f
<ij'.
PAROCHIAL SERMONS.
BY
JOHN HENRY NEWMAN, M.A
VICAR OF ST. MARY THE VIRGIN'S, OXFORD,
AND FELLOW OF ORIEL COLLEGE.
VOL. II.
FOR THE FESTIVALS OF THE CHURCH.
" Well to celebrate these Religious and Sacred Days, is to spend the flower of our time
happily. They are the splendour and outward dignity of our religion, forcible witnesses
of ancient Truth, provocations to the exercises of all piety, shadows of our endless felicity
in heaven, on earth everlasting records and memorials ; wherein they which cannot be
drawn to hearken unto that we teach, may, only by looking upon that we do, in a manner
read whatsoever we believe."— HOOKER, ECCLES. For., v. 71.
LONDON:
PRINTED FOR J. G. & F. RIVINGTON,
ST. PAUL'S CHURCH YARD, AND WATERLOO PLACE, PALL MALL
& J. H. PARKER, OXFORD.
1335.
LONDON:
GILBERT & KIVINGTON. PRINTERS,
ST. JOHN'S SQUARE.
TO
JOHN WILLIAM BOWDEN, ESQ.
&c. &c.
IN THE CHEERFUL CONVICTION
THAT THE ENGLISH CHURCH
AMID MANY DEFECTIONS
STILL HOLDS HER INFLUENCE OVER AN
ATTACHED AND ZEALOUS LAITY,
THIS VOLUME
IS INSCRIBED,
BY HIS AFFECTIONATE FRIEND,
J. H. N,
Feb. 21s/, 1835.
ADVERTISEMENT.
SOME explanation may be necessary by way of
introducing the Reader to the Sermons contained
in this Volume. It has been the writer's practice
upon Festivals, in the course of the Morning
Service appointed for each, to read a Lecture on
some subject rising out of it. With the view of
making it duly subordinate to the more direct
religious duties of the day, he has usually confined
himself to a few remarks introduced, without text,
into the body of the Service, in accordance with the
directions of our Church, which (after the example
of primitive usage) assigns, whether for Catechising
or for the Sermon, a place between the reading of
Scripture and the Prayers. When he applied
himself to prepare these Lectures for the press, he
found that some of them required re-writing, and
others enlarging ; while those which belonged to
the Sunday Festivals necessarily differed in length
viii ADVERTISEMENT.
and style from such as had been read on Week-
days. The consequence has been, that what was
originally a series abrupt and incomplete in point
of composition, is now wanting also in uniformity
of character, without, in many cases, becoming
exempt from its first defect. Moreover, the circum-
stances, under which it was written, have occa-
sioned, in some places, a particularity of remark,
which could hardly have been ventured on in a
large and mixed congregation, and elsewhere a line
of thought more abstruse or argumentative than
is commonly advisable in Parochial Sermons.
This is said, only as an apology for the par-
ticular form and cast of the Volume. As for the
matter itself, did the writer ask any indulgence
for it, he would incur the inconsistency of imply-
ing that it ought not to have been given to the
world. Yet he may be allowed to entreat, in
respect both of this and of his former Volume,
that if there are persons who at first reading feel
apprehensive that some of his statements are of
hurtful tendency, they would deal more fairly with
themselves than to begin with a critical, not a prac-
tical consideration of them ; and that, before they
ADVERTISEMENT. ix
allow themselves to fear for others, they would
consider whether the statements in question have
had any bad effect on their own minds. This he
says, not as forgetful that the true standard and
test of religious teaching, are not its apparent
effects one way or the other, but the rule of
Scripture and Antiquity ; but, anticipating that
objections will be brought rather from the supposed
consequences of his doctrine, than its want of au-
thority, he is desirous that these consequences
should be fairly proved before they are imputed.
On the other hand, should any reader be led to sup-
pose that any thing had been said by way of para-
dox or for novelty's sake, let him first of all inquire,
whether the points objected to do not rather form
part of a whole, — of one integral view of doctrine,
which has ever been supposed to descend in an
unbroken line from the first ages of the Gospel, and
which, far from being the mere food of idle and
ingenious intellects, has before now influenced
Christians to suffer and to lose their all in main-
tenance of it.
He ventures further to hope, that he may not
unnecessarily be supposed in any part of his
Volumes, to be hazarding remarks on opinions or
x ADVERTISEMENT.
practices existing within the Church. There are
for the most part objects enough external to it,
which answer to them, and far more legitimately ;
and if there is sufficient reason for noticing them,
on account of the existing insensibility of Society
to the real moral differences between the Sectarian
and the High Apostolical temper, he conceives
that they should not find a shelter in the mere
accident, that they are not altogether without
advocates among ourselves.
In conclusion, he must express his great obliga-
tions, in the matter of these Volumes, to the uncon-
scious assistance of a dearly valued Friend, with
whom he is in habits of familiarity, and whose
stray observations he has pleasure in detecting in
them.
CONTENTS.
SERMON I.
THE FEAST OF ST. ANDREW THE APOSTLE.
THE WORLD'S BENEFACTORS.
JOHN i. 40.
PAGE
One of the two which heard John speak, and followed Him, was
Andrew, Simon Peter's brother » 1
SERMON II.
THE FEAST OF ST. THOMAS THE APOSTLE.
FAITH WITHOUT SIGHT.
JOHN xx. 29.
Thomas, because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed ; blessed
are they that have not seen, and yet have believed 14
SERMON III.
THE FEAST OF THE NATIVITY.
THE INCARNATION.
JOHN i. 14.
The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us 27
xii CONTENTS.
SERMON IV.
THE FEAST OF ST. STEPHEN THE MARTYR.
MARTYRDOM.
HEB. xi. 37.
PAGE
They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were
slain with the sword 44
SERMON V.
THE FEAST OF ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST.
LOVE OF RELATIONS AND FRIENDS.
1 JOHN iv. 7*
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God 55
SERMON VI.
THE FEAST OF HOLY INNOCENTS.
THE MIND OF LITTLE CHILDREN.
MATT, xviii. 3.
Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not
enter into thekingdom of Heaven 66
SERMON VII.
THE FEAST OF THE CIRCUMCISION.
CEREMONIES OF THE CHURCH.
MATT. iii. 15.
Suffer it to be so now; for thus it becometh us to fulfil all
righteousness 74
CONTENTS. xiu
SERMON VIII.
THE FEAST OF THE EPIPHANY.
THE GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
ISAIAH Ix. 1.
PAGE
Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is
risen upon thee 86
SERMON IX.
THE FEAST OF THE CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL.
VIEWED IN REFERENCE TO HIS OFFICE.
1 Cou. xv. 9, 10.
I am the least of the Apostles, that am not meet to be called an
Apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God. But by
the grace of God I am what I am : and His grace which was
bestowed upon me was not in vain ; but I laboured more
abundantly than they all : yet not I, but the grace of God
which was with me 104
SERMON X.
THE FEAST OF THE PURIFICATION.
SECRECY AND SUDDENNESS OF DIVINE VISITATIONS.
LUKE xvii. 20.
The kingdom of God cometh not with observation 117
15
xiv CONTENTS.
SERMON XI.
THE FEAST OF ST. MATTHIAS THE APOSTLE.
DIVINE DECREES.
REV. iii. 11.
PAGE
Hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown 129
SERMON XII.
THE FEAST OF THE ANNUNCIATION.
THE REVERENCE DUE TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.
LUKE i. 48.
From henceforth all generations shall call me blessed 140
.
SERMON XIII.
EASTER DAY.
CHRIST, A QUICKENING SPIRIT.
LUKE xxiv. 5, 6.
Why seek ye the Living among the dead ? He is not here, but is
risen 154
SERMON XIV.
EASTER MONDAY.
SAVING KNOWLEDGE.
1 JOHN ii. 3.
Hereby we do know that we know Him, if we keep His com-
mandments .168
\
CONTENTS. xv
SERMON XV.
EASTER TUESDAY.
SELF-CONTEMPLATION.
HEBREWS xii. 2.
PAGE
Looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith 181
SERMON XVI.
THE FEAST OF ST. MARK THE EVANGELIST.
RELIGIOUS COWARDICE.
HEBREWS xii. 12.
Lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees 194
SERMON XVII.
THE FEAST OF ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES
THE APOSTLES.
THE GOSPEL WITNESSES.
2 COR. xiii. 1.
In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be esta-
blished 202
SERMON XVIII.
THE FEAST OF THE ASCENSION.
MYSTERIES IN RELIGION.
ROM. viii. 34.
It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is
even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession
. 228
xvi CONTENTS.
SERMON XIX.
WHIT-SUNDAY.
THE INDWELLING SPIRIT.
ROM. viii. 9-
PAGE
Ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of
God dwell in you 240
SERMON XX.
WHIT-MONDAY.
THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS.
DAN. ii. 35.
The stone that smote the Image became a great Mountain, and
filled the whole earth 257
SERMON XXI.
WHIT-TUESDAY.
THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS.
DAN. ii. 35.
The stone that smote the Image became a great Mountain, and
filled the whole earth 270
SERMON XXII.
TRINI T Y-S UNO A Y.
THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US.
1 TIM. vi. 20, 21.
O Timothy, keep that which is committed to Thy trust, avoiding
profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely
so called ; which some professing, have erred concerning the
Faith... „.. . 282
CONTENTS. xvii
SERMON XXIII.
THE FEAST OF ST. BARNABAS THE APOSTLE.
TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR.
ACTS xi. 24.
PAGE
He was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost, and of faith 303
SERMON XXIV.
THE FEAST OF THE NATIVITY OF ST. JOHN BAPTIST.
REBUKING SIN.
MARK vi. 18.
John had said unto Herod, It is not lawful for thee to have thy
brother's wife 322
SERMON XXV.
THE FEAST OF ST. PETER THE APOSTLE.
THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY.
LUKE vii. 28.
I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is not
a greater prophet than John the Baptist : but he that is least
in the Kingdom of God is greater than he 332
SERMON XXVI.
THE FEAST OF ST. JAMES THE APOSTLE.
HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY.
MATT. xx. 23.
To sit on My right hand and on My left, is not Mine to give ; but
it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of My
Father 353
b
xviii CONTENTS.
SERMON XXVII.
THE FEAST OF ST. BARTHOLOMEW THE APOSTLE.
GUILELESSNESS.
JOHN i. 47-
PAGE
Jeans saw Nathanael coming to Him, and saith of him, Behold
an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile 363
SERMON XXVIII.
THE FEAST OF ST. MATTHEW THE APOSTLE.
THE DANGER OF RICHES.
LUKE vi. 24.
Woe unto you that are rich ! for ye have received your consola-
tion ^ 379
SERMON XXIX.
THE FEAST OF ST. MICHAEL AND ALL ANGELS.
THE POWERS OF NATURE.
PSALM civ. 4.
Who maketh His Angels spirits, His Ministers a flaming fire 396
SERMON XXX.
THE FEAST OF ST. LUKE THE EVANGELIST.
THE DANGER OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS.
EXOD. xxxi. 6.
In the hearts of all that are wise-hearted, I have put wisdom 407
15
CONTENTS. xix
SERMON XXXI.
THE FEAST OF ST. SIMON AND ST. JUDE THE APOSTLES.
CHRISTIAN ZEAL.
JOHN ii. 17-
PAGE
The zeal of Thine House hath eaten Me up 420
SERMON XXXII.
THE FEAST OF ALL SAINTS.
USE OF SAINTS' DAYS.
ACTS i. 8.
Ye shall be Witnesses unto Me, both in Jerusalem, and in all
Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the
earth...... . 436
SERMONS,
SERMON I.
THE FEAST OF ST. ANDREW THE APOSTLE.
THE WORLD'S BENEFACTORS.
JOHN i. 40.
One of the two which heard John speak, and followed Him, was
Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.
WITH this Festival we begin our year, — thus usher-
ing in, with a few weeks of preparation, the day of
Christ's Nativity. St. Andrew, whom we now com-
memorate, has been placed first of the Apostles,
because, (as far as Scripture informs us,) he was
the first among them who found the Messiah, and
sought to be His disciple. The circumstances
which preceded his call are related in the passage
of the Gospel from which the text is taken.
We are there informed that it was John the
Baptist who pointed out to him his Saviour. It
was fitting that the forerunner of Christ should be
the instrument of leading to Him the first-fruits of
His Apostles.
VOL. n. B
2 ST. ANDREW. [SERM.
St. Andrew, who was already one of St. John's
disciples, was attending on his Master with another,
when, as it happened, Jesus passed by. The
Baptist, who had from the first declared his own
subordinate place in the dispensation which was
then opening, took this occasion of pointing out to
his two disciples Him in whom it centered. He
said, " Behold the Lamb of God ; this is He of
whom I spake, whom the Father has chosen and
sent, the true sacrificial Lamb, by whose sufferings
the sins of the world will be expiated." On
hearing this, the two disciples, (Andrew, I say,
being one of them,) straightway left John and
followed Christ. He turned round and asked
them, "What seek ye?" They expressed their
desire to be allowed to wait upon His teaching ;
and He suffered them to accompany Him home,
and to pass that day with Him. What He said
to them is not told us ; but St. Andrew received
such confirmation of the truth of the Baptist's
words, that in consequence he went after his own
brother to tell him what he had found. " He first
findeth his own brother, Simon, and saith unto
him, We have found the Messias .... and he
brought him to Jesus."
St. John the Evangelist, who has been guided to
preserve various notices concerning the separate
Apostles, which are not contained in the other
Gospels, speaks of Andrew in two other places; and
introduces him under circumstances, which show
I.] THE WORLD'S BENEFACTORS. 3
that, little as is known of this Apostle now, he was,
in fact, very high in the favour and confidence of
his Lord. In his twelfth chapter he describes
Andrew as bringing to Christ certain Greeks
who came up to Jerusalem to worship, and who
were desirous of seeing Him. And, what is re-
markable, these strangers had first applied to
St. Philip, who, though an Apostle himself, in-
stead of taking upon him to introduce them, had
recourse to his fellow-townsman, St. Andrew, as
if, whether from age or intimacy with Christ, a
more suitable channel for furthering their petition.
" Philip cometh, and telleth Andrew ; and again,
Andrew and Philip tell Jesus."
These two Apostles are also mentioned together
in the sixth chapter of the same Gospel, at the
consultation which preceded the miracle of the
loaves and fishes ; and there again Andrew is en-
gaged, as before, in the office of introducing
strangers to Christ. " There is a lad here," he
says to his Lord, a lad who, perhaps, had not
courage to come forward of himself, " which hath
five barley loaves and two small fishes."
The information afforded by these passages, of
St. Andrew's especial acceptableness to Christ
among the Apostles, is confirmed by the only
place in the other Gospels, besides the catalogue,
in which his name occurs. After our Lord had
predicted the ruin of the Temple, " Peter, James,
John, and Andrew, asked Him privately, Tell us,
B 2
4 ST. ANDREW. [SERM.
when shall these things be1?" and it was to
these four that our Saviour revealed the signs of
His coining, and of the end of the world. Here
St. Andrew is represented as in the especial con-
fidence of Christ ; and associated too with those
Apostles, whom He is known to have selected from
the Twelve on various occasions by tokens of his
peculiar favour.
Little is known of St. Andrew in addition to
these inspired notices of him. He is said to have
preached the Gospel in Scythia ; and he was at
length martyred in Achaia. His death was by
crucifixion ; that kind of cross being used, accord-
ing to the tradition, which still goes by his name.
Yet, little as Scripture tells us concerning him, it
affords us enough for a lesson, and that an import-
ant one. These are the facts before us. St.
Andrew was the first convert among the Apostles ;
he was especially in our Lord's confidence ; thrice
is he described as introducing others to Him ;
lastly, he is little known in history, while the place
of dignity and the name of highest renown, have
been allotted to his brother Simon, whom he was
the means of bringing to the knowledge of his
Saviour.
Our lesson, then, is this ; that those men are not
necessarily the most useful men in their genera-
tion, nor the most favoured by God, who make the
1 Mark xiii. 3.
I.] THE WORLD'S BENEFACTORS 5
most noise in the world, and who seem to be prin-
cipals in the great changes and events recorded in
history ; on the contrary, that even when we are
able to point to a certain number of men as the
real instruments of any great blessings vouchsafed
to mankind, our relative estimate of them, one with
another, is often very erroneous : so that on the
whole, if we would trace truly the hand of God in
human affairs, and pursue His bounty as displayed
in the world to its original sources, we must unlearn
our admiration of the powerful and distinguished,
our reliance on the opinion of society, our respect
for the decisions of the learned or the multitude,
and turn our eyes to private life, watching in all
we read or witness for the true signs of God's
presence, the graces of personal holiness mani-
fested in His elect; which, weak as they may seem
to mankind, are mighty through God, and have an
influence upon the course of His Providence, and
bring about great events in the world at large,
when the wisdom and strength of the natural man
are of no avail.
Now, first, observe the operation of this law of
God's government, in respect to the introduction
of those temporal blessings which are of the first
importance in securing our well-being and comfort
in the present life. For example, who was the
first cultivator of corn ? who first tamed and
domesticated the animals whose strength we use,
and whom we make our food ? Or who first
6 ST. ANDREW. [SERM.
discovered the medicinal herbs which, from the
earliest times, have been our resource against
disease ? If it was mortal man, who thus looked
through the vegetable and animal worlds, and dis-
criminated between the useful and the worthless,
his name is unknown to the millions whom he
has benefited. It is notorious, that those who
first suggest the most happy inventions, and open a
way to the secret stores of nature, those who
weary themselves in the search after Truth, strike
out momentous principles of action, painfully force
upon their contemporaries the adoption of bene-
ficial measures ; or, again, are the original cause
of the chief events in national history, are com-
monly supplanted, as regards celebrity and reward,
by inferior men. Their works are not called after
them ; nor the arts and systems which they have
given the world. Their schools are usurped by
strangers ; and their maxims of wisdom circu-
late among the children of their people, form-
ing, perhaps, a nation's character, but not em-
balming in their own immortality the names of
their original authors.
Such is the history of the social and political
world ; and the rule discernible in it is still more
clearly established in the world of morals and reli-
gion. Who taught the doctors and saints of the
Church, who, in their day, or in after times, have
been the most illustrious expounders of the pre-
cepts of right and wrong, and, by word and deed,
I.] THE WORLD'S BENEFACTORS. 7
are the guides of our conduct ? Did Almighty
Wisdom speak to them through the operation of
their own minds, or rather, did it not subject them
to instructors unknown to fame, wiser perhaps
even than themselves ? Andrew followed John the
Baptist, while Simon remained at his nets. An-
drew first recognised the Messiah among the in-
habitants of despised Nazareth ; and he brought his
brother to him. Yet to Andrew Christ spake no
word of commendation, which has been allowed to
continue on record ; whereas to Simon, even on
his first coming, He gave the honourable name by
which he is now designated, and afterwards put
him forward as the typical foundation of His
Church. Nothing indeed can hence be inferred,
one way or the other, concerning the relative ex-
cellence of the two brothers ; so far only appears,
that, in the providential course of events, the one
was the secret beginner, and the other the public
instrument of a great divine work. St. Paul,
again, was honoured with the distinction of a
c? '
miraculous conversion, and was called to be the
chief agent of the propagation of the Gospel
among the heathen ; yet to Ananias, an other-
wise unknown saint, dwelling at Damascus, was
given the high office of conveying the gifts of
pardon and the Holy Ghost to the Apostle of the
Gentiles.
Providence thus acts daily. The early life of
all men is private ; it is as children, generally,
8 ST. ANDREW. [SERM.
that their characters are formed to good or evil ;
and those who form them to good, their truest
and chief benefactors, are unknown to the world.
It has been remarked, that some of the most emi-
nent Christians have been blessed with religious
mothers, and have in after life referred their own
gifts of grace to the instrumentality of their teach-
ing. Augustine has preserved to the Church the his-
tory his mother Monica ; but in the case of others,
even the name is denied to us of our great bene-
factress, whoever she was, and sometimes, doubt-
less, the circumstance of her service altogether.
When we look at the history of inspiration, the
same rule still holds. Consider the Old Testa-
ment, which " makes us wise unto salvation."
How great a part of it is written by authors un-
known ! The book of Judges, the Second of
Samuel, the books of Kings, Chronicles, Esther,
and Job, and great part of the book of Psalms.
The last instance is the most remarkable of these.
"Profitable" beyond words as is the divine teaching
conveyed to us in every page of Scripture, yet the
Psalms have been the most directly and visibly
useful part of the whole volume, having been the
prayer-book of the Church ever since they were
written ; and have done more, (as far as we dare
judge,) to prepare souls for heaven, than any of
the inspired books, except the Gospels. Yet, the
authors of a large portion of them are altogether
unknown. And so with the Liturgies, which have
I.] THE WORLD'S BENEFACTORS. 9
been the possession of the Christian Church from
the beginning ; who were those matured and
exalted saints who left them to us? Nay, in the
whole system of our worship, who are the authors
of each decorous provision and each edifying cus-
tom ? Who found out the musical tunes, in which
our praises are offered up to God, and in which
resides so wondrous a persuasion " to worship
and fall down, and kneel before the Lord our
Maker?" Who were those religious men, our
spiritual fathers in the " Catholic faith," who
raised of old time the excellent fabrics of worship
all over the country, in which we worship, though
with less of grateful reverence for their memory
than we might piously express ? Of these greatest
men in every age, there is " no memorial :" they
" are perished as though they had never been,
and become as though they had never been born."
Now I know that reflections of this kind are apt
to sadden and vex us ; and such of us particularly
as are gifted with ardent and enthusiastic minds,
with a generous love of what is great and good,
and a noble hatred of injustice. These men find
it difficult to reconcile themselves to the notion
that the triumph of the Truth, in all its forms, is
postponed to the next world. They would fain
anticipate the coming of the righteous Judge ; nay,
perhaps they are somewhat too favourably disposed
towards the present world, to acquiesce without
resistance in a doctrine which testifies to the cor-
10 ST. ANDREW.
ruption of its decisions, and the worthlessness of
its honours. But that it is a truth, has already
been showed almost as matter of fact, putting the
evidence of Scripture out of consideration ; and if
it be such, it is our wisdom, as it will become our
privilege, to accustom our minds to it, and to re-
ceive it, not in word merely, but in seriousness.
Why indeed should we shrink from this gracious
law of God's present providence in our own case,
or in the case of those we love, when our subjec-
tion to it does but associate us with the best and
noblest of our race, and with beings of nature and
condition superior to our own ? Andrew is scarcely
known, except by name ; while Peter has ever
held the place of honour all over the Church ; yet
Andrew brought Peter to Christ. And are not the
Blessed Angels unknown to the world ? and is not
God Himself, the Author of all good, hid from
mankind at large, partially manifested and poorly
glorified, in a few scattered servants here and
there ? and His Spirit, do we know whence It
cometh, and whither It goeth ? and though He
has taught men whatever there has been of wisdom
among them from the beginning, yet when He
came on earth in visible form, even then it was
said of Him, " The world knew Him not." His
marvellous providence works beneath a veil, which
speaks but an untrue language ; and, to see Him
who is the Truth and the Life, we must stoop under-
neath it, and so in our turn hide ourselves from
15
I.] THE WORLD'S BENEFACTORS. 1 1
the world. They who present themselves at kings'
courts, pass on to the inner chambers, where the
gaze of the rude multitude cannot pierce ; and we,
if we would see the King of kings in His glory,
must be content to disappear from the things that
are seen. Hid are the saints of God ; if they
are known to men, it is accidentally, in their tem-
poral offices, as holding some high earthly station,
or effecting some mere temporal work ; not as
saints. Simon Peter has a place in history, far
more as a chief instrument of a strange revolution
in human affairs, than in his true character, as a
self-denying follower of his Lord, to whom truths
were revealed which flesh and blood could not
discern.
How poor-spirited are we, and what dishonour
we put upon the capabilities and the true excel-
lence of our nature, when we subject it to the
judgment and disposal of all its baser specimens,
to the rude and ignorant praise, and poor recom-
pensing of carnal and transgressing man ! How is
the flesh to be at all a judge of the spirit ? or the
sinner of God's elect? Are we to look downwards,
not upwards ? Shall we basely acknowledge the
right of the Many who tread the broad way to be
the judge of holiness, which comes from God, and
appeals to Him ? And does not the eye of faith
discern witnesses of our conduct, ever present, and
far worthier of our respect, than a world of the un-
godly ? Is man the noblest being in the creation ?
12 ST. ANDREW. [SERM.
Surely we, as well as our Divine Lord, are " seen
of Angels;" nay, and ministered unto by them,
much as they excel us in strength ! St. Paul
plainly tells us that it is God's purpose that " His
manifold wisdom should be known to the heavenly
principalities and powers, through the Church1."
When we are made Christians, we are baptized
"into that within the veil," we are brought near
to an innumerable company of Angels ; and resem-
bling them in their hidden condition, share their
sympathy and their services. Therefore, the same
Apostle exhorts Timothy to persevere in obedi-
ence, not only by the thought of God, but by that
of the Angels ; and surely we ought to cultivate
the habitual feeling, that they see us in our most
private deeds, and most carefully guarded soli-
tudes.
It is more than enough for a sinful mortal to be
made a fellow-worker and fellow-worshipper of the
Blessed Spirits, and the servant and the son of
God Most High. Rather let us try to realize our
privilege, and withal humble ourselves at our want
of faith. We are the elect of God, and have en-
trance " through the gates into the" heavenly
" City," while we " do His commandments2," fol-
lowing Christ as Andrew did, when pointed out to
us by His preachers and ministers. To those
who thus " follow on to know" Him, He manifests
1 Eph. iii. 10. 2 Rev. xxii. 14.
I.] THE WORLD'S BENEFACTORS. 13
Himself, while He is hid from the world. They
are near Him, as His confidential servants, and
are the real agents in the various providences
which occur in the history of nations, though
overlooked by their annalists and sages. They
bring before Him the temporal wants of men,
witnessing His marvellous doings with the barley
loaves and fishes ; they too, lead strangers before
Him for His favourable notice, and for His teach-
ing. And, when He brings trouble and distress
upon a sinful people, they have truest knowledge
of His will, and can best interpret His works ; for
they had lived in contemplation and prayer, and
while others praise the goodly stones and build-
ings of the external Temple, have heard from Him
in secret how the end shall be. Thus they live ;
and when they die, the world knows nothing of its
loss, and soon lets slip what it might have retained
of their history ; but the Church of Christ does
what she can, gathering together their relics, and
honouring their name even when their works can-
not be found. But those works have followed
them ; and, at the appearing of their Lord in
judgment, will be at length displayed before all
the world, and for His merits eternally rewarded
in His heavenly kingdom.
SERMON II.
THE FEAST OF ST. THOMAS THE APOSTLE.
FAITH WITHOUT SIGHT.
JOHN xx. 29.
Thomas, because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed ; blessed
are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.
ST. THOMAS is the Apostle who doubted of our
Lord's resurrection. This want of faith has given
him a sort of character in the minds of most
people, which is referred to in the Collect for
the day. Yet we must not suppose that he dif-
fered greatly from the other Apostles. They all,
more or less, mistrusted Christ's promises when
they saw Him led away to be crucified. When
He was buried, their hopes were buried with Him;
and when the news was brought them, that He
was risen again, they all disbelieved it. On His
appearing to them, He "upbraided them with
their unbelief arid hardness of heart1." But, as
St. Thomas was not present at this time, and
only heard from his fellow Apostles that they had
1 Mark xvi. 14.
SERM. II.] FAITH WITHOUT SIGHT. 15
seen the Lord, his time of perplexity and darkness
lasted longer than theirs. At the news of this
great miracle, he expressed his determination not
to believe unless he himself saw Christ, and was
allowed to touch Him. And thus by an appa-
rently accidental circumstance, Thomas is singled
out from his brethren, who at first disbelieved as
well as he, as if an especial instance of unbelief.
None of them believed till they saw Christ, except
St. John, and he too hesitated at first. Thomas
was convinced latest, because he saw Christ latest.
On the other hand, it is certain that, though he
disbelieved the good news of Christ's resurrection
at first, he was no cold-hearted follower of his
Lord, as appears from his conduct on a previous
occasion, when he expressed a desire to share
danger, and to suffer with Him. When Christ
was setting out for Judaea to raise Lazarus from
the dead, the disciples said, " Master, the Jews
of late sought to stone Thee, and goest Thou
thither again1?" When He remained in His in-
tention, Thomas said to the rest, " Let us also go,
that we may die with Him." This journey ended,
as His Apostles had foreboded, in their Lord's
death ; they indeed escaped, but it was at the
instance of Thomas that they hazarded their lives
with Him.
St. Thomas then loved his Master, as became
1 John xi, 8.
16 ST. THOMAS. [SERM.
an Apostle, and was devoted to His service ; but
when he saw Him crucified, his faith failed for a
season with that of the rest. At the same time we
need not deny that his especial doubts of Christ's
resurrection were not altogether owing to circum-
stances, but in a measure arose from some faulty
state of mind. St. John's narrative itself, and our
Saviour's speech to him, convey an impression that
he was more to blame than the rest. His standing
out alone, not against one witness only, but against
his ten fellow disciples, besides Mary Magdalene
and the other women, is evidence of this ; and his
very strong words, " Except I shall see in His
hands the print of the nails, and put my finger
into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into
His side, I will not believe1." And it is obser-
vable, that, little as we know of St. Thomas, yet
the one remaining recorded speech of his (before
Christ's crucifixion), intimates something of the
same doubting perplexed state of mind. When
Christ said He was going to His Father, and by a
way which they all knew, Thomas interposed with
an argument ; " Lord, we know not whither Thou
goest, and how can we know the way 2?"i. e. we
do not see heaven, or the God of heaven, how can
we know the way thither ? He seems to have re-
quired some sensible insight into the unseen state,
some infallible sign from heaven, a ladder of
1 John xx. 25. s John xiv. 5.
II.] FAITH WITHOUT SIGHT. 17
Angels like Jacob's, which would remove anxiety
by showing him the end of the journey at the
time he set out. Some such secret craving after
certainty beset him. And a like desire rose within
him on the news of Christ's resurrection. Being
weak in faith, he suspended his judgment, and
seemed resolved not to believe any thing, till he
was told every thing. Accordingly, when our
Saviour appeared to him, eight days after His
appearance to the rest, while He allowed Thomas
his wish, and satisfied his senses that He was really
alive, He accompanied the permission with a
rebuke, and intimated that by yielding to his
weakness, he was withdrawing what was a real
blessedness. " Reach hither thy finger, and behold
My hands, and reach hither thy hand, and thrust
it into My side, and be not faithless but believing.
And Thomas answered, and said unto Him, My
Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas,
because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed :
blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have
believed1."
However, after all, we are not so much con-
cerned with considerations respecting the natural
disposition and temper of the Blessed Apostle,
whom we to-day commemorate, as with the parti-
cular circumstance in which his name occurs, and
with our Saviour's comment upon it. All His dis-
1 John xx. 27—29.
VOL. II. C
18 ST. THOMAS. [SERM.
ciples minister to Him ; and, as in other ways, so
also in giving occasion for the words of grace
which proceed from His mouth. They minister
to Him even in their weaknesses, which are often
brought to light in Scripture, not hidden as
Christian friends would hide in piety, that He
may improve them to the instruction and comfort
of His Church. Thus Martha's over-earnestness in
household duties has drawn from Him a sanction
for a life of contemplation and prayer ; and so,
in the history before us, the over-caution of St.
Thomas has gained for us His promise of especial
blessing on those who believe without having seen.
— I proceed to make some remarks on the nature
of this believing temper, and why it is blessed.
It is scarcely necessary to observe, that what
our Saviour says to Thomas so clearly and impres-
sively, He has implied, in one way or other, all
through His ministry ; the blessedness of a mind
that believes readily. His demand and trial of
faith in the case of those who came for His mira-
culous aid, His praise of it where found, His
sorrow where it was wanting, His warnings
against hardness of heart — all are evidence of
this. " Verily I say unto you, I have not found
so great faith, no not in Israel." " Daughter, be
of good comfort, thy faith hath made thee whole."
" Thy faith hath saved thee, go in peace." " An
evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a
sign." " O fools, and slow of heart to believe
II.] FAITH WITHOUT SIGHT. 19
all that the prophets have spoken1." These will
remind us of a multitude of similar passages in
especial praise of faith. St. Paul pursues the same
line of doctrine begun by his Lord. In three
Epistles he sets before us the peculiar place it
holds among the evidences of a religious mind ;
and each time refers to a passage in the Prophets,
in order to show that he was bringing in no new
doctrine, but only teaching that which had been
promulged from the beginning. In consequence,
in our ordinary language we insist on religion being
built upon faith, not upon reason : on the other
hand, it is as common for those who scoff at religion
to object this very doctrine against us, as if, in so
saying, we had almost admitted that Christianity
was not true. Let us then consider how the case
stands.
Every religious mind, under every dispensation
of Providence, will be in the habit of looking out
of itself, as regards all matters connected with its
highest good. For a man of religious mind is he
who attends to the rule of conscience which is
born with him, which he did not make for himself,
and to which he feels bound in duty to submit.
And conscience immediately directs his thoughts
to some Being exterior to himself, who gave it,
and who evidently is superior to him; for a law
1 Matt. viii. 10. ix. 22. Luke vii. 50. Matt. xii. 39.
Luke xxiv. 25.
20 ST. THOMAS. [SERM.
implies a lawgiver, and a command implies a
superior. Thus a man is at once thrown out of
himself, by the very Voice which speaks within
him; and while he rules his heart and conduct by
his inward sense of right and wrong, not by the
maxims of the external world, yet that inward
sense does not allow him to rest in itself, but
sends him forth again from home to seek abroad
for Him who has put His Word in him. He looks
forth into the world to seek Him who is not of the
world, to find behind the shadows and deceits of
this shifting scene of time and sense, Him whose
Word is eternal, and whose Presence is spiritual.
He looks out of himself for that Living Word to
which he may attribute what has echoed in his
heart ; and being sure that it is to be found some-
where, he is predisposed to find it, and often
thinks he has found it when he has not. Hence,
if truth is not at hand, he is apt to mistake error
for truth, to consider as the presence and especial
work of God what is not so ; and thinking any-
thing preferable to scepticism, he becomes (what
is sometimes imputed to him by way of reproach,)
superstitious. This, you may suppose, is the state
of the better sort of persons in a heathen country.
They are not vouchsafed the truer tokens of God's
power and will, which we possess ; so they fancy
where they cannot find, and, having consciences
more acute than their reasoning powers, they per-
vert and misuse even those indications of God
II.] FAITH WITHOUT SIGHT. 21
which are provided for them in nature. This is
one cause of the false divinities of pagan worship,
which are tokens of guilt in the worshipper, not
(as we trust) when they could know no better, but
when they have turned from the light, not liking
" to retain God in their knowledge." And if this
.is the course of a religious mind, even when un-
blessed with the news of divine truth, much more
will it welcome and gladly commit itself to the hand
of God, when allowed to discern it in the Gospel.
Such is faith in the multitude of those who believe,
arising from their sense of the presence of God, as
certified to them by the inward voice of con-
science.
On the other hand, such persons as prefer this
world to the leadings of God's Spirit within them,
soon lose their perception of the latter, and lean
upon the world as a god. Having no presentiment
of any Invisible Power, who has a claim to be con-
sulted in matters of conduct, they consider nothing
to have a substance but what meets their senses,
are contented with this, and draw their rules of
life from it. They truly are in no danger of being
superstitious or credulous ; for they feel no ante-
cedent desire or persuasion that God may have
made any external revelation of Himself; and
when they hear of events supernatural, they come
to the examination of them as calmly and dis-
passionately as if they were judges in a court of
law, or inquiring into points of science. They ac-
22 ST. THOMAS. [SERM.
knowledge no especial interest in the question
proposed to them ; and they find it no effort to
use their intellect upon it as truly, as if it were
some external instrument which could not be
swayed. Here then we see two opposite characters
of mind, the one credulous (as it would be com-
monly called,) the latter candid, well-judging and
sagacious ; and it is clear that the former of the
two is the religious temper rather than the
latter. In this way then, if in no other, faith and
reason are opposed ; and to believe much is more
blessed than to believe little.
But this is not all. Every one who tries to do
God's will, is sure to find he cannot do it perfectly.
He will feel himself to be full of imperfection and
sin ; and the more he succeeds in regulating his
heart, the more he will discern its original bitter-
ness and guilt. Here is an additional cause of a
religious man's looking out of himself. He knows
the evil of his nature, and forebodes God's wrath as
its consequence, arid when he looks around him,
he sees it reflected from within upon the face of
the world. He fears ; and, in consequence, seeks
about for some means of propitiating his Maker,
for some token, if so be, of God's relenting. He
cannot stay at home ; he cannot rest in himself ;
he wanders about from very anxiety ; he needs
some one to speak peace to his soul. Should a
man come to him professing to be a messenger
from heaven, he is at once arrested and listens;
II.] FAITH WITHOUT SIGHT. 23
and, whether such profession is actually true or
false, yet his first desire is that it may be true.
Those, on the contrary, who are without this sense
of sin, can bear the first news of God's having
spoken, without being startled. They can pati-
ently wait till the body of evidence is brought out
before them, and then receive or reject as reason
may determine for them.
Further still, let us suppose two persons of strong
mind, not easily exciteable, sound judging and
cautious ; let them be equally endowed in these
respects. Now there is an additional reason why,
of these two, he who is religious will believe more
and reason less than the irreligious ; that is, if a
man's acting upon a message is the measure of his
believing it, as the common sense of the world will
determine. For in any matter so momentous and
practical as the welfare of the soul, a wise man will
not wait for the fullest evidence, before he acts ;
and will show his caution, not in remaining unin-
fluenced by the existing report of a divine message,
but by obeying it though it might be more clearly
attested. If it is but slightly probable that rejec-
tion of the Gospel will involve his eternal ruin, it
is safest and wisest to believe and obey it. On the
other hand, when a man does not make the truth
of Christianity a practical concern, but a mere
matter of philosophical or historical research, he
will feel himself at leisure, (and reasonably on his
own grounds,) to find fault with the evidence.
24- ST. THOMAS. [SERM.
When we inquire into a point of history, or inves-
tigate an opinion in science, we do demand decisive
evidence ; we consider it allowable to wait till we
obtain it, to remain undecided, in a word to be
sceptical. If religion be not a practical matter, it is
right and philosophical in us to be sceptics. Assur-
edly higher and fuller evidence of its truth might
be given us ; and, after all, there are a number of
deep questions concerning the laws of nature, the
constitution of the human mind, and the like,
which must be solved before we can feel perfectly
satisfied. And those whose hearts are not " ten-
der," ' as Scripture expresses it, i. e. who have not
a vivid perception of the Divine Voice within them,
and of the necessity of His existence from whom
it issues, do not feel Christianity as a practical
matter, and let it pass accordingly. They are ac-
customed to say that death will soon come upon
them and solve the great secret for them without
their trouble, that is, they wait for sight ; not under-
standing, or being able to be made to comprehend,
that their solving this great problem without sight
is the very end and business of their mortal life ;
according to St. Paul's decision that faith is " the
substance" i. e. the realizing, " of things hoped
for," "the evidence," i. e. the making trial of, the
acting on the belief of " things not seen 2." What
the Apostle says of Abraham is a description of
1 2 Kings xxii. 19. 2 Heb. xi. 1.
II.] FAITH WITHOUT SIGHT. 25
all true faith ; it goes out not knowing whither it
goes. It does not crave or bargain to see the end
of the journey ; it does not argue with St. Thomas,
in the days of his ignorance, " we know not whither,
and how can we know the way ?" it is persuaded
that it has quite enough light to walk by, far more
than sinful man has a right to expect, if it sees
one step in advance ; and it leaves all knowledge
of the country over which it is journeying, to Him
who calls it on.
And this blessed temper of mind, which influ-
ences religious men in the greater matter of choos-
ing or rejecting the Gospel, extends itself also into
their contemplation of it in all its parts. As faith
is content with but a little light to begin its journey
by, and makes it much by acting upon it, so also
it reads, as it were, by twilight, the message of
truth in its various details. It does not require the
text of Scripture to admit of rigid and laboured
proofs of its doctrines ; it has the practical wisdom
to consider that the word of God must have one and
one only sense, and to try, as well as may be. to find
out what that sense is, whether the evidence of it
be great or little, and not to quarrel with it if it
is not overpowering. It keeps steadily in view
that Christ speaks in Scripture, and receives His
words as if it heard them, as if some superior and
friend spoke them, one whom it wished to please ;
not as if from the dead letter of a document, which
admitted of rude handling, of criticism and ex-
ception. * It looks off from self to Christ; and
26 ST. THOMAS. [SERM. II.
instead of seeking impatiently for some personal
assurance, is set on obedience, saying " Here am
I, send me." And in like manner towards every
institution of Christ, His Church, His Sacraments,
and His Ministers, it acts not as a disputer of this
world, but as the disciple of Him who appointed
them. Lastly, it rests contented with the revela-
tion made it; it has " found the Messias," and
that is enough. The very principle of its former
restlessness now keeps it from wandering. When
" the Son of God is come, and hath given us an
understanding to know the true God," wavering,
fearfulness, superstitious trust in the creature, pur-
suit of novelties, are signs, not of faith, but of
unbelief1.
In all these ways the Christian walks not by
reason, but by faith ; which is spontaneously
kindled in him from his secret persuasion that he
is under the law of a Moral Governor ; dispenses
with an array of arguments from a sense of the
infinite importance of the soul's interests ; and is
confirmed, when it once has seen and received
Christ, by love of Him and desire to obey Him.
And hence arises its peculiar blessedness ; for it
becomes an evidence and a test of a soul rever-
encing the better parts of its nature, feeling its
wants, looking out of itself, renouncing self-depend-
ence, committing itself to the Covenant of the
Gospel, and endued with quick understanding in
obeying God.
1 Vide Cant. iii. 1 1.
SERMON III.
THE FEAST OF THE NATIVITY.
THE INCARNATION.
JOHN i. 14.
The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.
THUS does the favoured Apostle and Evangelist
announce to us that Sacred Mystery, which we
this day especially commemorate, the incarna-
tion of the Eternal Word. Thus briefly and
simply does he speak, as if fearing he should fail
in fitting reverence. If any there was who might
seem to have permission to indulge in words on
this subject, it was the beloved disciple, who had
heard, and seen, and looked upon, and handled
the Word of Life ; yet, in proportion to the height
of his privilege, was his discernment of the in-
finity which separated him from his Creator.
Such too was the temper of the Holy Angels, when
the Father " brought in the First-begotten into the
world * ; " they straightway worshipped Him. And
1 Heb. i. 6.
28 CHRISTMAS DAY. [SERM.
such was the feeling of awe and love mingled
together, which remained for a while in the Church
after Angels had announced His coming, and
Evangelists had recorded His sojourn here and His
departure; " there was silence as it were for
half an hour1." Around the Church, indeed, the
voices of blasphemy were heard, even as when He
hung on the cross ; but in the Church there was
light and peace, fear, joy, and holy meditation.
Lawless doubtirigs, importunate inquirings, con-
fident reasonings were not. An heartfelt adora-
tion, a practical devotion to the Ever-blessed Son,
precluded difficulties in faith, and sheltered the
Church from the necessity of speaking.
He who had seen the Lord Jesus with a pure
mind, attending Him from the lake of Gennesa-
reth to Calvary, and from the Sepulchre to Mount
Olivet, where He left this scene of His humiliation;
he who had been put in charge with His Virgin
Mother, and heard from her what she alone could
tell of the Mystery to which she had ministered ;
and they who had heard it from his mouth, and
those again whom these have taught, the first
generations of the Church, needed no explicit de-
clarations concerning His Sacred Person. Sight
and hearing superseded the multitude of words ;
faith dispensed witn the aid of lengthened Creeds
and Confessions. There was silence. " The Word
1 Rev. viii. 1.
III.] THE INCARNATION. 29
was made flesh," "I believe in Jesus Christ His
only Son our Lord ;" sentences such as these
conveyed every thing, yet were officious in no-
thing. But when the light of His advent faded,
and love waxed cold, then there was an opening
for objection and discussion, and a difficulty in
answering. Then doubts had to be allayed, ques-
tions set at rest, innovators silenced. Christians
were forced to speak against their will, lest here-
tics should speak instead of them.
Such is the difference between our own state
and that of the early Church, which the present
Festival especially brings to mind. In the New
Testament we find the doctrine of the Incarnation
announced, clearly indeed, but with a reverent bre-
vity. "The Word was made flesh." " God was ma-
nifest in the flesh." " God was in Christ." " Unto
us a child is born, the Mighty God." " Christ,
over all, God, blessed for ever." " My Lord and
my God." " I am Alpha and Omega, the be-
ginning and the ending, the Almighty." " The
Son of God, the brightness of His glory, and the
express image of His Person1." But we are
obliged to speak more at length in the Creeds,
to meet the perverse ingenuity of those, who, now
that the voices of Apostles have died away, can
with impunity insult and misinterpret the letter of
their writings.
1 1 Tim. iii. 16. 2 Cor. v. 19. Isai. ix. 6. Rom. ix. 5.
John xx. 28. Rev. i. 8. Heb, i. 2, 3.
30 CHRISTMAS DAY. [SERM.
Nay, further, so circumstanced are we, as to be
obliged not only thus to guard the Truth, but even
to give the reason of our guarding it. For they
who would steal away the Lord from us, not con-
tent with forcing us to measures of protection,
even go on to bring us to account for adopting
them ; and demand that we should put aside
whatever stands between them and their heretical
purposes. Therefore it is necessary to state clearly,
as I have already done, why the Church has
lengthened her statement of Christian doctrine.
Another reason of these statements is as follows :
time having proceeded, and the true traditions of
our Lord's ministry being lost to us, the Object of
our faith is but faintly reflected on our minds,
compared with the vivid picture presented before
the early Christians. True is it the Gospels will
do very much by way of realizing for us the incar-
nation of the Son of God, if studied in faith and
love. But the Creeds are an additional help this
way. The declarations made in them, the dis-
tinctions, cautions, and the like, supported and
illuminated by Scripture, draw down, as it were,
from heaven, the image of Him who is on God's
right hand, and rouse in us those mingled feel-
ings of fear and confidence, affection and devotion
towards Him, which are implied in the belief of
a personal advent of God in our nature, and which
were originally derived to the Church from the
very sight of Him.
III.] THE INCARNATION. 31
And we may say further still, these statements,
such, for instance, as occur in the Te Deum and
Athanasian Creed, are especially suitable in divine
worship, inasmuch as they kindle and elevate the
religious affections. They are hymns of praise
and thanksgiving ; they give glory to God as
revealed in the Gospel, just as David's Psalms
magnify His Attributes as displayed in nature,
His wonderful works in the creation of the world,
and His mercies toward the house of Israel.
With these objects, then, it may be useful on
to-day's Festival, to call your attention to the
Catholic doctrine of the Incarnation.
The Word was from the beginning, the Only-be-
gotten Son of God. Before all worlds were created,
while as yet time was not, He was in existence, in
the bosom of the Eternal Father, God from God, and
Light from Light, supremely blessed in knowing
and being known of Him, and receiving all divine
perfections from Him, yet ever One with Him who
begat Him. As it is said in the opening of the
Gospel; "In the beginning was the Word, and
the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
If we may dare conjecture, He is called the Word
of God, as mediating between the Father and all
creatures ; bringing them into being, fashioning
them, giving the world its laws, imparting reason
and conscience to creatures of a higher order, and
revealing to them in due season the knowledge of
15
32 CHRISTMAS DAY. [SERM.
God's will. And to us Christians He is especially
the Word in that great Mystery commemorated
to-day, whereby He became flesh, and redeemed
us from a world of sin.
He, indeed, when man fell, might have re-
mained in the glory which He had with the
Father before the world was. But that unsearch-
able Love, which showed itself in our original
creation, rested not content with a frustrated work,
but brought Him down again from His Father's
bosom to do His will, and repair the evil which
sin had caused. And with a wonderful conde-
scension He came, not as before in power, but in
weakness, in the form of a servant, in the likeness
of that fallen creature whom He purposed to re-
store. So He humbled Himself; suffering all the
infirmities of our nature in the likeness of sinful
flesh, all but a sinner, — pure from all sin, yet sub-
jected to all temptation, — and at length becoming
obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. •
I have said that when the Only-begotten Son
stooped to take upon Him our nature, He had no
fellowship with sin. It was impossible that He
should. Therefore, since our nature was corrupt
since Adam's fall, He did not come in the way of
nature, He did not clothe Himself in that corrupt
flesh which Adam's race inherits. He came by
miracle, so as to take on Him our imperfection
without having any share in our sinfulness. He
III.] THE INCARNATION. 33
was not born as other men are; for " that which
is born of the flesh is flesh1."
All Adam's children are children of wrath ; so
our Lord came as the Son of Man, but not the
son of sinful Adam. He had no earthly father;
He abhorred to have one. The thought may not
be suffered that He should have been the son of
shame and guilt. He came by a new and living
way ; not, indeed, formed out of the ground, as
Adam was at the first, lest He should miss the par-
ticipation of our nature, but selecting and purifying
unto Himself a tabernacle out of that which existed.
As in the beginning, woman was formed out of man
by Almighty power, so now, by a like mystery, but
a reverse order, the new Adam was fashioned from
the woman. He was, as had been foretold, the im-
maculate " seed of the woman," deriving His man-
hood from the substance of the Virgin Mary; as it is
expressed in the articles of the Creed, — " conceived
by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary."
» Thus the Son of God became the Son of Man ;
mortal, but not a sinner ; heir of our infirmities, not
of our guiltiness ; the offspring of the old race, yet
" the beginning of the " new " creation of God/"
Mary, His mother, was a sinner as others, and born
of sinners; but she was set apart, " as a garden
inclosed, a spring shut up, a fountain sealed," to
yield a created nature to Him who was her Creator,
1 John iii. 6.
VOL. II. D
34 CHRISTMAS DAY. [SERM.
Thus He came into this world, not in the clouds
of heaven, but born into it, born of a woman ;
He, the Son of Mary, and she (if it may be said),
the' Mother of God. Thus He came, selecting
and setting apart for Himself the elements of body
and soul ; then, uniting them to Himself from their
first origin of existence, pervading them, hallow-
ing them by His own Divinity, spiritualizing them,
and filling them with light and purity, the while
they continued to be human, and for a time mortal
and exposed to infirmity. And, as they grew from
day to day in their holy union, His Eternal Essence
still was one with them, exalting them, acting in
them, manifesting Itself through them, bringing a
growth of wisdom with the growth of stature ; so
thakHe was truly God and Man, One Person, — as
we are soul and body, yet one man, so truly God
and man are not two, but One Christ. Thus did
the Son of God enter this mortal world ; and when
He had reached man's estate, He began His
ministry, preached the Gospel, chose His Apostles,
suffered on the cross, died, and was buried, rose
again and ascended on high, there to reign till the
day when He comes again to judge the world.
This is the All-gracious Mystery of the Incarnation,
good to look into, good to adore ; according to the
saying in the text, — " the Word was made flesh,
and dwelt among us."
The account thus given of the Catholic doctrine
III.] THE INCARNATION. 35
of the Incarnation of the Eternal Word, may be
made more distinct by referring to some of those
modes mentioned in Scripture, in which God has
at divers times condescended to manifest Himself
in His creatures, which come short of it.
1. God was in the Prophets, but not as He was
in Christ. The divine authority, and in one sense,
name, may be given to His Ministers, considered as
His representatives. Moses says to the Israelites,
" Your murmurings are not against us, but against
the Lord." And St. Paul, " He therefore that
despiseth, despiseth not man, but God V In this
sense, Rulers and Judges are sometimes called gods,
as our Lord Himself says.
And further, the Prophets were inspired. Thus
John the Baptist is said to have been filled with the
Holy Ghost from his mother's womb. Zacharias was
filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied. In like
manner the Holy Ghost came on the Apostles at
Pentecost and at other times ; and so wonderfully
gifted was St. Paul, that " from his body were
brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and
the diseases departed from them, and the evil
spirits went out of them2." Now the characteristic
of this miraculous inspiration was, that the presence
of God came and went. Thus we read in the
above and similar narratives, of the Prophet or
1 Exod. xvi. 8. 1 Thes. iv. 8. 2 Acts xix. 12.
D2
#6 CHRISTMAS DAY. [SBRM.
Apostle being filled with the Spirit on a particular
occasion ; as again of u the Spirit of the Lord de-
parting from Saul," and an evil spirit troubling him. .
Thus this divine inspiration was parallel to demoni-
acal possession. We find in the Gospels the devil
speaking with the voice of his victim, so that the
tormentor and the tormented could not be distin-
guished from each other. They seemed to be one
and the same, though they were not ; as appeared
when Christ and His Apostles cast the devil out.
And so again the Jewish Temple was in one sense
inhabited by the presence of God, which came
down upon it at Solomon's prayer. This was a
type of our Lord's manhood dwelt in by the Word
of God as a Temple ; still with this essential dif-
ference, that the Jewish Temple was perishable, and
on the other hand the Divine Presence might re-
cede from it. There was no real unity between
the one and the other : they were separable.
But Christ says to the Jews of His own body,
" Destroy this Temple and I will raise it in three
days ;" implying in these words, such an unity be-
tween the Godhead and the manhood, that there
could be no real separation, no dissolution. Even
when His body was dead, the Divine Nature was in
it ; and in like manner it was in His blessed soul
in paradise. Soul and body were really one
with the Eternal Word, — not one in name only, —
one never to be divided. Therefore Scripture snys
HI.] THE INCARNATION. 37
that He rose again " according to the Spirit of
holiness;" and "that it was not possible that He
should be holden l of death."
2. Again, the Gospel teaches us another mode
in which man may be said to be united with Al-
mighty God. It is the peculiar blessedness of the
Christian, as St. Peter tells us, to be "partaker of
the Divine Nature2." We believe, and have joy
in believing, that the Spirit of Christ renews our
corrupt souls, repairing the effects of Adam's fall.
Where Adam brought in love of sin and unbelief,
the Holy Ghost infuses faith and holiness. Thus
we have a communication of God's perfections to
create our hearts anew, and, as being thus under
heavenly influences, are said to be one with God.
And further, we are assured of some real though
mystical fellowship with the Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit, in order to this ; so that both by a real pre-
sence in the soul, and by the fruits of grace, God is
one with every believer, as in a consecrated Temple.
But still, inexpressible as is this gift of Divine
Mercy, it were blasphemy not to say that the in-
dwelling of God in Christ is infinitely above this,
being quite different in kind ; for He is not merely
of a divine nature, divine by participation of holi-
ness and perfection, but simply God Incarnate, the
Word made flesh.
3. And lastly, we read in the Patriarchal History
1 Rom. i. 4. Acts ii. 24. 2 2 Pet. i. 4.
38 CHRISTMAS DAY. [SERM.
of various appearances of Angels, so remarkable
that we can scarcely hesitate to suppose them to be
gracious visions of the Eternal Son. For instance;
it is said that " the Angel of the Lord appeared
unto " Moses " in a flame of fire out of the midst of
a bush ;" yet presently this supernatural Presence is
called " the Lord," and afterwards reveals His
name to Moses, as " the God of Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob." On the other hand St. Stephen
speaks of Him as " the Angel which appeared to
Moses in the bush." Again, he says soon after,
that Moses was " in the Church in the wilderness
with the Angel which spake to him in the mount
Sina;" yet in the book of Exodus we read, " Moses
went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him
out of the mountain ;" "God spake all these words
saying1;" and the like. Now, assuming, as we
seem to have reason to assume, that the Son of
God is herein revealed to us, as graciously minis-
tering to the Patriarchs, Moses, and others in an-
gelic form, the question arises, what was the nature
of this appearance ? We are not informed, nor may
we venture to determine; still, any how, the Angel
was but the temporary outward form which the
Eternal Word assumed, whether it was of a mate-
rial nature, or a vision. Whether or no it was
really an Angel, or but an appearance existing
only for the immediate purpose ; yet, any how, we
1 Exod. iii. 2. Acts vii, 35—38. Exod. xix. 3. xx. 1.
III.] THE INCARNATION. 39
could not with propriety say that our Lord " took
upon Him the nature of Angels."
Now these instances of the indwelling of Al-
mighty God in a created substance, which I have
given by way of contrast to that infinitely higher
and mysterious union which is called the Incarna-
tion, actually supply the senses in which heretics at
various times have perverted our holy and comfort-
able doctrine, and which have obliged us to have
recourse to Creeds and Confessions. Rejecting the
teaching of the Church, and dealing rudely with
the Word of God, they have ventured to deny that
" Jesus Christ is come in the flesh," pretending He
merely showed Himself as a vision or phantom ; — or
they have said that the Son of God merely dwelt
in the man Christ Jesus, as the Shechinah in the
Temple, having no real union with the Son of Mary
(as if there were two distinct Beings, the Word
and Jesus, even as the Blessed Spirit is distinct
from a man's soul); — or that Christ was called
God for His great spiritual perfections, and that
He gradually attained them by long practice. All
these are words not to be uttered, except to show
what the true doctrine is, and what is the meaning
of the language of the Church concerning it. For
instance, the Athanasian Creed confesses that Christ
is " God of the substance of the Father, begotten
before the worlds, perfect God," lest we should
consider His Divine Nature, like ours, as merely a
nature resembling God's holiness ; that He is " Man
40 CHRISTMAS DAY. [SERM.
of the substance of His Mother, born in the world,
perfect man," lest we should think of Him as "not
come in the flesh," a mere Angelic vision ; and
that " although He be God and man, yet He is not
two, but One Christ," lest we should fancy that the
Word of God entered into Him and then departed,
as the Holy Ghost in the Prophets.
Such are the terms in which we are constrained
to speak of our Lord and Saviour, by the craftiness
of His enemies ; and we intreat His leave to do so.
We intreat His leave, not as if forgetting that a re-
verent silence is best on so sacred a subject ; but,
when evil men and seducers abound on every side,
using zealous David's argument, " Is there not
a cause " for words ? We intreat His leave, and
we humbly pray that what was first our defence
against error, may become an outlet of devotion,
a service of worship. Nay, we surely trust that He
will accept mercifully what we offer in faith, " doing
what we can;" though the ointment of spikenard
which we pour out is nothing to that true Divine
Glory which manifested itself in Him, when the
Heavenly Dove singled Him out from other men,
and the Father's voice acknowledged Him as His
dearly beloved Son. Surely He will mercifully ac-
cept it, if faith offers what the intellect provides ; if
love kindles the sacrifice, zeal fans it, and reverence
guards it. He will illuminate our earthly words
from His own Divine Holiness, till they become
saving truths to the souls which trust in Him.
III.] THE INCARNATION. 41
He who turned water into wine, and (did He so
choose) could make bread of the hard stone, will
sustain us for a brief season on this mortal fare.
And we the while receiving it, will never so forget
its imperfection, as not to look out constantly for
the True Beatific Vision ; never so perversely re-
member it, as to reject what is necessary for our
present need. The time will come, if we be found
worthy, when we, who now see in a glass darkly,
shall see our Lord and Saviour face to face ; shall
behold His countenance beaming with the fulness
of Divine Perfections, and bearing its own witness
that He is the Son of God. We shall see Him as
He is.
Let us then, according to the light given us,
praise and bless Him in the Church below, whom
Angels in heaven see and adore. Let us bless
Him for His surpassing loving-kindness in taking
upon Him our infirmities to redeem us, when He
dwelt in the innermost love of the Everlasting
Father, in the glory which He had with Him
before the world was. He came in lowliness and
want; born amid the tumults of a mixed and
busy multitude, cast aside into the outhouse of a
crowded inn, laid to His first rest among the brute
cattle. He grew up, as if the native of a despised
city, and was bred to a humble craft. He bore to
live in a world that slighted Him, for He lived in
it, in order in due time to die for it. He came, as
the appointed Priest, to offer sacrifice for those
42 CHRISTMAS DAY. [SERM.
who took no part in the act of worship ; He
came to offer up for sinners that precious
blood which was meritorious by virtue of His
Divine Anointing. He died, to rise again the third
day, the Sun of Righteousness, fully display-
ing that splendour which had hitherto been con-
cealed by the morning clouds. He rose again, to
ascend to the right hand of God, there to plead
His sacred wounds in token of our forgiveness, to
rule and guide His ransomed people, and from His
pierced side to pour forth His choicest blessings
upon them. He ascended, thence to descend again
in due season to judge the world which He has
redeemed. — Great is our Lord, and great is His
power," Jesus the Son of God and Son of man.
Ten thousand times more dazzling bright than the
highest Archangel, is our Lord and Christ. By
birth the Only-begotten and Express Ima^e of
God ; and in taking our flesh, not sullied thereby,
but raising human nature with Him, as He rose
from the lowly manger to the right hand of power, —
raising human nature, for Man has redeemed us,
Man is set above all creatures, as one with the
Creator, Man shall judge man at the last day. So
honored is our nature, that no stranger-minister
from God shall be our judge, but He who is our
fellow, who will sustain our interests, and has full
sympathy in all our imperfections. He who loved
us, even to die for us, is graciously appointed to
assign the final measurement and price upon His
15
III.] THE INCARNATION. 43
own work. He who best knows by infirmity to
take the part of the infirm, He who would fain reap
the full fruit of His passion, He will separate the
wheat from the chaff, so that not a grain shall fall
to the ground. He who has given us to share His
own spiritual nature, He from whom we have
drawn the life's blood of our souls, He our brother
will decide about His brethren. In that His
second coming, may He in His grace and loving
pity remember us, who is our only hope, our only
salvation !
SERMON IV,
ST. STEPHEN.
MARTYRDOM.
HEB. xi. 37.
They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were
slain with the sword.
ST. STEPHEN, who was one of the seven Deacons,
is called the Protomartyr, as having first suffered
death in the cause of the Gospel. Let me take
the opportunity of his festival to make some re-
marks upon Martyrdom generally.
The word Martyr properly means " a witness,"
but is used to denote exclusively one who has suf-
fered death for the Christian faith. Those who
have witnessed boldly for Christ without suffering
death, are called Confessors; a title, which the early
Martyrs often made their own, before their last
solemn confession unto death, or Martyrdom.
Our Lord Jesus Christ is the chief and most
glorious of Martyrs, as having " before Pontius
SERM. IV.] MARTYRDOM. 45
Pilate witnessed a good confession l ;" but we do
not call Him a Martyr, as being much more than a
Martyr. True it is, He died for the truth ; but that
was not the chief purpose of His death. He died
to save us sinners from the wrath of God. He was
not only a Martyr ; He was an Atoning Sacrifice.
He is the supreme object of our love, gratitude,
and reverence. — Next to Him we honor the noble
army of Martyrs ; not indeed comparing them to
Him, u who is above all, God blessed for ever," or
as if they in suffering had any part in the work of
reconciliation, but because they have approached
most closely to His pattern of all His servants.
They have shed their blood for the Church, fulfilling
the text, " He laid down His life for us, and we
ought to lay down our lives for the brethren2."
They have followed His steps, and claim our grate-
ful remembrance. Had St. Stephen shrunk from
the trial put upon him, and recanted to save his
life, no one can estimate the consequences of such
a defection. Perhaps (humanly speaking) the
cause of the Gospel would have been lost ; the
Church might have perished ; and, though Christ
had died for the world, the world might not have
received the knowledge or the benefit of His death.
The channels of grace might have been destroyed,
the Sacraments withdrawn from the feeble and
corrupt race which has such need of them.
1 1 Tim. vi. 13. * 1 John iii. 16.
46 ST. STEPHEN. [SERM.
Now it may be said, that many men suffer pain,
as great as Martyrdom, from disease, and in other
ways : again, that it does not follow that those who
happened to be martyred were always the most
useful arid active defenders of the faith ; and there-
fore, that in honoring the Martyrs, we are honoring
with especial honor those to whom indeed we may
be peculiarly indebted, (as in the case of Apostles,)
but nevertheless who may have been but ordinary
men, who happened to stand in the most exposed
place, in the way of persecution, and were slain
as if by chance, because the sword met them first.
But this, it is plain, would be a strange way of
reasoning in any parallel case. We are grateful
to those who have done us favors, rather than to
those who might or would, if it had so happened.
We have no concern with the question, whether
the Martyrs were the best of men or not, or whe-
ther others would have been Martyrs too, had it
been allowed them. We are grateful to those who
were such, from the plain matter of fact that they
were such, that they did so through much suffer-
ing, in order that the world might gain an in-
estimable benefit, the light of the Gospel.
But in truth, if we would view the matter con-
siderately, we shall find that, (as far as human
judgment can decide on such a point,) the Martyrs
of the primitive times, were, as such, men of a
very elevated faith ; not only our benefactors, but
far our superiors. The utmost to which any such
IV.] MARTYRDOM. 47
objection as that I have stated, goes, is this ; to
show that others who were not martyred, might be
equal to them, (St. Philip the Deacon, for instance,
equal to his associate St. Stephen,) not that the
Martyrs were not men eminently gifted with the
Spirit of Christ. For let us consider what it was
then to be a Martyr.
First, it was to be a voluntary sufferer. Men,
perhaps, suffer in various diseases more than the
Martyrs did, but they cannot help themselves.
Again, it has frequently happened that men have
been persecuted for their religion without having
expected it, or being able to avert it. These in
one sense indeed are Martyrs ; and we naturally
think affectionately of those who have suffered in
our cause, whether voluntary or not. But this was
not the case with the primitive Martyrs. They
knew beforehand clearly enough the consequences
of preaching the gospel ; they had frequent warn-
ings brought home to them of the sufferings in
store for them, if they persevered in their labours
of brotherly love. Their Lord and Master had
suffered before them ; and, besides suffering Him-
self, had expressly foretold their sufferings ; " If
they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute
you1." They were repeatedly warned and strictly
charged by the chief priests and rulers, not to
preach in Christ's name. They had experience
1 John xv. 20.
48 ST. STEPHEN. [SERM.
of lesser punishments from their adversaries in
earnest of the greater ; and at length they saw their
brethren, one by one, slain for persevering in their
faithfulness to Christ. Yet they continued to keep
the faith, though they might be victims of their
obedience any day.
All this must be considered when we speak of
their sufferings. They lived under a continual
trial, a daily exercise of faith, which we, liv-
ing in peaceable times, can scarcely understand.
Christ had said to His Apostles, " Satan hath de-
sired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat1."
Consider what is meant by sifting, which is a
continued agitation, a shaking about to separate
the mass of corn into two parts. Such was the
early discipline inflicted on the Church. No mere
sudden stroke came upon it ; but it was solicited
day by day, in all its members, by every argument
of hope and fear, by threats and inducements,
to desert it. This was the lot of the Martyrs.
Death, their final suffering, was but the consumma-
tion of a life of anticipated death. Consider how
distressing anxiety is ; how irritating and wearing
it is to be in constant excitement, with the duty of
maintaining calmness and steadiness in the midst
of it ; and how especially inviting any prospect of
tranquillity would appear in such circumstances ;
and then we shall have some notion of a Christian's
1 Luke xxii. 31.
IV.] MARTYRDOM. 49
condition, under a persecuting heathen government.
I put aside for the present the peculiar reproach
and contempt which was the lot of the primitive
Church, and the actual privations. Let us merely
consider it as harassed, shaken as wheat in a sieve.
Under such circumstances, the stoutest hearts are
in danger of failing. They could steel themselves
against certain definite sufferings, or prepare them-
selves to meet one expected crisis ; but they yield
to the incessant annoyance which the apprehension
of persecution, and the importunity of friends in-
flict on them. They sigh for peace ; they gradually
come to believe that the world is not so wrong as
some men say it is, and that it is possible to be
over-strict and over-nice. They learn to temporize
arid be double-minded. First one falls, then another ;
and such instances come as an additional argument
for concession to those that remain firm as yet,
who of course feel disspirited, lonely, and begin to
doubt the correctness of their own judgment ;
while on the other hand, those who have fallen, in
self-defence become their tempters. Thus the
Church is sifted, the cowardly falling off, the faith-
ful continuing firm, though in dejection and per-
plexity. Among these latter are the Martyrs ; not
accidental victims, taken at random, but the
picked and choice ones, the elect remnant, a sacrifice
well pleasing to God, because a costly gift, the
finest wheat flour of the Church : men who have
been warned what to expect from their profession,
E
50 ST. STEPHEN. [SERM.
and have had many opportunities of relinquishing
it, but have " borne and had patience, and for
Christ's name's sake have laboured and have not
fainted V Such was St. Stephen, not entrapped
into a confession and slain (as it were) in ambus-
cade, but boldly confronting his persecutors, and, in
spite of circumstances that foreboded death, await-
ing their fury. And if Martyrdom is not to be
considered the chance unexpected death of one who
happened to profess the Christian faith, much less
is it to be compared to the sufferings of disease, be
they greater or not. No one is maintaining that
the mere undergoing pain is a great thing. A man
cannot help himself, when in pain ; he cannot escape
from it, be he as desirous to do so as he may. The
devils bear pain against their will. But to be a
Martyr, is to feel the storm coming, and willingly
to endure it at the call of duty, for Christ's sake, and
for the good of the brethren ; and this is a kind of
firmness which we have no means of displaying at
the present day, though our deficiency in it may be,
and is continually evidenced, as often as we yield
(which is not seldom) to inferior and ordinary temp-
tations.
2. But, in the next place, the suffering itself of
Martyrdom was in some respects peculiar. It was
a death, cruel in itself, publicly inflicted ; arid
heightened by the fierce exultation of a malevolent
1 Rev. ii. 3.
IV.] MARTYRDOM. 51
populace. When we are in pain, we can lie in
peace by ourselves. We receive the sympathy and
kind services of those about us ; and if we like it,
we can retire altogether from the sight of others, and
suffer without a witness to interrupt us. But the
sufferings of Martyrdom were for the most part pub-
lic, attended with every circumstance of ignominy
and popular triumph, as well as with torture.
Criminals indeed are put to death without kind
thoughts from bystanders ; still, for the most part,
even criminals receive commiseration and a sort of
respect. But the early Christians had to endure
61 the shame" after their Master's pattern. They had
to die in the midst of enemies who reviled them,
and in mockery, bid them (as in Christ's case)
come down from the cross. They were supported
on no easy couch, soothed by no attentive friends ;
and considering how much the depressing power of
pain depends on the imagination, this circumstance
alone at once separates their sufferings widely from
all instances of pain in disease. The unseen God
alone was their Comforter, and this invests the scene
of their suffering with supernatural majesty, and
awes us when we think of them. " Yea, though I
walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I
will fear no evil ; for Thou art with me1. A Mar-
tyrdom is a season of God's especial power in the
eye of faith, as great as if a miracle were visibly
1 Psalm xxiii 4.
E2
52 ST. STEPHEN.
wrought. It is a fellowship of Christ's suffering's,
a commemoration of His death, a representation
filling up in figure, that which is behind of His afflic-
tions, for His body's sake, which is the Church1."
And thus, being an august solemnity in itself, and a
kind of Sacrament, a baptism of blood, it worthily
finishes that long searching trial which I have al-
ready described as being its usual forerunner in
primitive times.
I have spoken only of the early Martyrs, because
this Festival leads me to do so; and, besides, because,
though there have been (Praise to our pardoning,
God !) Martyrs among us since, yet, from the time
that Kings have become the nursing fathers of
the Church, the history of Confessors and Martyrs
is so implicated with state affairs, that their conduct
is not so easily separable by us from the world
around them, nor are we given to know them so
clearly : though this difficulty of discerning them
should invest their memory with peculiar interest
when we do discern them, and their connexion
with civil matters, far from diminishing the high
spiritual excellence of such true sons of the Church,
in some respects even increases it.
To conclude. — It is useful to reflect on subjects
such as that I have now laid before you, in order to
humble ourselves. "We have not resisted unto
blood, striving against sin 2". What are our petty
1 Col. i. 24. * Hebr< xii> 4<>
IV.] MARTYRDOM. 53
sufferings which we make so much of, to their pains
and sorrows, who lost their friends, and then their
own lives for Christ's sake ; who were assaulted by
all kind of temptations, the sophistry of Antichrist,
the blandishments of the world, the terrors of the
sword, the weariness of suspense, and yet fain ted not?
How far above ours are both their afflictions, and their
consolations under them ! Now, I know that such
reflections are at once, and with far deeper reason,
raised by the thought of the sufferings of Christ
Himself; but commonly. His transcendent holiness
and depth of woe do not immediately affect us, from
the very greatness of them. We sum them up in a
few words, and speak without understanding. On the
other hand we rise some what towards the comprehen-
sion of them, when we make use of that heavenly
ladder by which His Saints have made their way
towards Him. By contemplating the lowest of His
true servants, and seeing how far any one of them
surpasses ourselves, we learn to shrink before His
ineffable purity, who is infinitely holier than the
first of Saints; and to confess ourselves (with a
sincere mind) to be unworthy of the least of all His
mercies. Thus His Martyrs lead us to Himself, the
chief of Martyrs and the king of Saints.
May God give us grace to receive these thoughts
into our hearts, and to display the fruit of them in
our conduct! What are we but sinful dust and
ashes, grovellers who are creeping on to Heaven,
not with any noble sacrifice for Christ's cause, but
54 ST. STEPHEN. [SERM. IV.
without pain, without trouble, in the midst of
worldly blessings ! Well ; — but He can save in the
humblest paths of life, and in the most tranquil
times. There is enough for us to do, far more than
we fulfil, in our own ordinary course. Let us strive
to be more humble, faithful, merciful, meek, self-
denying than we are. Let us "crucify the flesh
with the affections and lusts1." This, to be sure, is
sorry Martyrdom ; yet God accepts it for His Son's
sake. Notwithstanding, after all, if we get to
Heaven, surely we shall be the lowest of the Saints
there assembled ; and, if all are unprofitable ser-
vants, we verily shall be the most unprofitable
of all.
1 Gal. v. 24.
SERMON V.-
ST. JOHN THE E VA NGELIS T.
LOVE OF RELATIONS AND FRIENDS.
1 JOHN iv. 7-
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God.
ST. JOHN the Apostle and Evangelist is chiefly and
most familiarly known to us as " the disciple whom
Jesus loved." He was one of the three or four who
always attended our Blessed Lord, and had the pri-
vilege of the most intimate intercourse with Him ;
and, more favoured than Peter, James, and An-
drew, he was His bosom friend, as we commonly
express ourselves. At the solemn supper before
Christ suffered, he took his place next Him, and
leaned on His breast. As the other three commu-
nicated between the multitude and Christ, so St.
John communicated between Christ and them. At
the Last Supper, Peter dared not ask Jesus a ques-
tion himself, but bade John put it to Him, who it
was that should betray Him. Thus St. John was
the private and intimate friend of Christ. Again, it
was to St. John that our Lord committed His
56 ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST. [SERM.
Mother, when He was dying on the Cross ; it
was to St. John that He revealed in vision after His
departure the fortunes of His Church.
Much might be said on this remarkable circum-
stance. I say, remarkable, because it might be
supposed that the Son of God Most High could not
have loved one man more than another ; or again,
if so, that He would not have had only one friend,
but, as being All-holy, He would have loved all
men more or less, in proportion to their holiness.
Yet we find our Saviour had a private friend ; and
this shows us, first how entirely He was a man, as
much as any of us, in His wants and feelings ; and
next that there is nothing contrary to the spirit of
the Gospel, nothing inconsistent with the fulness of
Christian love, in having our affections directed in
an especial way towards certain objects, towards those
whom the circumstances of our past life, or some
peculiarities of character have endeared to us.
There have been men before now who have sup-
posed Christian love was so diffusive as not to
admit of concentration upon individuals ; so that
we ought to love all men equally. And many
there are, who without bringing forward any
theory, yet consider practically that the love of
many is something superior to the love of one or
two ; and neglect the charities of private life,
while busy in schemes of an expansive bene-
volence, or of effecting a general union and con-
ciliation among Christians. Now I shall here
V.] LOVE OF RELATIONS AND FRIENDS. 57
maintain, in opposition to such notions of Christian
love, and with our Saviour's pattern before me,
that the effectual way of loving the world at large,
and loving it duly and wisely, is to begin by culti-
vating an intimate friendship and affection towards
those who are immediately about us.
It has been the plan of Divine Providence to
ground what is good and true in religion and
morals, on the basis of our good natural feelings.
What we are towards our earthly friends in the
instincts and wishes of our infancy, such we are to
become at length towards God and man in the
extended field of our duties as accountable beings.
To honor our parents is the first step towards
honoring God ; to love our brethren according to
the flesh, the first step towards considering all men
our brethren. Hence our Lord says, we must
become as little children, if we would be saved ;
we must become in His Church, as men, what we
were once in the small circle of our youthful
homes. — Consider how many other virtues are
grafted upon natural feelings. What is Christian
high-mindedness, generous self-denial, contempt
of wealth, endurance of suffering, and earnest
striving after heaven, but an improvement and
transformation, under the influence of the Holy
Spirit, of that natural character of mind which we
call romantic ? On the other hand, what is the
instinctive hatred and abomination of sin, (which
confirmed Christians possess.) their dissatisfaction
58 ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST.
with themselves, their general refinement, discri-
mination and caution, but an improvement, under
the same Spirit, of their natural sensitiveness and
delicacy, fear of pain, and sense of shame ? They
have been chastised into self-government, by a fit
discipline, and now associate an acute sense of dis-
comfort and annoyance with the notion of sinning.
And so of the love of our fellow Christians and of
the world at large, it is the love of kindred and
friends in a fresh shape ; which has this use, if it
had no other, that it is the natural branch on which
a spiritual fruit is grafted.
But again, the love of our private friends is the
only preparatory exercise for the love of others.
The love of God is not the same thing as the love
of our parents, though parallel to it ; but the love
of mankind in general should be in the main the
same habit as the love of our friends, only exer-
cised towards different objects. The great diffi-
culty in our religious duties is their extent. This
frightens and perplexes men, — naturally ; those
especially, who have neglected religion for awhile,
and on whom its obligations disclose themselves
all at once. This, for example, is the great misery
of leaving repentance till a man is in weakness or
sickness ; he does not know how to set about it.
Now God's merciful Providence has in the natural
course of things narrowed for us at first this large
field of duty ; He has given us a clue. We are to
begin with loving our friends about us, and gra-
V.] LOVE OF RELATIONS AND FRIENDS. 59
dually to enlarge the circle of our affections, till it
reaches all Christians, and then all men. Besides,
it is obviously impossible to love all men in any
strict and true sense. What is meant by loving
all men, is, to feel well-disposed towards all men,
to be ready to assist them, and to act towards those
who come in our way, as if we loved them. We
cannot love those about whom we know nothing ;
except indeed we view them in Christ, as the objects
of His Atonement, that is, rather in faith than in
love. And love, besides, is a habit, and cannot be at-
tained without actual practice, which on so large a
scale is impossible. We see then how absurd it is,
when writers, (as is the manner of some who slight
the Gospel,) talk magnificently about loving the
whole human race with a comprehensive affection,
of being the friends of all mankind, and the like.
Such vaunting professions, what do they come to ?
that such men have certain benevolent feelings to-
wards the world, — feelings and nothing more ; — no-
thing more than unstable feelings, the mere offspring
of an indulged imagination, which exist only when
their minds are wrought upon, and are sure to
fail them in the hour of need. This is not to love
men, it is but to talk about love. — The real love of
man must depend on practice, and therefore, must
begin by exercising itself on our friends around us,
otherwise it will have no existence. By trying to
love our relations and friends, by submitting to
their wishes, though contrary to our own, by bear-
60 ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST. [SERM.
ing with their infirmities, by overcoming their
occasional waywardness by kindness, by dwelling
on their excellences, and trying to copy them, thus
it is that we form in our hearts that root of charity,
which, though small at first, may, like the mustard
seed, at last even overshadow the earth. The vain
talkers about philanthropy, just spoken of, usually
show the emptiness of their profession, by being
morose and cruel in the private relations of life,
which they seem to account as subjects beneath
their notice. Far different indeed, far different,
(unless it be a sort of irreverence to contrast such
dreamers with the great Apostle, whose memory
we are to-day celebrating,) utterly the reverse of
this fictitious benevolence was his elevated and
enlightened sympathy for all men. We know he
is celebrated for his declarations about Christian
love. " Beloved, let us love one another, for love
is of God. If we love one another, God dwelleth
in us, and His love is perfected in us. God is
love, and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God,
and God in him1." Now did he begin with some
vast effort at loving on a large scale ? Nay, he
had the unspeakable privilege of being the friend
of Christ. Thus he was taught to love others ;
first his affection was concentrated, then it was
expanded. Next, he had the solemn and com-
fortable charge of tending our Lord's Mother, the
1 1 John iv. 7. 12. 16.
V.] LOVE OF RELATIONS AND FRIENDS. 61
Blessed Virgin, after His departure. Do we not
here discern the secret sources of his especial love
of the brethren ? Could he, who first was favored
with his Saviour's affection, then trusted with a
Son's office towards His Mother, could he be
other than a memorial and pattern, (as far as man
can be,) of love, deep, contemplative, fervent,
unruffled, unbounded ?
Further, the love of friends and relations, which
nature prescribes, is also of use to the Christian,
in giving form and direction to his love of man-
kind at large, and making it intelligent and discri-
minating. A man, who would fain begin by a gene-
ral love of all men, necessarily puts them all on a
level, and, instead of being cautious, prudent, and
sympathizing in his benevolence, is hasty and
rude ; does harm, perhaps, when he means to do
good, discourages the virtuous and well-meaning,
and wounds the feelings of the gentle. Men of
ambitious and ardent minds, for example, desirous
of doing good on a large scale, are especially
exposed to the temptation of sacrificing individual
to general good in their plans of charity. Ill-
instructed men, who have strong abstract notions
about the necessity of showing generosity and
candour towards opponents, often forget to take
any thought of those who are associated with
themselves ; and commence their (so called) liberal
treatment of their enemies by an unkind desertion
of their friends. This can hardly be the case,
62 ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST. [SERM.
when men cultivate the private charities, as an
introduction to more enlarged ones. By laying a
foundation of social amiableness, we insensibly
learn to observe a due harmony and order in our
charity ; we learn that all men are not on a level ;
that the interests of truth and holiness must be
religiously observed ; and that the Church has
claims on us before the world. We can easily
afford to be liberal on a large scale, when we
have no feelings to give up. Those who have not
accustomed themselves to love their neighbours
whom they have seen, will have nothing to lose or
gain, nothing to grieve at or rejoice in, in their
larger plans of benevolence. They will take no
interest in them for their own sake ; rather, because
expedience demands, or credit is gained, or an
excuse found for being busy. Hence too we
discern how it is, that private virtue is the only
sure foundation of public virtue ; and that no
rational good is to be expected, (though it may
now and then accrue,) from men who have not the
fear of God before their eyes.
I have hitherto considered the cultivation of
domestic affections as the source of more extended
Christian love. I must now go on, did time per-
mit, to show, 'besides, that they involve a real and
difficult exercise of it. Nothing is more likely to
engender selfish habits, (which is the direct oppo-
site and negation of charity,) than independence in
our worldly circumstances. Men who have no tie
15
V.] LOVE OF RELATIONS AND FRIENDS. 63
on them, who have no calls on their daily sym-
pathy and tenderness, who have no one's comfort to
consult, who can move about as they please, and
indulge the love of variety and the restless hu-
mours which are so congenial to the minds of most
men, are very unfavourably situated for obtaining
that heavenly gift, which is described in our
Liturgy, as being " the very bond of peace and of
all virtues." On the other hand I cannot fancy
any state of life more favourable for the exercise of
high Christian principle, and the matured and
refined Christian spirit, (that is, where the parties
really seek to do their duty,) than that of persons
who differ in tastes and general character, being
obliged by circumstances to live together, and
mutually to accommodate to each other their re-
spective wishes and pursuits. — And this is one
great providential benefit (to those who will re-
ceive it,) arising out of the Holy Estate of Matri-
mony ; which, where persons do their duty, must be
in various ways more or less a state of self-denial.
Or, again, I might go on to consider the private
charities, which have been my subject, not only as
the sources and as the discipline of Christian love,
but further as the perfection of it ; which they are
in some cases. The Ancients thought so much of
friendship, that they made it a virtue. In a Chris-
tian view, it is not quite this ; but it is often acciden-
tally a special test of our virtue. For consider : —
let us say that this man, and that, not bound by any
64 ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST. [SERM.
very necessary tie, find their greatest pleasure in liv-
ing together ; say, that this continues for years, and
that they love each other's society the more the longer
they enjoy it. Now observe what is implied in this.
Young people, indeed, readily love each other,
for they are cheerful and innocent ; more easily yield
to each other, and are full of hope;- — types, as Christ
says, of His true converts. But this happiness does
not last ; their tastes change. Again, grown persons
go on for years as friends ; but these do not live to-
gether ; and, if any accident throws them into fa-
miliarity for a while, they find it difficult to restrain
their tempers and keep on terms, and discover that
they are best friends at a distance. But what is it
that can bind two friends together in intimate con-
verse for a course of years, but the participation in
something that is Unchangeable and essentially
Good, and what is this but religion ? Religious
tastes alone are unalterable. The Saints of God
continue in one way, while the fashions of the world
change ; and a faithful, indestructible friendship
may thus be a test of the parties so loving each other,
having the love of God seated deep in their hearts.
Not an infallible test, certainly ; for they may have
dispositions remarkably the same, or some ingross-
ing object of this world, literary or other ; they may
be removed from the temptation to change, or
they may have a natural sobriety of temper which
remains contented wherever it finds itself. How-
ever, under certain circumstances, it is a lively
V.] LOVE OF RELATIONS AND FRIENDS. 65
token of the presence of divine grace in them ; and
it is always a sort of symbol of it, for there is at
first sight something of the nature of virtue in the
very notion of constancy, dislike of change being
not only the characteristic of a virtuous mind, but
in some sense a virtue itself.
And now I have suggested to you a subject of
thought for to-day's Festival, — and surely a very prac-
tical subject, when we consider how large a portion
of our duties lie at home. Should God call upon us
to preach to the world, surely we must obey His
call ; but at present, let us do what lies before us.
Little children, let us love one another. Let us be
meek and gentle ; let us think before we speak ;
let us try to improve our talents in private life ; let
us do good, not hoping for a return, and avoiding
all display before men. Well may I so exhort you
at this season, when we have so lately partaken
together the Blessed Sacrament which binds us to
mutual love, and gives us strength to practise it.
Let us not forget the promise we then made, or the
grace we then received. We are not our own; we
are bought with the blood of Christ ; we are con-
secrated to be temples of the Holy Spirit, an un-
utterable privilege, which is weighty enough to sink
us with shame at our own unworthiness, did it not
the while strengthen us by the aid thus imparted to
bear its own extreme costliness. May we live
worthy of our calling, and realize in our own persons
the Church's prayers and professions for us !
VOL. n. F
SERMON VI.
HOLY INNOCENTS.
THE MTND OF LITTLE CHILDREN.
MATT, xviii. 3.
Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not
enter into the kingdom of Heaven.
THE longer we live in the world, and the further
removed we are from the feelings and remem-
brances of childhood, (and especially if removed
from the sight of children,) the more reason we
have to recollect our Lord's impressive action and
word, when He called a little child unto Him, and
set him in the midst of His disciples, and said,
" Verily I say unto you, except ye be converted,
and become as little children, ye shall not enter
into the kingdom of Heaven. Whosoever, there-
fore, shall humble himself as this little child, the
same is greatest in the kingdom of Heaven." And
in order to remind us of this our Saviour's judg-
ment, our Church, like a careful teacher, calls us
back year by year upon this day from <the bustle
and fever of the world. She takes advantage of
the Massacre of the Innocents recorded in St.
VI.] THE MIND OF LITTLE CHILDREN. 67
Matthew's gospel, to bring before us a truth which
else we might think little of ; to sober our wishes and
hopes of this world, our high ambitious thoughts,
or our anxious fears, jealousies and cares, by the
picture of the purity, peace, and contentment which
are the characteristics of little children.
And, independently of the benefit thus accruing
to us, it is surely right and meet thus to celebrate the
death of the Holy Innocents ; for it was a blessed
one. To be brought near to Christ, and to suffer
for Christ, is surely an unspeakable privilege ; to
suffer any how, even unconsciously. The little
children whom He took up in His arms, were not
conscious of His loving condescension ; but was it no
privilege when He blessed them ? Surely this mas-
sacre had in it the nature of a Sacrament ; it was a
pledge of the love of the Son of God towards those
who were encompassed in it. All who came near
Him, more or less suffered by approaching Him, just
as if earthly pain and trouble went out of Him, as
some precious virtue for the good of their souls ;—
and these infants in the number. Surely His very
presence was a Sacrament ; every motion, look, and
word of His conveying grace to those who would
receive it: and much more was fellowship with Him.
And hence in ancient times such barbarous murders
or Martyrdoms were considered as a kind of baptism,
a baptism of blood, with a sacramental charm in it
which stood in the place of the appointed Laver of
regeneration. Let us then take these little children
F2
68 HOLY INNOCENTS. [SERM.
as in some sense Martyrs, and see what instruction
we may gain from the pattern of their innocence.
There is very great danger of our becoming
cold-hearted, as life goes on : afflictions which hap-
pen to us, cares, disappointments, all tend to blunt
our affections and make our feelings callous. That
necessary self-discipline, too, which St. Paul enjoins
Timothy to practise, tends the same way. And,
again, the pursuit of wealth especially ; and much
more, if men so far openly transgress the word of
Almighty God, as to yield to the temptations of
sensuality. The glutton and the drunkard bru-
talize their minds, as is evident. And then further,
we are often smit with a notion of our having be-
come greater and more considerable persons than
we were. If we are prosperous, for instance, in
worldly matters, if we rise in the scale of (what is
called) society, if we gain a name, if we change
our state in any such way as to create a secret envy
in the minds of our companions, in all these cases
we shall be exposed to the temptation of pride.
The deference paid to wealth or talent commonly
makes the possessor artificial, and difficult to reach;
glossing over his mind with a spurious refinement,
which deadens feeling and heartiness. Now, after
all, there is in most men's minds a secret instinct
of reverence and affection towards the days of their
childhood. They cannot help sighing with regret
and tenderness when they think of it ; and it is
graciously done by our Lord and Saviour, to avail
VI.] THE MIND OF LITTLE CHILDREN. 69
Himself (so to say,) of this principle of our nature,
and, as He employs all that belongs to it, so to turn
this also to the real health of the soul. And it is
dutifully done on the part of the Church to follow
the intimation given her by her Redeemer, and to
hallow one day every year, as if for the contempla-
tion of His word and deed.
If we wish to affect a person, and (if so be)
humble him, what can we do better than appeal to
the memory of times past, and above all to his
childhood ? Then it was that he came out of the
hands of God, with all lessons and thoughts of
Heaven freshly marked upon him. Who can tell
how God makes the soul ? We know not. We
know that, besides His part in the work, it comes
into the world with the taint of sin upon it, and the
poison of evil wrapped up in its innermost recesses.
Whether it is created in Heaven or hell, how
Adam's sin is breathed into it, together with the
breath of life, who shall inform us ? But this we
know full well, — we know it from our own recollec-
tion of ourselves, and our experience of children, —
that there is in the soul, in the first years of its
earthly existence, a discernment of the unseen world
in the things that are seen, a realization of what is
Sovereign and Adorable, and an incredulity and
ignorance about what is transient and changeable,
which mark it as the fit emblem of the matured
Christian, when weaned from things temporal, and
living in the intimate conviction of the Divine Pre-
70 HOLY INNOCENTS. [SEEM.
sence. T do not mean of course that a child has
any formed principle in his heart, any real good-
ness and holiness, any true discrimination between
the visible and the unseen, such as God promises
to reward, for Christ's sake, in those who come to
years of discretion. Never must we forget that
evil is within him, though in its seed only ; — but
he has this one great gift, that he seems to have
lately come from God's presence, and not to under-
stand the language of this visible scene, or how it
is a temptation, how it is a veil interposing itself
between the soul and God. The simplicity of a
child's ways and notions, his ready belief of every
thing he is told, his artless love, his frank confi-
dence, his confession of helplessness, his ignorance
of evil, his inability to conceal his thoughts, his
contentment, his prompt forgetfulness of trouble,
his admiring without coveting, and above all, his
reverential spirit, looking at all things about him
as wonderful, as tokens and types of the One Invi-
sible, are all evidence of his being lately (as it were)
a visitant in a higher state of things. I would only
have a person reflect on the earnestness and awe
with which a child listens to any description or tale ;
or again, his freedom from that spirit of proud inde-
pendence, which discovers itself in the soul as time
goes on. And though, doubtless, children are ge-
nerally of a weak and irritable nature, and all are
not equally amiable, yet their passions go and are
over like a shower ; not interfering with the lesson
VI.] THE MIND OF LITTLE CHILDREN. 71
we may gain to our own profit from their ready faith
and guilelessness.
The distinctness with which the conscience of a
child tells him the difference between right and
wrong should also be mentioned. As persons ad-
vance in life, and yield to the temptations which
come upon them, they lose this original endowment,
and are obliged to grope about by the mere reason.
If they debate whether they should act in this way
or that, and there are many considerations of duty
and interest involved in .the decision, they feel al-
together perplexed. Really and truly, (not from
self-deception, but really,) they do not know how
they ought to act ; and they are obliged to draw
out arguments, and take a great deal of pains to
come to a conclusion. And all this (in many cases
at least) because they have lost through sinning a
guide which they originally had from God. Hence
it is that St. John, in the Epistle for the day, speaks
of Christ's undefiled servants as " following the
Lamb whithersoever He goeth." They have the
mind of children, and are able by the light within
them to decide questions of duty at once, undis-
turbed by the perplexity of discordant arguments.
In what has already been said, it has been im-
plied how striking a pattern a child's mind gives
us of what may be called a church temper. Christ
has so willed it, that we should get at the Truth,
not by ingenious speculations, reasonings, or inves-
tigations of our own, but by teaching. The Holy
72 HOLY INNOCENTS. [SERM.
Church has been set up from the beginning as a
solemn religious fact, so to call it, — as a picture, a
revelation of the next world, — as itself the Christ-
ian Dispensation, and so in one sense the witness of
its own divinity, as is the Natural World. Now,
those who in the first place receive her words, have
the minds of children, who do not reason, but obey
their mother ; and those who from the first refuse,
as clearly fall short of children, in that they trust
their own powers for truth, rather than informants
which are external to them.
In conclusion, I shall but remind you of the dif-
ference, on the other hand, between the state of a
child and that of a matured Christian ; though this
difference is almost too obvious to be noticed. St.
John says, " He that doeih righteousness is righte-
ous, even as He is righteous ;" and again " Every
one that doeth righteousness is born of Him V
Now, it is plain a child's innocence has no share in
this higher blessedness. He is but a type of what
is at length to be fulfilled in him. The chief beauty
of his mind is on its mere surface ; and when, as time
goes on, he attempts to act, (as is his duty to do,)
instantly it disappears. It is only while he is still,
that he is like a tranquil water, reflecting Heaven.
Therefore, we must not lament that our youthful
days are over, or sigh over the remembrances of
pure pleasures and contemplations which we can-
1 1 John iii. 7. ii. 29,
VI.] THE MIND OF LITTLE CHILDREN. 73
not recall : rather, what we were when children,
is a blessed intimation, given for our comfort, of
what God will make us, if we surrender our heart
to the guidance of His Holy Spirit, — a prophecy of
good to come, — a foretaste of what will be fulfilled
in heaven. And thus it is that a child is a pledge
of immortality ; for he bears upon him in figure
those high and eternal excellences in which the joy
of heaven consists ; and which would not be thus
shadowed forth by the All- gracious Creator, were
they not one day to be realized. Accordingly, our
Church, for the Epistle for this Festival, selects
St. John's description of the Saints in glory. — As
then we would one day reign with them, let us in
this world learn the mind of little children, as the
same Apostle describes it : " My little children,
let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in
deed and in truth. Beloved, let us love one
another, for love is of God, and every one that
loveth, is born of God, and knoweth God. He
that loveth not, knoweth not God, for God is
love1."
1 1 John iii. 18. iv. 7, 8.
SERMON VII.
THE CIRCUMCISION OF CHRIST.
CEREMONIES OF THE CHURCH.
MATT. iii. 15.
Suffer it to be so now ; for thus it becometh us to fulfil all
righteousness.
WHEN our Lord came to John to be baptized, He
gave this reason for it, " Thus it becometh us to
fulfil all righteousness ;" which seems to mean,—
"It is becoming in Me, the expected Christ, to
conform in all respects to all the rites and cere-
monies of Judaism, to every thing hitherto ac-
counted sacred and binding." Hence it was that He
came to be baptized, to show that it was not His
intention in any way to dishonour the Established
Religion, but to fulfil it even in those parts of it
(such as baptism) which were later than the time
of Moses ; and especially to acknowledge thereby
the mission of John the Baptist, His forerunner.
And those ordinances which Moses himself was
commissioned to appoint, had still greater claim
to be respected and observed. It was on this
15
SERM. VII.] CEREMONIES OF THE CHURCH. 75
account that He was circumcised, as we this day
commemorate ; in order, that is, to show that He
did not renounce the religion of Abraham, to whom
God gave circumcision, or of Moses, by whom it
was embodied in the Jewish Law.
We have other instances in our Lord's history,
besides those of His circumcision and baptism, to
show the reverence in which He regarded the
religion which He came to fulfil. St. Paul speaks
of Him as " born of a woman, bom under the
Law1," and it was His custom to observe that Law,
like any other Jew. For instance, He went up to
the feasts at Jerusalem ; He sent the persons He
had cured to the priests, to offer the sin-offering
commanded by Moses ; He paid the Temple-tax ;
and, again, He attended as " a custom" the worship
of the synagogue, though this had been introduced
in an age long after Moses ; and He even bade
the multitudes obey the Scribes and Pharisees in
all lawful things, as those who sat in Moses'
place 2.
Such was our Saviour's dutiful attention to the
religious system under which He was born ; and
that, not only so far as it was directly divine, but
further, where it was the ordinance of uninspired
though pious men, where it was but founded on
ecclesiastical authority. His Apostles followed His
pattern ; and this is still more remarkable : — be-
1 Gal. iv. 4. 2 Matt, xxiii. 2, 3.
76 THE CIRCUMCISION OF CHRIST. [SERM.
cause after the Holy Spirit had descended, at first
sight it would have appeared that all the Jewish
ordinances ought at once to cease. But this was
far from being the doctrine of the Apostles. They
taught indeed that the Jewish rites were no longer
of any use in obtaining God's favor ; that Christ's
death was now set forth as the full and sufficient
Atonement for sin, by that Infinite Mercy who had
hitherto appointed the blood of the sacrifices as in
some sort means of propitiation ; and, besides,
that every convert who turned from Christ back
to Moses, or who imposed the Jewish rites
upon his brethren as necessary to salvation, was
grievously erring against the Truth. But they
neither abandoned the Jewish rites themselves, nor
obliged any others to do so who were used to them.
Custom was quite a sufficient reason for retaining
them ; every Christian was to remain in the state
in which he was called ; and in the case of the
Jew, the practice of them did not necessarily
interfere with a true and full trust in the Atone-
ment which Christ had offered for sin.
St. Paul, we know, was the most strenuous op-
poser of those who would oblige the Gentiles to
become Jews, as a previous step to their becoming
Christians. Yet, decisive as he is against all
attempts to force the Gentiles under the rites of
the Law, he never bids the Jews renounce them,
rather he would have them retain them ; leaving it
for a fresh generation, who had not been born
VII.] CEREMONIES OF THE CHURCH. 77
under them, to discontinue them ; so that the use
of them might gradually die away. Nay, he him-
self circumcised Timothy, when he chose him for
his associate ; in order that no offence might be
given to the Jews l. And how freely he adhered
to the Law in his own person, we learn from the
same inspired history ; for instance, we hear of his
shaving his head, as having been under a vow 2,
according to the Jewish custom.
Now from this obedience to the Jewish Law,
enjoined and displayed by our Blessed Lord and
His Apostles, we learn the great importance of
retaining those religious forms to which we are
accustomed, even though they are in themselves in-
different or not of divine origin ; and, as this is a
truth which is not well understood by the world
at large, it may be of use to make some observations
upon it.
We sometimes meet with men, who ask why
we observe these or those ceremonies or practices ;
why, for example, we make a point of Confirmation,
there being, as they maintain, no command to
observe it in Scripture ? or why we use Forms of
prayer so cautiously and strictly ? or why we per-
sist in kneeling at the Sacrament of the Lord's
Supper ? why in using the cross in Baptism ? why in
bowing at the name of Jesus ? or why in celebrat-
ing the public worship of God only in consecrated
1 Acts xvi. 1 — 3. 2 Acts xviii. 18.
78 THE CIRCUMCISION OF CHRIST. [SERM.
places? why we lay such stress upon these things?
These and many such questions may be asked,
and all with this argument ; " They are indifferent
matters, we do not read of them in the Bible."
Now the direct answer to this argument is, that
the Bible was never intended to enjoin us these
things, but matters of faith ; and that though it
happens to mention our practical duties, and some
points of form and discipline, still, that it does not
set about telling us what to do, but chiefly what to
believe ; and that there are many duties and many
crimes which are not mentioned in Scripture, and
which we must find out by our own understanding,
enlightened by God's Holy Spirit. For instance,
there is no prohibition (of course) of suicide,
duelling, gaming, in Scripture ; yet we know them
to be great sins ; and it would be na excuse in a
man to say that he does not find them forbidden in
Scripture, because he may discover God's will in
this matter independently of Scripture. And in
like manner various matters of form and discipline
are binding, though Scripture says nothing about
them ; for we learn the duty in another way. No
matter how we learn God's will, whether from
Scripture or Antiquity, or what St. Paul calls
" Nature," so that we can be sure it is His will.
Matters of faith indeed He reveals to us by inspira-
tion, because they are supernatural ; but matters of
moral duty,through our own conscience and divinely
guided reason ; and matters of form, by tradition
VII.] CEREMONIES OF THE CHURCH. 79
and long usage, which bind us to the observance
of them, though they are not enjoined in Scripture.
This, I say, is the proper answer to the question,
44 Why do you observe rites and forms which are
not enjoined in Scripture ?" though to speak the
truth, our chief ordinances are to be found there,
as the sacraments, public worship, the observance
of the Lord's day, ordination, marriage, and the
like. But I shall make another answer, which is
suggested by the event commemorated this day,
our Lord's conforming to the Jewish Law in the rite
of circumcision ; and my answer is this.
Scripture tells us what to believe, and what to aim
at and maintain, but it does not tell us how to do
it ; and as we cannot do it at all unless we do it in
this manner or that, in fact we must add something
to what Scripture tells us. For example, Scripture
tells us to meet together for prayer, and has con-
nected the grant of the Christian blessings on
God's part, with the observance of union on ours ;
but, since it does not tell us the times and places
of prayer, the Church must complete that which
Scripture has but enjoined generally. Our Lord
has instituted two Sacraments, Baptism and the
Lord's Supper ; but has not told us, except generally,
with what forms we are to administer them. Yet
we cannot administer them without some sort of
prayers ; whether we use always the same, or not
the same, or unpremeditated forms. And so with
many other solemn acts, such as ordination, or mar-
80 THE CIRCUMCISION OF CHRIST. [SRRM.
riage, or burial of the dead, it is evidently pious,
and it becomes Christians to perform them decently
and in faith ; yet how is this to be done, unless the
Church sanctions forms of doing it ?
The Bible then may be said to give us the spirit
of religion ; but the Church must provide the
body in which that spirit is to be lodged. Reli-
gion must be realized in particular acts, in order
to its continuing alive. Religionists, who give up
the Church rites, are forced to recall the strict
Judaical Sabbath. There is no such thing as
abstract religion. When persons attempt to wor-
ship in this (what they call) more spiritual manner,
they end, in fact, in not worshipping at all. This
frequently happens. Every one may know it from
his own experience of himself. Youths, for in-
stance, (and perhaps those who should know better
than they,) sometimes argue with themselves,
"What is the need of praying statedly morning
and evening ? why use a form of words ? why
kneel? why cannot I pray walking or dressing?"
they end in not praying at all. Again, what will
the devotion of the country people be, if we strip
religion of its external symbols, and bid them seek
out and gaze upon the Invisible ? He gives the
spirit, and the Church the body, to our worship ;
and we may as well expect (so to say) that the
spirits of men might be seen by us without the
intervention of their bodies, as suppose that the
Object of faith can be realized in a world of sense
VII.] CEREMONIES OF THE CHURCH. 81
and excitement without the instrumentality of an
outward form to arrest, and fix attention, to stimu-
late the careless, and to encourage the desponding.
But observe what follows; — who would say our
bodies are not part of ourselves ? We may apply
the illustration ; for in like manner the forms of
devotion are parts of devotion. Who can in prac-
tice separate his view of body and spirit ? for
example, what a friend would he be to us who
should treat us ill, or deny us food, or imprison
us ; arid say, after all, that it was our body he
ill-treated, and not our soul ? Even so, no one can
really respect religion, and insult its forms. Grant-
ing that the forms are not immediately from God,
still long use has made them divine to us ; for the
spirit of religion has leavened them entirely, and
made them instinct with life, so that to destroy them
is in respect to the multitude of men to unsettle and
dislodge the religious principle itself. In most
minds usage has so identified them with the notion
of religion, that the one cannot be extirpated without
the other. Their faith will not bear transplanting.
Till we have given some attention to the pecu-
liarities of human nature, whether from watch-
ing our own hearts, or from experience of life, we
can scarcely form a correct estimate how inti-
mately great and little matters are connected toge-
ther in all cases ; how the circumstances and
accidents (as they might seem) of our habits, are
almost conditions of those habits themselves. How
VOL. n. G
82 THE CIRCUMCISION OF CHRIST. [SERM.
common it is for men to have seasons of serious-
ness, how exact is their devotion during them, how
suddenly they come to an end, how completely all
traces of them vanish, yet how comparatively trifling
(in many instances) is the cause of the relapse, a
change of place, or occupation, or a day's inter-
ruption of regularity in their religious course !
Consider the sudden changes in opinion and pro-
fession, religious or secular, which occur in life,
the proverbial fickleness of the multitude, the
influence of watchwords and badges upon the
fortunes of political parties, the surprising falls
which sometimes overtake well-meaning and really
respectable men, the inconsistencies of even the
holiest and most perfect, and you will have some
insight into the danger of practising on the exter-
nals of faith and devotion. Precious doctrines are
strung, like jewels, upon slender threads.
Our Saviour and His Apostles exemplify this
doctrine in their treatment of those Jewish ceremo-
nies, which have given rise to these remarks. St.
Paul calls them weak and unprofitable, weak and
beggarly elements1. So they were in themselves,
but to those who were used to them, they were an
edifying and living service. Else why did the
Apostles observe them ? Why did they enjoin the
Jews to keep them whom they converted ? Were
they merely consulting for the prejudices of a repro-
1 Hebr. vii. 18. Gal. iv. 9. >*
VII.] CEREMONIES OF THE CHURCH. • 83
bate nation ? The Jewish rites were to disappear ;
yet no one was bid forcibly separate himself from
what he had long used, lest he lost his sense of
religion also. Much more will this hold good with
forms such as ours, which, so far from being abro-
gated by the Apostles, were introduced by them or
their immediate successors ; and which, besides the
influence they exert over us from long usage, are
many of them witnesses and types of precious gos-
pel truths, and moreover of a sacramental nature,
adapted and probably accounted to convey a gift,
even where they are not formally sacraments by
Christ's institution. Who, for instance, could be
hard hearted and perverse enough to ridicule the
notion that a father's blessing may profit his chil-
dren, even though Christ and His Apostles have not
in so many words declared it ?
Much might be said on this subject, which is a
very important one. In these times especially,
we should be on our guard against those, who hope
by inducing us to lay aside our forms, at length to
make us lay aside our Christian hope altogether.
This is why the Church itself is attacked, because it
is the living form, the visible body of religion ; and
shrewd men know that when it goes, religion will
go too. This is why they rail at so many usages as
superstitious ; or propose alterations and changes,
a measure especially calculated to shake the faith of
the multitude. Recollect then, that things indifferent
in themselves, become important to us when we are
84 THE CIRCUMCISION OF CHRIST. [SERM.
used to them. The services and ordinances of the
Church are the outward form in which religion
has been for ages represented to the world, and has
ever been known to us. Places consecrated to
God's honour, clergy carefully set apart for His
service, the Lord's-day piously observed, the pub-
lic forms of prayer, the decencies of worship,
these things, viewed as a whole, are sacred rela-
tively to us, even if they were not, as they are,
divinely sanctioned. Rites, which the Church has
appointed, and with reason, for the Church's au-
thority is from Christ, being long used, cannot be
disused without harm to our souls. Confirmation,
for instance, may be argued against, and under-
valued ; but surely no one in the common run of
men wilfully resists the ordinance, but will thereby
be a worse Christian than he otherwise would have
been. He will find (or rather others will find for
him, for he will scarcely know it himself,) that he
has declined in faith, humility, devotional feeling,
reverence, and sobriety. And so in the case of all
other forms, even the least binding in themselves, it
continually happens that a speculative improvement
is a practical folly, and the wise are taken in their
own craftiness.
Therefore, when profane persons scoff at our
forms, let us argue with ourselves, thus ; and it is
an argument which all men, learned or unlearned,
can enter into. " These forms, even were they of
mere human origin, (which learned men say is
VII.] CEREMONIES OF THE CHURCH. 85
not the case, but even if they were,) are at least of
as spiritual and edifying a character as the rites
of Judaism. Yet Christ and His Apostles did not
even suffer these latter to be irreverently treated or
suddenly discarded. Much less may we suffer it in
the case of our own ; lest stripping off from us the
badges of our profession, we forget there is a faith
for us to maintain, and a world of sinners to be
eschewed.'
SERMON VIII.
THE EPIPHANY.
THE GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH
ISAIAH Ix. 1.
Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is
risen upon th.ee.
OUR Saviour said to the woman of Samaria,
"The hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this
mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Fa-
ther1." And upon to-day's Festival, I may say to
you in His words on another occasion, " This day is
this scripture fulfilled in your ears/' This day we
commemorate the opening the door of faith to the
Gentiles, the extension of the Church of God
through all lands, whereas before Christ's coming
it had been confined to one nation only. This
dissemination of the Truth throughout the world
had been the subject of prophecy, " Enlarge the
place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the
1 John iv. 21.
SEEM. VIII.] GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 87
curtains of thine habitations. Spare not, lengthen
thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes. For thou
shalt break forth on t»he right hand and on the left;
and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make
the desolate cities to be inhabited1." In these
words the Church is addressed/as Catholic ; which
is the distinguishing title of the Christian Church,
as contrasted with the Jewish. The Christian
Church is so constituted as to be able to spread
itself out in its separate branches into all regions
of the earth ; so that in every nation there may be
found a representative and an offshoot of the sacred
and gifted Society, set up once for all by our Lord
after His resurrection.
This characteristic blessing of the Church of
Christ, its Catholic nature, is a frequent subject
of rejoicing with St. Paul, who was the chief in-
strument of its propagation. In one Epistle he
speaks of Gentiles being " fellow-heirs (with the
Jews,) and of the same body, and partakers of
His promise in Christ by the Gospel." In another
he enlarges on the " mystery now made manifest to
the saints, viz. Christ among the Gentiles, the hope
of glory2."
The day on which we commemorate this gracious
appointment of God's Providence, is called the
Epiphany, or bright manifestation of Christ to the
Gentiles ; being the day on which the wise-men
1 Is. liv. 2, 3. 2 Eph. iii. 6. Col. i, 26, 27.
88 THE EPIPHANY. [SERM.
came from the East under guidance of a star, to
worship Him, and thus became the first fruits of the
heathen world. The name is explained by the
words of the text, which occur in one of the lessons
selected for to-day's service, and in which the
Church is addressed. " Arise, shine ; for thy light
is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.
For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and
gross darkness the people ; but the Lord shall rise
upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee,
and the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and Kings
to the brightness of thy rising. . . . Thy people also
shall be all righteous, they shall inherit the land
for ever, the branch of My planting, the work of
My hands, that I may be glorified 1."
That this and other similar prophecies had their
measure of fulfilment when Christ came, we all
know ; when His Church, built upon the Apostles
and Prophets, wonderfully branched out from Jeru-
salem as a centre into the heathen world round
about, and gathering into it men of all ranks, lan-
guages, and characters, moulded them upon one
pattern, the pattern of their Saviour, in truth, and
righteousness. Thus the prophecies concerning
the Church were fulfilled at that time in two re-
spects, as regards its sanctity and its Catholicity.
It is often asked, have these prophecies had then
and since their perfect accomplishment? Or are
1 Is. lx. 1—3. 21.
VIII.] THE GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 89
we to expect a more complete Christianizing of
the world than has hitherto been vouchsafed it ?
And it is usual at the present day to acquiesce
in the latter alternative, as if the inspired pre-
dictions certainly meant more than has yet been
realized.
Now, so much I think is plain on the face of them,
that the Gospel is to be preached in all lands,
before the end comes : " This gospel of the king-
dom shall be preached in all the world for a witness
unto all nations; and then shall the end come1."
Whether it has been thus preached is a question
of fact, which must be determined, not from the
prophecy, but from history ; and there we may leave
it. But, as to the other expectation, that a time
of greater purity is in store for the Church, that is
not easily to be granted. The very words of Christ
just quoted, so far from speaking of the gospel as
tending to the conversion of the world at large,
when preached in it, appoint it only for a witness
unto all the Gentiles, as if the many would not
obey it. And this intimation runs parallel to St.
Paul's account of the Jewish Church, as realizing
faith and obedience but in a residue out of the
whole people ; and is further illustrated by St.
John's language in the Apocalypse, who speaks of
the " redeemed from among men," being but a
2 Matt. xxiv. 14.
90 THE EPIPHANY. [SERM.
remnant, " the first fruits unto God and to the
Lamb V
However, I will readily allow that at first we shall
feel a reluctance in submitting to this opinion, with
such passages before us, as that which occurs in the
eleventh chapter of Isaiah's prophecy, where it is
promised, " They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My
holy mountain ; for the earth shall be full of the
knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea."
I say it is natural, with such texts in the memory, to
look out for what is commonly called a Millennium.
It may be instructive then upon this day to make
some remarks in explanation of the state and pros-
pects of the Christian Church in this respect.
Now the system of this world depends, in a way
unknown to us, both on God's Providence and on
human agency. Every event, every course of
action, has two faces ; it is divine and perfect,
and it belongs to man, and is marked with his
sin. I observe next, that it is a peculiarity of Holy
Scripture to represent the world on its providential
side ; ascribing all that happens in it to Him who
rules and directs it, as it moves along, tracing
events to His sole agency, or viewing them only so
far forth as He acts in them. Thus He is said to
harden Pharaoh's heart, and to hinder the Jews
from believing in Christ ; in order to express His
1 Rev. xiv. 4.
VIII.] THE GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 91
absolute sovereignty over all human affairs and
courses. As common is it for Scripture to consider
dispensations, not in their actual state, but as His
agency would make them. For instance ; " God,
who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith
He loved us, even when we were dead in sins,
hath quickened us together with Christ !." This
is said as if the Ephesians had no traces left in
their hearts of Adam's sin and spiritual death. As
it is said afterwards, " Ye were sometimes darkness,
but now are ye light in the Lord V
In other words Scripture more commonly speaks
of the Divine design, than the degree of fulfilment
which it receives at this time or that ; as St. Paul
expresses, when he says that the Ephesians were
chosen, that they u should be holy and unblame-
able before Him in love." Or it speaks of the
profession of the Christian ; as when he says, " As
many of you as have been baptized into Christ,
have put on Christ;" — or of the tendency of the
Divine gift in a long period of time, and of its
ultimate fruits ; as in the words, " Christ loved the
Church, and gave Himself for it, that He might
sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water
by the word, that He might present to Himself a
glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or
any such thing, but that it should be holy and
1 Eph, ii. 4, 5. 2 Eph. v. 8.
15
02 THE EPIPHANY. [SERM.
without blemish1," in which baptism and final
salvation are viewed as if indissolubly connected.
This rule of Scripture interpretation admits of very
extensive application, and I proceed to illus-
trate it.
The principle under consideration is this ; that,
whereas God is one, and His will one, and His
purpose one, and His work one, whereas all He is
and does is absolutely perfect and complete, inde-
pendent of time and place, and sovereign over
creation, whether inanimate or moral, yet that in
His actual dealings with this world, that is, in all
in which we see His Providence, in that man is
imperfect, and has a will of his own, and lives in
time, and is actuated by circumstances, He seems
to work by a process, by means and ends, by steps,
by victories hardly gained, and failures repaired,
and sacrifices ventured. Thus it is only when we
view His dispensations at a distance, as the Angels
do, that we see their harmony and their unity ;
whereas Scripture, anticipating the end from the
beginning, places at their very head and first point
of origination all that belongs to them respectively
in their fulness.
We find some exemplification of this principle in
the call of Abraham. In every age of the world it
has held good that the just should live by faith ;
1 Eph. i. 4. Gal. iii. 27. Eph. v. 25—27.
VIII.] THE GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 93
yet it was determined in the deep counsels of God,
that for a while this truth should be partially
obscured, as far as His revelations went ; that man
should live by sight, miracles and worldly ordi-
nances, taking the place of silent providences arid
spiritual services. In the later times of the Jewish
Law, the original doctrine was brought to light,
and when the Divine Object of faith was born into
the world, it was authoritatively set forth by His
Apostles as the basis of all acceptable worship.
But observe, it had been already anticipated in the
instance of Abraham ; the evangelical covenant,
which was not to be preached till near two thou-
sand years afterwards, was revealed and transacted
in his person. " Abraham believed God, and it
was counted unto Him for righteousness." " Abra-
ham rejoiced to see My day ; and he saw it, and
was glad1." Nay, in the commanded sacrifice of
His Beloved Son, was shadowed out the true Lamb
which God had provided for a burnt-offering.
Thus in the call of the Patriarch, in whose Seed all
nations of the earth should be blessed, the great
outlines of the Gospel were anticipated ; in that
he was called in uncircumcision, he was justified
by faith, he trusted in God's power to raise the
dead, he looked forward to the day of Christ, and
he was vouchsafed a vision of the Atoning Sacrifice
on Calvary.
We call these notices prop hecy, popularly speak-
1 Rom. iv. 3. John viii. 56.
94 THE EPIPHANY. [SERM.
ing, and doubtless such they are to us, and to be
received and used thankfully ; but more properly,
perhaps, they are merely instances of the har-
monious movement of God's word and deed, His
sealing up events from the first, His introducing
them once and for all, though they are but gra-
dually unfolded to our limited faculties, and in
this transitory scene. It would seem that at the time
when Abraham was called, both the course of the
Jewish dispensation, and the coming of Christ,
were (so to say) realized ; so as in one sense, to be
actually done and over. Hence, in one passage,
Christ is called " the Lamb slain from the founda-
tion of the world ;" in another, it is said, that " Levi
paid tithes" to Melchizedek, " in Abraham V
Similar remarks might be made on the call and
reign of David, and the building of the second
Temple 2.
1 Rev. xiii. 8. Heb. vii. 9.
2 " In the instance of the first [Temple] there clearly is not
the same combination of the Mystical sense with the Temporal.
The prediction joined with the building of Solomon's Temple is
of a simple kind ; perhaps it relates purely and solely to the pro-
per Temple itself. But the second Temple rises with a different
structure of prophecy upon it. Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi,
have each delivered some symbolical prediction, connected with
it, or with its priesthood and worship. Why this difference in
the two cases ? I think the answer is clear ; it is a difference
obviously relating to the nearer connexion which the second
Temple has with the Gospel. When God gave them their first
Temple, it was doomed to fall, and rise again, under and during
VIII.] THE GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 95
In like manner the Christian Church had in the
day of its nativity all that fulness of holiness and
peace named upon it, and sealed up to it, which
beseemed it, viewed as God's design, viewed as
God's work without man's co-operation, viewed as
God's work in its tendency, and in its ultimate
blessedness ; so that the titles given it upon earth
are a picture of what it will be in heaven. This
might also be instanced in the case of the Jewish
Church, as in Jeremiah's description ; " I remem-
ber thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of
thine espousals, when thou wentest after Me in the
wilderness, in a land that was not sown. Israel
was holiness unto the Lord, and the first-fruits of
His increase1." As to the Christian Church, one
passage descriptive of its blessedness from its first
founding has already been cited ; to which I add
the following by way of specimen. " The Gentiles
shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory ;
and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the
mouth of the Lord shall name. Thou shalt also
be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and
their first economy. The elder prophecy, therefore, was directed to
the proper history of the first Temple. But when He gave them
their second Temple, Christianity was then nearer in view ; through
that second edifice lay the Gospel prospect. Its restoration,
therefore, was marked by a kind of prophecy, which had its vision
towards the Gospel." — DAVISON ON PROPHECY, Discourse vi.
part 4.
1 Jer. ii. 2, 3.
96 THE EPIPHANY. [SERM.
a royal diadem in the hand of thy God .... As the
bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy
God rejoice over thee." " The mountains shall
depart, and the hills be removed ; but My kindness
shall not depart from thee, neither shall the cove-
nant of My peace be removed, saith the Lord that
hath mercy on thee. All thy children shall be
taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace
of thy children." " Behold, I have graven thee
upon the palms of My hands ; thy walls are con-
tinually before Me Lift up thine eyes round
about, and behold ; all these gather themselves
together, and come to thee. As I live, saith the
Lord, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all,
as with an ornament, and bind them on thee, as a
bride doeth." " Violence shall no more be heard
in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy
borders ; but thou shalt call thy walls salvation,
and thy gates praise1." In these passages, which,
in their context, certainly refer to the time of
Christ's coming, an universality and a purity are
promised to the Church, which have their fulfil-
ment only in the course of its history, from first to
last, as fore-shortened and viewed as one whole.
Consider, again, the representations given us of
Christ's Kingdom. First it is called the " King-
dom of Heaven" though on earth. Again, in the
Angels' hymn, it is proclaimed " on earth peace,"
5 Isa. Ixii. 2 3. 5. liv. 10. 13. xlix. 16. 18. Ix. 18.
VIII.] THE GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 97
in accordance with the prophetic description of the
Messiah as " the Prince of Peace ;" though He
Himself, speaking of the earthly, not the divine side
of His dispensation, said, He came " not to send
peace on earth, but a sword 1." Further, consider
Gabriel's announcement to the Virgin concerning
her Son and Lord ; " He shall be great, and shall
be called the Son of the Highest ; and the Lord
God shall give unto Him the throne of His father
David ; and He shall reign over the house of Jacob
for ever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end."
Or, as the same Saviour had been foretold by
Ezekiel ; " I will set up one Shepherd over them,
and He shall feed them .... I will make with
them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil
beasts to cease out of the land ; and they shall
dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the
woods. And I will make them and the places
round about My hill, a blessing ; and I will cause
the shower to come down in his season ; there shall
be showers of blessing2." It is observable that in
the two passages last cited, the Christian Church
is considered as merely the continuation of the
Jewish, as if the Gospel existed in its germ even
under the Law.
Now it is undeniable, and so blessed a truth that
one would not wish at all to question it, that when
Christ first came, His followers were in a state of
1 Matt x. 34. 2 Luke i. 32, 33. Ezek. xxxiv. 23. 25, 26.
VOL. II. H
98 THE EPIPHANY. [SERM.
spiritual purity, far above any thing which we wit-
ness in the Church at this day. That glory with
which her face shone, as Moses of old time, from
communion with her Saviour on the holy Mount,
is the earnest of what will one day be perfected ;
it is a token held out to us of a dark age, that His
promise stands sure, and admits of accomplishment.
They continued " in gladness and singleness of
heart, praising God, and having favour with all
the people." Here was a pledge of eternal blessed-
ness, the same in kind as a child's innocence is a
foreshadowing of a holy immortality, and the bap-
tismal robe of the fine linen, clean and white, which
is the righteousness of saints ; a pledge like the
typical promises made to David, Solomon, Cyrus,
or Joshua the high-priest. Yet at the same time the
corruptions in the early Church, Galatian misbe-
lief, and Corinthian excess, show too clearly that her
early glories were not more than a pledge, a pledge
of God's purpose, a witness of man's depravity.
The same interpretation will apply to the Scrip-
ture account of the Elect People of God, which is
but the Church of Christ under another name.
On them, upon their election, are bestowed, as on a
body, the gifts of justification, holiness, and final
salvation. The perfections of Christ are shed
around them ; His image is reflected from them ;
so that they receive His Name, as being in Him,
and beloved of God in the Beloved. Thus in their
election are sealed up, to be unrolled and enjoyed
VIII.] THE GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 99
in due season, the successive privileges of the heirs
of light. In God's purpose — according to His grace
—in the tendency and ultimate effects of His dispen-
sation— to be called and chosen is to be saved.
" Whom He did foreknow, He also did predesti-
nate ; whom He did predestinate, them He also
called ; whom He called, them He also justi-
fied ; whom He justified, them He also glorified V
Observe, the whole scheme is spoken of as of a thing
past ; for in His deep counsel He contemplated
from everlasting the one entire work, and having
decreed it, it is but a matter of time, of sooner or
later, when it will be realized. As the Lamb was
slain from the foundation of the world, so were His
redeemed also gathered in according to His fore-
knowledge ; and it is not more inconsistent with
this solemn announcement of His election, that
some once elected should fall away, (as we know
they do,) than that an event should be spoken of
as past and perfect, which is incomplete and future.
All accidents are excluded, when He speaks ; the
present and the to come, delays and failures, vanish
before the thought of His perfect work. And hence
it happens that the word " elect" in Scripture has
two senses, standing both for those who are called
in order to salvation, and for those who, at the last
day, shall be the actually resulting fruit of that holy
call. For God's Providence moves by great and
1 Rom. viii. 29, 30.
H 2
100 THE EPIPHANY. [SERM.
comprehensive laws ; and His word is the mirror
of His designs, not of man's partial success in
thwarting His gracious will.
The Church then, considered as one army mili-
tant, proceeding forward from the house of bondage
to Canaan, gains the victory, and accomplishes
what is predicted of her, though many soldiers fall
in the battle. While, however, they remain within
her lines, they are included in her blessedness so
far as to be partakers of the gifts flowing from elec-
tion. And hence it is that so much stress is to be
laid upon the duty of united worship ; for thus
the multitude of believers coming together, claim
as one man the grace which is poured out upon the
one undivided body of Christ mystical. " Where
two or three are gathered together in His name,
He is in the midst of them;" nay rather He is so one
with them, that they are not their own, lose for the
time their earth- stains, are radiant in His infinite
holiness, and have the promise of His eternal
favour. Viewed as one, the Church is still His
image as at the first, pure and spotless, His spouse
all glorious within, the Mother of Saints ; accord-
ing to the Scripture, " My dove, My undefiled, is
but one ; she is the only one of her mother, she is
the elect one of her that bare her .... Thou art all
fair, My love ; there is no spot in thee V
And what is true of the Church as a whole, is
1 Cant. vi. 9. iv. 7.
VIIL] THE GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 101
represented in Scripture as belonging also in some
sense to each individual in it. I mean, that as the
Christian body was set up in the image of Christ,
which is gradually and in due season to be realized
within it, so in like manner each of us, when made
a Christian, is entrusted with gifts, which centre in
eternal salvation. St. Peter says, we are " saved"
through baptism ; St. Paul, that we are " saved
according to God's mercy by the washing of rege-
neration ;" our Blessed Lord joins together water
and the Spirit ; St. Paul connects baptism with
putting on Christ ; and in another place wilh being
" sanctified and justified in the name of the Lord
Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God V To the same
purport are our Lord's words ; " He that heareth
My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath
everlasting life, and shall not come into condem-
nation, but is passed from death unto life2."
These remarks have been made with a view of
showing the true sense in which we must receive,
on the one hand, the prophetic descriptions of the
Christian Church ; on the other, the grant of its
privileges, and of those of its separate members.
Nothing is more counter to the spirit of the Gospel
than to hunger after signs and wonders, and the rule
of Scripture interpretation now given, is especially
1 1 Pet. iii. 21. Tit. iii. 5. John iii. 5. Gal. iii. 27. 1 Cor. vi. 11.
a John v. 24.
102 THE EPIPHANY. [SERM.
adapted to wean us from such wandering of heart.
It is our duty, rather it is our blessedness, to walk
by faith ; therefore, we will take the promises (with
God's help) in faith ; we will believe they are ful-
filled, and enjoy the fruit of them before we see it.
We will fully acknowledge, as being firmly per-
suaded, that His word cannot return unto Him
void ; that it has its mission, and must prosper so
far as substantially to accomplish it. We will
adore the Blessed Spirit, as coming and going as
He listeth, and doing wonders daily which the
world knows not of. We will consider baptism
and the other Christian ordinances, effectual signs
of grace, not forms and shadows, though men
abuse and profane them ; and particularly, as re-
gards our immediate subject, we will unlearn, as
sober and serious men, to look for any public dis-
plays of God's glory in the edification of His
Church, seeing she is all glorious within, in that
inward shrine, made up of faithful hearts, and inha-
bited by the Spirit of grace. We will put off, so
be it, all secular, all political views of the victories
of His kingdom. While labouring to unite its frag-
ments, which the malice of Satan has scattered to
and fro, to recover what is cast away, to purify
what is corrupted, to strengthen what is weak, to
make it in all its parts what Christ would have it,
a Church Militant, still (please God) we will not
reckon on any visible fruit of our labour. We will
be content to believe our cause triumphant, when
VIII.] THE GLORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. 103
we see it apparently defeated. We will silently
bear the insults of the enemies of Christ, and
resign ourselves meekly to the shame and suffering*
which the errors of His followers bring upon us.
We will endure offences which the early Saints
would have marvelled at, and Martyrs would have
died to redress. We will work with zeal, but as to
the Lord and not to men ; recollecting that even
Apostles saw the sins of the Churches they planted ;
that St. Paul predicted that " evil men and seducers
wrould wax worse and worse;" and that St. John
seems even to consider extraordinary unbelief as
the very sign of the times of the Gospel, as if the
light increased the darkness of those who hated it.
" Little children, it is the last time ; and as ye
have heard that Antichrist shall come, even now
are there many Antichrists, whereby we know that
it is the last time V
Therefore we will seek within for the Epiphany
of Christ. We will look towards His holy Altar,
and approach it for the fire of love and purity
which there burns. We will find comfort in the
illumination which Baptism gives. We will rest
and be satisfied in His ordinances and in His word.
We will bless and praise His name, whenever He
vouchsafes to display His glory to us in the chance-
meeting of any of His Saints, and we will ever pray
Him to manifest it in our own souls.
1 2 Tim. iii. 13. I John ii. 18.
SERMON IX.
THE CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL.
VIEWED IN REFERENCE TO HIS OFFICE.
1 COR. xv. 9, 10.
1 am the least of the Apostles, that am not meet to be called an
Apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God. But by the
grace of God I am what I am : and His grace which was
bestowed upon me was not in vain ; but I laboured more
abundantly than they all : yet not I, but the grace of God
which was with me.
TO-DAY we commemorate, not the whole History
of St. Paul, nor his Martyrdom, but his wonderful
Conversion. Every season of his life is full of
wonders, and admits of a separate commemora-
tion ; which indeed we do make, whenever we read
the Acts of the Apostles, or his Epistles. On this
his day, however, that event is selected for remem-
brance, which was the beginning of his wonderful
course ; and we may profitably pursue (please
God) the train of thought thus opened for us.
We cannot well forget the manner of his conver-
sion. He was journeying to Damascus with autho-
SERM. IX.] THE CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL. 105
rity from the chief priests to seize the Christians,
and bring them to Jerusalem. He had sided with
the persecuting party from their first act of violence,
the martyrdom of St. Stephen ; and he continued
foremost in a bad cause, with blind rage endea-
vouring to defeat what really was the work of
Divine power and wisdom. In the midst of his
fury, he was struck down by miracle, and converted
to the faith he persecuted. Observe the circum-
stances of the case. When the blood of Ste-
phen was shed, Saul, then a young man, was
standing by, " consenting unto his death," and
" kept the raiment of them that slew him V Two
speeches are recorded of the Martyr in his last
moments ; one, in which he prayed that God would
pardon his murderers, — the other his witness, that
he saw the heavens opened, and Jesus on God's
right hand. His prayer was wonderfully answered.
Stephen saw his Saviour ; the next vision of that
Saviour to mortal man was vouchsafed to the very
young man, even Saul, who shared in his murder
and his intercession.
Strange, indeed, it was ; and what would have
been St. Stephen's thoughts, could he have known
it ! The prayers of righteous men avail much. The
first Martyr had power with God to raise up the
greatest Apostle. Such was the honor put upon
the first fruits of those sufferings, upon which the
1 Acts xxii, 20.
106 THE CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL.
Church was entering. Thus from the beginning
the blood of the Martyrs was the seed of the
Church. Stephen, one man, was put to death
for saying that the Jewish people were to have
exclusive privileges no longer ; but from his very
grave rose the favoured instrument by whom the
thousands and ten thousands of the Gentiles were
brought to the knowledge of the Truth !
1. Herein then, first, is St. Paul's conversion
memorable ; that it was a triumph over the enemy.
When Almighty God would convert the world,
opening the door of faith to the Gentiles, who
was the chosen preacher of His mercy ? Not one
of Christ's first followers. To show His power, He
put forth His hand into the very midst of the per-
secutors of His Son, and seized upon the most
strenuous among them. The prayer of a dying
man is the token and occasion of this triumph
which He had reserved for Himself. His strength
is made perfect in weakness. As of old, He broke
the yoke of His people's burden, the staff of their
shoulder, the rod of their oppressor l. Saul made
furiously for Damascus, but the Lord Almighty
u knew his abode, and his going out and coming
in, and his rage against Him;" and " because his
rage against Him, and his tumult came up before
Him," therefore as in Sennacherib's case, though in
a far different way, He " put His hook in his nose,
1 Isa. ix. 4.
15
IX.] VIEWED IN REFERENCE TO HIS OFFICE. 107
and His bridle in his lips, and turned him back by
the way by which he came V " He spoiled prin-
cipalities and powers, and made a show of them
openly 2," triumphing over the serpent's head while
his heel was wounded. Saul, the persecutor, was con-
verted, and preached Christ in the synagogues.
2. In the next place, St. Paul's conversion may
be considered as a suitable introduction to the
office he was called to execute in God's provi-
dence. I have said, it was a triumph over the
enemies of Christ ; but it was also an expressive
emblem of the nature of God's general dealings
with the race of man. What are we all but rebels
against God, and enemies of the Truth ? what were
the Gentiles in particular at that time, but " alien-
ated" from Him, " and enemies in their mind by
wicked works3?" Who then could so appropriately
fulfil the purpose of Him who came to call sinners
to repentance, as one who esteemed himself the
least of the Apostles, that was not meet to be
called an Apostle, because he had persecuted the
Church of God ? When Almighty God in His
infinite mercy purposed to form a people to Him-
self out of the heathen, as vessels for glory, first He
chose the instrument of this His purpose, as a brand
from the burning, to be a type of the rest. There
is a parallel to this order of Providence in the Old
1 Isa. xxxvii. 28, 29. 2 Col. ii. 15.
3 Col. i. 21.
108 THE CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL. [SERM.
Testament. The Jews were bid to look unto the
rock whence they were hewn 1. Who was the
especial Patriarch of their nation ? — Jacob. Abra-
ham himself, indeed, had been called and blessed
by God's mere grace. Yet Abraham had remark-
able faith. Jacob, however, the immediate and
peculiar Patriarch of the Jewish race, is repre-
sented in the character of a sinner, pardoned and
reclaimed by Divine mercy, a wanderer exalted to
be the father of a great nation. There is no mis-
taking the marks of his character and history,
designedly (as it would seem) recorded in Scrip-
ture, to humble Jewish pride. He makes his own
confession, as St. Paul afterwards ; " I am not
worthy of the least of all Thy mercies2." Every
year too the Israelites were bid bring their offer-
ing, and avow before God, that " a Syrian ready
to perish was their father3.1' Such as was the
father ; such (it was reasonable to suppose) would
be the descendants. None would be " greater than
their father Jacob4," for whose sake the nation
was blest.
In like manner St. Paul is, in one way of viewing
the Dispensation, the spiritual father of the Gentiles;
and in the history of his sin and its most gracious
forgiveness, he exemplifies far more than his bro-
ther Apostles his own Gospel ; that we are all
1 Isa. li. 1. 2 Gen. xxxii. 10.
3 Deut. xxvi. 5. 4 John iv. 12.
IX.] VIEWED IN REFERENCE TO HIS OFFICE. ]Q9
guilty before God, and can be saved only by His
free bounty. In his own words, " for this cause
obtained he mercy, that in him first Jesus Christ
might show forth all long-suffering for a pattern to
them which should hereafter believe on Him to
life everlasting1."
3. And, in the next place, St. Paul's previous
course of life rendered him, perhaps, after his con-
version, more fit an instrument of God's purposes
towards the Gentiles, as well as a more striking
specimen of it. Here it is necessary to speak with
caution. We know that, whatever good St. Paul did,
was in its source and nature not his, " but the grace
of God which was with him." Still, God makes use
of human means, and it is allowable to inquire
reverently what these were, and why St. Paul was
employed to convert the Heathen world rather than
St. James the Less, or St. John. Doubtless, his intel-
lectual endowments and acquirements were among
the circumstances which fitted him for his office. Yet,
may it not be supposed that there was something
in his previous religious history, which especially
disciplined him to be "all things to all men?"
Nothing is so difficult as to enter into the charac-
ters and feelings of men who have been brought up
under a system of religion different from our own ;
and to discern how they may be most forcibly and
profitably addressed, in order to win them over to
1 1 Tim. i. 10.
110 THE CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL. [SERM.
the reception of Divine truths, of which they are
at present ignorant. Now, St. Paul had had
experience in his own case, of a state of mind very
different from that which belonged to him as an
Apostle. Though, he had never been polluted
with Heathen immorality and profaneness, he had
entertained views and sentiments very far from
Christian ; and had experienced a conversion to
which the other Apostles (as far as we know) were
strangers. I am far indeed from meaning that
there is ought favourable to a man's after religion
in an actual unsettling of principle, in lapsing into
infidelity, and then returning again to religious
belief. This was not St. Paul's case ; he underwent
no radical change of religious principle. Much
less would I give countenance to the notion, that a
previous immoral life is other than a grievous per-
manent hindrance and a curse to a man, after he
has turned to God. Such considerations, however,
are out of place, in speaking of St. Paul. What
I mean is, that his awful rashness and blindness,
his self-confident, headstrong, cruel rage, against
the worshippers of the true Messiah, then his
strange conversion, then the length of time that
elapsed before his solemn ordination, during which
he was left to meditate in private on all that had
happened, and to anticipate the future, all this
constituted a peculiar preparation for the office of
preaching to a lost world, dead in sin. It gave
him an extended insight, on the one hand, into the
IX.] VIEWED IN REFERENCE TO HIS OFFICE. HI
ways and designs of Providence, and on the other
hand, into the workings of sin in the human heart,
and the various modes of thinking to which the
mind may be trained. It taught him not to despair
of the worst sinners, to be sharp-sighted in detect-
ing the sparks of faith, amid corrupt habits of life,
to enter into the various temptations to which human
nature is exposed. It wrought in him a profound
humility, which disposed him (if we may say so) to
bear meekly the abundance of the revelations given
him ; and it imparted to him a practical wisdom how
to apply them to the conversion of others, so as to be
weak with the weak, and strong with the strong, to
bear their burdens, to instruct and encourage them,
to " strengthen his brethren," to rejoice and weep
with them, in a word, to be an earthly Paraclete,
the comforter, help, and guide of his brethren. It
gave him to know in some good measure the hearts
of men ; an attribute (in its fulness) belonging to
God alone, and possessed by Him in union with
perfect purity from all sin ; but which in us can
scarcely exist without our own melancholy expe-
rience in some degree of moral evil in ourselves,
since the innocent, (it is their privilege,) have not
eaten of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
4. Lastly, to guard against misconception of
these last remarks, I must speak distinctly on a
part of the subject only touched upon hitherto, viz.
on St. Paul's spiritual state before his conversion.
For, in spite of what has been said by way of cau-
112 THE CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL, [SERM.
tion, perhaps I may still be supposed to warrant
the maxim sometimes maintained, that the greater
sinner makes the greater saint.
Now, observe, I do not allege that St. Paul's
previous sins made him a more spiritual Christian
afterwards, but rendered him more fitted for a par-
ticular purpose in God's providence, — more fitted,
when converted, to reclaim others ; just as a know-
ledge of languages, (whether divinely or humanly
acquired,) fits a man for the office of missionary,
without tending in any degree to make him a better
man. I merely say, that if we take two men
equally advanced in faith and holiness, that one of
the two would preach to a variety of men with the
greater success, who had the greater experience in
his own religious history of temptation, the war of
flesh and spirit, sin, and victory over sin ; though
at the same time, at first sight it is of course unlikely
that he who had experienced all these changes of
mind should be equal in faith and obedience to the
other who had served God from a child.
But, in the next place, let us observe how far
St. Paul's conversion is, in matter of fact, from
holding out any encouragement to those who live
in sin, or any self-satisfaction to those who have lived
in it ; as if their present or former disobedience could
be a gain to them.
Why was mercy shown to Saul the persecutor T
he himself gives us the reason, which we may
safely make use of. "I obtained mercy, because I
IX.] VIEWED IN REFERENCE TO HIS OFFICE. US
did it ignorantly in unbelief1." And why was he
' ' enabled" to preach the Gospel ? Because Christ
counted him faithful." We have here the reason
more clearly stated even than in Abraham's case,
who was honoured with special Divine revelations,
and promised a name on the earth, because God
" knew him, that he would command his children
and his household after him, to keep the way of the
Lord, to do justice and judgment 2." Saul was ever
faithful, according to his notion of " the way of the
Lord." Doubtless he sinned deeply and grievously
in persecuting the followers of Christ. Had he
known the Holy Scriptures, he never would have
done so ; he would have recognised Jesus to be the
promised Saviour, as Simeon and Anna had, from
the first. But he was bred up in a human school,
and paid more attention to the writings of men
than to the word of God. Still, observe, he dif-
fered from other enemies of Christ in this, that he
kept a_ clear conscience, and habitually obeyed God
according to his knowledge. God speaks to us in
two ways, in our hearts and in His word. The
latter and clearer of these informants St. Paul knew
little of; the former he could not but know in his
measure, (for it was within him,) and he obeyed it.
That inward voice was but feeble, mixed up and
obscured with human feelings and human tradi-
tions ; so that what his conscience told him to do,
1 1 Tim. i. 12, 13. 2 Gen. xviii. 19.
VOL. II. I
114 THE CONVERSION OF ,ST. PAUL. [SERM.
was but partially true, and in part was wrong. Yet
still, believing it to speak God's will, he was not
disobedient to it, acting as he did afterwards when
he "was not disobedient to the heavenly vision,"
which informed him Jesus was the Christ1. Hear
his own account of himself : — " I have lived in all
good conscience before God until this day." "After
the most straitest sect of our religion, I lived a
Pharisee." " Touching the righteousness which is
in the Law, blameless 2." Here is no ease, no self-
indulgent habits, no wilful sin against the light, —
nay, I will say no pride. That is, though he was
doubtless influenced by much sinful self-confidence,
in his violent and bigoted hatred of the Christians,
and though (as well as even the best of us) he was
doubtless liable to the occasional temptations and
defilements of pride, yet, taking pride to mean open
rebellion against God, warring against God's autho-
rity, setting up reason against God, this he had not.
He "verily thought with himself that he ought to
do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of
Nazareth." Turn to the case of Jews and Gentiles
who remained unconverted, and you will see the
difference between them and him. Think of the
hypocritical Pharisees, who professed to be saints,
and were sinners ; " full of extortion, excess, and
uncleanness3;" believing Jesus to be the Christ,
but not confessing Him, as " loving the praise of
1 Acts xxvi. 19. 2 Acts xxiii. 1. xxvi. 5. Phil. iii. 6.
3 Matt, xxiii. 25. 27.
IX.] VIEWED IN REFERENCE TO HIS OFFICE. 115
men more than the praise of God V St. Paul
himself gives us an account of them in the second
chapter of his Epistle to the Romans. Can it be
made to apply to his own previous state ? Was the
name of God " blasphemed among the Gentiles"
through him? — On the other hand, the Gentile
reasoners sought a vain wisdom 2. These were they
who despised religion and practical morality as com-
mon matters, unworthy the occupation of a refined
and cultivated intellect. " Some mocked, others
said, we will hear thee again of this matter V They
prided themselves on being above vulgar preju-
dices,— in being indifferent to the traditions afloat
in the world about another life, — in regarding all
religions as equally true and equally false. Such a
hard, vain-glorious temper our Lord solemnly con-
demns, when he says to the Church at Laodicea,
" I would thou wert cold or hot."
The Pharisees, then, were breakers of the Law ;
the Gentile reasoners and statesmen were infidels.
Both were proud, both despised jthe voice of con-
science. We see, then, from this review, the kind of
sin which God pities and pardons. All sin, indeed,
when repented of, He will put away ; but pride
hardens the heart against repentance, and sensual-
ity debases it to a brutal nature. The Holy Spirit is
quenched by open transgressions of conscience and
contempt of His authority. But, when men err in
1 John xii. 43. 2 1 Cor. i. 22 3 Acts xvii. 32.
i 2
116 THE CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL. [SERM. IX
ignorance, following closely their own notions of
right and wrong, though these notions are mistaken,
great as is their sin, if they might have possessed
themselves of truer notions, (and very great as was
St. Paul's sin, because he certainly might have
learned from the Old Testament far clearer and
diviner doctrine than the tradition of the Pharisees,)
yet such men are not left by the God of all grace.
God leads them on to the light, in spite of their
errors of faith, if they continue strictly to obey what
they believe to be His will. And, to declare this
comfortable truth to us, St. Paul was thus carried
on by the Providence of God, and brought into the
light by miracle ; that we may learn, by a memorable
instance of His grace, what He ever does, though
He does not in ordinary cases thus declare it openly
to the world.
Who has not felt a fear lest he be wandering from
the true doctrine of Christ ? Let him cherish and
obey the holy light of conscience within him, as
Saul did ; let him carefully study the Scriptures, as
Saul did not ; and the God who had mercy even on
the persecutor of His saints, will assuredly shed His
grace upon him, and bring him into all the Truth as
it is in Jesus.
SERMON X.
THE
PRESENTATION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST IN THE
TEMPLE, COMMONLY CALLED THE PURIFICATION
OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.
SECRECY AND SUDDENNESS OF DIVINE VISITATIONS.
LUKE xviii. 20.
The kingdom of God cometh not with observation.
WE commemorate on this day the Presentation of
Christ in the Temple, according to the injunction
of the Mosaic Law, as laid down in Exodus xiii.
and Leviticus xii. When the Israelites were
brought out of Egypt, the first-born of the Egyp-
tians, (as we all know,) were visited by death,
" from the first-born of Pharaoh that sat on his
throne, unto the first-born of the captive that was
in the dungeon ; and all the first-born of cattle1."
Accordingly, in thankful remembrance of this de-
struction, and their own deliverance, every male
among the Israelites, who was the first-born of his
mother, was dedicated to God ; likewise, every
1 Exod. xii. 29.
1 18 PURIFICATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM.
first-born of cattle. Afterwards, the Levites were
taken, as God's peculiar possession, instead of the
first-born l ; but still the first-born were solemnly
brought to the Temple at a certain time from their
birth, presented to God, and then redeemed or
bought off at a certain price. At the same time,
certain sacrifices were offered for the mother, in
order to her purification after childbirth.
Our Saviour was born without sin. His Mother,
the Blessed Virgin Mary, need have made no
offering, as requiring no purification. On the con-
trary, it was that very birth of the Son of God
which sanctified the whole race of woman, and
turned her curse into a blessing. Nevertheless, as
Christ Himself was minded to " fulfil all righteous-
ness," to obey all the ordinances of the Covenant
under which He was born, so in like manner His
Mother Mary submitted to the Law, in order to do
it reverence.
This then is the event in our Saviour's infancy,
which we this day celebrate ; His presentation in
the Temple, when His Virgin Mother was ceremo-
nially purified. It was made memorable at the
time by the hymns and praises of Simeon and
Anna, to whom He was then revealed. And there
were others, besides these, who had been " looking
for redemption in Jerusalem," who were also
vouchsafed a sight of the Infant Saviour. But the
chief importance of this event consists in its being
1 Numb. iii. 12, 13.
X.] SECRECY OF DIVINE VISITATIONS. 119
a fulfilment of prophecy. Malachi had announced
the Lord's visitation of His Temple in these
words, "The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly
come to His Temple1;" words which, though
variously fulfilled during His Ministry, had their
first accomplishment in the humble ceremony com-
memorated on this day. And, when we consider
the grandeur of the prediction, and how unosten-
tatious this accomplishment was, we are led to
muse upon God's ways, and to draw useful lessons
for ourselves. This is the reflection which I pro-
pose to make upon the subject of this Festival.
I say, we are to-day reminded of the noiseless
course of God's providence, His tranquil accom-
plishment, in the course of nature, of great events
long designed; and again, the suddenness and still-
ness of His visitations. Consider what the occur-
rence in question consists in. A little child is
brought to the Temple, as all first-born children
were brought. There is nothing here uncommon
or striking so far. His parents are with him, poor
people, bringing the offering of pigeons or doves,
for the purification of the mother. They are met
in the Temple by an old man, who takes the child
in his arms, offers a thanksgiving to God, and
blesses the parents ; and next are joined by a
woman of a great age, a widow of eighty-four years,
who had exceeded the time of useful service, and
1 Mal.iii. 1.
120 PURIFICATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM,
seemed to be but a fit prey for death. She gives
thanks also, and speaks concerning the child to
other persons who are present. Then all retire.
Now, there is evidently nothing great or impres-
sive in this ; nothing to excite the feelings, or in-
terest the imagination. We know what the world
thinks of such a group as I have described. The
weak and helpless, whether from age or infancy,
it negligently looks upon and passes by. Yet all
this that happened was really the solemn fulfilment
of an ancient and emphatic prophecy. The infant
in arms was the Saviour of the world, the rightful
heir, come in disguise of a stranger to visit His own
house. The Scripture had said, " The Lord whom
you seek, shall suddenly come to His Temple, but
who may abide the day of His coming, and who
may stand when He appeareth?" He had now
taken possession. And further, the old man, who
took the child in his arms, had upon him gifts of
the Holy Ghost, had been promised the blessed
sight of his Lord before his death, came into the
Temple by heavenly guidance, and now had within
him thoughts unutterable, of joy, thankfulness, and
hope, strangely mixed with awe, fear, painful
wonder, and " bitterness of spirit." Anna too, the
woman of fourscore and four years, was a pro-
phetess ; and the bystanders, to whom she spoke,
were the true Israel, who were looking out in faith
for the predicted redemption of mankind, those who
(in the words of the prophecy,) " sought" and in
X.] SECRECY OF DIVINE VISITATIONS. 121
prospect " delighted" in the " Messenger" of God's
covenant of mercy. "The glory of this latter House
shall be greater than of the former V' was tne an-
nouncement of another prophecy. Behold the
glory ! a little child and his parents, two aged
persons, and a congregation without name or me-
morial. ' " The Kingdom of God cometh not with
observation/'
Such has ever been the manner of His visitations,
in the destruction of His enemies as well as in the
deliverance of His own people ; — silent, sudden, un-
foreseen, as regards the world, though predicted in
the face of all men, and in their measure compre-
hended and waited for by His true Church. Such
a visitation was the flood ; Noah, a preacher of
righteousness, but the multitude of sinners judici-
ally blinded. " They did eat, they drank, they
married wives, they were given in marriage, until
the day that Noe entered into the Ark, and the flood
came and destroyed them all." Such was the
overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrha. " Likewise as
it was in the days of Lot ; they did eat, they drank,
they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom, it
raiped fire and brimstone from Heaven, and de-
stroyed them all2;" Again, " The horse of Pharaoh
went in with his chariots and with his horsemen into
the sea ; and the Lord brought again the waters of
the sea upon them3.1' The overthrow of Senna-
1 Hagg. ii. 9. 2 Luke xvii. 27—29 3 Exod. xv. 19.
122 PURIFICATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM.
cherib was also silent and sudden, when his vast
army least expected it; " The Angel of the Lord
went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians
a hundred fourscore and five thousand V Bel-
shazzar and Babylon were surprised in the midst of
the king's great feast to his thousand lords. While
Nebuchadnezzar boasted, his reason was suddenly
taken from him. While the multitude shouted
with impious flattery at Herod's speech, then "the
Angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not
God the glory 2." Whether we take the first or the
final judgment upon Jerusalem, both visitations
were foretold as sudden. Of the former, Isaiah
had declared it should come " suddenly at an
instant3;" of the latter Malachi, " The Lord whom
ye seek shall suddenly come to His Temple." And
such too will be His final visitation of the whole
earth ; men will be at their work in the city and in
the field, and it will overtake them like a thunder-
cloud. " Two women shall be grinding together;
the one shall be taken and the other left. Two men
shall be in the field ; the one shall be taken and the
other left V
And it is impossible that it should be otherwise,
in spite of warnings ever so clear, considering how
the world goes on in every age. Men, who are
plunged in the pursuits of active life, are no
judges of its course and tendency on the whole.
1 Is. xxxvii. 36. 2 Acts xii. 23.
3 Is. xxx. 13. 4 Luke xvii. 35, 36.
X.] SECRECY OF DIVINE VISITATIONS.
They confuse great events with little, and measure
the importance of objects as in perspective by the
mere standard of nearness or remoteness. It is
only at a distance that one can take in the outlines
and features of a whole country. It is but holy
Daniel, solitary among princes, or Elijah the recluse
of Mount Carmel, who can withstand Baal, or fore-
cast the time of God's providences among the na-
tions. To the multitude all things continue to the
last, as they were from the beginning of the crea-
tion. The business of state affairs, the movements
of society, the course of nature, proceed as ordi-
narily, till the moment of Christ's coming. " The
sun was risen upon the earth," bright as usual,
that very day of wrath in which Sodom was de-
stroyed. Men cannot believe their own time is an
especially wicked time ; for, with Scripture unstudied
and hearts untrained in holiness, they have no
standard to compare it with. They take warning
from no troubles, or perplexities ; which rather
carry them away to search out the earthly causes of
them, and the possible remedies. They consider
them as conditions of this world, necessary results
of this or that state of society. When the power
of Assyria became great, (we might suppose) the
Jews had a plain call to repentance. Far from
it ; they were led to set power against power, they
took refuge against Assyria in Egypt their old
enemy. Probably they reasoned themselves into
what they considered a temperate, enlightened,
124 PURIFICATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM.
cheerful view of national affairs ; perhaps they
might consider the growth of Assyria as an advan-
tage rather than otherwise, as balancing the power
of Egypt, and so tending to their own security.
Certain it is, we find them connecting themselves
first with the one kingdom, then with the other, as
men who could read (as they thought) " the signs
of the times," and made some pretences to political
wisdom. Thus the world proceeds till wrath comes
upon it, and there is no escape. " To-morrow,"
they say, " shall be as this day, and much more
abundant V
And in the midst of this their revel, whether of
sensual pleasure, or of ambition, or of covetousness,
or of pride and self-esteem, the decree goes forth
to destroy. The decree goes forth in secret ; An-
gels hear it, and the favoured few on earth ; but no
public event takes place to give the world warning.
The earth was doomed to the flood one hundred and
twenty years before " the decree brought forth2,"
or men heard of it. The waters of Babylon had
been turned, and the conqueror was marching into
the city, when Belshazzar made his great feast.
Pride infatuates man, and self-indulgence and
luxury work their way unseen, — like some smoul-
dering fire, which for a while leaves the outward
form of things unaltered. At length the decayed
mass cannot hold together, and breaks by its own
1 Is. Ivi. 12. 2 Zeph, ii. 2.
X.] SECRECY OF DIVINE VISITATIONS. 125
weight, or on some slight and accidental external
violence. As the Prophet says; " This iniquity
shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling
out (or bulging) in a high wall, whose breaking
cometh suddenly at an instant." The same inward
corruption of a nation seems to be meant in our
Lord's words, when He says of Jerusalem ; " Where-
soever the carcass is, there will the eagles be
gathered together1."
Thoughts, such as the foregoing, are profitable
at all times ; for in every age the world is profane
and blind, and God hides His Providence, yet car-
ries it forward. But they are peculiarly apposite
now, in proportion as the present day bears upon it
more marks than usual, of pride and judicial blind-
ness. Whether Christ is at our doors or not, but a
few men in England may have grace enough safely
to conjecture ; but that He is calling upon us all to
prepare as for His coming, is most evident to those
who have religious eyes and ears. Let us then
turn this Festival to account, by taking it as the
Memorial-day of His visitations. Let us from the
events it celebrates, lay up deep in our hearts the
recollection, how mysteriously little things are in
this world connected with great, how single mo-
ments, improved or wasted, are the salvation or
ruin of all-important interests. Let us bear the
thought upon us, when we come to worship in
1 Matt. xxiv. 28.
126 PURIFICATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM.
God's House, that any such season of service may,
for what we know, be wonderfully connected with
some ancient purpose of His announced before we
were born, and have its determinate bearing on
our eternal welfare ; let us fear to miss the Sa-
viour, while Simeon and Anna find Him. Let us
remember that He was not manifested again in
the Tempi ex except once, for thirty years, while a
whole generation, who were alive at His first
visitation, died off in the interval. Let us carry
this thought into our daily conduct ; considering
that, for what we know, our hope of salvation may
in the event materially depend on our avoiding
this or that momentary sin. And further, from
the occurrences of this day, let us take comfort,
when we despond about the state of the Church.
Perhaps we see not God's tokens ; we see neither
prophet nor teacher remaining to His people ;
darkness falls over the earth, and no protesting
voice is heard. Yet, granting things to be at
the very worst, yet, when Christ was presented
in the Temple the age knew as little of it, as it
knows of His Providence now. Rather, the worse
our condition is, the nearer to us is the Advent of
our Deliverer. Even though He is silent, doubt
not that His army is on the march towards us.
He is coming through the sky, and has even now
His camp upon the outskirts of our own world.
Nay, though He still for a while keep His seat
at His Father's right hand, yet surely He sees
15
X.] SECRECY OF DIVINE VISITATIONS. 127
all that is going on, and waits and will not fail
His hour of vengeance. Shall He not hear His
own elect, when they cry day and night to Him ?
His services of prayer and praise continue, and are
scorned by the multitude. Day by day, Festival
by Festival, Fast after Fast, Season by Season,
they continue according to His ordinance, and are
scorned. But the greater His delay, the heavier
will be His vengeance, and the more complete
the deliverance of His people.
May the good Lord save His Church, in this her
hour of peril ; when Satan seeks to sap and corrupt
where he dare not openly assault ! May He raise
up instruments of His grace, ' ' not ignorant" of the
devices of the Evil One, with seeing eyes, and
strong hearts, and vigorous arms to defend the
treasure of the faith once committed to the Saints,
and to rouse and alarm their slumbering brethren !
" For Sion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for
Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until the righte-
ousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the sal-
vation thereof as a lamp that burneth Ye
that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence,
and give Him no rest, till He establish, and till He
make Jerusalem a praise in the earth .... Go
through, go through the gates ; prepare ye the way
of the people, cast up, cast up the highway, gather
out the stones, lift up a standard for the people V
1 Is. Ixii. 1. 6, 7. 10.
128 PURIFICATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM.X.
Thus does Almighty God address His "watchmen on
the walls of Jerusalem ;" and to the Church herself
He says, to our great comfort : " No weapon that is
formed against thee shall prosper, and every tongue
that shall rise against thee in judgment, thou shalt
condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of
the Lord, and their righteousness is of Me, saith
the Lord1."
'Is. liv. 17.
SERMON XI
ST. MATTHIAS.
DIVINE DECREES.
REV.iii. 11.
Hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.
THIS is the only Saint's-day which is to be cele-
brated with mingled feelings of joy and pain. It
records the fall, as well as the election of an Apostle.
St. Matthias was chosen in the place of the traitor
Judas. In the history of the latter we have the warn-
ing recorded in very deed which our Lord in the text
gives us in word, " Hold that fast which thou hast,
that no man take thy crown." And doubtless many
were the warnings such as this, addressed by our
Lord to the wretched man who in the end betrayed
him. Not only did He call him to reflection and
repentance by the hints which He let drop concern-
ing him during the Last Supper, but in the discourses
previous to it, He may be supposed to have intended
a reference to the circumstances of His apostate
disciple. " Watch ye therefore," He said, " lest
coming suddenly, He find you sleeping." — I called
VOL. II. K
130 ST. MATTHIAS. [SERM.
Judas just now wretched ; for we must not speak of
sinners according to the falsely-charitable way of
some, styling them unfortunate instead of wicked,
lest we thus learn to excuse sin in ourselves. He
was doubtless inexcusable, as we shall be, if we
follow his pattern ; and he must be viewed, not
with pity, but with fear and awe.
The reflection which rises in the mind on a con-
sideration of the election of St. Matthias, is this ;
how easily God may effect His purposes without
us, and put others in our place, if we are dis-
obedient to Him. It often happens that those
who have long been in His favor grow secure and
presuming. They think their salvation certain,
and their service necessary to Him who has gra-
ciously accepted it. They consider themselves as
personally bound up with His purposes of mercy
manifested in the Church ; and, so marked out,
that, if they could fall, His word would fail. They
come to think they have some peculiar title or
interest in His promises, over and above other
men, (however derived, it matters not, whether
from His eternal decree, or on the other hand
from their own especial holiness and obedience,)
but practically such an interest, that the very
supposition that they can possibly fall offends
them. Now this feeling of self-importance is
repressed all through the Scriptures, and espe-
cially by the events we commemorate to-day. Let
us consider this subject.
XL] DIVINE DECREES. 131
Eliphaz the Temanite thus answers Job, who in
his distress showed infirmity, and grew impatient
of God's correction. " Can a man be profitable unto
God, as he that is wise may be profitable unto
himself? Is it any pleasure to the Almighty,
that thou art righteous ? or is it gain to Him, that
thou makest thy ways perfect1 ?" And the course
of His providence, as recorded in Scripture, will
show us, that, in dealing with us His rational crea-
tures, He goes by no unconditional rule, which
makes us absolutely His from the first ; but, as He
is " no respecter of persons," so on the other hand
righteousness and judgment are the basis of His
throne ; and that whoso rebels, whether Archangel
or Apostle, at once forfeits His favor.
Not long before the fall and treachery of Judas,
Christ pronounced a blessing, as it seemed, upon
all the twelve Apostles, the traitor included. " Ye
which have followed Me, in the regeneration, when
the Son of Man shall sit in the throne of His glory, ye
also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve
tribes of Israel2." Who would not have thought
from this promise, taken by itself, and without
reference to the Eternal Rule of God's government,
which is always understood, even when not formally
enunciated, that Judas was sure of eternal life ?
It is true, our Saviour added, as if with an allusion
to him, " many that are first shall be last ;" yet
1 Job xxii. 2, 3. 2 Matt. xix. 28.
K2
132 ST. MATTHIAS. [SERM.
He said nothing to undeceive such as might refuse
to consult and apply the fundamental law of His im-
partial Providence. All His twelve Apostles seemed
from the letter of His words, to be predestined
to life ; nevertheless, in a few months, Matthias
held the throne and crown of one of them. — And
there is something remarkable in the circum-
stance itself, that our Lord should have made up
their number to a full twelve, after one had fallen ;
and, perhaps, there may be contained in it some
symbolical allusion to the scope of His decrees,
which we cannot altogether enter into. Surely,
had He willed it, eleven would have accomplished
His purpose as well as twelve. Why, when one
had fallen, should He accurately fill up the perfect
number? Why, but to show us, that in this elec-
tion of us, He does not look at us as mere indi-
viduals,.'but as a body, as a certain definite whole,
of which the parts may alter in the process of dis-
engaging it from this sinful world, — with reference
to some glorious and harmonious design beyond
us, who are the immediate objects of His bounty,
and shall be the fruit of His love, if we are faith-
ful? Why, but to show us, that He could even
find other Apostles to suffer for Him, — and much
more, servants to fill His lower thrones, should we
be wanting, and transgress His strict and holy
law ?
This is but one instance out of many, in the
revealed history of His moral government. He
XL] DIVINE DECREES. 133
was on the point of exemplifying the same Rule in
the case of the Israelites, when Moses stayed His
hand. God purposed to consume them, when
they rebelled, and instead to make of Moses' seed
a great nation. This happened twice l. The
second time, God declared what was His end in
view, in fulfilling which the Israelites were but His
instruments. " I have pardoned according to thy
word ; but as truly as I live, all the earth shall
be filled with the glory of the Lord." Again, on the
former occasion, He gave the Rule of His dealings
with them. Moses wished for the sake of his people
to be himself excluded from the land of promise ;
" If thou wilt forgive their sin ; — and if not, blot rne,
I pray Thee, out of Thy book which Thou hast
written. And the Lord said unto Moses, Whosoever
hath sinned against Me, him will I blot out of My
book." So clearly has He shown us from the
beginning, that His own glory is the End, and
justice the essential Rule of His Providence.
Again, Saul was chosen, and thought himself
secure. His conduct evinced the self-will of an
independent monarch, instead of one who felt
himself to be a mere instrument of God's pur-
poses, a minister of His glory, under the obligation
of a law of right and wrong, and strong only as
wielded by Him who formed him. So, when he
sinned, Samuel said to him, " Thou hast done
1 Exod. xxxii. 32, 33. Numb. xiv. 20, 21.
134 ST. MATTHIAS. [SERM.
foolishly, thou hast not kept the commandment of
the Lord thy God .... for now would the Lord have
established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. But
now thy kingdom shall not continue ; the Lord
hath sought Him a man after His own heart1."
And again, " The Lord hath rent the kingdom of
Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a
neighbour of thine, that is better than thou 2."
In like manner, Christ also, convicting the Jews
out of their own mouth ; " He will miserably de-
stroy those wicked men, and will let out His vineyard
unto other husbandmen, which shall render Him the
fruits in their seasons3." Consider how striking
an instance the Jews formed, when the Gospel was
offered them, of the general Rule which I am point-
ing out. They were rejected. How hard they
thought it, St. Paul's Epistles show. They did not
shrink from declaring, that, if Jesus were the Christ,
and the Gentiles made equal with them, God's
promise was broken ; and you may imagine how
forcibly they might have pleaded the prophecies of
the Old Testament, which seemed irreversibly to
assign honor and power, (not to say temporal honor
and power,) to the Israelites by name. Alas ! they
did not seek out and use the one clue given them
for their religious course, amid all the mysteries
both of Scripture and the world, — the one solemn
Rule of God's dealings with His creatures. They
did not listen for that small still voice, running
1 1 Sam. xiii. 13, 14. 2 1 Sam. xv. 28. 3 Matt. xxi. 41.
XL] DIVINE DECREES. 135
under all His dispensations, most clear to those who
would listen, amid all the intricacies of His Pro-
vidence and His promises. Impressed though it
be upon the heart by nature, and ever insisted on
in Revelation, as the basis on which God has estab-
lished all His decrees, it was to them a hard say-
ing. St. Paul retorts it on their consciences, when
they complained. " God (he says) will render to
every man according to his deeds. To them who
by patient continuance in well-doing seek for glory
and honor and immortality, eternal life ; but unto
them that are contentious, and do not obey the
Truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and
wrath ; — tribulation and anguish, upon every soul
of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of
the Gentile ; but glory, honor, and peace, to every
man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also
to the Gentile. For there is no respect of persons
with God1."
Such was the unchangeable Rule of God's
government, as it is propounded by St. Paul
in explanation of the Jewish election, and signifi-
cantly prefixed to his discourse upon the Christ-
ian. Such as was the Mosaic, such also is the
Gospel Covenant, made without respect of persons ;
rich, indeed, in privilege and promise far above
the Elder Dispensation, but bearing on its front the
same original avowal of impartial retribution, —
' peace to every man that worketh good," " wrath
1 Rom. ii. 6—11.
136 ST. MATTHIAS. [SERM.
to the disobedient;" predestining to glory, cha-
racters not persons, pledging the gift of persever-
ance not to individuals, but to a body of which the
separate members might change. This is the doc-
trine set before us by that Apostle, to whom was
revealed in an extraordinary way the nature of the
Christian Covenant, its peculiar blessedness, gifts,
and promises. — We are vouchsafed a further wit-
ness to it, in the favoured Evangelist, who finally
closed the volume of God's revelations, after the
death of his brethren. " Behold, I come quickly,
and My reward is with Me, to give every man
according as his work shall be Blessed are
they that do His commandments, that they may
have right to the tree of life, and may enter in
through the gates into the city V
And a third witness is our Lord's own decla-
ration, which He left behind Him with His Apostles
when He was leaving the world, as recorded by
the same Evangelist. " If a man abide not in Me,"
He said, " he is cast forth as a branch, and is
withered ; and men gather them, and cast them
into the fire, and they are burned." And, lest our
reason should equivocate concerning the meaning
of " abiding in Him," and attempt to introduce
the doctrine of absolute election under it, He adds,
for the removal of all doubt, " If ye keep my com-
mandments, ye shall abide in My love2." — Lastly,
1 Rev. xxii. 12. 14. 2 John xv. 6. 1(U
XL] DIVINE DECREES. 137
in order to complete the solemn promulgation of
His Eternal Rule, He exemplified it, while He
spoke it, in the instance of an Apostle. He knew
whom He had chosen ; that they were " not all
clean," that " one of them was a devil ;" yet He
chose all twelve, as if to show that souls chosen for
eternal life might fall away. Thus, in the case of
the Apostles themselves, in the very foundation of
His Church, He laid deep the serious and merciful
warning, if we have wisdom to lay it to heart ;
" Be not high-minded, but fear ;" for, if God
spared not Apostles, neither will He spare thee !
What solemn overpowering thoughts must have
crowded on St. Matthias^ when he received the
greetings of the eleven Apostles, and took His seat
among them as their brother ! His very election was a
witness against himself, if he did not fulfil it. And
such surely will ours be in our degree. We take the
place of others who have gone before, as Matthias
did; we are " baptized for the dead," filling up
the ranks of soldiers, some of whom, indeed, have
fought a good fight, but many of whom in every
age have made void their calling. Many are
called, few are chosen. The monuments of sin
and unbelief are set up around us. The casting
away of the Jews was the reconciling of the Gen-
tiles. The fall of one nation is the conversion of
another. The Church loses old branches, and
gains new. The Blessed Spirit worketh according
to His own inscrutable pleasure ; He has left the
138 ST. MATTHIAS. [SERM.
East, and manifested Himself Westward. Thus
the Christian of every age is but the successor
of the lost and of the dead. How long we of this
country shall be put in trust with the Gospel, we
know not; but while we have the privilege, assuredly
we do but stand in the place of Christians who have
either utterly fallen away, or are so corrupted,
as scarcely to let their light shine before men.
We are at present witnesses of the Truth ; and our
very glory is our warning. By the superstitions,
the profanities, the indifference, the unbelief of the
world called Christian, we are called upon to be
lowly-minded while we preach aloud, and to trem-
ble while we rejoice. Let us then, as a Church
and as individuals, one and all look to Him who
alone can keep us from falling. Let us with single
heart look up to Christ our Saviour, and put our-
selves into His hands, from whom all our strength
and wisdom is derived. Let us avoid the begin-
nings of temptation ; let us watch and pray lest we
enter into it. Avoiding all speculations which are
above us, let us follow what tends to edifying.
Let us receive into our hearts the great truth, that
we who have been freely accepted and sanctified
as members of Christ, shall hereafter be judged by
our works, done in and through Him ; that the
Sacraments unite us to Him, and that faith makes
the Sacraments open their hidden virtue, and flow
forth in pardon and grace. Beyond this we may
not inquire. How it is one man perseveres and
XL] DIVINE DECREES. 139
another falls, what are the exact limits and cha-
racter of our natural corruption, — these are over-
subtle questions; while we know for certain, that
though we can do nothing of ourselves, yet that
salvation is in our own power, for however deep
and far-spreading is the root of evil in us, God's
grace will be sufficient for our need.
SERMON XII.
THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY.
THE REVERENCE DUE TO HER.
LUKE i. 48.
From henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
TO-DAY we celebrate the Annunciation of the Virgin
Mary ; when the Angel Gabriel was sent to tell
her that she was to be the Mother of our Lord, and
when the Holy Ghost came upon her, and over-
shadowed her with the power of the Highest. In
that great event was fulfilled her anticipation as
expressed in the text. All generations have called
her blessed 1. The Angel began the salutation ;
he said, " Hail, thou that art highly-favoured ;
the Lord is with thee ; blessed 2 art thou among
women." Again he said ; " Fear not Mary, for thou
hast found favour with God ; and, behold, thou
shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a
Son, and shalt call His name Jesus. He shall be
ANNUNCIATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. 141
great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest."
Her cousin Elizabeth was the next to greet her
with her appropriate title. Though she was
filled with the Holy Ghost at the time she
spake, yet, far from thinking herself by such
a gift equalled to Mary, she was thereby moved
to use the lowlier and more reverent language.
" She spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed
art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit
of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that
the mother of my Lord should come to me ?" . . . .
Then she repeated " Blessed is she that believed ;
for there shall be a performance of those things
which were told her from the Lord." Then it was that
Mary gave utterance to her feelings in the Hymn
which we read in the Evening Service. How many
and complicated must they have been ! In her was
now to be fulfilled that promise which the world
had been looking out for during thousands of years.
The Seed of the woman, announced to guilty Eve,
after long delay, was at length appearing upon earth,
and was to be born of her. In her the destinies
of the world were to be reversed, and the serpent's
head bruised. On her was bestowed the greatest
honour ever put upon any individual of our fallen
race. God was taking upon Him her flesh, and
humbling Himself to be called Her offspring; —
such is the deep mystery ! She of course would feel
her own inexpressible unworthiness ; and again, her
humble lot, her ignorance, her weakness in the
142 ANNUNCIATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM.
eyes of the world. And she had, moreover, we
may well suppose, that purity, sweetness, and inno-
cence of heart, that bright vision of faith, that
confiding trust in her God, which raised all these
feelings to an intensity which we, ordinary mortals,
cannot understand. We cannot understand them ;
we repeat her hymn day after day, — yet consider
for an instant in how different a mode we say it
from that in which she at the first uttered it. We
even hurry it over, and do not think of the meaning
of those words, which came from the most highly
favoured, awfully gifted, of the children of men.
"My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit
hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For He hath
regarded the low estate of His hand-maiden : for
behold, from henceforth all generations shall call
me blessed. For He that is mighty hath done to
me great things ; and holy is His name. And His
mercy is on them that fear Him from generation to
generation."
Now let us consider in what respects the Virgin
Mary is Blessed ; a title first given her by the Angel,
and next by the Church in all ages since to this
day.
1. I observe, that in her the curse pronounced on
Eve, was changed to a blessing. Eve was doomed
to bear children in sorrow ; but now this very
dispensation, in which the token of Divine anger
was conveyed, was made the means by which sal-
vation came into the world. Christ might have de-
15
XII.] THE REVERENCE DUE TO HER. 143
scended from heaven, as He went, and as He will
come again. He might have taken on Him a body
from the ground, as Adam was taken ; or been
formed, like Eve, in some other divinely devised
way. But, far from this, God sent forth His Son
(as St. Paul says), ' f made of a woman . " For it had
been His gracious purpose to turn all that is ours
from evil to good. Had He so pleased. He might
have found, when we sinned, other beings to do Him
service, casting us into hell ; but He purposed to
save and to change us. And in like manner all
that belongs to us, our reason, our affections, our
pursuits, our relations in life, He wishes nothing
put aside in His disciples, but all sanctified. There-
fore, instead of sending His Son from Heaven, He
sent Him forth as the Son of Mary, to show that all
our sorrow, and all our corruption can be blessed
and changed by Him. The very punishment of
the fall, the very taint of birth-sin, admits of a cure
by the coming of Christ.
2. But there is another portion of the original
punishment of woman, which may be considered as
repealed when Christ came. It was said to the
woman, "Thy husband shall rule over thee ;" a
sentence which has been strikingly fulfilled. Man
has strength to conquer the thorns and thistles
which the earth is cursed with, but the same
strength has ever proved the fulfilment of the
punishment awarded to the woman. Look abroad
through the Heathen world, and see how the
144 ANNUNCIATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM.
weaker half of mankind has every where been tyran-
nized over and debased by the strong arm of force.
Consider all those eastern nations, which have never
at any time reverenced it, but have heartlessly made
it the slave of every bad and cruel purpose. Thus
the serpent has triumphed, — making the man still
degrade himself by her who originally tempted him,
and her, who then tempted, now suffer from him
who was seduced. Nay, even under the light of
revelation, the punishment on the woman was not
removed at once. Still, (in the words of the curse,)
her husband ruled over her. The very practice of
polygamy and divorce, which was suffered under the
patriarchal and Jewish dispensations, proves it.
But, when Christ came as the Seed of the woman,
He vindicated the rights and honour of His Mother.
Not that the distinction of ranks is destroyed under
the Gospel ; the woman is still made inferior to the
man, as he to Christ ; but the slavery is done away
with. St. Peter bids the husband "give honour
unto the wife, because the weaker, in that both are
heirs of the grace of life1." And St. Paul, while
enjoining subjection upon her, speaks of the especial
blessedness vouchsafed her in being the appointed
entrance of the Saviour into the world. "Adam
was first formed, then Eve ; and Adam was not
deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the
transgression." But, " notwithstanding, she shall
1 1 Pet. iii. 7.
XII.] THE REVERENCE DUE TO HER. 145
be saved through the Child-bearing1,'' tnat is,
through the birth of Christ from Mary, which was
a blessing, as upon all mankind, so peculiarly upon
the woman. Accordingly, from that time, Marriage
has not only been restored to its original dignity,
but even gifted with a portion of spiritual grace,
as the outward symbol of the heavenly union sub-
sisting betwixt Christ and His Church.
Thus has the Virgin Mary, in bearing our Lord,
taken off or lightened the peculiar disgrace which
the woman inherited for seducing Adam, sanctify-
ing the one part of it, repealing the other.
3. But further, she is doubtless to be accounted
blessed and favoured in herself, as well as in the
benefits she has done us. Who can estimate the
holiness and perfection of her, who was chosen to
be the Mother of Christ ? If to him that hath, more
is given, and holiness and divine favour go together,
(and this we are expressly told,) what must have
been the angelic purity of her, whom the Creator
Spirit condescended to overshadow with His mira-
culous presence ? What must have been her gifts,
who was chosen to be the only near earthly relative
of the Son of God, the only one whom He was
bound by nature to revere and look up to ; the one
appointed to train and educate Him, to instruct
Him day by day, as He grew in wisdom and in
stature ? This contemplation runs to a higher sub-
1 1 Tim ii. 15.
VOL. H. L
14-6 ANNUNCIATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM.
ject, did we dare follow it ; for what, think you,
was the sanctity and grace of that human nature,
of which God formed His sinless Son ; knowing, as
we do, " that what is born of the flesh, is flesh ;"
and that " none can bring a clean thing out of an
unclean l ?"
Now, after dwelling on thoughts such as these,
when we turn back again to the Gospels, I think
every one must feel some surprise, that we are not
told more about the Virgin Mary, than we find
there. After the circumstances of Christ's birth
and infancy, we hear little of her. Little is said
in praise of her. She is mentioned as attending
Christ to the cross, and there committed by Him
to St. John's keeping ; and she is mentioned as
continuing with the Apostles in prayer after His
ascension ; and then we hear no more of her. But,
here again in this silence we find instruction, as
much as in the mention of her.
1. It suggests to us that Scripture was written,
not to exalt this or that particular Saint, but to give
glory to Almighty God. There have been thou-
sands of holy souls in the times of which the Bible
history treats, whom we know nothing of, because
their lives did not fall upon the line of God's public
dealings with man. In Scripture we read, not of
all the good men who ever were, only of a few,
viz. those in whom God's name was especially
1 John iii. 6. Job xiv. 4.
XII.] THE REVERENCE DUE TO HER. 1 17
honoured. Doubtless, there have been many
widows in Israel, serving God in fastings and pray-
ers, like Anna ; but she only is mentioned in Scrip-
ture, as being in a situation to glorify the Lord
Jesus. She spoke of the Infant Saviour "to all
them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem."
Nay, for what we know, faith like Abraham's, and
zeal like David's, have burned in the breast of thou-
sands whose names have no memorial ; because, (I
say,) Scripture is written to show us the course of
God's great and marvellous Providence, and we
hear of those Saints only who were the instruments
of His purposes, as either introducing or preaching
His Son. Christ's favoured Apostle was St. John,
His personal friend ; yet, how little do we know of
St. John compared with St. Paul ; — and why ? be-
cause St. Paul was the more illustrious propagator
and dispenser of His Truth. As St. Paul himself
said, that he " knew no man after the flesh1,'' so His
Saviour, with somewhat a similar meaning, has hid
from us the knowledge of His more sacred and
familiar feelings, His feelings towards His Mother
and His friend. These were not to be exposed, as
unfit for the world to know, — as dangerous, because
not admitting of being known, without a risk lest the
honour which those Saints received through grace,
should eclipse in our minds the honour of Him who
honoured them. Had the Virgin Mary been more
1 2 Cor. v. 10.
L2
1 18 ANNUNCIATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM.
fully disclosed to us in the celestial beauty and
fragrancy of the spirit within her, true, she would
have been honoured, her gifts would have been
clearly seen ; but, at the same time, the Giver would
have been somewhat less contemplated, because
no design or work of His would have been disclosed
in her history. She would have seemingly been
introduced for her sake, not for His sake. When a
Saint is seen working towards an end appointed by
God, we see him to be a mere instrument, a servant
though a favoured one ; and, though we admire
him, yet, after all, we glorify God in him. We
pass on from him to the work to which he ministers.
But, when any one is introduced, full of gifts, yet
without visible and immediate subserviency to
God's designs, such a one seems revealed for his
own sake. We should rest, perchance, in the
thought of him, and think of the creature more
than the Creator. Thus it is a dangerous thing, it
is too high a privilege, for sinners like ourselves, to
know the best and innermost thoughts of God's
servants. We cannot bear to see such men in
their own place, in the retirement of private life,
and the calmness of hope and joy. The higher their
gifts, the less fitted they are for being seen. Even
St. John the Apostle, was twice tempted to fall
down in worship before an Angel who showed him
the things to come. And, if he who had seen the
Son of God was thus overcome by the creature,
how is it possible we could bear to gaze upon the
XII.] THE REVERENCE DUE TO HER. 149
creature's holiness in its fulness, especially as we
should be more able to enter into it, and estimate it,
than to comprehend the infinite perfections of the
Eternal Godhead ? Therefore, many truths are, like
the " things which the seven thunders uttered1,"
" sealed up" from us. In particular, it is in mercy
to us that so little is revealed about the Blessed
Virgin, in mercy to our weakness, though of her
there are " many things to say," yet they are "hard
to be uttered, seeing we are dull of hearing2."
2. But, further, the more we consider who the
Virgin was, the more dangerous will such know-
ledge of her appear to be. Other Saints are but in-
fluenced or inspired by Christ, and made partakers
of Him spiritually. But, as to the Virgin, Christ
derived His soul and body from her, and so had an
especial unity of nature with her ; and this won-
drous relationship between God and man, it is per-
haps impossible for us to dwell much upon without
some perversion of feeling. For, truly, she is raised
above the condition of sinful beings, though she
was a sinner ; she is brought near to God, yet is but
a creature ; and, seems to lack her fitting place in
our limited understandings, neither too high nor
too low. We cannot combine in our thought of
her, all we should ascribe with all we should with-
hold. Hence, following the example of Scripture,
we had better only think of her with and for her
1 Rev. x. 4. 2 Heb. v. 11.
150 ANNUNCIATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [SERM.
Son, never separating her from Him, but, using her
name as a memorial of His great condescension in
stooping from heaven, and " not abhorring the
Virgin's womb." And this is the rule of our own
Church, which has set apart only such Festivals in
honour of the Blessed Mary, as may also be Festivals
in honour of our Lord ; the Purification comme-
morating His presentation in the Temple, and
the Annunciation commemorating His incarnation.
And, with this caution, the thought of her may be
made most profitable to our faith ; for, nothing is
so calculated to impress on our minds that Christ
is really partaker of our nature, and in all respects
man, save sin only, as to associate Him with the
thought of her, by whose ministration He became
our brother.
To conclude. Observe the lesson which we gain
for ourselves from the history of the Virgin Mary ;
that the highest graces of the soul may be matured
in private, and without those fierce trials to which
the many are exposed in order to their sanctifica-
tion. So hard are our hearts, that affliction, pain,
and anxiety, are sent to humble us, and dispose us
towards a true faith in the heavenly word, when
preached to us. Yet, it is only our extreme obsti-
nacy of unbelief which renders this chastisement
necessary. The aids which God gives under the
Gospel Covenant, have power to renew and purify
our hearts, without uncommon providences to dis-
cipline us into receiving them. God gives His
XII.] THE REVERENCE DUE TO HER. 151
Holy Spirit to us silently ; and the silent duties of
every day, (it may be humbly hoped,) are blest to
the sufficient sanctification of thousands, whom the
world knows not of. The Virgin Mary is a memo-
rial of this ; and it is consoling as well as instruc-
tive to know it. When we quench the grace of
Baptism, then it is that we need severe trials to re-
store us. This is the case of the multitude, whose
best estate is that of chastisement, repentance, sup-
plication, and absolution, again and again. But,
there are those, who go on in a calm and unswerv-
ing course, learning day by day to love Him who
has redeemed them, and overcoming the sin of
their nature by His heavenly grace, as the various
temptations to evil successively present themselves.
And, of these undefiled followers of the Lamb, the
Virgin Mary is the chief. Strong in the Lord, and
the power of His might, she " staggered not at the
promise of God through unbelief;" she believed
when Zacharias doubted, — with a faith like Abra-
ham's she believed, and was blessed for her belief,
and had the performance of those things which
were told her by the Lord. And when sorrow came
upon her afterwards, it was but the blessed partici-
pation of her Son's sacred sorrows, not the sorrow of
those who suffer for their sins.
If we, through God's unspeakable gift, have in any
measure resembled Mary's innocence in our youth,
so far let us bless Him who enabled us. But so far
as we are conscious of having departed from Him, let
152 ANNUNCIATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN. [$ERM.
us bewail our miserable guilt. Let us acknowledge
from the heart that no punishment is too severe for
us, no chastisement should be unwelcome, (though
it is a sore thing to learn to welcome pain,) if it
tend to burn away the corruption which has propa-
gated itself within us. Let us count all things as
gain, which God sends to cleanse us from the marks
of sin and shame which are upon our foreheads.
The day will come at length, when our Lord and
Saviour will unveil that Sacred Countenance to the
whole world, which no sinner ever yet could see and
live. Then will the world be forced to look upon
Him, whom they pierced with their unrepented
wickednesses ; " all faces will gather blackness1."
Then they will discern, what they do not now
believe, the utter deformity of sin ; while the Saints
of the Lord, who seemed on earth to bear but the
countenance of common men, will wake up one by
one after His likeness, and be fearful to look upon.
And then will be fulfilled the promise pledged
to the Church on the Mount of Transfiguration. It
will be " good" to be with those whose tabernacles
would have been a snare to us on earth, had we been
allowed to build them. We shall see our Lord, and
His blessed Mother, the Apostles and Prophets,
and all those righteous men whom we now read of
in history, and long to know. Then we shall be
taught in those Mysteries which are now above us.
1 Joel ii. 6.
SERM. XIL] THE REVERENCE DUE TO HER. 153
In the words of the Apostle, " Beloved, now are
we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear
what we shall be ; but we know that, when He
shall appear, we shall be like Him, for we shall
see Him as He is : and every man that hath this
hope in him, purifieth himself, even as He is
pure1."
1 John iii. 2, 3.
SERMON XIII.
THE FEAST OF THE RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD.
CHRIST, A QUICKENING SPIRIT.
~N/ LUKE xxiv. 5, 6.
Why seek ye the Living among the dead ? He is not here, but
is risen.
SUCH is the triumphant question with which the
Holy Angels put to flight the sadness of the women
on the morning of Christ's resurrection. " O ye of
little faith," less faith than love, more dutiful than
understanding, why come ye to anoint His Body
on the third day ? Why seek ye the Living Saviour
in the tomb ? The time of sorrow is run out ; vic-
tory has come, according to His word, and ye recol-
lect it not. "He is not here, but is risen !"
These were deeds done and words spoken eigh-
teen hundred years since ; so long ago, that in the
world's thought they are as though they never had
been ; yet they hold good to this day. Christ is to
us now, just what He was in all His glorious Attri-
butes on the morning of the Resurrection ; and
SERM. XIII.] CHRIST, A QUICKENING SPIRIT. 155
we are blest in knowing it, even more than the
women to whom the Angels spoke, according to His
own assurance, " Blessed are they that have not
seen, and yet have believed."
On this highest of Festivals, I will attempt to set
before you one out of the many comfortable sub-
jects of reflection which it suggests.
1. First, then, observe how Christ's resurrection
harmonizes with the history of His birth. David
had foretold that His "soul should not be left in
hell," (that is, the unseen state,) neither should " the
Holy One of God see corruption." And with a
reference to this prophecy, St. Peter says, that it
"was not possible that He should be holden of
death1;" as if there were some hidden inherent
vigour in Him, which secured His Manhood from
dissolution. The greatest infliction of pain and
violence could only destroy its powers for a season ;
but nothing could make it decay. " Thou wilt not
suffer Thy Holy One to see corruption ;" so says
the Scripture, and elsewhere calls Him the " Holy
child Jesus2." These expressions carry our minds
back to the Angels' announcement of His birth, in
which His incorruptible and immortal nature is
implied. " That Holy Thing," which was born of
Mary, was "the Son," not of man, but "of God."
Others have all been born in sin, " after Adam's
1 Ps. xvi. 10. Acts ii. 24. 27. rov ooiov.
' Acts iv. 27. TOV ayiov.
156 EASTER-DAY. [SERM.
own likeness, in his image1," and, being born in
sin, they are heirs to corruption. " By one man
sin entered into the world, and death," and all its
consequences, "by sin." Not one human being
comes into existence without God's discerning evi-
dences of sin attendant on his birth. But when the
Word of Life was manifested in our flesh, the Holy
Ghost displayed that creative hand, by which, in the
beginning, Eve was formed ; and the Holy Child,
thus conceived by the Power of the Highest, was
(as the history shows,) immortal even in His mortal
nature, clear from all infection of the forbidden
fruit, so far as to be sinless and incorruptible.
Therefore, though He was liable to death, " it was
impossible He should be holden" of it. Death
might overpower, but it could not keep possession ;
"it had no dominion over Him." He was " the
Living among the dead2."
And hence His rising from the dead may be said
to have evidenced His divine original. He was
"declared to be the Son of God with power, ac-
cording to the Spirit of Holiness," (His essential
Godhead,) " by the resurrection of the dead3."
He had been condemned as a blasphemer by the
Jewish Rulers, l< because He made Himself the Son
of God ;" and He was brought to the death of the
Cross, not only as a punishment, but as a practical
refutation of His claim. He was challenged by
His enemies on this score; " If thou be the Son
1 Gen. v. 3. 2 Rom. vi. 9. 3 Rom. i. 4.
XIII.] CHRIST, A QUICKENING SPIRIT. 157
of God, come down from the Cross." Thus His
crucifixion was as though a trial, a new experiment
on the part of Satan, who had before tempted him,
whether he was like other men, or the Son of
God. Observe the event. He was obedient unto
death, fulfilling the law of that disinherited nature
which He had assumed ; and in order, by under-
going it, to atone for our sins. So far was per-
mitted by God's "determinate counsel and fore-
•/
knowledge ;" but there the triumph of His enemies,
so to account it, ended ; ended, with what was
necessary for our redemption. He said, "It is
finished ;" for His humiliation was at its lowest
depth when He expired. Immediately some inci-
pient tokens showed themselves, that the real vic-
tory was with Him ; first, the earthquake and
other wonders in heaven and earth. These even
were enough to justify His claim in the judgment
of the heathen Centurion ; who said at once,
" Truly this was the Son of God." Then followed
His descent into hell, and triumph in the unseen
world, whatever that was. Lastly, that glorious
deed of power on the third morning, which we now
commemorate. The dead arose. The grave could
not detain Him who " had life in Himself." He
rose as a man awakes in the morning, when sleep
flies from him as a thing of course. Corruption
had no power over that Sacred Body, the fruit of an
immaculate conception. The bonds of death were
15
158 EASTER-DAY. [SERM.
broken as " green withs," witnessing by their over-
throw that He was the Son of God.
Such is the connexion between Christ's birth
and resurrection ; and more than this might be
ventured concerning His incorrupt nature, were it
not better to avoid all risk of trespassing upon that
reverence with which we are bound to regard it.
Something might be said concerning His personal
appearance, which seems to have borne the marks
of one who was not tainted with birth-sin. Men
could scarce keep from worshipping Him. When
the Pharisees sent to seize Him, all the officers, on
His merely acknowledging Himself to be Him whom
they sought, fell backwards from His presence to
the ground. They were scared, as brutes are said
to be by the voice of man. Thus, being created in
God's image, He was the second Adam ; and much
more than Adam in His secret nature, which
beamed through His tabernacle of flesh with awful
purity and brightness, even in the days of His hu-
miliation. " The first man was of the earth, earthy ;
the second man was the Lord from Heaven V
2. And if such was His Majesty while He yet
was subject to temptation, infirmity, and pain,
much more abundant was the manifestation of
the Godhead in Him, when He was risen from
the dead. Then His Divine Essence streamed
1 1 Cor. xv. 47.
XIII.] CHRIST, A QUICKENING SPIRIT. 159
forth (so to say) on every side, and environed
His Manhood, as in a cloud of glory. So trans-
figured was His sacred Body, that He, who had
deigned to be born of a woman, and to hang upon
the Cross, had subtle virtue in Him, like a spirit,
to pass through the closed doors to His assembled
followers ; while, by condescending to the trial
of their senses, He showed that it was no mere
spirit, but He Himself, as before, with wounded
hands and pierced side, who spoke to them. Thus
He manifested Himself to them, that they might be
His witnesses to the people ; witnesses of those
separate truths which man's reason cannot com-
bine, of the reality of His bodily substance, of its
partaking in the properties of His Soul, and of its
inhabitation by the Eternal Word. They handled
Him, — they saw Him come and go, when the
doors were shut, — they felt, what they could not
see, but could witness even unto death, that He
was " their Lord and their God;" — a triple evi-
dence, first, of His Atonement, next of their own
Resurrection unto glory, lastly, of His Divine Power
to conduct them safely to it. Thus manifested as
perfect God and perfect man, in the fulness of His
sovereignty, and the immortality of His holiness,
He ascended up on high to take possession of His
kingdom. There He remains till the last day,
c Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the
Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace1."
1 Isa. ix. G,
160 EASTER-DAY. [SEEM.
3. He ascended into heaven, that He might
plead our cause with the Father ; as it is said,
" He ever liveth to make intercession for us1."
Yet we must not suppose, that in leaving us He
closed the gracious economy of His Incarnation,
and withdrew the ministration of His incorruptible
Manhood from His work of loving mercy towards
us. " The Holy One of God" was ordained, not
only to die for us, but also to be "the beginning" of
a new " creation" unto holiness, in our sinful race ;
to re-fashion soul and body after His .own like-
ness, that they might be " raised up together, and
sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus."
Blessed for ever be His Holy Name ! before He
went away, He remembered our necessity, and
completed His work, bequeathing to us a special
mode of approaching Him, a Holy Mystery, in
which we receive, (we know not how,) the virtue
of that Heavenly Body, which is the life of all that
believe. This is the blessed Sacrament of the
Eucharist, in which " Christ is evidently set forth
crucified among us;" that we, feasting upon the
Sacrifice, may be " partakers of the Divine Na-
ture." Let us give heed lest we be in the number
of those, who " discern not the Lord's Body," and
the " exceeding great and precious promises" which
are made to those who partake it. And since
there is some danger of this, I will here make
some brief remarks concerning this great gift; and
1 Heb. vii. 25.
XIII.] CHRIST, A QUICKENING SPIRIT. 161
pray God that our words and thoughts may accord
to its unspeakable sacredness.
Christ says, " As the Father hath life in Him-
self, so hath He given also to the Son to have life
in Himself;" and afterwards He says, " Because
I live, ye shall live also1." It would seem then,
that as Adam is the author of death to the whole
race of men, so is Christ the origin. of immortality.
When Adam ate the forbidden fruit, it was as a
poison spreading through his whole nature, soul
and body-; and thence through every one of his
descendants. It was said to him when he was
placed in the garden, " In the day that thou eatest
thereof, thou shalt surely die ;" and we are told ex-
pressly, " in Adam all die." We all are born heirs
to that infection of nature which followed upon His
fall. But we are also told, "As in Adam all die,
even so in Christ shall all be made alive ;" and
the same Law of God's Providence is maintained
in both cases. Adam spreads poison ; Christ, life
eternal. Christ communicates life to us, one by
one, by means of that holy and incorrupt nature
which He assumed for our redemption ; how, we
know not, still, though by an unseen, surely by a
real communication of Himself. Therefore St.
Paul says, that " the last Adam was made" not
merely " a living soul," but " a quickening" or life-
giving " Spirit, "as being "the Lord from Heaven2."
1 John v. 26. xiv. 19. 2 Gen. ii. 17- 1 Cor. xv. 22. 45. 47.
VOL, II. M
162 EASTER-DAY. [SERM.
Again, in His own gracious words, He is " the
Bread of life." " The Bread of God is He which
cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the
world;" or, as He says more plainly, " I am the
Bread which came down from heaven ;" " I am that
Bread of life ;" " I am the living Bread which came
down from heaven ; if any man eat of this bread,
he shall live for ever ; and the Bread that I will
give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the
world." And again, still more clearly, " Whoso
eateth My flesh, and drinketh My bLood, hath
eternal life ; and I will raise him up at the last
day V Why should this communion with Him
be thought incredible, mysterious and sacred as it
is, when we know from the Gospels how mar-
vellously He wrought, in the days of His humi-
liation, towards those who approached Him ? We
are told on one occasion ; " The whole multitude
sought to touch Him ; for there went virtue out of
Him, and healed them all." Again, when the
woman, with the issue of blood, touched Him, He
11 immediately knew that virtue had gone out of
Him2." Such grace was invisible, known only by
the cure it effected, as in the case of the woman.
Let us not doubt, though we do not sensibly
approach Him, that He can still give us the vir-
tue of His purity and incorruption, (as He has
1 John vi. 33 — 54. 2 Luke vi. 19. Mark v. 30. Vide Knox
on the Eucharist. Remains, vol. ii.
XTII.] CHRIST, A QUICKENING SPIRIT. 163
promised,) and in a more heavenly and spiritual
manner, than " in the days of His flesh ;" in a
way, which does not remove the mere ailments of
this temporal state, but sows the seed of eternal life
in body and soul. Let us not deny Him the glory
of His life-giving holiness, that diffusive grace
which is the renovation of the whole race, a spirit
quick and powerful and piercing, so as to leaven
the whole mass of human corruption, and make it
live. He is the first fruits of the Resurrection ; we
follow Him each in His own order, as we are hal-
lowed by His inward presence. And in this sense
among others, Christ, in the Scripture phrase, is
" formed in us ;" that is, the communication is
made to us of His new nature, which sanctifies the
soul, and makes the body immortal. In like man-
ner we pray in the Service of the Communion, that
" our sinful bodies may be made clean by His
body, and our souls washed in His most precious
blood ; and that we may evermore dwell in Him,
and He in us1."
Such then is our risen Saviour in Himself and
towards us ; — conceived by the Holy Ghost ; holy
from the womb ; dying, but abhorring corruption ;
rising again the third day by His own inherent life ;
exalted as the Son of God and Son of man, to
raise us after Him, and filling us incomprehen-
sibly with His immortal nature, till we become
1 Vide note at the end of the volume.
M 2
164 EASTER-DAY. [SERM.
like Him, filling us with a spiritual life which may
expel the poison of the tree of knowledge, and
restore us to God. How wonderful a work of
grace ! Strange it was that Adam should be our
death ; but stranger still, and very gracious, that
God Himself should be our life, by means of that
human tabernacle which He has taken on Himself.
O blessed day of the Resurrection, which of old
time was called the Queen of Festivals, and raised
among Christians an anxious, nay contentious diliT
gence duly to honour it ! Blessed day, once only
passed in sorrow, when the Lord actually rose, and
the Disciples believed not ; but ever since a day of
joy to the faith and love of the Church ! In an-
cient times Christians all over the world began it
with a morning salutation. Each man said to his
neighbour, " Christ is risen," and his neighbour
answered him; " Christ is risen indeed, and hath
appeared unto Simon." Even to Simon, the
coward disciple who denied Him thrice, Christ is
risen ; even to us, who long ago vowed to obey Him,
and have yet so often denied Him before men,
so often taken part with sin, and followed the world,
when Christ called us another way. — 4£ Christ is
risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon !" To
Simon Peter, the favoured Apostle, on whom the
Church is built, Christ has appeared. He has
appeared to His Holy Church first of all, and in
the Church He dispenses blessings, such as the
world knows not of. Blessed are they, if they
X/II.J CHRIST, A QUICKENING SPIRIT. 165
knew their blessedness, who are allowed, as we
are, week after week, and Festival after Festival, to
seek and find in His Holy Church the Saviour of
their souls. Blessed are they beyond language or
thought, to whom it is vouchsafed to receive those
tokens of His love, which cannot otherwise be
gained by man, the pledges and means of His special
presence, in the Sacrament of His Supper ; who
are allowed to eat and drink the food of immor-
tality, and receive life from the bleeding side of
the Son of God ! Alas ! by what strange coldness
of heart, or perverse superstition is it, that any one
called Christian, keeps away from that heavenly
ordinance? Is it not very grievous that there
should be any one who fears to share in the
greatest conceivable blessing which could come
upon sinful men ? What in truth is that fear, but
unbelief, a slavish sin-loving obstinacy, if it leads
a man to go year after year without the spiritual
sustenance which God has provided for him ? Is
it wonderful that, as time goes on, he should learn
deliberately to doubt of the grace therein given ?
that he should no longer look at the Lord's Supper
as a heavenly feast, or the Lord's Minister who
consecrates it, as a chosen vessel, or that Holy
Church in which he ministers as a Divine Ordi-
nance, to be cherished as the parting legacy of
Christ to a sinful world ? Is it wonderful that
seeing he sees not, and hearing he hears not ; and
that, lightly regarding all the gifts of Christ, he
166 EASTER-DAY. [SERM.
feels no reverence for the treasure-house wherein
they are stored ?
But we, who trust that so far we are doing God's
will, inasmuch as we are keeping to those ordinances
and rules, which His Son has left us, we may
humbly rejoice in this day, with a joy the world
cannot take away, any more than it can understand.
Truly, in this day of rebuke and blasphemy, we can-
not but be sober and subdued in our rejoicing ; yet
our peace and joy may be deeper and fuller even for
that very seriousness. For nothing can harm those
who bear Christ within them. Trial or temptation,
time of tribulation, time of wealth, pain, bereave-
ment, anxiety, sorrow, the insults of the enemy, the
loss of worldly goods, nothing can " separate us
from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our
Lord 1." This the Apostle told us long since ; but
we, in this age of the world, over and above his
word, have the experience of many centuries for
our comfort. We have his own history, to show us
how Christ within us is stronger than the world
around us, and will prevail. We have the history
of all his fellow- sufferers, of all the Confessors and
Martyrs of early times, and since, to show us that
Christ's arm "is not shortened, that it cannot save ;"
that faith and love have a real abiding place on
earth ; that, come what will, His grace is sufficient
for His Church, and His strength made perfect in
1 Rom. viii. 39.
XIII.] CHRIST, A QUICKENING SPIRIT. 167
weakness ; that, " even to old age, and to hoar
hairs, He will carry and deliver" her; that, in
whatever time the powers of evil give challenge,
Martyrs and Saints will start forth again, and rise
from the dead, as plentiful as though they had never
been before, even " the souls of them that were
beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word
of God, and which had not worshipped the beast,
neither his image, neither had received his mark
upon their foreheads, or in their hands1."
Meantime, while Satan only threatens, let us
possess our hearts in patience ; try to keep quiet ;
aim at obeying God, in all things, little as well as
great ; do the duties of our calling which lie before
us, day by day; and " take no thought for the
morrow, for sufficient unto the day is the evil
thereof2."
1 Rev. xx. 4. 3 Matt. vi. 34.
SERMON XIV.
EASTER MONDAY.
SAVING KNOWLEDGE.
1 JOHN ii. 3.
Hereby do we know that we know Him, if we keep His
commandments.
To know God and Christ, in Scripture language,
seems to mean, to live under the conviction of His
presence, who is to our bodily eyes unseen. It is,
in fact, to have faith, according to St. Paul's ac-
count of faith, as the substance and evidence of
what is invisible. It is faith, but not faith such as
a Heathen might have, but Gospel faith ; for only in
the Gospel has God so revealed Himself, as to al-
low of that kind of faith which may be called (in a
special manner) knowledge. The faith of Heathens
was (so to say) blind ; it was more or less a moving
forward in the darkness, with hand and foot ; —
therefore the Apostle says, "if haply they might feel
after Him V But the Gospel is a manifestation, and
1 Acts xvii. 27.
SERM. XIV.] SAVING KNOWLEDGE. 169
therefore addressed to the eyes of our mind. Faith
is the same principle as before, but with the opportu-
nity of acting through a more certain and satisfac-
tory sense. We recognise objects by the eye at
once ; but not by the touch. We know them when
we see them, but scarcely till then. Hence it is,
that the New Testament says so much on the sub-
ject of spiritual knowledge. For instance, St. Paul
prays that the Ephesians may receive " the spirit
of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of
Christ, the eyes of their understanding being en-
lightened;" and he says, that theColossianshad "put
on the new man , which is renewed in knowledge, after
the image of Him that created him." St. Peter in
like manner addresses his brethren with the saluta-
tion of "Grace and peace, through the knowledge of
God, and of Jesus our Lord;" according to the de-
claration of our Lord Himself, "This is life eternal,
to know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ
whom Thou hast sent1." Not of course as if Christian
faith had not still abundant exercise for the other
senses (so to call them) of the soul ; but that the eye
is its peculiar sense, by which it is distinguished from
the faith of Heathens, nay, I may add, of Jews.
It is plain what is the Object of spiritual sight
which is vouchsafed us in the Gospel, — " God mani-
fest in the Flesh." He who was before unseen has
shown Himself in Christ ; not merely displayed His
1 Eph. i. 17, 18. Col. iii. 10. 2 Pet. i. 2. John xvii. 3.
170 EASTER MONDAY. [S*RM.
glory, as (for instance) in what is called a provi-
dence, or visitation, or in miracles, or in the actions
and character of inspired men, but really He Him-
self has come upon earth, and has been seen of men
in human form. In the same kind of sense, in
which we should say we saw a servant of His,
Apostle or Prophet, though we could not see his
soul, so man has seen the Invisible God ; and we
have the history of His sojourn among His crea-
tures in the Gospels.
To know God is life eternal, and to believe in
the Gospel manifestation of Him is to know Him ;
but how are we to " know that we know Him ?"
How are we to be sure that we are not mistaking
some dream of our own for the true and clear Vi-
sion ? How can we tell we are not like gazers upon
a distant prospect through a misty atmosphere, who
mistake one object for another? The text answers
us clearly and intelligibly ; though some Christians
have recourse to other proofs of it, or will not have
patience to ask themselves the question. They say
they are quite certain that they have true faith ;
for faith carries with it its own evidence, and ad-
mits of no mistaking, the true spiritual conviction
being unlike all others. On the other hand, St.
John says, " Hereby do we know that we know
Him, if we keep His commandments." Obedience
is the test of Faith.
Thus the whole duty and work of a Christian is
made up of these two parts, Faith and Obedience ;
XIV.] SAVING KNOWLEDGE. 171
"looking unto Jesus," the Divine Object as well
as Author of our faith, and acting according to
His will. Not as if a certain frame of mind, cer-
tain notions, affections, feelings, and tastes, were
not a necessary condition of a saving state ; but
so it is, the Apostle does not insist upon it, as if
it were sure to follow, if our hearts do but grow
into these two chief contemplations, the view of God
in Christ, and the diligent endeavour to obey Him
in our conduct.
I conceive that we are in danger, in this day, of
insisting on neither of these as we ought ; regarding
all true and careful consideration of the Object of
faith, as barren orthodoxy, technical subtilty, arid
the like, and all due earnestness about good works
as a mere cold and formal morality; and, instead,
making religion, or rather (for this is the point)
making the test of our being religious, consist in our
having what is called a spiritual state of heart, to
the comparative neglect of the Object from which it
must arise, and the works in which it should issue.
At this season, when we are especially engaged in
considering the full triumph and manifestation of
our Lord and Saviour, when He was "declared to
be the Son of God with power, by the resurrection
from the dead," it may be appropriate to make some
remarks on an error, which goes far to deprive us
of the benefit of His condescension.
St. John speaks of knowing Christ, and of keep-
ing His commandments, as the two great depart-
172 EASTER MONDAY. [SEHM.
ments of religious duty and blessedness. To know
Christ is, (as I have said,) to discern the Father of
all, as manifested through His Only-begotten Son
Incarnate. In the natural world we have glimpses,
frequent arid startling, of His glorious Attributes ;
of His power, wisdom, and goodness, of His holi-
ness, His fearful judgments, His long remembrance
of evil, His long-suffering towards sinners, and His
strange encompassing mercy, when we least looked
for it. But to us mortals, who live for a day, and
see but an arm's length, such disclosures are like
reflections of a prospect in a broken mirror ; they
do not enable us in any comfortable sense to know
God. They are such as faith may use indeed, but
hardly enjoy. This then was one among the bene-
fits of Christ's coming, that the Invisible God was
then revealed in the form and history of man,
revealed in those respects in which sinners most re-
quired to know Him, and nature spoke least dis-
tinctly, as a Holy yet Merciful Governor of His
creatures. And thus the Gospels, which contain the
memorials of this wonderful grace, are our principal
treasures. They are (so to say) the text of the Re-
velation ; and the Epistles, especially St. Paul's,
are as comments upon it, unfolding and illustrating
it in its various parts, raising history into doctrine,
ordinances into sacraments, detached words or ac-
tions into principles, and thus every where dutifully
preaching His Person work and will. St. John is
both Prophet and Evangelist, recording and com-
XIV.] SAVING KNOWLEDGE. 173
men ting on the Ministry of his Lord. Still, in
every case, He is the chief Prophet of the Church,
and His Apostles do but explain His words and ac-
tions ; according to His own account of the guid-
ance promised to them, that it should " glorify"
Him. The like service is ministered to Him by the
Creeds and doctrinal expositions of the early
Church, which we retain in our services. They
speak of no ideal being, s ich as the imagination
alone contemplates, but of the very Son of God,
whose life is recorded in the Gospels. Thus every
part of the Dispensation tends to the manifestation
of Him, who is its centre.
Turning from Him to ourselves, we find a short
rule given us, "If ye love Me, keep My com-
mandments." " He that saith he abideth in Him,
ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked."
" If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things
which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right
hand of God1." This is all that is put upon us,
difficult indeed to perform, but easy to understand ;
all that 'is put upon us, — and for this plain reason,
because Christ has done every thing else. He has
freely chosen us, died for us, regenerated us, and
now ever liveth for us ; what remains ? Simply that
we should do as He has done to us, showing forth
His glory by good works. Thus a correct, or (as
we commonly call it,) an orthodox faith and an
1 John xiv. 15. 1 John ii. 6, Col.iii. 1.
174 EASTER MONDAY. [SERM.
obedient life, is the whole duty of man. And so,
most surely, it has ever been accounted. Look
into the records of the early Church, or into the
writings of our own revered Bishops and Teachers,
and see whether this is not the sum total of religion,
according to the symbols of it in which children
are catechized, the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and
the Ten Commandments.
However, it is objected that such a view of reli-
gious duty encourages self-deception ; that a man
who does no more than believe aright, and keep
God's commandments, is (so to say) a formalist ;
that his heart is not interested in the matter, his
affections remain unrenewed ; and that till a
change takes place there, all the faith and all the
obedience which mind can conceive, are but exter-
nal, and avail nothing ; that to his heart therefore
we must make our appeal, that we must bid him
search himself, examine his motives, look narrowly
lest he rest upon himself, and be sure that his feel-
ings and thoughts are spiritual before he takes to
himself any comfort. The merits of this view of
religion shall be considered hereafter ; at present,
let us take it in the light of an objection to what
has been already stated. I ask then in reply, how
is a man to know that his motives and affections
are right except by their fruits ? Can they possibly
be their own evidence? Are they like colours, which
a man knows at once without test or calculation ?
Is not every feeling and opinion, of one colour or
XIV.] SAVING KNOWLEDGE. 175
another, fair or unpleasant, according to the centre
light which is set up in each man's soul ? Is not
the light that is in a man sometimes even darkness,
sometimes twilight, and sometimes of this hue or
that, tinging every part of himself with its own
peculiarity ? How then is it possible that a man
can duly examine his feelings and affections by the
light within him? how can he accurately decide
upon their character, whether Christian or not ?
It is necessary then that he go out of himself in
order to assay and ascertain the nature of the prin-
ciples which govern him ; that is, he must have
recourse to his works, and compare them with
Scripture, as the only evidence to himself, whether
or not his heart is perfect with God. It seems,
therefore, that the proposed inquiry into the work-
ings of a man's mind means nothing at all, comes
to no issue, leaves us where it found us ; unless
we adopt the notion, (which is seldom however
openly maintained,) that religious faith is its own
evidence.
On the other hand, deeds of obedience are an
intelligible evidence, nay, the sole evidence pos-
sible, and, on the whole, a satisfactory evidence of
the reality of our faith. I do not say that this or
that good work tells any thing ; but a course of
obedience says much. Various deeds done in dif-
ferent departments of duty, support and attest each
other. Did a man act merely a bold and firm part,
he would have cause to say to himself, "perhaps
15
176 EASTER MONDAY. [SP.RM.
all this is mere pride and obstinacy." Were he
merely yielding and forgiving, — he might be indulg-
ing a natural indolence of mind. Were he merely
industrious, — this might consist with ill-temper, or
selfishness. Did he merely fulfil the duties of his
temporal calling, — he would have no proof that he
had given his heart to God at all. Were he merely
regular at Church and Sacrament, — many a man is
such who has a lax conscience, who is not scrupu-
lously fair-dealing, or is censorious, or niggardly.
Ts he (what is called) a domestic character, amiable,
affectionate, fond of his family ? let him beware
lest he put wife and children in the place of God
who gave them. Is a man only temperate, sober,
chaste, correct in his language ? it may arise from
mere dulness and insensibility, or may consist with
spiritual pride. Is he cheerful and obliging ? it
may arise from youthful spirits and ignorance of
the world. Does he choose his friends by a strictly
orthodox rule ? he may be harsh arid uncharitable ;
or, is he zealous and serviceable in defending the
Truth ? still he may be unable to condescend to
men of low estate, to weep with those who weep,
and rejoice with those who rejoice. No one is
without some good quality or other ; Balaam had
a scruple about misrepresenting God's message,
Saul was brave, Joab was loyal, the Bethel Pro-
phet reverenced God's servants, the witch of Endor
was hospitable, Ahaz would not " tempt the Lord ;"
and therefore, of course, no one good deed or dispo-
XIV.] SAVING KNOWLEDGE. 177
sition is the criterion of a spiritual mind. Still, on
the other hand, there is no one of its characteristics
which has not its appropriate outward evidence ;
and, in proportion as these external acts are mul-
tiplied and varied, so does the evidence of it become
stronger and more consoling. General conscien-
tiousness is the only assurance we can have of possess-
ing it ; and at this we must aim, determining to obey
God consistently, with a jealous carefulness about all
things, little and great. This is, in Scripture lan-
guage, to " serve God with a perfect heart;" as
you will see at once, if you compare the respective
reformations of Jehu and Josiah. As far then as a
man has reason to hope that he is consistent, so far
lay he humbly trust that he has true faith. To
be consistent, to " walk in all the ordinances of the
Lord blameless," is his one business; still, all along
looking reverently towards the Great Objects of
faith, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost,Three
Persons, One God, and the Son Incarnate for our
salvation. Certainly he will have enough to direct
his course by, with God in his eye, and his work in
his hand, though he forbear curious experiments
about his sensations and emotions ; and, if it be
objected that an evidence from works is but a cold
comfort, as being at best but faint and partial, I
reply, that after all, it is more than sinners have a
right to ask, — that if it be little at first, it grows with
our growth in grace, — and, moreover, that such an
evidence, more than any other, throws us in faith
VOL. II. N
178 EASTER MONDAY. [SERM.
upon the loving-kindness and meritorious sufferings
of our Saviour. Surely, even our best doings have
that taint of sinfulness pervading them, which will
remind us ever, while we regard them, where our
True Hope is lodged. Men are satisfied with
themselves, not when they attempt, but when they
neglect the details of duty. Disobedience blinds the
conscience ; obedience makes it keen-sighted and
sensitive. The more we do, the more we shall .trust
in Christ ; and, that surely is no morose doctrine,
which, after giving us whatever evidence of our
safety can be given, leads us to soothe our selfish
restlessness, and forget our fears in the vision of the
Incarnate Son of God.
Lastly, it may be objected, that, since many
deeds of obedience are themselves acts of the mind,
to do them well we must necessarily examine our
feelings ; that we cannot pray, for instance, with-
out reflecting on ourselves as we use the words of
prayer, and keeping our thoughts upon God ; that
we cannot repress anger or impatience, or cherish
loving and forgiving thoughts, without searching
and watching ourselves. But such an argument
rests on a misconception of what I have been say-
ing. All I would maintain is, that our duty lies in
acts, — acts, of course of every kind, acts of the mind,
as well as of the tongue, or of the hand ; but any
how it lies mainly in acts ; it does not directly lie
in moods or feelings. He who aims at praying well,
loving sincerely, disputing meekly, as the respec-
XIV.] SAVING KNOWLEDGE. 179
tive duties come upon him, is wise and religious ;
but he who aims vaguely and generally at being in
a spiritual frame of mind, is entangled in a deceit
of words, which gain a meaning only by being
made mischievous. Let us do our duty as it comes
before us ; this is the secret of true faith and peace,
We have power over our deeds (under God's grace);
we have no direct power over our habits. Let us
but secure our actions, as God would have them,
and our habits will follow. Suppose a religious man,
for instance, in the society of strangers ; he takes
things as they come, discourses easily, gives his
opinion soberly, and does good according to each
opportunity of good. His heart is in his work, and
his thoughts rest without effort on his God and
Saviour. This is the way of a Christian ; he
leaves it to the ill-instructed to endeavour after a
(so called) spiritual frame of mind amid the bustle
of life, which has rro existence except in attempt and
profession. True spiritual-mindedness is unseen
by man, like the soul itself, of which it is a quality ;
and as the soul is known by its operations, so it is
known by its fruits.
I will add too, that the office of self-examination
lies rather in detecting what is bad in us than in
ascertaining what is good. No harm can follow
from contemplating our sins, so that we keep Christ
before us, and attempt to overcome them ; such a
review of self, will but lead to repentance and faith.
And, while it does this, it will undoubtedly be
]80 EASTER MONDAY. [SERM. XIV.
moulding our hearts into a higher and more hea-
venly state ; but still indirectly, — just as the mean
is attained in action or art, not by directly contem-
plating and aiming at it, but negatively, by avoid-
ing extremes.
To conclude, the essence of Faith is to look
out of ourselves ; now, consider what manner of a
believer he is, who imprisons himself in his own
thoughts, and rests on the workings of his own mind,
and thinks of his Saviour as an idea of his imagin-
ation, instead of putting self aside, and living upon
Him who speaks in the Gospels.
So much then, by way of suggestion, upon the
view of Religious Faith, which has ever been re-
ceived in the Church Catholic, and which, doubt-
less, is saving. To-morrow, I propose, to speak
more particularly of that other system, to which
these latter times have given birth.
SERMON XV.
EASTER TUESDAY.
SELF-CONTEMPLATION.
HEBREWS xii. 2.
Looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith.
SURELY it is our duty ever to look off ourselves, and
to look unto Jesus ; that is, to shun the contem-
plation of our own feelings, emotions, frame, and
state of mind, as the main business of religion, and
to leave these mainly to be secured in their fruits.
Some remarks were made yesterday upon this
" more excellent" and Scriptural way of conducting
ourselves, as it has ever been received in the
Church ; now let us consider the merits of the
rule for holy living, which the fashion of this day
would substitute for it.
Instead of looking off to Jesus, and thinking little
of ourselves, it is at present thought necessary
among the mixed multitude of religionists, to exa-
mine the heart, with a view of ascertaining whether
it is in a spiritual state or no. A spiritual frame
182 EASTER TUESDAY. [SERM.
of mind is considered to be one in which the
heinousness of sin is perceived, our utter worthless-
ness, the impossibility of our saving ourselves, the
necessity of some Saviour, the sufficiency of our
Lord Jesus Christ to be that Saviour, the un-
bounded riches of His love, the excellence and
glory of His work of Atonement, the freeriess and
fulness of His grace, the high privilege of commu-
nion with Him in prayer, and the desirableness of
walking with Him in all holy and loving obe-
dience ; all of them solemn truths, too solemn to
be lightly mentioned, but our hearty reception of
which is scarcely ascertainable by a direct inspec-
tion of our feelings. Moreover, if one doctrine
must be selected above the rest as containing the
essence of the truths, which, (according to this
system,) are thus vividly understood by the spiri*
tual Christian, it is that of the necessity of renounc-
ing our own righteousness for the righteousness
provided by our Lord and Saviour ; which is con-
sidered, not as an elementary and simple principle
(as it really is,) but as rarely and hardly acknow-
ledged by any man, especially repugnant to a cer-
tain (so-called) pride of heart, which is supposed to
run through the whole race of Adam, and to lead
every man instinctively to insist even before God
on the proper merit of his good deeds ; so that, to
trust in Christ, is not merely the work of the Holy
Spirit, (as all good in our souls is,) but, is the espe-
cial and critical event which marks a man, as issu-
XV.] SELF-CONTEMPLATION. 183
ing from darkness, and sealed unto the privileges
and inheritance of the sons of God. In other
words, the doctrine of Justification by Faith, is
accounted to be the one cardinal point of the
Gospel ; and, it is in vain to admit it readily as a
clear Scripture truth (which it is,) and to attempt
to go on unto perfection, the very wish to pass for-
ward is interpreted into a wish to pass over it, and
the test of believing it at all, is in fact to insist upon
no doctrine but it. And this peculiar mode of
inculcating that great doctrine of the Gospel, is a
proof, (if that were wanting,) that the persons who
adopt it, are not solicitous even about it on its own
score merely, considered as (what is called,) a
dogma, but as ascertaining and securing (as they
hope), a certain state of heart. For, not content
with the simple admission of it on the part of an-
other, they proceed to divide faith into its kinds,
living and dead, and to urge against him, that the
Truth may be held in a carnal and unrenewed
mind, and that men may speak without real feel-
ings and convictions. Thus it is clear they do
not contend for the doctrine of Justification, as a
truth external to the mind, or article of faith, any
more than for the doctrine of the Trinity. On the
other hand, since they use this same language
about dead and living faith, however exemplary
the life and conduct be of the individual under
their review, they as plainly show that the fruits of
righteousness are in their system no evidence of
184 EASTER TUESDAY. [SERM.
spiritual-mindedness, but that a something is to
be sought for in the frame of mind itself. All this
is not stated at present by way of objection, but in
order to settle accurately what they mean to main-
tain. So now we have the two views of doctrine
clearly before us : — the ancient and universal
teaching of the Church, insisting on the Objects
and fruits of faith, and considering the spiritual
character of that faith itself sufficiently secured, if
these are as they should be ; and the method, now
in esteem, attempting instead to secure directly and
primarily that "mind of the Spirit," which may
savingly receive the truths, and fulfil the obedience
of the Gospel. That such a spiritual temper is
indispensable, is agreed on all hands. The simple
question is, whether it is formed by the Holy Spirit
immediately acting upon our minds, or, on the
other hand, by our own particular acts, (whether of
faith or obedience,) prompted, guided, and pros-
pered by Him ; whether it is ascertainable other-
wise than by its fruits ; whether such frames of
mind as are directly ascertainable and profess to be
spiritual, are not in reality a delusion, a mere ex-
citement, capricious feeling, fanatic fancy, and the
like. — So much then by way of explanation.
1. Now, in the first place, this modern system
certainly does disparage the revealed doctrines of
the Gospel, however its more moderate advocates
may shrink from admitting it. Considering a cer-
tain state of heart to be the main thino- to be aimed
XV.] SELF-CONTEMPLATION. 185
at, they avowedly make the Truth as it is in Jesus,
the definite Creed of the Church, second in their
teaching and profession. They will defend them-
selves indeed from the appearance of undervaluing
it, by maintaining, that the existence of right reli-
gious affections is a security for sound views of doc-
trine. And this is abstractedly true ; — but not true
in the use they make of it : for they unhappily
conceive that they can ascertain in each other the
presence of these affections, and when they find
men possessed of them, (as they conceive,) yet not
altogether orthodox in their belief, then they relax
a little, and argue that an admission of (what they
call) the strict and technical niceties of doctrine,
whether about the Consubstantiality of the Son or
the Hypostatic Union, is scarcely part of the defi-
nition of a spiritual believer. In order to support
this position, they lay it down as self-evident, that
the main purpose of revealed doctrine is to affect the
heart, — that that which does not seem to affect it,
does not affect it, — that what does not affect it is un-
necessary,— and that the circumstance that this or
that person's heart seems rightly affected, is a suffi-
cient warrant that such Articles as he may happen to
reject may be universally rejected, or at least are only
accidentally important. Such principles, when once
become familiar to the mind, induce a certain dis-
proportionate attention to the doctrines connected
with the work of Christ, in comparison with those
which relate to His Person, from their more inline-
186 EASTER TUESDAY. [SEEM.
diately interesting and exciting character ; and
carry on the more speculative and philosophical class
to view the Atonement and Sanctification as the
essence of the Gospel, and to advocate them in the
place of those " Heavenly Things" altogether, which
they have already assailed, as regards the ecclesias-
tical expression of them ; and of which they now
openly complain as mysteries for bondsmen, not
Gospel consolations. The last and most miserable
stage of this false wisdom, is to deny that in mat-
ters of doctrine there is any one sense of Scripture
such, that it is true and all others false ; to make
the Gospel of Truth (so far) a revelation of words
and a dead letter ; to consider that the Holy Spirit
speaks merely of divine operations, not of Persons ;
and that that is truth to each, which each man
thinks to be true, so that one man may say that
Christ is God, another deny His pre-existence, yet
each have received the Truth according to the pe-
culiar constitution of his own mind, the Scripture
doctrine having no real independent substantive
meaning. Thus the system under consideration
tends legitimately to obliterate the great Objects
brought to light in the Gospel, and to darken what
I called yesterday the eye of faith ; to throw us
back into the vagueness of Heathenism, when
men only felt after the Divine Presence ; and thus
to frustrate the design of Christ's incarnation so far
as it is a manifestation of the Unseen Creator.
2. On the other hand, the necessity of obedience
XV.] SELF-CONTEMPLATION. 187
in order to salvation does not suffer less from the
upholders of the modern system than the articles of
the Creed. They argue, and truly, that if faith is
living, works must follow ; but mistaking a follow-
ing in order of succession for a following in order of
time, they conclude that faith ever comes first, and
works afterwards; and therefore, that faith must
first be secured, and that, by some means in which
works have no share. Thus, instead of viewing
works as the concomitant developement and evi-
dence, and instrumental cause of faith, they lay all
the stress upon the direct creation, in their minds,
of faith and spiritual-mindedness, which they con-
sider to consist in certain emotions and desires, be-
cause they can form abstractedly no better or truer
notion of those qualities. Accordingly, instead of
being " careful to maintain good works," they take
it for granted, that since they have attained faith
(as they consider,) works will follow without their
trouble as a matter of course. Thus the wise are
taken in their own craftiness ; they attempt to rea-
son, and are overcome by sophisms. Had they kept
to the Inspired Record, thfcir way would have been
clear ; and, considering the serious exhortations to
keeping God's commandments, with which all
Scripture abounds, from Genesis to the Apocalypse,
is it not a very grave question which the most cha-
ritable among Churchmen must put to himself,
whether these random expounders of the Blessed
Gospel are not risking a participation in the woe
188 EASTER TUESDAY. [SERM.
denounced against those who preach any other doc-
trine besides that delivered unto us, or who " take
away from the words of the Book" of revealed Truth?
3. But still more evidently do they fall into this
last imputation, when we consider how they are
obliged to treat the Sacred Volume altogether, in
order to support the system they have adopted. Is
it too much to say that, instead of attempting to
harmonize Scripture with Scripture, much less re-
ferring to Antiquity to enable them to do so, they
either drop altogether, or explain away whole
portions of the Bible, and those most sacred ones ?
How does the authority of the Psalms stand with
their opinions, except at best by a forced figurative
interpretation ? And our Lord's discourses in the
Gospels, especially the Sermon on the Mount, are
they not virtually considered as chiefly important
to the persons immediately addressed, and of infe-
rior instructiveness to us, now that the Spirit (as it
is profanely said) is come ? In short, is not the
rich and varied Revelation of our merciful Lord
practically reduced to a few chapters of St. Paul's
Epistles, whether rightly (as they maintain) or (as
we would say) perversely understood ? If then the
Romanists have added to the word of God, is it not
undeniable that there is a school of religionists
among us who have taken from it ?
4. I would remark, that the immediate tendency
of these opinions is to undervalue ordinances as
well as doctrines. The same argument evidently
XV.] SELF-CONTEMPLATION. 189
applies ; for, if the renewed state of heart is (as it
is supposed) attained, what matter whether Sacra-
ments have or have not been administered ? The
notion of invisible grace and invisible privileges is,
on this supposition, altogether superseded ; that of
communion with Christ limited to the mere exercise
of the affections in prayer and meditation, to sen-
sible effects ; and he who considers he has already
gained this one essential gift of grace (as he calls it,)
may plausibly inquire, after the fashion of the day,
why he need wait upon ordinances which he has an-
ticipated in his religious attainments, — means to an
end, which he has not to seek, even if they be not out-
ward forms altogether, — and whether Christ will not
accept at the last day all who believe, without in-
quiring if they were members of the Church, or
were confirmed, or were baptized, or received the
blessing of mere men who are "earthen vessels."
5. The foregoing remarks go to show the utterly
unevangelical character of the system in question ;
unevangelic in the full sense of the word, whether
by the Gospel be meant the inspired document of
it, or the doctrines brought to light through it, or
the Sacramental Institutions which are the gift of
it, or the theology which interprets it, or the Cove-
nant which is the basis of it. A few words shall
now be added, to show the inherent mischief of the
system as such ; which I conceive to arise from its
necessarily involving a continual self-contemplation
and reference to self in all departments of conduct.
190 EASTER TUESDAY. [SERM.
He who aims at attaining sound doctrine or right
practice, more or less looks out of himself; whereas,
in labouring after a certain frame of mind, there is
an habitual reflex action of the mind upon itself.
That this is really involved in the modern system,
is evident from the very doctrine principally insisted
on by it ; for, as if it were not enough for a man to
look up simply to Christ for salvation, it is declared
to be necessary that he should be able to recognise
this in himself, that he should define his own state
of mind, confess he is justified by faith alone, and
explain what is meant by that confession. Now, the
truest obedience is indisputably that, which is done
from love of God, without narrowly measuring the
magnitude or nature of the sacrifice involved in it.
He who has learned to give names to his thoughts
and deeds, to appraise them as if for the market, to
attach to each its due measure of commendation or
usefulness, will soon involuntarily corrupt his mo-
tives by pride or selfishness. A sort of self-appro-
bation will insinuate itself into his mind ; so subtle
as not at once to be recognised by himself, — an
habitual quiet self-esteem, leading him to prefer his
own views to those of others, and a secret, if not
avowed persuasion, that he is in a different state from
the generality of those around him, This is an
evil of the religious journals which persons keep,
though of course not a necessary one ; nay, of
such compositions as Ministerial teaching involves.
They lead in some respect or other to a contempla-
15
XV-1 SELF- CONTEMPLATION. 191
tion of self. Moreover, as to religious journals,
however useful they may be, at the same time, I
believe persons find great difficulty, while recording
their feelings, in banishing the thought that one
day these good feelings will be known to the world,
and are thus insensibly led to modify and prepare
their language as if for a representation. Seldom
indeed is any one in the practice of contemplating
his better thoughts, without proceeding to display
them to others ; and hence it is, that it is so easy
to discover a vain man. When this is encouraged
in the sacred province of religion, it produces a cer-
tain unnatural solemnity of manner, arising from a
wish to be, nay, to appear spiritual, which is at
once very painful to beholders, and surely quite at
variance with our Saviour's rule of anointing our
head and washing our face, even when we are most
self-abased in heart. Another mischief arising
from this self-contemplation is the peculiar kind of
selfishness (if I may use so harsh a term,) which it
will be found to foster. They who make self in-
stead of their Maker the great object of their con-
templation, will naturally exalt themselves. With-
out denying that the glory of God is the great end
to which all things are to be referred, they will be
led to connect indissolubly His glory with their own
certainty of salvation ; and this partly accounts for
its being so common to find rigid predestinarian
views, and the exclusive maintenance of justification
by Faith in the same persons. And for the same rea-
192 EASTER TUESDAY. [Si:uM.
son, the Scripture doctrines relative to the Church
and its offices will be unpalatable to such religion-
ists ; nothing being so irreconcileable as the system
which makes a man's thoughts centre on himself,
and that which directs them to a fountain of grace
and truth, on which God has made him dependent.
And as self-confidence and spiritual pride on the
legitimate results of these opinions in one set of
persons, so in another they lead to a feverish anx-
iety about their religious state and prospects, and
fears lest they are under the reprobation of their
All-merciful Saviour. It need scarcely be said that
a contemplation of self is a frequent attendant, and
a frequent precursor of a deranged state of the
mental powers.
To conclude. — It must not be supposed from the
foregoing remarks, that I am imputing all the conse-
quences to every one who holds the main doctrine
from which they legitimately follow. Many men
zealously maintain principles which they never
follow out in their own minds, or after a time silently
discard, except as far as words go ; but which are
sure to receive a full developement in the history of
any school or party of men which adopts them.
Considered thus, as the characteristics of a school,
the principles in question are doubtless antichris-
tian ; for they destroy all positive doctrine, all ordi-
nances, all good works, they foster pride, invite hy-
pocrisy, discourage the weak, and deceive most
fatally, while they profess to be the especial anti-
XV.]
SELF-CONTEMPLATION.
193
dotes to self-deception. We have seen these effects
of them two centuries since in the history of the
English Branch of the Church ; for what we know,
a more fearful triumph is still in store for them.
But, however that may be, let not the watchmen of
Jerusalem fail to give timely warning of the ap-
proaching enemy, or to acquit themselves of all
cowardice or compliance as regards it. Let them
prefer the Old Commandment, as it has been from
the beginning, to any novelties of man ; recollect-
ing Christ's words, " Blessed is he that watcheth,
and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked,
and they see his shame !."
1 Rev. xvi. 15.
VOL. ir,
SERMON XVI.
THE FEAST OF ST. MARK.
RELIGIOUS COWARDICE.
HEBREWS xii. 12.
Lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees.
THE chief points of St. Mark's history are these : —
first, that he was sister's-son to Barnabas, and taken
with him and St. Paul on their first apostolical
journey ; next, that after a short time he deserted
them, and returned to Jerusalem ; next, that after
an interval, he was St. Peter's assistant at Rome,
and composed his Gospel there principally from the
accounts which he received from that Apostle ;
lastly, that he was sent by him to Alexandria in
Egypt, where he founded one of the strictest and
most powerful churches of the primitive times.
The points of contrast are these : — that first, he
abandoned the cause of the Gospel as soon as
danger appeared ; afterwards, he proved himself,
not merely an ordinary Christian, but a most reso-
SBHM. XVI.] RELIGIOUS COWARDICE. 195
lute and exact servant of God, founding and ruling
that strictest Church of Alexandria.
And the means of this change were, as it appears,
the influence of St. Peter, a fit restorer of a timid
and backsliding disciple.
The encouragement which we derive from these
circumstances in St. Mark's history, is, that the
feeblest among us may through God's grace be-
come strong. And the warning to be drawn from
it, is, to distrust ourselves ; and again, not to despise
weak brethren, or to despair of them, but to bear
their burdens and help them forward, if so be we
may restore them. Now, let us attentively consider
the subject thus brought before us.
Some men are naturally impetuous and active ;
others love quiet, and readily yield. The over-
earnest must be sobered, and the indolent must be
roused. The history of Moses supplies us with an
instance of a proud and rash spirit, tamed down to
an extreme gentleness of deportment. In the great-
ness of the change wrought in him, when from a
fierce, though honest, avenger of his brethren, he
became the meekest of men on the earth, he evi-
lences the power of faith, the life of the Spirit in
the heart. St. Mark's history affords a specimen
of the other, and still rarer change, from timidity
to boldness. Difficult, as it is, to subdue the more
violent passions, yet I believe it to be still more
difficult to overcome a tendency to sloth, cowardice,
and despondency. These evil dispositions cling
o 2
196 ST. MARK. [SEBM.
about a man, and weigh him down. They are
minute chains, binding him on every side to the
earth, so that he cannot even turn him or make an
effort to rise. It would seem as if right principles
had yet to be planted in the indolent mind ;
whereas violent and obstinate tempers had already
something of the nature of firmness and zeal in
them, or rather what would become so with care,
exercise, and God's blessing. Besides, the events
of life have a powerful influence in sobering the
ardent or self-confident temper. Disappointments,
pain, anxiety, advancing years, bring with them
some natural wisdom as a matter of course ; and,
though such tardy improvement bespeaks but a
weak faith, yet we may believe that God's Spirit
often blesses these means, however slowly and im-
perceptibly. On the other hand, these same cir-
cumstances but increase the defects of the timid
and irresolute ; who are made more indolent, self-
ish, and fainthearted by advancing years, and find
a sort of sanction of their base caution in their
experience of the vicissitudes of life.
St. Mark's change, therefore, may be considered
even more astonishing in its nature than that of the
Jewish Lawgiver. " By faith," he was "out of
weakness made strong ;" and becomes a memorial
of the more glorious and marvellous gifts of the
last and spiritual Dispensation.
Observe in what St. Mark's weakness lay. There
is a sudden defection, which arises from self-confi-
XVI.] RELIGIOUS COWARDICE. 197
dence. Such was St. Peter's. He had trusted too
much to his mere good feelings ; he was honest and
sincere, and he thought that he could do what he
wished to do. How far apart from each other are
to wish and to do ! yet we are apt to confuse them.
Sometimes indeed earnest desire of an object will
by a sudden impulse surmount difficulties, and
succeed without previous practice. Enthusiasm
certainly does wonders in this way ; just as men of
weakly frames will sometimes from extreme excite-
ment inflict blows of incredible power. And some-
times eagerness sets us on beginning to exert our-
selves ; and, the first obstacles being thus removed,
we go on as a matter of course with comparatively
small labour. All this, being from time to time
witnessed, impresses us with a conviction, unknown
to ourselves, that a sanguine temper is the main
condition of success in any work. And when, in
our lonely imaginings, we fancy ourselves taking a
strenuous part in some great undertaking, or when
we really see others playing the man, so very easy
does heroism seem to be, that we cannot admit the
possibility of our failing, should circumstances call
us to any difficult duty. St. Peter thought that he
could preserve his integrity, because he wished to
do so ; and he fell, from ignorance of the difficulty
of doing what he wished.
In St. Mark's fall, however, we have no evi-
dence of self-confidence ; rather, we may discern
in it the state of multitudes at the present day,
198 ST, MARK. [SEHM.
who proceed through life with a certain sense of
religion on their minds, who have been brought up
well and know the Truth, who acquit themselves
respectably while danger is at a distance, but dis-
grace their profession when brought into any unex-
pected trial. His mother was a woman of influence
among the Christians at Jerusalem ; his mother's
brother, Barnabas, was an eminent Apostle. Doubt-
less he had received a religious education ; and, as
being the friend of Apostles and in the bosom of
the pure Church of Christ, he had the best models
of sanctity before his eyes, the clearest teaching,
the fullest influences of grace. He was shielded
from temptation. The time came when his real
proficiency in faith and obedience was to be tried.
Paul and Barnabas were sent forth to preach to the
Heathen ; and they took Mark with them as an
attendant. First they sailed to Cyprus, the native
place of Barnabas ; they travelled about it, and
then crossed over to the main land. This seems to
have been their first entrance upon an unknown
country. Mark was discouraged at the prospect of
danger, and returned to Jerusalem.
Now, who does not see that such a character as
this, such a trial, and such a fall, belong to other
days, besides those of the Apostles ? Or rather, to
put the question to us more closely, who will deny
that there are multitudes in the Church at present,
who have no evidence to themselves of more than
that passive faith and virtue, which in Mark's case
XVI.] RELIGIOUS COWARDICE. 199
proved so unequal even to a slight trial ? Who has
not some misgivings of heart, lest, in times such as
these, when Christian firmness is so little tried, his
own loyalty to his Saviour's cause be perchance no
truer or firmer than that of the sister's-son of a
great Apostle ? When the Church is at peace, as it
has long been in this country, when public order is
preserved in the community, and the rights of per-
son and property secured, there is extreme danger
lest we judge ourselves by what is without us, not
by what is within. We take for granted we are
Christians, because we have been taught aright,
and are regular in our attendance upon the Chris-
tian ordinances. But, great privilege and duty as
it is to use the means of grace, reading and prayer
are not enough ; nor, by themselves, will they ever
make us real Christians. They will give us right
knowledge and good feelings, but not firm faith
and resolute obedience. Christians, such as Mark,
will abound in a prosperous Church ; and, should
trouble come, they will be unprepared for it. They
have so long been accustomed to external peace,
that they do not like to be persuaded, that danger is
at hand. They settle it in their imagination that
they are to live and die undisturbed. They look
at the world's events, as they express it, cheerfully;
and argue themselves into self-deception. Next,
they make concessions, to fulfil their own predic-
tions and wishes ; and abandon the Christian cause,
that unbelievers may not commit themselves to
an open attack upon it. Some of them are men
200 ST. MARK. [SERM.
of cultivated and refined tastes ; and these shrink
from the rough life of pilgrims, to which they
are called, as something strange and extravagant.
They consider those, who take a simpler view of
the duties and prospects of the Church, to be
enthusiastic, rash, and intemperate, or perverse-
minded. To speak plainly, a state of persecution
is not, (what is familiarly called,) their element;
they cannot breathe in it. Alas ! how different
from the Apostle, who had learned in whatsoever
state he was, therewith to be content, and who was
all things to all men. If then there be times when
we have grown thus torpid from long security, and
are tempted to prefer the treasures of Egypt to the
reproach of Christ, what can we do, what ought
we to do, but to pray God in some way or other
to try the very heart of the Church, and to afflict
us here rather than hereafter ? Dreadful as is the
prospect of Satan's temporary triumph, fierce as
are the horsehoofs of his riders, and detestable as
is the cause for which they battle, yet better such
anguish should come upon us than that the recesses
of our heritage should be the hiding-places of a
self-indulgent spirit, and the schools of lukewarm-
ness. May God arise, and shake terribly the
earth, (though it be an awful prayer,) rather than
many Marks should lie hid among us, and souls
be lost by present ease ! Let Him arise, if there
be no alternative, and chasten us with His sweet
discipline, as our hearts may best bear it ; bring-
ing our sins out in this world, that we be not con-
XVI.] RELIGIOUS COWARDICE. 201
demned in the day of the Lord, shaming us here,
reproving us by the mouth of His servants, then
restoring us, and leading us on by a better way to
a truer and holier hope ! Let Him winnow us, till
the chaff is clean removed ! though, in thus invok-
ing Him, we know not what we ask, and, feeling
the end itself to be good, yet cannot worthily esti-
mate the fearfulness of that chastisement which we
so freely speak about. Doubtless we do not, cannot
measure the terrors of the Lord's judgments ; we
use words cheaply. Still, it cannot be wrong to
use them, seeing they are the best offering we can
lake to God ; and, so that we beg Him the while
to lead us on, and give us strength to bear the trial
iccording as it opens upon us. So may we issue
Evangelists for timid deserters of the cause of
•uth ; speaking the words of Christ, and showing
>rth His life and death ; rising strong from our
sufferings, and building up the Church in the
itrictriess and zeal of those who despise this life
:xcept as it leads to another.
Lastly, let us not, from an excited fancy and a
'ain longing after the glories of other days, forget
the advantages which we have. No need to have
the troubles of Apostles in order to attain their
faith. Even in the quietest times we may rise to
high holiness, if we improve the means given us.
Trials come when we forget mercies ; to remind us
of them, and to fit us to enjoy and use them
suitably.
SERMON XVII.
THE FEAST OF ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES.
THE GOSPEL WITNESSES.
2 COR. xiii. 1.
In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be
established.
IT has pleased Almighty God in His great mercy,
to give us accumulated evidence of the truth of
the Gospel ; to send out His Witnesses again and
again, Prophet after Prophet, Apostle after Apostle,
miracle after miracle, that reason might be brought
into captivity, as well as faith rewarded by the
fulness of His revelations. The double Festival
which we are now celebrating, reminds us of this.
Our service is this day distinguished by the com-
memoration of two Apostles, who are associated
together in our minds in nothing except in their
being Apostles, in both of them being Witnesses,
separate Witnesses of the life, death, and resurrec-
tion of Christ. Thus this union, however origin-
ating, of the Feast Days of Apostles, who are not
especially connected in Scripture, will serve to
SKHM.XVII.] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 203
remind us of the diversity and number of the Wit-
nesses by whom one and the same Sacred Truth
has been delivered to us.
But, further than this. Even the twelve Apo-
stles, many as they were, form not the whole com-
pany of the Witnesses vouchsafed to us. In order
more especially to confirm to us, that the Word has
really become incarnate, and has sojourned among
men, another distinct Witness is vouchsafed to us
in the person of St. Paul. What could be needed
beyond the preaching of the Twelve ? they all weVe
attendants upon Christ, they had heard His words,
they had imbibed His spirit ; and, as agreeing one
and all in the matter of their testimony, they
afforded full evidence to those who required it, that,
though their Master wrote not His Gospel for us
with His own finger, nevertheless we have it whole
and entire. Yet He did more than this. When the
time came for publishing it to the world at large,
while He gradually initiated their minds into the
full graciousness of the New Covenant, as reaching
to Gentile as well as Jew, He raised up to Himself
by direct miracle and inspiration, a fresh and inde-
pendent Witness of it from among His persecutors ;
so that from that time, the Dispensation had (as it
were) a second beginning, and went forward upon
a twofold foundation, the teaching, on the one hand,
of the Apostles of the Circumcision, and of St. Paul
on the other. Two schools of Christian doctrine
forthwith existed ; if I may use the word " school,"
15
204 ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SERM.
to denote a difference not of doctrine but of history
between the Apostles. Of the Gentile school, were
St. Luke, St. Clement, and others, followers of
St. Paul. Of the School of the Circumcision, St.
Peter, and still more, St. John ; St. James, and we
may add, St. Philip. St. James is known to belong
to the latter, in his history as Bishop of Jerusalem ;
and, though little is known of St. Philip, yet what
is known of him, indicates that he too is to be
ranked with St. John, whom he followed, (as history
informs us,) in observing the Jewish rule of cele-
brating the Easter Feast, and not the tradition of St.
Peter and St. Paul. I propose upon this Festival,
to set before you some considerations which arise
out of this view of the Scripture history.
Christianity was, and was not, a new religion,
when first preached to the world ; it seemed to
supersede, but it was merely the fulfilment, the
due developement and maturity of the Jewish Law,
which, in one sense, vanished away, in another,
was perpetuated for ever. This need not be proved
here ; I will but refer you, by way of illustration,
to the language of Prophecy, as (for instance) to the
forty-ninth chapter of the Book of Isaiah, in which
the Jewish Church is comforted in her afflictions, by
the promise of her propagation and triumphs (that
is, in her Christian form) among the Gentiles.
"Zion said, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my
Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her
sucking child, that she should not have compassion
XVII.] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 205
on the son of her womb ? Yea, they may forget,
yet will I not forget thee .... Lift up thine eyes
round about, and behold ; all these gather them-
selves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith
the Lord, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them
all, as with an ornament, and bind them on thee
as a bride doth .... The children which thou
shalt have, after thou hast lost the other, shall say
again in thine ears, The place is too strait for
me, give place to me that I may dwell. Then
shalt thou say in thine heart, Who hath begotten
me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am
desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro ? ....
Behold, I will lift up Mine hand to the Gentiles,
and set up My standard to the people ; . . and kings
shall be thy nursing-fathers, and their queens thy
nursing-mothers." The Jewish Church, then, was
not superseded, though the Nation was ; it merely
changed into the Christian, and thus was at once the
same, and not the same, as it had been before.
Such being the double aspect of God's dealings
towards His Church, when the time came for His
exhibiting it in its new form as a Catholic, not a
local Institution, He was pleased to make a corres-
ponding change in the internal ministry of His
Blessed Dispensation ; imposing upon St. Paul the
particular duty of formally delivering and adapting
to the world at large, that Old Essential Truth, the
guardianship of which He had already committed
to St. James and St. John. Inconsequence of this
206 ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SKIIM.
difference of office, superficial readers of Scripture
have sometimes spoken as if there were some real
difference between the respective preaching of those
favoured Instruments of Providence. Unbelievers
have objected that St. Paul introduced a new reli-
gion, such as Jesus never taught ; and, on the other
hand, there are Christians who maintain, that St.
Paul's doctrine is peculiarly the teaching of the
Holy Ghost, and intended to supersede both our
Lord's recorded words, and those of His original
followers. Now a very remarkable circumstance
it certainly is, that He has thus made two begin-
nings to His Gospel ; and, when we have advanced
far enough in sacred knowledge to see how they
harmonize together, and concur in that wonderful
system, which Primitive Christianity presents, and
which was built on them both, we shall find abun-
dant matter of praise in this Providential arrange-
ment. But, at first there doubtless is something
which needs explanation ; for we see, in matter of
fact, that different classes of religionists, do build
their respective doctrines upon the one foundation
and the other, upon the Gospels and upon St.
Paul's Epistles ; the more enthusiastic upon the
latter, the cold, proud, and heretical, upon the
former ; and though we may be quite sure that no
part of Scripture favours either coldness or fanati-
cism, and, in particular, may zealously repel the
impiety, as well as the daring perverseness, which
would find countenance for an imperfect Creed
XVII.] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 207
in the heavenly words of the Evangelists, yet the
very fact that hostile parties do agree in dividing
the New Testament into about the same two por-
tions, is just enough at first sight to show that there
is some difference or other, whether in tone or doc-
trine, which needs accounting for.
This state of the case, whether a difficulty or not,
may, I conceive, any how be turned into an evi-
dence in behalf of the truth of Christianity. Some
few remarks shall here be made to explain my
meaning; — nor is it superfluous to direct attention to
the subject ; for, though points of evidence seldom
avail to the conversion of unbelievers, they are al-
ways edifying and instructive to Christians, as con-
firming their faith, and filling them with admira-
tion and praise of God's marvellous works, which
have more and more the stamp of Truth upon
them, the deeper we examine them. This was the
effect produced on the Apostles' minds by their own
miracles, and on the Saints' in the Apocalypse by
the sight of God's judgments ; prompting them to
cry out in awe and thankfulness, " Lord, Thou art
God, which hast made Heaven and earth !" <£ Great
and marvellous are Thy works, Lord God Al-
mighty ; just and true are thy ways, Thou King of
Saints l !"
My remark then is simply this; — that, supposing
an essential unanimity of teaching can be shown to
1 Acts iv. 24. Rev. xv. 3.
ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SERM.
exist between the respective writings of St. Paul and
his brethren, then the existing difference, whatever
it is, whether of phraseology, of subject, or of his-
torical origin, in a word, the difference of school,
only makes that agreement the more remarkable,
and after all, only guarantees them as two inde-
pendent Witnesses to the same Truth. Now to
illustrate this argument.
I suppose the points of difference between St.
Paul and the Twelve will be considered to be as fol-
lows : — that St. Paul, on his conversion, " conferred
not with flesh and blood *, neither went up to Jeru-
salem to them which were Apostles before him ;"-
that, on the face of Scripture, there appears some
sort of difference in viewing doctrine between
St. Paul and the original Apostles, that St. Paul on
one occasion " withstood Peter to the face," and
says that " those who seemed to be somewhat"
referring apparently to James and John, "in con-
ference added nothing to him 2," and St. Peter, on
the other hand, observes, that in St. Paul's Epistles
there " are some things hard to be understood,"
while St. James would even seem to qualify St.
Paul's doctrine concerning the pre-eminence of
faith3 ; that St. James, not to mention St. John, was
stationary, having taken on himself a local episco-
pate, while St. Paul was subjected to what are now
called missionary labours, and laid the foundation
1 Gal. i. 16, 17. 2 Gal. ii. 6. 11. 5 2 Peter iii. 16.
James ii. 14 — 26.
XVIL] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 209
of churches without undertaking the government of
any of them ; — that St. Paul speaks with especial
earnestness concerning the abolition of the Jewish
Law, and the admission of the Gentiles into the
Church, subjects not prominently put forward by the
other Apostles ; — that St. Paul declares distinctly
and energetically, that we are elected to salva-
tion by God's free grace, and justified by faith1,
and traces out, as in a system, all Christian holi-
ness and spiritual mindedness from this beginning;
whereas, St. James says we are justified by works2,
St. John that we shall be " judged according to our
works," and St. Peter that "the Father judgeth
according to every man's work without respect of
persons 3," phrases which are but symbols of the
general character of their own and our Lord's
teaching ; — lastly, that there is more expression of
kindled and active affections towards God and to-
wards man in St. Paul's writings than in those of
his brethren. This is not the place to explain what
needs explaining in this list of contrasts ; nor in-
deed is there any real difficulty at all (I may say)
in reconciling the one side with the other, where
the heart is right and the judgment fairly clear and
steady. It has often been done most satisfactorily.
But let us take them as they stand, prior to all ex-
planation ; let a disputer make the most of them.
So much at least is proved, that St. Paul and St.
1 Rom. v. 1. 2 Jam. ii. 24. 3Rev. xx. 13. 1 Pet. i. 17.
VOL. II. P
210 ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SERM.
James were two independent witnesses (whether
concordant or not) of the gospel doctrines ; which
is abundantly confirmed by all those circumstances
which objectors sometimes enlarge upon, St. Paul's
peculiar education, connexions, and history. Take
these differences at the worst, and then on the other
hand take account of the wonderful agreement after
all of opinion, manner of thought, feeling, and
conduct, nay, of religious vocabulary, between the
two Schools, (as I have above called them,) — most
wonderful, considering that the very idea of the
Christian system in all its parts was virtually a new
thing in the particular generation in which it was
promulgated, — and if it does not impress us with
the conviction, that an Unseen Hand, a Divine
Presence, was in the midst of it, controlling the
human instruments of His work, and ruling it that
they should and must agree in speaking His Word,
in spite of whatever differences of natural disposi-
tion and education, surely we may as well deny
the agency of the Creator, His power, wisdom, and
goodness, in the appointments of the material
world. — The following are some instances of the
kind of agreement I speak of.
1. Take the New Testament, as we have re-
ceived it. It deserves notice, that in spite of what
partisans would desire, after all we cannot divide
its contents between the two Schools under conside-
ration. Admitting there were two principles at
work in the developement of the Christian Church,
XVII.J THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 211
they are inextricably united as regards the docu-
ments of faith ; so that the modern parties in
question, whether their particular view be right or
wrong, are at least attempting a return to a state
prior to the existence of the New Testament. Con-
sider the Epistle to the Hebrews, — which would be
sufficient evidence, were there no other, of the iden-
tity of St. Paul's doctrine with St. James's. Be as
disputatious as you will about its author ; still it
comes at least from the School of St. Paul, if not
from that Apostle himself. The parallelisms be-
tween it and his acknowledged writings, forbid
any other supposition. Now look through it from
beginning to end, observe well its exhortations to
obedience, its warnings against apostacy, its solemn
announcement of the terrors of the Gospel, and
further, its honourable treatment of the Jewish Law,
which it sets forth as fulfilled, (after our Saviour's
doctrine,) not disrespectfully superseded by the
Gospel, and then say whether this Epistle alone be
not a wonderful monument of the essential unity of
the Gospel creed among all its original dissemina-
tors. Again, consider the Epistles to Timothy and
Titus, which are confessedly St. Paul's, and try to
discriminate if you can, between the ethical cha-
racter which they display, and that of St. James's
Epistle. Next, observe the position of St. Luke's
writings in the inspired volume, an Evangelist fol-
lowing the language of St. Matthew, yet the asso-
ciate of St. Paul. Examine the speeches of St.
p 2
ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SERM.
Paul in the book of Acts, and consider whether he
is not at once the Apostle of the Gentiles, and the
fellow disciple of those who had attended our Lord's
Ministry1. Consider too the history of St. Peter,
and see whether the revelations made to him in
order to the conversion of Cornelius, do not form a
link between " St. Paul's Gospel" and that of his
earlier brethren. Lastly, count up the particular
parts of St. Paul's writings, in which that Apostle
may be said to speak a different doctrine from the
rest, and determine their extent and number. Are
they much more than nine chapters of his Epistle
to the Romans, four of that to the Galatians, three
in the Ephesians, a passage in the Colossians, and
a few verses in the Philippians? Are there not
in other chapters of these very Epistles clear and
explicit statements, running counter to these sup-
posed peculiarities, agreeing with St. James, and so
protesting (as it were) against those who would put
asunder Apostles whom God has joined together ?
These shall be presently instanced ; but for the
moment concede the whole of these separate docu-
ments,— yet you cannot make more than five out
of fourteen, which is the whole number of his
Epistles ; and these, though certainly most valuable,
are not after all of greater prominence and dignity
than some of the remaining nine. It would appear
then, from the very face of the New Testament,
1 Vid. e. g. Acts xx. 25. xxviii. 31.
XVIL] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 213
that the differences between St. Paul's doctrine and
that of his brethren, (whatever they were,) ad-
mitted of an amalgamation, as far as Christian
Teaching went, from the moment that office was
first exercised in the Church.
2. In the case of the original Apostles, the inten-
tion of delivering and explaining their Divine
Master's teaching cannot be mistaken. St. John
even writes in a style resembling that which He
vouchsafed to adopt. Now, of course St. Paul,
professing to preach Christ's Gospel, could not but
avow such an intention also ; but it should be
oticed, considering that he was not with our Lord
on earth, how he devotes himself to the sole thought
of Him ; that is, it would be remarkable, were not
St. Paul divinely chosen and called, as we believe
him to have been. Simon Magus professed to be a
Christian, yet his aim was that of exalting himself.
It was quite possible for St. Paul to have acknow-
ledged Christ generally as his Master, and still
not practically to have preached Christ. Yet how
full he is of his Saviour ! He could not be more so,
if he had attended Him all through His Ministry.
The thought of Christ is the one thought in which
he lives ; it is the fervent love, the devoted attach-
ment, the zeal and reverence of one who had
" heard and seen, and looked upon and handled, the
Word of Life V What a remarkable attestation is
* 1 Johni. 1.
ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SERM.
here to the Sovereignty of the Unseen Saviour !
What was Paul, and what was James " but mini-
sters," by whom the world believed on Him ? They
clearly were nothing beyond this. This is a strik-
ing fulfilment of our Lord's declaration concerning
the dispensation of the Spirit; " He shall glorify
Me V St. John records it ; St. Paul exemplifies it.
It is remarkable too, how St. Paul adopts the
manner of the other Apostles in referring to our
Lord's words and actions, though much opportunity
for this does not occur in his writings ; that is, it
is plain, that he was not exalting a mere name or
idea, any more than the rest, but a Person, a really
existing Master. For instance, St. John says,
" That which we have seen and heard, declare we
unto you ;" and St. Peter, " This voice which came
from heaven we heard, when we were with Him
in the Holy Mount ;" again, " We are witnesses of
all things which He did2." In like manner St.
Paul enumerates, as his " Gospel," not mere doc-
trines, but the facts of Christ's life, a recurrence to
which did but tend to his own apparent inferiority
compared with his brethren. " I delivered unto you,
first of all, that which I also received, how that
Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures,
. . . was buried . . . rose again the third day,
and that He was seen of Cephas, then of the
1 John xvi. 14.
2 1 John i. 3. 2 Pet. i. 18. Acts x. 39.
15
XVII.] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 215
Twelve, after that ... of above five hundred bre-
thren at once . . . after that ... of James, then
of all the Apostles ;" he adds with expressions
of self-abasement, " And last of all He was
seen of me1." Again, in his directions for admi-
nistering the Lord's Supper, he refers carefully to
our Lord's manner of ordaining it, as recorded in
the Gospels. Again, in the seventh chapter of the
same Epistle, there would seem a repeated refe-
rence to our Lord's words in the Gospel; " Unto
the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord."
In the same chapter the verse beginning, " This I
speak for your own profit," has been supposed with
reason to refer to St. Luke's account of Martha's
complaint of Mary, and our Lord's speech there-
upon. In his first Epistle to Timothy, he alludes
to our Lord's appearance before Pilate. In his
farewell address to the Elders of Ephesus he has
preserved one of His sayings which the Gospels do
not contain ; "It is more blessed to give than to
receive2." And in the Epistle to the Hebrews
reference is made to Christ's agony in the garden.
3. The doctrine of the Incarnation, or the Gospel
Economy, as embracing the two great truths of
the Divinity of Christ and the Atonement, was not
(as far as we know) clearly revealed, during our
Lord's ministry. Yet, observe how close is St.
Paul's agreement with St. John. "The Word
1 1 Cor. xv. 3—8. 8 Acts xx, 35.
216 ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SERM.
was with God, and the Word was God, and the
Word was made flesh." — " Christ Jesus, being in
the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal
with God ; yet humbled Himself, being made in
the likeness of men." St. John calls Christ " the
Only-begotten Son in the bosom of the Father;"
and St. Paul, " the First-begotten." St. John says,
that He hath " declared the Father," and in His
own sacred words, that "he that hath seen Him,
hath seen the Father ;" St. Paul declares that He
is "the Image of the Invisible God," — "the bright-
ness of His glory, and the express Image of His
Person." St. John says, "All things were made
by Him ;" St. Paul, that " By Him God made the
worlds." Further, St. John says, "The blood of
Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin ;" — St. Paul,
that " in Him we have redemption through His
blood, even the forgiveness of sins ;" — St. John,
that " if any man sin, we have an Advocate with
the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous ;" St. Paul,
that He " is even at the right hand of God, and
also maketh intercession for us;" — St. John, that
" He is the propitiation not for our sins only, but
also for those of the whole world ;" St. Paul, that
He has "reconciled" Jew and Gentile "in one
body by the cross V
1 John i. 1. 14. Phil. ii. 5—8. John i. 18. Heb. i. 6.
John i. 18. xiv. 9. Col. i. 15. Heb. i. 3. John i. 3. Heb. i. 2.
1 John 5. Col. i. 14. 1 John ii. 1. Rom. viii. 34. 1 Johnii.
2. Ephes. ii. 16.
XVII.] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 217
Now, considering the mysteriousness of these
doctrines, the probability there was of some diver-
sity of teaching, in the case of two different minds,
and the actual differences existing among various
sects at the time, I must consider this exact accord-
ance between St. John and St. Paul, (men to all
appearance as unlike each other by nature as men
could be,) to be little short of a demonstration of the
reality of the divine doctrines to which they witness.
" The testimony of two men is true;" and still
more clearly so in this case, supposing, (what un-
believers may maintain, but they alone,) that any
rivalry of Schools existed between these Holy
Apostles.
4. To continue our review. St. John and St.
Paul both put forward the doctrine of Regenera-
tion, both connect it with Baptism, both denounce
the world as sinful and lost. They both teach the
peculiar privilege of Christians, as God's adopted
children, and make the grant of this and all other
privileges, depend to faith *. Now the ideas and
the terms employed are peculiar ; and, with all
allowance for what might have been anticipated
by former Dispensations and existing Schools of
religion, yet, could it be shown, that ever so much
of this doctrine was already familiar to the Jews,
this does not account for their unanimity in their
respective use of it. I add some parallel texts on
1 John in. 3—5. 16. 19. 1 John iii. 1. v. 19. Rom. iii. 19.
v. 1, 2. viii. 14, 15. Tit. iii. 5, &c.
218 ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SERM.
this part of the subject. St. John delivers our
Saviour's prediction; "If I depart I will send the
Comforter unto you ; He will guide you into all
the Truth;" St. Paul, "God hath revealed (the
mysteries of the Gospel) unto us by His Spirit;"
" All these (gifts) worketh that one and the self-
same Spirit, dividing to every man severally as He
will." St. Paul says, " He which stablisheth us
with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God ;"
St. John, " Ye have an unction from the Holy
One." St. John, in accordance with the teaching
of his Lord, declares, " There is a sin unto death ;
I do not say that a man shall pray for it;" and
St. Paul, that " it is impossible for those who were
once enlightened, if they shall fall away, to renew
them again unto repentance V
5. We all recollect St. Paul's praise of charity
as the fulfilling of the Law, and the characteristic
precept of the Gospel. Yet, is not the pre-eminent
importance of it as clearly set forth by St. John,
when he says, " We know that we have passed
from death unto life, because we love the bre-
thren," and the nature of it by St. James in his
description of "the wisdom that is from above?"
Again, it is observable, that our Lord's precept,
adopted from the Law, of loving our neighbour as
ourselves, is handed down at once by St. Paul and
St. James2.
1 John xvi. 7. 13. 1 Cor.ii. 10. xii. 11. 2 Cor. i. 21. 1 John
ii.21. v. 16. Heb. vi. 4—6.
2 1 John iii. 14. James iii. 17. Rom. xiii. 9. James ii. 8.
XVII.] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES.
6. We know that an especial stress is laid by our
Lord on the duty of Almsgiving. St. John and
St. James follow Him in so doing 1 ; and St. Paul
likewise. That Apostle's words, in the Galatians,
are especially in point here, as expressly acknow-
ledging this agreement between himself and his
brethren. " When James, Cephas, and John, who
seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was
given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the
right hands of fellowship, that we should go unto
the heathen, and they unto the circumcision ; only
they would that we should remember the poor ; the
same which I also was forward to do2."
7. Selfdenial, mortification of life, bearing our
cross, are especially insisted on by Christ. St.
Paul delivers clearly and strongly the same doc-
trine, declaring that he himself was " crucified
with Christ," and " died daily3." The duty of
Fasting may here be mentioned, as one in which
St. Paul unhesitatingly enters into and enforces
our Lord's religious system.
8. I need not observe how urgent and constant
is St. Paul in his exhortations to Intercession ; yet,
St. James equals him in his short epistle, which
contains a passage longer and more emphatic than
any which can be found in St. Paul4. Again,
both Apostles insist on the practice of sacred Psal-
i 1 John iii. 17. Jam. ii. 15, 16. 2 Gal. ii. 9, 10.
3 Gal. ii. 20. 1 Cor. xv. 31.
4 Eph. vi. 18. 1 Thes. v. 17. James v. 14—18.
ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SEEM.
mody as a duty. St. James, " Is any afflicted ?
let him pray. Is any merry ? let him sing psalms."
St. Paul, " Speaking to each other in psalms, and
hymns, and spiritual songs V
9. St. Paul makes much of the Blessed Sacra-
ment of the Lord's Supper ; nay, to him the
Church is indebted for the direct and clear proof
we possess of the sacramental virtue of that Ordi-
nance. Far different is the conduct of innovators ;
who are impatient of nothing more, than of ordi-
nances which they find established. He also re-
cognizes the obligation of the Lord's day 2, he being
the Apostle who denounces, as other Jewish rites,
so also the Sabbath.
10. St. Jude bids us " contend earnestly for the
faith once delivered to the Saints." In like man-
ner, St. Paul enjoins Timothy to "hold fast the
form of sound words, which he had heard of him ;"
and Titus, to " hold fast the faithful word as he
had been taught, that he might be able by sound
doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gain-
sayers8." St. Paul bids us "speak the Truth in
love ;" St. John says he " loves Gaius in the
Truth4."
11. It is observable that our Lord speaks of His
Gospel being preached, not chiefly as a means of
converting, but as a witness against the world.
1 James v. 13. Eph. v. 19. 2 Acts xx. 7. 1 Cor. xvi. 2.
3 Jude 3. 2 Tim. i. 13. Titus i. 9.
4 Eph. iv. 15. 3 John 1.
XVII.] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES.
This is confessedly a remarkable ground to be
taken by the Founder of a new religion. " The
Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the
world, for a witness unto all nations V Accord-
ingly, He Himself witnessed even before the hea-
then Pilate, "To this end was I born, and for
this cause came I into the world, that I should bear
witness unto the Truth2." Yet, surely it is still
more remarkable, that the Apostle of the Gentiles
should take up precisely the same view, even re-
ferring to our Lord's Confession before Pilate, when
giving Timothy his charge to preach the Truth,
declaring, that the Gospel is " a savor of death
unto death," as well as "of life unto life," and
foretelling the growth of * ' evil men and seducers"
after his departure 3.
12. Observe the agreement of sentiment in the
following texts : St. James, taught by his Lord and
Master, says, "Be ye doers of the word, and not
hearers only, deceiving your own selves." St.
Paul nearly in the same words, " Not the hearers of
the law are just before God, but the doers of the
law shall be justified4." Again, did we not know
whence the following passages come, should we not
assign them to St. James ? " God will render to
every man according to his deeds ; to them, who
by patient continuance in well-doing, seek for glory,
1 Matt. xxiv. 14. xviii. 37. 2 John xviii. 37.
3 1 Tim. vi. 13. 2 Cor. ii. 1C. 2 Tim. iii. 13.
' James i. 22. Rom. ii. 13.
222 ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SERM.
and honour, and immortality, eternal life ; but
unto them that are contentious, and do not obey
the Truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation
and wrath for there is no respect of per-
sons with God." This, as well as the text just cited,
is to be found in the opening of that Epistle, in
which St. Paul appears most to differ from St.
James ; now observe how he closes it. " Why dost
thou judge thy brother? And why dost thou set
at nought thy brother? For we shall all stand before
the judgment-seat of Christ .... Every one of
us shall give account of himself to God." Again,
in another Epistle ; " We must all be made mani-
fest before the judgment-seat of Christ ; that every
one may receive the things done in his body, ac-
cording to that he hath done, whether it be good
or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord,
we persuade men 1."
13. St. John, after our Lord's example, implies
especial praise upon those who follow an unmarried
life, — involving the letter in the spirit, as is fre-
quent in Scripture 2. " These are they which were
1 Rom. ii. 6—8. 11. xiv. 10—12. 2 Cor. v. 10, 11.
2 Vide Hos. xiii. 14. John xi. 23. 40. xiii. 8. And espe-
cially, as being a parallel case, Matt, xviii. 3 — 6, and so again,
Matt. x. 38. Rev. vii. 14. — The parallel is instructively brought
out in separate passages in the Christian year :
" Yet in that throng of selfish hearts untrue,
Thy sad eye rests upon Thy faithful few,
Children and childlike souls are there, &c." — Advent.
There
XVII.] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 223
not defiled with women, for they are virgins ; these
are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever He
goeth." St. Paul gives more direct praise to the
same state, and gives the same reason for its especial
blessedness ; " He that is unmarried careth for the
things that belong to the Lord, how he may please
the Lord I speak this for your own profit
that ye may attend upon the Lord with-
out distraction1."
14. St. Paul says, " Be careful for nothing, but
in every thing by prayer and supplication with
thanksgiving, let your requests be made known
unto God ;" St. Peter in like manner, " Casting
all your care upon Him, for He careth for you."
Both are after our Lord's exhortation, " Be not
. . . . " There hangs a radiant coronet,
All gemmed with pure and living light,
Too dazzling for a sinner's sight,
Prepared for virgin souls, and them
Who seek the martyr's diadem.
Nor deem, who, to that bliss aspire,
Must win their way through blood and fire," &c.
Wednesday before Easter.
In other words, Childhood, Virginity, Martyrdom, are made in
Scripture at once the Types and Standards of religious Perfection.
So again, Poverty, Luke vi. 20. xii. 33. Matt. xi. 5., with Matt.
v. 3. But this rule of interpretation, and the light it throws upon
Gospel duties and the Christian character, cannot be more than
alluded to in a note.
1 Rev. xiv. 4. 1 Cor. vii. 32. 35.
ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SERM.
careful for the morrow, for the morrow shall take care
for the things of itself1."
15. Lastly, as Christ foretels the approaching
visitations of the Jewish Church, and the neces-
sity of looking out for them, so St. Peter de-
clares, " The end of all things is at hand ; be ye
therefore sober, and watch unto prayer." St. James,
" Be ye also patient, stablish your hearts, for the
coming of the Lord draweth nigh 2." And St. Paul
in like manner, " Let your moderation be known
unto all men ; the Lord is at hand."
These instances may suffice by way of pointing
out the argument for the truth of Christianity,
which I conceive to lie in the historical difference
between the respective Schools of St. Paul and St.
James. Such a difference there is, as every one
must grant ; I mean, that St. Paul did, as a matter
of fact, begin his preaching upon his own indepen-
dent revelation. And thus, however we may be
able (as assuredly every Christian is gradually able,
in proportion to his diligence and prayer) to recon-
cile and satisfy himself as regards St. Paul's appa-
rent discordances in doctrine from the rest of the
Apostles, so much after all must remain, just
enough, that is, to build the foregoing argument
upon. At the same time, as if to ensure the histo-
1 Phil. iv. 6. 1 Pet. v. 7. Matt. vi. 34.
2 1 Pet. iv. 7. Phil. iv. 5. Jam. v. 8.
XVII.] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 225
rical harmony of the whole dispensation, we are
allowed to set against our information concerning
this separate origin of the two Apostolical Schools,
the following facts : first, that St. Paul ever con-
sidered himself ecclesiastically subordinate to the
Church at Jerusalem, and to St. James, as the book
of Acts shews us ; next, that St. John, the beloved
disciple, was appointed to outlive him, and, as a
faithful steward, to seal up, avouch, and deliver over
inviolate to the Church after him, the pure and ve-
ritable teaching of his Lord.
As to the point of doctrinal agreement and differ-
ence, which I have been employed in ascertaining,
it is scarcely necessary to observe, that beyond
controversy the agreement is in essentials, — the na-
ture and office of the Mediator, the gifts which He
vouchsafes to us, and the temper of mind and
duties required of a Christian ; whereas the differ-
ence of doctrine between them is only at the ut-
most concerning the Divine counsels, the sense in
which the Jewish law is abolished, and the condi-
tion of justification, whether faith or works. I
would not, (God forbid !) undervalue these or any
other questions on which inspiration has spoken ;
it is our duty to search diligently after every jot
and tittle of the Truth graciously revealed to us,
and to maintain it : but I am here speaking as to
an unbeliever, and he must confess that, viewing the
Gospel Creed in what may be called its historical
proportions, a difference of opinion as to these latter
VOL. n.
226 ST. PHILIP AND ST. JAMES. [SERM.
subjects cannot detract from that real and substan-
tial agreement of system, visible in the doctrines
which the Two Witnesses respectively deliver.
Next, speaking as a Christian, who will admit
neither inconsistency to exist between the inspired
documents of faith, nor points of trivial importance
in the revelation, I observe still, that the fore-
going argument affords us additional certainty re-
specting the doctrines as well as the truth of Chris-
tianity. An agreement between St. Paul and St.
John in behalf of a certain truth is an agreement
not of mere texts, but of separate Witnesses, an evi-
dence of the prominence in the system of the doc-
trine delivered. In this way, if in no other, we
learn the momentous character of some particular
tenets of revelation which heretics have denied, as
the Eternity, or (again) the Personality of the Di-
vinfe Word.
Further, we are thus permitted more clearly to
ascertain the main outlines of the Christian cha-
racter ; for instance, that love is its essence, — its
chief characteristics, resignation, and composure of
mind, neither anxious for the morrow, nor hoping
from this world, — and its duties, alms-giving, self-
denial, prayer and praise.
Lastly, the very circumstance that Almighty
God has chosen this mode of introducing the Gos-
pel into the world, opens a wide field of thought,
had we light to trace out the parallel providences
which seem to lie amid the intricacies of His deal-
XVII.] THE GOSPEL WITNESSES. 227
ing with mankind. As it is, we can but gaze with
the Apostle in wonder and adoration upon the
mystery of His counsels. "O the depth of the
riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God !
how unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways
past finding out ! For who hath known the mind
of the Lord ? Or who hath been His counsellor ?
Or who hath first given to Him, and it shall be re-
compensed unto him again ? For of Him, and
through Him, and to Him, are all things : to whom
be glory for ever. Amen V
1 Rom. xi. 33—36.
SERMON XVIIL
THE FEAST OF THE ASCENSION OF OUR LORD.
MYSTERIES IN RELIGION.
ROM. viii. 34.
It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even
at the right hand of God, who alsomaketh intercession for us.
THE Ascension of our Lord and Saviour is an
event ever to be commemorated with joy and
thanksgiving, for St. Paul tells us in the text that
He ascended to the right hand of God, and there
makes intercession for us. Hence it is our comfort
to know that " if any man sin, we have an Advo-
cate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous,
and He is the propitiation for our sins1." As the
Jewish High Priest, after the solemn sacrifice for the
people on the great day of Atonement, went into
the Holy of Holies with the blood of the victim,
and sprinkled it upon the Mercy-Seat, so Christ
has entered into Heaven itself, to present (as it
were) before the Throne that sacred Tabernacle
which was the instrument of His passion, — His
1 1 John ii. 1, 2.
SERM. XVIII.] MYSTERIES IN RELIGION. 229
pierced hands and wounded side, — in token of the
atonement which He has effected for the sins of
the world.
Wonder and awe must always mingle with the
thankfulness which the revealed dispensation of
mercy raises in our minds. And this, indeed, is an
additional cause of thankfulness, that Almighty
God has disclosed to us enough of His high Provi-
dence to raise such sacred and reverent feelings.
Had He merely told us that He had pardoned us,
we should have had overabundant cause for bless-
ing and praising Him ; but in showing us somewhat
of the means, in vouchsafing to tell what cannot
wholly be told, in condescending to abase heavenly
things to the weak and stammering tongues of
earth, He has enlarged our gratitude, yet sobered
it with fear. We are allowed with the Angels to
obtain a glimpse of the mysteries of Heaven, " to
rejoice with trembling." Therefore, so far from
considering the Truths of the Gospel a burden,
because they are beyond our understanding, we
shall rather welcome them and exult in them, nay,
and feel an antecedent stirring of heart towards
them, for the very reason that they are above us.
Under these feelings I will attempt to suggest to
you on the present Festival some of the incentives
to wonder and awe, humility implicit faith and
adoration, supplied by the Ascension of Christ.
1. First, Christ's Ascension to the right hand of
God is marvellous, because it is a sure token that
230 ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. [SERM.
heaven is a certain fixed place, and not a mere
state. That bodily presence of the Saviour which
the Apostles handled, is not here ; it is elsewhere,
it is in heaven. This contradicts the notions of
cultivated and speculative minds ; and humbles
the reason. Philosophy considers it more rational
to suppose, that Almighty God, as being a spirit,
is in every place ; and in no one place more
than another. It would teach, if it dare, that
heaven is a mere state of blessedness ; but, to
be consistent, it ought to go on to deny, with the
ancient heretics, referred to by St. John, that
11 Jesus Christ is come in the flesh," and main-
tain that His presence on earth was a mere vision ;
for, certain it is, He who appeared on earth went
up from the earth, and a cloud received Him out of
His Apostles' sight And here, again, an additional
difficulty occurs, on minutely considering the sub-
ject. Whither did He go ? beyond the sun ? be-
yond the fixed stars ? Did He traverse the immea-
surable spaces which extend beyond them all ?
Again, what is meant by ascending ? Philosophers
will say there is no difference between down and up,
as regards the sky; yet, whatever difficulties the word
may occasion, we can hardly take upon us to decide
that it is a mere popular expression, consistently
with the reverence due to the Sacred Record.
And thus we are led on to consider, how different
are the character and effect of the Scripture notices
of the history of the physical world, from those
XVIII.] MYSTERIES IN RELIGION. 231
.
which philosophers deliver. I am not deciding
whether or not the one and the other are reconcil-
able ; I merely say their respective effect is diffe-
rent. And when we have deduced what we deduce
by our reason from the study of visible nature,
and then read what we read in His inspired word,
and find the two apparently discordant, this is the
feeling I think we ought to have on our minds ; — not
an impatience to do what is beyond our powers, to
weigh evidence, sum up, balance, decide, reconcile,
to arbitrate between the two voices of God, — but a
sense of the utter nothingness of worms such as
we are, our plain and absolute incapacity to contem-
plate things as they really are, a perception of our
emptiness, before the great Vision of God, of our
" comeliness being turned into corruption, and our
retaining no strength," a conviction, that what is
put before us, whether in nature or in grace, is but
an intimation useful for particular purposes, use-
ful for practice, useful in its department, "until
the daybreak and the shadows flee away," useful
in such a way that both the one and the other may
at once be used, as two languages, as two separate
approximations towards the Awful Unknown Truth,
such as will not mislead us in their respective pro-
vinces. And thus while we use the language of
science, without jealousy, for scientific purposes, we
may confine it to these ; and repel and reprove its
upholders, should they attempt to exalt it and to
u stretch it beyond its measure." In its own
232 ASCENSION OF OUR LORD.
limited round it has its use, nay, may be made to
fill a higher ministry, and stand as a proselyte under
the shadow of the Temple ; but it must not dare
profane the inner courts, in which the ladder of
angels is fixed for ever, reaching even to the
Throne of God, and " Jesus standing on the right
hand of God."
I will but remind you on this part of the subject,
that our Lord is to come from heaven " in like man-
ner" as He went; that He is to come " in clouds,"
that " every eye shall see Him," and " all tribes of
the earth wail because of Him." Attempt to solve
this prediction, according to the received theories of
science, and you will discover their shallowness.
They are unequal to the depth of the problem.
2. I have made the foregoing remark in order to
impress upon you the mystery with which we are
encompassed all about, such as not merely to
attach to one or two truths of religion, but extend-
ing to almost every sacred fact, and to every action
of our lives. With the same view, let me observe
upon the doctrine which accompanies the fact of
the Ascension. Christ has gone up on high " to
present Himself before the face of God for us."
He has ''entered by His own blood once for all
into the Holy Place, having effected eternal re-
demption." "He ever liveth to make intercession
for those who come unto God by Him ; He hath a
priesthood which will not pass from him." " We
have such an High Priest who is set on the right
XVIII.] MYSTERIES IN RELIGION. 233
hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens ;
a Minister of the Sanctuary, and of the true Taber-
nacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man1."
These and similar passages refer us to the rites of
the Jewish law. They contain notice of the type,
but what is the Antitype ? We can give no precise
account of it. For, (Consider) why was it that
Christ ascended on high ? With what object ?
What is His work ? What is the meaning of His
interceding for us in heaven ? We know that,
whatever He does, it is the gracious reality of the
Mosaic figure. The High Priest entering with the
atoning blood into the Holiest, was a representation
of Christ's gracious deed in our behalf. But what
is that deed ? We know what the shadow is ; what
is the substance ? The death of Christ answers to
the Jewish rite of Atonement ; how does He vouch-
safe to fulfil the rite of Intercession ? Instead of
explaining, Scripture does but continue to answer
us in the language of the type ; even to the last it
veils His deed under the ancient figure2. Shall we
therefore explain away its language as merely figu-
rative, which, (as the word is now commonly un-
derstood,) is next to saying it has no meaning at all?
Far from it. Clouds and darkness are round about
Him. We are not given to see into the secret
shrine in which God dwells. Before Him stand the
Seraphim, veiling their faces. Christ is within the
1 Heb. ix. 12. 24,25. vii. 24, 25. viii. 1,2.
2 Rev. viii. 3, 4.
ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. [SERM.
veil. We must not search curiously what is His
present office, what is meant by His pleading His
sacrifice, and His perpetual intercession for us.
And, since we do not know, we will studiously keep
to the figure given us in Scripture ; we will not
attempt to interpret it, or change the wording of it,
being wise above what is written. We will not
neglect it, because we do not understand it. We
will hold it as a Mystery, or (what was anciently
called) a Truth Sacramental ; that is, a high invisi-
ble virtue lodged in an outward form, a precious
possession to be piously and thankfully guarded for
the sake of the heavenly reality contained in it.
Thus much we see in it, the pledge of a doctrine
which reason cannot understand, viz. of the influence
of the prayer of faith upon the Divine counsels.
The Intercessor directs or stays the hand of the Un-
changeable and Sovereign Governor of the World ;
being at once the meritorious cause and the earnest
of the intercessory power of His brethren. " Christ
rose again for our justification," " The effectual fer-
vent prayer of a righteous man availeth much,''
are both infinite mercies, and deep mysteries.
3. Further still, consider our Saviour's words : —
" It is expedient for you that I go away, for if I
go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you."
He does not tell us, why it was that His absence
was the condition of the Holy Spirit's presence.
"If I depart," He says, " I will send Him unto
you." tk I will pray the Father, and He shall
XVIII.] MYSTERIES IN RELIGION. 235
give you another Comforter, that He may abide
with you for ever1." To the same purpose are
the following texts : " He that believeth on Me,
the works that I do shall he do also ; arid greater
works than these shall he do, because I go unto My
Father." "If ye loved Me, ye would rejoice, be-
cause I said, I go unto the Father ; for My Father is
greater than I." " Touch Me not ; for I am not yet
ascended to My Father ; but go to My brethren, and
say unto them, I ascend unto My Father and your Fa-
ther, and to My God and your God V Now proud
and curious reason might seek to know why He could
not " pray the Father," without going to Him ; why
He must depart in order to send the Spirit. But
faith, without asking for one ray of light more than
is given, muses over the wonderful system of Provi-
dence, as seen in this world, which is ever connect-
ing events, between which man sees no necessary
bond. The whole system of what is called cause
and effect, is one of mystery ; and this instance, if
it may be called one, supplies abundant matter of
praise and adoration to a pious mind. It suggests
to us, equally with the topics which have already
come before us, how very much our knowledge of
God's ways is but on the surface. What are those
deep hidden reasons why Christ went and the Spirit
came ? Marvellous and glorious, beyond our un-
derstanding ! Let us worship in silence ; mean-
while, let us jealously maintain this and every
1 John xvi. 7. xiv. 16. 2 John xiv. 12.28. xx. 17.
ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. [SERM.
other portion of our Creed, lest, by dropping jot or
tittle, we suffer the truths concealed therein to
escape from us.
Moreover, this departure of Christ, and coming
of the Holy Ghost, leads our minds with great com-
fort to the thought of many lower dispensations of
Providence towards us. He, who according to His
inscrutable will, sent first His Co-equal Son, and
then His Eternal Spirit, acts with deep counsel,
which we may surely trust, when He sends from
place to place, those earthly instruments which
carry on His purposes. This is a thought which is
particularly soothing as regards the loss of friends;
or of especially gifted men, who seem, in their day,
the earthly support of the Church. For what we
know, their removal hence is as necessary for the
furtherance of the very objects we have at heart, as
was the departure of our Saviour.
Doubtless, " it is expedient" they should be
taken away ; otherwise, some great mercy will not
come to us. They are taken away perchance to
other duties in God's service, equally ministrative
to the salvation of the elect, as earthly service.
Christ went to intercede with the Father : we do
not know, we may not boldly speculate, — yet, it
may be, that Saints departed intercede, unknown
to us, for the victory of the Truth upon earth ; and
their prayers above may be as much indispensable
conditions of that victory, as the labours of those
who remain among us. They are taken away for
XVIII.] MYSTERIES IN RELIGION. 237
some purpose surely ; their gifts are not lost to us ;
their soaring minds, the fire of their contemplations,
the sanctity of their desires, the vigour of their
faith, were not given without an object. Yea,
doubtless, they are keeping up the perpetual chant
in the shrine above, praying and praising God day
and night in His Temple, like Moses upon the
Mount, while Joshua and his host fight with
Amalek. Can they be allotted greater blessedness,
than to have a station after the pattern of that
Saviour who is departed hence ? Has He no power
in the world's movements, because He is away ?
And though He is the Living and exalted Lord of
all, and the government is on His shoulder, and they
are but His servants, without strength of themselves,
laid up moreover apart from the conflict of good
and evil in the paradise of God, yet so much light
as this is given us by the inspired pages of the
Apocalypse, that they are interested in the fortunes
of the Church. We read therein of the Martyrs
crying with a loud voice, " How long, O Lord,
holy and true, dost Thou not judge and avenge
our blood on them that dwell on the earth?" At
another time, of the Elders "worshipping God,
saying, We give Thee thanks, O Lord . God Al-
mighty, which art, and wast, and art to come, be-
cause Thou hast taken to Thee Thy great power
and hast reigned ; and the nations were wrathful,
but Thy wrath is come." And again of the Saints,
saying, " Great and marvellous are Thy works,
238 ASCENSION OF OUR LORD. [SERM.
Lord God Almighty; just and true are Thy ways,
Thou King of Saints. Who shall not fear Thee,
O Lord, and glorify Thy name ? for Thou only art
holy ; for all nations shall come and worship before
Thee, for Thy judgments are made manifest1." Let
us not forget that, though the prophecies of this
sacred book may be still sealed up from us, yet
that the doctrines and precepts are not ; and that
we lose much both in the way of comfort and in-
struction, if we do not use it for these purposes.
What has been now said about the Ascension of
our Lord, comes to this ; that we are in a world
of mystery, with one bright Light before us, suffi-
cient for our proceeding forward through all diffi-
culties. Take away this Light, and we are utterly
wretched, — we know not where we are, how we are
sustained, what will become of us, and all that is
dear to us, what we are to believe, and why we are
in being. But with it we have all, and abound.
Not to mention the duty and wisdom of implicit
faith in the love of Him who made and redeemed
us, what is nobler, what is more elevating and
transporting, than the generosity of heart which
risks every thing on God's word, dares the powers
of evil to their worst efforts, and repels the illusions
of sense and the artifices of reason, from confidence
in the truth of Him who has ascended to the right
hand of the Majesty on high? What infinite mercy
1 Rev. vi. 10. xi. 17, 18. xv. 3,4.
XVIII.] MYSTERIES IN RELIGION. 239
it is in Him, that He allows sinners such as we are,
the privilege of acting (so to say) the part of heroes
rather than of penitents ? Who are we " that we
should be able" and have opportunity " to offer so
willingly after this sort1?" — " Blessed," surely
thrice blessed, " are they who have not seen and
yet have believed !" We will not wrish for sight ;
we will enjoy our privilege ; we will triumph in
the leave given us to go forward, ' ' not knowing
whither we go," knowing that " this is the victory
that overcometh the world, even our faith V It
is enough that our Redeemer liveth ; that He has
been on earth and will come again. On Him we
venture our all ; we can bear thankfully to put
ourselves into His hands, our interests, present and
eternal, and the interests of all we love. Christ
has died, " yea, rather is risen again, who is even
at the right hand of God, who also maketh inter-
cession for us. Who shall separate us from His
love ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution,
or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword ? Nay,
in all these things we are more than conquerors,
through Him that loved us."
1 1 Chron. xxix. 14, 2 1 John v. 4.
15
SERMON XIX,
WHIT-SUNDAY.
THE INDWELLING SPIRIT.
ROM. viii. 9.
Ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit
of God dwell in you.
GOD, the Son, has graciously vouchsafed to reveal
the Father to His creatures from without; God, the
Holy Ghost, by inward communications. Who
can compare these separate works of condescension,
either of them being beyond our understanding?
We can but silently adore, with fear and thankful-
ness, musing upon the Infinite Love which encom-
passes us on every side. The Son of God is called
the Word, as declaring His glory throughout cre-
ated nature, and impressing the evidence of it on
every part of it. He has given us to read it in His
works of goodness, holiness, and wisdom. He is
the Living and Eternal Law of Truth and Perfec-
tion, the Image of God's unapproachable Attributes,
which men have ever seen by glimpses on the face
of the world, felt that it was sovereign, but knew
SERM. XIX.] THE INDWELLING SPIRIT. 24fi
not whether to say it was a fundamental Rule and
self-existing Destiny, or the Offspring and Mirror of
the Divine Will. Such has He been from the be-
ginning, graciously sent forth from the Father to
reflect His glory upon all things, distinct from Him,
while mysteriously one with Him ; and in due time
visiting us with an infinitely deeper mercy, when He
humbled Himself to bear the form of a servant in
our nature, to redeem the fallen race whom He had
originally created after His own likeness.
The condescension of the Blessed Spirit is as in-
comprehensible, as that of the Son. He has ever
been the secret Presence of God within the creation ;
a source of life amid the chaos, bringing out into
form and order what was at first shapeless and void,
and the voice of Truth in the hearts of all rational
beings, tuning them into harmony with the inti-
mations of God's Law which were externally made
to them. Hence He is especially called the " life-
giving" Spirit ; being (so to say) the Soul of univer-
sal nature, the Strength of man and beast, the
Guide of faith, the Witness against sin, the inward
Light of patriarchs and prophets, the Grace abiding
in the Christian soul, and the Lord and Ruler of
the Church. Therefore, let us ever praise the
Father Almighty, who is the first source of all per-
fection, in and together with His Son and Spirit,
through whose gracious ministrations we have been
given to see " what manner of love" it is, where-
with the Father has loved us.
VOL. II. R
WHIT- SUNDAY. [SERM.
On this Festival I propose, (as is suitable,) to de-
scribe, as scripturally as I can, the merciful office
of God the Holy Ghost, towards us Christians ;
and I trust I may do so, with the sobriety and re-
verence which so sacred a subject demands.
The Holy Spirit has from the beginning pleaded
with man. We read in the Book of Genesis, that,
when evil began to prevail all over the earth before
the flood, " the Lord said, My Spirit shall not
always strive with man 1 ;" implying that He had
hitherto striven with his corruption. Again, when
God took to Him a peculiar people, the Holy Spirit
was pleased to be especially present with them.
Nehemiah says, "Thou gavest also Thy Good
Spirit to instruct them 2, " and Isaiah, " They re-
belled and vexed His Holy Spirit V Further, He
manifested Himself as the source of various gifts,
intellectual and extraordinary, in the Prophets.
Thus, at the time the Tabernacle was constructed,
the Lord filled Bezaleel " with the Spirit of God, in
wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge,
and in all manner of workmanship, to devise cun-
ning works 4" in metal, stone, and timber. At
another time, when Moses was oppressed with his
labours, Almighty God vouchsafed to " take of the
Spirit 5?' which was upon him, and to put it on
seventy of the elders of Israel, that they might
1 Gen. vi. 3. 2 Neh. ix. 20. 3 Is. Ixiii. 10.
4 Exod. xxxi. 3, 4. 5 Numb. xi. 17. 25.
XIX.] THE INDWELLING SPIRIT. 243
share the burden with him. " And it came to pass,
that when the Spirit rested upon them, they pro-
phesied, and did not cease." These texts will be
sufficient to remind you of many others, in which
the gifts of the Holy Ghost are spoken of as vouch-
safed to prophets and others. These were great
mercies ; yet, great as they were, they are as no-
thing compared with that overflowing grace with
which we Christians are honoured ; that great
privilege of receiving into our hearts, not the mere
gifts of the Spirit, but His very presence, Himself,
by a real not a figurative indwelling.
When our Lord entered upon His Ministry, He
acted as though He were a mere man, needing
grace, and received the consecration of the Holy
Spirit for our sakes. He became the Christ, or
Anointed, that the Spirit might be seen to come
from God, and to pass from Him to us. And,
therefore, the heavenly Gift is not simply called
the Holy Ghost, or the Spirit of God, but the Spirit
of Christ, that we might clearly understand, that
He comes to us from and instead of Christ. Thus
St. Paul says, " God hath sent forth the Spirit of
His Son into your hearts ;" and our Lord breathed
on His Apostles, saying, " Receive ye the Holy
Ghost;" and He says elsewhere to them, " If I
depart, I will send Him unto you V Accordingly,
this " Holy Spirit of promise" is called ' ' the earn-
1 Gal. iv. 6. John xx. 22. John xvi. 7.
R 2
244 WHIT-SUNDAY. [SERM.
est of our inheritance," the seal and earnest of an
Unseen Saviour *; being the present pledge of Him
who is absent, — or rather more than a pledge, for
an earnest is not a mere token which will be
taken from us when it is fulfilled, as a pledge might
be, but a something in advance of what is one day
to be given in full.
This must be clearly understood ; for it would
seem to follow, that, if so, the Comforter which has
come instead of Christ, must have vouchsafed to
come in the same sense in which Christ came ; I
mean, that He has come, not merely in the way of
gifts, or of influences, or operations, as He came to
the Prophets, for then Christ's going away would
be a loss, not a gain, and the Spirit's presence
would be a mere pledge, not an earnest, but He
comes to us as Christ came, by a real and personal
visitation. I do not say we could thus clearly have
inferred this by the mere force of the above cited
texts ; but, it being actually so revealed to us in
other texts of Scripture, we are able to see that it
may be legitimately deduced from these. We are
able to see that the Saviour, when once He entered
into this world, never so departed as to suffer things
to be as before He came ; for He still is with us,
not in mere gifts, but by the substitution of His
Spirit for Himself, and that, both in the Church,
and in the souls of individual Christians.
1 Eph.i. 14. 2 Cor. i. 22. v. 5.
XIX.] THE INDWELLING SPIRIT. 245
For instance, St. Paul says in the text, " Ye are
not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if so be that the
Spirit of God dwell in you." Again, "He shall
quicken even your mortal bodies by His Spirit that
divelleth in you." " Know ye not that your body
is the Temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you ?"
"Ye are the Temple of the Living God, as God
hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in
them." The same Apostle clearly distinguishes
between the indwelling of the Spirit, and His ac-
tual operations within us, when he says, " The love
of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy
Ghost which is given unto us ;" and again, " The
Spirit Himself beareth witness with our spirit that
we are the children of God »."
Here let us observe, before proceeding, what in-
direct evidence is afforded us in these texts of the
Divinity of the Holy Spirit. Who can be person-
ally present at once with every Christian, but God
Himself? Who but He, — not merely ruling in the
midst of the Church invisibly, as Michael might
minister as the guardian of Israel, or another Angel
as the Prince of Persia, — but really taking up His
abode in many separate hearts respectively, so as to
fulfil our Lord's words, that it was expedient that
He should depart ; His bodily presence, which was
limited to place, being exchanged for the manifold
spiritual indwelling of the Comforter within us ?
t1 Rom. viii. 9. 11. 1 Cor. vi. 19. 2 Cor. vi. 16. Rom. v. 5.
'iii. 16.
246 WHIT-SUNDAY. [SERM.
This consideration suggests both the dignity of our
Sanctifier, and the infinite preciousness of His office
towards us.
To proceed : the Holy Ghost, I have said, dwells
in body and soul, as in a Temple. Evil spirits in-
deed have power to possess sinners, but His indwell-
ing is far more perfect ; for He is all-knowing and
omnipresent, He is able to search into all our
thoughts, and penetrate into every motive of the heart.
Therefore, He pervades us (if it may be so said) as
light pervades a building, or as a sweet perfume the
folds of some honourable robe ; so that in Scripture
language, we are said to be in Him, and He in us.
It is plain that such an inhabitation brings the
Christian into a state altogether new and marvel-
lous, far above the possession of mere gifts, exalts
him inconceivably in the scale of beings, and gives
him a place and an office which he had not before.
In St. Peter's forcible language, he becomes " par-
taker of the Divine Nature," and has " power" or
authority (as St. John says,) " to become the son of
God." Or to use the words of St. Paul, " he is a
new creation ; old things are passed away, behold
all things are become new." His rank is new ; His
parentage and service new. He is " of God, and
is not his own," " a vessel unto honor, sanctified
and meet for the Master's use, and prepared unto
every good work 1."
1 2 Pet. i. 4. John i. 12. 2 Cor. v. 17. 1 Cor. vi. 19, 20.
2 Tim. ii. 21.
XIX.] THE INDWELLING SPIRIT. 247
This blessed change from darkness to light,
through the entrance of the Spirit into the soul, is
called Regeneration, or, the New Birth ; a blessing,
which before Christ's coming, not even Prophets
and righteous men possessed, but which is now
conveyed to all men freely through the Sacrament
of Baptism. By nature we are children of wrath ;
the heart is sold under sin, possessed by evil spirits,
and (in the Apostle's language) " a cage of unclean
birds1." But by the coming of the Holy Ghost, all
guilt and pollution are burned away as by fire, the
devil is driven forth, sin, original and actual, is
forgiven, and the whole man is consecrated to God.
And hence it is, that He is called " the earnest" of
that Saviour, who died for us, and will one day give
us the fulness of His own presence in Heaven. Hence
too He is our " seal unto the day of redemption;"
for as the potter moulds the clay, so He impresses
the Divine Image on us members of the household
of God. And His work may truly be called Rege-
neration, for though the nature of the soul is not
changed, yet its transgressions are pardoned once
and for ever, and its source of evil staunched and
gradually dried up by the pervading Health and
Purity which has set up its abode in it. Instead of
its own bitter waters, a spring of health and salvation
is brought within it ; not the mere streams of that
fountain, " clear as crystal," which is before the
Throne of God 2, but (as our Lord says,) " a well of
1 Rev. xviii. 2. 2 Rev. iv. 6. Ps. xlvi. 4.
248 WHIT-SUNDAY. [SEEM.
water in him," in a man's heart, " springing up
into everlasting life." Hence He elsewhere de-
scribes the heart as giving forth, not receiving, the
streams of grace; "Out of his belly shall flow
rivers of Living Water." St. John adds, "this
spake He of the Spirit1."
Such is the inhabitation of the Holy Ghost within
us, applying to us individually, the precious clean-
sing of Christ's blood in all its manifold benefits.
Next, let us consider how this Gift of grace mani-
fests itself in the regenerate soul.
1. It fixes the eyes of our mind upon the Divine
Author of our salvation. By nature we are blind
and carnal ; but the Holy Ghost reveals to us the
God of mercies, and bids us recognize and adore
Him as our Father with a true heart. In Adam's
fall, all his descendants lost the image of God ;
but the Spirit by which we are new born, impresses
on us again our Heavenly Father's likeness, and
disposes us to seek His presence by the very in-
stinct of our new nature. He unites us to all holy
beings, as before we had relationship with evil. He
restores for us that broken bond, which proceeding
from above, connects together into one blessed
family all that is any where holy and eternal, and
separates it off from the rebel world which comes
to nought. Being then the sons of God, and one
with Him, our souls mount up to Him, and cry
1 Johniv. 14. vii. 38, 39.
XIX.] THE INDWELLING SPIRIT. 249
continually. This special characteristic of the re-
generate soul is spoken of by St. Paul soon after the
text. " Ye have received the Spirit of adoption,
whereby we cry, Abba, Father." Nor are we left
to utter these cries to Him, in any vague uncertain
way of our own ; but He who sent the Spirit to
dwell in us habitually, gave us also a form of words
to sanctify the separate acts of our minds. Christ
left His sacred Prayer to be the peculiar possession
of His people, and the very voice of the Spirit. If we
examine it, we shall find in it the substance of that
doctrine, to which St. Paul has given a name in the
passage just quoted. We begin it by using our
privilege of calling on Almighty God in express
words as "our Father." We proceed, according
to this beginning, in that waiting, trusting, ador-
ing, resigned temper, which children ought to feel ;
looking towards Him, rather than thinking of our-
selves ; zealous for His honour, rather than fearful
about our safety ; resting in His present help, not
timorously glancing towards the future. His name,
His kingdom, His will, are the great objects for the
Christian to contemplate and make his portion, being
stable and serene, and " complete in Him," as be-
seems one who has the gracious presence of His
Spirit within him. And, when he goes on to think of
himself, he prays, that he may be enabled to have to-
wards others what God has shown towards himself, a
spirit of forgiveness and loving kindness. Thus he
pours himself out on all sides, first looking up to
250 WHIT-SUNDAY. [SERM.
catch the heavenly gift, but, when he gains it, not
keeping it to himself, but diffusing " rivers of liv-
ing^vater," to the whole race of man, thinking of
self as little as may be, and desiring ill and de-
struction to nothing but that principle of tempta-
tion and evil, which is rebellion against God ; lastly
ending, as he began, with the contemplation of His
kingdom, power, and glory everlasting. This is
the true " Abba, Father," which the Spirit of
adoption utters within the Christian heart, the infal-
lible voice of Him who " maketh intercession for
the Saints in God's way." And if he has at times
(say, amid trial or affliction,) special visitations and
comfortings from the Spirit, " plaints unutterable,"
yearnings after the life to come, or bright and pass-
ing gleams of God's eternal election, and deep
stirrings of wonder and thankfulness thence follow-
ing, he thinks too reverently of " the secret of the
Lord," to betray (as it were) His confidence, and
by vaunting it to the world to exaggerate it per-
chance into more than it was meant to convey ; but
is silent, and ponders it as choice encouragement to
his soul, meaning something, but he knows not how
much.
2. The indwelling of the Holy Ghost raises the
soul, not only to the thought of God, but of Christ
also. St. John says, " Truly our fellowship is with
the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ." And
our Lord Himself, " If a man love Me, he will
keep My words ; and My Father will love him, and
15
XIX.] THE INDWELLING SPIRIT. 251
We will come unto him, and make our abode with
him V Now, not to speak of other and higher ways
in which these texts are fulfilled, one surely consists
in that exercise of faith and love in the thought of
the Father and Son, which the Gospel, and the Spirit
revealing it, furnish to the Christian. The Spirit
came especially to " glorify" Christ; and vouch-
safes to be a shining Light within the Church and the
individual Christian, reflecting the Saviour of the
world in all His perfections, all His offices, all His
works. Coming for the purpose of unfolding what
was yet hidden, while Christ was on earth, He speaks
on the house-tops what was delivered in closets,
disclosing Him in the glories of His transfiguration,
who once had no comeliness in His outward form,
and was but a man of sorrows and acquainted with
grief. To this end He inspired the Holy Evange-
lists to record the life of Christ ; He directed them
which of His words and works to select, which to
omit ; and He has (as it were) commented upon
these and unfolded their meaning in the Apostolic
Epistles. The birth, the life, the death and resur-
rection of Christ, has been the text which He has
illuminated. He has made history to be doctrine ;
telling us plainly, whether by St. John or St. Paul,
that Christ's conception and birth was the real In-
carnation of the Eternal Word, His life, " God
1 1 John i. 3. John xiv. 23,
252 WHIT-SUNDAY. [SBRM.
manifest in the Flesh," His death and resurrection,
the Atonement for sin, and the Justification of all
believers. Nor was this all : He continued His
sacred comment in the building of the Church,
bringing out our Saviour's words and works, and
the Apostle's illustrations of them, into acts of obe-
dience and permanent ordinances, by the ministry
of Saints and Martyrs. Lastly, He completes His
gracious work by conveying this system of Truth to
the heart of each individual Christian in whom He
dwells. Thus He vouchsafes to edify the whole
man in faith and holiness; " casting down imagi-
nations and every high thing that exalteth itself
against the knowledge of God, and bringing into
captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ1."
By His wonder-working grace all things tend to
perfection. Every faculty of the mind, every de-
sign, pursuit, subject of thought, is hallowed in its
degree by the abiding vision of Christ, as Lord,
Saviour, and Judge. All solemn, reverent, thank-
ful, and devoted feelings, all that is noble, all that
is choice in the regenerate soul, all that is self-de-
nying in conduct, and zealous in action, is drawn
forth and offered up by the Spirit as a living sacri-
fice to the Son of God. And, though the Christian is
taught not to think of himself above his measure, and
dare not boast, yet he is also taught that the consci-
ousness of sin should not separate him from God, but
1 2 Cor. x. 5.
XIX.] THE INDWELLING SPIRIT. 253
lead him to Him who can save ; he reasons, with St.
Peter, " To whom should he go?" and, without
daring to decide, or being impatient to be told, how
far he is personally able to appropriate the Gospel
privileges in their fulness, he gazes on them with
deep thought as the Church's possession, joins her
triumphant hymns in honour of Christ, and listens
wistfully to her voice in inspired Scripture, the voice
of the Bride calling upon and blest in the Beloved.
3. St. John adds, after speaking of " our fellow-
ship with the Father and His Son;" " These things
write we unto you, that your joy may be full." What
is fulness of joy but peace ? Joy is tumultuous only
when it is not full ; but peace is the privilege of those
who are " filled with the knowledge of the glory
of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." " Thou
wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is
stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee1." It
is peace, springing from trust and innocence, and
then overflowing in love towards all around him.
What is the effect of mere animal ease and enjoy-
ment, but to make a man pleased with every thing
which happens ? " A merry heart is a perpetual
feast ;" and such is peculiarly the blessing of a soul
rejoicing in the faith and fear of God. He who is
anxious, thinks of himself, is jealous of danger,
speaks hurriedly, and has no time for the interests
of others ; he who lives in peace is at leisure, where-
1 Is. xxvi. 3.
254 WHIT-SUNDAY. [SERM.
ever his lot is cast. Such is the work of the Holy
Spirit in the heart, whether in Jew or Greek, bond
or free. He Himself perchance in His mysterious
nature, is the Eternal Love whereby the Father and
the Son have dwelt in each other, as ancient writers
have believed ; and what He is in Heaven, that He
is abundantly on earth. He lives in the Christian's
heart, as the never-failing fount of charity, which
is the very sweetness of the living waters. Where
He is, there is liberty from the tyranny of sin, from
the dread of an offended, unreconciled Creator.
Doubt, gloom, impatience are expelled ; joy in the
Gospel takes their place, the hope of Heaven, and
the harmony of a pure heart, the triumph of self-
mastery, sober thoughts, and a contented mind.
How can charity towards all men fail to follow,
being the mere affectionateness of innocence and
peace ? Who shall fitly describe this blissful state
of mind into which the Spirit of God moulds us,
the simplicity and warmth of heart which children
have ! O marvellous design of grace ! How are
high and low joined together in God's mysterious
work ! For what are implicit trust, ardent love,
abiding purity, but the mind both of little children
and of the adoring Seraphim !
Thoughts, such as these, will affect us rightly, if
they make us fear and be watchful, while we rejoice.
They cannot surely do otherwise ; for the mind of a
Christian, as I have been attempting to describe it, is
not so much what we have, as what we ought to have.
XIX.] THE INDWELLING SPIRIT. 255
To look indeed, after dwelling on it, upon the multi-
tude of men who have been baptized in Christ's
name, is too serious a matter, and we need not force
ourselves to do so. We need not do so, further than
to pray for them, and to protest and strive against
what is evil among them ; for as to the higher and
more solemn thought, how persons, set apart indi-
vidually and collectively, as Temples of Truth and
Holiness, should become what they seem to be, and
what their state is in consequence in God's sight,
is a question, which it is a great blessing to be
allowed to put from us as riot our concern. It is
our concern only to look to ourselves, and to see
that as we have received the gift, we " grieve not the
Holy Spirit of God, whereby we are sealed unto the
day of redemption ;" remembering that " if any man
destroy the temple of God, him shall God destroy."
This reflection, and the recollection of our many
backslidings, will ever keep us, please God, from
judging others, or from priding ourselves on our
privileges. Let us but consider how we have
fallen from the light and grace of our baptism.
Were we now what that Holy Sacrament made us,
we might ever " go on our way rejoicing;" but
having sullied our heavenly garments, in one way
or other, in a greater or less degree, (God knoweth !
and our own consciences too in a measure,) alas !
the Spirit of Adoption has in part receded from us,
and the sense of guilt, remorse, sorrow, and peni-
tence must take His place. We must renew our
256 WHIT-SUNDAY. [SERM. XIX.
confession, and seek afresh our absolution day by
day, before we dare call upon God as "our Father,"
or offer up psalms and intercessions to Him. And,
whatever of pain and affliction meets us through
life, we must take it as a merciful penance imposed
by a Father upon erring children, to be borne
meekly and thankfully, and as intended to remind
us of the weight of that infinitely greater punish-
ment, which was our desert by nature, and which
Christ bore for us on the Cross.
SERMON XX.
WHIT-MONDAY.
THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS.
DAN. ii. 35.
The stone that smote the Image became a great Mountain, and
filled the whole earth.
DOUBTLESS, could we see the course of God's Dis-
pensations in this world, as the Angels see them,
we should not be able to deny that it was His un-
seen hand that ordered them. Even the most pre-
sumptuous sinner would find it hopeless to withstand
the marks of Divine Agency in them ; and would
"believe and tremble." This is what moves the
Saints in the Apocalypse, to praise and adore Al-
mighty God, — the view of His wonderful works seen
as a whole from first to last. " Great and marvel-
lous are Thy works, Lord God Almighty ; just and
true are Thy ways, Thou King of Saints ! Who shall
not fear Thee, O Lord, and glorify Thy name1?"
1 Rev. xv. 3, 4.
VOL. II. S
258 WHIT-MONDAY. [SP.RM.
And perchance such a contemplation of the Pro-
vidences of God, whether in their own personal
history, or in the affairs of their own country, or
of the Church, or of the world at large, may be one
of the blessed employments of God's elect in the In-
termediate State. However, even to us sinners, who
have neither secured our crown like the Saints de-
parted, much less are to be compared to the Angels
who " excel in strength, that do His commandments,
hearkening unto the voice of His Word1," even to
us is vouchsafed some insight into God's Providence,
by means of the records of it. History and Prophecy
are given us as informants, and reflect various lights
upon His Attributes and Will, whether separately or
in combination. The text suggests to us an especial
instance of this privilege, in the view allowed us of
the introduction and propagation of the Gospel ;
and it will be fitting, at this season of the year,
when we especially commemorate its first public
manifestation, in the Holy Ghost's descent upon the
Apostles, to make some remarks upon the wonder-
ful Providence of God as seen in it.
The words of Daniel in the text form part of the
disclosure he was inspired to make to Nebuchad-
nezzar, of the dream that " troubled" him. After
describing the great Image, with a head of fine
gold, arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass, legs
of iron, and feet of iron and clay, by which were
1 Ps. ciii. 20.
XX.] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 259
signified the four Empires which preceded the com-
ing of Christ, he goes on to foretell the rise of Christ-
ianity in these words : " Thou sawest till that a stone
was cut out without hands, which smote the Image
upon his feet, which were of iron and clay, and
brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay,
the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken in pieces
together, and became like the chaff," heavy and
costly as the metals were, they became as light as
chaff " of the summert hreshingfloors, and the wind
carried them away. . . . And the stone that smote the
Image, became a great Mountain, and filled the
whole earth."
Afterwards, he adds this interpretation ; "In
the days of these kings, shall the God of Heaven
set up a Kingdom which shall neVer be destroyed ;
and the Kingdom shall not be left to other people,
but it shall break in pieces, and consume all these
kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever."
This prophecy of Daniel is fulfilled among us,
at this day. We know it is so. Those four idol
kingdoms are gone, and the Kingdom of Christ,
made without human hands, remains, and is our
own blessed portion. But to speak thus summarily,
is scarcely to pay due honour to God's work, or to
reap the full benefit of our knowledge of it. Let us
then, look into the details of this great Providence,
the history of the Gospel Dispensation.
V 1. Observe, what it was that took place. There
have been many kingdoms before and since Christ
s 2
260 WHIT-MONDAY. [SKRM.
came, which have been set up and extended by the
sword. This, indeed, is the only way in which
earthly power grows. Wisdom and skill direct its
movements, but the arm of force is the instrument
of its aggrandisement. And an unscrupulous con-
science, a hard heart, and guilty deeds, are the
usual attendants upon its growth ; which is, in one
form or other, but usurpation, invasion, conquest,
and tyranny. It rises against its neighbours, and
increases by external collisions and a visible exten-
sion. But the propagation of the Gospel, was the
internal developement of one and the same prin-
ciple in various countries at once, and therefore
may be suitably called, invisible, and not of this
world. The Jewish Nation did not " push west-
ward, and northward, and southward ;" but a
spirit went out from its Church into all lands, and
wherever it came, there a new Order of things
forthwith arose in the bosom of strangers ; arose
simultaneously, independently in each place, and
recognising its fellows in other places only when
they were already brought into existence. We
know indeed that the Apostles were the instru-
ments, the secret emissaries (so to say) of this
work ; but, I am speaking of the appearance of
things, as a heathen might regard them. Who
among the wise men or the disputers of this world,
will take account of a few helpless men wandering
about from place to place, and preaching a new
doctrine ? It never can be believed, it is impossible
XX.] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 261
that they should be the real agents of the revolution
which followed. So we maintain, and this world's
philosophy must be consistent enough to agree
with us. It looked down upon the Apostles in
their day ; it said they could effect nothing ; let
it say the same thing now in common fairness.
Surely to the philosophy of this world it must
appear as absurd to ascribe great changes to such
weak vessels, as to attribute them to some imaginary
unseen agents, to the heavenly hosts whose exist-
ence it disbelieves. As it would account the hypo-
thesis of Angelic interference gratuitous, so did it
then, and must still, pronounce that of the Apos-
tles' efforts insufficient. Its own witness in the
beginning becomes our evidence now.x Dismissing
then the thought of the feeble and despised preach-
ers, who went to and fro, let us see what really
happened. In the midst of a great Empire, such
as the world had never seen, powerful and crafty
beyond all former empires, more extensive, and
better organized, suddenly a new Kingdom arose.
Suddenly in every part of this well-cemented Em-
pire, in the East and West, North and South, as if
by some general understanding, yet, without any
sufficient system of correspondence or centre of
influence, ten thousand orderly societies, professing
the same principles, and disciplined upon the same
polity, sprang up as from the earth. It seemed
as though the fountains of the great deep were
broken up, and some new forms of creation were
262 WHIT-MONDAY. [SERM.
thrown up from below, the manifold ridges of some
" great Mountain," crossing, splitting, disarrang-
ing the existing system of things, levelling the hills,
filling up the valleys, — irresistible as being sudden,
unforeseen, arid unprovided for, — till it "filled the
whole earth." This was indeed a " new thing;"
and, independent of all reference to prophecy, is
unprecedented in the history of the world before
or since, and calculated to excite the deepest inte-
rest and amazement in any really philosophical
mind. Throughout the kingdoms and provinces
of Rome, while all things looked as usual, the sun
rising and setting, the seasons continuing, men's
passions swaying them as from the beginning, their
thoughts set on their worldly business, or their
gain, or their pleasures, on their ambitious pros-
pects and quarrels, warrior measuring his strength
with warrior, politicians plotting, and kings ban-
quetting, suddenly this portent came as a snare upon
the whole earth. Suddenly, men found themselves
encompassed with foes, as a camp surprised by
night. And the nature of this hostile host was
still more strange, (if possible) than the coming of
it. It was not a foreigner who invaded them,
not barbarian from the north, nor a rising of slaves,
nor an armament of pirates, but the enemy rose up
from among themselves. The first-born in every
house " from the first-born of Pharaoh on the
throne, to the first-born of the captive in the dun-
geon," unaccountably found himself enlisted in the
XX.] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 263
ranks of this new power, and estranged from his
natural friends. Their brother, the son of their
mother, the wife of their bosom, the friend that was
as their own soul, these were the sworn soldiers
of the " mighty army," that " covered the face
of the whole earth." Next, when they began to
interrogate this enemy of Roman greatness, they
found no vague profession among them, no varying
account of themselves, no irregular and uncertain
plan of action or conduct. They were all mem-
bers of strictly and similarly organized societies.
Every one in his own district was the subject of a
new state, of which there was one visible head, and
officers under him. These small kingdoms were
indefinitely multiplied, each of them the fellow of
the other. Wherever the Roman Emperor tra-
velled, there he found these seeming rivals of his
power, the Bishops of the Church. Further, they
one and all refused to obey his orders, and the pre-
scriptive laws of Rome, so far as religion was con-
cerned. The authority of the Pagan Religion,
which in the minds of Romans was identified with
the history of their greatness, was plainly set at
nought by these upstart monarchies. At the same
time they professed and observed a singular
patience and subjection to the civil powers. They
did not stir hand or foot in self-defence ; they sub-
mitted to die, nay, accounted death the greatest
privilege that could be inflicted on them. And
further, they avowed one and all the same doctrine
264 WHIT-MONDAY. [SERM.
clearly and boldly ; and they professed to receive
it from one and the same source. They traced it
up through the continuous line of their Bishops, to
certain twelve or fourteen Jews, who professed to
have received it from Heaven. Moreover, they
were bound one to another by the closest ties of
fellowship ; the society of each place to its ruler,
and their rulers one with another by an intimate
alliance all over the earth. And lastly, in spite of
persecution from without, and occasional dissen-
sions from within, they so prospered, that within
three centuries from their first appearance in the
Empire, they forced its sovereigns to become mem-
bers of their confederation ; nay, nor ended there,
but, as the civil power declined in strength, they
became its patrons instead of its victims, mediated
between it and its barbarian enemies, and after
burying it in peace when its hour came, took its
place, won over the invaders, subdued their kings,
Xand at length ruled as supremeTruled, united under
one.head, in the very scenes of their former suffer-
ingfin the territory of the Empire, with Rome itself,
the seat of the Imperial government, as a centre. I
am not entering into the question of doctrine, any
more than of prophecy. I am not inquiring how
far this victorious Kingdom was by this time per-
verted from its original character; but only direct-
ing attention to the historical phenomenon. How
strange then is the course of the Dispensation !
Five centuries compass the rise and fall of other
XX.] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 265
kingdoms ; but ten were not enough for the full
aggrandisement of this. Its sovereignty was but
commencing, when other powers have run their
course and are exhausted. And now to this day,
that original Dynasty, begun by the Apostles, en-
dures. Through all changes of civil affairs, of race,
of language, of opinion, the succession of Rulers
then begun, has lasted on, and still represents in
every country its original founders. " Instead of its
fathers, it has had children, who have been princes
in all lands." Truly, this is the vision of a " stone
cut out without hands' " smiting" the idols of the
world, " breaking them in pieces," scattering them
" like chaff," and, in their place "filling the whole
earth." If there be a Moral Governor over the
world, is there not something unearthly in all this,
something which we are forced to refer to Him from
its marvellousness, something, which from its dig-
nity and greatness bespeaks His hand ?
2. Now, with this wonderful phenomenon before
us, let us consider well the language of Christ and
His Apostles. In the very infancy of their King-
dom, while travelling through the cities of Israel,
or tossed to and fro as outcasts among the heathen,
they speak confidently, solemnly, calmly, of its
destined growth and triumph. Observe our Lord's
language; " Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the
Gospel of the Kingdom of God, and saying, The
time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at
hand ; repent ye, and believe the Gospel." Again,
236 WHIT-MONDAY. [SEEM.
4 ' Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build
My Church ; and the gates of hell shall not pre-
vail against it.7' " I appoint unto you a Kingdom,
as My Father hath appointed unto Me ; that ye
may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom,
and sit on thrones, judging the Twelve Tribes of
Israel." " The Kingdom of Heaven is like to a
grain of mustard seed, which a man took and
sowed in his field ; which indeed is the least of all
seeds, but, when it is grown, it is the greatest among
herbs, and become th a tree, so that the birds of the
air come and lodge in the branches thereof." Is it
possible to doubt that Christ contemplated in these
words the overshadowing sovereignty* of His king-
dom ? Let it be observed that the figure used is the
same applied by Daniel to the Assyrian Empire.
" The tree that thou sawest," he says to Nebuchad-
nezzar, " which grew and was strong .... upon
whose branches the fowls of the Heaven had their
habitation, it is thou, O King." How wondrously
was the parallel prophecy fulfilled, when the mighty
men of the earth fled for refuge to the Holy
Church! Again, " Go ye into all the world, and
preach the Gospel to every creature. He that
believeth and is baptized shall be saved ; but he
that believeth not shall be damned V With what
" authority" He speaks ! What majestic simplicity,
1 Mark i. 14, 15. Matt. xvi. 18. Luke xxii. 29, 30. Matt,
xiii. 31, 32. Dan. iv. 20. 22. Mark vi. 15, 16.
XX.] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 267
what unhesitating resolve, what commanding supe-
riority is in His words ! Reflect upon them in con-
nection with the event.
On the other hand, consider in what language Ufc
speaks of that disorganization of society, which was
to attend the establishment of His Kingdom. " I
am come to send fire on the earth ; and what will
I, if it be already kindled ? But I have a baptism
to be baptized with, and now am I straitened till it
be accomplished !" " Think not that I am come to
send peace on earth; I came not to send peace, but
a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance
against his father, and the daughter against her
mother, and the daughter-in-law against the mother-
in-law ; and a man's foes shall be they of his own
household." lt The brother shall betray the brother
to death, and the father the son ; and children shall
rise up against their parents, and shall cause them
to be put to death ; and ye shall be hated of all
men for My name's sake. ... In those days, after
that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the
moon shall not give her light, and the stars of
heaven shall fall, and the powers of heaven shall
be shaken 1." In the last words, whatever difficulty
there may be in the chronological arrangement, is
contained a clear announcement under the recog-
nised prophetical symbols, of the destruction, sooner
or later, of existing political institutions. In like
1 Luke xii. 49, 50. Matt. x. 34—36. Mark xiii. 12, 13. 24, 25.
15
268 WHIT-MONDAY. [SERM.
manner, observe how St. Paul takes for granted the
troubles which were coming on the earth, and the
rise of the Christian Church amidst them, and rea-
sons on all this as if already realized. " Now hath
He promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the
earth only, but also heaven. And this word, yet
once more, signifieth the removing of those things
that are shaken, as of things that are made, that
those things which cannot be shaken may re-
main. Wherefore we receiving a Kingdom which
cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we
may serve God acceptably with reverence and
godly fear1."
The language, of which the above is but a speci-
men, is the more remarkable, because neither Christ
nor His Apostles looked forward to these wonderful
changes with exultation, but with a deep feeling of
mingled joy and sadness, as foreboding those miser-
able corruptions in the Church, which all Christians
allow to have since taken place, though they may
differ in their account of them. ' ' Because iniquity
shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold . . .
There shall arise false Christs and false prophets,
and shall show great signs and wonders ; insomuch
that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the
very elect. Behold, I have told you before." " In
the last days, perilous times shall come. For men
shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boas-
1 Hebr. xii. 26 — 28.
XX.] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 269
ters, . . . traitors, heady, highminded, . . . having
a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof.
. . . Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and
worse, deceiving and being deceived V
Now, if we had nothing more to bring forward
than the two considerations which have been here
insisted on, the singular history of Christianity, and
the clear and confident anticipation of it by its first
preachers, we should have enough of evidence, one
would think, to subdue the most difficult inquirer
to a belief of its divinity. But, to-morrow we
will see, please God, whether something may not be
added to the above view of it.
1 Matt. xxiv. 12. 24, 25. 2 Tim. iii. 1—5. 13.
SERMON XXL
WHIT-TUESDAY.
THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS.
DAN. ii. 35.
The stone that smote the Image, became a great Mountain,
and filled the whole earth.
YESTERDAY I drew your notice to the outlines of
the history of the Church, and the clear and precise
anticipation of it, by our Lord and His Apostles.
The Gospel Dispensation is confessedly a singular
phenomenon in human affairs ; singular, whether
we consider the extent it occupies in history, the
harmony of its system, the consistency of its design,
its contrariety to the existing course of things, and
success in spite of that contrariety, and lastly, the
avowed intention of its first preachers to effect those
objects, which it really has attained. They pro-
fessed to be founding a Kingdom ; a new Kingdom,
different from any that had been before, as disclaim-
ing the use of force, — in this world, yet not of this
world, — while it was to be of an aggressive and en-
croaching character, an empire of conquest and
SERM.XXT.] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS.
aggrandizement, destroying all former powers, and
itself standing for ever. Infidels often object to us,
that our interpretation of the Scripture prophecies
concerning Christ's Kingdom, is after all but allego-
rical, and therefore evasive. Not so ; we are on the
whole willing to take our stand on their literal fulfil-
ment. Christ preached that "the kingdom of God
was at hand." He founded it, and made Peter and
the other Apostles His Vice-gerents in it after His
departure, and He announced its indefinite extension,
and its unlimited duration. And, in matter of fact,
it exists to this day, with its government vested in
the very dynasty which His Apostles began, and its
territory spread over more than the world then
known to the Jews ; with varying success indeed in
times and places, and varying consistency and
unanimity within ; yet, after making every allow-
ance for such partial failures, strictly a visible
power, with a political influence founded on invisible
pretensions. Thus the anticipations of its founders
are unparalleled in their novelty, their boldness,
and their correctness. To continue our review.
3. If the Christian Church has spread its
branches high and wide over the earth, its roots are
fixed as deep below the surface. The intention of
Christ and His Apostles, on which I have dwelt, is
itself but the accomplishment of ancient prophecy.
First, let it be observed that there was an exist-
ing belief among the heathen, at the time of its
rise, that out of the East a new, Empire of the world
WHIT-TUESDAY. [SERM.
was destined to issue1. This rumour, however
originating, was known at Rome, the then seat of
dominion, and is recorded by a Roman historian.
Next, it became matter, (as it would seem,) for
heathen poetry. The most celebrated of Roman
poets has foretold the coining of a new Kingdom of
peace and righteousness under the rule of a divine
and divinely favoured King, who was to be born into
the world. Could it be maintained that he wrote
from his own imagination, not from existing tradi-
tions, this would not at all diminish the marvel, as
not in any measure tending to account for it. In that
case, the poet would but take his place among the
Prophets. Further, if we admit St. Matthew's tes-
timony, which we have no excuse for doubting, we
must believe, that, just at the time of Christ's birth,
certain Eastern Sages came to Jerusalem in search
of a child, of whom they expected great things, and
whom they desired to worship in His cradle. " And
lastly, another Eastern Sage, fourteen hundred
years before, had declared, heathen though he was,
and uninterested in the event, that " a Star should
come out of Jacob, and a Sceptre should rise out of
Israel, . . . that out of Jacob should come He that
should have dominion2." Now, whether this last
prophecy be faithfully recorded by Moses or not,
so far is clear, (and not a little remarkable,) that
1 Vid. Horsley's Dissertation on the Prophecies among the
Heathen.
2 Numb. xxiv. 17. 19.
XXL] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 273
the Jewish traditions concerning the expected Em-
pire profess to take their rise in heathen sources ].
It is a clear coincidence with the fact, already ad-
verted to, of the prevalence of such predictions
among the heathen at the time of Christ's coming.
While such was the testimony of enemies and
strangers to this destined rise of a prosperous
Empire from Judaea, much more full and varied are
the predictions of it delivered by the natives of
lat country themselves. These, as contained in our
loly books, have been again and again illustrated
)y Christian writers, and neither need nor admit of
enumeration here. I will but cite one or two pas-
sages by way of reminding you of them. " Ask of
Me, and I shall give Thee the heathen for Thine
inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth
for Thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a
rod of iron ; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a
potter's vessel." " Gird Thy sword upon Thy
thigh, O most Mighty, with Thy glory and Thy
majesty. And in Thy majesty ride prosperously,
because of truth, and meekness, and righteousness ;
and Thy right hand shall teach Thee terrible things.
Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the King's
enemies, whereby the people fall under Thee . . .
Instead of Thy fathers shall be Thy children, whom
1 Gen. xlix. 10, does not speak of conquest or empire, so
clearly as to constitute an exception ; much less Gen. xii. 2, 3.
and xxviii. 14, which could scarcely be so interpreted, except after
other prophecies.
VOL. II. T
274 WHIT-TUESDAY. [SERM.
Thou mayest make princes in all the earth." "The
Lord shall send the rod of Thy strength out of
Zion ; rule Thou in the midst of Thine enemies . . .
The Lord at Thy right hand shall strike through
kings in the day of His wrath." " It shall come
to pass in the last days, that the Mountain of the
Lord's House shall be established in the top of the
mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills ;
and all nations shall flow unto it ; . . . Out of Zion
shall go forth the Law, and the Word of the Lord
from Jerusalem. And He shall judge among the
nations, and shall rebuke many people ; and they
shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their
spears into pruning hooks ; nation shall not lift up
sword against nation, neither shall they learn war
any more. " ' ' It is a light thing that Thou shouldest
be My servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and
to restore the preserved of Israel. I will also give
Thee for a light to the Gentiles, that Thou shouldest
be My salvation unto the end of the earth." And
almost in the same words, the aged Simeon recog-
nises in the infant Jesus, the Lord's promised "sal-
vation, a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory
of His people Israel 1." In these passages the pre-
dictions of bloody revolution and of peace, are as
strangely combined, as in our Lord's account of His
Kingdom, as being at once a refuge and consolation,
and a sword. Maintain, if you will, that they have
1 Ps. ii. 8, 9. xlv. 3—5. 16. ex. 2, 5. Is. ii. 2—4. xlix. 6.
Luke ii. 30—32.
XXI.] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 275
not hitherto been so fully accomplished in its history
as is conceivable ; yet, in matter of fact, has not this
marvel of a twofold character been in such measure
realized, as substantially answers to the words of the
prediction ? Consider only the wars and tumults
of the middle ages, of which the Church was the
occasion, and at the same time, its salutary influ-
ence upon the fierce and lawless soldiers who filled
the thrones of Europe. Take the Prophecy, take
the History ; and say fairly, whether, in accordance
with the Scripture prospect, we do not actually
find in the centuries I speak of, a political power,
making vassals of the kings of the earth, humbling
them beneath its feet, affording matter of endless
strife, yet acting as the very bond of peace, as far
as peace was really attained. How truly have ' ' the
sons of them that afflicted" the Church, ' ' come bend-
ing unto her ; and they that despised her, bowed
themselves at the soles of her feet1," and " the
enemies of Christ been made His footstool !"
It may help us in entering into the state of the
case to consider what our surprise would be, did we
in the course of our researches into history, find any
resemblance to this prophetic forecast in the annals
of other kingdoms. Even one poor coincidence in
the history of Rome, viz. of the anticipated and the
actual duration of its greatness, does not fail to
astonish us. We know that even before the Christian
1 Is. lx. 14.
T 2
276 WHIT-TUESDAY. [SERM.
era, it was the opinion of the Roman Augurs, that
the twelve vultures which Romulus had seen pre-
vious to the foundation of the city, represented the
twelve centuries, assigned as the limit of its power ;
an anticipation which was singularly fulfilled by
the event1. Yet what is this solitary fact to
the series of varied and circumstantial prophecies
which ushered in, and were fulfilled in Christianity ?
Extend the twelve centuries of Roman dominion to
an additional half of that period, preserve its mo-
narchical form inviolate from aristocratic or popu-
lar innovation from first to last, and trace back the
predictions concerning it, through an antecedent
period, nearly of the same duration, and then you
will have assimilated its history — not altogether,
but in one or two of its features, to the character-
istics of the Gospel Dispensation. As it is, this
Roman wonder only serves to assist the imagination
in embracing the marvellousness of those systematic
prophecies concerning Christ's Kingdom, which,
from their number, variety, succession, and contem-
porary influence, may be accounted in themselves,
and without reference to their fulfilment, a complete
dispensation .
4. Lastly, the course of Providence co-operated
with this scheme of prophecy; God's word and hand
went together. The state of the Jews for the last
four hundred years before Christ was a preparation
- Vid. Gibbon, ch. xxxv. fin.
XXL] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 277
deliberately carried on for that which was to follow ;
just as the wanderings of Abraham and his heirs,
the descent into Egypt, and the captivity there, for
the same period, constituted a process introductory
to the establishment of the Jewish Church. Con-
sider the nature of this preparation : the overthrow
of the nation by the Chaldeans, issued in the dis-
persion of its members all over the civilized world,
so that in all the principal cities Jewish communi-
ties existed, which gradually attracted to their faith
Gentile converts, and were in one way or other the
nucleus of the Christian Church, when the Gospel
was at length published. Now, here I would first
direct your attention to this strange connexion,
which is visible at first sight between the dispersion
of the Jews and the propagation of Christianity.
Does not such a manifest appearance of cause and
effect look very much like an indication of design ?
Next, I remark that this dispersion was later than
the predictions concerning the Christian Church
contained in the Jewish Scriptures ; which in con-
sequence cannot be charged with borrowing the
idea of it from any actual disposition of things.
And further, let it be observed, that the disposition
arose from the apparent frustration of all their hopes ;
a signal instance, as it would seem, of an overrul-
ing Providence, which would not be defeated as
regards its object, in spite of the failure of those
instruments, in which alone a human eye could see
the means of accomplishing it.
278 WHIT-TUESDAY. [SERM
Before concluding;, I must explain myself on one
point which has been incidentally mentioned more
than once in the foregoing remarks, viz. as to the
connection between the temporal fortunes of the
Church, in the middle ages, and the inspired pre-
dictions concerning it. It may seem, before due
attention has been given to the subject, as if no one
but a member of the Roman Communion could re-
gard them as parts of the Divine Dispensation ; I
therefore observe as follows : —
There is a considerable analogy between the
history of (what is called) the Papacy and that of
the Israelitish monarchy. That monarchy was per-
versely demanded, and presumptuously realized by
the nation, when God had not led the way ; it ter-
minated in the dissolution of the federal union of
the Tribes, the corruption of the people, and the
ruin of their temporal power. Nevertheless, it
cannot be denied, that in one sense that kingdom
was the scope of the Mosaic Institutions 1, and a
fulfilment of prophecy. Its kings were many of
them highly favoured in themselves, and types
of the promised Saviour; and their government
and subjects were singularly blessed. Consider
the circumstances attendant upon the building of
the Temple. This may be accounted as the most
glorious event in their history, the fruit of Moses'
anxieties and David's labours, the completion and
1 Dent. xvii. 14—20.
XXL] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 279
resting-place of the whole Dispensation, and the
pledge of the more spiritual blessedness which was
to come. Connect it with Solomon's reign, its
peace and prosperity, — on the other hand with its
voluptuousness, its departure from the simplicity
of the Mosaic Law, — with Solomon's character, de-
generating from faith and purity into sins which we
are not given to fathom. Are we able rightly to
adjust the relation between the blessings destined
for Israel, and the actual prosperity and greatness
of this kingdom set up in rebellion against God, so
as to be able to say how far it was recognised in
His counsels, how far not ?
I am far from saying the case of the Papacy is
parallel to that of the Jewish Monarchy ; nay, I
do not introduce the latter for the sake of the
analogy at all, be it stronger or fainter ; but merely
in order to show that it is possible for certain events
to be in some sort a fulfilment of prophecy, without
considering every part of them, the manner of their
accomplishment, the circumstances, the instruments,
and the like, to be approved by God. The Latin
ecclesiastical system of the middle ages may be
considered the shadow, dark indeed and shapeless,
still the shadow of that gracious design, which
would have been accomplished, had Christians
possessed faith enough to keep closely to God's re-
vealed will. For what we know, it was intended
that all the kingdoms of the earth should have been
made subject to the spiritual rule of the Church.
280 WHIT-TUESDAY. [SERM.
The presumption of man defeated this purpose ; but
it could not so far defeat it, but some sort of fulfil-
ment took place. The mustard-plant, stopped in its
natural growth, shot out irregular branches. Satan
could not hinder, he could but corrupt the kingdom
promised to the Saints. He could but seduce them
to trust in an arm of flesh. He could but sow the
seeds of decay among them by alluring them to
bow down to " Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zido-
nians, and Milcom the abomination of the Ammo-
nites;" to take a king over them like the nations,
" when the Lord was their king." Had it not been
for this falling away in divers times and places,
surely Christendom would not be in its present
miserable state of disunion and weakness ; nor the
prophecies respecting it have issued in any degree
in defeat and disappointment. Still, dim and par-
tial as is their fulfilment, there is more than enough,
even in what is and has been, to attest in the Church
the presence of that Almighty Hand, whose very
failures (so to say) and losses are deeds of victory
and triumph.
As for ourselves, what was the exact measure of
the offences of our forefathers in the faith, when
they tired of the Christian Theocracy, and clothed
the Church with " the purple robe" of Caesar, it
avails not to determine. Not denying their sin,
still, after contemplating the glories of the Temple
which they built, we may well bewail our present
fallen state, — the Priests and Levites, and chief of
XXI.] THE KINGDOM OF THE SAINTS. 281
the Fathers, all of us " weeping with a loud voice,"
though the many shout for joy, — " praising" in-
deed, and " giving thanks unto the Lord, because
He is good, for His mercy endureth for ever to-
ward Israel1," not undervaluing the blessings we
have, yet humbling ourselves as the sinful offspring
of sinful parents, who from the first have resisted
and frustrated the grace of God, and seeing in the
present feebleness and blindness of the Church, the
tokens of His righteous judgments upon us; yet
withal, from His continued mercies towards us,
drawing the comfortable hope, that for His Son's
sake He will not forsake us in time to come, and a
sure trust, that, if we " give Him no rest" by our
services of prayer and good works, He will at length,
even yet, though doubtless in a way which we
cannot understand, " establish and make Jeru-
salem a praise in the earth."
1 Ezraiii. 11, 12.
SERMON XXII.
TRINITY SUNDAY.
THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US.
1 TIM. vi. 20, 21.
O Timothy, keep that which is committed to Thy trust, avoid-
ing profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science,
falsely so called ; which some professing, have erred concerning
the Faith.
THESE words are addressed in the first place to the
Ministers of the Gospel in the person of Timothy ;
yet they contain a serious command and warning
for all Christians. For all of us, high and low, in our
measure are responsible for the safe-keeping of the
Faith. We have all an equal interest in it, no one
less than another, though an Order of men has
been especially set apart for the duty of guarding it.
If we Ministers of Christ guard it not, it is our sin,
but it is your loss, my brethren ; and as any private
person would feel that his duty and his safety lay
in giving alarm of a fire or of a robbery in the city
where he dwelt, though there were ever so many
THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US. 283
special officers appointed for the purpose, so doubt-
less, every one of us is bound in his place to contend
for the Faith, and to have an eye to its safe cus-
tody. If indeed the Faith of Christ were vague,
indeterminate, a matter of opinion or deduction,
then, indeed, we may well conceive that the Minis-
ters of the Gospel would be the only due expounders
and guardians of it ; then it might be fitting for
private Christians to wait till they were informed
concerning the best mode of expressing it, or the
relative importance of this or that part of it. But
this has been all settled long ago ; the Gospel
Faith is a definite deposit, a treasure, common to
all, one and the same in every age, conceived in set
words, and such as to admit of being received, pre-
served, transmitted. We may safely leave the cus-
tody of it in the hands of individuals ; for in so
doing, we are leaving nothing at all to private
rashness and fancy, to pride, debate, and strife.
We are but allowing them to " contend earnestly
for the Faith once delivered to the Saints;" which
was put into their hands one by one at their bap-
tism, in a form of words called the Creed, and
which (as a matter of history,) has so come down to
them from the first ages. This is what even the
humblest member of the Church may and must
contend for ; and in proportion to his education, will
the circle of his knowledge enlarge. The Creed
delivered to him in Baptism will then unfold, first,
into the Nicene Creed (as it is called,) then into
284 TRINITY SUNDAY. [SERM.
the Athanasian ; and, according as his power of
grasping their sense increases, so also will it be-
come his duty to contend for that which he receives.
All these unfoldings of the Gospel Doctrine will
become to him precious as the original articles,
because they are in fact nothing more or less than
the one true explanation of them, delivered down
to us from the first ages, together with the original
Baptismal or Apostles' Creed itself. As all nations
confess to the existence of a God, so all branches
of the Church confess to the Gospel doctrine ; as
the tradition of men witnesses to a Moral Governor
and Judge, so the tradition of Saints witnesses to
the Father Almighty, and His only Son, and the
Holy Ghost. And as all the superstitions of poly-
theism, or the atheistic extravagances of particular
countries at particular times, do not practically
interfere with our reception of the one message
which the sons of Adam deliver, so much less do
the local heresies and temporary errors of the early
Church, and its superadded corruptions, its schis-
matic offshoots, or its partial defections in later
ages, impair the evidence and the claim of its
teaching, in the judgment of those who sincerely
wish to know the Truth once delivered to it.
Blessed be God ! we have not to find the Truth, it
is put into our hands ; we have but to commit it
to our hearts, to preserve it inviolate, and to deliver
it over to our posterity.
This then is the meaning of St. Paul's injunction
XXII.] THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US. 285
in the text, given at the time when the Truth was first
published. " Keep that which is committed to thy
trust," or rather, " keep the Deposit ;" turn away
from those " profane emptinesses" which pretenders
to philosophy and science bring forward against it.
Do not be moved by them ; do not alter your
Creed for them ; for the end of such men is error.
They go on disputing and refining, giving new
meanings, modifying received ones, still with tha
idea of the Faith before them as the scope of their
inquiries ; but at length they " miss" it. They
shoot on one side of it, and embrace a deceit of their
own minds for it.
By the Faith is evidently meant, as St. Paul's
words show, some definite doctrine ; not a mere
temper of mind or principle of action, much less,
vaguely, the Christian cause ; and accordingly,
in his Second Epistle to Timothy, the Apostle men-
tions as his comfort in the view of death, that he
had "kept the Faith." In the same Epistle he
describes it more particularly as " the Form" or out-
line ' ' of sound words, " " the noble Deposit ; " phrases,
which show that the Deposit certainly was a series
of truths and rules, of some sort, (whether only doc-
trinal, or preceptive also, and ecclesiastical,) and
are accurately descriptive of the formulary which
we call the Apostles' Creed. And these same
sacred truths which Timothy had received in trust,
he was bid " commit" in turn " to faithful men,"
who should be " able to teach others also." By
286 TRINITY SUNDAY. [SERM.
God's grace, he was enabled so to commit them ;
and they being thus transmitted from generation to
generation, have through God's continued mercy,
reached even unto us, " upon whom the ends of the
world are come."
I propose, in what follows, to set before you, the
account given us in Scripture of this Apostolic
Faith ; being led to do so on the one hand by the
Day, on which we commemorate its fundamental
doctrine, and on the other, by the mistaken views
entertained concerning it by many persons at pre-
sent, which seem to require notice.
Perhaps it may be right first to state what these
erroneous opinions are, which I will do briefly.
They are not novel, as scarcely any religious error
can be, and assuredly that which has once or twice
died away in former times, will come to its end in
like manner once more. I do not speak, as if I
feared they could overcome the Ancient Truth once
delivered to the Saints ; but still, our watchfulness
and care are the means appointed for their over-
throw, and are not superseded, but rather encou-
raged and roused by the anticipation of ultimate
success.
It is a fashion of the day, then, to suppose that
all insisting upon precise Articles of Faith, is inju-
rious to the cause of spiritual religion, and incon-
sistent with an enlightened view of it ; that it is
all one to maintain, that the Gospel requires the
reception of definite and positive Articles, and to
12
XXII.] THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US. 287
acknowledge it to be technical and formal ; that
such a notion is superstitious, and must make way
for the " liberty wherewith Christ has made us
free ;" that it argues a deficient insight into the
principles and ends, a narrow comprehension of
the spirit of His revelation. Accordingly, instead
of accepting reverently the doctrinal Truths which
have come down to us, an attempt is made on the
part of these reasoners to compare them together,
weigh and measure them, analyze, simplify, re-
fashion them ; to reduce them to system, to arrange
them into primary and secondary, to harmonize
them into an intelligible dependence upon each
other. The teacher of Christianity, instead of
delivering its Mysteries, and, (as far as may be)
unfolding them, is taught to scrutinize them, with
a view of separating the inward holy sense from
the form of words, in which the Spirit has indis-
solubly lodged them. He asks himself, what is
the use of the message which has come down to
him ; what the comparative value of this or that
part of it. He proceeds to assume that there is
some one end of his ministerial labours, such as to
be ascertainable by him, some one revealed object
of God's dealings with man in the Gospel. Then,
perhaps he arbitrarily assigns this to be the salva-
tion of the world, or the conversion of sinners.
Next he measures all the Scripture doctrines by
their respective sensible tendency to effect this
end. He goes on to discard or degrade this or
288 TRINITY SUNDAY. [SERM.
that sacred truth as superfluous in consequence, or
of inferior importance ; and throws the stress of
his teaching upon one or other, which he pro-
nounces to contain in it the essence of the Gospel,
and on which he rests all others which he retains.
Lastly, he reconstructs the language of theology
to suit his (so-called) improved views of Scripture
doctrine.
For instance, you will meet with writers who con-
sider that all the Attributes and Providences of
God are virtually expressed in the one proposition
" God is Love ;" the other notices of His Unap-
proachable Glory contained in Scripture being but
modifications of this. In consequence they are led
on to deny, first, the doctrine of eternal punish-
ment, as being inconsistent with this notion of
Infinite Love ; next, resolving such expressions
as the " wrath of God" into a figure of speech,
they deny the Atonement, as a real reconciliation
of an offended God to His creatures. Or, again,
they say that the object of the Gospel Revelation is
merely practical, and therefore, theological doc-
trines are altogether unnecessary, mere specula-
tions, and hindrances to the extension of religion ;
or, if not purely injurious, at least requiring modi-
fication. Hence, you may hear them ask, " what is
the harm of being a Sabellian, or Arian ? how does
it affect the moral character?" Or, again, they say
that the great end of the Gospel, is the union of
hearts in the love of Christ and each other, and
XXIL] THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US. 289
that in consequence, Creeds are but fetters on souls
which have the Spirit of Adoption ; that Faith is a
mere temper arid a principle, not the reception for
Christ's sake of a certain collection of Articles.
Others, again, have rested the whole Gospel upon
the doctrines of the Atonement, and Sanctification.
And others, have seemed to make the doctrine of
Justification by Faith as the one cardinal point,
upon which the gates of life open and shut. Let
so much suffice in explanation of the drift of the
following remarks.
St. Paul, (T repeat,) bids us hold fast the Faith
which is entrusted to our custody ; and that Faith is
a "Form of sound words," an "Outline," which it
is our duty, according to our opportunities, to fill
up and complete in all its parts. Now, let us see
how much the very text of Scripture will yield us
of these elementary lines of Truth, of the un-
changeable Apostolic Rule of Faith, of which we
are bound to be so jealous.
Its essential doctrine of course is what St. John
calls generally " the doctrine of Christ," and
which, in the case of every one calling himself
Christian, is the profession necessary, (as he tells
us,) for our receiving him into our houses. St.
Paul speaks in much the same compendious way
concerning the Gospel Faith, when he says, " Other
foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which
is Jesus, the Christ." However, in an earlier passage
of the same Epistle, he speaks more explicitly ; "I
VOL. n. u
290 TRINITY SUNDAY. [SERM.
determined not to know any thing among you, save
Jesus Christ, and Him crucified." Thus the cru-
cifixion of Christ was one essential part of the out-
line of sound words preached and delivered by the
Apostle. In his Epistle to the Romans, he adds
another article of faith; "If thou shalt confess
with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe
in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the
dead, thou shalt be saved." Here then the doc-
trine of the Resurrection is added to that of the
Crucifixion. Elsewhere he says ; "There is One
God, and One Mediator between God and men,
the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom
for all .... whereunto I am ordained a preacher."
Here Christ's Mediation and Atonement are added
as doctrines of Apostolical preaching. Further,
towards the end of an Epistle already quoted, he
speaks still more distinctly of the Gospel which he
had preached, and had delivered over to his con-
verts ; and which he adds all the other Apostles
preached also. " I put into your hands, first of
all, what had before been put into mine, how that
Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
and that He was buried, and that He rose again
the third day according to the Scriptures V Here
we even find an approximation to the Articles of
the Creed, as the Church has ever worded them.
1 2 John 9—11. 1 Cor. iii. 11. ii. 2. Rom. x. 9. 1 Tim. ii.
5—7. 1 Cor. xv.
XXII.] THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US. 291
But the letter of Scripture gives us still further
insight into the subjects of the sacred Deposit, of
which St. Paul speaks in the text. In the course
of the very Epistle in which it occurs, he delivers
to Timothy a more explicit form of sound words
than any I have cited from his writings. He writes
to tell him " how to conduct himself in the Church
of the Living God," which he had to govern, and
how to preserve it as " the pillar and ground of the
Truth ; " and proceeds to remind him what that
Truth is. "God was manifested in the flesh, justi-
fied in the Spirit, seen of Angels, preached unto the
Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into
glory." Here is mention, among other doctrines,
of the Incarnation and the Ascension. Thus it
was an article of the original Apostles' Creed, that
Christ was not a mere man, but God incarnate.
In like manner, when the Ethiopian asked to be
baptized, and Philip said he might if he "believed
with all his heart," this was his confession ; "I
believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."
This, it should be observed, is his confession, after
Philip had "preached unto him Jesus V
Now, let us pass on to the very words in which
that Baptism itself was administered ; words, which
the Eunuch might not understand indeed at the
time, but which were then committed to him to feed
upon in his heart by faith, and by the influence of
1 1 Tim. iii. 15, 16. Acts viii. 35 — 37.
U 2
292 TRINITY SUNDAY. [SERM,
the grace then given gradually to enter into.
Those words were first ordained by Christ Himself,
as some mysterious key by which the fountains of
grace might be opened upon the baptismal water,
" In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and
of the Holy Ghost ;" and they show that, not only
the doctrine of Christ, but that of the Trinity also,
formed an essential portion of the Sacred Treasure,
of which the Church was ordained to be the
Preacher. Lastly, in the Epistle to the Hebrews,
we are presented with an enumeration of some
other of the fundamental Articles of Faith, which
the Apostles delivered. St. Paul therein speaks of
"the foundation of Repentance from dead works,
and of Faith towards God, of the doctrine of Bap-
tisms, and of Laying on of hands, and of Resur-
rection of the dead, and of Eternal Judgment V
Observe then, how many Articles of that Faith,
which the Church has ever confessed, are inci-
dentally brought before us as such, and delivered
as such in very form, in the course of Scripture
narrative and precept ; — the doctrine of the Trinity;
of the Incarnation of the Son of God, His Media-
torship, His Atonement for our sins on the Cross,
His Death, Burial, Resurrection on the third day,
and Ascension ; of Pardon on Repentance, Bap-
tism as the instrument of it, Imposition of hands,
whether for confirmation or ordination, the General
1 Matt, xxviii. 19. Heb. vi. 1, 2.
XXII.] THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US.
Resurrection, and the Judgment once for all. I
might also appeal to such passages as that in the
First Epistle to the Corinthians, where St. Paul
says, "To us there is One God the Father, ....
and One Lord Jesus Christ * ;" but I wished to
confine myself to texts in which the doctrines spe-
cified are expressly introduced as portions of a
Formulary or Confession, committed or accepted,
whether on the part of Ministers of the Church
at ordination, or of each member of it when he
was baptized.
It may be proper to add, that the history of the
Primitive Church altogether concurs in this view of
the nature of Gospel Faith deducible from Scrip-
ture. I mean, that we have sufficient evidence
that, in matter of fact, such Creeds as St. Paul's
did exist in its various branches, not differing from
each other, except, (for instance,) as the Lord's
Prayer in St. Matthew's Gospel differs from St.
Luke's version of it ; that this one and the same
Faith, was committed to every Christian every
where on his baptism ; and that it was considered as
the especial trust of the Church of each place and
of its Bishop, as having been received by continual
transmission from its original Founder, whether
Apostle or Evangelist.
Enough has been already said by way of proving
from Scripture, how precise, positive, manifold, are
1 1 Cor. viii. 6.
294 TRINITY SUNDAY. [SBRM.
the Articles of our Faith, and how much is made
by St. Paul of this its definiteness and minuteness ;
enough to show, that we may not slur them over,
nor heap them together confusedly, nor tamper
with them, with the profaneness either of careless-
ness or of curious disputing, — in a word, that they
are sacred. But this sacred character of our trust
may be shown by several distinct considerations,
which shall now be set before you.
1. First, from the very circumstance that it is a
trust. The plain and simple reason for our preach-
ing and preserving the Faith, is because we have
been told to do so. It is an act of mere obedience
to Him who has " put us in trust with the Gospel."
Our one great concern as regards it, is to deliver it
over safe. This is the end in view, which all men
have before them, who are any how trusted in
worldly matters. " It is required in stewards, that
a man be found faithful1." Our Lord had said,
that " this Gospel of the Kingdom shall be
preached in all the world as a witness unto all na-
tions." Accordingly, His Apostle declares, speak-
ing of his persecutions, " None of these things
move me, ... so that I might finish ... the Minis-
try which I have received of the Lord Jesus, fully
to witness the Gospel of the grace of God." And
again, when his departure is at hand, he comforts
himself with the reflection, that he has " kept the
1 1 Cor. iv. 2.
XXII.] THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US. 295
Faith V To keep the Faith in the world till the end,
may, (for what we know,) be a sufficient object of
our preaching and confessing, though nothing more
come of it. Hence then the force of the words
addressed to Timothy; " Hold fast;" " keep ;"
"This charge I commit unto thee ;" "continue
thou in the things entrusted thee ;" "put the bre-
thren in remembrance;" " commit thou the same
to faithful men ;" "refuse profane and old wives'
fables;" "shun profane vain-talking;" " avoid
foolish and unlearned questions." Were there no
other reason for the Articles of the Creed being
held sacred, their being a trust would be sufficient.
Till we feel that we have a trust, a treasure to
transmit, for the safety of which we are answerable,
we have missed one chief peculiarity in our actual
position. Yet, did men feel this adequately, they
would have little heart to indulge in the random
speculations which at present are so familiar to
their minds.
2. This sense of the seriousness of our, charge is
increased by considering, that after all we do not
know, and cannot form a notion, what is the real
final object of the Gospel Revelation. Men are
accustomed to say, that it is the salvation of the
world, which it certainly is not. If, instead of
this, we say that Christ came to " purify unto
Himself a peculiar people," then indeed, we speak
1 Matt. xxiv. 14. Acts xx. 24. 2 Tim. iv. 7.
296 TRINITY SUNDAY. [SERM.
a great Truth ; but this, though a main end of our
preaching, is not its simple and ultimate object.
Rather, as far as we are told at all, that object is
the glory of God ; but we cannot understand what
is, meant by this, or how the Dispensation of the
Gospel promotes it. It is enough for us that we
must act with the simple thought of God before
us, make all ends subordinate to this, and leave
the event to Him. We know, indeed, to our great
comfort, that we cannot preach in vain. His hea-
venly word " shall not return unto Him void, but
shall prosper in the thing whereto He sent it."
Still it is surely our duty to preach, " whether men
will hear, or whether they will forbear." We
must preach, as our Lord bids in a text already
quoted, "as a witness." Accordingly, He Him-
self, before the heathen Pilate, " bore witness unto
the Truth ;" and St. Paul, referring to this act of
His, conjures us to keep our sacred charge as in
the sight of Him, who " before Pontius Pilate wit-
nessed a good confession." Doubtless, His glory
is set forth in some mysterious way in the rejection,
as well as in the reception of the Gospel ; and we
must co-operate with Him. We must co-operate so
far, as to be content to wound as well as to heal, to
condemn as well as to absolve. We must not shrink
from being " a savour of death unto death," as well
as "of life unto life." We must stedfastly believe,
however painful may be the duty, that we are in
either case offering up a "sweet savour of Christ
XXIL] THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US. 297
unto God, both in them that are saved, and in
them that perish." We must learn to acquiesce
and run with the order of God's Providence, and
bear to rejoice over great Babylon and her inhabit-
ants, when the wrath of God has fallen upon her.
This consideration is an answer to those who
would limit our message to what is influential and
convincing in it, and measure its divinity by its
success. But I have introduced it to show gene-
rally, how utterly we are in the dark about the
whole subject ; and therefore, as being in the dark,
how necessary it is to gird our garments about us,
and hold fast our treasure, and hasten forward, lest
we betray our trust. We have no means of know-
ing how far a small mistake in the Faith may carry
us astray. If we do not know, why it is to be
proclaimed to all, though all will not hear, much
less do we know why this or that doctrine is re-
vealed, or what is the importance of it. The grace
of Baptism lies (as it were) to the accurate enunci-
ation of one or two words; and if so much depends
on one sacred truth, even down to the letter in
which it is conveyed, why should not at least the
substantial sense of other truths, nay, even the pri-
mitive wording of them, have some especial claim
upon the Church's safe guardianship of them ? St.
Paul's articles of belief are precise and individual ;
why should we not take them as we find them ?
Why should we be wise above that is written ?
Why should we not be thankful that a work is put
298 TRINITY SUNDAY. [SERM.
upon us which is so plainly within our power, to
hold the Gospel Truths, to count and note them, to
feed upon them, to hand them on ? However, high
imaginations and feverish minds have not the wis-
dom to trust divine teaching. They persist in say-
ing that Articles of belief are mere formalities ; and
that to preach and transmit them is to miss the con-
version of the heart in faith and holiness. They
would rather rouse emotions, with a view to chang-
ing the character. Forgetful that tempers and states
of mind are things seen by God alone, and when
really spiritual, the work of His Unseen Spirit, and
beyond the power of man to ensure or ascertain,
they put upon themselves what man cannot do.
They think it a light thing to be sowers of that
heavenly seed, which He shall make spring up in
the hearer's heart to life eternal. They are willing
to throw it aside as so much barren matter, as the
sand of the sea shore ; and they desire to plant the
flowers of grace, (or what appear such,) in one
another's hearts, as though under their assiduous
dressing they could take root therein. Far differ-
ent is the example set us in the services of the
Church ! In the Office for Baptism the Articles of
the Creed are recited one by one, that the infant
Christian may be put in charge of every jot and
tittle of the sacred Covenant, which he inherits. Tn
the Communion Service, in the midst of its solemn
praises to the God of all grace, when Angels and
Archangels are to be summoned to join in the
XXIL] THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US. 299
Thanksgiving, Articles from the Creed are recited,
as if by way of preparation, with an exact doctrinal
precision, according to the Festival celebrated, — as
for instance on this day. And in the Visitation of
the Sick, he whom God seems about to call away,
is asked, not whether he has certain spiritual feel-
ings within him, (of which he cannot judge,) but
definitely and to his great comfort, whether he be-
lieves those Articles of the Christian Faith one by
one, which he received at baptism, was catechized in
during his childhood, and confessed whenever he
came to worship God in Church. It is in the same
spirit that the most precise and systematic of all the
Creeds, the Athanasian, is at the same time in the
form of a hymn of praise to the Eternal Trinity ;
it being meet and right at festive seasons to bring
forth before our God every jewel of the Mysteries
entrusted us, to show that of those which He gave
us we have lost none.
3. Lastly, the sacred character of our charge is
shown most forcibly by the sanction which attends
it. What God has guarded by an Anathema,
surely claims some jealous custody on our part.
Christ says expressly, " He that believeth and is
baptized shall be saved ; and he that believeth not
shall be damned1." It is quite clear, that in our
Lord's meaning, this belief included the reception
of a positive Creed, because He gave one at the
1 Matt. xvi. 16.
300 TRINITY SUNDAY. [SERM.
time, — that sovereign Truth, from which all others
flow, which we this day celebrate, the Faith of
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, Three Persons, One
God. This doctrine then, at least, is necessary to
be believed by every one in order to salvation ;
and that more than it, that some of the sacred
articles built upon it are also necessary, is plain
from other parts of Scripture ; as for instance, our
Lord's Resurrection1. Now, this doctrine of the
Resurrection, which closed our Lord's earthly mis-
sion, is evidently at a wide interval in the series of
doctrines from that of the Trinity in Unity, which
is the foundation of the whole Dispensation ; so
that a thoughtful mind, which fears to go wrong,
will see reason to conclude even from hence, that
perchance the doctrines which go between (the In-
carnation, for instance, or the Crucifixion,) are also
essential parts of saving Faith. And, in fact, vari-
ous passages of Scripture, as we have already seen,
occur, in which these intermediate Articles are se-
parately made the basis of the Gospel. The state
of the case then is this : — we know that some doc-
trines are necessary to be believed ; we are not
told how many ; and we have no powers of mind
adequate to the task of solving the problem. We
cannot give any sufficient reason, beside the re-
vealed word, why the doctrine of the Trinity itself
should be essential ; and if it is essential neverthe-
1 Rom. x. 9.
XXII.] THE GOSPEL, A TRUST COMMITTED TO US. 301
less, why should not any other? How dangerous
then is it to trifle with any portion of the message
committed to us ! Surely we are bound to guard
what may be material in it, as carefully as if we
knew it to be so ; our not knowing it, so far from
being a reason for indifference, becoming an addi-
tional motive for anxiety and watchfulness. And,
while we do not dare anticipate God's final judg-
ment by attaching the Anathema to individual un-
believers, yet neither do we dare conceal any
part of the doctrines guarded by it, lest haply it
should be found to lie against ourselves, who have
" shunned to declare the whole counsel of God."
To conclude. — The error against which these re-
marks are directed, viz. that of systematizing and
simplifying the Gospel Faith, making much of one
or two articles of it, and disparaging or dismissing
the rest, is not confined to this province of religion
only. In the same spirit, sometimes the Ordinances,
sometimes the Polity of the Church, are dishonoured
and neglected ; the doctrine of Baptism contrasted
with that of inward Sanctification, precepts of
" decency and order" made light of before the
command to evangelize the heathen, the injunction
to " stand in the old ways" broken with a view to
increase the so-called efficiency of our ecclesiastical
institutions. In like manner, by one class of rea-
soners the Gospels are made every thing, by
another the Epistles. In all ages, indeed, consistent
302 TRINITY SUNDAY. [SERM. XXII.
obedience is a very rare endowment ; but in this
cultivated age, we have undertaken to defend in-
consistency on grounds of reason. On the other
hand hear the words of Eternal Truth. " Whoso-
ever shall break one of these least commandments,
and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least
in the Kingdom of Heaven ; but whosoever shall do
and teach them, the same shall be called great in
the Kingdom of Heaven1."
1 Matt. v. 19.
SERMON XXIIL
THE FEAST OF ST. BARNABAS THE APOSTLE.
TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR.
ACTS xi. 24.
He was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost, and of faith.
WHEN Christ came to form a people unto Himself
to show forth. His praise, He took of every kind.
Highways and hedges, the streets and lanes of the
city, furnished guests for His supper, as well as the
wilderness of Judea, or the courts of the Temple.
His first followers are a sort of type of the general
Church, in which many and various minds are as
one. And this is one use, if we duly improve it,
of our Festivals ; which set before us specimens of
the Divine Life under the same diversity of out-
ward circumstances, advantages, and dispositions,
which we discern around us. The especial grace
poured upon the Apostles and their associates,
whether supernatural or moral, had no tendency to
destroy their respective peculiarities of temper and
character, to invest them with a sanctity beyond
15
304 ST. BARNABAS. [SEEM.
our imitation, or to preclude failings and errors
which may be our warning. It left them, as it
found them, men. Peter and John, for instance, the
simple fishers on the lake of Gennesareth, Simon
the Zealot, Matthew the busy tax-gatherer, and the
ascetic Baptist, how different are these, — first, from
each other, — then, from Apollos the eloquent Alex-
andrian, Paul the learned Pharisee, Luke the phy-
sician, or the Eastern sages, whom we celebrate at
the Feast of the Epiphany ; and these again, how
different from the Virgin Mary, or the Innocents,
or Simeon and Anna, who are brought before us at
the Feast of the Purification, or the women who
ministered to our Lord, Mary the wife of Cleophas,
the Mother of James and John, Mary Magdalene,
Martha and Mary, sisters of Lazarus ; or again,
from the widow with her two mites, the woman
whose issue of blood was staunched, and she who
poured forth tears of penitence upon His feet, and
the ignorant Samaritan at the well ! Moreover, the
definiteness and evident truth of many of the cha-
racters presented to us in the Gospels, serve to real-
ize to us the history, and to help our faith, while
at the same time they afford us abundant instruc-
tion. Such, for instance, is the immature ardour
of James and John, the sudden fall of Peter, the
obstinacy of Thomas, and the cowardice of Mark.
St. Barnabas furnishes us with a lesson in his own
way ; nor shall I want in piety towards that Holy
Apostle, if on this his day I hold him forth, not only
XXIIL] TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR. 305
in the peculiar graces of his character, but in those
parts of it in which he becomes our warning, not
our example.
The text says, that " he was a good man, full of
the Holy Ghost and of faith." This praise of
goodness is explained by his very name, Barnabas,
" the son of consolation," which was given him, as
it appears, to mark his character of kindness,
gentleness, considerateness, warmth of heart, com-
passion, and munificence.
His acts answer to this account of him. The
first we hear of him is his selling some land which
was his, and giving the proceeds to the Apostles, to
distribute to his poorer brethren. The next notice
of him sets before us a second deed of kindness, of
as amiable, though of a mere private character.
" When Saul was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to
join himself to the disciples ; but they were all
afraid of him, and believed not that he was a dis-
ciple. But Barnabas took him, and brought him
to the Apostles, and declared how he had seen the
Lord in the way, and that He had spoken to him,
and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in
the name of Jesus 1." Next, he is mentioned in the
text, and still with commendation of the same kind.
How had he shown that "he was a good man?"
by going on a mission of love to the first converts
at Antioch. Barnabas, above the rest, was honoured
1 Acts ix. 2(5, 27.
VOL. II. X
306 ST. BARNABAS. [SEUM.
by the Church with this work, which had in view
the encouraging and binding together in unity
and strength this incipient fruit of God's grace.
" When he came, and had seen the grace of God,
he was glad ;" (surely this circumstance itself is
mentioned by way of showing his character;)
" and exhorted them all that with purpose of
heart they would cleave unto the Lord." Thus he
may even be accounted the founder of the Church
of Antioch, being aided by St. Paul, whom he suc-
ceeded in bringing there. Next, on occasion of an
approaching famine, he joined with St. Paul in
being the minister of the Gentiles' bounty towards
the poor saints of Judaea. Afterwards, when the
Judaizing Christians troubled the Gentile converts
with the Mosaic ordinances, Barnabas was sent with
the same Apostle and others from the Church of Jeru-
salem to relieve their perplexity. So far the Scrip-
ture history of him is scarcely more than a continued
panegyric on his characteristic grace. Moreover,
let the particular term be observed in which this
chief gift is signified. The Holy Ghost is called
our Paraclete, as assisting, advocating, encourag-
ing, comforting us ; now, as if to put the highest
honour upon St. Barnabas, this is the very word
used in Scripture of him. " The Son of Consola-
tion" means in the original, not simply the Con-
soler, but the Paraclete ; and in accordance with this
honourable title, we are told that when the Gentile
converts of Antioch had received from his and St.
XXIII.] TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR. 307
Paul's hands the Apostles' decision against the
Judaizers, " they rejoiced for the consolation."
On the other hand, on two occasions his conduct is
unbecoming an Apostle, as instancing somewhat of
that infirmity which persons of his peculiar character
frequently exhibit. Both are cases of indulgence
towards the faults of others, yet in a different way ;
the one, an over-easiness in a matter of doctrine,
the other, in a matter of conduct. With all his
tenderness for the Gentiles, yet on one occasion he
could not resist indulging the prejudices of some
Judaizing brethren, who came from Jerusalem to
Antioch. Peter first was carried away ; before they
came, " he did eat with the Gentiles, but when
they were come, he withdrew, and separated him-
self, fearing them which were of the circumcision.
And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him ;
insomuch, that Barnabas also was carried away
with their dissimulation." The other instance
was his indulgent treatment of Mark, his sister's
son, which occasioned the quarrel between him and
St. Paul. " Barnabas determined to take with
them," on their Apostolic journey, " John, whose
surname was Mark. But Paul thought not good
to take him with them, who departed from them
from Pamphylia, and went not with them to the
work1."
Now it is very plain what description of charac-
1 Gal. ii. 12, 13. Acts xv. 37, 38.
x2
308 ST. BARNABAS. [SERM.
ter, and what kind of lesson is brought before us in
the history of this Holy Apostle. Holy he was, full
of the Holy Ghost and of faith ; still the character-
istics and the in6rmities of man remained in him,
and thushe is "untousfor an ensample," consistent-
ly with the reverence we feel towards him as one of
the foundations of the Christian Church. He is an
ensample and warning to us, not only as showing
us what we ought to be, but as evidencing how
the highest gifts and graces are corrupted in our
sinful nature, if we are not diligent to walk step by
step, according to the light of God's command-
ments. Be our mind as heavenly as it may be,
most loving, most holy, most zealous, most ener-
getic, most peaceful, yet if we look off from Him
for a moment, and look towards ourselves, at once
these excellent tempers fall into some extreme or
mistake. Charity becomes over-easiness, holiness
is tainted with spiritual pride, zeal degenerates into
fierceness, activity eats up the spirit of prayer, hope
is heightened into presumption. We cannot guide
ourselves. God's revealed word is our sovereign
rule of conduct ; and therefore, among other rea-
sons, is faith so principal a grace, for it is the
directing power which receives the commands of
Christ, and applies them to the heart.
And there is particular reason for dwelling upon
the character of Barnabas in this age, because he
may be considered as the type of the better sort of
men among us, and those who are most in esteem.
XXIIL] TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR. 309
The world itself indeed is what it ever has been,
ungodly ; but in every age it chooses some one or
other peculiarity of the Gospel as the badge of its
particular fashion for the time being, and sets up as
objects of admiration those who eminently possess
it. Without asking, therefore, how far men act
from Christian principle, or only from the imitation
of it, or from some mere secular or selfish motive,
yet, certainly, this age, as far as appearance goes,
may be accounted in its character not unlike Bar-
nabas, as being considerate, delicate, courteous,
and generous-minded in all that concerns the inter-
course of man with man. There is a great deal of
thoughtful kindness among us, of conceding in
little matters, of scrupulous propriety of words,
and a sort of code of liberal and honourable deal-
ing in the conduct of society. There is a settled
regard for th'e rights of individuals, and a sedu-
lousness in protecting, relieving, and benefitting
the poorer classes, the stranger, the fatherless, and
the widow. In such a country as ours, there must
always be numberless instances of distress after all ;
yet the anxiety to relieve it existing among the
more wealthy classes is unquestionable. And it is
as unquestionable, that we are somewhat disposed to
regard ourselves favourably in consequence ; and in
the midst of our national trials and fears, to say
(nay sometimes with real humility and piety) that
we do trust thai these characteristic virtues of the
age may be allowed to come up as a memorial be-
310 ST. BARNABAS. [SKKM.
fore God, and to plead for us. When we think of
the commandments, we see in Charity the first and
greatest ; and we are tempted to ask with the young
ruler, " What lack we yet ?"
I ask then, by way of reply, does not our kind-
ness too often degenerate into weakness, and
thus become, not Christian Charity, but lack of
Charity, as regards the objects of it ? Are we not
indulgent of sin and of sinners ? Are we sufficiently
jealous in guarding the revealed Truth which
Christ has left ?
The history of St. Barnabas answers this ques-
tion for us. Surely we lack altogether, what he
lacked in certain occurrences in it, firmness, man-
liness, godly severity. I fear it must be confessed,
that our kindness, instead of being directed and
braced by principle, too often becomes languid and
unmeaning; that it is exerted on improper objects
and out of season, and so is uncharitable in two
ways, indulging those who should be chastised, and
preferring their comfort to those who are really de-
serving. We are over-tender in dealing with sin
and sinners. We are deficient in jealous custody of
the revealed Truths which Christ has left us. We
allow men to speak against the Church, its ordi-
nances, or its teaching, without remonstrating with
them. We do not separate from heretics, nay we
object to the word as if uncharitable ; and when
such texts are brought against us as St. John's
command, not to show hospitality towards them,
XXIII.] TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR. 311
we are not slow to answer, that they do not apply to
us. Now, I scarcely can suppose any one really
means to say for certain, that these commands are
superseded in the present day, and is quite satisfied
upon the point ; it will rather be found that men
who so speak, merely wish to put the subject from
them. For a long while they have forgotten that
there were any such commands in Scripture ; they
have lived as though there were not, and not being
in circumstances which immediately called for the
consideration of them, they have familiarized
their minds to a contrary view of the matter, and
built their opinions upon it. When reminded of
the fact, they are sorry to have to consider it, as
they perhaps avow. They perceive that it interferes
with the line of conduct to which they are accus-
tomed. They are vexed, not as allowing them-
selves wrong, but as feeling conscious that a plau-
sible argument (to say the least) may be maintained
against them. And instead of daring to give this
argument fair play, (as in honesty they ought,) they
hastily satisfy themselves that objections may be
taken against it, use some vague terms of disappro-
bation against those who use it, recur to, and dwell
upon, their own habitual view of the benevolent
and indulgent spirit of the Gospel, and then dis-
miss the subject altogether, as if it had never been
brought before them. Observe how they rid them-
selves of it ; it is by confronting it with other views
of Christianity, which they consider incompatible
312 ST. BARNABAS. [SERM.
with it; whereas the very problem which Christian
obedience presents to us, is the reconciling in our
conduct opposite virtues. It is not difficult (com-
paratively speaking) to cultivate single virtues. A
man takes some one partial view of his duty,
whether severe or kindly, whether of action or of
meditation ; he enters into it with all his might, he
opens his heart to its influence, and allows himself
to be sent forward on its current. This is not dif-
ficult ; there is no anxious vigilance or self-denial in
it. On the contrary, there is a pleasure often in
thus sweeping along in one way ; and especially in
matters of giving and conceding. Liberality is
always popular, whatever be the subject of it ; and
excites a glow of pleasure and self-approbation in
the giver, even though it involves no sacrifice, nay,
is exercised upon the property of others. Thus in
the sacred province of religion, men are led on, —
without any bad principle, without that utter dis-
like or ignorance of the Truth, or that self-conceit,
which are chief instruments of Satan at this day,
nor again from mere cowardice or worldliness, but
from thoughtlessness, the excitement of the mo-
ment, the love of making others happy, suscepti-
bility of flattery, and the habit of looking only one
way, — to give up Gospel Truths, to consent to open
the Church to the various denominations of error
which abound among us, or to alter our services so
as to please the scoffer, the lukewarm, or the vicious.
To be kind is their one principle of action ; and,
XXIII.] TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR. 313
when they find offence taken at the Church's creed,
they begin to think how they may modify or curtail
it, under the same sort of feeling as would lead
them to be generous in a money transaction, or to
accommodate another at the price of personal in-
convenience. Not understanding that their reli-
gious privileges are a trust to be handed to pos-
terity, a sacred property entailed upon the Christian
family, and their own in enjoyment rather than in
possession, they act the spendthrift, and are lavish
of the goods of others. Thus, for instance, they
speak against the anathemas of the Athanasian
Creed, or of the Commination Service, or of certain
of the Psalms, and wish to rid themselves of them.
Undoubtedly, even the best specimens of these men
are deficient in a due appreciation of the Christian
Mysteries, and of their own responsibility in pre-
serving and transmitting them ; yet, some of them
are such truly "good" men, so amiable and feeling,
so benevolent to the poor, and of such repute
among all classes, in short fulfil so excellently the
office of shining like lights and witnesses in the
world, of Him " who went about doing good,"
that those who most deplore their failing, will still
be most desirous of excusing them personally, while
they feel it a duty to withstand them. Sometimes it
may be, that these persons cannot bring themselves
to think evil of others, and harbour men of here-
tical opinions or immoral life from the same easi-
314 ST. BARNABAS. [SEHM.
ness of temper which makes them fit subjects for
the practices of the cunning and selfish in worldly
matters. And sometimes they fasten on certain
favourable points of character in the person they
should discountenance, and cannot get themselves
to attend to any but these ; arguing that he is cer-
tainly pious and well-meaning, and that his errors
plainly do himself no harm ; — whereas the question
is not about their effects on this, or that individual,
but simply whether they are errors ; and again, whe-
ther they are not certain to be injurious to the mass
of men, or, on the long run, as it is called. Or they
cannot bear to hurt another by the expression of
their disapprobation, though it be that " his soul
may be saved in the day of the Lord." Or perhaps
they are deficient in keenness of intellectual percep-
tion as to the moral mischief of certain speculative
opinions, as they consider them ; and not knowing
their ignorance enough to forbear the use of private
judgment, nor having faith enough to acquiesce
in God's word, or the decision of the Church,
they incur the responsibility of serious changes. Or,
perhaps they shelter themselves behind some con-
fused notion, which they have taken up, of the pe-
culiar character of our own Church, arguing that
they belong to a tolerant Church, that it is but con-
sistent as well as right in her members to be tole-
rant, and that they are but exemplifying tolerance
in their own conduct, when they treat with indul-
XXIII.] TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR. 315
gence those who are lax in creed or conduct. Now,
if by the tolerance of our Church, it be meant that
she does not countenance the use of fire and sword
against those who separate from her, so far she is
truly called a tolerant Church ; but she is not tole-
rant of error, as those very formularies, which they
wish to remove, testify ; and if she retains within her
bosom, proud intellects, and cold hearts, and un-
clean hands, and dispenses her blessings to those
who disbelieve or are unworthy of them, this arises
from other causes, certainly not from her principles;
else were she guilty of Eli's sin, which may not be
imagined.
Such is the defect of mind suggested to us in the
instances of imperfection recorded of St. Barnabas;
it will be more clearly understood by contrasting
him with St. John. We cannot compare good men
together in their points of excellence ; but, whether
the one or the other of these Apostles had the greater
share of the spirit of love, we all know, that any
how the Beloved Disciple abounded in it. His
General Epistle is full of exhortations to cherish
that blessed temper, and his name is associated in
our minds with such heavenly dispositions as are
more immediately connected with it, — contempla-
tiveness, serenity of soul, clearness of faith. Now
see in what he differed from Barnabas ; in uniting
charity with a firm maintenance of the Truth as it
is in Jesus. So far were his fervour and exuberance
of charity from interfering with his zeal for God, that
316 ST. BARNABAS. [SERM.
rather, the more he loved men, the more he de-
sired to bring before them the great unchangeable
Verities, on which a weak indulgence suffers them
to shut their eyes. He loved the brethren, but he
"loved them in the Truth1/' He loved them for
the Living Truth's sake which had redeemed them,
for the Truth which was in them, for the Truth
which was the standard of their soul's perfection.
He loved the Church so honestly, that he was stern
towards those who troubled her. He loved the
world so wisely, that he preached the Truth in it ;
yet, if men rejected it, he did riot love them so in-
ordinately as to forget the supremacy of the Truth,
as the word of Him who is above all. Let it never
be forgotten then, when we draw pictures for our-
selves of this saintly Apostle, this unearthy Prophet,
who fed upon the sights and voices of the world of
spirits, and looked out heavenwards day by day
for Him, whom he had once seen in the flesh, that
this is he who gives us that command about shun-
ning heretics, which, whether of force in this age
or not, still certainly in any age is (what men now
call) severe; and that this command is but in uni-
son with the fearful descriptions he gives in other
parts of his inspired writings of the Presence, the
Law, and the Judgments of Almighty God. Who
can deny that the Apocalypse from beginning to
end is a very fearful book ; I may say, the most
1 3 John 1.
XXIII.] TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR. 317
fearful book in Scripture, full of accounts of the
wrath of God ? Yet, it is written by the Apostle of
love. It is possible, then, for a man to be at once
kind as Barnabas, yet zealous as Paul. Strictness
and tenderness had no " sharp contention" in
the breast of the beloved Disciple; they found their
perfect union, yet distinct exercise, in the grace of
Charity, which is the fulfilling of the whole Law.
I wish I saw any prospect of this element of zeal
and holy sternness springing up among us, to
temper and give character to the languid unmean-
ing benevolence which we misname Christian love.
I have no hope of my country till I see it.
Many schools of religion and ethics are to be found
among us, and they all profess to magnify, in one
shape or other, what they consider the principle of
love; but what they lack is a firm maintenance of
that characteristic of the Divine Nature, which,
in accommodation to our infirmity, is named by
St. John and his brethren, the wrath of God. Let
this be well observed. There are men who are ad-
vocates of Expedience ; these, as far as they are
religious at all, resolve conscience into an instinct
of mere benevolence, and refer all the dealings of
Providence with His creatures to the same one
Attribute. Hence, they consider all punishment
to be remedial, a means to an end, deny that the
woe threatened against sinners is of eternal dura-
tion, and explain away the doctrine of the Atone-
ment. There are others, who place religion in the
318 ST. BARNABAS. [SKRM.
mere exercise of the excited feelings ; and these too
look upon their God and Saviour, as far (that is)
as they themselves are concerned, solely as a God
of love. They believe themselves to be converted
by the manifestation of that love to their souls,
drawing them on to Him ; and they imagine that
that same love, untired by any possible transgres-
sions on their part, will surely carry forward every
individual so chosen to final triumph. Moreover,
as accounting that Christ has already done every
thing for their salvation, they do not feel that
a moral change is necessary in order to it, or,
rather, they consider that the Vision of revealed love
works it for them ; in either case dispensing with
all laborious efforts, all " fear and trembling," all
self-denial in " working out their salvation," nay,
looking upon such qualifications with suspicion, as
leading to a supposed self-confidence and spiritual
pride. Once more, there are many of a mystical
turn of mind, with untutored imaginations and
subtle intellects, who follow the theories of the
old Gentile philosophy. These, too, are accustomed
to make love the one principle of life and provi-
dence in heaven and earth ; as if «it were a pervading
Spirit of the world, finding a sympathy in every
heart, absorbing all things into itself, and kindling
a rapturous enjoyment in all who contemplate it.
They sit at home speculating, and separate moral
perfection from action. These men either hold, or
are in the way to hold, the human soul pure by
XXIII.] TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR. 319
nature; sin, an external principle corrupting it;
evil to be destined to final annihilation ; Truth to be
attained by means of the imagination ; conscience
to be a taste ; holiness to be a passive contempla-
tion of God ; and obedience to be a mere plea-
surable work. It is difficult to discriminate accu-
rately between these three schools of opinion,
without using words of unseemly familiarity ; yet
I have said enough for those who wish to pursue
the subject. Let it be observed, then, that these
three systems, however different from each other in
their principles and spirit, yet, all agree in this one
respect, viz., in overlooking that the Christian's
God is represented in Scripture, riot only as a God
of love, but also " a consuming fire." Rejecting
the testimony of Scripture, no wonder they also
reject that of conscience, which assuredly forebodes
ill to the sinner, but which, as the exclusive reli-
gionist maintains, is not the voice of God at all, — or
is a mere benevolence, according to the disciple of
Utility — or, in the judgment of the more mystical
sort, a kind of passion for the beautiful and sublime.
Regarding thus " the goodness" only, and not "the
severity of God," no wonder that they ungird their
loins, and become effeminate ; no wonder that their
ideal notion of a perfect Church, is a Church
which lets every one go on his own way, and dis-
claims any right to pronounce an opinion, much
less inflict a censure on religious error.
But those who think themselves and others in risk
15
320 ST. BARNABAS. [SERM.
of an eternal curse, dare not be thus indulgent. Here
then lies our want at the present day, for this we
must pray, — that a reform may come in the spirit
and power of Elias. We must pray God thus " to
revive His work in the midst of the years ;" to send
us a severe Discipline, the Order of St. Paul and St.
John, "speaking the Truth in love, "and "loving in
the Truth," — a Witness of Christ, "knowing the
terror of the Lord," fresh from the presence of
Him " whose heads and hairs are white like wool,
as white as snow, and whose eyes are as a flame of
fire, and out of His mouth a sharp sword," — a Wit-
ness not shrinking from proclaiming His wrath, as a
real characteristic of His glorious perfections, though
expressed in human language for our sakes, pro-
claiming the narrowness of the way of life, the dif-
ficulty of attaining Heaven, the danger of riches,
the necessity of taking up our cross, the excellence
and beauty of self-denial and austerity, the hazard
of disbelieving the Catholic Faith, and the duty of
* zealously contending for it. Thus only will the
tidings of mercy come with force to the souls of
men, with a constraining power and with an abid-
ing impress, when hope and fear go together ; then
only will Christians be successful in fight, "quit-
ting themselves like men," conquering and ruling
the fury of the world, and maintaining the Church
in purity and power, when they condense their feel-
ings by a severe discipline, and are loving in the
midst of firmness, strictness, and holiness. Then
XXIII.] TOLERANCE OF RELIGIOUS ERROR. 321
only can we prosper, (under the blessing and grace
of Him who is the Spirit both of love and of truth,)
when the heart of Paul is vouchsafed to us, to with-
stand even Peter and Barnabas, if ever they are
overcome by mere human feelings, to " know
henceforth no man after the flesh," to put away from
us sister's son, or nearer relative, to relinquish the
sight of them, the hope of them, and the desire of
them, when He commands, who raises up friends
even to the lonely, if they trust in Him, and will
give us " within His walls a name better than of
sons and of daughters, an everlasting name that
shall not be cut off1."
1 Is. Ivi. 4, 5.
VOL. II.
SERMON XXIV.
THE FEAST OF THE NATIVITY OF ST. JOHN BAPTIST.
REBUKING SIN.
MARK vi. 18.
John had said unto Herod, It is not lawful for thee to have thy
brother's wife*
IN the Collect of this day, we pray God to enable
us " boldly to rebuke vice" after the example of St.
John the Baptist, who died a Martyr in the faith-
ful discharge of this duty.
Herod the Tetrarch had taken his brother's wife.
John the Baptist protested against so heinous a sin ;
and the guilty king, though he could not bring
himself to forsake it, yet respected the prophet, and
tried to please him in other ways ; but Herodias,
the proud and cruel woman whom he had married,
resented his interference, and at length effected his
death. I need not go through the details of this
atrocious history, which are well known to every
reader of the Gospels.
SF.RM. XXIV.] REBUKING SIN.
St. John the Baptist had a most difficult office to
fulfil ; that of rebuking a king. Not that it is dif-
ficult for a man of rude arrogant mind to say a
harsh thing to men in power, — nay, rather, it is a
gratification to such a one ; but it is difficult to re-
buke well, that is, at a right time, in a right spirit,
and a right manner. The Holy Baptist rebuked
Herod without making him angry ; therefore he
must have rebuked him with gravity, temper, sin-
cerity, and an evident good-will towards him. On
the other hand, he spoke so firmly, sharply, and
faithfully, that his rebuke cost him his life.
We who now live have not that extreme duty
put upon us with which St. John was laden ; yet
every one of us has a share in his office, inasmuch
as we are all bound " to rebuke vice boldly," when
we have fit opportunities for so doing. I proceed
then to make some remarks upon the duty, as en-
forced upon us by to-day's Festival.
Now, it is plain that there are two sorts of men
in the world ; — those who put themselves forward,
and speak much ; and those who retire, and from
indolence, timidity, or fastidiousness, do not care
to express an opinion on what comes before them.
Neither of these classes will act the part of St.
John the Baptist in their intercourse with others :
the retiring will not rebuke vice at all ; the bold
and ill-mannered will take a pleasure in giving
their judgment, whether they are fit judges or not,
Y 2
ST. JOHN BAPTIST. [SERM.
whether they ought to speak or not, and at all times,
proper and improper.
These self-appointed censors of vice are not to be
countenanced or tolerated by any serious Christian.
The subjects of their attack are often open to cen-
sure, it is true; and should be censured, but not
by them. Yet these men take upon them, on their
own authority, to blame them; — often, because those
whose duty it is, neglect to do so ; and then they
flatter themselves with the notion that they are
energetic champions of virtue, strenuous and useful
guardians of public morals or popular rights.
There is a multitude of such men in these days,
who succeed the better, because they conceal
their names ; and are thus relieved of the trouble
of observing delicacy in their manner of rebuking,
escape the penalties which the resentment of the
assailed party inflicts on his open assailant, and
are able to dispense with such requisites of personal
character and deportment as are ordinarily ex-
pected from those who assume the office of the
Baptist. And, by speaking against men of note,
they gratify the bad passions of the multitude ;
fond, as it ever is, of tales of crime, and malevo-
lent towards the great ; and thus they increase
their influence, and come to be looked up to and
feared.
Now all such officious accusers of vice are to be
disowned, I say, by all who wish to be really Christ-
XXIV.] REBUKING SIN. S25
ians. Every one has his place, one to obey,
another to rule, a third to rebuke. It is not reli-
gious to undertake an office without a commission.
John the Baptist was miraculously called to the
duties of a reformer and teacher. Afterwards, an
Order of men was appointed for the performance of
the same services; and this Order remains to this
day in an uninterrupted succession. Those who take
upon them to rebuke vice without producing cre-
dentials of their authority, are intruding upon the
office of God's Ministers. They may indeed suc-
ceed in their usurpation, they may become popu-
lar, be supported by the many, and be recognised
even by the persons whom they attack, still the
function of Censor is from God, whose final judg-
ment it precedes and shadows forth : and not a
whole generation of self-willed men can bestow on
their organ the powers of a divine ambassador. It
is our part, then, anxiously to guard against the
guilt of acquiescing in the claims of such false
prophets, lest we fall under the severity of our
Lord's prediction: "I am come in My Father's
name, (He says) and ye receive Me not. If ano-
ther shall come in his own name, him ye will
receive V
I notice this peculiarity of the Reprover's office,
as founded on a Divine Commission, and the con-
sequent sin of undertaking it without a call, for
' 1 John v. 43.
ST. JOHN BAPTIST. [SERM.
another reason. Besides these bad men, who cla-
mour against vice for gain and envy-sake, I know
there are others of a better stamp, who imagine
that they ought to rebuke, when in truth they ought
not ; and who, on finding that they cannot do the
office well, or on getting into trouble in attempting
it, are perplexed and discouraged, or consider that
they suffer for righteousness' sake. But our duty
is commonly a far more straightforward matter
than excited and over-sensitive minds are apt to
suppose, that is, as far as concerns our knowing
it ; and, when we find ourselves perplexed to ascer-
tain it, we should ask ourselves, whether we have
not embarrassed our course by some unnecessary or
self-willed conduct of our own. For instance,
when men imagine it to be their duty to rebuke
their superiors, they get into difficulties, for the
simple reason, that it is and ever will be difficult to
do another man's duty. When the young take
upon them to set right their elders, private Christ-
ians speak against the Clergy, the Clergy attempt
to instruct their Bishops, or servants their masters,
they will find that, generally speaking, the attempt
does not succeed ; and perhaps they will impute
their failure to circumstances, — whereas, the real
reason is to be found in there being no call on them
to rebuke at all. There is ever, indeed, a call on
them to keep from sin themselves in all things,
which itself is a silent protest against whatever is
wrong in high places, — and this they cannot avoid,
XXIV.] REBUKING SIN. 327
and need not wish .to avoid ; but very seldom, only
in extreme cases, is a man called upon in the way
of duty, directly to blame or denounce his su-
periors.
And in truth we have quite enough to do in the
way of rebuking vice, if we confine our censure to
those who are the lawful subjects of it. These are
our equals and our inferiors. Here, again, it is
easy to use violent language towards those who are
below us in station, to be arrogant, to tyrannize ;
but such was not St. John the Baptist's manner of
reproving. He reproved under the prospect of
suffering for his faithfulness ; and we should never
use a strong word, however true it be, without
being willing to acquiesce in some penalty or other
(should it so happen), as the seal of our earnestness.
We must not suppose, that our inferiors are with-
out power to annoy us, because they are inferior.
We depend on the poor as well as on the rich. Nor,
by inferiors, do I mean those merely who are in a
lower rank of society. Herod was St. John's in-
ferior ; the greatest king is, in one sense, inferior to
God's Ministers, and is to be approached by them,
with all honour indeed and loyal abasement, but
without trepidation of mind or cowardice, without
forgetting that they are servants of the Church,
gifted with their power by a divine appointment.
And what is true even in the instance of the King
himself, is much more applicable to the case of the
merely wealthy or ennobled. But is it a light
328 ST. JOHN BAPTIST. [SERM.
matter to reprove such men ? And can we do so
without the risk of suffering for it ? Who is suffi-
cient for these things, without the guidance and
strength of Him who died to purchase for His
Church this high authority ?
Again, parents are bound to rebuke their chil-
dren ; but here the office is irksome for a different
reason. It is misplaced affection, not fear, which
interferes here with the performance of our duty.
And besides, parents are indolent as well as over-
fond. They look to their home as a release from
the world's cares, and cannot bear to make duties in
a quarter where they would find a recreation. And
they have their preferences and partialities about
their children ; and being alternately harsh and
weakly indulgent, are not respected by them, even
when they seasonably rebuke them.
And, as to rebuke those who are inferior to us in
the present appointments of Providence, is a serious
work, so also (much more) does it require a ripe-
ness in Christian holiness to rebuke our equals
suitably ; — and this, first, because we fear their
ridicule ; next, because every considerate person is
aware, that, in rebuking another, he is binding
himself to a strict and religious life, and we natu-
rally shrink from openly pledging ourselves to serve
God. Accordingly, it has come to pass, that Christ-
ians, by a sort of tacit agreement, wink at each
other's faults, and keep silence ; whereas, if each
of us forced himself to make his neighbour sensible
XXIV.] REBUKING SIN. 329
when he did wrong, he would both benefit another,
and through God's blessing, would bind himself
also to a more consistent profession. Who can
say how much harm is done by thus countenancing
the imperfections of our friends and equals ? The
standard of Christian morals is lowered ; the ser-
vice of God is mixed up with devotion to Mammon;
and thus society is constantly tending to a heathen
state. And this culpable toleration of vice is sanc-
tioned by the manners of the present age, which
seems to consider it a mark of good breeding not to
be solicitous about the faith or conduct of those
around us, as if their private views and habits
were nothing to us ; — which would have more pre-
tence of truth in it, were they merely oar fellow-
creatures, but is evidently false in the case of
those who all t"he while profess to be Christians, who
imagine that they gain the privileges of the Gospel
by their profession, while they bring scandal on it
by their lives.
Now, if it be asked, what rules can be given for
rebuking vice ? — I observe, that, as on the one hand
to perform the office of a censor requires a maturity
and consistency of principle seen and acknow-
ledged, so is it also the necessary result of possessing
it. They who reprove with the greatest propriety,
from their weight of character, are generally the very
men who are best also qualified for reproving. To
rebuke well is a gift which grows with the need of
exercising it. Not that any one will gain it with-
330 ST. JOHN BAFIIST. [SBRM.
out an effort on his part ; he must overcome false
shame, timidity, and undue delicacy, and learn to
be prompt and collected in withstanding evil ; but
after all, his mode of doing it will depend mainly
on his general character. The more his habitual
temper is formed after the law of Christ, the more
discreet, unexceptionable, and graceful will be his
censures, the more difficult to escape or to resist.
What I mean is this : cultivate in your general
deportment a cheerful, honest, manly temper ; and
you will find fault well, because you will do so in a
natural way. Aim at viewing all things in a plain
and candid light, and at calling them by their right
names. Be frank, do not keep your notions of
right and wrong to yourselves, nor, on some conceit
that the world is too bad to be taught the Truth,
suffer it to sin in word or deed without rebuke. Do
not allow friend or stranger in the familiar inter-
course of society to advance false opinions, nor shrink
from stating your own, and do this in single-minded-
ness and love. Persons are to be found, who make
up their minds to tell their neighbours of their faults
in a strangely solemn way, by a vast effort, as if
they were doing some great thing ; and such men,
not only offend those whom they wish to set right,
but also foster in themselves a spirit of self-com-
placency. Such a mode of finding fault is insepa-
rably connected with a notion that they themselves
are far better than the parties they blame ; whereas
the true single-hearted Christian will find fault, not
15
XXIV.] REBUKING SIN.
austerely or gloomily, but in love ; not stiffly, but
naturally, and as a matter of course, just as he
would tell his friend of some obstacle in his path,
which was likely to throw him down, but without
any absurd feeling of superiority over him, because
he was able to do so. His feeling is ; " I have done
a good office to you, and you must in turn serve me/'
And, though his advice be not always taken as he
meant it, yet he will not dwell on the pain occa-
sioned to himself by such a result of his interfer-
ence; being conscious, that in truth there ever is
much to correct in his mode of doing his duty,
knowing that his intention was good, and being
determined any how to make light of his failure,
except so far as to be more cautious in future
against even the appearance of rudeness or intem-
perance in his manner.
These are a few suggestions on an important sub-
ject. We daily influence each other for good or
evil ; let us not be the occasion of influencing
others by our silence, when we ought to speak.
Recollect St. Paul's words : — " Be not partaker of
other men's sins : keep thyself pure1."
1 1 Tim. v. 22.
SERMON XXV.
THE FEAST OF ST. PETER THE APOSTLE.
THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY.
LUKE vii. 28.
,
I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is
not a greater prophet than John the Baptist : but he that is
least in the Kingdom of God is greater than he.
ST. Peter's day suitably follows the day of St:
John the Baptist; for thus we have a striking
memento, as the text suggests, of the especial dig-
nity of the Christian Ministry over all previous
Ministries which Almighty God has appointed.
St. John was "much more than a Prophet;" he
was as great as any messenger of God that had
ever been born ; yet the least in the Kingdom of
heaven, the least of Christ's Ministers, was greater
than he. And this, I observe, is a reflection espe-
cially fitted for this Festival, because the Apostle
Peter is taken in various parts of the Gospel, as the
appropriate type and representative of the Christian
Ministry l.
1 Vide Matt. xvi. 18, 19. Luke xxii. 29, 30. Johnxxi. 15—17.
SERM. XXV.] THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. 333
Now, let us consider, in what the peculiar dig-
nity of the Christian Minister consists. Evidently
in this, that he is the representative of Christ ; for,
as Christ is infinitely above all other messengers
from God, he who stands in His stead, must be
superior beyond compare, to all Ministers of
religion, whether Prophets, Priests, Lawgivers,
Judges, or Kings, whom Almighty God ever com-
missioned. Moses, Aaron, Samuel, and David,
were shadows of the Saviour ; but the Minister of
the Gospel is His present substitute. As a type or
prophecy of grace is less than a pledge and means,
as a Jewish sacrifice is less than a Gospel sacra-
ment, so are Moses and Elias less by office than
the representatives of Christ. This, I consider to
be evident, as soon as stated ; the only question
being, whether there is reason for thinking, that
Christ has, in matter of fact, left representatives
behind Him ; and this, (I proceed to show,) Scrip-
ture enables us to determine in the affirmative.
Now, in the first place, (as we all know,) Christ
chose twelve out of His disciples, whom He called
Apostles, to be His representatives even during His
own ministry. And He gave them the power of
doing the wonderful works which He did Himself.
Of course I do not say He gave them equal power ;
(God forbid !) but He gave them a certain sufficient
portion of His power. " He gave them power,"
says St. Luke, " and authority over all devils, and
to cure diseases ; and He sent them to preach the
334 ST. PETER. [SERM.
Kingdom of God, and to heal the sick1." And
He expressly made them His substitutes to the
world at large ; so that to receive them was to
receive Himself. " He that receiveth you, receiv-
eth Me2." Such was their principal power before
His passion, similar to that which He principally
exercised, viz. the commission to preach and to
perform bodily cures. But when He had wrought
out the Atonement for human sin upon the Cross,
and purchased for man the gift of the Holy Ghost,
then He gave them a higher commission ; and
still, be it observed, parallel to that which He
Himself then assumed. " As My Father hath sent
Me, even so send I you. And when He had said
this, He breathed on them, and saith unto them,
Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whosesoever sins ye
remit, they are remitted unto them ; and whose-
soever sins ye retain, they are retained 3." Here
then the Apostles became Christ's representatives
in the power of His Spirit, as before they were His
representatives as regards miraculous cures, and
preaching the Kingdom.
The following texts supply additional evidence
that the Apostles were commissioned in Christ's
stead, and inform us likewise as to some of the
particular offices which they held under Him.
" Let a man so account of us, as of the Ministers
of Christ, and Stewards of the Mysteries of God."
J Luke ix. 1,2. 3 Matt. 1. 40. 2 John xx. 2x— 23.
XXV.] THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. 335
" Ye received me as an Angel (or heavenly Mes-
senger) of God, even as Christ Jesus." "We are
Ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech
you by us ; we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye
reconciled to God V
The Apostles then, standing in Christ's place,
were consequently exalted by office far above any
divine Messengers before them. This is also plain
from the sacred treasure committed to their cus-
tody, which, (not to mention their miraculous
powers, which is beside our present purpose,) were
those peculiar spiritual blessings which flowed from
their Lord as a Saviour, as a Prophet, Priest, and
King.
So much at first sight : — now to go into particu-
lars. John the Baptist said of himself and Christ ;
" I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance ;
but He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and
with fire 2." In this respect then, Christ's Minis-
trations were above all that had ever been before
Him, in bringing with them the gift of the Holy
Ghost, that one gift, one, yet multiform, sevenfold
in its operation, in which all spiritual blessedness is
included. Accordingly, our Lord was solemnly
anointed with the Holy Ghost Himself, as an initia-
tion into His Ministerial office. He was thus com-
missioned, (according to the Prophet,) " to preach
good tidings," " to bind up," "to give the oil of
1 1 Cor. iv. 1. Gal. iv. 14. 2 Cor. v. 20. 2 Matt. iii. 11.
336 ST. PETER. [SERM.
joy for mourning." Therefore also, the Apostles were
anointed with the same heavenly gift for the same
Ministerial office. " He breathed on them, and saith
unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost." Such as
was the consecration of the Master, such was that
of the Disciples. — After this solemn grant of autho-
rity and power by the anointing of the Spirit, let
us observe of what parts His office consisted, and
that of His Apostles after Him.
Christ is a Prophet, as, authoritatively revealing
the will of God and the Gospel of grace. So also
were the Apostles ; " He that despiseth, despiseth
not man, but God, who hath also given unto us
His Holy Spirit V
Christ is a Priest, as having the power of for-
giving sin, and of imparting other needful divine
gifts. The Apostles, too, had this commission ;
"Whosesoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto
them ; and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are re-
tained. " Let a man so account of us as ... Stew-
ards of the Mysteries of God."
Christ is a King, as ruling the Church ; and the
Apostles rule it in His stead. " I appoint unto you
a Kingdom, as My Father hath appointed unto Me;
that ye may eat and drink at My table in My King-
dom, and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes
of Israel2."
The gift, or office cannot be named, which be-
longs to our Lord as the Christ, which He did not
1 1 Thes. iv. 8. 2 Luke xxi. 29, 30.
XXV.] THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. 337
in its degree transfer to His Apostles by the power
of His Holy Spirit ; one of course excepted, the
One great Work, which none else in the whole world
could sustain, of being the Atoning Sacrifice for all
mankind. So far no one can take His place, and
"His glory He does not give to another." He is the
sole Meritorious Cause, the sole Source of spiritual
blessing to our guilty race ; but as to those offices
and gifts, which flow from this Atonement, preach-
ing, teaching, reconciling, absolving, censuring,
dispensing grace, ruling, ordaining, these all are
included in the Apostolic Commission, which is
instrumental and representative in His absence.
" As My Father hath sent Me, so send I you/'
His gifts are not confined to Himself. "The whole
house is filled with the odour of the ointment."
This being granted, however, as regards the
Apostles themselves, some one may be disposed
to inquire, whether their triple office has de-
scended to Christian Ministers after them. I say
their triple office, for few persons will deny that
some portion of their commission still remains
among us. The notion that there is no divine ap-
pointment of one man above another for Ministerial
duties is not a common one, and we need not refute
it. But it is very common for men to believe only
so far as they can see and understand ; and, be-
cause they are witnesses to the process and effects
of instructing and ruling, and not to that of (what
may be called) " the ministry of reconciliation," to
VOL. II. Z-
338 ST. PETER. [SERM.
accept Christ's Ministers as representatives of His
Prophetic and Regal, not of His Priestly authority.
Assuming then their claim to inherit two portions of
His Anointing, I shall confine myself to the proof
of their possessing the third likewise.
By a Priest, in a Christian sense, is meant an
appointed channel by which the peculiar Gospel
blessings are conveyed to mankind, one who has
authority to apply to individuals those gifts which
Christ has promised us generally as the fruit of
His mediation. This power was possessed by the
Apostles ; I am now to show that it is possessed by
their Successors likewise.
1. Now, first, that there is a strong line of dis-
tinction between the Apostles and other Christian
Ministers, I readily grant; nay, rather I would
maintain it to be so clearly marked that there is
no possibility of confusing together those respects
in which they resemble with those in which they
differ from their brethren. They were, not only
Ministers of Christ, but first founders of His Church ;
and their gifts and offices, so far forth as they had
reference to this part of their commission, doubt-
less were but occasional and extraordinary, and
ended with themselves. They were organs of Re-
velation, inspired Teachers, in some respects infal-
lible, gifted with diverse tongues, workers of mi-
racles ; and none but they are such. The duration
of any gift depends upon the need which it supplies ;
that which has answered its purpose ends, that
XXV.] THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. 339
which is still necessary is graciously continued.
Such at least seems to be the rule of a Merciful
Providence. Therefore it is, that the Christian
Ministry still includes in it the office of teaching,
for education is necessary for every soul born into
the world; and the office of governing, for "de-
cency and order" is still necessary for the quiet
and union of the Christian brotherhood. And, for
the same reason, it is natural at first sight to sup-
pose, that the office of applying the gifts of grace
should be continued also, while there is guilt to be
washed away, sinners to be reconciled, believers to
be strengthened, matured, comforted. What war-
rant have we from the nature of the case, for mak-
ing any distinction between the ministry of teaching
and the ministry of reconciliation ? if one is still
committed to us, why not the other also ?
And it will be observed, that the only antecedent
doubt which attaches to the doctrine of the Chris-
tian Priesthood, is obviated by Scripture itself. It
might be thought that the power of remitting
and retaining sins was too great to be given to sin-
ful man over his fellows ; but in matter of fact it
was committed to the Apostles without restriction,
though they were not infallible in what they did.
" Whosesoever sins ye remit, they are remitted
unto them ; and whosesoever sins ye retain, they
are retained." The grant was in the very form of
it unconditional, and left to their Christian discre-
tion. What has once been given, may be conti-
z2
340 ST. PETER. [SEBM.
nued. I consider this remark to be of weight in a
case like the present, where the very nature of
the professed gift is the only considerable reason
against the fact of its bestowal.
2. But all this is on the bare antecedent view of
the case. In fact, our Lord Himself has decided
the question, by declaring that His presence, by
means of His Apostles, should be with the Church
to the end of the world. He promised this on the
solemn occasion of His leaving them ; He declared
it when He bade them make converts, baptize, and
teach. As well may we doubt whether it is our
duty to preach and proselyte, and prepare men for
Heaven, as that His Apostolic Presence is with us
for those purposes. His words then at first sight
even go to include all the gifts vouchsafed to His
first Ministers ; far from having a scanty grant of
them, so large is the promise, that we are obliged to
find out reasons to justify us in considering the
Successors of the Apostles in any respects less fa-
voured than themselves. Such reasons we know
are to be found, and lead us to distinguish the ex-
traordinary gifts from the ordinary, a distinction
which the event justifies ; but what is there either
in Scripture or Church History to make us place
the commission of reconciliation among those which
are extraordinary ?
3. In the next place, it is deserving of notice
that this distinction between ordinary and extraor-
dinary gifts, is really made in Scripture itself, and
XXV.] THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY.
that the sacerdotal power is not there included
among the extraordinary. No one can doubt, that
on the day of Pentecost was the formal inaugura-
tion of the Apostles into their high and singular
office of building the Church of Christ. They were
" wise Master-builders, according to the grace
given them;1' and that grace was extraordinary.
However, among those gifts, "tongues and visions,
prophecies and wonders," their priestly power is
not enumerated. On the contrary, it was con-
ferred at a distinct time, according to the passage
already cited, when Christ breathed on them,
and gave them, through the Holy Ghost, the autho-
rity to remit and retain sins. And further, I would
remind you, that this is certainly our Church's
clear and deliberate view of the subject ; for she
expressly puts into the Bishop's mouth at ordina-
tion the very words here used by our Saviour
to His Apostles. "Receive the Holy Ghost;"
" Whosesoever sins ye remit, they are remitted to
them; and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are re-
tained ;" words, which it were inexpressibly pro-
fane for man to use to man, except by a plain divine
commission to do so.
4. But again, has not the Gospel Sacraments?
and have not Sacraments, as pledges and means
of grace, a priestly nature ? If so, the question of
the existence of a Christian Priesthood, is narrowed
at once to the simple question, whether or not it is
probable that so precious an ordinance as a channel
342 ST. PETER. [SERM.
of grace would be committed by Providence to the
custody of certain guardians. The tendency of
opinions at this day is to believe that nothing more
is necessary for acceptance than faith in God's pro-
mise of mercy ; whereas it is certain from Scripture,
that the gift is not conveyed to individuals except
through appointed ordinances, Christ has inter-
posed a something between Himself and the soul ;
and if it is not inconsistent with the liberty of the
Gospel that a Sacrament should interfere, there is
no antecedent inconsistency in a keeper of a Sa-
crament attending upon it. Moreover, the very
circumstance that a standing Ministry does exist,
seems to point at the inference that that Ministry
was intended to take charge of the Sacraments ;
and thus the facts of the case afford an interpreta-
tion of our Lord's words, in which He committed to
St. Peter " the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven."
I would have this Scripture truth considered at-
tentively; viz. that Sacraments are the channels of
the peculiar Christian privileges, and not merely (as
many men think, and as the rite of Confirmation
really is,) seals of the covenant. A man may object
indeed, that in the Epistle to the Romans nothing
is said about channels and instruments ; that faith
is represented as the sole medium of justification.
But I will refer him, by way of reply, to the same
Apostle's speech to Festus and Agrippa, where he
describes Christ as saying to him on his miracu-
lous conversion, " Rise and stand upon thy feet;
XXV.] THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. 343
for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to
make thee a Minister and a Witness" sending
him forth, (as it would appear,) to preach the
Gospel, without instrumentality of Ordinance or
Minister. Had we but this account of his conver-
sion, who would not have supposed, that he who was
11 to open men's eyes, and turn them from darkness
to light," had been pardoned and accepted at once
upon his faith, without rite or form ? Yet from other
parts of the history, we learn what is here omitted,
viz. that an especial revelation was made to Ana-
nias, lest Saul should lack baptism ; and that, so
far from his being justified immediately on his
faith, he was bid not to tarry, but "to arise and
be baptized, and to wash away his sins, calling on
the name of the Lord1." So dangerous is it to
attempt to prove a negative from insulated passages
of Scripture.
Here then we have a clear instance in St. Paul's
own case, that there are priestly services between
the soul and God, even under the Gospel ; that
though Christ has purchased inestimable blessings
for our race, yet that it is still necessary ever to
apply them to individuals by visible means ; and if
so, I confess, that to me at least it seems more
likely antecedently, that such services should have,
than that they should lack, an appropriate Minister.
1 Actsxxvi. 16 — 18. xxii. 16. ix. 17. Vid. also xiii. 2,3.
344 ST. PETER. [SEHM.
But here again we are not left to mere conjecture,
as I proceed to show.
5. You well know that the benefits of the Atone-
ment are frequently represented in Scripture under
the figure of spiritual food, bread from heaven, the
water that never faileth, and in more sacred lan-
guage, the communion of the Body and Blood of
the Divine Sacrifice. Now, this especial Christian
benefit is therein connected, as on the one hand
with an outward Rite, so on the other with certain
appointed Dispensers. So that the very'context of
Scripture leads us on from the notion of a priestly
service to that of a priesthood.
" Who then is that faithful and wise Steward, "says
Christ, " whom his Lord shall make ruler over His
household, to give them their portion of food in due
season? Blessed is that servant whom his Lord,
when He cometh, shall find so doing1." Now, I infer
from this passage; first, that there are, under the
Gospel, especial Dispensers of the Christian's spi-
ritual food, in other words (if the word " food"2 may
be interpreted from the parallel of the sixth chapter of
St. John,) Dispensers of invisible grace, or Priests ;
— next, that they are to continue to the Church in
every age till the end, for it is said, " Blessed is
he, whom his Lord, when He cometh, shall find so
doing;" — further, that the Minister mentioned is
also " Ruler over His household," as in the case of
1 Luke xii. 42.
XXV.] THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. 345
the Apostles, uniting the Regal with the Sacerdotal
office; — lastly, the word " Steward," which inci-
dentally occurs in the passage, a title applied by
St. Paul to the Apostles, affords an additional reason
for supposing that other like titles, such as " Am-
bassadors of Christ," given to the Apostles, do also
belong in a true and sufficient sense to their Suc-
cessors.
6. These arguments for the existence of a Chris-
tian Priesthood, are strengthened by observing that
the office of intercession, which though not a pecu-
liarity, is ever characteristic of the Priestly office,
is spoken of in Scripture as a sort of prerogative
of the Gospel Ministry. For instance, Isaiah,
speaking of Christian times, says, " I have set
watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall
never hold their peace day nor night. Ye that
make mention of the Lord, keep not silence ; and
give Him no rest, till He establish, and till He
make Jerusalem a praise in the earth1." In the Acts
of the Apostles, we find Christ's Ministers engaged
in this sacred service, according to the prophecy.
" There were in the Church that was at Antioch
certain prophets and teachers, as Barnabas, and
Simeon called Niger, and Lucius of Gyrene, and
Manaen, foster-brother to Herod the Tetrarch, and
Saul. As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted2,"
the Holy Ghost separated two of them for His work.
This " ministering" to the Lord with fasting was
1 Is, Ixii. 6, 7. a Actsxiii. 1, 2.
346 ST. PETER. [SERM.
doubtless some solemn intercessory service. And
this agrees with St. James's direction, which seems
to invest the Elders of the Church with this same
privilege of the Priesthood. " Is any sick among
you ? Let him call for the Elders of the Church,
and let them pray over him, (not pray with him
merely,) anointing him with oil in the name of the
Lord ; and the prayer of faith, (not the oil merely,)
shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him
up'."
7. We may end the argument by recurring to the
instances of St. Peter and St. John the Baptist ;
who, as types of God's ordained servants, before
and after His Son's coming, may serve to explain
the office of ordinary Christian Ministers. Even
the lowest of them is " greater than John." Now,
what was it that he wanted ? Was it the knowledge
of Gospel doctrine ? No surely ; no words can be
clearer than his concerning the New Covenant.
" Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the
sin of the world." " He that cometh from above,
is above all. . . He whom God hath sent speaketh
the words of God, for God giveth not the Spirit by
measure unto Him. The Father loveth the Son,
and hath given all things into His hand. He that
believeth on the Son hath everlasting life ; and he
that believeth not the Son, shall not see life, but the
wrath of God abideth on him2." Therefore, the
Baptist lacked not the full Christian doctrine ; what
1 James v. 14, 15. 2 John i. 29. iii. 31—36.
XXV.] THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. 347
he did lack, was (as he says himself) the Baptism
of the Spirit, i.e. the commission from Christ the
Saviour, in all His manifold gifts, ordinary and ex-
traordinary, Regal and Sacerdotal. John was not
inferior to us Gospel Ministers in knowledge, but in
authority.
On the other hand, since St. Peter's ministerial
office has been shown to continue, as regards ordi-
nary purposes, in the persons of those who come
after him, we are bound to understand our Lord's
blessing upon him, as descending in due measure
on the least of us His Ministers who " keep the
faith," Peter being but the representative and type
of them all. " Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona; for
flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but
My Father, which is in heaven. And I say also
unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock
I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall
not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee
the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven ; and whatso-
ever thou shalt bind on earth, shalt be bound in
heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth,
shall be loosed in heaven." August and glorious
promise ! Can it be, that it is all expended on St.
Peter, how great soever that noble Apostle ? Is it
inserted in the " everlasting Gospel," to witness
merely of one long since departed ? Is it the prac-
tice of the inspired word to exalt individuals ? Does
not the very exuberance of the blessing resist any
such niggardly use of it ? Does it not flow over,
15
348 ST. PETER. [SERM.
in spite of us, till our unbelief is vanquished by the
graciousness of Him who spoke it ? Is it, in short,
any thing but the prejudices of education, which
prevent so many of us from receiving it in that
fulness of grace in which it was poured out ?
I say our prejudices, — for these surely are the
cause of our inconsistency in faith, adopting (as we
do) a rule of Scripture interpretation, which carries
us a certain way, and stops short of the whole
counsel of God, and should teach us nothing, or
a great deal more. If the promises to Christ's
Apostles are not fulfilled to the Church for ever
after, why should the blessing attaching to the Sa-
craments extend after the first age ? Why should
the Lord's Supper be now the Communion of the
Lord's Body ? Why should Baptism convey spiri-
tual privileges ? Why should any part of Scripture
afford permanent instruction ? Why should the
way of life be any longer narrow ? Why should
the burden of the Cross be necessary for every
disciple of Christ? Why should the Spirit of
adoption any longer be promised us ? Why should
separation from the world be now a duty ? Happy
indeed it is for men that they are inconsistent ;
for then, though they lose some part of a Chris-
tian's faith, at least they keep a portion. This will
happen in quiet times, and in the case of those
who are of mature years, and whose minds have
been long made up on the subject of religion, But
should a time of controversy arise, then such in-
XXV.] THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. 349
consistencies become of fearful moment as regards
the multitude called Christian, who have not any
decided convictions to rest upon. Inconsistency of
creed is sure to attract the notice of the intellect,
unless habit has reconciled the heart to it. There-
fore, in a speculative age, such as our own, a reli-
gious education which involves such inconsistency,
is most dangerous to the unformed Christian, who
will set straight his traditionary creed by unlearn-
ing the portion of truth it contains, rather than by
adding that in which it is deficient. Hence, the
lamentable spectacle, so commonly seen, of men,
who deny the Apostolic commission proceeding to
degrade the Eucharist from a Sacrament to a bare
commemorative rite ; or to make Baptism such a
mere outward form, and sign of profession, as it
would be childish or fanciful to revere. And rea-
sonably ; for they who think it superstitious to
believe that particular persons are channels of
grace, are but consistent in denying such a virtue
to particular ordinances. Nor do they stop even
here ; for, denying the grace of baptism, they pro-
ceed to deny the doctrine of original sin, for which
that grace is the remedy l. Further, denying the
doctrine of original sin, they necessarily impair the
1 E. g. A Dissenting Catechism has lately been published in
the country for popular use, in which the doctrine of original sin
is denied, by way of meeting the charge of cruelty towards
children, as involved in the omission of infant baptism.
350 ST. PETER. [SEUM.
doctrine of the Atonement, and so prepare a way
for the denial of our Lord's Divinity. Again, de-
nying the power of the Sacraments on the ground
of its mysteriousness, demanding the fullest proof of
it conceivable from the text of Scripture, and re-
jecting the blessedness of " not seeing, and yet
believing," they naturally proceed to object to the
doctrine of the Trinity as obstructing and obscuring
the simplicity (as they consider it,) of the Gospel,
and but indirectly deducible from the extant docu-
ments of inspiration. Lastly, after they have thus
divested the Divine remedies of sin, and the treat-
ment necessary for the sinner, of their solemnity
and awe, having made the whole scheme of salva-
tion of as intelligible and ordinary a character as
the repair of any accident in the works of man,
having robbed Faith of its mysteries, the Sacra-
ments of their virtue, the Priesthood of its commis-
sion, no wonder that sin itself is soon considered a
venial matter, moral evil as a mere imperfection,
man as involved in no great peril or misery, his
duties of no very arduous or anxious nature. In
a word, religion, as such, is in the way to disap-
pear from the mind altogether ; and in its stead a
mere cold worldly morality, a decent regard to the
claims of society, a cultivation of the benevolent
affections, and a gentleness and polish of external
deportment, will be supposed to constitute the
entire duties of that being, who is born in sin and
the child of wrath, is redeemed by the precious
XXV.] THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. 351
blood of the Son of God, is born again and sus-
tained by the Spirit through the invisible strength
of Sacraments, and called, through self-denial and
i ' O
sanctification of the inward man, to the Eternal
Presence of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
Such is the course and the issue of unbelief, though
beginning in what the world calls trifles. Beware
then, O my Brethren, of entering a way which
leads to death. Fear to question what Scripture
says of the Ministers of Christ, lest the same per-
verse spirit lead you on to question its doctrine
about Himself and His Father. " Little children,
it is the last time ; and, as ye have heard that
Antichrist shall come, even now, are there many
Antichrists . . . They went out from us, but they
were not of us V " Ye shall know them by their
fruits2." If any man come to you, bringing any
scoff against the power of Christ's Ministers, ask
him what he holds concerning the Sacraments, or
concerning the Blessed Trinity ; look narrowly
after his belief as regards the Atonement, or Ori-
ginal Sin. Ascertain whether he holds with the
Church's doctrine in those points ; see to it whether
at very best he does not try to evade the question,
has recourse to explanations, or professes to have
no opinion at all upon it. Look to these things,
that you may see whither you are invited. Be not
robbed of your faith blindfold. Do what you do
1 1 Johnii. 18, 19. 2 Matt. vii. 16.
352 ST. PETER. [SERM. XXV.
with a clear understanding of the consequences.
And if the arguments used against you tend to
show that your present creed is in some measure
inconsistent, and force you to see in Scripture more
than you do at present, or else less, be not afraid to
add to it, rather than to detract from it. Be quite
sure that, go as far as you may, you will never
(through God's grace) be led to see more in it than
the early Christians saw ; that, however you enlarge
your creed, you will but carry yourselves on to
Apostolic perfection, equally removed from the ex-
tremes of Popish irreverence and of Socinian unbe-
lief, neither intruding into things not seen as yet,
not denying what you cannot see ].
1 This Sermon was designed for publication before the Author
had seen Dr. Arnold's third volume of Sermons.
SERMON XXVI.
THE FEAST OF ST. JAMES THE APOSTLE.
HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY.
MATT. xx. 23.
To sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give ; but
it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of My Father.
IN these words, to which the Festival of St. James
the Greater especially directs our minds, our
Lord solemnly declares that the high places of His
Kingdom are not His to give, — which can mean
nothing else, than that the assignment of them ulti-
mately does not depend upon Him ; for that He will
actually dispense them at the last day, and more-
over is the meritorious cause of any being given,
is plain from Scripture. I say, He avers most
solemnly that something besides His own will and
choice is necessary, for obtaining the posts of ho-
nour about His throne ; so that we are naturally led
on to ask, where it is that this awful prerogative
is lodged. Is it with His Father ? He proceeds to
speak of His Father ; but neither does He assign it
VOL. II. A a
354 ST. JAMES. [SERM.
to Him, "It shall be given to them for whom it
is prepared of My Father." The Father's foreknow-
ledge and design are announced, not His choice.
" Whom He did foreknow, them He did predesti-
nate/' He prepares the reward, and confers it,
but upon whom ? Christ seems to answer in the
words which follow, upon the humble: — " Whoso-
ever will be great among you, let him be your
minister, and whosoever will be chief among you,
let him be your servant."
Some parallel passages may throw further light
upon the question. In the description He gives us
of the Last Judgment, He tells us He shall say to
them on His right hand, " Come ye blessed of My
Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from
the foundation of the world." Here we have the
same expression ; who then are the heirs for whom
the Kingdom is prepared? He tells us expressly,
those who fed the hungry and thirsty, lodged the
stranger, clothed the naked, visited the sick, came
to the prisoners, for His sake. Consider again an
earlier passage in the same chapter. To whom is
it that He will say, " Enter thou into the joy of
thy Lord ?" — to those whom He can praise as
" good and faithful servants," who have been "faith-
ful over a few things." These two passages then
carry our search just to the very same point, as
that of which the text is a part. They lead us from
the thought of God and Christ, and throw us upon
human agency and responsibility, for the solution
XXVI.] HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY. 355
of the question ; and finally lodge us there, unless
indeed other texts of Scripture can be produced to
lead us on further still. We know for certain that
they for whom the Kingdom is prepared are the
humble, the charitable, and the diligent in the
improvement of their gifts ; to which another text,
(for instance,) adds the spiritually-minded; — " Eye
hath not seen the things which God hath prepared
for them that love Him." Is this as far as we can
go ? does it now depend ultimately on ourselves, or
on any one else, that we come to be humble, charit-
able, diligent, and lovers of God ?
Now, in answering this question religious men
have for many centuries differed in opinion ; not
indeed in the first and purest ages of the Church,
but when corruptions began to steal in. In the
primitive times it was always considered that,
though God's grace was absolutely necessary for
us from first to last, — before we believed in order
to our believing, and while we obeyed and worked
righteousness, in order to our obeying, — so that not
a deed, word, or thought could be pleasing to Him
without it ; yet, that after all the human mind had
also from first to last a power of resisting grace,
and thus was gifted (as the foregoing texts imply)
with the ultimate determination of its own fate,
whether to be saved or rejected, with tha respon-
sibility of its conduct, and (if rejected) the whole
blame of it. However, at the beginning of the
fifth century, when shadows were coming over the
A a*2
356 ST. JAMES. [SERM.
Church, a celebrated Doctor arose, whose name
must ever be honoured by us, for his numberless
gifts, his diligence, and his extended usefulness,
whatever judgment may be passed on certain of
his opinions. He is known in the Theological
Schools as the first to give his sanction to two
doctrines hitherto unknown in the Church, and
apparently far removed from each other, as indeed
are the present systems in which they are found.
The one is the Predestinarian Hypothesis 1 : viz.
that, in spite of the text, it is God and Christ
with whom the ultimate decision concerning the
1 " When, towards the close of his controversy with the Pela-
gians, he (Augustine) entered largely and systematically into his
own peculiar views of election and predestination, ... it was,
even by those who concurred in the general drift of his previous
anti-pelagian treatises . . . objected to him, that he was now super-
fluously advancing a scheme of doctrine hitherto unknown and
unheard-of, a scheme of doctrine contrary to the opinion of all
antecedent fathers, and contrary to the sense of the entire Church
Catholic Augustine was charged with novelty . . . But
how does the great Bishop of Hippo act under the present allega-
tion . . . After much superfluous discussion, and (I fear) with a
too evident reluctance to meddle with the appeal to antiquity,
[he] claims to produce exactly three witnesses in his favour,
Cyprian, to wit, and Ambrose, and Gregory of Nazianzum . . .
But in truth, with the scanty exception of nine words written by
Ambrose, their several testimonies are altogeth'^.:;nugatory and
irrelevant ; so that, in point of historical evidence, as afforded by
those fathers who preceded Augustine, the whole mighty fabric
of ... Austinism, rests upon the single Ambrosian sentence :
Deus, quos dignatur, vocat ; et quern vult, religiosum facit." —
Faber's Trimtarianism, Vol. i. p. x — xiii.
XXVI.] HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY. 357
individual's state depends ; that His grace does
not merely suggest, influence, precede, and follow,
but forms in the soul a new character, not by the
soul's instrumentality, but immediately by Himself,
and is effectual with some not with others, at His
own Freewill, not at the individual's. The one, I
say, is this Predestinarian Doctrine ; and the other
is the Doctrine of Purgatory l. With this latter I
am not now concerned ; and mention it only as
a remarkable fact, that with the same Teacher,
highly to be venerated except in his errors, should
have originated certain characteristics of two Sys-
tems, apart from both of which, as well the Primi-
tive, as the present Anglican Church, have taken
their stand. Dismissing the coincidence with this
remark, I proceed to make some brief observations
on the ground of argument on which the Predes-
tinarian Doctrine rests.
It is doubtless a great mystery, how it is that
one man believes, and another rejects the Gospel.
It is altogether a mystery ; we cannot get at all
beyond the fact, and must be content with our
ignorance. But men of reasoning, subtle, and
restless minds, have within them a temptation to
inquisitiveness ; they cannot acquiesce in the limits
of God's revelation, and go on to assume a cause for
the strange things they see, when they are not told
one. Thus they argue, that a man's self cannot be
1 Vid. Bull, Sermon iii. p. 77.
358 ST. JAMES. [SEEM.
the ultimate cause of his faith or unbelief, else there
would be more first causes than God in the world :
as if the same reasoning would not show that God is
the Author of evil ; or as if it were more intel-
ligible, why the Divine Will should chose this man
and reject that, than why an individual man should
chose or reject good or evil. When then they see,
as is constantly seen in life, two persons, in educa-
tion the same, in circumstances the same, both
baptized, both admitted to full Church privileges,
one turning out well, the other ill, astonished at
the mystery, they hastily say, " Here is God's
secret election ! God has decreed life to one, and
has passed over the other ; else why this difference
of conduct ?" when they should bow the head,
and wait till the day of the revelation of all secrets.
Again, they assume that the will is subjected to
the influence of the reason, affections, arid the
like, in the same uniform way in which material
bodies obey the laws of matter ; — that, certain
inducements or a certain knowledge being pre-
sented, the mind can but act in one way ; so that,
its movements varying, on a given rule, according to
influences from without, (whether from the world or
from God,) every one's doom must be determined,
either by the mere chance of external circumstances,
(which is irrational,) or else, certainly by the deter-
mination of God. Such are their reasonings ; and it is
remarkable that they should trust to reasoning; and
in so special a way, considering they are commonly
XXVI.] HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY. 359
the men who speak against human reason, as falli-
ble and corrupt, when it is brought to oppose their
opinions. Such grounds of argument, then, we
may dismiss at once, except in philosophical dis-
cussions, certainly 'when we speak as Christians.
Next, let us inquire whether there be any Scrip-
ture reason, for breaking the chain of doctrine
which the text suggests. Christ gives the Kingdom
to those for whom it is prepared of the Father ; the
Father prepares it for those who love and serve
Him. Does Scripture warrant us in reversing this
order, and considering that any are chosen to love
Him by His irreversible decree ? It is answered
that it does.
1. Scripture is supposed to promise perseverance,
when men once savingly partake of grace ; as where
it is said, " He which hath begun a good work in
you, will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ1 ;"
and hence it is inferred that the salvation of the
individual rests ultimately with God, and not with
himself. Here then F would object in the outset
to applying to individuals, promises and declara-
tions made to bodies, and on the whole. The
question in debate is, not whether God does not
really carry forward bodies of men, such as the
Christian Church, to salvation, but whether He
has accorded any promise of indefectibility to given
individuals ? Those who differ from us say, that
1 Phil. i. 6.
360 ST. JAMES. [SERM.
individuals are absolutely chosen to eternal life ;
let them then reckon up passages in Scripture
where perseverance is promised to individuals.
Till they can satisfy this demand, they have done
nothing by producing such as that just cited ;
which, being spoken of the body of Christians, do
but impart that same kind of encouragement, as
is contained in other general declarations, such as
the statement about God's willingness to save, His
being in the midst of us, and the like.
Again, to go to the case of individuals, Christ
says, that no one " shall pluck His sheep out of His
Father's hand." I would maintain that here a
condition is understood, as is constantly the case in
Scripture, as in other writings. God proclaims His
name to Moses, as " forgiving iniquity, and trans-
gression, and sin, and that will by no means clear the
guilty1;" but what would be thought of a commen-
tator who hence inferred that the impenitent might
be forgiven, and the repenting sinner fail of pardon?
Again, " It is God which worketh in you both
to will and to do of His good pleasure2." What
is this but a declaration, that on the whole all our
sanctification is from first to last God's work ? how
does it interfere with this, to say that we may
effectually resist that work ? Might it not truly
be said that the cure of a sick person was wholly
attributable to the physician, without denying that
1 John x. 28. Exod.xxxiv. 7. 2 Phil. ii. 12, 13.
XXVI. I HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY. 361
the former, had he so willed, might have obsti-
nately rejected the medicine, or that there might
have been (though there was not,) some malignant
habit of body, which completely baffled the medical
art ? Does the chance of failure make it less the
physician's work when there is not failure ?
In truth, the two doctrines of the sovereign and
overruling power of divine grace, and man's power
of resistance, need not at all interfere with each
other. They lie in different provinces, and are (as
it were,) incommensurables. Thus St. Paul evi-
dently accounted them ; else he could not have in-
troduced the text in question with the exhortation,
"Workout" or accomplish "your own salvation
with fear and trembling, for it is God which work-
eth" or acts " in you." So far was he from think-
ing man's distinct working inconsistent with God's
continual aiding, tha.t he assigns the knowledge of
the latter as a reason for the former. Let me chal-
lenge then a Predestinarian to paraphrase this text.
We, on the contrary, find no insuperable difficulty
in it, considering it to enjoin upon us a deep awe
and reverence, while we engage in those acts and
efforts which are to secure our salvation, from the
belief that God is in us and with us, inspecting and
succouring our every thought and deed. Would
not the Jewish High Priest, on the Great Day of
Atonement, when going through his several acts of
propitiation in God's presence, without and within
the Veil, " exceedingly fear and quake," lest he
362 ST. JAMES. [SERM.
should fail in aught put upon him ; and shall not
we in our more blessed Covenant, knowing that
God Himself is within us, and in all we do, fear the
more from the thought, that after all, we have our
own part in the work, and must do it well, if we
are to be saved ? What, on the other hand, is the
meaning of saying, with the Predestinarian, " Work
anxiously, because, in reality, you have no work
to do?"
I say this, not so much by way of argument
against him, as to show that a text which might be
adduced in his behalf, chances (so to say) to be
implicated with an exhortation, such as proves that
it (and therefore similar passages,) cannot really
be explained as he would have it ; proves, that his
argument from it, "The whole work of salvation
is of God, therefore man has no real part in securing
it," in fact runs contrary to the Apostle's own argu-
ment from his own words, " Man must exert him-
self, because God is present with him." It is quite
certain that a modern Predestinarian never could
have written such a sentence.
Another instructive passage of this kind is our
Lord's declaration, with St. John's comment upon
it, in the sixth chapter of his Gospel, " There are
some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew
from the beginning who they were that believed
not, and who should betray Him. And He said,
Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come
unto Me, unless it were given unto him of My
XXVL] HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY. 363
Father." Here, in the plain meaning of the words,
God's foreknowledge of the issue of free will in
individuals is made compatible (though the man-
ner how is not told us,) with electing grace.
4 'Whom He did foreknow, He also did predesti-
nate."
Take again another passage. " I obtained
mercy, because I did it ignorantly ;" "I obtained
mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show
forth all longsuffering V It appears that the Apostle
found no inconsistency in preaching the super-
abundance of God's grace upon sinners, and dis-
criminating between those who are more and those
who are less guilty. These two doctrines do not
seem to have come into collision in his mind, any
more than in our own ; but it is quite plain that
a Predestinarian never would have introduced the
second while descanting on the first.
2. In the next place, there are many passages
of the following kind, which are sometimes taken
to favour the Predestinarian view, and require
explanation. " God hath blessed us with all spiri-
tual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, accord-
ing as He hath chosen us in Him before the foun-
dation of the world, that we should be holy and
without blame before Him in lovef, having predes-
tinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus
Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure
1 John vi. 64, 65. 1 Tim. i. 13. 16.
15
364 ST. JAMES. [SERM.
of His will." Here certainly an election is spoken
of, irrespective of the conduct of the individuals
who are subjects of it. Again, " By grace are ye
saved through faith ; and that salvation not of
yourselves, it is the gift of God l :" and the like, i ^
But in such passages let it be observed, neither
heaven, nor the grace of Sanctification is spoken of,
but the present privilege, (high indeed and peculiar
to the Gospel, but only a privilege,) of Regenera-
tion. This great Christian gift of course includes
in it the communication of a sanctifying grace ; but
such a grace may be, and under circumstances has
been, given without it. The Jews were aided by
the Spirit of Sanctification, not of Regeneration.
They were not the sons of God ; whereas in every
age "the just have lived by faith," and the like
fruits of Sanctification. Now, where are we told
that this Sanctifying Grace is irrespective of the
free-will of individuals ? for this is the point. On
the other hand, we readily grant that the grace of
Regeneration is such ; we grant that it is all that
certain teachers would consider Sanctification to
be. It is a definite and complete gift, conveyed,
not gradually, but at once ; or at least, it has not
more than a second degree in the rite of Confirma-
tion, wherein what is given in Baptism is sealed and
secured ; and moreover, it is a state distinct from
all other, the possessing the Sacred Presence of the
1 Eph. i. 3—5. ii, 8.
XXVI.] HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY. 365
Spirit of Christ in soul and body ; and lastly, it is
bestowed on this man or that, not by any rule which
we can discover, but. at the inscrutable decree of
Him, who calls into His Church whom He will. But
faith, together with the other gifts of Sanctification,
is not thus bestowed. Tn its nature it is independ-
ent of Regeneration, and, in the formal scheme of
the Gospel, it is antecedent to it. It is the ante-
cedent condition for receiving the Ordinances
which convey and seal Regeneration, — Baptism and
Confirmation. Hence, St. John says, " As many
as received Him, to them gave He power to become
the sons of God, even to them that believe on His
name, which were born, not of blood, nor of the
will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of
God." And St. Paul, " Believing in Christ, ye
were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which
is the earnest of our inheritance, until the redemp-
tion of the purchased possession V
It avails not, therefore, to enlarge upon the cha-
racteristics of the Christian Election, with a view
of proving the irreversible decrees of God concern-
ing the final salvation of individuals.
3. Lastly, there are passages, which speak of
God's judicial dealings with the heart of man; in
which, doubtless, He does act absolutely at His
sole will, — yet not so in the beginning of His Provi-
dence towards us, but at the close. Thus He is
1 Johni. 12, 13. Eph. i. 13, 14.
366 ST. JAMES. [SERM.
said " to send" on men " strong delusion to believe
a lie;" but only on those who "received not the love
of the Truth that they might be saved V Such
irresistible influences do but pre-suppose, instead of
superseding our own accountableness.
These three explanations then being allowed
their due weight, — the compatibility of God's sove-
reignty over the soul, with man's individual agency,
the distinction between Regeneration, and faith
and obedience, and the judicial purpose of certain
divine influences upon the heart, — let us ask what
does there remain of Scripture evidence in behalf
of the Predestinarian doctrines? Are we not obliged
to leave the mystery of human agency and respon-
sibility, as we find it ? as truly a mystery in itself
as that which concerns the Nature and Attributes of
the Divine Mind.
Surely it will be our true happiness thus to con-
duct ourselves ; to use our reason, in getting at the
true sense of Scripture, not in making a series of
deductions from it ; in unfolding the doctrines
therein contained, not in adding new ones to them;
in acquiescing in what is told, not in indulging
curiosity about the " secret things" of the Lord our
God.
I conclude with the following text, which while
it is a solemn warning to us all to turn to God, with
a true heart, states with a force not to be explained
1 2 Thess, ii. 10, 11.
XXVL] HUMAN RESPONSIBILITY. 367
away, that revealed Will in which we are bound to
rest satisfied. "As I live, saith the Lord God, I
have no pleasure in the death of the wicked ; but
that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn
ye, turn ye from your evil ways, for why will ye
die, O House of Israel V
1 Ez. xxxiii. 11.
SERMON XXVII.
THE FEAST OF ST. BARTHOLOMEW THE APOSTLE.
GUILELESSNESS.
JOHN i. 47.
Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him, and saith of him, Behold
an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile.
ST. BARTHOLOMEW, whose Festival we celebrate to-
day, has been supposed to be the same as the Na-
thanael mentioned in the text. Nathanael was one
of Christ's first converts, yet his name does not oc-
cur again till the last chapter of St. John's Gospel,
where he is mentioned in company with certain of
the Apostles, to whom Christ appeared after His
resurrection. Now, why should the call of Natha-
nael have been recorded in the opening of the
Gospel, among the acts of Christ in the beginning
of His Ministry, except he was an Apostle ? Philip,
Peter, and Andrew, who are mentioned at the same
time, were all Apostles ; and Nathanael's name is
introduced without preface, as if familiar to a Chris-
tian reader. At the end of the Gospel it appears
XXVII.] GUILELESSNESS. 369
again, and there too among Apostles. Besides,
the Apostles were the special witnesses of Christ,
when He was risen. He manifested Himself, " not
to all the people," says St. Peter, " but unto wit-
nesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did
eat and drink with Him after He rose from the
dead V Now, the occasion on which Nathanael
is mentioned, was one of these manifestations.
" This is now the third time/' says the Evangelist,
" that Jesus was manifested to His disciples, after
that He was risen from the dead." It was in the
presence of Nathanael, that He gave St. Peter his
commission, and foretold his martyrdom, and the
prolonged life of St. John. This leads us to con-
jecture that Nathanael is one of the Apostles
under another name. Now he is not Andrew,
Peter, or Philip, for they are mentioned in con-
nexion with him in the first chapter of the Gospel;
nor Thomas, James, or John, in whose company he
is found in the last chapter ; nor Jude, (as it would
seem,) because the name of Jude occurs in St. John's
fourteenth chapter. Four Apostles remain, who
are not named in his Gospel, — St. James the Less,
St. Matthew, St. Simon, and St. Bartholomew ; of
whom St. Matthew's second name is known to have
been Levi, while St. James, being related, was
no stranger to our Lord at any time, which Na-
thanael evidently was. If then Nathanael were an
1 Acts x. 41.
VOL. II. B b
370 ST. BARTHOLOMEW. [SERM.
Apostle, he was either Simon or Bartholomew.
Now it is observable, that, according to St. John,
Philip brought Nathanael to Christ ; therefore Na-
thanael and Philip were friends : while in the other
Gospels, in the list of Apostles, Philip is associated
with Bartholomew ; " Simon and Andrew, James
and John, Philip and Bartholomew V This is some
evidence that Bartholomew and not Simon is the
Nathanael of St. John. On the other hand, Mat-
thias has been suggested instead of either, his
name meaning nearly the same as Nathanael in
the original language. However, since writers of
some date decide in favour of Bartholomew, I shall
consider it to be so in what follows.
What then do we learn from his recorded cha-
racter and history? It affords us an instructive
lesson.
When Philip told him that he had found the
long expected Messiah, of whom Moses wrote,
Nathanael (that is, Bartholomew) at first doubted.
He was well read in the Scriptures, and knew
the Christ was to be born in Bethlehem ; whereas
Jesus dwelt at Nazareth, which Nathanael sup-
posed in consequence to be the place of his birth,
and he knew of no particular promises attached to
that city, which was a place of evil report, and he
thought no good could come out of it. Philip told
him to come and see ; and he went to see, as a
1 Matt. x. 3.
XXVIL] GUILELESSNESS. 371
humble single-minded man, sincerely desirous to get
at the truth. In consequence, he was vouchsafed an
interview with our Saviour, and was converted.
Now, from what occurred in this interview, we
gain some insight into St. Bartholomew's charac-
ter. Our Lord said of him, " Behold an Israelite
indeed, in whom is no guile;" and it appears,
moreover, as if before Philip called him to come to
Christ, he was engaged in meditation or prayer, in
the privacy which a fig-tree's shade afforded him.
And this it seems was the life of one who was des-
tined to act the busy part of an Apostle ; quietness
without, guilelessness within. This was the tran-
quil preparation for great dangers and sufferings !
We see who makes the most heroic Christians, and
are the most honoured by Christ !
An even unvaried life is the lot of most men, in
spite of occasional troubles or other accidents ; and
we are apt to despise it, and to get tired of it, and
to long to see the world, — or, at all events, we think
such a life affords no great opportunity for religious
obedience. To rise up, and go through the same du-
ties, and then to rest again, day after day, — to pass
week after week, beginning with God's service on
Sunday, and then to our worldly tasks, — so to con-
tinue till year follows year, and we gradually get
old, — an unvaried life like this is apt to seem un-
profitable to us when we dwell upon the thought of it.
Many indeed there are, who do not think at all ;—
but live in this round of employments, without care
ST. BARTHOLOMEW. [SERM.
about God and religion, driven on by the natural
course of things in a dull irrational way, like the
beasts that perish. But when a man begins to feel
he has a soul, and a work to do, and a reward to
be gained, greater or less^ according as he improves
the talents committed to tyim, then he is naturally
tempted to be anxious from his very wish to be saved,
and he says: " What must T do to please God? And
sometimes he is led to think he ought to be useful
on a large scale, and goes out of his line of life,
that he may be doing something worth doing, as
he considers it. Here we have the history of St.
Bartholomew and the other Apostles to recall us to
ourselves, and to assure us that we need not give
up our usual manner of life, in order to serve God,
that the most humble and quietest station is accept-
able to Him, if improved duly, nay, affords means
for maturing the highest Christiaii character, even
that of an Apostle. Bartholomew read the Scrip-
tures and prayed to God ; and thus was trained at
length to give up his life for Christ, when He
demanded it.
But further, let us consider the particular praise
which our Saviour gives him. " Behold an
Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile." This is
just the character which (through God's grace)
they may attain most fully, who live out of the
world in the private way I have been describing,—
which is made least account of by man, and thought
to be in the way of success in life, though our
XXVIL] GUILELESSNESS. 373
Saviour chose it to make head against all the power
and wisdom of the world. Men of the world think
an ignorance of its ways is a disadvantage or dis-
grace ; as if it were somehow unmanly and weak to
have abstained from all acquaintance with its impie-
ties and lax practices. How often do we hear them
say that a man must do so and so, unless he would
be singular and absurd ; that he must not be too
strict, or indulge high-flown notions of virtue, which
may be good to talk about, but are not fit for this
world ! When they hear of any young person,
resolving on being consistently religious, or being
strictly honest in trade, or observing a noble purity
in language and demeanour, they smile and think
it very well, but that it will and must wear off
in time. And they are ashamed of being inno-
cent, and pretend to be worse than they really are.
Then they have all sorts of little ways — are mean,
jealous, suspicious, censorious, cunning, insincere,
selfish ; and think others as low-minded as them-
selves, only proud, or in some sense hypocritical,
unwilling to confess their real motives and feelings.
To this base and irreligious multitude is opposed
the Israelite indeed, in whom there is no guile.
David describes his character in the fifteenth Psalm ;
and, taken in all its parts, it is a rare one. He
asks, "Lord, who shall abide in Thy tabernacle?
who shall dwell in Thy holy hill ? He that walketh
uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh
the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with
374 ST. BARTHOLOMEW. [SER.M.
his tongue, nor doeth. evil to his neighbour, nor
taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. In
whose eyes a vile person is contemned ; but he
honoureth them that fear the Lord. He that swear-
eth to his own hurt, and change th not."
I say, it is a difficult and rare virtue, to mean
what we say, to love without dissimulation, to
think no evil, to bear no grudge, to be free from
selfishness, to be innocent and straightforward.
This character of mind is something far above
the generality of men ; and, when realized in due
measure, one of the surest marks of Christ's
elect. And the instances which we may every now
and then discover of it among Christians, will be
an evidence to us, if evidence be wanting, that, in
spite of all that grovelling minds may say about
the necessity of acquaintance with the world and
with sin, in order to get on well in life, yet after
all, inexperienced guilelessness carries a man on as
safely and more happily. For, first, it is in itself a
great privilege to a rightly disposed mind, not to be
sensible of the moral miseries of the world ; and
this is eminently the lot of the simple-hearted.
They take every thing in good part which happens
to them, and make the best of every one ; thus they
have always something to be pleased with, not
seeing the bad, and keenly sensible of the good.
And communicating their own happy peace to those
around them, they really diminish the evils of life
in society at large, while they escape from the
XXVII.] GUILELESSNESS. 375
knowledge of them themselves. Such men are
cheerful and contented ; for they desire but little,
and take pleasure in the least matters, having
no wish for riches and distinction. And they are
under the tyranny of no evil or base thoughts,
having never encouraged what in the case of other
men often spreads disorder and unholiness through
their whole future life. They have no phan-
toms of former sins, such as remain even to the
penitent, when he has subdued their realities,
rising up in their minds, harassing them, for a
time domineering, and leaving a sting behind
them. Guileless persons are, most of all men,
skilful in shaming and silencing the wicked ; — for
they do not argue, but take things for granted in
so natural a way, that they throw back the sinner
into the recollection of those times of his youth,
when he was pure from sin, and thought as they
do now; and none but very hardened men can
resist this sort of appeal. Men of irreligious lives
live in bondage and fear ; even though they
do not acknowledge it to themselves. Many
a one, who would be ashamed to own it, is
afraid of certain places or times, or of solitude,
from a sort of instinct that he is no company
for good spirits, and that devils may then assail
him. But the guileless man has a simple boldness
and a princely heart ; he overcomes dangers which
others shrink from, merely because they are no
dangers to him, and thus he often gains even
376 ST. BARTHOLOMEW. [SERM.
worldly advantages by his straightforwardness,
which the most crafty persons cannot gain, though
they risk their souls for them. It is true such
single-hearted men often get into difficulties, but
they usually get out of them as easily ; and are
almost unconscious both of their danger and their
escape. Perhaps they have not received a learned
education, and cannot talk fluently ; yet they are
ever a match for those who try to shake their faith
in Christ by profane argument or ridicule, for the
weakness of God is stronger than men.
Nor is it only among the poor and lowly that this
blessed character of mind is found to exist. Secular
learning and dignity have doubtless in their respec-
tive ways a powerful tendency to rob the heart of its
brightness and purity ; yet even in kings' courts,
and the schools of philosophy, Nathanaels may be
discovered. Nay, like the Apostle, they have been
subjected to the world's buffetings, they have been
thwarted in their day, lived in anxiety, and seem-
ingly lost by their honesty, yet without being foiled
either of its present comfort or its ultimate fruit.
Such was our great Archbishop and Martyr, to
whom perchance we owe it, that we who now live
are still members of a branch of the Church Ca-
tholic ; one of whose " greatest unpopular infirmi-
ties;" according to the historian of his times, was
" that he believed innocence of heart, and integrity
of manners, was a guard strong enough to secure
any man in his voyage through this world, in what
XXVII.] GUILELESSNESS. 377
company soever he travelled, and through what
ways soever he was to pass. And sure, (he adds,)
never any man was better supplied with that pro-
vision.'
I have in these remarks spoken of guileless men as
members of society, because I wished to show, that,
even in that respect in which they seem deficient,
they possess a hidden strength, an unconscious
wisdom, which makes them live above the world,
and sooner or later triumph over it. The weapons
of their warfare are not carnal ; and they are fitted
to be Apostles, though they seem to be ordinary
men. Such is the blessedness of the innocent,
that is, of those who have never given way to evil,
or formed themselves to habits of sin ; who in
consequence literally do not know its power or its
misery, who have thoughts of truth and peace ever
before them, and are able to discern at once the
right and wrong in conduct, as by some delicate in-
strument, which tells truly because it has never been
illtreated. Nay, such may be the portion (through
God's mercy) even of those who have at one time
departed from Him, and then repented ; in propor-
tion as they have learned to love God, and have
purified themselves, not only from sin, but from
the recollections of sin.
Lastly, more is requisite for the Christian, even
than guilelessness such as Bartholomew's. When
Christ sent forth him arid his brethren into the
world, He said, " Behold, I send you forth as
378
ST. BARTHOLOMEW.
. XXVII.
sheep in the midst of wolves ; be ye therefore
wise as serpents, and harmless as doves." Inno-
cence must be joined to prudence, discretion, self-
command, gravity, patience, perseverance in well-
doing, as Bartholomew doubtless learned in due
season under his Lord's teaching ; but innocence
is the beginning. Let us then pray God to fulfil
in us " all the good pleasure of His goodness, and
the work of faith with power ;" that if it should
please Him suddenly to bring us forward to great
trials, as He did His Apostles, we may not be
taken by surprise, but be found to have made a
private or domestic life a preparation for the
achievements of Confessors and Martyrs.
SERMON XXVIII.
THE FEAST OF ST. MATTHEW THE APOSTLE.
THE DANGER OF RICHES.
LUKE vi. 24.
Woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your con-
solation.
UNLESS we were accustomed to read the New
Testament from our childhood, I think we should
be very much struck with the warnings which it
contains, not only against the love of riches, but
the very possession of them ; we should wonder
with a portion of that astonishment which the
Apostles at first felt, who had been brought up
in the notion that they were a chief reward which
God bestowed on those He loved. As it is, we
have heard the most solemn declarations so con-
tinually, that we have ceased to attach any distinct
meaning to them ; or, if our attention is at any time
drawn more closely to them, we soon dismiss the
subject on some vague imagination, that what is
15
380 ST. MATTHEW. [SBHM.
said in Scripture had a reference to the particular
times when Christ came, without attempting to
settle its exact application to us, (even supposing
this to be the case,) or whether it has any such
application at all, — as if the circumstance that the
interpretation requires care and thought, were an
excuse for giving no thought nor care whatever to
the settling of it.
But, even if we had ever so little concern in the
Scripture denunciations against riches and the love
of riches, the very awfulness of them might have
seemed enough to save them from neglect; just as
the flood, and the judgment upon Sodom and
Gomorrah, are still dwelt upon by Christians with
solemn attention, though we have a promise
against the recurrence of the one, and trust we
shall never be so deserted by God's grace as to
call down upon us the other. And this consi-
deration may lead a man to suspect that the neg-
lect in question does not entirely arise from uncon-
cern, but from a sort of misgiving that the subject
of riches is one which cannot be safely or com-
fortably discussed by the Christian world at this
day ; that is, without placing the claims of God's
Law and the pride of life into visible and perplex-
ing opposition.
Let us then see what the letter of Scripture says
on the subject. For instance, consider the text.
* ' Woe unto you that are rich ! for ye have received
your consolation !" The words are sufficiently
XXVIIL] DANGER OF RICHES. 381
clear, (it will not be denied,) as spoken of rich per-
sons in our Saviour's day. Let the full force of the
word " consolation" be observed. It is used by
way of contrast to the comfort which is promised
to the Christian in the list of Beatitudes 1. Com
fort, in all the fulness of that word, as including
help, guidance, encouragement, and support, is
the great promise of the Gospel. The Promised
Spirit, who has taken Christ's place, was called by
Him " the Comforter." There is then something
very fearful in the intimation of the text, that those
who have riches thereby receive their portion, such
as it is, in full, instead of the Heavenly Gift of the
Gospel. The same doctrine is implied in our
Lord's words in the parable of Dives and Lazarus.
" Son, remember thou in thy lifetime receivedst
thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things ;
but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented."
At another time He said to His Disciples, " How
hardly shall they that have riches enter into the
kingdom of God ! for it is easier for a camel to go
through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to
enter into the kingdom of God2."
Now, it is usual to dismiss such passages with
the remark that they are directed, not against
those who have, but against those who trust in
riches ; as if forsooth they implied no connexion
between the having and the trusting, no warning
1 Matt. v. 4. 2 Luke xvi. 25. xviii. 24, 25.
382 ST. MATTHEW. [SERM.
lest the possession led to the idolatrous reliance on
them, no necessity of fear and anxiety in the pos-
sessors, lest they should become castaways. And
this irrelevant distinction is supposed to find coun-
tenance in our Lord's own language on one of the
occasions above referred to, in which He first says,
" How hardly shall they that have riches," then,
" How hard is it for them that trust in riches, to
enter into the kingdom of God ;" whereas, surely,
He only removes His disciples' false impression,
that the bare circumstance of possessing wealth
was inconsistent with a state of salvation, and no
more interprets having by trusting, than makes trust-
ing essential to having. He connects the two, with-
out identifying, without explaining away; and the
simple question which lies for our determination,
is this : — whether, considering that they who had
riches, when Christ came, were likely in His judg-
ment idolatrously to trust in them, there is, or is
not, reason for thinking that this likelihood varies
materially in different ages ; and, according to the
solution of this question, must we determine the
application of the woe pronounced in the text to
these times. And, at all events, let it be observed,
it is for those who would make out that these pas-
sages do not apply now, to give their reasons for
their opinion ; the burden of proof is with them.
Till they draw their clear and reasonable distinc-
tions between the first and the nineteenth century,
the denunciation hangs over the world that is, as
XXVIII.J DANGER OF RICHES. 383
much as over the Pharisees and Sadducees at our
Lord's coming.
But, in truth, that our Lord meant to speak of
riches as in some sense a calamity to the Christian,
is plain, not only from such texts as the foregoing,
but from His praises and recommendation on the
other hand of poverty. For instance, " Sell that
ye have and give alms ; provide yourselves bags
which wax not old." " If thou wilt be perfect,
go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor,
and thou shalt have treasure in heaven." " Blessed
be ye poor ; for yours is the kingdom of God."
" When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not
thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen,
nor thy rich neighbours .... but .... call the
poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind." And in
like manner, St. James : " Hath not God chosen
the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of
that kingdom which He hath promised to them
that love Him *?" Now I cite these texts in way of
doctrine, not of precept. Whatever be the line of
conduct they prescribe to this or that individual,
(with which I have nothing to do at present,) so far
seems clear, that according to the rule of the
Gospel, the absence of wealth is (as such) a more
blessed and a more Christian state than the posses-
sion of it.
The most obvious danger which worldly posses-
1 Luke xii. 33. Matt. xix. 21. Luke vi. 20. xiv. 12, 13.
James ii. 5.
384 ST. MATTHEW. [SERM.
sions present to our spiritual welfare is, that they
become practically a substitute in our hearts for
that One Object to which our supreme devotion is
due. They are present ; God is unseen. They
are means at hand of effecting what we want;
whether God will hear our petitions for such
things, is uncertain ; or rather, I may say, certain
in the negative. Thus they minister to the cor-
rupt inclinations of our nature ; they promise and
are able to be gods to us, and such gods too as
require no service, but, like dumb idols, exalt the
worshipper, impressing him with a notion of his
own power and security. And in this consists their
chief and most subtle mischief. Religious men
are able to repress, nay extirpate sinful desires, the
lust of the flesh and of the eyes, gluttony, drunken-
ness, and the like, love of amusements and frivo-
lous pleasures and display, indulgence in luxuries
of whatever kind ; but as to wealth, they cannot
easily rid themselves of a secret feeling that it gives
them a footing to stand upon, an importance, a
superiority ; and in consequence they get attached
to this world, lose sight of the duty of bearing the
Cross, become dull and dim-sighted, and lose
their delicacy and precision of touch, are numbed
(so to say) in their fingers'-ends, as regards reli-
gious interests and prospects. To risk all upon
Christ's word seems somehow unnatural to them,
extravagant, the evidence of a morbid excitement ;
and death, instead of being a gracious, however
XXVIII.] DANGER OF RICHES. 385
awful release, is not a welcome subject of thought.
They are content to remain as they are, and do not
contemplate a change. They desire and mean to
serve God, nay actually do serve Him in their
measure ; but not with the keen sensibilities, the
noble enthusiasm, the grandeur and elevation of
soul, the dutifulness and affectionateness towards
Christ, which becomes a Christian, but as Jews
might obey, who had no Image of God given them
except this created world, ' l eating their bread with
joy, and drinking their wine with a merry heart,"
caring that " their garments be always white, and
their head lacking no ointment, living joyfully
with the wife whom they love all the days of the
life of their vanity," and " enjoying the good of
their labour V Not, of course, that the due use of
God's temporal blessings is wrong, but to make
them the object of our affections, to allow them to
beguile us from the " One Husband" to whom we
are espoused, is to mistake the Gospel for Judaism.
This then, if we may venture to say so, was some
part of our Saviour's meaning, when He connects
together the having with the trusting in riches ;
and it is especially suitable to consider it upon this
day, when we commemorate an Apostle and
Evangelist, whose history is an example and en-
couragement for all those who have, and fear lest
they should trust. But St. Matthew was exposed
1 Eccles. ix. 7—9. v. 18.
VOL. II. C C
386 ST. MATTHEW. [SEBM.
to an additional temptation, which I shall proceed to
consider; for he not only possessed, but he was
engaged also in pursuing of wealth. Our Saviour
seems to warn us against this further danger in His
description of the thorns, in the parable of the
Sower, as being " the care of this world and the
deceitfulness of riches ;" and more clearly in the
parable of the Great Supper, where the guests
excuse themselves, one, as having " bought a
piece of ground," another "five yoke of oxen."
Still more openly does St. Paul speak in his first
Epistle to Timothy ; " They that desire to be rich,
fall into temptation and a snare, and into many
foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in de-
struction and perdition. For the love of money is
the root of all evil ; which, while some coveted
after, they have erred from the Faith, and pierced
themselves through with many sorrows V
The danger of possessing riches is the carnal
security to which they lead ; but of " desiring"
and pursuing them, is, that an object of this world
is thus set before us as the aim and end of life. It
seems to be the will of Christ that His followers
should have no aim or end, pursuit or business
merely of this world. Here, again, I speak as
before, not in the way of precept, but of doctrine.
I am looking at His holy religion as at a distance,
and determining what is its general character and
1 Matt. xiii. 22. Luke xiv. 18, 19. 1 Tim. vi. 9, 10.
XXVIII.] DANGER OF RICHES. 387
spirit, not what may happen to be the duty of this
or that individual who has embraced it. It is His
will that all we do should be done, not unto men,
or the world, or self, but to His glory ; and the
more we are enabled to do this simply, the more
favoured we are. Whenever we act with reference
to an object of this world, even though it be ever
so pure, we are exposed to the temptation, (not
irresistible, God forbid !) still to the temptation of
setting our hearts upon obtaining it. And there-
fore, we call all such objects excitements, as stimu-
lating us incongruously, casting us out of the
serenity and stability of heavenly faith, attracting
us aside by their proximity from our harmonious
round of duties, and making our thoughts converge
to something short of that which is infinitely High
and Eternal. Such excitements are of perpetual
occurrence, and the mere undergoing them, so far
from involving guilt in the act itself or its results,
is the great business of life and discipline of our
hearts. It is often a sin to withdraw from them,
as has been the case of some perhaps who have
gone into Monasteries to serve God more entirely.
On the other hand, it is the very duty of the Spiri-
tual Ruler to labour for the flock committed to him,
to suffer and to dare ; St. Paul was encompassed
with excitements hence arising, and his writings
show the agitating effect of them on his mind. He
was, like David, a man of war and blood ; and
that, for our sakes. Still it holds good that the
cc 2
388 ST. MATTHEW. [SERM
essential spirit of the Gospel is " quietness and
confidence;" that the possession of these is the
highest gift, and to gain them perfectly our main
aim. Consequently, however much a duty it is to
undergo excitements when they are sent upon us,
it is plainly unchristian, a manifest foolishness and
sin, to seek out any such, whether secular or reli-
gious. Hence gaming is so great an offence ; as
being a presumptuous creation on our part of a
serious, if not an overpowering temptation to fix
the heart upon an object of this world. Hence,
the mischief of many amusements of (what is called)
the fashion of the day ; which are devised for the
very purpose of taking up the thoughts, and mak-
ing time pass easy. Quite contrary is the Christ-
ian temper, which is in its perfect and peculiar
enjoyment when engaged in that ordinary unvaried
course of duties which God assigns, and which
the world calls dull and tiresome. To get up day
after day to the same employments, and to feel
happy in them, is the great lesson of the Gospel ;
and, when exemplified by those who are alive to
the temptation of being busy, it implies a heart
weaned from the love of this world. True it is,
that illness of body, as well as restlessness of mind,
may occasionally render such a life a burden ; it
is true also, that indolence, self-indulgence, timi-
dity, and other similar bad habits, may use it
as a pretext for neglecting more active duties.
Men of energetic minds and talents for action are
XXVIII.] DANGER OF RICHES. 389
called to a life of trouble ; they are the compensa-
tions and antagonists of the world's evils : still let
them never forget their place ; they are men of war,
and we war that we may obtain peace. They are
but men of war, honoured indeed by God's choice,
and in spite of all momentary excitements, resting
in the depth of their hearts upon the One True Vi-
sion of Christian faith ; still after all, they are but
soldiers in the open field, not builders of the Temple,
nor inhabitants of those "amiable" and specially
blessed " Tabernacles" where the worshipper lives
in praise and intercession, and is militant amid the
unostentatious duties of ordinary life. "Martha,
Martha, thou art careful, and troubled about many
things ; but one thing is needful, and Mary has
chosen that good part which shall not be taken
away from her V Such is our Lord's judgment,
showing that our true happiness consists in being
at leisure to serve God without excitements. For
this gift we especially pray in one of our Collects :
" Grant, O Lord, that the course of this world may
be so peaceably ordered by Thy governance, that
Thy Church may joyfully serve Thee in all godly
quietness2." Persecution, civil changes, and the
like, break in upon the Church's calm. The great-
est privilege of a Christian is to have nothing to do
with worldly politics, — to be governed and to sub-
mit obediently ; and, though here again, selfish-
1 Luke x. 41, 42. 2 Vid. 1 Tim. ii. 2.
390 ST. MATTHEW. [SEUM.
ness may creep in, and lead a man to neglect
public concerns in which he is called to take his
share, yet, after all, such participation must be re-
garded as a duty, scarcely as a privilege, as the
fulfilment of trusts committed to us for the good of
others, not as the enjoyment of rights, (as men talk
in these days of delusion,) not as if political power
were in itself a good.
To return to the subject immediately before us.
I say then, that it is a part of Christian caution to
see that our engagements do not become pursuits.
Engagements are our portion, but pursuits are for
the most part of our own choosing. We may be
engaged in worldly business, without pursuing
worldly objects; "not slothful in business," yet
" serving the Lord." In this then consists the
danger of the pursuit of gain, as by trade and the
like. It is the most common and widely extended
of all excitements. It is one in which every one
almost may indulge, nay, and will be praised by
the world for indulging. And it lasts through life ;
in that differing from the amusements and plea-
sures of the world, which are short-lived, and suc-
ceed one after another. Dissipation of mind, which
these all create, is in itself indeed, miserable enough;
but far worse than this dissipation is the concentra-
tion of mind upon some worldly object, which ad-
mits of being constantly pursued, — and such is the
pursuit of gain. Nor is it a slight aggravation of the
evil, that anxiety is almost sure to attend it. A life of
XXVIIL] DANGER OF RICHES. 391
money-getting is a life of care ; from the first there
is fearful anticipation of loss in various ways to de-
press and unsettle the mind, nay to haunt it, till a
man finds he can think about nothing else, and
is unable to give his mind to religion from the con-
stant whirl of business in which he is involved. It
is well this should be understood. You may hear
men talk as if the pursuit of wealth was the busi-
ness of life. They will argue that by the law of
nature a man is bound to gain a livelihood for his
family, and that he finds a reward in doing so, an
innocent and honourable satisfaction, as he adds
one sum to another, and counts up his gains. And
perhaps they go on to argue, that it is the very duty
of man since Adam's fall, " in the sweat of his
face," by effort and anxiety, " to eat bread." How
strange it is that they do not remember Christ's
gracious promise, repealing that original curse, and
obviating the necessity of any real pursuit after "the
meat that perisheth !" In order that we might be
delivered from the bondage of corruption, He has ex-
pressly told us that the necessaries of life shall never
fail His faithful follower, any more than the meal
and oil, the widow-woman of Sarepta ; that, while
he is bound to labour for his family, he need not be
engrossed by his toil, — that while he is busy, his heart
may be at leisure for his Lord " Be not anxious,
saying, what shall we eat ? or, what we shall drink?
or wherewithal shall we be clothed ? For after all
these things do the Gentiles seek ; for your Hea-
392 ST. MATTHEW. [SEUM.
venly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these
things. But seek ye first the Kingdom of God and
His righteousness ; and all these things shall be
added unto you." Here is revealed to us at once
our privilege and our duty, the Christian portion of
having engagements of this world without pursu-
ing objects. And in accordance with our Divine
Teacher are the words of the Apostle, introductory
of a passage already cited. " We brought nothing
into this world, and it is certain we can carry
nothing out. And having food and raiment, let us
be therewith content1." There is no excuse then
for that absorbing pursuit of wealth, which many
men indulge in, as if a virtue, and expatiate upon
as if a science. " After all these things do the Gen-
tiles seek !" Consider how different is the rule of
life left us by the Apostles. " I speak this for your
own profit," says St. Paul, " that ye may attend
upon the Lord without distraction." "This I say,
brethren, the time is short ; it remaineth, that both
they that have wives be as though they had none,
and they that weep as though they wept not, and
they that rejoice as though they rejoiced not, and
they that buy, as though they possessed not, and
they that use this world, as not abusing it, for the
fashion of this world passeth away." " Be anxious
for nothing ; but in every thing, by prayer and sup-
plication with thanksgiving, let your requests be
1 Matt. vi. 1 Tim vi. 7, 8.
XXVIII.] DANGER OF RICHES. 393
made known unto God." And St. Peter, " Casting-
all your anxiety upon Him, for He carethfor you1."
I have now given the main reason, why the pur-
suit of gain, whether in a large or a small way, is
prejudicial to our spiritual interests, that it fixes the
mind upon an object of this world ; yet others re-
main behind. Money is a sort of creation, and
gives the acquirer even more than the possessor, an
imagination of his own power ; and tends to make
him idolize self. Again, what we have hardly won,
we are unwilling to part with ; so that a man, who
has himself made his wealth, will commonly be
penurious, or at least will not part with it except in
exchange for what will reflect credit upon himself,
or increase his importance. Even when his con-
duct is most disinterested and amiable, (as in
spending for the comfort of those who depend on
him,) still this indulgence of self, of pride and
worldliness, insinuates itself. Very unlikely is it
therefore that he should be liberal towards God ;
for religious offerings are an expenditure without
sensible return, and that upon objects for which the
very pursuit of wealth has indisposed his mind.
Moreover, (if it may be added,) there is a consi-
derable tendency in occupations connected with
gain to make a man unfair in his dealings, that is,
in a subtle way. There are so many conventional
deceits and prevarications in the details of the
world's business, so much intricacy in the manage-
1 1 Cor. vii. 29—31. 35. Phil. iv. 0. 1 Pet. v. 7.
394 ST. MATTHEW. [SERM.
merit of accounts, so many perplexed questions
about justice and equity, so many plausible sub-
terfuges and fictions of law, so much confusion be-
tween the distinct yet approximating outlines of
honesty and civil enactment, that it requires a
very straightforward mind to keep firm hold of
strict conscientiousness, honour, and truth, and to
look at matters in which he is engaged, as he would
have looked on them, supposing he now came upon
them all at once as a stranger.
And if such be the effect of the pursuit of gain on
an individual, doubtless it will be the same in a
nation ; and if the peril be so great in the one case,
why should it be less in the other ? Rather, consi-
dering that the tendencies of things are sure to be
brought out, where time and numbers allow them
fair course, is it not certain that any multitude, any
society of men, whose object is gain, will on the
whole be actuated by those feelings, and moulded
into that character, which has been above described ?
With this thought before us, it is a very fearful con-
sideration that we belong to a nation which in good
measure subsists by making money. I will not
pursue it ; nor inquire whether the especial political
evils of the day have not their root in that principle,
which St. Paul calls the root of all evil, the love of
money. Only let us consider the fact, with our
Saviour's declarations before us against wealth, and
trust in wealth ; and we shall have abundant mat-
ter for serious thought.
15
XXVIII.] DANGER OF RICHES. 395
Lastly, with this dreary view before us of our
condition and prospects as a nation, the pattern of
St. Matthew is our consolation ; for it suggests to
us, that we may use great freedom of speech, and
state unreservedly the peril of wealth and gain,
without ought of harshness or uncharitableness
towards individuals who are exposed to it. They
may be brethren of the Evangelist, who left all for
Christ's sake. Nay such there have been (blessed
be God !) in every age ; and in proportion to the
strength of the temptation which surrounds them,
is their blessedness and their praise, if they are en-
abled amid the " waves of the seas" and the "' great
wisdom of their traffick" to hear Christ's voice, to
take up their Cross, and follow Him.
SERMON XXIX.
THE FEAST OF ST. MICHAEL AND ALL ANGELS.
THE POWERS OF NATURE.
PSALM civ. 4.
Who maketh His Angels spirits, His Ministers a flaming fire.
ON to-day's Festival, it well becomes us to direct
our minds to the thought of those Blessed Servants
of God, who have never tasted of sin ; who are
among us, though unseen, ever serving God joy-
fully on earth as well as in heaven ; who minister,
through their Maker's condescending will, to the
redeemed in Christ, the heirs of salvation.
There had been ages of the world, in which men
have thought too much of Angels, and paid them
excessive honour ; honoured them so perversely as
to forget the supreme worship due to Almighty
God. This is the sin of a dark age. But the sin
of what is called an educated age, such as our own,
is just the reverse ; to account slightly of them, or
SERM.XXIX.] THE POWERS OF NATURE. 397
not at all, to ascribe all we see around us, not to
their agency, but to certain assumed laws of nature.
This, I say, is likely to be our sin, in proportion as
we are initiated into the learning of this world ; —
and this is the danger of many (so called) philoso-
phical pursuits, now in fashion, and recommended
zealously to the notice of large portions of the com-
munity, hitherto strangers to them, chemistry,
geology, and the like ; the danger, that is, of rest-
ing in things seen, and forgetting unseen things,
and our ignorance about them.
I will attempt to say what I mean more at length.
The text informs us that Almighty God makes His
Angels spirits or winds, and His Ministers a flame
of fire. Let us consider what is implied in this.
1. What a number of beautiful and wonderful
objects does Nature present on every side of us !
and how little we know concerning them ! In some
indeed we see symptoms of intelligence, and we
get to form some idea of what they are. For in-
stance, about brute animals we know little, but still
we see they have sense, and we understand that
their bodily form which meets the eye is but the in-
dex, the outside token of something we do not see.
Much more in the case of men ; we see them move,
speak, and act, and we know that all we see takes
place in consequence of their will, because they have
a spirit within them, though we do not see it. But
why do rivers flow ? Why does rain fall ? Why does
the sun warm us ? And the wind, why does it blow?
398 ST. MICHAEL. [SERM.
Here our natural reason is at fault ; we know
(I say) that it is the spirit in man and in beast that
makes man and beast move, but reason tells us of
no spirit abiding in what is commonly called the
natural world, to make it perform its ordinary
duties. Of course, it is God's will which sustains it
all ; so does God's will enable us to move also, yet
this does not hinder, but, in one sense, we
may be truly said to move ourselves ; but how
do the wind and water, earth and fire move ?
Now here Scripture interposes, and seems to tell
us, that all this wonderful harmony is the work of
Angels. Those events which we ascribe to chance
as the weather, or to nature as the seasons, are
duties done to that God who maketh His Angels to
be winds, and His Ministers a flame of fire. For
example, it was an Angel which gave to the pool at
Bethesda its medicinal quality ; and there is no
reason why we should doubt that other health-
springs in this and other countries are made such
by a like unseen ministry. The fires on Mount
Sinai, the thunders and lightnings, were the work
of Angels ; and in the Apocalypse we read of the
Angels restraining the four winds. Works of venge-
ance are likewise attributed to them. The fiery
lava of the volcanoes, which (as it appears) was
the cause of Sodom and Gomorrah's ruin, was
caused by the two Angels who rescued Lot. The
hosts of Sennacherib were destroyed by an Angel,
by means (it is supposed) of a suffocating wind.
XXIX.] THE POWERS OF NATURE. 399
The pestilence in Israel when David numbered the
people, was the work of an Angel. The earth-
quake at the resurrection was the work of an
Angel. And in other parts of the Apocalypse the
earth is smitten in various ways by Angels of ven-
geance *.
Thus, as far as the Scripture communications
go, we learn that the course of Nature which is so
wonderful, so beautiful, and so fearful, is effected
by the ministry of these unseen beings. Nature is
not inanimate ; its daily toil is intelligent ; its
works are duties. Accordingly, the Psalmist says,
" The heavens declare the glory of God, and the
firmament showeth His handy-work." " O Lord,
Thy word endureth for ever in heaven. Thy truth
also remaineth from one generation to another ;
Thou hast laid the foundation of the earth, and it
abideth. They continue this day according to
Thine ordinance, for all things serve Thee2."
I do not pretend to say, that we are told in
Scripture what Matter is ; but I affirm, that as our
souls move our bodies, be our bodies what they
may, so there are Spiritual Intelligences which
move those wonderful and vast portions of the
natural world, which seem to be inanimate ; and,
as the gestures, speech, and expressive counte-
1 John v. 4. Exod. xix. 16—18. Gal. iii. 19. Acts vii. 53.
Rev. vii. 1. Gen. xix. 13. 2 Kings xix. 35. 2 Sam. xxiv. 15
— 17. Matt, xxviii. 2. Rev. viii. ix. xvi.
1 Psa. xix. 1. cxix. 89—91.
400 ST. MICHAEL. [SERM.
nance of our friends around us enable us to hold
intercourse with them, so in the motions of universal
Nature, in the interchange of day and night, sum-
mer and winter, wind and storrn, fulfilling His
word, we are reminded of the blessed and dutiful
Angels. Well then, on this day's Festival, may
we sing the hymn of those Three Holy Children
whom Nebuchadnezzar cast into the fiery furnace.
The Angels were bid change the nature of the
flame, and make it harmless to them ; and they in
turn called on all the creatures of God, on the
Angels especially, to glorify Him. Though many
hundreds of years have past since that time, and
the world now vainly thinks it knows more than it
did, and that it has found the real causes of the
things we see, still may we say with grateful and
simple hearts, " O all ye works of the Lord, O ye
Angels of the Lord, O ye sun and moon, stars of
heaven, showers and dew, winds of God, light and
darkness, mountains and hills, green things upon
the earth, bless ye the Lord, praise Him, and
magnify Him for ever." Thus, whenever we look
abroad, we are reminded of those most gracious
and holy Beings, the servants of the Holiest, who
deign to minister to the heirs of salvation. Every
breath of air, and ray of light and heat, every
beautiful prospect, is, as it were, the skirts of their
garments, the waving of the robes of those, whose
faces see God in heaven. And I put it to any one,
whether it is not as philosophically true, and as
XXIX.] THE POWERS OF NATURE. 401
full of intellectual enjoyment to refer the move-
ments of the natural world to them, as to attempt
to explain them by certain theories of science ;
useful as these theories certainly are for particular
purposes, and capable (in subordination to that
higher view) of a religious application.
2. And thus I am led to another use of the
doctrine under consideration. While it raises the
mind, and gives it matter of thought, it is also
profitable as a humbling doctrine, as indeed I
have already shown. Vain man would be wise,
and he curiously examines the works of Nature, as
if they were lifeless and senseless ; as if he alone
had intelligence, and they were base inert matter,
however curiously contrived at the first. So he
goes on, tracing the order of things, seeking for
Causes in that order, giving names to the wonders
he meets with, and thinking he understands what
he has given a name to. At length he forms a
theory, and recommends it in writing, and calls
himself a philosopher. Now all these theories of
science, which I speak of, are useful, as classifying,
and so assisting us to recollect, the works and ways
of God and of His ministering Angels. And again,
they are ever most useful, in enabling us to apply
the course of His providence, and the ordinances
of His will to the benefit of man. Thus we
are enabled to enjoy God's gifts ; and let us thank
Him for the knowledge which thus enables us, and
honour those who are His instruments in commu-
VOL. II. D d
402 ST. MICHAEL. [SERM.
nicating it. But if such a one proceeds to imagine
that, because he knows something of this world's
wonderful order, he therefore knows how things
really go on, if he treats the miracles of Nature
(so to call them) as mere mechanical processes,
continuing in their course by themselves, — as works
of man's contriving (a clock, for instance,) are set
in motion, and go on, as it were, of themselves, — if
in consequence he is, what may be called, irreve-
rent in his conduct towards Nature, thinking (so to
say) it does not hear him, and see how he is bearing
himself towards it ; and, if moreover he conceives
that the order of Nature, which he partially discerns,
will stand in the place of the God who made it,
and that all things continue and move on, not by
His will and power, and the agency of the thou-
sands and ten thousands of His unseen Servants,
but by fixed laws, self-caused and self-sustained,
what a poor weak worm, and miserable sinner he
becomes ! Yet such, I fear, is the condition of
many men now-a-days, who talk loudly, and ap-
pear to themselves and others to be oracles of
science, and as far as the detail of facts goes, do
know much more about the operations of Nature
than any of us.
Now let us consider what the real state of the
case is. Supposing the inquirer I have been
describing, when examining a flower, or a herb,
or a pebble, or a ray of light, which he treats
as something so beneath him in the scale of exist-
XXIX.] THE POWERS OF NATURE. 403
ence, suddenly discovered that he was in the pre-
sence of some powerful being who was hidden
behind the visible things he was inspecting, who,
though concealing his wise hand, was giving them
their beauty, grace, and perfection, as being God's
instrument for the purpose, nay whose robe and
ornaments those wondrous objects were, which he
was so eager to analyze, what would be ' his
thoughts? Should we but accidentally show a
rudeness of manner towards our fellow man, tread
on the hem of his garment, or brush roughly
against him, are we not vexed, not as if we had
hurt him, but from the fear we may have been dis-
respectful ? David had watched the awful pestilence
three days, not with curious eyes, but doubtless
with indescribable terror and remorse ; but, when
at length he " lifted up his eyes and saw the
Angel of the Lord," (who caused the pestilence)
" stand between the earth and the heaven, having a
drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jeru-
salem, then David and the elders, who were clothed
in sackcloth, fell upon their faces1." The mys-
terious irresistible pestilence became still more
fearful when the cause was known ; and what is
true of the painful, is true also of the pleasant
and attractive operations of Nature. When then
we walk abroad, and with Isaac " meditate in the
field at the eventide," how much has every herb and
i 1 Chron. xxi. 16,
Pd 2
404 ST. MICHAEL. [SERM.
flower in it to surprise and overwhelm us ! For,
even did we know as much about them as the
wisest of men, yet there are those around us,
though unseen, to whom our greatest knowledge is
as ignorance ; and, when we converse on subjects
of Nature scientifically, repeating the names of
plants and earths, and describing their properties,
we should do so religiously, as in the hearing of
the great Servants of God, with the sort of diffi-
dence which we always feel when speaking before
the learned and wise of our own mortal race, as
poor beginners in intellectual knowledge, as well
as in moral attainments.
Now I can conceive persons saying all this is fan-
ciful ; but if it appears so, it is only because we are
not accustomed to such thoughts. Surely we are
not told in Scripture about the Angels for nothing,
but for practical purposes ; nor can I conceive a
use of our knowledge more practical, than to make
it connect the sight of this world with the thought
of another. Nor one more consolatory ; for surely
it is a great comfort to reflect that, whenever we
go, we have those about us, who are ministering to
all the heirs of salvation, though we see them not.
Nor one more easily to be understood and felt by
all men ; for we know that at one time the doctrine
of Angels was received even too readily. And if
any one would argue hence against it as dangerous,
let him recollect the great principle of our Church,
that the abuse of a thing does not supersede the
XXIX.] THE POWERS OF NATURE. 405
use of it ; and let him explain, if he can, St. Paul's
exhorting Timothy not only as " before God and
Christ," but " the elect Angels" also. Hence, in
the Communion Service our Church teaches us to
join our praises with that of " Angels and Arch-
angels, and all the Company of heaven ;" and the
early Christians even hoped that they waited on
the Church's seasons of worship, and glorified God
with her. Nor are these thoughts without their
direct influence on our faith in God and His Son ;
for the more we can enlarge our view of the next
world, the better. When we survey Almighty God
surrounded by His Holy Angels, His thousand thou-
sands of ministering spirits, and ten thousand times
ten thousand standing before Him, the idea of His
awful Majesty rises before us more powerfully and
impressively. We begin to see how little we are,
how altogether mean and worthless in ourselves,
and how high He is, and fearful. The very lowest
of His Angels is indefinitely above us in this our
present state ; how high then must be the Lord of
Angels ! The very Seraphim hide their faces before
His glory, while they praise Him ; how shame-
faced then should sinners be, when they come into
His presence !
Lastly, it is a motive to our exertions in doing
the will of God, to think that, if we attain to
heaven, we shall become the fellows of the blessed
Angels. Indeed what do we know of the courts of
heaven, but as peopled by them ? and therefore
406 ST. MICHAEL. [SERM. XXIX.
doubtless, they are revealed to us, that we may
have something to fix our thoughts on, when we
look heavenwards. Heaven indeed is the palace
of Almighty God, and of Him doubtless we must
think in the first place ; and again of His Son our
Saviour, who died for us, and who is manifested
in the Gospels, in order that we may have some-
thing definite to look forward to : for the same
cause, surely, the Angels also are revealed to us,
that heaven may be as little as possible an unknown
place in our imaginations.
Let us then entertain such thoughts as these
of the Angels of God ; and, while we try to think
of them worthily, let us beware lest we make the
contemplation of them a mere feeling, and a sort
of luxury of the imagination. This world is to
be a world of practice and labour ; God reveals to
us glimpses of the Third Heaven for our comfort ;
but if we indulge in these as the end of our present
being, not trying day by day to purify ourselves for
the future enjoyment of them, they are but a snare
of our enemy. The services of religion, day by day,
obedience to God in our calling and in ordinary
matters, endeavours to imitate our Saviour Christ
in word and deed, constant prayer to Him, and
dependence on Him, these are the due prepara-
tion for receiving and profiting by His revelations ;
whereas many a man can write and talk beauti-
fully about them, who is not at all better or nearer
heaven for all his excellent words.
SERMON XXX.
THE FEAST OF ST. LUKE THE EVANGELIST
THE DANGER OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS.
EXOD. xxxi. 6.
In the hearts of all that are wise-hearted, I have put wisdom.
ST. LUKE differed from his fellow-evangelists and
disciples in having received the advantages of
(what is called) a liberal education. In this re-
spect he resembled St. Paul, who, with equal
accomplishments, appears to have possessed even
more learning. St. Luke is said to have been a
native of Antioch, a city celebrated for the refined
habits and cultivated intellect of its inhabitants ;
and his profession was that of a physician or sur-
geon, which of itself evidences him to have been
in education something above the generality of
men. This is confirmed by the character of his
writings, which are superior in composition to any
part of the New Testament, excepting some of St.
Paul's Epistles.
There are persons who doubt whether what are
called " accomplishments," (whether in literature
408 ST. LUKE. [SERM.
or the fine arts,) can be consistent with deep and
practical seriousness of mind. They think that
attention to these argues a lightness of mind, and
at least, takes up time which might be better em-
ployed ; and, I confess, that at first sight, they
seem to be able to say much in defence of their
opinion. Yet, notwithstanding, St. Luke and St.
Paul were accomplished men, and evidently took
pleasure in their accomplishments.
I am not speaking of human learning ; this also
many men think inconsistent with simple uncor-
rupted faith. They suppose that learning must
make a man proud. This is of course a great mis-
take ; but of it I am not speaking, but of an over-
jealousy of mental accomplishments, the elegant arts
and studies, such as poetry, literary composition,
painting, and the like ; which are considered, (not
indeed to make a man proud, but) to make him
trifling. Of this opinion, how far it is true, and
how far not true, I am going to speak ; being led
to the consideration of it by the known fact, that
St. Luke was a polished writer, and yet an Evan-
gelist.
Now, that the accomplishments (I speak of) have
a tendency to make us trifling and unmanly, and
therefore, are to be viewed by each of us with sus-
picion as far as regards himself, I am ready to
admit. I allow, that y? matter of fact, refinement
and luxury, elegance and effeminacy, go together.
Antioch, the most polished, was the most volup-
XXX ] DANGER OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS. 409
tuous city of Asia. But the abuse of good things
is no argument against the things themselves ;
mental cultivation may be a divine gift, though it
is abused. All God's gifts are perverted by man ;
health, strength, intellectual power, are all turned
by sinners to bad purposes, yet they are not evil in
themselves : therefore, an acquaintance with the
elegant arts may be a gift and a good, and intended
to be an instrument of God's glory, though numbers
who have it are rendered thereby indolent, luxu-
rious, and feeble-minded. — But the account of the
building of the Tabernacle in the wilderness, from
which the text is taken, is decisive on this point.
It is too long to read to you, but a few verses will
remind you of the nature of it. " Thou shalt speak
unto all that are wise-hearted, whom I have filled
with the Spirit of wisdom, that they may make
Aaron's garments to consecrate him, that he may
minister unto Me in the priest's office." " See
I have called by name Bezaleel .... and have
filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, and
in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all
manner of workmanship, to devise cunning works,
to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in
cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of
timber, to work all manner of workmanship."
<k Take ye from among you an offering unto the
Lord : whosoever is of a willing heart let him
^ c5
bring it, an offering of the Lord, gold, and silver,
and brass, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and
410 ST. LUKE. [SEEM.
fine linen, and goats' hair, and rams' skins dyed
red, and badgers' skins, and shittim wood, and oil
for the light, and spices for anointing oil, and for
the sweet incense, and onyx stones, and stones to
be set for the ephod, and for the breast-plate. And
every wise-hearted among you shall come and
make all that the Lord hath commanded V
How then is it, that what in itself is of so excel-
lent, and, (I may say,) divine a nature, is yet so
commonly perverted ? I proceed, therefore, to state
what is the danger, as it appears to me, of being
accomplished, with a view to answer this question.
Now, the danger of an elegant and polite educa-
tion, is, that it separates feeling and acting ; it
teaches us to think, speak, and be affected aright,
without forcing us to practise what is right. I will
take an illustration of this, though somewhat a
familiar one, from the effect produced upon the
mind by reading what is commonly called a
romance or novel, which comes under the descrip-
tion of polite literature of which I am speaking.
Such works contain many good sentiments ; (I am
talking of the better sort of them,) characters too are
introduced, virtuous, noble, patient under suffering,
and triumphing at length over misfortune. The
great truths of religion are upheld (we will say)
and enforced ; and our affections excited and inte-
rested in what is good and true. But it is all fic-
1 Exod. xxviii. 3. xxxi. 2 — 5. xxxv. 5 — 10.
XXX.] DANGER OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS. 41 1
tion ; it does not exist out of a book, which con-
tains the beginning and end of it. We have nothing
to do ; we read, are affected, softened or roused,
and that is all ; we cool again, — nothing comes of it.
Now observe the effect of this. God has made us
feel in order that we may go on to act in conse-
quence of feeling ; if then we allow our feelings to
be excited without acting upon them, we do mis-
chief to the moral system within us, just as we
might spoil a watch, or other piece of mechanism,
by playing with the wheels of it. We weaken its
springs, and they cease to act truly. Accordingly,
when we have got into the habit of amusing our-
selves with these works of fiction, we come at length
to feel the excitement without the slightest thought
or tendency to act upon it ; and, since it is very
difficult to begin any duty without some emotion
or other, (i. e. on mere principles of dry reasoning,)
a grave question arises, how, after destroying the
connection between feeling and acting, how shall
we get ourselves to act when circumstances make
it our duty to do so ? For instance : we will say we
have read again and again, of the heroism of facing
danger, and we have glowed with the thought of
its nobleness. We have felt how great it is to
bear pain, and submit to indignities, rather than
wound our conscience ; and all this, again and
again, when we had no opportunity of carrying
our good feelings into practice. Now, suppose at
length we actually come into trial, and let us say,
412 ST. LUKE. [SERM.
our feelings become roused, (as often before) at the
thought of boldly resisting temptations to coward-
ice, shall we therefore do our duty, quitting our-
selves like men? rather, we are likely to talk
loudly, and then run from the danger. Why ?
rather let us ask, why not ? what is to keep us from
yielding ? Because we feel aright ? nay, we have
again and again felt aright, and thought aright,
without accustoming ourselves to act aright, and
(though there was an original connexion in our
minds between feeling and acting,) there is none
now ; the wires (so to say) within us are loosened
and powerless.
And what is here introduced in the case of forti-
tude is true in all cases of duty. The refinement
which literature gives, is that of thinking, feeling,
knowing, and speaking, right, not of acting right ;
and thus, while it makes the manners amiable, and
the conversation decorous and agreeable, it has no
tendency to make the conduct, the practice of the
man, virtuous.
Observe, I have supposed the works of fiction, I
speak of, to inculcate right sentiments ; through
such works, (play-books for example,) are often
vicious and immoral. But, even at best, supposing
them well principled, still after all, at best, they
are, I say, dangerous, in themselves ; — that is, if
we allow refinement to stand in the place of hardy,
rough-handed obedience. It follows, that I am
much opposed to certain reliyious novels, which
XXX.] DANGER OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS. 413
some persons think so useful : that they sometimes
do good, I am far from denying ; — but they do
more harm than good. They do harm on the whole ;
they lead men to cultivate the religious affections
separate from religious practice. And here I might
speak of that entire religious system, (miscalled re-
ligious,) which makes Christian faith consist, not in
the honest and plain practice of what is right,
but in the luxury of excited religious feeling, in a
mere meditating on our Blessed Lord, and dwelling
as in a reverie on what He has done for us ; —
for such indolent contemplation will no more sanc-
tify a man in fact, than reading a poem, or listening
to a chant or psalm-tune.
The case is the same with the arts last alluded
to, poetry and music. They are especially likely to
make us unmanly, as exciting emotions without
ensuring correspondent practice, and so destroying
the connexion between feeling and acting ; for I
define unmanliness to be the inability to do with
ourselves what we wish, — the saying fine things,
and yet lying slothfully on our couch, as if we could
not get up, though we ever so much wished it.
And here I must notice something further in ele-
gant accomplishments, which goes to make us over-
refined and fastidious, and falsely delicate. In books,
every thing is made beautiful in its way. Pictures
are drawn of complete virtue; little is said about fail-
ures, and little or nothing of the drudgery of ordi-
nary, every-day obedience, which is neither poetical
414 ST. LUKE. [SERM.
nor interesting. True faith teaches us to do num-
berless disagreeable things for Christ's sake, to bear
petty annoyances, which we find written down in no
book. In most books Christian conduct is made
grand, elevated, and splendid; so that anyone, who
only knows of true religion from books, and not
from actual endeavours to be religious, is sure to be
offended at religion when he actually comes upon it,
from the roughness and humbleness of his duties,
and his necessary deficiencies in doing them. It is
beautiful in a picture to wash the disciples' feet ;
but the sands of the real desert have no comeliness
in them to compensate for the servile nature of the
occupation.
And further still, it must be observed,^ that the
art of composing, which is a chief accomplishment,
has in itself a tendency to make us artificial and
insincere. For to be ever attending to the fitness
and propriety of our words, is (or at least there is
the risk of its being) a kind of acting ; and know-
ing what can be said on both sides of a subject, is
a main step towards thinking the one side as good
as the other. Hence men in ancient times, who cul-
tivated polite literature, became what were called
' ' Sophists;" that is, men who wrote elegantly,
and talked eloquently, on any subject whatever,
right or wrong. St. Luke perchance would have
been such a Sophist, had he not been a Christian.
Such are some of the dangers of elegant accom-
plishments ; and they beset more or less all edu-
XXX ] DANGER OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS. 415
cated persons ; and of these especially such females,
as happen to have no very direct duties and are above
the drudgery of common life, and hence are apt to
become fastidious and fine, — to love a luxurious
ease, and to amuse themselves in more elegant
pursuits, the while they admire and profess what
is religious and virtuous, and think that they really
possess the character of mind which they esteem.
With these thoughts before us, it is necessary to
look back to the Scripture instances which I began
by referring to, to keep from considering accom-
plishments positively dangerous, and unworthy a
Christian. But St. Luke and St. Paul show us,
that we may be sturdy workers in the Lord's ser-
vice, and bear our cross manfully, though we be
adorned with all the learning of the Egyptians, or
rather, that the resources of literature, and the
graces of a cultivated mind, may be made both a
lawful source of enjoyment to the possessor, and a
means of introducing and recommending the Truth
to others; 'while the history of the Tabernacle shows
that all the cunning arts, and precious possessions
of this world, may be consecrated to a religious
service. — I conclude then with the following cau-
tions, to which the foregoing remarks lead. First,
we must avoid giving too much time to lighter oc-
cupations; and next, we must never allow ourselves
to read works of fiction, or poetry, or to interest our-
selves in the fine arts for the mere sake of the things
themselves : but keep in mind all along that we are
15
416 ST. LUKE. [SERM.
Christians and accountable beings, who have fixed
principles of right and wrong, by which all things
are to be tried, and religious habits to be matured in
them, towards which all things are to be made sub-
servient. Nothing is more common among accom-
plished people, than the habit of reading books so
entirely for reading sake, as to praise and blame
the actions and persons described in a random way,
according to their fancy, not considering whether
they are really good or bad according to the stand-
ard of moral truth. I would not be austere ; but
when this is done habitually, surely it is dangerous.
Such too is the abuse of poetical talent, that sacred
gift. Nothing is more common than to fall into the
practice of uttering fine sentiments, particularly in
letter-writing, as a matter of course, or a kind of
elegant display. Nothing more common in sing-
ing than to use words with a light meaning, or a
bad one. All these things are hurtful to seriousness
of character. It is for this reason (to put aside
others) that the profession of stage-players, and
again of orators, is a dangerous one. They learn
to say good things, and to excite in themselves
vehement feelings, about nothing at all. If we are
in earnest, we shall let nothing lightly pass by,
which may do us good ; nor shall we dare to trifle
with such sacred subjects as morality and religious
duty. We shall apply all we read to ourselves ; and
this almost without intending to do so, from the
mere sincerity and honesty of our desire to please
XXX.] DANGER OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS. 417
God. We shall be suspicious of all such good
thoughts and wishes, and we shall shrink from all
such exhibition of our principles as falls short of
action. We shall aim at doing right, and so glori-
fying our Father, and shall exhort and constrain
others to do so also ; but as for talking on the appro-
priate subjects of religious meditation, and trying
to show piety, and to excite corresponding feelings
in another, even though our nearest friend, far from
doing this, we shall account it a snare and a mis-
chief. Yet this is what many persons (as I have
already said) consider the highest part of religion,
and call it spiritual conversation, the test of a spi-
ritual mind ; whereas, putting aside the incipient
and occasional hypocrisy, and again the immodesty
of it, I call all formal and intentional expression
of religious emotions, all studied passionate dis-
course, dissipation, — dissipation the same in nature,
though different in subject, as what is commonly so
called ; for it is a drain and a waste of our reli-
gious and moral strength, a general weakening of
our spiritual powers (as I have already shown) and
all for what ? for the pleasure of the immediate
excitement. Who can deny this religious disorder
is a parallel case to that of the sensualist ? Nay,
not merely a parallel, but precisely the case of those
from whom the religionists in question think them-
selves very far removed, of the fashionable world
I mean, who read works of fiction, frequent the
public shows, are ever on the watch for novelties,
VOL. ii. E e
418 ST. LUKE. [SERM.
and affect a .pride of manners and a " mincing *"
deportment, and are ready with all kinds of good
thoughts and keen emotions on all occasions.
Of all such as abuse the decencies and elegancies
of moral truth into a means of luxurious enjoy-
ment, what would a prophet of God say ? Hear the
words of the holy Ezekiel, that stern rough man
of God, a true saint in the midst of a self-indul-
gent high-professing people. " Thou son of man,
the children of thy people still are talking against
thee hy the walls and in the doors of the houses,
and speak one to another, every one to his brother,
saying, Come, I pray you, and hear what is the
word that cometh forth from the Lord. And they
come unto thee as the people cometh, and they
sit before thee as My people, and they hear thy
words, but they will not do them ; for with their
mouth they show much love, but their heart goeth
after their covetousness. And lo, thou art unto
them as a very lovely song of one that hath a plea-
sant voice, and can play well on an instrument :
for they hear thy words, but they do them not2."
Or, consider St. Paul's words ; which are still
more impressive, because he was himself a man of
learning and accomplishments, and took pleasure,
in due place, in the employments to which these
gave rise.
" Preach the word, be instant in season, out of
season ; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all long-suf-
1 Is. iii. 16. a Ezek. xxxiii. 30—32.
XXX.] DANGER OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS. 419
fering and doctrine. For the time will come when
they will riot endure sound doctrine, but after their
own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers,
having itching ears. And they shall turn away
their ears from the Truth, and shall be turned unto
fables." " Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit
you like men, be strong !".
1 2 Tim. iv. 2—4. 1 Cor. xvi. 13.
EC 2
SERMON XXXI.
THE FEAST OF ST. SIMON AND ST. JUDE THE APOSTLES.
CHRISTIAN ZEAL.
JOHN ii. 17.
The zeal of Thine House hath eaten Me up.
THE Apostles commemorated on this Festival, direct
our attention to the subject of Zeal, which I propose
to consider, under our Saviour's guidance in the
text. St. Simon is called Zelotes, which means the
Zealous ; a title given him (as is supposed) from
his belonging before his conversion to the Jewish
sect of Zealots, which professed extraordinary
Zeal for the law. Any how, the appellation marks
him as distinguished for this particular Christian
grace. St. Jude's Epistle, which forms part of the
service of the day, is almost wholly upon the duty
of manifesting Zeal for Gospel Truth, and opens
with a direct exhortation to " contend earnestly
for the Faith once delivered to the Saints." The
Collect also indirectly reminds us of the same duty,
SERM. XXXI.] CHRISTIAN ZEAL. 421
for it prays that all the members of the Church may
be united in spirit by the Apostles' doctrine ; and
what are these but the words of Zeal, viz. of a love
for the Truth and the Church so strong, as not to
allow that man should divide what God hath
joined together ?
However, it will be a more simple account of
Zeal, to call it the earnest desire for God's honour,
leading to strenuous and bold deeds in His behalf;
and that, in spite of all obstacles. Thus when
Phinehas stood up and executed judgment in Israel,
he was zealous for God. David also, in his punish-
ment of the idolaters round about, and in preparing
for the building of the Temple, showed his Zeal,
which was one of his especial virtues. Elijah,
when he assembled the Israelites upon Mount Car-
mel, and slew the prophets of Baal, was "very
zealous for the Lord God of Hosts." Hezekiah
besides, and Josiah, were led to their reformations in
religious worship by an admirable Zeal ; and Ne-
hemiah too, after the captivity, who with the very
fire and sweetness of Gospel Love set the repentant
nation in order for the coming of Christ.
1. Now Zeal is one of the elementary religious
qualifications ; that is, one of those which are es-
sential in the very notion of a religious man. A
man cannot be said to be in earnest in religion,
till he magnifies his God and Saviour ; till he so far
consecrates and exalts the thought of Him in his
heart, as an object of praise, adoration, and re-
ST. SIMON AND ST. JUDE. [SERM.
joicing, as to be pained and grieved at dishonour
shown to Him, and eager (so to say) to avenge
Him. In a word, a religious temper is one of
loyalty towards God ; and we all know what is
meant by being loyal from the experience of civil
matters. To be loyal is not merely to obey ; but
to obey with promptitude, energy, dutifulness, dis-
interested devotion, disregard of consequences.
And such is Zeal, except that it is ever attended
with that reverential feeling, which is due from a
creature and a sinner towards his Maker, and to-
wards Him alone. It is a first step in all religious
service to love God above all things ; now Zeal is
to love Him above all men, above our dearest and
most intimate friends. This was the especial praise
of the Levites, which gained them the reward of
the priesthood, viz. their executing judgment on
the people in the sin of the golden calf. " Let
Thy Thummim and Thy Urim be with Thy Holy
One, whom Thou didst prove at Massah, and with
whom Thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah.
Who said unto his father and to his mother, I have
not seen him ; neither did he acknowledge his
brethren, nor knew his own children ; for they have
observed Thy word, and kept Thy covenant. They
shall teach Jacob Thy Judgments, and Israel Thy
Law ; they shall put incense before Thee, and whole
burnt sacrifice upon Thine Altar. Bless Lord, his
substance, and accept the work of his hands ; smite
through the loins of them that rise against him,
XXXI.] CHRISTIAN ZEAL. 423
and of them that hate him, that they rise not
again1." Zeal is the very consecration of God's
Ministers to their office. Accordingly, our Blessed
Lord, the One Great High Priest, the Antitype of
all Priests who went before Him, and the Master
and Strength of all who come after, began His mani-
festation of Himself by two acts of Zeal. When
twelve years old He deigned to put before us in re-
presentation the sacredness of this duty, when He
remained in the Temple " while His father and
mother sought Him sorrowing," and on their find-
ing Him, returned answer, "Wist ye not that I
must be about My Father's business ?" And again
at the opening of His public Ministry, He went into
the Temple, and " made a scourge of small cords,
and drove out the sheep and oxen, and overthrew
the changers' tables2" that profaned it; thus fulfil-
ing the prophecy contained in the text, " The Zeal
of Thine House hath eaten Me up."
Being thus consumed by Zeal himself, no wonder
He should choose his followers from among the
Zealous. James and John, whom He called Boa-
nerges, the sons of thunder, had warm hearts,
when He called them, however wanting in know-
ledge ; and felt as if an insult offered to their Lord
should have called down fire from Heaven. Peter
cut off the right ear of one of those who seized Him.
Simon was of the sect of the Zealots. St. Paul's
1 Deut. xxxiii. 8 — 11. 2 Luke ii. 48, 49. John ii, 15.
424 ST. SIMON AND ST. JUDE. [SERM.
case is still more remarkable. He, in his attach-
ment to the elder Covenant of God, had even
fought against Christ ; but he did so from earnest-
ness, from being " zealous towards God," though
blindly. He " verily thought with himself, that he
ought to do many things contrary to the name of
Jesus of Nazareth," and acted "in ignorance1 ;"
so he was spared. With a sort of heavenly com-
passion his persecuted Lord told him, that it was
"hard for him to kick against the pricks;" and
turned his ignorant zeal to better account. On
the same ground rests the commendation, which
that Apostle bestows in turn upon his countrymen,
while he sorrowfully condemns their unpardonable
obstinacy. " My heart's desire and prayer to God
for Israel," he says, " is, that they might be saved;
for I bear them record, that they have a Zeal of
God, but not according to knowledge2." They
were guilty, because they might have known what
they did not know ; but so far as they were zealous,
they claimed from him a respectful notice, and
were far better surely than those haughty scorn ers,
the Romans, who felt no concern whether there was
a God or not, worshipped one idol as readily as
another, and spared the Apostles from contemptuous
pity. Of these was Gallio, who " cared for none
of those things," which either Jews or Christians
did Such men are abominated by our Holy Lord,
1 Acts xxvi. 9. 1 Tim. i. 13. 2Rom. x. 1.
XXXI.] CHRISTIAN ZEAL. 425
who " honours them that honour Him," while
4 i they that despise Him, are lightly esteemed1."
He signifies this judgment of the luke and disloyal,
in His message to the Church of Laodicea. " I
know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot.
I would thou wert cold or hot. So then, because
thon art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will
cast thee out of My mouth2." Thus positive mis-
belief is a less odious state of mind than the temper
of those who are indifferent to religion, who say
that one opinion is as good as the other, and con-
temn or ridicule those who are in earnest. Surely,
if this world be a scene of contest between good
and evil, (as Scripture declares,) " he that is not
with Christ, is against Him ;" and Angels who
witness what is going on, and can estimate its
seriousness, may well cry out, " Curse ye Meroz,
curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof, because
they carne not to the help of the Lord, to the help
of the Lord against the mighty 3."
I do not deny that this view of the subject is
different from that which certain principles and
theories now current in the world would lead us to
adopt ; but this surely is no reason that it should
not be true, unless indeed, amid the alternate suc-
cesses of good and evil, there be any infallible
token given us to ascertain the superior illumina-
tion of the present century over all those which
1 1 Sam. ii. 30. 2 Rev. iii. 15, 16. 3 Judg. v. 23.
426 ST. SIMON AND ST. JUDE. [SEKM.
have preceded it. In fact, we have no standard
of Truth at all but the Bible, and to that I would
appeal. " To the Law and to the Testimony ;" if
the opinions of the day are conformable to it, let
them remain in honour, but if not, however popu-
lar they may be at the moment, they will surely
come to nought. It is the present fashion to call
Zeal by the name of intolerance, and to account
intolerance the chief of sins ; that is, any earn-
estness for one opinion above another concerning
God's nature, will, and dealings with man, — or, in
other words, any earnestness for the Faith once
delivered to the Saints, any earnestness for Reve-
lation as such. Surely, in this sense, the Apostles
were the most intolerant of men ; what is it but
intolerance in this sense of the word to declare,
that " he that hath the Son hath life, and he that
hath not the Son of God hath not life ;" that "they
that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ,
shall be punished with everlasting destruction from
the presence of the Lord ;" that " neither fornica-
tors, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor covetous,
nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the
kingdom of God;" that, we must not even "eat"
with a brother who is one of such ; that we may
not "receive into our houses," or " bid God speed"
to any one who comes to us without the " doctrine
of Christ ?" Has not St. Paul, whom many seem
desirous of making an Apostle of less rigid principles
than his brethren, said even about an individual,
XXXI.] CHRISTIAN ZEAL. 427
" The Lord reward him according to his works1 !"
and though we of this day have not the spiritual
discernment which alone can warrant such a form
of words about this man or that, have we not here
given us a clear evidence, that there are cases in
which God's glory is irreconcileable with the sal-
vation of sinners, and when, in consequence, it is
not unchristian to acquiesce in His judgments upon
them? These words were deliberately written by
St. Paul, in the closing days of his life, when his
mind was most calm and heavenly, his hope most
assured, his reward immediately in view ; circum-
stances which render it impossible for any one who
even reverences St. Paul as a man of especial holi-
ness, to explain them away, not to insist on the
argument from his inspiration.
Such is Zeal, a Christian grace to the last, while
it is also an elementary virtue ; equally belonging
to the young convert, and the matured believer ;
displayed by Moses at the first, when he slew the
Egyptian, and by St. Paul in his last hours, while
he reached forth his hand for his heavenly crown.
2. On the other hand, Zeal is an imperfect virtue;
that is, in our fallen state, it will ever be attended
by unchristian feelings, if it is cherished by itself.
This is the case with many other tempers of mind,
which yet are absolutely required of us. Who
1 1 John v. 12. 2 Thes. i. 8, 9. 1 Cor. vi. 9, 10. v. 11.
2 John 10, 11. 2 Tim. iv. 14.
15
428 ST. SIMON AND ST. JUDE. [SERM.
denies that it is a duty in the returning sinner to
feel abhorrence of his past offences, and a dread of
God's anger ? yet such feelings, unless faith accom-
pany them, lead to an unfruitful remorse, to de-
spair, to hardened pride ; or again, to perverse
superstitions. Not that humiliation is wrong in
any sense or degree, but it induces collateral weak-
nesses or sins, from unduly exciting one side of
our imperfect nature. Mercy becomes weakness,
when unattended by a sense of justice and firmness;
the wisdom of the serpent becomes craft, unless it
be received into the harmlessness of the dove.
And Zeal, in like manner, though an essential part
of a Christian temper, is but a part ; and is in itself
imperfect, even for the very reason that it is ele-
mentary. Hence it appropriately fills so prominent
a place in the Jewish Dispensation, which was in-
tended to lay the foundation, as of Christian Faith,
so of the Christian character. Whether we read
the injunctions delivered by Moses against idola-
try and idolaters, or trace the actual history of
God's chosen servants, such as Phinehas, Samuel,
Elijah, and especially David, we find that the Law
was peculiarly a Covenant of Zeal. On the other
hand, the Gospel brings out into its full propor-
tions, that perfect temper of mind, which the Law
enjoined indeed, but was deficient both in enforcing
and creating, — Love ; that is, Love or Charity, as
described by St. Paul in his first Epistle to the
Corinthians, which is not merely brotherly-love,
XXXI.] CHRISTIAN ZEAL. 429
(a virtue ever included in the notion of Zeal itself,)
but a general temper of gentleness, meekness,
sympathy, tender consideration, open-heartedness
towards all men, brother or stranger, who come
in our way. In this sense, Zeal is of the Law, and
Love of the Gospel ; and Love perfects Zeal, puri-
fying and regulating it. Thus the Saints of God
go on unto perfection. Moses ended his life as
11 the meekest of men/' though he began it with
undisciplined Zeal, which led him to a deed of vio-
lence. St. John, who would call down fire from
heaven, became the Apostle of love ; St. Paul, who
persecuted Christ's servants, " was made all things
to all men ;" yet, neither of them lost their Zeal,
though they trained it to be spiritual.
Love, however, is not the only grace which is
necessary to the perfection of Zeal ; Faith is another.
This, at first sight, may sound strange ; for what is
Zeal, it may be asked, but a result of Faith ? who is
zealous for that in which he does not trust and de-
light ? Yet, it must be kept in mind, that we have
need of Faith, riot only that we may direct our ac-
tions to a right object, but that we may perform
them rightly ; it guides us in choosing the means, as
well as the end. Now, Zeal is very apt to be self-
willed ; it takes upon itself to serve God in its own
way. This is evident from the very nature of it ;
for, in its ruder form, it manifests itself in sudden
and strong emotions on the sight of presumption or
irreverence, proceeding to action almost as a matter
430 ST. SIMON AND ST. JUDE. [SERM.
of feeling, without having time to inquire which
way is best. Thus, when our Lord was seized by
the officers, Peter forthwith " drew his sword, and
struck a servant of the High Priest's, and smote off
his ear V Patience then, and resignation to God's
will, are tempers of mind of which Zeal especially
stands in need, — that dutiful faith, which will take
nothing for granted on the mere suggestion of
nature, looks up to God with the eyes of a servant
towards his master, and, as far as may be, ascertains
His will, before it acts. If this heavenly corrective
be wanting, Zeal, (as I have said,) is self-willed in
its temper ; while, by using sanctions, and expect-
ing results of this world, it becomes, (what is com-
monly called,) political. Here, again, we see the
contrast between the Jewish and the Christian Dis-
pensations. The Jewish Law being a visible system,
sanctioned by temporal rewards and punishments,
necessarily involved the duty of a political temper
on the part of those who were under it. They
were bound to aim at securing the triumph of Reli-
gion here ; realizing its promises, enjoying its suc-
cesses, enforcing its precepts with the sword. This,
I say, was their duty ; and, as fulfilling it, (among
other reasons,) David is called " a man after God's
own heart." But the Gospel teaches us to " walk
by Faith, not by sight;" and Faith teaches us so
to be zealous, as still to forbear anticipating the
1 Matt. xxvi. 51.
I
XXXI.] CHRISTIAN ZEAL.
next world, but to wait till the Judge shall come.
St. Peter drew his sword, in order (as he thought)
to realize at once that good work on which his heart
was set, our Lord's deliverance ; and, on this very
account, he met with that Saviour's rebuke, who
presently declared to Pilate, that His Kingdom
was not of this world, else would His servants fight.
Christian Zeal, therefore, ever bears in mind that
the Mystery of Iniquity is to continue on till the
Avenger solves it once for all ; it renounces all
hope of hastening His coming, all desire of in-
truding upon His work. It has no vain imaginings
about the world's real conversion to Him, however
men may acknowledge Him outwardly, knowing
that it lies in wickedness. It has recourse to no
officious modes of propagating or strengthening
His truth. It does not flatter and ally itself with
Samaria, in order to repress Syria. It does not
exalt an Idumsean as its king, though he be
willing to beautify the Temple, or has influence
with the Emperors of the World. It plans no in-
trigues ; it recognises no parties ; it relies on no
arm of flesh. It looks for no essential improve-
ments or permanent reformations, in the dispensa-
tion of those precious gifts, which are ever pure in
their origin, ever corrupted in man's use of them.
It acts according to God's will, (this time or that,
as it comes,) boldly and promptly ; yet letting each
act stand by itself, as a sufficient service to Him,
not connecting them by hope, or working them
432 ST. SIMON AND ST. JUDE. [SEBM.
into system, further than He commands. In a
word, Christian Zeal is not political.
Two reflections arise from considering this last
characteristic of the virtue in question ; and with
a brief mention of these I will conclude.
1. First, it is too evident how grievously the
Church of Rome has erred in this part of Christian
duty. Let her doctrines be as pure as her defend-
ers represent, still she has indisputably made the
Church an instrument of worldly politics by a
" zeal not according to knowledge." Let us grant
that her doctrine was not fatally corrupted till the
sixteenth century, nevertheless, from the eleventh
at least, she has made Christ's Kingdom of this
world. I will not inquire whether she committed
the additional most miserable sin of rebellion
against Caesar ; though from what we see around
us at this day, there is great reason to fear, that
from the beginning of her power she has been
tainted with it. But consider the principles re-
cognised in her practice, though not adopted into
her formal teaching since the date I have men-
tioned, and then say, whether she has not failed in
this essential duty of a Christian Witness, viz. in
preserving the spiritual character of Christ's king-
dom l. In saying this, I would not willingly deny
1 Among the principles referred to are the following, which
occur among the Dictatus Hildebrandi ; " Quod liceat illi [Papae]
imperatores deponere ;" " Quod a fidelitate iniquorum subditos
potest absolvere." Vid. Laud against Fisher, p. 181. Baron.
Annal. Ann. 1076. nn. 31, &c.
XXXI.] CHRISTIAN ZEAL. 433
the great debt we owe to that Church for her faith-
ful custody of the Faith itself through so many
centuries ; nor seem unmindful of the circum-
stances of other times, the gradual growth of reli-
gious error, and the external dangers which ap-
peared to place the cause of Christianity itself in
jeopardy, and to call for extraordinary measures of
defence. Much less would I speak disrespectfully
of the eminent men, who were the agents under
Providence in various stages of that mysterious
Dispensation, and whom, however our Zeal may
burn, we must in very Charity believe to be,
what their works and sufferings betoken, single-
minded, self-denying servants of their God and
Saviour.
2. The Roman Church then has become poli-
tical ; but let us of the present day, beware of run-
ning into the other extreme, and of supposing that,
because Christ's Kingdom is not based upon this
world, that it is not connected with it. Surely it
was established here for the sake of this world, and
must ever act in it, as if a part of it, though its
origin is from above. Like the Angels which ap-
peared to the Patriarchs, it is a Heavenly Mes-
senger in human form. In its Polity, its Public
Assemblies, its Rules and Ordinances, its Censures,
and its Possessions, it is a visible body, and to ap-
pearance, an institution of this world. It is no
faulty zeal, to labour to preserve it in the form in
which Christ gave it/
VOL. II. F f
L_^ *>+y
434 ST. SIMON AND ST. JUDE. [SERM.
And further, it should ever be recollected, that,
though the Church is not of this world, yet we have
assurance from God's infallible word, that there
are in the world temporal and present Dispensers
of His Eternal Law. We are expressly told, that
4 'the powers that be are ordained of God;" that
they " bear not the sword in vain, but are ministers
of God, revengers to execute wrath upon the evil-
doer," and bestow " praise" on those who do well.
Hence, as being gifted with a portion of God's
power, they hold an office of a priestly nature *,
and are armed with the fearful sanction, that "they
that resist them, shall receive to themselves Judg-
ment." On this ground, religious Rulers have
always felt it to be their duty to act as in God's
place, for the promulgation of the Truth ; and the
Church, on the other hand, has seen her obligation
not only to submit to them, but zealously to co-
operate with them in her own line, towards those
sacred objects which they have both in common.
And thus has been fulfilled for fifteen hundred
years, the happy prophecy of Isaiah, that " kings
should be the nursing fathers of the Church, and
queens her nursing mothers." Yet, clearly there
is nothing here, either of a self-willed zeal, or poli-
tical craft, in the conduct of the Church, inasmuch
as she has herein but submitted herself to the
guidance of the revealed Word.
1 \eirovpyol BEOV. Rom. xiii. 1 — 6.
XXXI.] CHRISTIAN ZEAL. 435
May Almighty God, for His dear Son's sake,
lead us safely through these dangerous times ; so
that, while we never lay aside our Zeal for His
honour, we may sanctify it by Faith and Charity,
neither staining our garments by wrath or violence,
nor soiling them with the dust of a turbulent
world !
Ff 2
SERMON XXXII.
ALL SAINTS.
USE OF SAINTS' DAYS.
ACTS i. 8.
Ye shall be Witnesses unto Me, both in Jerusalem, and in all Ju-
dea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
So many were the wonderful works which our Sa-
viour did on earth, that not even the world itself
could have contained the books recording them.
Nor have His marvels been less (so to say,) since He
ascended on high ; — His works of higher grace^and
more abiding fruit, wrought in the souls of men,
from the first hour till now, — the captives of His
power,>the ransomed heirs of His kingdom, whom
He has called by His Spirit working in due season,
and led on from strength to strength till they ap-
pear before His face in Zion. Surely not even the
world itself could contain the records of His love,
the history of those many Saints, that " cloud of
Witnesses," whom we to-day celebrate, His pur-
chased possession in every age ! We crowd these all
SERM. XXXII.] USE OF SAINTS' DAYS. 437
up into one day ; we mingle together in the brief
remembrance of an hour all the choicest deeds,
the holiest lives, the noblest labours, the most pre-
cious sufferings which the sun ever saw. Even
the least of those Saints were the contemplation of
many days, — even the names of them, if read in
our service, would outrun many settings and risings
of the light, — even one passage in the life of one
of them were more than sufficient for a long dis-
course. " Who can count the dust of Jacob, and
the number of the fourth part of Israel l !" Mar-
tyrs and Confessors, Rulers and Doctors of the
Church, devoted Ministers and Religious brethren,
kings of the earth and all people, princes and
judges of the earth, young men and maidens, old
men and children, the first fruits of all ranks, ages,
and callings, gathered each in his own time into
the paradise of God. This is the blessed company
which to-day meets the Christian pilgrim in the
services of the Church. We are like Jacob, when,
seeking his own country, he was encouraged by a
heavenly vision. " Jacob went on his way, and
the Angels of God met him ; and when Jacob saw
them, he said, This is God's host, and he called
the name of that place Mahanaim 2."
And such an host was also seen by the favoured
Apostle, in the chapter from which the Epistle of
the day is taken. " I beheld, and lo, a great mul-
1 Numb, xxiii. 10. 2 Gen. xxxii. 1, 2.
438 ALL SAINTS. [SERM.
titude, which no man could number, of all nations,
and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood be-
fore the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms
in their hands. . . . These are they which came out
of great tribulation, and have washed their robes,
and made them white in the blood of the Lamb 1."
This great multitude, which no man could num-
ber, is gathered into this one day's commemoration,
the goodly fellowship of the Prophets, the noble
army of Martyrs, the Children of the Holy Church
Universal, who have rested from their labours.
The reason of this disposition of things is as fol-
lows : — Some centuries ago there were too many
Saints' days ; and they became an excuse for idle-
ness. Nay, worse still, by a great and almost in-
credible perverseness, instead of glorifying God in
His Saints, Christians came to pay them an honour
approaching to worship. The consequence was,
that it became necessary to take away their Festi-
vals, and to commemorate them all at once in a
summary way* Now men go into the contrary ex-
treme. These Holydays, few though they be, are
not duly observed. Such is the way of mankind,
ever contriving to slip by their duty, and fall into
one or other extreme of error. Idle or busy, they
are in both cases wrong ; idle, and so neglecting
their duties towards man; busy, and so neglecting
their duties towards God. We have little to do
however with the faults of others; — let us then,
1 Rev. vii. 9. 14.
XXXII.] USE OF SAINTS' DAYS. 439
passing by the error of idling time under pretence
of observing many Holydays, rather speak of the
fault of our own day, viz. of neglecting to observe
them, and that, under pretence of being too busy.
Our Church abridged the number of Holidays,
thinking it right to have but a few ; but we ac-
count any as too much. For, taking us as a nation,
we are bent on gain ; and grudge any time which
is spent without reference to our worldly business.
We should seriously reflect, whether this neglect of
the appointments of religion be not a great national
sin. As to individuals, I can easily understand how
it is that they pass them over. A considerable
number of persons, (for instance,) have not their
time at their own disposal. They are in service or
business, and it is their duty to attend to the orders
of their masters or employers, — which keep them
from Church. Or they have particular duties to
keep them at home, though they are their own
masters. Or, it even may be said, that the circum-
stances under which they find their calling, the
mode in which it is exercised by others, may be a
reason for doing as others do. It may be such a
worldly loss to them to leave their trade on a
Saint's-day and go to Church, as to appear to them
a reason in conscience for their not doing so. I
do not wish to give an opinion upon this case or
that, which is a matter for the individual immedi-
ately concerned. Still, I say on the whole, that
state of society must be defective, which renders it
440 ALL SAINTS. [SERM.
necessary for the Ordinances of religon to be neg-
lected. There must be a fault somewhere ; and it
is the duty of every one of ns to clear ourselves of
our own portion of the fault, to avoid partaking in
other men's sins, and to do our utmost that others
may extricate themselves from the blame too.
I say this neglect of religious Ordinances is an
especial fault of these latter ages. There was
a time when men openly honoured the Gospel ; and
when, consequently, they had each of them more
means of becoming religious. The institutions of
the Church were impressed upon the face of society.
Dates were reckoned not so much by months and
seasons, as by sacred Festivals. The world kept
pace with the Gospel ; the arrangements of legal
and commercial business were regulated by a Chris-
tian rule. Something of this still remains among
us ; but such customs are fast vanishing. Mere
o
grounds of utility are considered sufficient for re-
arranging the order of secular engagements. Men
think it waste of time to wait upon the course of the
Christian year; and they think they gain more by a
business-like method, and the neatness, dispatch,
and clearness in their worldly transactions conse-
quent upon it, (and this perhaps they really do
gain,) but they think they gain more by it, than they
lose by dropping the Memorials of religion. These
they really do lose ; they lose those regulations
which at stated times brought the concerns of
another life before their minds ; and, if the truth
XXXII.] USE OF SAINTS' DAYS. 441
must be spoken, they often rejoice in losing what
officiously interfered (as they consider) with their
temporal schemes, and reminded them they were
mortal.
Or view another part of the subject. It was
once the custom for the Churches to be open
through the day, that at spare times Christians
might enter them, and be able to throw off for some
minutes the cares of the world in religious exer-
cises, Services were appointed for separate hours
in the day, to allow of the attendance in whole or
part of those who happened to be at hand. Those
who could not come still kept their service-book
with them ; and often were able to repeat the
prayers in private, which were during the passing
hour offered in Church. Thus provision was made
for the spiritual sustenance of Christians day by
day ; for that daily-needed bread which far ex-
ceeds "the bread that perisheth." All this is now
at an end. We dare not open our Churches, lest
men should profane them instead of worshipping.
As for an accurately arranged Ritual, too many of
us have learned to despise it, and to consider it a
form. Thus the world has encroached on the
Church ; the lean kine have eaten up the fat. We
are threatened with years of spiritual famine, with
the triumph of the enemies of the Truth, and with
the stifling, or at least enfeebling of the Voice of
Truth; — and why? All because we have neg-
lected those religious observances through the year
442 ALL SAINTS.
which the Church commands, which we are bound
to observe ; while, by neglecting, we have provided
a sort of argument for those who have wished to do
them away altogether. No party of men can keep
together without stated meetings ; assemblings are,
we know, the very life of political associations.
Viewing, then, the institutions of the Church merely
in a human point of view, how can we possess
power as Christians, if we do not, and on the other
hand, what great power we should have, if we did,
flock to the Ordinances of religion, present a bold
face to the world, and show that Christ has still
servants true to Him ! That we come to Church
on Sundays is a help this way doubtless ; but it
would be a vastly more powerful argument for our
earnestness for the Truth, if we testified for Christ
at some worldly inconvenience to ourselves, which
would be the case with some of us on other Holy-
days. Can we devise a more powerful mode of
preaching to men at large, and one in which the
most unlearned and most timid among us might
more easily partake, of preaching Christ as a warn-
ing and a remembrance, than if all who loved the
Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity, made it a practice to
throng the Churches on the week-day Festivals
and various Holy Seasons, the while allowing less
religious persons to make the miserable gains, which
greater keenness in the pursuit of this world cer-
tainly does secure ?
I have not yet mentioned the peculiar benefit to
XXXIL] USE OF SAINTS' DAYS. 443
be derived from the observance of Saints' days ;
which obviously lies in their setting before the
mind patterns of excellence for us to follow. In
directing us to these, the Church does but fulfil the
design of Scripture. Consider how great a part of
the Bible is historical ; and how much of the history
is merely the lives of those men who were God's in-
struments in their respective ages. Some of them
are no patterns for us, others show marks of the
corruption under which human nature universally
lies : — yet the chief of them are specimens of especial
faith and sanctity, and are set before us with the
evident intention of exciting and guiding us in our
religious course. Such are above others, Abraham,
Joseph, Job, Moses, Joshua, Samuel, David, Elijah,
Jeremiah, Daniel, and the like ; and in the New
Testament the Apostles and Evangelists. First of
all, and in His own incommunicable glory, our
Blessed Lord Himself gives us an example ; but
His faithful servants lead us on towards Him, and
confirm and diversify His pattern. Now, it has
been the aim of our Church in her Saints' days to
maintain the principle, and set a pattern, of this
peculiarly Scriptural teaching.
And we, at the present day, have particular need
of the discipline of such commemorations as Saints'
days, to call us to ourselves. It is a fault of these
times, (for we have nothing to do with the faults of
other times) to despise the past in comparison of
the present. We can scarce open any of the
444 ALL SAINTS. [SERM.
lighter or popular publications of the day, without
falling upon some panegyric on ourselves, on the
illumination and humanity of the age, or upon
some disparaging remarks on the wisdom and vir-
tues of former times. Now7 it is a most salutary
thing under this temptation to self-conceit to be
reminded that in all the highest qualifications of
human excellence, we have been far outdone by
men who lived centuries ago ; that a standard of
truth and holiness was then set up, which we are not
likely to reach, and that, as for thinking to become
wiser and better, or more acceptable to God than
they were, it is a mere dream. Here we are taught
the true value and relative importance of the va-
rious gifts of the mind. The showy talents, in which
the present age prides itself, fade away before the
true metal of Prophets and Apostles. Its boasted
11 knowledge" is but a shadow of " power" before
the vigorous strength of heart which they displayed,
who could calmly work moral miracles, as well as
speak with the lips of inspired wisdom. Would
that St. Paul or St. John could rise from the dead !
How would the minute philosophers who now con-
sider intellect and enlightened virtue all their own,
shrink into nothing before those well-tempered
sharp-edged weapons of the Lord ! Are not we come
to this ? is not our shame as a nation, that, if not
the Apostles themselves, at least the ecclesiastical
System they devised, and the Order they founded,
are viewed with coldness and disrespect ? How few
XXXII.] USE OF SAINTS' DAYS. 445
are there who look with reverent interest upon the
Bishops of the Church as the Successors of the
Apostles ; honouring them, if they honour, merely
because they like them as individuals, and not from
any thought of the peculiar sacredness of their
office ! Well, let it be ! the End must one time come.
It cannot be that things should stand still thus.
Christ's Church is indestructible ; and, lasting on
through all the vicissitudes of this world, she must
rise again and flourish, when the poor creatures of
a day who opposed her, have crumbled into dust.
" No weapon that is formed against her shall pros-
per." " Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy !
when I fall, T shall arise ; when I sit in darkness,
the Lord shall be light unto me V In the mean
time let us not forget our duty ; which is, after the
example of Saints, to take up our cross meekly
and pray for our enemies.
These are thoughts suitably to be impressed
on us, on ending (as we do now) the yearly
Festivals of the Church. Every year brings won-
ders. We know not any year, what wonders
shall have happened before the circle of Festivals
has run out again, from St. Andrew's to All Saints.
Our duty then is, to wait for the Lord's coming,
to prepare His way before Him, to pray that
when He comes we may be found watching, to
pray for our- country, for our King and all in autho-
1 Isaiah liv. 17. Micah vii. 8.
446 ALL SAINTS. [SERM. XXXII.
rity under him, that God would vouchsafe to en-
lighten the understandings and change the hearts
of men in power, and make them act in His faith
and fear, for all orders and conditions of men, and
especially for that branch of His Church which He
has planted here. Let us not forget, in our lawful
and fitting horror at evil men, that they have
souls, and that they know not what they do, when
they oppose the Truth. Let us not forget, that we
are sons of sinful Adam as well as they, and have
had advantages to aid our faith and obedience
above other men. Let us not forget, that, as we
are called to be Saints, so we are, by that very
calling, called to suffer ; and, if we suffer, must not
think it strange concerning the fiery trial that is to
try us, nor (again) be puffed up by our privilege of
suffering, nor bring suffering needlessly upon us,
nor be eager to make out we have suffered for
Christ, when we have but suffered for our faults, or
not at all. May God give us grace to act upon
these rules, as well as to adopt and admire them ;
and to say nothing for saying-sake, but to do much
and say little.
NOTE
ON SERMON XIII.— P. 154.
THE instrumentality of the Spiritual Sustenance received in the
Lord's Supper, in the renewal of the whole man, body as well as
soul, in holiness and immortality, is a doctrine so solemn, so
momentous in its influence upon the entire Christian system, and
so little understood at the present day, that it may be right to
cite one or two authorities in support of it. This is done, not
under the notion that such authorities will weigh with certain rea-
soners, but, in order that those whose minds are not made up on
the subject, may see how far they must go, if they would at once
scornfully or rudely reject the doctrine thus sanctioned ; involving,
as they necessarily must in such treatment, a disrespect towards
writers, whose opinions, though not infallible, have ever a claim
on the consideration and deference of members of the Church.
Hooker is known to be opposed to any formal doctrinal asser-
tion of the presence of Christ in the sacred Elements, and espe-
cially on this ground, lest any such should withdraw our minds
from His real presence and operation in the soul and body of the
recipient. The following passages are from his Ecclesiastical
Polity, v. 56, 57. 67. " We are by nature the sons of Adam.
When God created Adam, He created us ; and as many as are
descended from Adam, have in themselves the root out of which
they spring. The sons of God we neither are all, nor any one of
us, otherwise than only by grace and favour. The sons of God
have God's own natural Son as a second Adam from heaven,
whose race and progeny they are by spiritual and heavenly birth.
God therefore loving eternally His Son, He must needs eternally
15
448 NOTE ON SERMON XTII.
in Him have loved and preferred before all others, them which
are spiritually sithence descended and sprung out of Him ....
Our being in Christ by eternal foreknowledge, saveth us not
without our actual and real adoption into the fellowship of His
Saints in this present world. For in Him we actually are, by
our actual incorporation into that Society which hath Him for
their head ; and doth make together with Him one body, (He
and they in that respect having one name,) for which cause, by
virtue of this mystical conjunction, we are of Him, and in Him,
even as though our very flesh and bones should be made con-
tinuate with His .... The Church is in Christ, as Eve was in
Adam. Yea, by grace we are every of us in Christ and in His
Church, as by nature we were in those our first parents. God
made Eve of the rib of Adam ; and His Church He frameth out
of the very flesh, the very wounded and bleeding side of the Son
of Man. His body crucified, and His blood shed for the life of
the world, are the True Elements of that heavenly being, which
maketh us such as Himself is, of whom we come. For which
cause, the words of Adam may be fitly the words of Christ con-
cerning His Church, ' Flesh of My flesh, and bone of My bones;'
a true nature extract out of My own body. So that in Him,
even according to His Manhood, we, according to our heavenly
being, are as branches in that root out of which they grow ....
Adam is in us as an original cause of our nature, and of that
corruption of nature which causeth death; Christ, as the cause
original of restoration to life. The person of Adam is not in us,
but his nature, and the corruption of his nature derived into all
men by propagation ; Christ having Adam's nature, as we have,
but incorrupt, deriveth not nature, but incorruption, and that
immediately from His own person, into all that belong unto Him.
As therefore we are really partakers of the body of sin and death
received from Adam, so except we be truly partakers of Christ,
and as really possessed of His Spirit, all we speak of eternal life
is but a dream. That which quickeneth us is the Spirit of the
second Adam, and His Flesh is that wherewith He quickeneth.
That which in Him made our nature uncorrupt was the union of
NOTE ON SERMON XIII. 449
His Deity with our nature .... These things St. Cyril duly
considering, reproveth their speeches, which taught that only the
Deity of Christ is the vine whereupon we by faith do depend as
branches, and that neither His Flesh, nor our bodies, are comprised
in this resemblance. For, doth any man doubt, but that even from
the Flesh of Christ, our very bodies do receive that life which shall
make them glorious at the latter day ; and for which they are
already accounted parts of His Blessed Body ? .... Christ is
therefore, both as God and as man, that true vine, whereof we,
both spiritually and corporally, are branches. The mixture of
His bodily substance with ours, is a thing which the ancient Fathers
disclaim." .... That saving grace which Christ originally is, or
hath for the general good of His whole Church, by Sacraments
He severally deriveth into every member thereof. Sacraments
serve as the instruments of God, to that end and purpose
Our souls and bodies quickened to eternal life, are effects, the
cause whereof, is the Person of Christ ; His Body and Blood are
the true well-spring out of which this life floweth. So that His
Body and Blood are in that very subject whereunto they minister
life ; not only by effect or operation, even as the influence of the
heavens is in plants, beasts, men, and in every thing which they
quicken; but also by a far more divine and mystical kind of
union, which maketh us one with Him, even as He and the Father
are one. The real presence of Christ's most Blessed Body and
Blood is not therefore to be sought for in the Sacrament, but in the
worthy receiver of the Sacrament . . . They (the Sacramentaries)
grant that these holy Mysteries, received in due manner, do in-
strumentally both make us partakers of the grace of that Body and
Blood which were given for the life of the world, and besides also
impart to us, even in true and real, though mystical manner, the very
person of our Lord Himself, whole, perfect, and entire." ... It is
impossible to do justice to this most instructive Author by mere
extracts. The whole of his discussion should be diligently read
and mastered by those who wish to know the sublime, yet cautious
doctrine of our Church on the subject, securing essentials, here as
elsewhere, but allowing her children to differ as to minuter points.
VOL. II. G g
450 NOTE ON SERMON XIII.
It is plain, that Hooker accounted the Lord's Supper, as a chief
means of conveying to the body a principle of life, distinct alto-
gether from that physical life we now live, the seed of immortality
not to be developed till the resurrection, the rudiment of the spiri-
tual body which will then be given us. (Vid. § 68. fin.) But too
many students and writers glance over his pages in a careless way,
and, not imagining that his statements are to be interpreted in their
plain sense, do but find in them an obscurity, which they attribute
to an antiquated style ; or going further, they interpret " mystical"
to mean nothing more than " figurative," and consider his whole
discussion, the over-subtle treatment of a true but merely general
analogy ; or, further still, a mere unintelligible disputation de-
rived from the schools.
Ignatius, Epist. ad Ephes. 20. eva aprov KX&vTeg, og
<j>dpuaKov aQavaffiag, avTiSoTog TOV aVo0ave7v, d\\d £fjv iv '
XjOtorw cW iravTOQ'
Irenaeus contr. Haeres. iv. 18. plainly discriminates between the
body considered as physical and mortal, and the spiritual body
that shall be, and describes the Eucharist as the present seed of
the latter. Hwe TTJV trdpica. Xeyovanv etc fyQopdv ^wpelv, Kal jj.rj
fjiETe^Eiv rrJQ £wJ7e, TYJV aVo rov erwjuaroe rov Kvptov, Kal
avrov Tpe(j)OfJ.ev7)v ; ... we yap aVo yr\q aprog
TYIV £KK\T)(TtV TOV OtOV OVKETl KOlVOg UpTOQ SffTlV, tt'XX'
IK civo Trpay^Ltarwv avveffTrjKvIa, cTrtyetov TE KOI ovpaviov' ovrwg
Kal ra ffwuara iiu&v /U£raXa^i/3avo>ra rfjg ev^apiorme, yu^/ctVi EIVUL
tydapTa, TJ\V eXTrida TTJQ elg alwvag avaoraffcwc: e^ovra.
Again v. 2. 'ETm^ p£Xr) avrov €oyi€v, Kal Sia rrjg KTifftwQ
rpf0o^Lt£0a, TTIV Sf. Kriffiv rifuv avTOQ Trape^et, TOV r/Xtov avrou dva-
T£\\(t)v, Kal flpe-%wvt KaOwg fiovXerat, TO aVo TYIQ KTtaewg iroTrjpiov,
aipa 'idtov wuoXoyriaev, e£ ov TO fijJ.£Tepov Sevti al/za, Kal TOV a?ro
dpTOv, 'iStov <rw^a ^if/3f/3atwo-aro, d(f ov TU ^/ierepa
'OTrore ovv Kal TO KeKpaplvov iroTrjpiov, Kal o ye-
i TOV Xoyov TOV Qeov, Kal yivsTat rj ev^aptaTia
Xptorov, EK TOVTWV <He avfat Kal avviaTaTai r) ri/e <7ap*coe
vTroaraffte, TTWC; oeKTUcftv fjii) elvat Xlyovffi TYJV papKa r^e
cwptdg rov Gtov, 7/rt£ etrTl £wri aiwvtoc, Tt)v aVo rov <7W/iaroe Kal
NOTE ON SERMON XIII. 451
a'ipufog TWV Kvp/ou rpe^OjUtVr/v, Kal pe\og avrov
K. T. X.
Athanasius, de Incarnat. §. 16. [p. 883, ed. Benedict.] iSl
yap rma£ kv TTJ ev^f}, kv rw viiv aldjvi CUTEIV TOV tTrtovcrtov aprov,
Tovreari TOV /ie'XXovra, ov dirap^v tyoptv ev ry viiv ^wjj 7% trapse
row Kvp/ov /Lt£raXa^/3avovrec . . . Trvevpa yap ZWOTTOIOVV rj <rap^
fort rou Kvptov.
Chrysostom, Horn. xxiv. in 1 Cor. [t. xi. p. 257, ed. Due.]
7i Trportpa Tfjg crapKog (pvvic; r/ aVo yfjc; SicnrXaaOEiffa avro
tfydaae veKpwdrjvai, Kal £(*)fJG yeviaQai. epr/juoe, ere
a»e av e'tTrot rig, fj.d£av Kal ^vjurjv CTreio-^yaye, TT)V laurov
<j)vaei per ovaav rriv avri^v, ayuaprtag ^e aVr/XXayjucvT/v, fcai
' KOL iraaiv t^wfcev avr^e /ieraXa/i/3aveiv, tVa ravrr) rpe-
t TJ/J/ Trporepav aVo0e/i£j/oi r)?v vefcpav, £t£ n)v ^wj)v r^t/
dQa.va.TOv ^ia ri/e rpaTre^g aVafC£pa«r0a>^t£v ravrr^q.
Vid. Cyril. Alex. t. vi. Explan. 12. Cap. p. 156. d. contr.
Julian, viii. p. 258. b. &c.
A number of instances from the Fathers are supplied in John-
son's Unbloody Sacrifice, Part ii. ch. ii. §. i. Vid. also Petav. de
Incarn. ii. 8, 9. x. 2. It is scarcely necessary to refer to the
Homily on the Sacrament, part i., and our Communion Service, for
concise statements of the same doctrine.
THE END.
LONDON :
GILBERT & RIVINGTON, PRINTERS,
St. John's Square.
PLAN
OP THE
EDINBURGH CABINET LIBRARY;
CONTAINING
A BRIEF ANALYSIS OF THE WORKS ALREADY PUBLISHED,
WITH
NOTICES OF THOSE WHICH ARE IN PREPARATION.
THE EDINBURGH CABINET LIBRARY having now reached its Sixteenth
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4 EDINBURGH CABINET LIBRARY.
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EDINBURGH CABINET LIBRARY. O
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6 EDINBURGH CABINET LIBRARY.
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EDINBURGH CABINET LIBRARY. 7
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a
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structed, are prefixed to the several works, not only illustrative of the king-
dom or region to which thjey refer, but from time to time carefully cor-
rected, so as to include the latest discoveries. Portraits and numerous
other Engravings, executed by able artists, have been introduced, with the
view of illustrating the text, and conveying characteristic ideas of the seve-
ral countries, rather than of merely producing a picturesque effect.
Having said so much on the plan, it only remains to subjoin a list of the
principal writers who have contributed the volumes already before the
public ; by which it will be seen that the Proprietors have redeemed their
pledge given at the outset, that the Series should be the production of au-
thors of eminence, who had acquired celebrity by former labours in their
respective departments : —
THE LATE SIR JOHN LESLIE,
Professor of Natural Philosophy in the University
of Edinburgh, and Corresponding Member
of the Royal Institute of France.
ROBERT JAMESON, F.R.S.E. & L.,
F.L.S., M.W.S.,
Regius Professor of Natural History, Lecturer on
Mineralogy, &c. in the University of
Edinburgh.
WILLIAM WALLACE, A. M.,
F.R.S.E.,
Professor of Mathematics in the University of
Edinburgh.
REV. MICHAEL RUSSELL, LL.D.
HUGH MURRAY, F.R.S.E. -
P. F. TYTLER, F.R.S. & F.S.A.
JAMES BAILLIE FRASER.
ANDREW CRICHTON.
JAMES WILSON, F.R.S.E., &c.
R. K. GREVILLE, LL.D.
W. MACGILLIVRAY, F.R.S.E., &c.
W. AINSLIE, M.D., M.R.A.S.
CAPT. CLARENCE DALRYMPLE,
Master Attendant at Madras.
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C. H.. BELCHER, HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA;
AND ALL OTHER BOOKSELLERS.