THE SPIRITUAL IIIND.
OW are we the better for being members of the Christian Church? This is a question which bas ever claires on our attention; but if is right from rime to rime fo examine our hearts with more than usual care, to try them by the standard of that divinely enlightened retaper in the Church, and in the Saints, the work of the Holy Ghost, called by St. Paul "the spirit." I ask then, how are we the better for being Christ's disciples? what reason bave we for thinking that our lives are very different from what they would bave been if we had been heathens? Have we, in the words of the text, received the kingdom of God in word or in power? I will make some remarks in explanation of this question, which ma.y (through God's grace) assist you, my Brethren, in answering it. 1. 1Vow first, if we would form a just notion how far we are influenced by the power of the Gospel, we must evidently put aside every thing which we do merely in imitation of others, and hot ri'oto religious p6nciple.
be natn'a! fo him fo obey, and therefore he xvill cio if a?«ra??5, i. e. without effort or de]iberafion. If is diflï- eult things whieh we are obliod fo think about belote doin,g them. Wben xve bave nmstered out hearts in any marrer (if is truc) v¢e no more think of file duy while we obey, than we think how fo wa]k when we walk, or by wha rules fo exereise any art whieh xx-e have thorougqfly aequired. 8efiarat aet of faith aid us on]y while we are t«ta[e. As we get strength, but one extended aet of faith (so fo eall if) influences us all througq the da.y, and out xvhole d.ay is but one aet of obe3ienee also. Then there is no minute distribution of out faith among" out partieular deeds. Out will runs parallel fo God's will. This is the very lorivilege of eonfirmed Christians; and if is eomparatively but a sordid way of serving God, to be thnking- when we do a deed, "if I do hOt do this, I shall risk my s,.lvation; or, if I do if, I have chance of being, saved;"cofiarative[j a grovelling way, for it is the best, the only way for sinners sueh as we are, to begi, to serve Goal in. Still as we g'row in grace, we throw away ehi]dish things; then we are able to stand ul)right like grown men, without the props and aids x-hieh our infaney required. This the noble mannei of serving, God, fo do good without thinking about if, without any ealeulation or reasoning, from love of the good, and hatred of the evil;—though cautiously and with prayer and wtehing, yet so generously, t.hat if we were suddenly asked xvhy we so aet, xve eould only reply "beeause if is our way," or "beeause Christ so a.eted;" so SlOontaneousb as not to know so mueh that we are doing right, as that
The çh'itml ll[ind. 75 aïe hot doin. wTong'; I mean, vith more of instinctive fear of sinning, than of lninute and eareful appreeiation of the degree« of out obedienee. Ilenee if is that tle ])est men are ever the most humble; as for other reasons, so espeeially beeause they are a«eu«tomed to be religlous. They surprise other«, but hot themselves; tliev surprise others af their very ealmness and fi'eedom ri'oto thoug'ht about themselves. This is to hve great mind, fo have within us that "prineel¥ heart of innocence " of whieh David speaks. Common men see God af distance; in their attempts to be rèligious they feebly guide themselves,as by, distant light, and are obliged to ealeulate and seareh about for the path. But the lon praetised Christiau, who, through God's merey, bas brought God's presence near to him, the elect of God, in whom the ]31essed Spirit dwells, he does hot look out of doors for thc traces of God; he is moved by God dwelling in hiu, and needs hot but act on instinct, I do hot say there is any man altogether such, for this is an angelic lire; but it is the state of mind to which vigorous prayer and watching tend. tIow different is this hig'h obedience from that random unawares way of doing" right, which to so m,-my men seems to constitute religions life! The excellent obedience I bave been describing is obedience on habit.:Now the obedience I condemn as untrue, may be called obedience o custo». The one is of the heart, the other of the lips; the one is in power, the othcr in word; the one cannot be acquired withont much and constant vigilance, generally hot without much pain and trouble; Chrislim Cr, Sixth Sunday after Trinity.
7 6 The,Yirit«tal lizd. the other is the result of a mere passive imitation of those whom we fall in with. Why need I describe what every man's expericnce bears witness to? Why do children learn their mother tongue, and hot a breign 1,qngu,qge? Do they think about it? Are they better or worse for acquiring one langu,qge and hot another? Their character, of course, is just wlmt it would bave been otherwise. How then are ve bctfcr or worse, if we have but in the saine passive way admitted into our minds certain religious opinions; and bave but accustomed ourselves to the words and actions of the world around us? Supposing we had never heard of the Gospel, should we hot do just what we do, even in a heathcn country, were the manners of the place, fi-om one CLUSe or another, as decent and outwardly relious? This is the question we bave to ask ourselves. And if we are conscious to ourselves that we are hot greatly concerned about the question itself, and bave no fears worth mentioning of being in the ww-ong, and no anxiety to find what is right, is it hot evident that we are living to the world, hot to God, and th,qt whatever virtue ve may actually bave, still the Gospel of Christ bas corne to us hot in power, but in word only? I ha.ve now suggested one subject for consideration concerning our reception of the kingdom of God; viz. to inquire whether we bave received if more tlmn exterall#; but, o. I will go on to aflàrm that we may have received it in a hig-her sense than in woM merely, and yet in no real sense in _power; in other words, that our obedience may be in some sort religious, and yet hardly deserve the title of Christian. This may be af first sight a startling" assertion.:If may seem fo some of us as if there werc no difference betwcen being" religious and being Christian; and that to insist on a difference is fo perplex people. But listen fo me. Do you hot think if possible ibr mon fo do their dut)', i.e. be relig'ious, in a heathen country? Doubtless if is. St. Peter says, that in every nation he that feareth God and vorketh rig'hteousness is acccpted with Him '. Now are such persons, therefore, Christians? Certainly hot.:It would seem, then, it is possible fo fear God and work righteousness, yet without bcing" Christians; for (if we would know the truth of if) to be a Christian is fo do this, and fo do nuc] more than this. Hcre, then, is a fi'esh subject for self-examination, ls if hot thc way of mcn fo dwell with satisfaction on their good deeds, particularly when, for some reason or other, their conscicnce smites them? Or whcn they arc lcd fo the considcration of death, tllcn they beg'in fo turn iu their minds how they shall acquit themselves belote the judgment-seat. And then if is they feel a relief in being" able to detect, in their past lires, any deeds which may be regarded in any sense relig'ions. You mav hear some persons comforting" themselves that they never harmed any one; and that they bave not given in fo an openly profliga.te and riotous lire. Others are able to say more; they can speak of their honesty, their industry, or their general conscientiousness. We will say tlley have taken good care of their familles i tlley have never defi-auded or deceived any one and they have a g'ood naine in tlle world; na, they bave in one sense lived in the fear of Acts x. 3.
78 The @irimzl Mind. God. I will ran them this and mor; ye possibly they r no altoether Christians in heir obedienee. I will ran flm thes virtuous and religious deeds r reall fruits of faiflb no external merely, donc thou thouh, bu proeeeding ri'oto the hear. I will ran the re reall praiseworthy, and, vhen man ri-oto wan of opportunit.y knows no more, really acceptable to God; yc fley determine nothing about his having reeeived the Gospel of Chris in power, lVhy? for the simple reason ha they are ot enougk. A Christian's Ihith and obedienee is built on all tNs, bu is only built on i. It is no the same as i. To be Christians, surely i is no enough fo be tha whieh we are enjoined fo be, and mus be, even withou Chris; no euough to be no better han good heathens; no enough o be, in some sligh measure, jus, hones, temperate, and religious. We mus indeed be jus, hones, temperate, and religious, before we ean rise fo Chrisian graees, and fo be praetised in justice and the like virtues is the way, the ordinary way, in whieh we reeeive the fulness of the king'dom of God; and, doubfless, any man who despises those who try to praetise flwm (I mean eonseientious men, who nowithstanding have no ye elearly seen and veleomed the Gospel system), and slightingly ealls them "mere moral men" in disparagemen, sueh a man mws no what spiri he is of, and had bes take hem how he speaks agains he workings of the inscrutable Spiri of God. I ara no nqshing fo frig'hten these imperfee Christians, bu to lead them on; fo open their minds fo the greatness of the work belote them, fo dissipate the meagre and carnM ews in whieh the Gospel has corne
T/e 'iHtml li. 79 o them, fo warn t, hem thaL they must never be eontented with themselves, or stand still and relax their efforts, but must go on mtlo_eJfectot; that till they are much more thml they are at present, they have received the klngdom of God in word, hot in power; that they are not spiritual men, and can bave no comfortable sense of Christ's presence in their souls; for to whom much is given, of him is much required. What is it, then, that they lael? I will re.ad several passages of Scripturc which will male it 1,1aih. St. Paul says, "If any man bc in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; bchold, all thing's are become new." Again: "Thc lire which I now lire in the flesh, I live b" the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." "The love of Christ constraiueth us." "" Put on, therctbrc, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering, forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man bave a quarrel against any, even as Christ forgave 3"ou, so also do ye; and above all these things, put on charity, whieh is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body, and be ye thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom.'" "' God bath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts." Lastly, our Saviour's oum memorable words, " If any man will corne after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me ." Now it is t 2 Cor. v. 14-. 17. Gal. il. 20. Col. iii. 12—16. Gal. iv. 6. Luke ix. 23.
8o T/ec Siritual 3lind. plain tha this is a very differen mode of obedienee flore any whieh na{ural reason and conscience {ell us diflren, ot i ils a[re, bu i ils e.reellewe liarity. I is mueh more than honesty, justice, and emperanee; and thi« is o be a Chrisgian. Observe in whag respee{ iV is differen ffom tha lower degree of relig'ion whieh we may possess withont entering into {he mind of fle Gospel. Firs{ of all in its fidth; whieh is pl:teed, no simply in God, but. in God as manifested in Christ, aeeording fo lIis om words, " ]'e beheve in God, believe also in Me '." NeoEt, we musg adore Christ as out Lord and Master, and love IIim as out mos graeious Redeemer. We must have a deep sense of our guilt, and of the dieulty of seeuring heaven we mus live as in Itis presenee, daily pleading His cross and passion, flfinking' of His holy eommandments, imiating His sinless pattern, and depending on he graeious aids of His Spirit; tha we may really and ruly be servants of Father, Son, and Holy Ghos, in whose naine we were bapfized. Further, we must., for His sake, aim af a noble and unusuM s{rieness of lire, perfeeting holiness in His leur, destroying out sins, mas{ering out whole soul, and bringing i into eaptivi{y to His law, denying" ourselves lawful things, in order fo do Him service, exereising a profound humiliy, raid an unbounded, never-failing love, g'iving away mueh of out substance in religious and charitable works, and diseountenaneing and shunning irrelig'ious men. his fo be a Chfisian; a gif easily deseribed, and in a few words, bu anable only with fear and mueh rembng John xiv. 1.
promised, indeed, and in a measure accorded af once to every one who asks for if, but hot secured till af ter many years, and never in this life fully realized. But be sure of this, that every one of us, who has had the opportunities of instruction and sufficient time, and yet does hot in some good measure possessit, every one, who, when death cornes, bas hot gaincd his portion of that gift which if requires a course of years to gain, and whieh he might have gained, is in a peril so great and fearful, that I do hot like to speak about if. As to the notion of a partial and ordinary fiflfilment of the duties of honesty, industry, sobriety, and kindness, "availing " him, if has no Scriptural eneouragement. We must stand or fall by another and higher rule. Ve must bave beeome what St.:Paul calls " new creatures 2 -" that is, we must bave lived and worshipped God as the redeemed of Jesus Christ, in all faith and humbleness of mind, in reverence towards His word and ordinances, in thankfulness, in resignation, in mercifulness, gentleness, purity, patience, and love. Now, considering the obligation of obedience which lies upon us Christians, in these two respects, first, as contrasted with a mere outward and nominal profession, and next contrasted with that more ordinary obedience which is required of those even who have not the Gospel, how evident is it that we are far fl'om the kingdom of God! Let each in his own conscience apply this to himsel£ I will grant he has so»ze real Christian principle in his heart but I wish him fo observe ]zow litlle that is likely to be. Here is a thought hot to kecp Gal. ri. lfi. Gal. ri. lfi.
from rejoicing in the Lord Christ, but to make us "' rejoice with trembling-, '' wMt diligently on God, pro 3 Him earnestly fo teach us more of out duty, and to impress the love of if on our hearts, fo enable us fo obey both in that free spirit, which can act rig'ht without rea.soning" and calculation, and yet with the caution of tbosc who know their salvation depends on obedience in little thing-s, from love of the truth as manifested iu Hin who is the Living" Truth come upon earth, "the Vay, thc Truth, and the Lire '." With others we lmve no concern; we do not know what their opportunities are. There may be thousands in this populous land who never had the means of hearing" Christ's voice fully, and in whom virtues short of evangelicM will hereafter be accepted as the fruit of aith.:Nor can we know the ]earts of any men, or tell what is the dcg'ree in which they have improved their talents. If is enoug'h to keep fo ourselves. We dwell in the fifll lig'ht of the Gospel, and the full grace of the Saerameut. We oug'ht to have the holiness of Apost]es. There is no reason excep our own wilfifl corruption, that we are hot by this rime walking- in the steps of St. laul or St. John,,and following" them as they followed Christ. What a thought is this! Do not cast if from you, my brethren, but take if to your homes, and may God give you grace fo profit by if!