be no illusion. lie showed himself alive to them after his passion, by many infallible 'proofs, be- ing seen of them forty days, Acts i. 3, and at one time, by as many as five hundred of the brethren at once, 1 Cor. xv. 6, speaking to them of the things pertaining to the kingdom of Grod. Those were pleasant interviews they had with him, when again they heard his gracious words, and saw his wondrous works. But it was not his purpose to remain with them in his human nature on earth. It was not necessary, — nay, it was not desirable, for him- self had told them, It is expedient for you that I go away : for if I
RESURRECTION AXD ASCENSION OF CHRIST.
29
go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you ; hut if I depart 1 will send Mm unto i/ou, John xvi. 7.
The time drew near when he should depart out of this world unto the Father ; and having loved his own which were in theicorld, he loved them to the end. John xiii. 1. In affectionate converse, he led them out by an oft frequented road, as far as to Bethany. Could we but haAre heard that conversation ! But no record of it is left to us. His last recorded words were spoken in Jerusalem, and included the promise of the speedy coming of the Spirit. TVhat further he said as they accompanied him to Bethany, we know not ; perhaps it would not be well, for any but those called to be apostles, as they were, to know.
A very common mistake prevails as to the place of Christ's ascension ; owing to a misunderstanding of the account in the Acts of the Apostles, most persons have supposed that it was from the top of the Mount of Olives, and a church has even been erected on the spot from which he is supposed to have ascended. But this is certainly incorrect. The text expressly asserts, that He led his disciples out as far as to Bethany, beyond the Mount of Olives, and lifted up his hands and Messed them, and while he blessed them he was parted, from them, and carried up into heaven. Oh, what a time was that ! they had gathered around him to hear his last words, they gazed upon him with solemn awe, for already the glories of the upper sanctuary beamed around him, and while they beheld he was taken up, — not in haste, nor in fear, but slowly and majestically he ascended, and a cloud received him out of their sight. When Elijah was taken up to heaven in a whirlwind by a chariot of fire and horses of fire, Elisha could exclaim, My father, My father, the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof, but the disciples of Christ uttered no words, for their emotions were too deep for utterance. They were like men already released from the earth, and seemed to have already entered the portals of the eternal temple. What was the world with all its petty con- cerns to them, when they saw their risen Lord ascending, and found the inhabitants of the heavenly world standing by them in their triumphal apparel ? The whole life of our Saviour on earth had been an object of most peculiar interest to the angels. They had predicted his coming, and announced his birth, and sung the glory of his advent. They had ministered to him in the desert, and strengthened him in the garden, and watched over him in the grave. They had welcomed him as he returned to life again,
30 RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION OF CHRIST.
and two of them stood now by his disciples, to say to them, This
same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. Unnumbered hosts of them received him as he left the world and proceeded to his high throne in the heavens. The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels : the Lm~d is among them as in Sinai, the holy place. Thou hast ascended on high ; thou hast led captivity captive, Ps. lxviii. 17. Truly, we may say with the Psalmist, God is gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet. Sing praises to God, sing praises, sing praises to our King, sing praises, Ps. xlvii. 5.
It is not easy to estimate too highly the importance of the doctrines of the resurrection and ascension of Christ. It was a subject of frequent and express prediction by himself. From that time forth began Jesus to show unto his disciples how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day, Matt. xvi. 21. It was the proof he gave of his divine mission, when asked by the Jews what sign he gave, and by what au- thority he acted, he referred them to his resurrection — Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up, John ii. 19. So well were these predictions known, that after his burial, the Phar- isees came together unto Pilate, saying — Sir, ive remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again, Matt, xxvii. 63. Had he not risen, therefore, we could have regarded him in no other light than as a prophet of lies. We must have considered then that all his claims to be the Saviour of the world were false, — that he was a deceiver, — and to whom then could we have gone ? As the apostle says, If Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain — ye are yet in your sins, 1 Cor. xv. 14. Of what avail then had it been to us, that he assumed our nature, that he dwelt among men, that he wrought miracles, that he preached glad tidings, that he suffered and died ? If he rose not again we are most miserable, and must lie down in sorrow. But blessed be Cod ! wonderful as the account is that tells us of his resurrection, it is one that cannot be doubted — for no fact in history is so firmly established. The day we celebrate as the Lord's day, is alone a sufficient proof. Why does the whole Christian church observe the first, instead of the seventh day of the week as the Sabbath ?
RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION OF CHEIST.
31
Because on this day Christ rose from the dead, and it is there- fore a day of gladness and joy to our souls.
The power of God as displayed in the resurrection of Christ is especially worthy of our notice. It is no common thing to see the grave give up its tenants, and those that sleep in the dust to arise. Especially in this case was it little to be expected. The God of this world, the devil, of whom it was a terrible charac- teristic that he had the poioer of death, Heb. ii. 14, had peculiar reasons for wishing to keep the Saviour in the tomb. He well knew that the continuance of his power, and the preservation of his kingdom among men, depended upon his defeating the pre- dictions of Christ, and preventing his resurrection. To this point therefore was all the ingenuity and malice of hell directed, but all in vain.
He who had power to lay his life down, had also poicer to take it again, John x. 8, and on the third day he showed himself the conqueror of death and the grave. Behold here, the working of the might of God's poicer, as the apostle expresses it, which he ivrought in Christ ivhen he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in heavenly places, Eph. i. 19, 20.
The effects of the resurrection of Christ are most glorious, and to us of the deepest moment. It was the seal of all he did, and the completion of our salvation. The work of atonement for sin was accomplished when he exclaimed on the cross — It is finished, and died for our sins ; but the work of redemption was not completed until he rose again for our justification, Eom. iv. 25. It was thus that he destroyed death, — it was thus that he led cap- tivity captive. He thus became the first fruits of them that slept, and his resurrection is the pledge that all his followers shall like- wise rise to glory ; as he has overcome death, so all his followers shall. The grave may for awhile possess their bodies, but its possession shall be but for a little time. On the morning of the Sabbath he rose from the tomb, leaving his grave-clothes behind him. "When the morning of the Eternal Sabbath shall dawn, our bodies shall be raised incorruptible, no more to return to the dust ; and we shall be changed. It will not be long till that time comes. It was but a few hours that Christ lay in the tomb, it is but a short time that we shall lie there, and if we have known the fellowship of his sufferings, — if we be now dead to the world, and our life be hid with Christ in God, then shall we also appear with him in glory. Then shall it be said to us, Thy dead shall
32
RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION OF CHRIST.
live, with my dead body shall they arise. AivaJce and sing ye that dwell in dust : for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead, Is. xxvi. 19. But it should excite you to watch- fulness and diligence, to know that it is not every one who shall rejoice at that solemn time. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection : on such the second death hath no powei\ but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, Eev. xx. 6.
The ascension of Christ was a farther step in his exaltation. He who had humbled himself so low for our sakes, who had not shrunk from the loathsome grave, was now to be exalted far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this world, but in the ivorld to come, Eph. i. 21. It would, doubtless, have been pleasant to have had him remain in this world, to our weak faith, and often fainting hope, and flag- ging zeal ; it would have been encouraging to have had a visible head to resort to. But it was not necessary, while the reasons for his going away were such, that it was better he should depart. He has gone, that he might send the Comforter. He has gone to intercede for his people, for he ever liveth to make intercession for them, Heb. vii. 25. He has gone that he might exercise the prov- idential government of this world — yes, of all worlds in behalf of his blood-bought church. It may cause a smile on the part of some to hear so much importance attached by us to the affairs of the too commonly despised church of Christ. It may subject us to the charge of overweening vanity and self-conceit, when we claim for her, the special care, and deepest thoughts of the infinite Jehovah ; but this arises from ignorance of her true importance in his eyes. When we read such passages as this — He that toucheth you, toucheth the apple of his eye, Zech. ii. 8 ; and this, God hath made Christ to be head over all things for the church, Eph. i. 22, it will be seen that it is impossible to estimate too highly her dignity and value in the eyes of her Maker. She is a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of her God, Is. lxii. 3.
The Saviour has gone to prepare a place for his disciples, and he himself has added, If I go and prepare a place for you I loill come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am there ye may be also, John xiv. 2, 3.
It is for this that we wait. The world may now look down upon the church of Christ, and scorn our expectations of future glory, as the vain dreams of enthusiasts, or the silly ravings of
RESURRECTION AND ASCENSION" OF CHRIST.
33
fanatics ; but we know in whom we have believed. He ascended in the clouds to heaven, and the angels who stood by his apostles as they gazed up after him into heaven, assured them that he should so come again in like manner as they had seen him go into heaven. He shall come as he went, in the clouds, and yet not altogether as he went, for but few of the human race wit- nessed his departure ; and though crowds of angels attended him, but few of them were visible to human eyes. But not so shall he come. The Son of man shall come in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, Matt. xxiv. 30. He shall come in the glory of his father, with the angels, Matt. xvi. 27. Behold he cometh with clouds : and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him, and all the kindreds of the earth shall ivail because of him, Rev. i. 7.
The solemnity and sublimity of that coming, I shall not at- tempt to describe ; but as an ambassador of him, who we believe shall come to be our judge, I exhort you to be in readiness for his coming. Let your loins be girded about and your lamps burning, and ye yourselves, like unto men that wait for their Lord, Luke xii. 35, 36. God grant that when he comes we may not be forced to cry unto the rocks and the mountains to fall on us, and cover us from his presence ; but rather may look up, and welcome his coming with joy, knowing that our redemption draweth nigh.
Macao, May 28, 1843.
3
SEKMON V.
INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT.
I tell you the truth : it is expedient for you that I go away ; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you ; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. — John xvi. 1.
There was a touching scene exhibited in an upper room at Jerusalem, when these words were uttered, and the painter's imagination and skill has been called into exercise more than once to depict it. Let us for a moment exchange places with the disciples, and imagine their thoughts and feelings. Thej had now been living with the Saviour for three full years, and shared his lot in every variety of circumstances. They had followed him in all his wanderings, they had been hungry and thirsty with him. When wearied, they had sat at his feet, when refreshed, they had walked again at his side. They had seen his miracles. -They had marked the glow of intelligence and joy diffused over the face of the blind, when the light of day first shone upon their hitherto darkened sight ; they had observed how the dumb praised him, and those who had been deaf listened to his gracious words. They had seen the lepers approach him without fear, and the lame follow him with unfaltering steps. They had witnessed the joy of the desolate widow, as she bent over her only son restored to life by him. They had themselves experienced his power. He had fed them in the desert, and saved them when the tempest had threatened to swallow them up. They had followed him through evil and through good report, trusting that he should redeem Israel. They had seen him reviled by the wicked, and mocked by the scribes and pharisees, till they felt ready to call for the fire of heaven to consume their opposers. They had seen many turning back, and walking no more with them, while tbey themselves, knowing that he had the words of life, still clave to him. They had been with him in the holy mountain, and had
INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT.
35
seen him when his face did shine. They had heard the voice which proclaimed from heaven, This is my beloved Son. They had but lately accompanied him in his triumphal entry into Jerusa- lem ; they had heard the multitude shout Hosannah ! and hoped that now should be the end of all sufferings, and the consumma- tion of all their hopes.
But, strangely enough, after all this, they heard him exclaim, even in a public assembly, Now is my soul troubled, and what shall I say? Father , save me from this hoar, John xii. 27. In private, they marked that he became more solemn and sad than before. The pale and pensive face of the man of sorrows, is now more deeply furrowed by grief. Mysterious influences weigh down his spirits, — a strange conflict is evidently going on within his bosom, and they are awed to silence by a sympathy which they feel, but cannot comprehend. The paschal supper follows, and then that scene of unequalled and sublime condescension, when Jesus, know- ing that he came from God, and ivent to God, riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments, and took a towel and girded himself, and poured water into a basin, and iv ashed his disciples' feet, and wiped them with the towel wherewith he ivas girded, John xiii. 3-5. After this, they heard that startling declaration, One of you shall betray me, which seems to have been made at the very time they were observing the supper, which he appointed to be a lasting memo- rial of his death. He sees the sorrows that fill their hearts, and, ever mindful of others' sufferings, even in the midst of his own, he consoles them with the words, Let not your hearts be troubled, ye believe in God, believe also in me. Again he tells them he must depart, and soon they shall see his face no more. With counsels, and warnings, and advice, and the sweetest strains of consolation, and the kindest words of infinite affection, he occupies the pass- ing moments. Though away from them, he would not leave them comfortless. He would still be with them, to watch over, and to protect, and to keep them. It was the farewell address of a love stronger than death, and we may easily conceive how his words would thrill through the hearts of the disciples. But still they were sorrowful at heart. How could it be good for them, that he should leave them, and be seen no more ? His in- structive parables, — his wonderful works, — his kindness, and for- bearance, and compassion, how could they live without these? One and all they declare, they would rather die than leave him, though, alas ! they knew not so well as he did, the fickleness and
36
INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT.
feebleness of their affection for him. With great condescension and kindness, he shows that his departure was not a thing to be grieved at ; that, on the contrary, it was a necessary part of his great plan for saving the world, and that it was indispensable, in order to fit them for the parts they had to perform. / tell you the truth : it is expedient for you that I go away ; for if I go not away, the Comforter luill not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. It is a remarkable passage, solemnly and affectionately in- troduced, and worthy of special notice. Who is this Comforter f and what is the work he performs, which makes his coming so important and desirable ?
The Comforter is the Holy Ghost, otherwise called the Spirit of truth, and the Spirit of Christ, the third person of the glorious Trinity, equal with the Father and the Son. He was known to the ancients, for in the record of creation we are told that tJie Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters, Gen. i. 2. His per- son and character must have been often a subject of earnest inquiry to those who expected the coming of Christ, for he is most distinctly spoken of in the Old Testament, in reference to that coming. But the full revelation of his character is found only in the New Testament, and especially in this last discourse of Christ. But everywhere in the New Testament he is spoken of in terms of the highest honor. The names and titles of God are given to him, and he is described as exercising divine attri- butes, acquainted with every secret thought, Eom. viii. 26, searching all things, even the deep things of God, 1 Cor. ii. 10. He is called the Spirit of Christ, because, in the economy of redemp- tion, he belongs to Christ. He was, in a manner, purchased for the church by his death. He is sent forth by Jesus Christ, and the great object of his mission is to testify of Christ. Obtained by Christ's death, he is sent forth by his prayers. When our Saviour ascended up on high, and led captivity captive, he also gave gifts to men ; and of all his gifts, the first and the greatest was this, the gift of the Holy Spirit ; and oh, what a gift was this ! It came down at first, with a fulness, and freeness, and profusion, that astonished even those who had been expecting it, and confounded those who had not. It was on the day of Pentecost. The disciples, in obedi- ence to the command of their ascended Lord, still tarried at Jerusa- lem, and their prayers rose constantly with one accord for the ful- filment of his promise. Suddenly, there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, — cloven tongues of fire appeared, — •
INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT.
'37
they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and spake with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
The sensation produced in Jerusalem was astonishing, as well it might be. The remembrance of the crucifixion of Christ had not yet died away, and the hearts of men were not at ease, when they thought of his predictions. When this new wonder was noised abroad, the multitude speedily gathered together, and ivere confounded at what they saw and heard. A few timid Galileans, without in- fluence or authority in the state, without wealth or honor among men, were now seen boldly advocating the cause of him who had been so lately crucified in scorn. Known to all men to be unlearned and ignorant men, they were heard speaking strange and difficult languages, with a fluency and accuracy that no human preceptor ever imparted. Known to be men brought up among themselves, and possessing no power that other men did not possess, and distinguished by nothing, except that they had been loiih Jesus, they were now seen working great and notable miracles, which none of their enemies dared to deny. Wonder- ful, too, were the effects produced by their preaching. Eloquence has been defined as "the art of persuasion,'' but how could these fishermen be eloquent, who had never been taught in the schools? How should they be able to persuade men to embrace the doc- trines of the crucified Jesus, when the chief priests and pharisees, the wise and the learned, without exception, opposed him? Yet on the very first day of their preaching, three thousand men were pricked to the heart by their words, and, asking What shall we do 1 were baptized, and added to their number. Nor did the in- fluence stop here. Miracle followed upon miracle, conversion followed after conversion ; daily were added to them such as should be saved. The multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul, and no wonder, for one and the self-same Spirit wrought in them all. The influence spread abroad. It began in Jerusalem, but it stopped not there. Persecution began, and the disciples were scattered ; but they went everywhere preaching the word, and still, as they preached, men became obedient to the faith. The mongrel Samaritans believed, — a stranger from dis- tant Ethiopia was baptized, and went rejoicing to his own land, where he proclaimed the same truths. The Gentiles were called ; Cornelius, and others with him, believed ; and, from that moment, the apostles went abroad to all nations. Standing before the wealth of Ephesus, and the luxury of Corinth, and the learning
38
INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT.
of Athens, and the proud power of imperial Rome, they spake of Jesus and the resurrection. Everywhere they were scorned, everywhere they were opposed, everywhere persecuted, yet in every place the invincible power of the Spirit selected and brought to them those that should be saved. It was a time of overturning among the nations ; but the Spirit of God moved on in his conquering course, until the name of Christ was proclaimed in the temples of ancient Rome, and the palace of her monarchs acknowledged his sway.
We are sometimes so dazzled by the splendor of the first man- ifestation of the Spirit as to be incapable of attending to the less brilliant tokens of his presence in our own times. Indeed there are those among nominal Christians in our day, of whom it may be said, as of the disciples whom Paul found at Ephesus, they have not so much as heard whether there be an Holy Ghost, Acts xix. 2. But there is an Holy Ghost. There are influences of the Spirit now diffused, and now felt, among the churches of Christ, and till time shall end those influences shall be diffused, and be felt. It was an express promise of our Saviour, that the Comforter should abide ivith his people forever, John xiv. 16. It is the distinguishing character of the people of Christ, that the Spirit of Christ dwells in them, Rom. viii. 9 ; and of the church of Christ, that it is a spiritual house offering up spiritual sacrifices unto God, 1 Pet. ii. 5. I pray your attention for a few minutes longer, while we consider some of the works of the Spirit, as wrought in our times, and as they must be wrought in our own hearts, if we wish ever to see the face of our God in peace.
One of the names given by the Saviour to the Comforter who came to supply the wants of his own bodily presence, is the Spirit of truth, John xv. 26. It is an expressive and appropriate name, for he comes to enlighten men, of whom it is most truly said, that naturally we walk in a vain show, and follow after shadows, and falsehoods. Mortifying as the truth is, it is yet in- contestable, that we are ignorant of God and his true character, — of the real nature of sin, of our own condition, and of the way of salvation. We think ourselves wise, and that we know all these things, but it is not so, for the natural man receiveth not the things of God. We are wise for this world, but not for the next ; and therefore these things are foolishness unto us, 1 Cor. ii. 14. We may even be acquainted with the letter of the word of God, but
INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT.
39
its real import is hidden from us, till the Spirit of truth has opened our eyes ; for the God of this world hath blinded the eyes of them which believe not, lest the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them, 2 Cor. iv. 4. Now the object of the Spirit is to remove this blindness, and to lead into all truth. Hence he is sent to convince the world of sin, of righteousness, and of a judgment to come, John xvi. 8. The knowledge of sin, of the sinfulness of our own hearts, though a deeply painful and most humbling knowledge, is yet one of the first importance. No dis- ease that affects the whole constitution can ever be removed, un- less its real nature be shown, and its sores probed even to the bottom. The Spirit of Christ performs this painful process by showing the true nature of sin, and its odiousness, as committed against so glorious a being as our God. He takes the soul of man, and drawing off his thoughts from surrounding objects, sets before him in long and terrible array, the sins of his youth, a,nd of his more matured years. He leads him to the unerring stand- ard of God's word, which requires perfect holiness, and shows how every thought has been turned aside. He arms conscience with her native power, and bringing the sinner into the presence of God's perfect justice, bids him consider faithfully who he is, and what he has done, and asks, what retribution awaits conduct such as his has been ? The differences in men's natural constitution and temperament will greatly modify their feelings at such a time as this ; but there is no man who has been wrought upon by the Spirit of God, faithfully to ask himself these questions, who does not tremble at the view of himself thus obtained, and cry out with the Philippian jailer, What must I do to be saved? It is a dreadful thing to stand, as men are sometimes brought to stand in the full light of the Spirit of truth, as it shines upon their ini- quities, and reveals the ineffable justice of God. It is a fearful thing thus to fall into the hands of the living God. But how shall we escape the sword of his justice ? How shall we flee from the wrath to come ? How shall these souls that are dead in sin, be made alive to God ? Come from the four tvinds, 0 breath, and breathe upon these slain that they may live, Ezek. xxxvii. 9. The Spirit of Christ must answer these questions, and it is his work to do it. There is a way of escape, and Christ is that way. No man cometh to the Father but by him. "Would you find that way and walk therein ? Then seek the Spirit's influence, for it is the Spirit who testifies of Christ and leads men unto him, John xiv. 26 ; xv. 26;
40
INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT.
xvi. 14, 15. It is his great object to show the character of Christ, and why he suffered ; to set forth, the efficacy of his death, and the sufficiency of his salvation. When the serpent-bitten Israelites were perishing in the wilderness, Moses erected a brazen serpent on a pole, and bade them look and live. The skill of the painter has represented that scene, when friends brought their friends, and a mother her child, and turned its dying gaze to the wonder- working sign. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up ; that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life, John iii. 14. The Spirit of Christ here performs for us the office that no friend, no tender mother even, can perform. He brings the crucified one before our eyes, and bids us look and live. Do you smile at this, and say, How can these things be ? The age of miracles has passed. In what way then does this mysterious Spirit perforin his operations ? I answer, He works by means ; and though the age of miracles be passed, that of supernatural influences has not. A sermon, a letter from a pious friend, a remarkable providence of God, an open bible. These are some of the means ; and his influences accompanying them work upon the heart, sometimes gently and sometimes powerfully, but in ways that we cannot explain. Have you never felt them ? Has an old truth never darted upon . your mind, with, a vividness and force that startled you, as though it were a new revelation ? Have you not felt yourselves at times impelled to the consideration of serious things ? Have you not wished at times that you knew what shall befall you when you shall enter the untried realities of the other world, to which, we so rapidly hasten ?
" Hath a voice within Ne'er whispered to thy secret soul,
Urged thee to leave the ways of sin, And yield thy heart to God's control ?
Sinner, it was a heavenly voice,
It was the Spirit's gracious call, It bade thee make the better choice,
And haste to seek in Christ thine all."
These influences of the Spirit are to be carefully improved. There is a wonderful depth of meaning in the words of our Lord, The wind bloweth where it listeth — so is every one that is born of the Spirit, John iii. 8. Learn a lesson from the sailor. The winds
INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT.
41
he encounters are not always favorable, but be knows that with- out the wind his voyage will never be made. It is his object, therefore, to seek those regions where the most favorable breezes blow, and he is anxious to improve the slightest puff of air. Sail after sail is lifted to the sky, and spread to the breeze. Every change in the force and direction of the wind is carefully noted, and the corresponding changes made in the canvass of his vessel, day by day, and night by night, with untiring perseverance he observeth the winds and regardeth the clouds. And is he not wise to do so ? Would you not blame him if he pursued any- other course ? Precisely alike is our situation, the same as his is our duty. We are sailing over the sea of life ; unknown cur- rents are carrying us among unseen dangers, and the Spirit's in- fluences are the only breezes that can waft us to our port in heaven. Watch then as the sailor watches, and earnestly pray for those influences, and you shall obtain them. Where is the dead sea, that is never ruffled by the breeze ? Where is the man who has never felt the stirrings of the Spirit ? But neglect those influences, misimprove those gracious impressions, which every man who has heard of Christ has felt, and who can 3^0 a blame if the currents sweep you on the shoals, and you make shipwreck of your souls forever ?
I know of no part of the Scriptures which contain such im- portant and delightful truths, as those that speak of the Holy Spirit, and his efforts to turn men unto God. But there are no truths guarded by such awful sanctions as these ; for those same scriptures tell us, that though the Spirit suffereth long and is kind, yet he will not always wait. They speak of grieving the Spirit, of quenching the Spirit. They speak of the fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation in the breasts of those who have rejected his offers of mercy. It is a melancholy thing to see a blasted tree in the greenwood * or a becalmed ship at sea drifting on the rocks, when but a few miles off, the winds are careering in their playful courses. But more melancholy and sad is the condition of him, of whom God has said, lie is joined to his idols, let him alone, Hos. iv. 17. Yet such there are, for the Spirit of God will not always strive, and the sin against the Holy Spirit is the sin that will not be forgiven.
The Holy Spirit is the author of Eegeneration. Hence it was that our Saviour said with such solemnity to Nicodemus, Verily,
42
INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT.
verily, I say unto thee, except a man he horn of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God, John iii. 5.
The Spirit does not leave believers when he has led them to Christ He dwells in them as an holy temple to the Lord, and abides with them forever. It is his to form every virtue in the heart, and cherish every emotion of good. It is his to mortify sin, and to strengthen against temptation. It is his to strengthen us, helping our infirmities, and enabling us in prayer to plead for the things we need. The Spirit itself maheth intercession for us with groanings that cannot he uttered, Rom. viii. 26.
The influences of the Spirit in the heart, and the fruits of the Spirit in the life, constitute the great distinction between the men of Grod and the men of the world ; for while the latter go on adding sin to sin, the former are known by the fruits of the Spirit in their lives, which are love, joy, peace, goodness and faith.
The doctrines respecting the Spirit of Grod, are both important and mysterious. Those who are proud of their own powers, and will receive nothing which they cannot comprehend, despise them as mere fantasies. But the Bible is full of mysteries. Every- thing around us is full of mysteries, Man is a mystery to him- self. Is it then unlikely that the plan of our salvation should contain revelations that our own reason would never have dis- covered ? No, my hearers ; when we have searched all the heights and fathomed all the depths of the created universe, — when we have walked in search of the depths, and the gates of death have been opened to us, and all these hidden things been revealed to us, then we may complain that we cannot comprehend all that is said concerning that Spirit ivho searcheth all things, even the deep things of God, 1 Cor. ii. 10. In the mean time, it is ours, with holy reverence, to obey his influences, and to admit him into our hearts. It is our part to walk, not after the flesh, but after the Spirit ; knowing that if ojiy man have not the Spirit of C hrist, he is none of his, Rom. viii. 9.
Macao, June 4, 1843.
SEKMON VI.
JACOB'S PRAYER.
And Jacob said, Oh God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the Lord which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee ; I am not worthy of the least of all thy mercies, and of all the truth which thou hast showed unto thy servant ; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan, and now I am become two bands. Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau : for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children. And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude. — Genesis xxxii. 9-12.
The life of the patriarch Jacob was a life of much affliction and sorrow. At the age of more than six score years, when he stood before Pharaoh, he said, The days of the years of my pilgrim- age are an hundred and thirty years : few and evil have the days of the years of my life been, Gen. xlix. 7. The causes of his afflictions were various, but that which chiefly distressed him, and for the longest period made him an exile from his father's house, was his contention with Esau his brother. It is a melancholy thing that in this world, our greatest sorrows often arise where we naturally expect the greatest happiness. Thus Jacob found that a brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city, and their contentions are like the bars of a castle, Pro v. xviii. 19.
After spending twenty, or; as many with great reason, suppose forty years, away from his father's house, Jacob received a divine command to return to his own country. It does not appear that he had received any intimation of his brother's feelings towards him, during their long separation, and the command that bade- him return did not inform him what reception he should meet from the injured and revengeful Esau. Yet he had various cir- cumstances to encourage him. The divine command itself was amply sufficient. Added to this he was cheered by the appear- ance of two bands of angels, sent to guard him on his way, and
44 Jacob's prayer.
to assure him of the divine protection. Yet as he drew near the end of his journey, fears began to arise and distract his mind. He knew that he had injured his brother; he knew his violent dis- position ; and knew too, that if Esau still retained his anger, it was in vain for him, encumbered with his family and flocks, to think of escaping from him. The messengers that he sent to find grace in his sight, brought back an answer by no means calculated to allay his fears. We came to thy brother Esau, anal also he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him. The purpose of Esau in coming with such a host, is not stated, but the probability is, that he came to execute his long-cherished purpose, even to slay his brother Jacob, Gen. xxvii. 41. So at least Jacob thought, and as may well be supposed, he was greatly afraid and distressed. For a while he seems almost to have forgotten the divine command and promises, and the guardian host, which though invisible still surrounded him, (Ps. xxxiv. 7.) He had toiled long in a foreign land, in the day the drought consumed him, and the frost by night, and sleep departed from his eyes, Gen. xxxi. 40. He was now return- ing to spend, as he hoped, the evening of his days in peace, with his flocks and his wealth, his children and his friends, in the land of promise. But before he had even entered that desired land, or crossed the Jordan that separated it from the profane world around, he found himself in danger of losing all and life itself, from the hands of a brother. With no ordinary experience, even in his life of frequent reverses, he took every precaution to avert at least a part of the threatened danger ; and dividing the people that ivere with him, and his flocks, and herds, and camels, into two bands, he said, If Esau come to the one company and smite it, then the other company which is left shall escape. This was all the prepa- ration he could make, but it was not all that he could do ; and alarmed though he was, he looked up to God, and gave utterance to his feelings in a prayer, which in appropriateness, simplicity, fervor, and excellence, is equalled only among the prayers of the Bible.
To us, who are as much called upon as ever the ancient patriarchs were to address ourselves to God in prayer, it cannot but be interesting to know what words they used in their addresses to the throne of grace, and with what arguments they enforced their supplications, and the prayer before us is full of instruction on both these points. Jacob commenced his prayer in a manner which, while it expressed strong confidence in God,
Jacob's prayer.
45
combined also some of the strongest reasons that could be urged why God should hearken to him, and grant his request. He did not appear before him as one who had had no previous communi- cations with him. The suppliant was well known to the Almighty, as his fathers were before him. Oh God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac. It is not an unmeaning form of words that is used, when God is called the God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob. He is also the God of all men, but he is never called the God of Cyrus, or of Kome, as he is called the God of Abraham, and the God of Israel. He is in a peculiar manner their God, for he formed a covenant with Abraham and his descendants, promising to them all needed earthly blessings, and, above all, the gift of his own Son, Jesus Christ. This covenant, and every blessing connected with it, is referred to every time that God is addressed as the God of Abraham, and it was because Jacob trusted in that covenant, that he thus calls upon God. He pleads his covenant relation with him, as the descendants of those to whom special promises had been made, as a reason why he should be delivered, in this his time of distress. He had also another reason for hoping for deliverance. He had not needlessly run into danger. He had not left the path of duty, but was now acting in obedience to an express command of God. Might he not, therefore, expect that God would put forth his hand and protect him ? It is not the custom of God to forsake his people in difficulties, when those difficulties come upon them in the way of obedience to his injunctions. Jacob had been for many years a stranger sojourning in a strange land, but though he sore longed after his fathers home, yet he would not take a step thitherward, till assured it was agreeable to God's will that he should do so. That will was finally intimated to him, and in obedience to it he acted. While thus acting, these difficulties came upon him, but he comforted himself by saying, it was not himself, but the Lord, which said unto him, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred. And besides the encouragement he derived from his covenant relation to God, and the consciousness of being in the path of duty, he was farther sustained by having received a special promise of protection. Had God merely commanded him to go, it would have been a sufficient warrant to expect protection, but God had also said unto him, And I will deal well zuith thee. Stronger grounds of encouragement, he could not desire ; more explicit assurances of good, he could not need. These grounds of encour-
46
Jacob's pkayer.
agement, be it observed, were not in himself, but in God, and it was well for him that he had such grounds for encouragement, and such assurances, on which to rest his faith ; for in himself he felt that he had no title to the favor of God, and no claim on his mercy. The creature of his bounty, and fed by his hand, he could see that he had still grievously erred in many points, and gone astray, while he had done nothing, and could do nothing, that should make God a debtor to himself. He could not but feel, as he looked back, that he had sinned greatly in deceiving his father, and imposing upon him by false pretences ; and that Esau had just cause of complaint against him, for supplanting him of his birthright, and defrauding him of his expected blessing. It was, therefore, with deep humility and contrition that he now confessed himself unworthy of the least of all God's mercies, and his truth. How different was his language and his spirit from that of his proud descendant, the pharisee, who boldly stood up in the temple to demand the favor of God, as the simple debt of jus- tice due to his good deeds ! But true piety is ever deeply hum- bled before God, and Abraham, and David, and Job, as well as Jacob, always abased themselves when they spake unto God, and confessed themselves undeserving of his mercies.
Jacob, amidst all his fears and confessions of guilt, was not unmindful of the mercies he had received from God, and he refers to them in his prayer, partly that he may express his thankful- ness for them, and partly that he may encourage himself with the hope of other mercies from God. Had the Lord so highly favored him in times past, and will he now desert him ? Surely not. True, he was afraid, for danger was very near. True, he was unworthy, for he had been a great offender; but still he could not forget how the mercy of God had ever led him along, and how his truth and faithfulness had still sustained him. It is wonderful how soon the memory will run over all the events of a long lifetime, and place them in one vivid picture before the mind. Space and time are nothing to the living principle within us ; and in scarcely more time than it required to speak the words, had Jacob recalled his feelings, when, solitary and alone, he crossed the Jordan. He thought of his sojourning in the land of Mesopotamia, and how there from a small one, he had become a strong nation ; and he is now returning, rich in all kinds of possessions, to the land of his birth. In all that time the good- ness of the Lord had been great to him, and he cannot but speak
Jacob's peayer.
47
of all the mercy and truth he had showed to his servant, fat with my staff I passed over Jordan, and now I am become two bands. Thus the remembrance of past mercies encouraged him to hope for mercies yet to come.
The prayer itself is a remarkable one. He prays for deliver- ance from the hand not of a sworn and hereditary enemy, but from the hand of his own brother. Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau ; for I fear him, lest he. will come and smite me, and the mother with the children. The expres- sion, to smite the mother with the children, was a common one to denote the extreme of cruelty and rage. The comparison seems to be taken from those who robbed bird's-nests, taking away both the mother and the young, and leaving the nest utterly desolate, and it shows well how greatly Jacob feared his brother. Sin has brought strange things into the world. It has brought confusion and contention into the abodes of order and harmony, and armed man against his brother. It has obliged the weak to lift up their voices to God, who ruleth over all, for protection from those very persons who ought to have been their surest defence.
The prayer of Jacob was short, as the most of those recorded in the Scriptures are. It needs not many words, nor vain repe- titions, to make known our wants unto God, for his ear is ever open to hear, and his heart ever ready to compassionate those in any distress. It was also to the point, for Jacob knew what he wanted, when he made his prayer unto God ; and it was hearty and sincere, for he felt his need of Divine assistance. Though he prayed for deliverance from the hand of Esau, who sought his life, his prayer breathes no unkind spirit towards him. He still calls him his brother.
But when a man is in earnest in urging any petition, either to man or to God, he will not rest satisfied with the bare presenta- tion of his request. He will also urge it by the force of every argument in his power. His whole prayer is a continued series of arguments with God, Before he gave utterance to his peti- tion, he addresses him as his covenant God, and pleads that he was directly commanded to put himself in his present dangerous position. He urges the special promise of favor he had received, and draws an argument also from the past mercies of God, and even from his own present fears. All these he spreads before God. All these he pleads along with his petition. But he has still another argument to plead. In the gracious intercourse of
48
Jacob's prayer.
God with his fathers, it had been promised to Abraham and Isaac, that they should be greatly increased and multiplied, and that in their seed all the families of the earth should be blessed. This promise had been repeated to Jacob, many years before the present time, when he was fleeing without a companion from the face of Esau. Should his brother now be permitted to wreak his vengeance upon him, and smite the mother with the children, where would be the faithfulness of God? or how could his purposes be accom- plished, in making of the seed of Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, a great nation ?
But we shall very improperly limit the force of the promise, if we confine it to the mere personal descendants, and temporal interests of the race of the patriarchs. Its main reference was to Christ, and the salvation he was to procure ; for he was to be born from among the descendants of Jacob, and in him were all the nations of the earth to be blessed. It was this, therefore, which Jacob had in mind, when he pleaded with God: Thou saidst, I iv ill surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude. His prayer was, therefore, really a prayer in the name of Christ, and, using such an argument with God, it could not but prevail. He obtained, therefore, that which he prayed for, and when he met his brother, the lion was changed into a lamb. And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck, and kissed him, and they wept, Gen. xxxiii. 4.
It is a sublime thing to pray. Even on earth, when a subject is favored with an audience with his monarch, he comes before him with reverence ; he carefully prepares himself, that no re- mark he makes may prove displeasing to his superior ; and he earnestly expects to receive some benefit from him. If such feelings possess our minds, even in our dealings with our fellow- creatures, and on matters of merely temporal interest, how much more should our hearts be filled with reverence, in the presence of the Holy Majesty of heaven, when our dealings with him con- cern our soul's eternal well-being. It is true he shows great grace in condescending to hear us, and we may always approach him with confidence ; but beware lest that confidence degenerate into rashness or familiarity. Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thy heart be hasty to utter anything before God; for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth; tlierefore, let thy words be few, Ecc. v. 2.
Stud}-, therefore, the prayers of such men as Jacob, and
JACOB'S PKAYER.
49
David of old, for they are complete and copious formulas for our direction. The man whose heart is deeply imbued with reverence to God, and with a due sense of his own sinfulness, will reverently worship his Creator, and humbly confess his own offences. Filled with gratitude for past favors, he will acknowledge his dependence upon God for them all, and will pray for a continuation of the same. His petitions will not be mere lip service. He will be anxious to receive what he asks for, and while he prays with submission to the will of God, it will yet be with earnest cries ; nor will he fail to bring arguments to plead with his Maker. Whatever other arguments he presents, he will not fail to plead in the name of Christ, and so doing, he shall be certain of receiv- ing his requests, if they be such as shall be good for him to receive. Hitherto, said our Saviour, in his last address to his dis- ciples, ye have ashed nothing in my name. Ash, and ye shall receive, that your joys may he full, John xvi. 24.
Among all the evidences of the possession of true religion in the heart, few are better than the habit of humble, fervent, per- severing prayer. Our spiritual life is so dependent upon supplies of grace from above, and on constant intercourse with our Maker, that a prayerless Christian is a solecism in terms, and an impossi- bility in fact. The first evidence of being a child of God is given, when it is said, as it was said concerning the persecuting Paul of old, Behold, he prayeth / and the hj^pocrite's character is pointed out, when it is said, Will he always call upon God? Job xxvii. 10. By prayer, we derive every blessing from above. The atmosphere we breathe is unfavorable to the growth of reli- gion, and it is only by prayer we can receive those supplies that are essential to our spiritual well-being.
" Prayer is the Christian's vital breath, The Christian's native air, His watchword at the gate of death, He enters heaven by prayer."
Yet it is a duty and privilege sadly neglected; for it is not enough merely to say, Lord, Lord, or to repeat a form of words, while the heart goeth after vanities. True prayer is a spiritual thing, and requires a spiritual frame of mind to offer it aright, and God will accept of the broken prayer, and the half-suppressed sigh of the contrite heart, when he would turn away from the polished speech and well-chosen petition of the self-confident, unhumbled pharisee.
4
50
JACOB S PRAYER.
Fellow- Christian ! what is the character of your prayers ? You may find a good test of your growth in grace and Christian standing, simply in the character of your prayers. In the prayer of Jacob, of which a hasty review has been made, you see that everything is to the point, that there is no wandering, no point- less, uncertain petitions, no repetitions. He came to the throne of grace, and he had an errand there. On what errand do you come ? Or do you come, merely because it is a matter of course ? He had a petition and a request to offer. What is your petition and your request? He came, desiring an answer. Do you desire an answer to your praj^ers ? He came with his mouth filled with arguments. The covenant of God, a command to himself, a special promise, a general promise, that included the coming of a Saviour, — all these were his arguments. Do you bring arguments? do you plead promises in prayer? If you read the Bible carefully, and pondered over it, you would find both subjects enough to pray about, and promises and arguments with which to fill your prayers. It is careless reading of the Scriptures, that is one cause of your barrenness and coldness in prayer.
But further: Jacob's prayer had a full confession of unworthi- ness connected with it, and also a thankful acknowledgment of mercies received. These are also parts of prayer. "Prayer is the offering up of our desires unto God, for things agreeable to his will, in the name of Christ, with confession of our sins, and thankful acknowledgment of his mercies." Do your prayers con- tain these essential parts ? I do not ask, have they this form ? It is most likely they have, — but do these parts of your prayers come from your hearts? My brethren, if you would prosper, and be accepted in your prayers, I would advise you to study and imitate the prayer of Jacob, particularly in these five things : —
1. Have an object when you come.
2. Plead for it earnestly, with all due arguments.
3. Confess your own un worthiness.
4. Acknowledge the mercy of God, which has so long sup- plied you.
5. And, lastly, let all things be done in the name of Jesus Christ.
Macao, Jane 18, 1843.
SERMON VII.
PLANTS OF THE HOUSE OF THE LORD.
They that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. Psalm xcii. 13.
The fertility of oriental climates produces many and splendid objects to gratify the eye, and gives rise to equal splendor in imagery and comparison. The Bible is an Eastern book, and its poetry like other eastern poetry, breathes the fragrance of an at- mosphere of spices. Every object of beauty is drawn into the service of religion, and one familiar with its pages sees almost nothing around him that is not sanctified by its frequent allusions and comparisons. The sentiment of our text is founded on a comparison drawn from the forest trees of the land of Palestine. The preceding verse had compared the righteous to the stately and towering palm, with its nourishing fruit, and to the cedar of Lebanon with its spreading shade, and its undying greenness. The righteous shall flourish like the palm-tree : he shall grow like the cedars in Lebanon. Continuing his comparison, the Psalmist de- clares, Those that are planted in the house of the Lord) shall flourish in the courts of our God.
It is proposed to inquire into the meaning of the expression, planted in the house of the Lord, and to show the connection be- tween such planting and flourishing in the courts of God.
The church of God is oftentimes compared to a garden, filled with every variety of flower and plant and tree. Yet as in all our gardens, weeds infest the ground, and thorns and thistles and noxious plants usurp the places reserved for useful and ornamental trees, — so it is in the garden of God. It is not every plant, that makes a fair show, which has a right to stand there. There may even be branches of the useful vines, which bearing no fruit, shall be taken away, John xv. 2, and of those which are utterly
52
PLANTS OF THE HOUSE OF THE LORD.
useless, the stern decree has gone forth, Cut it down, why cumhereth it the ground f It becomes therefore a matter of the utmost moment to discern between the bad and the good ; to distinguish between the Trees of righteousness, the branch of his planting, and those which bearing only wild and noxious fruits, are rejected and nigh unto cursing ; whose end is to be burned, Heb. vi. 8.
The planting here spoken of is evidently something more than mere external form. It certainly implies that that which is planted possesses a living principle within, which grows and flourishes when once its roots are placed in the appropriate soil. This planting, therefore, in the house of the Lord — or, divesting the expression of its figurative dress — this numbering of any one in the church, and among the people of God, does not consist in ex ternal rites and ordinances alone. That baptism is a solemn and important and most useful ordinance, is admitted by all, who pay any respect to the institutions of our God ; but that baptism alone, or the Lord's Supper alone, or both of them together, can save the soul, is an error of the most dangerous kind, and worthy of the cunning and malice of the god of this world who invented it. Baptism is not regeneration. If the blood of bulls and of goats could not take away sin, shall the sprinkling of a little water on the outward body, wash away the stains of the unseen soul? Did not Simon Magus, who believed and was baptized, still remain in the gall of bitterness and the bonds of iniquity ? Did not Judas rise from the Lord's table to go to his own place, with the fearful declaration sounding after him, good were it for that man, if he had never been born, Mark xiv. 21. Thousands there are, you may have known such, who have been baptized in the name of Christ, and yet by their conduct shame the very heathen themselves. Shall their baptism save them ? The confessions of faith of all the reformed churches are on this point, plain and explicit. Thus in the twenty-seventh of the articles of religion of the Church of England, it is expressly called, — not regenera- tion,— but "a sign of regeneration or the new birth, whereby, as by an instrument they that receive baptism rightly, are grafted into the church." Such is its true nature. It is merely an instru- ment, and if rightly used, is of excellent service. But if there be nothing but the instrument, — if a man be merely received into the visible church by this outward ordinance, — if there be no root, and living principle, — and if that living principle do not exert itself and grow, — then he is only a dry stick in the house of God.
PLANTS OF THE HOUSE OF THE LORD.
53
He is not planted there. The blast shall prostrate him to the ground, and he shall be gathered and cast forth with others, to become fuel for the fire. Neither by this planting in the house of the Lord are we to understand, a mere profession of religion, even though it be joined to external morality, and a blameless de- portment. It is not enough merely to read a prayer or two, and perhaps glance at the Bible for a short time every day. It is not enough to be a regular attendant at the house of God, and while there to give a respectful hearing to the messages delivered by his servants. It is not enough to obey all human laws, and act with justice and kindness towards one's neighbors. All this is well and commendable. It is essential to the well-being of society, and the happiness of the social circle ; and it is especially impor- tant as leading to better things. But I repeat it, all this is not enough. You may have all this, and perish forever. You are not satisfied when you plant a fruit tree in your garden, and come to it year after year seeking fruit, if you find it standing tall and erect in the place where you planted it, but fruitless. It may not disfigure the scene, but why these leaves and blossoms, if the solid reward of the labor bestowed upon it be wanting ? Out it down, ivhy cumbereth it the ground f And is a mere externally blameless deportment all that God expects, when himself has told us, The fruits of the Spirit are love, joy, peace, long -suffering, gentle- ness, goodness, faith, Gal. v. 22. Will he be satisfied with mere outward show, the leaves and flowers of lip service, who looks at the inward man, and values the sighing of the contrite heart, and the praise of the grateful soul, more than gold or gems ?
Neither will it be deemed sufficient, if one, in addition to an admission to the church by baptism, and a generally correct de- portment, adds also, a zeal for external ceremonies, and a polemic eagerness for discussion on disputed points in religion. There may be much of this where there is no real interest in religion. The Pharisees were extremely eager to defend the religion they professed, and they would compass sea and land to make one proselyte. But this did not secure for them the approbation of our Saviour. On the contrary, he pronounced the spirit that actuated them to be the spirit of this world, and not of God, and declared concering them, Every plant that my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall he rooted up, Matt. xv. 13.
We are not therefore to judge by mere external appearances. Many look fair and flourishing for a time, who do not continue
54
PLANTS OF THE HOUSE OF THE LORD.
long. When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish ; it is that they shall he destroyed forever, Ps. xcii. 7. It is a terrible description that is given of such, by the apostle Jude, — and a terrible fate awaits them. They are trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit twice dead, plucked up by the roots, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever, Jude 12, 13.
By those planted in the house of the Lord, we are to under- stand such as not only enjoy the ordinances of religion, and the care of the divine husbandman, but such as show also, that they have a principle of spiritual life to be cared for, and bring forth fruit answerable to the care bestowed upon them. In other words, they are living, growing, and active Christians; drawing their spiritual life from above, and constantly tending thitherward, as the trees stretch out their arms towards heaven.
That anything planted should grow and flourish with vigor, it must have its roots deeply implanted in appropriate soil ; it must be watered by frequent showers of heaven ; it must be pro- tected from the cold blasts and nipping frosts of winter as well as from the sun's too scorching rays. It will need constant care and attention ; and its luxuriance and waywardness, must be trimmed and restrained by the use of the pruning knife. If it be a good tree it will be constantly growing ; while its roots strike deeper into the earth, its branches will rise higher towards heaven ; its trunk will become more solid, it will yield less to the blasts that sweep around it; and its plentiful fruit will satisfy the expecta- tion of him who watched and cherished it with so much care. It will continue vigorous and healthy, even in old age, and the children of him who reared its first shoots, will rejoice in its wide- spreading shade.
Such, emphatically, is the Christian. He is planted in the house of the Lord ; for the church is the garden of God, and the plants that are really planted there, are objects of the special care of their divine master and cultivator. It is a spiritual planting we speak of, such as the apostle describes when he says, Being planted in the likeness of Christ's death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection, Eom. vi. 5. That is, those who are really members of the church of Grod, are such as are united to Christ by a living faith, and they thus become one with him. They draw their spiritual life from the merits of his death, and expect in virtue of his resurrection to be raised again from the dead, and made to partake of all spiritual blessings. It is not a mere pro-
PLANTS OF THE HOUSE OF THE LORD.
55
fession of union that they make, for as the same apostle declares, thej are rooted and grounded in the love of God — because in his love they live. This is the soil from which they derive their nourishment and strength. It is this which supplies every want, which sustains them when languishing, and causes them vigor- ously to increase. Neither is it by any man's own merits or good desert that he is placed in the garden of the Lord, and there en- abled to grow. This is forcibly expressed by the apostle Paul in his comparison of the church to an olive-tree, from which some of the branches were broken off, and others from a wild olive- tree grafted in, to partake of the root and fatness of the olive. Boast not thyself against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee. Thou wert cut out of the olive-tree tuhich is ivild by nature, and wert grafted contrary to nature into a good olive-tree, Eom. xi. 18, 24.
The care which God employs in selecting and planting the trees of righteousness in his garden, is exercised over them, as long as they remain in his house below. The church is but a nursery in which they are to remain for a season, until they be ready for removal and transplanting, in a more genial clime. While here, they enjoy his special care and attention. His word comes down like the rain from heaven, Is. lv. 10, for their good, while his Spirit diffuses his silent influences, like the precious clews of the night, over their souls. The hot blasts of Satan's temptations assail them at times, or the world's chilling in- fluences creep over them, yet he is ever near to observe them, and to shield them from harm if shelter be needed. Sorrows and afflictions often come upon the people of God, and sore bereave- ments strip them of many of those things in which they delighted; even as you have seen a tree stripped of jfs leaves, with its branches broken by the storms that raged around it ; but their troubles are all permitted and overruled with a wise reference to their good. For we are like plants that need constant pruning and restraint ; and the wise husbandman will apply his sharp knife with vigor, if he see that otherwise his hopes of abundant fruit may be disappointed. Although this is not the permanent station of God's people — although it is certain that he has nobler work for them to do above, yet even here he expects them to serve him. Herein is my Father glorified, said our Saviour, that ye bear much fruit: so shall ye be my disciples, John xv. 8. Those that be planted in the house of the Lord must show the effect of
56
PLANTS OF THE HOUSE OF THE LOED.
their superior training, by their vigorous growth and abundant fruit. / am like a green olive-tree in the house of God, said David in his early manhood, Ps. lii. 8 ; and like the palm-tree he still brought forth fruit in old age, 1 Chron. xxix. 1 ; and like the cedar-tree he was fat and flourishing.
Such is the character of those who are really planted in the house of (rod below. I am aware that there are those who are said to be planted there, to whom a widely different description belongs. But it is for them to say why they differ from the de- scription he has given of his own people. It is for them to say, when he comes seeking fruit from them, year after year, and still finding none, why they have disappointed his expectations. It is for them to show cause why the axe, which is laid at the root of the trees, should not be applied, and the tree that bringeth not forth good fruit be hewn down and cast into the fire ; and woe unto all such as are not ready when he comes to render him their fruits in their seasons I
After remaining the appointed time in the house of Grod below, his people are removed to their eternal homes above. The proper time for such removal is known to the great Husbandman alone. It sometimes seems to us as if the excellent of the earth are removed at seasons, when the vacancy occasioned by their absence can hardly be supplied. But it is not so. He who has determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of men's habi- tation, knows best when to reward the faithfulness of his servants. They are taken away, but it is that they may occupy a nobler station nearer to himself. They that be planted in the house of the Lord on earth, shall flourish in the courts of our God in heaven. In that region of eternal blessedness they shall flourish forever. There are no chilling blasts, nor scorching droughts, to injure the fair trees of righteousness. The pruning knife is never needed there ; and of them it may most truly be said, Blessed are they ! For they shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit, Jer. xvii. 8. It is one of the pecu- liar principles of that state of happiness, that it is subject to no vicissitudes, aud never comes to an end. As the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands, Is. lxv. 22.
I have used figurative language freely in explaining this pas-
PLANTS OF THE HOUSE OF THE LORD.
57
sage of holy writ, because it is a passage that calls for such lan- guage. But let not the comparisons and analogies adduced cover and conceal the important truths they are intended to make known.
If God's word compares his people to trees planted in the garden, then here is a test by which you may judge of your own character. Are you thus planted in the house of the Lord ? And if that same word declares that it is only those who are planted in his house below, that shall flourish in his courts above, then you have, not merely a test of character, but the strongest of all motives to find where you are placed, and to act accordingly.
Observe the character of his people. They are planted in the house of the Lord. The people of God are found in the church of God. It is not the teaching of any human master to which they yield implicit obedience. Much may be learned from men, and by the assistance of men, but God's word is the standard of all right — yea, the sum and the substance of all truth. Let it be your study then to understand that word, for the church is built upon it ; nor can you know whether you are in the church if you understand not the obvious declarations of its pages. It has its mysteries, and it has its obscurities ; but the parts that are neces- sary to be understood, are so plain, that the wayfaring man, though a, fool, need not err therein, Is. xxxv. 8.
But observe, it is not enough to be in the church by mere bap- tism and external participation in its ordinances. You must be planted there if you wish to flourish in the courts of God. Your life must be derived from heaven, and sustained from heaven, and your conduct must be answerable to your privileges. It is fruit the Master looks for from you. Leaves and blossoms are very beautiful ; but the fig- tree that mocked the expectations of the hungry having nothing thereon but leaves only, was cursed and withered away, Matt. xxi. 19. What fruit are you bearing? How much do you glorify our Father in heaven ? If he came now seeking fruit from you, should he find any ? And if not, what excuse could you offer him ? how prove your claim to be considered a branch of his planting f
Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven ; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven, Matt. vii. 19, 21.
Macao, June 25, 1843.
SERMON VIII.
TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP.
And it came to pass, that, as they went in the way, a certain man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. And Jesus said unto him, Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests ; but the Son of Man hath not where to lay his head.
And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead, but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.
And another also said, Lord, I will follow thee : but let me first go bid them farewell which are at home at my house. And Jesus said unto him, ~No man having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. — Luke ix. 51-62.
When Christ came, the secret thoughts of many hearts were revealed. His coming had been anxiously looked for. A general expectation of great things following his advent prevailed, and the whole Jewish nation may be said to have been in the posture of anxious waiting to see what he would accomplish. But his humble parentage and place of abode disheartened many, and his lowly appearance, unattended by trains of courtly followers, dis- gusted more. It was not long after his public ministry commenced, that the scornful cry was heard, Can any good thing come out of Nazareth f and his friends were told with bitter scoffs, that out of Galilee ariseth no prophet. Yet notwithstanding these disadvan- tages, as worldly men would call them, his doctrines excited at- tention, and forced a reluctant assent, even from his bitterest enemies. The splendor of his miracles, and the sublimity and truthfulness of his teachings convinced many. Their consciences responded to his calls, though their will remained in opposition to him. Yet some at least were found to follow, and to serve him. He could have secured many followers, by promises, which as the Son of God he could easily have performed. Had he only con- cealed the difficulties that attended a profession of faith in his
TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP.
59
name, he would have been attended by crowds of disciples. But he concealed nothing. As Joshua said to the over-forward Is- raelites, when they declared their readiness to serve the Lord, Ye cannot serve the Lord: for he is an holy God: he is a jealous God, Josh. xxiv. 19. So Christ showed plainly the strict and uncom- promising nature of his religion. He held up a crown of life and pointed to eternal joys, as the reward of his faithful servants ; but he did not hesitate to show the rough and stormy road that led to that crown, and the martyr's death by which they often entered on that life. No man ever yet entered the Christian church to whom the apostle Paul did not say, All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution, 2 Tim. iii. 12. In like manner our Saviour told all who came unto him, to count the cost before they undertook his service ; for as he said to his disciples, In the world ye shall have tribulation, John xvi. 83. These warn- ings were repeated as often as new offers of service were made. Thus it came to pass on one occasion, as they went in the way, that a certain person offered to cast in his lot among the disciples of Christ. What induced him to make this offer is not stated. He may have been impressed by the sight of the miracles of Christ. His conscience may have been touched by his solemn words, or the eloquence of him, who spake as never man spake, may have arrested his attention. It appears from the account given by Matthew, that he was a scribe, belonging therefore to the learned class in Judea. It is most probable that he was a person somewhat fond of a life of ease and enjoyment, which at the same time would give opportunities of attending to literary pursuits, and those studies of ethics which were then in vogue in the heathen schools of morality. He seems to have expected peculiar oppor- tunities of gratifying his taste, under the teachings of such a master as Christ ; while the thought of want, or exposure to personal inconveniences, in the company of one who could feed thousands with a few loaves and fishes, — or when the storm raged could still it with a word, appears not to have entered his mind. With much confidence therefore, he approaches the Saviour, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. It was a bold promise made, as too many are, under the excitement of the moment, only to be broken when the excitement has worn away. When the Israelites were at the foot of Mount Sinai, with the remembrance of the Eed Sea, and of Elim, and of Massah and Meribah, still fresh in their minds, it was easy for them to say, All that the Lord
60
TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP.
hath spoken we will do, Exod. xix. 18. But it was not so easy to do as they had said, when water failed them in the desert, and their soul loathed the light bread that sustained them. When Peter was surrounded by his fellow-disciples, and the melting words of Christ's affection still sounded in his ears, it was easy for him to say, Lord, I will lay down my life for thy sake, John xiii. 37, but he found it a harder trial than he had expected, when the stern soldiers gathered around him, and a scoffing damsel said, Thou also wast with Jesus of Nazareth, Mark xiv. 67. The scribe had seen the miracles of Christ, when the sick were restored to health, and thousands were fed by his miraculous stores.. He had listened to his words, when so many crowded to hear him, that they even trod upon one another, .and he thought it would be always so. He thought it would be pleasant to be with such a man, and to follow him in triumphal procession from city to city ; but he knew not the toil and self-denial, and the suffering and sorrow of the private life of Christ. He was like a raw recruit, who is willing enough to enlist for the war, but supposes that all can be done in the shade, and amidst delights, without sweat and dust, and beyond the reach of the enemy's arms.
To try his courage, and to open to him the secrets of his heart, Christ told him his own condition in life. It was not such as he had pictured to himself. Though really Lord of all, he was now a stranger in his own dominions, and though a few friends occasionally administered to his wants, yet house or home of his own, he had none. Foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the son of man hath not where to lay his head. And as the disciple is not above his Master, nor the servant above his Lord, those who follow him are not authorized to expect better accommodations. Pause for a moment, at this description. They are Christ's own words, you hear, and the person so destitute is God's own Son ! Before all things, — for whom all things were made, — by whose power all things exist, when he came to the earth, and took up his abode among men, the very beasts of the field, and the wandering birds of the air, had better homes than he ! Is there not meaning in the apostle's words, when he said, Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ ; though he was rich, yet, for your sokes, he became poor, that ye, through his poverty, might become rich, 2 Cor. viii. 9. If he has done this much for us, shall we count it hard that he expects his disciples to walk in his foot- steps, to drink of the cup of which he drinks, and to be baptized
TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP.
61
with the baptism wherewith he is baptized ? Has he not a right to say, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily, and follow me t Luke ix. 23. What effect the words of Christ produced upon the scribe, is not stated, nor does it concern us to know. The words themselves are recorded for our careful consideration ; and he that will be Christ's disciple, must make up his mind to bear all this, should his Master so require it. He may not see fit to call you to such self-denial ; but if he should, you must cheerfully bear it.
Another man was seen, for whom Christ had a work to do. He therefore gives him a special call, Follow me He meant to make him a preacher of the gospel. The office of the ministry is of so much importance and solemnity, that no man should under- take it, who has not received a distinct call thereto. A man can- not enter the ministry, as he can the army or the navy, or the profession of law or of medicine. It is a solemn thing to be a messenger of the Lord of hosts, to be an ambassador of Christ, and none but those who have suitable qualifications, and a special appointment, should take this office upon themselves. Ordinarily, it is not difficult to discover whether one is called to the ministry or not ; but there are frequently cases in which those who are called to it; hesitate to undertake its duties. A sense of their own unfitness, as in the case of Moses, or an apprehension that they have other and more pressing engagements, deters them from commencing new ones. Thus it was with the person here addressed. There appears to have been no unwillingness to fol- low Christ, but his aged father was at home, and probably neax the end of his life. His assistance might be needed, to pay the last sad rites, and filial piety urged him to remain till his father should no more need his services. Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. This was as fair an excuse as could be offered, but the Lord did not consider it sufficient. There were others who had less important callings, and who could easily perform all that was required for his father; but for him, there was a work to do, whose importance admitted of no delay. Let the dead bury their dead. Let those whose minds are occupied only with the affairs of this world, who have no proper sense of spiritual things, who are spiritually dead, and have no nobler work to per- form, let them attend to earthly matters ; but go thou and preach the kingdom of God. This is an employment above all others, and must, therefore, take the precedence of all others. It was not
62
TEEMS OF DISCIPLESHIP.
the object of Christ to depreciate the importance of the social vir- tues, nor did he at all intimate that the dead should not be decently interred ; but he did mean to teach, that, when a man is called to preach the gospel, he must suffer no other engagement to inter- fere with this. He called Matthew, as he sat at the receipt of custom, and he left all and followed him. He called the sons of Zebedee, as they were with their father, and they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him. He called for Peter, he called for Nathaniel, he called for Paul, and they obeyed his call, leaving all for him, and exclaiming, Woe is me, if I preach not the gospel, 1 Cor. ix. 16. Say not that the sacrifice is too great, or that too much is asked, when this is required. No sacrifice, not even life itself, can be too great, when made for the sake of him, who created us at first, and redeemed us with his own precious blood. It was to the praise of Levi, that the inspired penman wrote concerning him, He said to his father and to his mother, I have not seen him : neither did he acknowledge his brethren, nor know his ovm children : for they have observed thy word, and kept thy covenant, Deut. xxxiii. 9.
There was still another offer of service made to our Lord, but ap- parently by one who had not properly considered the nature of the service he was about to undertake. He was willing to follow Christ, but he wished first to arrange matters comfortably in his own house. He wished to go and say farewell to those in his own house, but he does not appear to have intended to break off all connection with the world. It was his desire, so to arrange his family affairs {anoTa^aadat) as to secure a comfortable retreat for himself, if religion should at any time offer less than he now expected from it. His proposal really amounted to a proposition to keep the world, as well as obey Christ, though it did not bear so much openly on its face. Lord, I will follow thee, but let me first go and bid them farewell which are at home in my house. He was willing enough to follow Christ, provided he could do it in peace with the world, and did not thereby close the door against his return to his old companions. Such followers Christ did not want. The whole heart, or none at all. The world must be totally renounced, and the kingdom of God first and chiefly sought. No man, having put his hands to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. He that commences any undertaking, how- ever humble it may be, must give it his undivided attention, if he wishes to succeed. More especially is this true in those things
TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP.
63
that relate to the other world. We cannot serve God and Mammon. He that starts to flee from the devoted city of destruction, but turns and looks back, longing again to re-enter its walls, and enjoy its delights, will never escape to the mountain of safety. Remember Lot's wife. He that comes to the battle-field, but turns his back when the charge is sounded, may indeed save his life for the time, but the victor's crown will never be his. He that com- mences the Christian course, but afterwards, for any cause what- soever, turns back, will find himself totally unfit for the kingdom of Grod, and his latter end shall be worse than the first.
This account is exceedingly instructive, by reason of its show- ing us so clearly the terms of discipleship, and the claims of the religion of Christ. The particular circumstances of each person in this account, are not so much the objects of attention, as the view it gives us of the spirit required in those who would follow Christ. The circumstances of different men vary, according to the age and country in which they live, and the rank they hold in life ; but the spirit and disposition of each member of the church of Christ, must be the same, whatever difference there be in his outward circumstances.
The spirit required in those who would follow Christ, as we may easily gather from the narrative before us, is one that would induce them to give up bodily ease and pleasure, wandering about, as has been done by others — yes, and by the ancestors of some of us — in deserts and mountains, and dwelling in dens and caves of the earth. It is such a spirit as will induce a man to tear himself away from father and mother, from wife and chil- dren, and, if need be, to endure the changed affection, and even the hatred, of those he loves best on earth, for the sake of Christ. It is that spirit which will induce a man to look upon the world as perishing dross, and will enable him on occasion to take cheer- fully the spoiling of his goods, and to embrace the stake, and gaze upon the flaming fagots, not accepting deliverance, when that deliverance can be obtained only by renouncing the service of the Master, whose cause we have embraced. It may be that none of those who hear me, shall ever be called upon to make such sacrifices, and endure such sufferings as these, for the sake of Christ. And yet, who shall assure you that you shall not? In the life-time of nearly all who hear me, all of these sacrifices have been made for Christ, and even death itself has been endured for his sake. Even now do the native Christians of Madagascar
64
TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP.
wander houseless in the tangled forests, rather than renounce the service of Christ, and I have yet to learn that Satan is not willing again to raise up persecutions in Christian lands, or that there are not men wicked enough to persecute others for conscience' sake, or that God may not see fit again to purify his church by fire and sword., and thus separate the precious from the vile.
But all this is not the hardest that a man may be called to endure, for the sake of Christ. A man may suffer martyrdom itself, with but little of the spirit of a true martyr. It is the daily routine of Christian life and duty, that calls for the sorest warfare, and the most painful sacrifices. Were there only a few strong efforts to be made, the work were easily accomplished. But with steady aim, and with single purpose to persevere, even to the end of life, in a course of self-denial, of mortification of sin, and seeking after holiness — this is no easy work. To walk in the valley of humiliation, after being on the heights of prosperity — this is far harder than mere bodily penances and austerities. To live the secret life of faith, and even to feel and act as a stranger in the earth, — to meet and overcome all of Satan's temp- tations,— to quench all the fiery darts of the enemy, — to maintain a constant warfare against every sin that rises in the breast, — this is that which calls for more than human strength. No one, who knows his own heart, will ever promise in his own strength to follow Christ whithersoever he goes. But, through Christ strengthening us, it can be done ; and the sacrifices the human nature shrinks from, will appear to grace as only light afflictions, enduring for a moment, and not worthy to be compared with the exceeding and eternal weight of glory that is to follow.
The Christian life, therefore, is a life of self-denial. TThile in these tabernacles, we must walk by faith, and not by sight ; like the Israelites who toiled through the desert, in hopes of entering the promised land. But let it not be supposed that the wav through the desert is all one of gloom and sorrow. On the con- trary, he who cheerfully endures the self-denial, and faithfully performs the duties attending his course, will find incomparably more satisfaction than the votaries of pleasure, or other followers of the world ever enjoy. The Israelites in the wilderness suffered far more from their own sins and follies, than from the self-denials and toils of their route. It was their own murmurings and sins that called down the judgments of God, and brought the plague of serpents among them ; while, during their whole course, they
TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP.
65
experienced the daily favor and care of God. Their raiment waxed not old, nor did their foot swell. Manna from heaven supplied their daily bread, and they drank water from the rock, while the pillar of fire and of cloud was their shelter by day, and their light by night. It is thus with the Christian. Follow your Saviour in the path he has marked out for you, and, though often wearied and heavy-laden, it will bring you unto him, and you shall find rest to your souls.
Macao, July 2, 1843.
5
SERMON IX.
"WALKING WITH GOD. And Enoch walked with God, and he was not, because God took him. — Genesis v. 2-i.
Enoch, the seventh in direct descent from Adam, was born about A. M. 622. When he was born, Adam, the father of the human race, was yet in his prime, and as far as we know, no man had yet died on the earth, except Abel.
The remembrance of the fall of man and his sorrowful de- parture from the garden of Eden must still have been fresh in the minds of men. Doubtless Adam related the melancholy story to his descendants, all of whom must have seen him, and had op- portunities of personal intercourse with him. Nay, Paradise itself remained. Its high walls were visible to all, and the fiery cheru- bim and flaming sword still guarded the way to the tree of life, and offered a living and fearful commentary to the warnings and exhortations of Adam to his descendants.
Yet in the very sight and presence of him who had fallen from his state of perfect innocence and purity, and in full view of the living and flaming emblems of God's displeasure against sin, mankind were daily becoming more and more corrupt. Sin and misery had already crept over the world. Ungodliness was rife among men. Every imagination of the thoughts of men's hearts was only evil continually, and the fair world which during the lifetime of one then alive, had been the abode of holiness and bliss, was already subjected to the empire of Satan, and with but few exceptions men had departed from God. Adam had many sons and daughters, from whom the whole world was peopled ; but they all seem to have been ranged under the banners of Cain or of Seth. Of Cain, and all his descendants and followers, we know not that even one was found on the Lord's side. From the descendants of Seth there were several. The church of God was
WALKING WITH GOD.
07
formed in his family, and before the flood, as well as after, there has been no time from the creation until the present period, when God has not had a church on earth. It is, however, too evident that many even of Seth's descendants were ungodly men, and that the church of God was but a little flock, while his enemies on earth were numerous and powerful. Already was it necessary in the time of Enoch to denounce the approaching judgments of God. And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, Behold! the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his saints, to execute judgment ipon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them, of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches lahich ungodly sinners have spoken against him, Jude 14, 15.
It is needful to bear in mind this almost universal defection from God, in order rightly to appreciate the excellency of Enoch's character, and the power of religion in his heart. He lived in an age with much to discourage him. The wickedness of men was all around him, and their hard speeches which they spake against God, daily sounded in his ears. Yet faithful he stood; and so exemplary was his conduct, so perfectly did he walk with God, that he received special marks of his favor, and was exempted from the ordinary lot of men. He was not, because God took him. It may have been while he was preaching to men, and warning them of the judgments of God, that their wrath rose against him, and God, to deliver him from their hands, translated him that he should not see death, Heb. xi. 5.
The apostle Paul, in that bright catalogue of holy men, which he gives in Heb. xi. bestows special commendation upon Enoch, By faith Enoch was translated, that he shoidd not see death, for before his translation he had this testimony that he pleased God, Heb. xi. 5.
It is not so easy a matter to walk with God, as is commonly imagined. Were nothing more required, than a mere externally decent deportment, an outward respect for religion, and an at- tendance upon its outward ordinances, with an occasional partici- pation of some of its more solemn rites, it were all easy enough. But had this been all that is included in the expression to walk with God, the Bible would never have described it, in such terms as a race, a ivarfare, a battle, a pilgrimage, and others expressive of difficulty, of toil, of suffering, of internal conflicts, and of strug- gling with Satan's temptations.
How can two walk together except they be agreed ? Amos iii. 3.
68
WALKING WITH GOD.
But naturally what agreement is there between God and man ? God is in heaven and we upon earth. God is all-powerful and all-wise, we frail and ignorant. God is the sovereign ruler of all, we creatures and subjects, and worse than all, the slaves of his bitterest enemy. God is all-holy and just. Righteousness is his delight, and he is of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look upon iniquity. Are we not defiled by sin, from the sole of the foot to the head f How can two beings so diverse walk together ? What can his holiness find in us, but objects of abhorrence? or his justice but objects of wrath ? Which of his attributes can delight in man, or make him a friend ? Naturally we walk con- trary to God, and possessing such a character as he does, he must necessarily walk contrary to us. A change must occur ere God and man can harmoniously meet. But a change cannot occur in the unchangeable Jehovah. His eternal essence and perfect rectitude, do not admit of variableness, nor the least shadow of turning. Heaven and earth shall wax old and be removed like a scroll, while he continues the same. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but his Avord never changes. In man alone therefore can the change occur,- — and its necessity is strongly set forth by our Saviour, when he said to ISTicodenius, Verily, verily I say unto you, except a man be bom again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. And how great a change it is ! It is from darkness to light, — from error to truth, — from sin to holiness. The greatness of the change is expressed by the several comparisons in scripture by which it is represented. In the verse just quoted our Saviour calls it a new birth. There is a vast difference between the condition of the unborn infant as it lies in darkness and silence in the womb, and its life, when its ears hear the sound, and its eyes perceive the light of this world.
The change is elsewhere compared to a resurrection from the dead. You hath he quickened ivho were dead in tresjiasses and sins, Eph. ii. 1. YvThen the prophet was led out to the valley full of bones, and made to pass by them, and beheld them lying scattered, and naked, and broken, and dried, — could he hope that they would ever live again ? Was it not mockery when the Lord said to him, Son of man, can these bones live f Ezek. xxvii. 3. To man it would seem so, but the answer he gave was wise, Oh Lord God, thou hiowest. Human power could never make them live, but when the Spirit of the Lord came upon them, then there was a noise and a shaking, and bone came together to his bone, and
WALKING WITH GOD.
69
sinews and flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them above, and the breath came into them and they lived. Thus, when the power of God is manifested in calling the souls of men back to himself to walk with him, there is a change as wonderful and decided, as when the mouldering skeleton is raised and restored to life again. The change required in order that men may walk with God, is also compared to a new creation, and what is more unlike than nonentity and existence ? If any man be in Christ, there is a new creation, 2 Cor. v. 17.
These comparisons all express the greatest conceivable change, and they all distinctly inform us that without this change, it is impossible to walk with God. What fellowship hath light with darkness ? When one appears, does not the other flee away ? In our natural state, we are the servants of sin and Satan, but what concord hath Christ with Belial ? No ! men must come out from their natural state, and be separate from the sins and ways of the world, ere God will dwell in them, and walk with them, and be their God. The natural world has its antipathies. Oil and water will not unite ; nor will the fruits of the torrid zone come to maturity beneath the poles. Is it strange then that holiness and sin should be opposed, or that the love of God should not flourish in a heart preoccupied with the world?
How then do men walk with God? Wherein consists the nature of that mysterious change that fits man for intercourse with his Maker ? How is he sustained from day to day in his heaven ward course ? These are hard questions to answer. Who can tell what life is ? You see a plant in its growth — you watch it from the moment its tender shoot first appears above the ground, to the period when it stands displayed in all the fresh- ness and beauty of its bloom, and ripeued fruitage; but can you understand the process by which a black and naked seed which lies in the palm of your hand, gives rise to a tree whose fruit sup- ports, and whose shade refreshes the birds of the air and the beasts of the field ? You see a playful child, and watch him as he grows up to manhood ; but can you explain that principle of life which makes him to differ from the dead body you have seen consigned to the silent grave ? If you cannot understand even earthly things, how shall the things of heaven be explained ? The principle of spiritual life is as mysterious in its nature as that which sustains the vegetable or the animal world. He alone who possesses it knows what it is ; but even he cannot impart the
70
WALKING WITH GOD.
knowledge of it to those who possess it not. Talk to a deaf man of sounds, or to a blind man of colors, and what is he the wiser ? But though we cannot explain the nature of the life of God in the soul of man, in its hidden and mysterious processes, we can see its effects, we can judge of its causes, and this is all we need to know.
The difference between the Christian and the man of the world is, that the former looks chiefly at those things which are unseen and eternal, while the latter is solely careful for those that are seen, and temporal. The Christian walks by faith. The world- ling lives by sight. The secret of Enoch's walking with God, was his faith. By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death, and was not found because God had translated him ; for before his translation he had this testimony thai he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please him, Heb. xi. 56.
The man who thus walks with Grod by faith has his eyes opened to see spiritual things, especially God's character and his own, and all his actions and course of life correspond with just views of God's attributes.
1. He is filled with a deep sense of the sinfulness of his own heart and life before God. The declarations of the sacred Scrip- tures in reference to the natural character of man, are inexpres- sibly painful and humiliating. To be told that in us there is no good thing — to join with David in his confession, Behold I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me, Ps. li. 5 ; to be so filled with a sense of sin, as to abhor ourselves and re- pent in dust and ashes, as Job did, xlii. 6 ; to see and feel that sin reigns in our mortal bodies, and that the pure eye of God which looks into our most secret thoughts, sees nothing there that is holy ; nothing which can deserve his favor ; — oh, this is hard. This is the reason why repentance is such bitter work to most men. We like not to think of ourselves, as meanly as the word of God describes us to be, and as enlightened and impartial expe- rience shows we are. We like not to view God's justice and holiness as utterly arrayed against us, and to feel that as long as God remains what he is, we must either change, or perish for- ever. But this is not all. We might be willing to change, and thus secure the favor of God, could we do it in our own strength, and thus secure to ourselves a part at least of the credit of such a change. But the word of God, and our own experience, which combine to show us the depth of our sin, as distinctly inform us
WALKING WITH GOD.
71
that our own strength, is not sufficient. They tell us, that we are dead in trespasses and in sins, Eph. ii. 1 ; and can the dead raise themselves ? Could Lazarus in his grave have said, I will now arise and go forth, if the Son of God had not stood and called, Lazarus, come forth f No. Our own righteousness is very dear unto us. We are loath to give up all dependence upon our own good works. It is hard to renounce all self-dependence, and to trust our guilty souls upon the sovereign mercy of God above. The first question of the convinced sinner always is, What shall I do to he saved? With what price shall I purchase my deliverance ? Men will stand and hesitate long before they will so humble themselves as to accept of a free pardon. Nay, they will go back and look down into the abysses of the bottomless pit, ere they will consent to enter on that strait and narrow way, which can be entered only by him who comes divested of every earthly load, and casts his naked soul before the Saviour to be clothed upon with his righteousness. No natural man will ever say with the apostle Paul, Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom L have suffered, the loss of all things, and do count them but dung that L may win Christ, and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of Cod by faith, Phil. iii. 8, 9.
But when the heart is enlightened by divine grace, we shall thus look upon our own character, and acknowledge our own in- ability to save ourselves. And is there no other way of escape ? Must we lie down in sorrow, because our own right hand cannot deliver us ? Oh no ! He who thus looks upon himself, will not be long in seeing that there is a way of escape. Despairing of help in himself, and yet impressed with the absolute necessity of fleeing from the wrath to come, he will look unto him who is mighty to save. His eyes being opened by the mercy of God, he will look unto Christ, and beholding in him a Saviour, every way suited to his wants, he will receive and rest upon him alone for salvation. It is a great thing to see Christ. The very sight of the brazen serpent on the pole restored the serpent-bitten Is- raelites, and a correct view of Christ crucified for sin melts the most hardened heart, overcomes all its objections to the gospel, removes all its fears of the wrath of God, and gives us full assur- ance of his everlasting love. Henceforth there will be no trust-
72
WALKING WITH GOD.
ing in self-righteousness — no vain attempts to add to the finished work of Christ.
Such are the preliminary steps to a walk with God on earth. There is a vast variety in the experiences of Christians, as to the ways in which they are led unto Christ. But no man is ever savingly converted to God, who is not made to know the plague of his own heart, 1 Kings viii. 38 ; who has not felt his own utter helplessness, and submitted his soul unreservedly and uncon- ditionally into the hands of Christ.
2. These steps being taken, what is the after-course of such a beginning? What is there in the life of him who walks with God, to distinguish him from other men ? If the professed Christian be sincere in his profession, there will be much in his outward deportment to distinguish him from the mass of those around him ; but in a country where outward morality and good order are fashionable, we must look to the heart to find the chief differ- ence. The heart of the Christian if opened to the gaze of men, would present a strange spectacle. There would be seen in it a constant struggle, between the Spirit of God on the one hand, and the power of sin on the other. Sin reigns in the mortal bodies of all men. Commonly it does not exert all its vigor ; but when occasions offer, or efforts are made to cast it out, it is found to have implanted its roots deep in every affection of the heart, while its virulent poison brings desolation on the soul. The ivages of sin is death. When the Spirit of God comes into the heart, inducing a man to walk with God, there must of course be a contest between our natural sinfulness and newly acquired prin- ciples of holiness. It is in vain to ask, why God does not at once make his people perfect in holiness, and free them from every remnant of sin ? It would be easy to answer these questions, did time permit, but it is not necessary. It is sufficient for the present to remark that he has not seen best to do so. lie wishes to let his people know experimentally, somewhat of the power of that enemy from which he delivers them, and hence it is that the con- test between sin and holiness in the heart of the man of God is often so long and painful. Yet the world, even his most intimate friends, may know little or nothing of what passes in the secret chambers of his own breast. It is only by a slow and lingering death that the power of sin is destroyed in the heart. It is com- pared to crucifixion, a most painful and lingering form of violent death. They that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affec-
WALKING WITH GOD.
73
turns and lusts. Gal. v. 24. The heart must be diligently watched ; the emotions of sin must be suppressed ; pride must be mortified ; selfishness cast out ; impurity utterly forbidden ; and everything that exalteth itself against God be cast clown. But why spend words in describing that which the pen of inspiration has already so distinctly drawn. In the sixth and seventh chapters of the Epistle to the Eomans, which I recommend to jom: special atten- tion, is a full account of all that is needful to be known on this subject, illustrated and confirmed by the experience of the apostle Paul himself.
3. Furthermore. The man who walks with God, while thus seeking to mortify sin in his heart, is also earnestly desirous to be made perfectly holy. He hungers and thirsts after righteous- ness ; he earnestly desires to present his heart as a pure offering to the Lord of hosts ; and he labors to render his life conform- able to the profession he has made. He humbles himself before God, Mic. vi. 8. He engages in his worship with hearty desires to honor him, and to experience his favor. He so regulates his life, as that nothing may appear in it displeasing to the Master he serves. He endeavors to bring others also to an acquaintance with God. Enoch and Noah, who walked with God, were preachers of righteousness ; and every Christian, in his sphere, will endeavor to teach men the truth. If his mouth is closed, his example, at least, will testify to the excellence of the principles by which he professes to be actuated. He will walk in peace and equity, Mai. ii. 6, and do good to all men as he has oppor- tunity. Far from living for himself alone, he will remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to ■receive, Acts xx. 35. He will love all men, he will pray for all men, he will do good unto all men, as far as he has opportunity. Nor will all these be done merely for a time, nor by occasional efforts. It will be a settled principle with him. He will perse- vere in the way of holiness, even to the end of life. Opposition he will expect to meet, from within and without, — from men and from evil spirits. But he will go forward, notwithstanding all. Not in his own strength, not in reliance upon his own power, not with the spirit of boasting, but looking unto Christ, through whom he can do all things, in whom is all his strength, and to whom he renders all the praise for all the good he is enabled to do, and for every success that crowns his efforts, and cheers him on his way. Such is the heart; and such is the life of him who
74
WALKING WITH GOD.
walks with God. The path in which he must walk, who walks with God on earth, is a rough and thorny one. Even Christ pleased not himself, and how should his followers expect more than their Master enjoyed. Yet surely it is a glorious thing thus to walk, in intimate and friendly intercourse with the King of kings. Surely it is no common honor to be called, as Abraham was, the friend of God, James ii, 27.
What manner of men should such be ? Do you profess to walk with God ? Is your heart, then, right before him ? Does your life correspond with such a profession ? Do you act in no respect differently from what you would, if you felt that God were by your side, when you go out, and when you come in ? Is it now a pleasant thought to you, that he sees your inmost heart, hears every word of your tongues, and weighs every action you perform ? Is it your daily care to shape your conduct as not to displease that holy God, before whom you walk? Eemember that you cannot escape from his presence, and if you walk not with him as a friend, you must walk before him as an enemy, for among men he recognizes but two classes — those who are for him; and those who are against him. It is therefore yours to see and know whether you be on the Lord's side or not ; and surely it should not be hard to know where you stand. We judge of a man by his associates. If you walk with the wise, you will be wise. If you walk with the bountiful, how can you be covetous ? If with the compassionate, how be cruel ? If with the holy, how can you delight in sin ?
Judge, then, your own selves, and see to it that ye walk after the Lord our God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and serve him, and cleave unto him, Deut. xiii. 4.
Macao, July 16, 1843.
SERMON" X.
I AM A STRANGER IN THE EARTH, I am a stranger in the earth. — Psalm cxix. 19.
Such is the memorable confession of David, the king and sweet psalmist of Israel. To some, it may appear strange, for there was apparently nothing in the latter part of his course that called for such an acknowledgment. It is true that in his early life he was a wanderer, driven to and fro, by the malice of Saul, as a leaf is tossed by the winds, and hunted like a partridge in the mountains : but in the latter part of his life, everything about him was as settled and home-like as could well be imagined. He was in his own country, and that country enjoyed peace and prosperity. He was among his relatives and friends, and they were many and powerful. He was in his own house. He was kine over his own countrv, with everything; that could make a throne desirable. His right to the throne was clear and undis- puted, for the anointing oil of God was upon his head ; the peo- ple heartily consented to his authority, and loved and reverenced him. He was honored at home, and respected and feared abroad. Distant nations sought his alliance ; and under his reign, Israel saw its greatest extension and highest prosperity. He reigned securely on his throne, and was assured that his descendants after him should sit upon it : and that, in the course of time, the promised and long-expected Messiah should be numbered among his posterity. What more could he want to satisfy him ? Why should he not quietly seat himself on his throne, and enjoy the luxuries around him? Yet, as far as we know, he never con- sidered himself at home in this world. His constant declaration was, I am a stranger in the earth. The statutes of God were his songs in the house of his pilgrimage, Ps. cxix. 19, 54. In his prayers to God, he said, / am a stranger with thee, and a sojourner, as all
76
I AM A STRANGER IN THE EARTH.
my fathers were ; hide not thy face from my tears, Ps. xxxix. 12 ; and in his grateful praises and thanksgivings, near the close of a long life, his confession still was, We are strangers before thee, and sojourners, as were all our fathers : our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is none abiding. 1 Chron. xxix. 15. It is won- derful how prone men are to think this world their home, and to sit down, as if they were to abide here forever. A greater, and vet a more common mistake, cannot well be imagined, nor one whose consequences are likely to prove more disastrous. Let me show you, both from Scripture and from the nature of the case, that this is not your rest; that you are strangers here, and that, therefore, it is }Tour duty to live as strangers and pilgrims in the earth, seeking and pressing forward to a better, and an enduring inheritance.
1. The Scriptures are full of striking representations of the shortness and uncertainty of life. It is often compared to a dream. A dream may seem long while it is passing, yet it is philosophi- cally certain nothing is more fleeting and transitory, and nothing seems so short when we look back upon it. Life is compared to a vapor. You have seen the morning mist, as it slowly curled around the mountain's brow, and, even while you gazed upon it, the sun's rays had caused it to vanish. Such is life. It is com- pared to the grass. In the morning, it groweth up and flourisheth, — in the evening, it is cut down, and withereth. It is like the flower of the field, that spreads its bright leaves to the morning air; but the noon-day sun withers them, and the night breeze scatters them, or the caterpillar feeds on them, the worm devours them, and the blight destroys them. Life is also oftentimes compared to a jour- ney, and men to travellers.
This is especially remarkable in the cases of the venerable Hebrew patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Yet at first sight one would not be inclined to regard them as strangers in the earth. They were men of very great wealth and influence, and probably few private men could now be found in any coun- try who could equal them in these respects. Thus of Abraham it is said, Jehovah blessed, him greaily, and he became greoi ; having flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and men servants, and maid servants, and camels, and asses, Gen. xxiv. 35. The extent of his possessions may be inferred from the number of servants born in his own house, whom he was able to lead forth to the rescue of his brother Lot. There were no less than three hundred and
I AM A STRANGER IIST THE EARTH.
77
eighteen ; and as these could hardly be more than one fifth of the whole number he possessed, he must have been the master of twelve, or fifteen hundred servants, Gen. xiv. 14. And as the chief occupation of these servants was to attend to their master's cattle, it may well be conceived that the number of his flocks and herds must have been immense ; so that we need not wonder when we are told that the land was not able to hear them, Gen. xiii. 6. Nor need we wonder therefore to find that Abraham was a man of so much power and influence that even the kings of Sodom and Gerar sought his favor, and formed treaties with him, Gen. xxi. 22. Of Isaac, too, it is recorded that his wealth and in- fluence were very great. The Lord blessed him, and he tuaxed great, and ivent forward ; and grew until he became very great For he had possession of flocks, and possession of herds, and great store of servants, Gen. xxvi. 13, 14. Such was his wealth and power, that the Philistines envied him, and Abimilech, then king, at length said to him, Go from us, for thou art much mightier than ive, Gen. xxvi. 14, 16. Jacob, too, was a man of great possessions, for he increased exceedingly, and hod much cattle, and maid-servants, and men-servants, and camels and asses, Gen. xxx. 43.
With so much wealth — with so much influence — with such certain promises, so solemnly confirmed to them, that that land should be the perpetual inheritance of their children, one would have thought that they would feel at home there. Yet it was not so. They felt and confessed themselves still to be but strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
It was a touching scene when the venerable Abraham came to Hebron, to mourn for Sarah. He stood up from before his dead, and spake unto the sons of Heth, saying, I am a stranger and sojourner with you; give me a possession of a burying place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight, Gen. xxiii. 2-4. The only landed estate that he ever possessed in the land of Palestine was a grave — though the whole land was solemnly promised him for an everlasting possession.
To Isaac, God gave the command, Sojourn in this land, Gen. xxvi. 3. Or as it might be more literally rendered, Be a stranger in this land ; and this command he carefully obeyed, while Jacob, who was always a wanderer, in Padan Aram, Palestine, and Egypt, near the close of his life, speaks of it as a painful pilgrim- age. The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years ; few and evil have the days of the years of my life been,
78
I AM A STRANGER IN THE EARTH.
and have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage, xlvii. 9. It was this constant ac- knowledgment of their being strangers and pilgrims, which in- duced the apostle to speak of them as he does in the Epistle to the Hebrews. By faith Abraham sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, divelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs ivith him of the same promise. For he looked for a city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. These all died in the faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pil- grims on the earth, Heb. xi. 9-13.
ISTor are these solitary examples. Moses, who was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and who, for aught we know, might have sat upon the Egyptian throne, if he had so chosen, was a wanderer for the greater part of his life, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. And in testimony of his willing choice of such a life, he named his eldest son Gershom, saying, / have been a stranger in a strange land, Ex. xxv. 22.
Leaving the times of the Old Testament, and coming down to those of the New, we find the same truth set forth with equal plainness, both in example and precept. Our blessed Saviour himself, the Lord of all, was but a stranger in the earth, while the meanest of the creatures he had made, had their homes. While the foxes had holes, and the birds of the air had nests, the Son of man had not ivhere to lay his head, Luke ix. 58. His holy apostles had no certain dicelling-place. The early Christians lived as those who looked above this world ; and the books of the ISTew Testa- ment are full of instructions exhorting earnestly to such a course. The apostle in the Epistle to the Hebrews, after highly praising the ancient patriarchs, who had acknowledged that they were strangers and pilgrims in the earth, says in reference to Chris- tians of his own time, Here ive have no continuing city, but we seek one to come, Heb. xiii. 14. Therefore it is, that he tells believers in another epistle, Your conversation or citizenship (noktrslci), is in heaven, Phil. hi. 20. The first epistle of Peter, which was in- tended for Christians generally, is addressed to the strangers scat- tered about in different countries. And in the same epistle he ex- horts them to pass the time of their sojourning here in fear, i. 17. And again, he beseeches them, as strangers and pilgrims, to abstain from fleshly lusts, vjhich war against the soul, ii. 11. Thus doth the
I AM A STRANGER IN THE EARTH.
79
Scripture both by precept and example, teach us to look upon this world, merely as a stage in our road to another.
2. As the Scriptures are thus explicit in teaching us to look be- yond this world, regarding it merely as a place of pilgrimage ; so we shall find if we consider the circumstances in which we are placed, that we are but strangers here. For what is it to be a stranger ? Is not a stranger one of whom it is said, he has no suitable abode or home in the land of his sojournings ; and the lime he thus spends is but short compared with that he spends at home ? And is it not true with reference to ourselves, that we have no suitable home in this world ?
Since sin and death have entered our world, it is most mani- fest that this is not our home. I am not one of those who look upon this world as only one great prison-house — where no sound is heard but that of weeping — no sights are seen but those of sor- row. On the contrary, blasted as it has been by the poisoned breath of Satan, still it has scenes of surpassing beauty ; still has it places that seem almost like the gates of heaven. But yet when every allowance is made, it is not a place of rest; and, man is born to trouble as the sparks fly upward. Man that is born of a woman is of few clays, and full of trouble, Job xiv. 1. Consider how much suffering all men are called to endure. Who is there that has not felt the pangs of disappointment ? You have looked for pleasure, and found sorrow ; you have laid your plans for life, and been forced to abandon them, for entirely different pursuits. You have plucked the rose, but, alas, the flower fell as you grasped it, and the thorn alone remained. You have delighted in the society of kind friends, and they have died before your faces, and you have buried them out of your sight.
" Friend after friend departs, Who hath not lost a friend ? There is no union here of hearts, That finds not here an end."
Or if they have not been removed by death, their affection for you has grown cold, and you have experienced a pain that death could not have inflicted upon you, by finding that those in whom your hearts safely trusted, have proved false to you. How many unexpected misfortunes come upon men! Who is secure from them ? You may pass years and years in uninterrupted prosperity, and in the moment when you least expect it, all your joys shall
80
I AM A STRANGER IN THE EARTH.
take wings and fly away, and you shall be left desolate. I well remember the morning of a sabbath-day, when I stood upon the deck of a noble ship, as she ploughed her foaming way across the waters of the China sea. I was conversing with the chief officer, and can recall even now, the tone of exultation with which he said, that he counted himself one of the most fortunate of all those who did business upon the great waters. He had been a sailor from his childhood, and never met with an accident, and his prospects never were brighter than they were at that moment. Twelve hours had not elapsed, when that gallant ship was fast sinking beneath the raging waves. She had struck upon a sunken rock, and filled with water so rapidly that all on board were obliged to leave her and seek for safety in her boats. That offi- cer left the ship with only the clothes upon his back, and after traversing over four hundred miles of the open sea, in that little boat, he was overtaken by a storm, and in sight of land his boat was overturned, and himself dashed against the rocky shore. Bruised and almost senseless, he gained the land, and found that of his five companions, four had been drowned, and that he was a penniless, homeless man — a stranger in a strange land. Would that this were a solitary case ! How much suffering and misery, also arises from the errors even of the good ! A single fault may cause heart-breaking sorrow for a whole lifetime. Surely, a world where such events can happen, never was intended for the home of happjr beings.
3. But even if there were no actual suffering, this world as it now is, was not intended for our home, because it has nothing that can satisfy the ever expanding desires of the immortal mind. The soul of man was made for eternity, and it cannot be, that it should- be satisfied with the desires of time. Most men seek for wealth, but who is ever satisfied with the greatest amount of gold and sil- ver ? Are not those who have the most, constantly grasping after more, and at the same time anxious and alarmed lest they should lose what they have already acquired ? Others seek after honor and power, but who is ever satisfied with the highest honor, or the greatest power? When is ambition full? When do conquerors cease from conquest, if death do not end their course. Others again seek after literary fame, but who is even satisfied here ? Look at the gifted Byron, who with talent and rank, and wealth and fame, to satisfy the desires of a hundred common men, still
I AM A STRANGER IN THE EARTH.
81
longed and pined for more. " Beyond desire, beyond ambition full," he yet died in utter wretchedness !
Who is there that is satisfied in this world? Not one. And if men had the most ardent desire of their hearts gratified, and were allowed to live here forever, they would still find in their breasts an aching void, which the world could never fill. Ask him who of all men was best qualified to judge — Solomon, king of Israel, who had wealth, and honor, and power, and ease, and wisdom, such as no man either before or since has ever possessed.