Chapter XXXII.
Great Gifts Do Not Demonstrate A Man To Be A Christian, But Faith That Works By Love
The kingdom of God is not in word, but in power.– 1 Cor. 4:20.
St. Paul, intending to describe a Christian in a few words, says: “The end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned.” 1 Tim. 1:5. As if he had said: To be a Christian, and to render ourselves acceptable in the sight of God, requires nothing hard and lofty; no worldly wisdom, no human learning, no great parts, no gift of prophesying, no eloquence, no knowledge of tongues, no miracles: but only that a man have faith in Christ; that he do all things in love, and with a mind wholly resigned to God; and that he suffer himself to be led and governed by the good Spirit of God.
2. We should not, therefore, regard how many languages a man speaks, or how eloquent he is in his delivery; but how he shows forth his faith by love, and by the mortification of the flesh. “For they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts” (Gal. 5:24): under which are included self-esteem, self-love, covetousness, vain-boasting, ambition, self-interest, and all else that is carnal. To which purpose also St. Paul says, that “the kingdom of God is not in word,” or in great gifts and endowments, “but in power” (1 Cor. 4:20); that is, in a living exercise of Christian virtues, of faith, love, meekness, patience, and humility.
3. Therefore, no man is in favor with God, or is saved, because he is endued with brighter gifts than others; but because he is found in Christ Jesus by faith, and lives in him as a new creature. 2 Cor. 5:17. Great gifts do not make us happy. If a man had attained to gifts so extraordinary and marvellous as never any possessed before, yet would he be certainly cast away, unless he lived at the same time in the exercise of daily repentance in Christ, in a ready abnegation of the world, and in a denial of himself, and of all his selfish desires. Nay, if he did not hate and forsake himself, so as to place his whole confidence in God alone, and to cleave to his grace, as an infant to the breast of the mother, he would be forever banished from the presence of God, notwithstanding all his gifts and all his endowments.
4. It is certain that gifts and parts are not bestowed upon us in order to make us great here, and happy hereafter; but they are wholly dispensed for the edification of the Church. When the seventy disciples, at their return, said with joy, “Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name” (Luke 10:17, 20); our Lord replied: “In this rejoice not (for neither miracles nor gifts shall save you), but rejoice rather because your names are written in heaven.” By faith Moses was saved, not by his miracles. Aaron's eloquence did not the more endear him to God. And Miriam, the sister of Moses, who was endued with the gift of prophecy, and by whom the Spirit of the Lord spoke, was struck with the leprosy. Numb. 12:10.
5. The apostles themselves did not enter into the kingdom of heaven because of the miracles which they performed, nor on account of the gift of tongues conferred upon them, but because they believed in Christ, the Saviour of the world. Those of the first rank, and those of the meanest condition, must tread in the same way of faith and humility, of repentance and mortification, and become new creatures in Christ through faith and love; in whom Christ also may live again by this faith. Whoever neglects this order, cannot expect to be accounted one of the family of Christ.
6. Christian love is that new vital principle by which a man is actuated to do good. This is attended with the life of Christ, and the powerful indwelling of the divine Spirit. To this purpose the apostle desires, that we may be filled with all the fulness of God (Eph. 3:19): and St. John tells us, that “God is love, and that he who dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him.” 1 John 4:16. Whoever, therefore, feels the love of God shed abroad in his heart, feels no less than God himself there. However, in order that we might not deceive ourselves with a false and hypocritical, instead of a true and divine love, the apostle has drawn up the character thereof, and represented it as a tree adorned with numerous branches: “Love,” says he, “is patient, kind,” etc. 1 Cor. 13. All which are the essential properties of Christians, and consequently the life of the new man.
7. To sum up all in a few words, God the Father is love, God the Son is love, God the Holy Ghost is love. The whole spiritual body of Christ, which is the Church, is also knit together by the bond of love; so that there is but one God, one Christ, one Spirit, one baptism, one faith (Eph. 4:5, 6); and lastly, eternal life itself shall be nothing else but eternal love.
8. Whoever, therefore, does not live in love, is certainly a dead member of the body of Christ. As a dead member is not supported by that natural heat which nourishes the body and every living member thereof, nor is sustained with proper food for its daily growth and increase; so a man who does not live in Christian love is destitute of spiritual life, and is dead to God and to Christ. He is without faith, a withered, lifeless branch; he has no part in God, in Christ, and the Holy Ghost, in the holy Christian Church, and in life eternal; and will be excluded from the presence of that God, who has declared himself to be Love.
Chapter XXXIII.
God Has No Respect To The Works Of Any One; But Judges Of Works According To The Heart
Every way of a man is right in his own eyes; but the Lord pondereth the hearts. – Prov. 21:2.
When the prophet Samuel, by the commandment of God, went to anoint David king, he entered the house of Jesse, and offered to anoint his first-born: but the Lord said to him: “Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him. For the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” 1 Sam. 16:7.
2. By this example God declares, on the one hand, that he has no regard to any man's person, be he ever so great and eminent, when his heart is destitute of piety, love, faith, and humility; and on the other, that he esteems persons and works according to the inward spirit and intention of the mind, and thence allows or disallows them, according to Prov. 21:2. Moreover, all gifts and endowments, how considerable soever they be, and how admirable, great, and glorious they may appear in the eyes of men, in nowise please the Lord, unless they be accompanied with a pure heart, a heart that has a steady respect to the honor of God and the profit and edification of our neighbor; and which, at the same time, is freed from pride and arrogance, from self-love, and self-interest, and any of those sinister views which are apt to mingle with the works of a Christian.
3. Consider the example of Lucifer, the fairest and most glorious angel which heaven contained. No sooner did he stain the gifts of God with self-love and self-honor (not considering that he was bound to advance thereby the glory of God, who had conferred them upon him), than he was transformed into a devil, and, being cast down from heaven, was shut out from the glorious presence of God.
4. If ever, therefore, our works shall be acceptable to God, they ought to proceed from pure faith towards God, and sincere love to our neighbor, being cleared from the spots of self-love, self-honor, and self-interest, as much as possibly can be in this state of infirmity. To this end St. Paul says, “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal” (1 Cor. 13:1): that is, I am altogether vain and unprofitable. In truth, God regards not fluency of speech, but an humble heart; not arts, learning, wit, or ability, but he weighs the spirit of a man, whether it be bent upon promoting its own honor and interest, or the glory of God and the profit of men. Nor does God regard a faith by which mountains might be removed, and the eyes of the beholders be attracted from all sides, if a man seek thereby his own honor and glory. But the Lord looks with the greater affection upon him who “is poor, and of a contrite spirit, and trembles at his word.” Isaiah 66:2. In short, if a man distribute all that he has to the poor, or give up his body to be burned, it will be all to no purpose, if the act be sullied with self-honor and self-complacency. It is the heart only and the inward intention of the mind, which the Lord regards. This fully appears from many instances recorded in Scripture.
5. Both David and Saul attended the service of God, but with a different effect. 1 Sam. 15:9; 2 Sam. 24:25. David, Manasseh (2 Chron. 33:13), Nebuchadnezzar, and Peter, after repentance, obtained mercy; Saul, Pharaoh, and Judas, on the contrary, fell short of it, on account of the different principle which swayed their minds. Pharaoh (Exod. 9:27) and Saul (1 Sam. 15:24), no less than Manasseh, used the same prayer, “Lord, I have sinned!” but they received different rewards. The prayer of Hezekiah, Joshua, and Gideon (Isa. 38:7; Josh. 10:12; Judg. 6:37), by which they required a sign from heaven, is approved and praised; the Pharisees doing the same are rejected and reproved. Matt. 12:38; 16:4. The Publican and the Pharisee prayed both in the temple; but both are not approved. Luke 18:14. The Ninevites fasted (Jonah 3:5, 10); the Jews and Pharisees did the same (Matt. 6:16): but the former were received, and the latter rejected. “Wherefore (say they) have we fasted, and thou seest not?” Isa. 58:3. The poor widow, who cast into the treasury but two mites, is praised by Christ; whereas, he that gave more is not. Luke 21:3. Herod and Zaccheus both rejoice at the sight of Christ; but they had most different rewards. Luke 19:6; 23:8.
6. All this proceeds from no other cause than the heart, and that moving principle by which it is swayed, and which God chiefly regards. He accepts those works only which flow from unfeigned faith, sincere love, and true humility; for whatever our gifts or works may be, if pride, self-love, and the contagion of filthy lucre, infect them, they are at once rejected by the Lord.
Chapter XXXIV.
Showing That God Alone, Without Any Human Aid, Is The Author Of Our Salvation, And That We Are To Submit Unreservedly To His Grace; Also, That Christ's Merit Is Not Imputed To The Impenitent
But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.– 1 Cor. 1:30.
In this impressive sentence, St. Paul teaches us that all things necessary for our salvation are merited by Christ Jesus our Lord. When we were ignorant of the way of life, he was made wisdom unto us; when we were sinners, he was made our righteousness; when we were an abomination before God, he was made our sanctification; and when we were in a state of damnation, he became our redemption.
2. It is therefore most certain, that man does not contribute so much as one jot to his salvation. Sin, indeed, man could commit of himself, but he was not able to justify himself again; he could lose, but not recover himself; kill, but not restore to life; he could submit himself to the devil, but could not shake off his spiritual fetters. As a dead body cannot quicken itself again, so men “being dead in sins” (Eph. 2:1, 5), as the Apostle declares, cannot raise themselves again to life.
3. We did not contribute anything towards our creation, neither do we perform anything towards our redemption, regeneration, and sanctification, which are far greater transactions than the creation itself.
4. Hence it was necessary, that the Son of God should take human nature upon him, to recover all that was lost in Adam, and to revive those that were dead in sins and trespasses.
5. That this may be the better understood, we ought to represent to ourselves the traveller in the Gospel, who, falling among thieves, was cruelly wounded and bruised by them, and at last utterly disabled from helping himself again. Luke 10:30. Him, therefore, the good Samaritan receives into his arms, binds up his wounds, sets him on his beast, takes him to an inn, and omits nothing that a faithful physician could administer to a sick and wounded person. And as the traveller showed himself obedient to his physician, and strictly followed the directions prescribed by him; so we ought to act if we desire to be healed of our disease. We ought to suffer the healing hand of the Lord, and not to resist, when he attempts the cleansing of our wounds; and when, after having poured in wine and oil, he binds them up. To obtain the blessed effect of these spiritual operations, we must wholly resign ourselves to him, who alone is able to save us; and then we may trust to the goodness of God, that on his side he will not fail to restore us to health and soundness.
6. No sooner does a sinner repent than he begins his happy return towards the Lord, grieving for his former transgressions, and suffering that his wounds be washed with the sharp wine of the law, and the oil of consolation. Whoever complies with these terms, in him, Christ, by his grace, works an unfeigned faith, attended with all the fruits it produces, – righteousness, life, peace, joy, comfort, and salvation, and thus “worketh in him both to will and to do, of his good pleasure.” Phil. 2:13.
7. But it is not in the power of man by nature to forsake sin. The Scripture calls the natural man a “servant of sin” (John 8:34), and one that is “sold under sin” (Rom. 7:14), who can do nothing but sin; and the prophet says, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good that are accustomed to do evil.” Jer. 13:23. But “the grace of God that bringeth salvation, hath appeared to all men (by the Gospel), teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.” Tit. 2:11, 12. This is offered us by the word of God; and it is this grace which excites, teaches, and allures fallen man; which urges and influences him to renounce sin, and to submit to the discipline of grace. And these divine admonitions, furnished through the Word, fully agree with the inward testimony of the conscience; so that a man is convinced both from without and from within of his sinful life, and of the necessity of quitting it, in order to preserve his soul from everlasting destruction, for whoever lives in sin, lives in opposition to God and his own conscience.
8. When a man yields to the suggestions and exhortations of divine grace, and, proving obedient to the Word, begins to withdraw from his vicious life, then the grace of God endows him with all those virtues which the Gospel requires. It is then that faith springs up in the soul, the original principle of all other virtues. This is followed by love, and all Christian graces, which grow as so many fruits on the tree of faith. It is then, also, that light begins to shine in the midst of darkness. But as it is impossible that darkness should be able to enlighten itself; so it is also impossible for fallen man to raise himself from darkness to light. Hence the Psalmist says, “For thou wilt light my candle; the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness.” Ps. 18:28. Let a man open his eyes ever so much, he will never be enlightened whilst the light of the sun is withdrawn from his sight. Thus the grace of God, that is, of Christ himself, is that clear and serene light, risen on all men “that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death.” Luke 1:79. “He enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world” (John 1:9): that is, he manifests himself to all, and offers his grace to all. He is the light of the whole world; he shows the way of life to all men; and leaving us his own example for imitation, he goes before us like a good shepherd (John 10:4), and guides his flock into the path in which they are to walk. He sought us out as his lost sheep, and even now daily seeks and allures us. Luke 15:4. Nay, more; he still follows us closely, calls after us, and wooes us to his love, in as endearing a manner as a bridegroom does his bride. O that men did not love sin and darkness rather than light and grace!
9. Now, as a physician, addressing his patient, says: “Beware of this, lest you die; you hinder the workings of the medicine by an irregular life, so that you cannot be made whole;” so Jesus Christ, the true physician of souls, says: “My beloved, I beseech thee, incline thy mind to true repentance; utterly forsake all thy sins; shake off thy pride, thy covetousness, thy carnal propensities, thy wrath, and thirst of revenge, with other sins. If this change be not wrought in thee, thou must surely die; and the precious medicine of my blood and merit can profit thee nothing, whilst thy disorderly life hinders their healing effect.”
10. It was for this cause that Christ gave it in charge to his apostles, before all things, to preach repentance (Luke 24:47); and he himself called sinners to it while he conversed with them upon earth; because an impenitent heart never can partake of his merits.
11. Whoever hears that either sin must be forsaken, or eternal condemnation be endured, must, of necessity, be brought to some serious consideration about the state of his soul. He is struck with a double conviction; the truth of the Word of God, and the power of his own conscience, leaving so strong an impression upon him, as to set him beyond all doubts about the truth of this matter. It is true, God hath freely promised remission of sin to all men; but it is on this condition, that they repent, and turn themselves unfeignedly to the Lord. Thus the prophet says, “If the wicked shall turn from his wickedness, he shall live thereby. None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him” (Ezek. 33:14, 16): where we see that repentance and remission of sin are linked together.
12. Christ, the Son of God, in no other sense promises life eternal to those that believe in his name. The nature of faith must, however, be more fully inquired into. This faith is a very active principle in the soul. It daily strives against the old man; it tames the flesh, and subjects it to the Spirit; it converts the whole man; it subdues and vanquishes sin; it purifies the heart. He is a true believer who turns from the world, from sin and the devil, to God, and seeks rest and comfort wholly and entirely in the blood, death, and merit of Christ, without the works of himself, or of any other man whatsoever; the blood of Christ being a perfect ransom for all the debts which the soul has contracted. Whoever, therefore, imagines that his sins may be pardoned, although he desist not from them, is most miserably deluded. He deceives himself with a false faith, which he has assumed to himself, and the dreadful effects of which he must hereafter feel. He can never be saved without true repentance.
13. Consider the case of Zaccheus the publican, who, having a sound apprehension of the doctrine of faith and conversion, freely acknowledged that to be true faith by which a man is turned from sin to God, and in this order hopes to obtain a gracious pardon from Christ, and an interest in his merit, so as to rely upon it with a filial trust and an unshaken firmness of mind. In this manner did he understand the word of our Lord, “Repent ye, and believe the Gospel” (Mark 1:15): that is, Desist from sin, trust in my merits, and expect forgiveness of sin from me alone. Hence Zaccheus says to Christ, “Behold, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken anything by false accusation, I restore fourfold.” Luke 19:8. In these words he does not commend his own works at all, but extols the grace of God, which had taught him the way of true repentance. As if he had said: “O Lord, I am so thoroughly grieved at the fraudulent practices which I have committed against my neighbor, that I will not only restore fourfold unto him, but will also bestow half of my goods on the poor. Wherefore, Lord, since I confess my sin, and fully resolve to leave it, I now embrace thy promises with faith, and beseech thee to receive me into thy grace and favor.” And no sooner is this resolution taken, than the Physician declares, “This day is salvation come to this house. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
14. This is true repentance and conversion, carried on by a faith which is the work of God within us. God himself will begin, advance, and finish at last, the great work of our salvation, if we only yield to his Spirit, and do not resist him wilfully, as did the refractory Jews of old; to whom the apostle says: “It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.” Acts 13:46. It is, therefore, our duty to take the advice of the physician, after the manner of the sick, and to obey his precepts and prescriptions. As the physician first explains the nature of the disease, so the Lord lays open the spiritual disease of the heart, and then, as a faithful physician, warns us against hurtful things, lest the healing virtue of the precious blood of Christ be obstructed, and at last rendered ineffectual.
15. No sooner does man, by the assistance of the Holy Ghost, withdraw from sin, than the grace of God begins to operate in him, and to endue him with new gifts. Without this, he is not sufficient to think any good thought of himself, much less to do any good work. Whenever such a person discovers any good motions arising in his mind, he attributes every good desire to divine grace, even as St. Paul says, “By the grace of God I am what I am.” 1 Cor. 15:10. Whoever, therefore, complies with this order of salvation, to him the merit of Christ and his perfect obedience, are fully imputed, as if he himself had made a complete atonement for all his transgressions; but no wicked person, and no contemner of this dispensation, has a share in the imputation of the merit of Christ.
16. God, when he works in us and through us, crowns and commends those things as our own, of which he himself is the chief author. “Without me,” saith Christ, “ye can do nothing” (John 15:5); that is, no good; for by nature we are ready enough to do evil without him. The doing of evil is our own property; as the doing of good is entirely the property of God. Therefore let no flesh glory in anything; all is of and through grace. Rom. 3:24; Eph. 2:8, 9.
17. Happy is the man that refrains from sin, and gives up his will to the Lord. Christ uses all his endeavors to gain our love and affections, and to wean us more and more from the profane love of the world. He applies the most endearing expressions, in his word, and in his addresses, to our hearts. He seeks and allures us; and even before we remember him, he bestows upon us tokens of his love and kindness; and this for no other end, than that we might at last forsake our beloved sin, and partake of the blessed effect of his blood and merits.