forgiven souls.
come in dependence on His own promises, and ask Him to fulfil His word, and do as He has said. Do this in simplicity and sincerity, and, my soul for yours, you shall not ask in vain. Do this, and you shall find Him faithful and just to forgive your sins, and to cleanse you from all unrighteousness.
4. Last of all, let me give a word of exhortation to all forgiven souls.
You are forgiven. Then know the full extent of your privileges, and learn to rejoice in the Lord. You and I are great sinners, but then we have a great Saviour. You and I have sinned sins that are past man's knowledge, but then we have the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, to rest upon. You and I feel our hearts to be a bubbling fountain of evil, but then we have another fountain of greater power, even Christ's blood, to which we may daily resort. You and I have mighty enemies to contend with, but then the Captain of our salvation is mightier still, and isever with us. Why should our hearts be troubled? Why should we be disquieted and cast down ? O men of little faith that we are! Wherefore do we doubt ?*
Let us strive every year to grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is sad to be content with a little religion. It is honorable to covet the best gifts. We ought not to be satisfied with the same kind of hearing, and reading, and praying which satisfied us in years gone by. We ought to labor every year to throw more heart and reality into everything we do in our religion. To love Christ more intensely, - to abhor evil more thoroughly, - - to cleave to what is good more closely, - to watch even our least ways more narrowly, - to declare very plainly that we seek a country, - to put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and be clothed with Him in every place and company, - to see more, - to feel more, - to know more, - to do more, - to pray more; - these ought to be our aims and desires, every year we begin. Truly there is room for improvement in us all.* Let us try to do good to the souls of others more than we have done hitherto. Alas! it is poor work indeed to be swallowed up in our own spiritual concerns,
and taken up with our own spiritual ailments, and never to think of others. We forget that there is such a thing as religious selfishness. Let us count it a sorrowful thing to go to heaven alone, and let us seek to draw companions with us. We ought never to forget that every man, woman, and child around us Will soon be either in heaven or hell. Let us say to others as Moses did to Jethro, " Come with us, and we will do thee good." (Num. x. 29.) O it is indeed a true saying, " He that watereth shall be watered himself." (Prov. xi. 25.) The selfish Christian has little idea what he is missing.
But above all, let us learn to live the life of faith in Jesus more than we have hitherto. Ever to be found by the fountain side, - ever to be eating Christ's body by faith, and drinking Christ's blood by faith, - ever to have before our minds Christ dying for our sins, - Christ rising again for our justification, - Christ interceding for us at God's right hand, - Christ soon coming again to gather us to Himself, - this is the mark which we should have continually before our eyes. We may fall short, but let us aim high. Let us walk in the full light of the Sun of righteousness, and then our graces will grow. Let us not be like trees on a north wall, weak and unfruitful, and cold. Let us rather strive to be like the sunflower, and to follow the great fountain of light wherever He goes, and to see Him with open face. Oh for an eye more quick to discern His leadings! Oh for an ear more ready to hear his voice !*
Let us say to everything in the world that interferes between ourselves and Jesus, " stand aside;" and Jet us dread allowing ourselves in the least evil habits, lest insensibly they rise up like a mist and hide Him from our eyes. In His light alone shall we see light and feel warmth, and separate from Him we shall find the world a dark and cold wilderness. We should call to mind the request of the Athenian philosopher when the mightiest monarch on earth asked him what he desired most; "I have," said he, " but one request to make, and that is that you would stand from between me and the sun." Let this be the spirit in which you and I are found continually.
Let us think lightly of the world's gifts. Let us sit calmly under its glares
Let us cave for nothing, if we may only ever see the King's face, if we may only ever abide in Christ.
And now, Reader, with every kind and Christian wish for your soul's happiness, I commend you to the only wise God, our Saviour. He is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy.
ENDNOTES/QUOTES
* " No man that seeth himself to be a sinner really, can count himself a small or little sinner. Nor can it ever be, till there be a little law to break, a little God to offend, a little guilt to contract, and a little wrath to incur. All which are impossible to be, blasphemy to wish, and madness to expect." - Traill. 1690.
* " Let us acknowledge ourselves before God, as we be
* " Who is in this world, or ever hath been, which hath not need to say this prayer ; - to desire God to take from him his sins, to forgive him his trespasses ? Truly no saint in heaven, be they as holy as ever they will, but they have had need of this prayer; they have had need to say, Lord forgive us our trespasses." - Bishop Latimer's Sermons. 1552.
f " No man shall be in heaven but he that sees himself fully qualified for hell, as a fagot that is bound up for eternal burnings, unless mercy plucks the brand out of the fire." - Traill. 1690.
* " Ministers cannot remit sin, authoritatively and effectually, but only declaratively. They have a special office and authority to apply the promises of pardon to broken hearts. When a minister sees one humbled for sin, yet afraid God hath not pardoned him, and ready to
be swallowed up of sorrow, in this case a minister for the easing of the man's conscience may, in the name of Christ, declare to him that he is pardoned. The minister doth not forgive sin by his own authority, but as a herald in Christ's name pronounceth the man's pardon." - Thomas Watson. 1660.
* " He that supposeth to make Christ his, and all Christ's merits, by the receiving of the outward sign and sacrament, and bringeth not Christ in his heart to the sacrament, he may make himself assured rather of the devil and eternal death, as Judas and Cain did. For the sacrament maketh not the union, peace, and concord between God and us, but it ratifieth, establisheth, and confirmeth the love and peace that is between God and us before for His promise sake." - Bishop Hooper. 1545.
* " What if I should fast my body into a skeleton, and pray my tongue and wear my ears to their very stumps ? What though I should water my couch continually with my tears, fasten my knees always to the earth by prayer, and fix my eyes constantly into heaven by meditation ? What though I should give everything I have to my poor distressed neighbors, and spend each moment of my time in the immediate worshipping of my glorious Maker ? Would any of this be more than I am bound to do ? Should I not still be an unprofitable servant ? And if I can do more than is my duty unto God, how can I merit anything by what I do for Him i How can He be indebted to me for my paying*what I owe to Him I" - Bishop Beveridge. 1700.
* " We must only trust to the merits of Christ, which satisfied the extreme jot and uttermost point of the law for us. And this His justice and perfection He imputeth and communicateth with us by faith. Such as say that only faith justifieth not, because other virtues be present, tbey cannot tell what they say. Every man that will have his conscience appeased must mark these two things: How remission of sins is obtained, and wherefore it is obtained. Faith is the mean whereby it is obtained, and the cause wherefore it is received is the merits of Christ" - Bishop Hooper. 1547.
" When we believe in Christ, it is like as if we had no sins. For He changeth with us: He taketh our sins and wickedness from us, and giveth unto us His holiness, righteousness, justice, fulfilling of the law, and so consequently everlasting life. So that we be like as if we had done no sin at all; for His righteousness standeth us in good stead, as though we of our own selves had fulfilled the law to the uttermost." - Bishop Latimer. Sermons.1549.
"The spiritual hand whereby we receive the sweet offer of our Savious is faith; which in short is no other than an affiance in the Mediator. Receive peace, and be happy; believe, and thou hast received." - Bishop Hall.1640.
"This is the glad tidings, that we are made righteous by Christ. It is not a righteousness wrought by us, but given to us, and put upon us. This carnal reason cannot comprehend, and being proud rejects and argues against it. How can this thing be? But faith closes with it and rejoices in it. Without either doing or suffering, the sinner is acquitted and justified, and stands as guiltless of breach as having fulfilled the whole law." - Archbishop Leighton.1670.
* " St. Paul declareth nothing on the behalf of man concerning his justification, but only a true and lively faith; -which nevertheless is the gift of God, and not man's only work without God. And yet that faith doth not shut out repentance, hope, love, dread, and the fear of God, to be joined with faith in every man that is justified: but it shutteth them out from the office of justifying." - Homily on Salvation, by Archbishop Crammer. 1547.
" How is the great benefit of justification applied to me, and apprehended by us ? This is done on our part by faith alone, and that not considered as a virtue inherent in us working by love; but only as an instrument or hand of the soul stretched forth to lay hold on the Lord our righteousness." - Archbishop Usher. 1670.
* " It 19 as truly as commonly said, that such as think believing easy, know not what believing is." - Traill. 1690.
" It is harder to believe in Christ for righteonsness than to keep all the commandments, because keeping the commandments hath something in the heart of man agreeing with it, but so hath not the way of justification by faith." - Philip Henry's Sermons. 1690.
* " Man's conscience can never rest nor be at peace, until it be settled in the full persuasion of remission of sins in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ; whereby Ood receiveth us into His favor, and is at one with us through Him." - Archbishop Sandys. 1585.
See also a most interesting account of the effect produced on Luther, when in great distress of soul, by the words, " I believe in the forgiveness of sins," repeated to him by an aged monk. - D'Aubigne's History of the Reformation. One vol. edition, page 68-.
* " It is not therefore, O soul, a mere negative u:«rcy that God intends thee in the pardon of thy sins : it is not the removing of the curse and wrath which thy sins have deserved, though that alone can never be sufficiently admired. But the same hand that plucks thee out of hell by pardoning, grace and mercy, lifts thee up to heaven by what it gives thee together with thy pardon, even a right and title to the glorious inheritance of saints above." - Bishop Hopkins. 1680.
* Who is a God like unto thee! None can pardon as thou dost. None can pardon so freely, - none so fully, - none so continually, - none so eternally, - none so indifferently, - -whether in respect of sinners or sin, as thou dost. It is all one to thee what the sins are, and all one to thee whose the sins are, so they come to ask thy pardon." - Joseph Caryl. 1670.
* " If we have Christ, then have we with Him and by Him, all good things whatsoever we can in our hearts wish or desire, - as victory over death, sin, and hell; we have the favor of God, peace with Him,
holiness, wisdom, justice, power, life, and redemption; we have by Him perpetual health, wealth, joy, and bliss everlasting." - Church of England Homily of the fear of death. 1547.
" He that hath got a view of Christ, and reads his own pardon in Christ's sufferings, can rejoice in this in the midst of all other sufferings, and look on death without apprehension, yea with gladness, - for the sting is out. Christ hath made all pleasant to him by this one thing, that He suffered once for sins. Christ hath perfumed the cross and the grave, and made all sweet. The pardoned man finds himself light, skips, and leaps, and through Christ strengthening him can encounter any troubles, yea he can submit patiently to the Lord in any correction. Thou hast forgiven my sin, therefore deal with me as thou wilt: all is well." - Archbishop Leighton. 1670.
" A believer is a rich man and an honorable, even if he be a beggar on the dunghill. Christ cannot be poor, and he is a fellow-heir with Christ." - RutherforoVs Christ Dying. 1647.
* " If thou have no mind to leave sin, and sin grieveth thee not, and thou art content to go forward in the same, and thou delightest in it, and hatest it not, neither feelest what sin is; - when thou art in such a case, then thou hast no faith, and therefore art like to perish everlastingly." - Bishop Latimer, 1547.
" The real Christian is an avowed enemy of sin. Shall I ever be friends with that, says he, which killed my Lord ? No, but I will even kill it, and do it by applying His death. The true penitent is sworn to be the death of sin. He may be surprised by it, but there is no possibility of reconcilement between them. Thou that livest kindly and familiarly with sin, and either openly declarest thyself for it, or hast a secret love to it, where canst thou reap any comfort ? - Not from Christ's sufferings." - Archbishop Leighton. 1610.
* " He that lifts not up Christ above all hath no interest in Christ at all. He that sets not Christ above all is not a disciple of Christ." - Thomas Brooks. 1660.
* " Are you in a willing league with any known sin '( Yea, would you willingly, if you might be saved in that way, give up yourself to voluptuousness and ungodliness, and not at all desire to follow Jesus Christ in the way of holiness ? Then, truly I have not anything to say for your comfort." - Archbishop Leighton. 1670.
* " This sweet truth, that Christ died for sinners, and rose again for their justification, will not help thee, unless thou hope for thyself; yea, thou wilt remain in thy old skin, while using this blessed saying, as a cover for thy sins. Do not take this consolation; for although He died for all and rose again, yet, to thee He is not risen, for thou hast not yet apprehended by faith His resurrection; the words thou hast heard, but their power thou hast not experienced." - Martin Luther.
" This is it which bringeth comfort unto the wounded soul and afflicted conscience, - not that Christ is a Saviour, for what am I the better for that ? - but a Saviour unto me. What is it to my belly that bread is prepared for others, unless I be assured that my part is therein ? What is it to my soul that Christ died for others, unless I know that my sins are washed away in His blood ? It may be good for Moses, or Paul, or Peter, or James, or Stephen, but what is it unto me ? It is " mine" and " thine," as Luther did well teach; it is " my" God and " thy" Saviour, which doth satisfy thirsty consciences." - George Abbott, Archbishop of Canterbury. 1612.
* " Those poor who are without a covering for their bodies are to be pitied; but with what tears should we lament those, - how rich soever they are in this world, - who are without a covering for their souls, and so stand naked in the storm, and under the dreadful droppings of the wrath of God." - Joseph Caryl. 1650.
* " The longer thou dost live without Christ, the more grains dost thou collect to make the mountain of thy sins higher." - Martin Luther.
* " A great many believers walk upon the promises at God's call in the way to heaven even as a child upon weak ice, which they are afraid will crack under them, and leave them in the depth." - Traill. 1690.
* " A soul clothed with Christ, stooping to any sinful delight, or an ardent pursuit of anything earthly, though lawful, doth wonderfully degrade itself. Methinks it is as a king's son in his princely apparel playing the scullion, sitting down to turn the spit." - Archbishop Leightoti. 1670.
* " Look not for any blessing out of Christ; and in and by and from Him look for all blessings. Let Him be thy life ; and wish not to live longer than thou art quickened by Him. Find Him thy wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, redemption ; thy riches, thy strength, thy glory." - Bishop Hall. 1640.
" All our work now is to be well acquainted with Christ in the way. Christ is both the way and the home. We must be walking in Him and travelling towards Him: and He is our guide and leader in the way. The soul and life of grace, is in living on Him by faith, and the happiness of heaven is in living with Him forever." - Traill. 1690.
"Christ is now the righteousness of all them that truly do believe in Him. He for them paid their ransom by His death. He for them fulfilled the law in His life. So that now in Him and by Him every true Christian man may be called a fulfiller of the law; forasmuch as that which their infirmity lacked, Christ's justice has supplied." - Homily on Salvation written by Archbishop Cranmer. 1547. .
" This is the call of the Gospel, He that dares trust Christ with His soul upon the warrant of the Gospel shall be saved forever. The Lord tries people this way. We have no more to do but take pen in hand,
and say Amen, O Lord: it is a good bargain and a true word, and I will trust my soul on it This is believing." - Traill. 1690.
Are You Holy?
'HOLINESS, WITHOUT WHICH NO MAN SHALL SEE THE LORD." - Hub. xii. 14.
Reader, -
I offer you this text as a subject for self-inquiry; and I invite you this day to think over the question before your eyes, " Are you holy?"
It is a question that can never be out of season. The wise man tells us, "There is a time to weep, and a time to laugh, - a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;" (Eccles. ill. 4, 7.) but there is no time, no, not a day, in which a man ought not to be holy. Reader, are you ?
It is a question that concerns all ranks and conditions of men. Some are rich, and some are poor, - some learned, and some unlearned, - some masters, and some servants; - but there is no rank or condition in life in which a man ought not to be holy. Reader, are you ?
I ask to be heard to-day about this question. How stands the account between your souls and God ? Stay a little, I beseech you, while I reason with you about holiness. I believe 1 might have chosen a subject more popular and pleasant. I am sure I might have found one more easy to handle. But I feel deeply I could not have chosen one more important and more profitable to your soul. It is a solemn thing to hear God saying, " Without holiness no man can see the Lord." (Heb. xii. 14.)
I shall endeavor, by God's help, to set before you what true holiness is, - the reasons why it is so needful, - and the way in which alone it can be attained. The Lord grant you may see and feel the importance of the subject, and lay down this paper, when you have read it, a wiser and a better man.
I. First then let me try to show you what true holiness is, - what sort of persons are those whom God calls holy.
A man may go great lengths and yet never reach true holiness. It is not knowledge, - Balaam had that: nor great profession, - Judas Iscariot had that: nor doing many things, - Herod had that: nor zeal for certain matters in religion, - Jehu had that: nor morality and outward respectability of conduct, - the young ruler had that: nor taking pleasure in hearing preachers, - the Jews in Ezekiel's time had that: nor keeping company with godly people, - Joab and Gehazi and Demas had that. Yet none of these were holy. These things alone are not holiness. A man may have any one of them, and yet never see the Lord.
What then is true holiness ? It is a hard question to answer. I do not mean that I find a want of matter on the subject. But I fear lest I should give a defective view of holiness, and not say all that ought to be said; or lest I should speak things about it that ought not to be spoken, and so do harm. Suffer me, how- . ever, to say a few Words that may help to clear your mind. Remember only, when I have said all, that my account is but a poor imperfect outline at the best.
Holiness is the habit of being of one mind with God, according as we find His mind described in Scripture. It is the habit of agreeing in God's judgment, - hating what He hates, - loving what He loves, - and measuring everything in this world by the standard of His word. He who most entirely agrees with God, he is the most holy man.
A holy man will endeavor to shun every known sin, and to keep every known commandment. He will have a decided bent of mind towards God, - a hearty desire to do His will, - a greater fear of displeasing Him than of displeasing the world, and a love to all His ways. He will feel what Paul felt when he said, " I delight in the law of God after the inward man," (Rom. vii. 22,) and what David felt when he said, " I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right, and I hate every false way." (Psalm 'cxix. 128.)
A holy man will strive to be like our Lord Jesus Christ; to have the mind that was in Him, and to be conformed to His image. It will be his aim to bear with and forgive others, even as Christ forgave us, - to be unselfish, even as Christ pleased not Himself, - to walk in love, even as Christ loved us, - to be lowly minded and humble, even as Christ made Himself of no reputation and humbled Himself. He will remember that Christ was a faithful witness for the truth, - that He came not to do His own will, - that it was His meat and drink to do His Father's will, - that He would stoop to any work in order to minister to others, - that He was meek and patient under undeserved insults, - that He thought more of godly poor men than of kings, - that He was full of love and compassion to sinners, - that He was bold and uncompromising in denouncing sin, - that He sought not the praise of men, when He might have had it, - that He went about doing good, - that He was separate from worldly people, - that He continued instant in prayer, - that He would not let even His nearest relations stand in His way when God's work was to be done. These things a holy man will try to remember. By them He will endeavor to shape his course in life. He will lay to heart the saying of John, " He that saith he abideth in Christ ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked;" (1 John ii. 6,) and the saying of Peter, that " Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example that ye should follow His steps." (1 Peter ii. 21.) Much time would be saved, and much sin prevented, if men would oftener ask themselves the question, "What would Christ have said and done, if He were in my place ?"
But time would fail me if I were to mention all the things which go to make up holiness of character. Still I must ask you to bear with me while I name a few things which come uppermost in my thoughts. The days we live in make me anxious that there should be no mistake upon this subject. How can we know whether we are holy, unless we have a clear view of what holiness takes in ?
A holy man will follow after meekness, longsuffering, gentleness, kind temper, government of his tongue. He will bear much, forbear much, overlook much, and be slow to talk of standing on his rights.
You see a bright example of this in the behavior of David when Shimei cursed him, - and of Moses when Aaron and Miriam spake against him. (2 Sam. xvi. 10. Num. xii. 3.)
A holy man will follow after temperance and self-denial. He will labor to mortify the desires of his body, - to crucify his flesh with its affections and lusts, - to curb his passions, - to restrain his carnal inclinations, lest at any time they break loose. Oh! what a word is that of the Lord Jesus to the apostles, " Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness and cares of this life;" (Luke xxi. 34,) and that of the apostle Paul, " I keep under my body and bring it into subjection, lest that by any means when I have preached to others, I myself should be a cast-away." (1 Cor. ix. 27.)
A holy man will follow after charity and brotherly kindness. He will endeavor to observe the golden rule, of doing as he would have men do to him, and speaking as he would have men speak to him. He will be full of affection towards his brethren, - their bodies their property, their characters, their feelings, their souls. " He that loveth another," says Paul, " hath fulfilled the law." (Rom. xiii. 8.) He will abhor all lying, slandering, backbiting, cheating, dishonesty, and unfair dealing, even in the least things. The shekel and cubit of the sanctuary were larger than those in common use. Alas! what condemning words are the thirteenth chapter of the first of Corinthians, and the Sermon on the Mount, when laid alongside the conduct of many professing Christians.
A holy man will follow after a spirit of mercy and benevolence towards others. He will not stand all the day idle. He will not be content with doing no harm, - he will try to do good. He will strive to be useful in his day and generation, and to lessen the spiritual wants and misery around him, as far as he can. Such was Dorcas, full of good works and almsdeeds, which she did, - not merely purposed and talked about, but did. Such an one was Paul, "I will very gladly
spend and be spent for you," he says, " though the more abundantly I love you the less I be loved." (2 Cor. xvi. 12, 15.)
A holy man will follow after purity of heart. He will dread all filthiness and uncleanness of spirit, and seek to avoid all things that might draw him into it. He knows his own heart is like tinder, and will diligently keep clear of the sparks of temptation. Who shall dare to talk of strength, when David can fall? There is many a hint to be gleaned from the ceremonial law. Under it the man who only touched a bone, or a dead body, or a grave, or a diseased person, became at once unclean in the sight of God. And these things were emblems and figures. Few Christians are ever too watchful and too particular about this point.
A holy man will follow after the fear of God. I do not mean the fear of a slave, who only works because he is afraid of punishment, and would be idle if he did not dread discovery. I mean rather the fear of a child, who wishes to live and move as if he was always before his father's face, because he loves him. What a noble example Nehemiah gives us of this! When he became governor at Jerusalem he might have been chargeable to the Jews, and required of them money for his support. The former governors had done so. There was none to blame him if he did. But he says, " So did not I, because of the fear of God." (Nehem. v. 15.)
A holy man will follow after humility. He will desire in lowliness of mind to esteem all others better than himself. He will see more evil in his own heart than in any other in the world. He will understand something of Abraham's feeling, when he says, " I am dust and ashes," and Jacob's, when he says, " I am less than the least of all thy mercies," and Job's, when he says, " I am vile," and Paul's, when he says, " I am chief of sinners." Holy Bradford, that faithful martyr of Christ, would sometimes finish his letters with these words, " A most miserable sinner, John Bradford." Good old Mr. Grimshaw's last words, when he lay on his death-bed, were these, " Here goes an unprofitable servant." i .
A holy man will follow after faithfulness in all the duties and relations of life. He will try, not merely to fill his place as well as others, but even better, because he has higher motives and more help than they. Those words of Paul should never be forgotten, " Whatever ye do, do it heartily as unto the Lord." - " Not slothful in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord." (Colos. iii. 23. Rom. xii. 11.) Holy persons should aim at doing everything well, and should be ashamed of allowing themselves to do anything, ill, if they can help it. Like Daniel, they should seek to give no occasion against themselves, except as concerning the law of their God. They should strive to be good husbands, and good wives; good parents and good children; good masters and good servants ; good neighbors, good friends, good men of business, and good subjects. Holiness is worth little indeed, if it does not bear this kind of fruit. The Lord Jesus puts a searching question to His people, when he says, " What do ye more than others ?" (Matt. v. 47.)
Last, but not least, a holy man will follow after spiritual mindedness. He will endeavor to set his affections entirely on things above, and to hold things on earth with a very loose hand. He will not neglect the business of the life that now is, but the first place in his mind and thoughts will be given to the life to come. He will aim to live like one whose treasure is in heaven, and to pass through this world like a stranger and pilgrim travelling to his home. To commune with God in prayer, in the Bible, and in the assembly of His people, - these things will be the holy man's chiefest enjoyments. He will value every thing, and place, and company, just in proportion as it draws him nearer to God. He will enter into something of David's feeling, when he says, "My soul followeth after thee." "Thou art my portion." (Psalm lxiii. 8. cxix. 57.)
Such is the outline of holiness, which I set before you; such is the character which those who are called holy follow after.
But here let me say, I trust no man will misunderstand me. I am not without fear that my meaning will be mistaken, and the description I
have given of holiness will discourage some tender conscience. I would not willingly make one righteous heart sad, or throw a stumbling block in any believer's way.
I do not tell you for a moment that holiness shuts out the presence of indwelling sin. No! far from it. It is the greatest misery of a holy man that he carries about with him a body of death, - that often when he would do good evil is present with him, - that the old man is clogging all his movements, and, as it were, trying to draw him back at every step he takes. But it is the excellence of a holy man that he is not at peace with indwelling sin, as others are. He hates it, mourns over it, and longs to be free from its company. The work of sanctification within him is like the wall of Jerusalem, the building goes forward, "even in troublous times.'' (Dan. ix. 25.)
Neither do I tell you that holiness comes to ripeness and perfection all at once, or that these graces I have touched on must be found in full bloom and vigor before you can call a man holy. No! far from it. Sanctification is always a progressive work. Some men's graces are in the blade, some in the ear, and some are like full corn in the ear. All must have a beginning. We must never despise the day of small things. And sanctification in the very best is an imperfect work. The history of the brightest saints that ever lived will contain many a " but" and " howbeit," and " notwithstanding," before you reach the end. The gold will never be without some dross, - the light will never shine without some clouds, until we reach the heavenly Jerusalem. The sun himself has spots upon his face. The holiest men have many a blemish and defect when weighed in the balance of the sanctuary. Their life is a continued warfare with sin, the world, and the devil; and sometimes you will see them not overcoming, but overcome. The flesh is ever lusting against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh, and in many things they offend all.
But still, for all this, I am sure that to have such a character as I have faintly drawn, is the heart's desire and prayer of all true Christians. They press towards it, if they do not reach it. They may not attain to
it, but they always aim at it. It is what they fain would be, if it is not what they are.
And this I do mean to say, that true holiness is a great reality. It is something in a man that can be seen, and known, and marked, and felt, by all around him. It is light: if it exists it will show itself. It is salt: if it exists its savor will be perceived. It is a precious ointment : if it exists its presence cannot be hid.
I am sure the little I know of my own heart makes me ready to make allowance for much backsliding, for much occasional deadness. I know a road may lead from one point to another, and yet have many a winding and turn; and a man may be truly holy, and yet be drawn aside by many an infirmity. Gold is not the less gold because mingled with alloy, nor light the less light because faint and dim, nor grace the less grace because young and weak. But, after every allowance, I cannot see how any man deserves to be called holy, who wilfully allows himself in sins, and is not humbled and ashamed because of them. I dare not call any one holy who makes a habit of wilfully neglecting known duties, and wilfully doing what he knows God has commanded him not to do. Well, says Owen, " I do not understand how a man can be a true believer unto whom sin is not the greatest burden, sorrow, and trouble."
Reader, such is holiness. Examine yourself whether you are acquainted with it. Prove your own self.
II. Let me try, in the next place, to show you some reasons why holiness is so important.
Can holiness save us ? Can holiness put away sin, - cover iniquities, - make satisfaction for transgressions, - pay our debt to God ? No! not a whit. God forbid that I should ever tell you so. Holiness can do none of these things. The brightest men are all unprofitable servants. Our purest works are no better than filthy rags, when tried by the light of God's holy law. The white robe which Jesus offers, and faith
puts on, must be our only righteousness, - the name of Christ our only confidence, - the Lamb's book of life our only
title to heaven. With all our holiness we are no better than sinners. Our best things are stained and tainted with imperfection. They are all more or less incomplete, - wrong in the motive, or defective in the performance. By the deeds of the law shall no child of Adam ever be justified. " By grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast." (Ephes. ii. 8, 9.)
Why then is holiness so important ? Why does the apostle say, " without it no man shall see the Lord ?" Let me set before you a few reasons.
For one thing we must be holy, because the voice of God in Scripture plainly commands it. The Lord Jesus says to His people, " Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven." (Matt. v. 20.) " Be ye perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." (Matt, v. 48.) Paul tells the Thessalonians, " This is the will of God, even your sanctification."
(1 Thess. iv. 3.) And Peter says, " As He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation. Because it is written, Be ye holy for I am holy." (1 Peter i. 15, 16.) " In this," says Leighton, " law and Gospel agree."
We must be holy, because this is one grand end and purpose for which Christ came into the world. Paul writes to the Corinthians, " He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him which died for them and rose again." (2 Cor. v. 15.) And to the Ephesians, "Christ loved the Church and gave Himself for it, that He might sanctify and cleanse it." (Ephes. v. 25, 26.) And to Titus, " He gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous
of good works." (Titus ii. 14.) In short, to talk of men being saved from the guilt of sin, without being at the same time saved from its power in their hearts, is to contradict the witness of all Scripture. Are believers said to be elect ? - it is " through sanctification of the
Spirit." Are they predestinated ? - it is " to be conformed to the image of God's Son." Are they chosen ? - it is " That they may be holy." Are they called ? - it is " with a holy calling." Are they afflicted ? - it is that they may be " partakers of holiness." Jesus is a complete Saviour. He does not merely take away the guilt of a believer's sin, He does more, - He breaks its power.
We must be holy, because this is the only sound evidence that we have a saving faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. The twelfth Article of our Church says truly, " Although good works cannot put away our sins, and endure the severity of God's judgment; yet are they pleasing and acceptable to God in Christ, and do spring out necessarily of a true and lively faith; insomuch that by them a lively faith may be as evidently known as a tree discerned by its fruits." James warns us there is such a thing as a dead faith, - a faith which goes no further than the profession of the lips, and has no influence on a man's character. (Jam. ii. 17.) True saving faith is a very different kind of thing. True faith will always show itself by its fruits, it will sanctify, - it will work by love, - it will overcome the world, - it will purify the heart. I know that people are fond of talking about "death-bed evidences." They will rest on words spoken in the hours of fear and pain and weakness, as if they might take comfort in them about the friends they lose. But I am afraid in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred such evidences are not to be depended on. I suspect men generally die just as they have lived. The only safe evidence that you are one with Christ, and Christ in you, is a holy life. They that live unto the Lord are generally the only people who die in the Lord. If we would die the death of the righteous, let us not rest in slothful desires only, let us seek to live his life. It is a true saying of Traill's, " that man's state is naught, and his faith unsound, that finds not his hopes of glory purifying to his heart and life."
We must be holy, because this is the only proof that we love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. This is a point on which He has spoken Himself most plainly in the fourteenth and fifteenth chapters of John. "If ye love me, keep my commandments." " He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me." "If a man love me he will keep my saying." " Ye are my friends if ye do whatsoever I command you." Plainer words than these it would be difficult to find, and woe to those who neglect them ! Surely that man must be in an unhealthy state of soul who can think of all that Jesus suffered, and yet cling to those sins for which that suffering was undergone. It was sin that wove the crown of thorns, - it was sin that pierced our Lord's hands, and feet, and side, - it was sin that brought Him to Gethsemane and Calvary, to the cross, and to the grave. Cold must our hearts be, if we do not hate sin, and labor to get rid of it, though we have to cut off the right hand, and pluck out the right eye in doing it.
We must be holy, because this is the only sound evidence that we are true children of God. Children in this world are generally like their parents. Some, doubtless, are more so, and some less, - but it is seldom indeed that you cannot trace a kind of family likeness. And it is much the same with the children of God. If men have no likeness to the Father in heaven, it is vain to talk of their being His sons. If we know nothing of holiness we may flatter ourselves as we please, but we have not the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, - we are dead, and must be brought to life again, - we are lost, and must be found. As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they, and they only, are the sons of God. (Rom. viii. 14.) We must show by our lives the family we belong to, - we must let men see by our good conversation that we are indeed the children of the Holy One, or our son-ship is but an empty name. " Say not," says Gurnall, " that thou hast royal blood in thy veins, and art born of God, except thou canst prove thy pedigree by daring to be holy."
We must be holy, because this is the most likely way to do good to others. We cannot live to ourselves only in this world. Our lives will
always be doing either good or harm to those who see them. They are a silent sermon which all can read. It is sad indeed when they are a sermon for the devil's cause, and not for God's. I believe that far more is done for Christ's kingdom by the holy living of believers, than we are at all aware. There is a reality about such living which makes men feel, and obliges them to think. It carries a weight and influence with it which nothing else can give. It makes religion beautiful, and draws men to consider it like a light-house seen afar off. The day of judgment will prove that many besides husbands have been won " without the word," by a holy life. (1 Peter iii. 1.) You may talk to people about the doctrines of the Gospel, and few will listen, and still fewer understand. But your life is an argument that none can escape. There is a meaning about holiness which not even the most unlearned can help taking in. They may not understand justification, but they can understand charity.
And I believe there is far more harm done by unholy and inconsistent Christians than we are at all aware. Such men are among Satan's best allies. They pull down by their lives what ministers build with their lips. They cause the chariot wheels of the Gospel to drive heavily. They supply the children of this world with a never-ending excuse for remaining as they are. " I cannot see the use of so much religion," said an irreligious tradesmen not long ago; " I observe that some of my customers are always talking about the Gospel, and faith, and election, and the blessed promises and so forth; - and yet these very people think nothing of cheating me of pence and half-pence, when they have an opportunity. Now if religious persons can do such things, I do not see what good there is in religion." Oh! Reader, I blush to be obliged to read such things. I fear that Christ's name is too often blasphemed because of the lives of Christians. Let us take heed lest the blood of souls be required at our hands. From murder of souls by inconsistency and loose walking, good Lord deliver us ! Oh! for the sake of others, if for no other reason, let us strive to be holy!
We must be holy, because our present comfort depends much upon it. We cannot be too often reminded of this. We are sadly apt to forget that there is a close connection between sin and sorrow, holiness and happiness, sanctification and consolation. God has so wisely ordered it, that our well-being and our well-doing are linked together. He has mercifully provided that even in this world it shall be man's interest to be holy. Our justification is not by works, - our calling and election are not according to our works, - but it is vain for any one to suppose that he will have a lively sense of his justification, or an assurance of his calling, so long as he does not strive to live a holy life. A believer may as soon expect to feel the sun's rays upon a dark and cloudy day, as to feel strong consolation in Christ, while he does not follow Him fully. When the disciples forsook the Lord and fled, they escaped danger, but they were miserable and sad. When shortly after they confessed Him boldly before men, they were cast into prison and beaten, but we are told, " They rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name." (Acts v. 41.) Oh ! for our own sakes, if there were no other reason, let us strive to be holy! He that follows Jesus most fully, will always follow Him most comfortably.
Lastly, we must be holy, because without holiness on earth we should never be prepared to enjoy heaven. Heaven is a holy place. The Lord of heaven is a holy Being. The angels are holy creatures. Holiness is written on everything in heaven. The book of Revelation says expressly, " there shall in nowise enter into it, anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie." (Rev. xxi. 27.)
Reader, how shall we ever find a place in heaven, if we die unholy! Death works no change. The grave makes no alteration. Each will rise again with the same character in which he breathed his last. Where will our place be if we are strangers to holiness now?
Suppose for a moment that you were allowed to enter heaven without holiness. What would you do ? What possible enjoyment
could you feel there ? To which of all the saints would you join yourself, and by whose side would you sit down? Their pleasures are not your pleasures, their tastes are not your tastes, their character not your character. How could you possibly be happy if you had not been holy on earth ?
Now perhaps, you love the company of the light and the careless, the worldly-minded and the covetous, the reveller and the pleasure seeker, the ungodly and the profane. There will be none such in heaven.
Now perhaps, you think the saints of God too strict, and particular, and serious. You rather avoid them. You have no delight in their society. There will be no other company in heaven.
Now perhaps, you think praying, and Scripture reading, and hymnsinging, dull and melancholy, and stupid work, a thing to be tolerated now and then, but not enjoyed. You reckon the Sabbath a burden, and a weariness you could not possibly spend more than a small part of it in worshipping God. But remember, heaven is a never-ending Sabbath. The inhabitants thereof rest not day or night, saying, " Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty," and singing the praise of the Lamb. How could an unholy man find pleasure in occupation such as this ?
Think you that such an one would delight to meet David, and Paul, and John, after a life spent in doing the very things they spoke against ? Would he take sweet counsel with them, and find that he and they had much in common ? Think you, above all, that he would rejoice to meet Jesus, the Crucified One, face to face, after cleaving to the sins for which He died, - after loving His enemies, and despising his friends? Would he stand before him in confidence, and join in the cry, " This is our God, we have waited for Him, we will be glad, and rejoice in his salvation ?" Think you not rather that the tongue of an unholy man would cleave to the roof of his mouth with shame, and his only desire would be to be cast out ? He would feel a stranger in a