Gambar halaman
PDF
ePub

holy; for I the Lord your God am holy." This is said in effect in more than one passage in Leviticus, to teach men the divine complacency in the consideration of those virtues of which his law is as the representation and image. From this also proceed the reproaches so often reiterated by Jehovah against his people, that they had "profaned the name of his holiness;" because, in abandoning themselves to idolatry, they had equalled him to the idols of Paganism, and thus obscured his honour. Thence also it comes, that when God exercises his virtues, whether for the punishment of sinners, or for the deliverance of his children, he is said to "sanctify himself." Not that his justice, or his mercy, or his power, hereby acquire any degree of excellence which before was wanting to them, but that it is in the exercise of each of these perfections that God so explicitly declares the love which he bears to himself. Thus did he advertise the Israelites, captives in Babylon, that if he brought them into their own country, it was not to recompense them for their piety, but only to cause his glory to shine resplendently before all people. Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God, I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the Heathen, whither ye went. And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the Heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the Heathen shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes."

66

Here, then, are two distinct aspects under which the divine holiness is offered to our thought. In the first, it is the divine Majesty itself, which accompanies all those perfections which in God are united. In the second, it is that virtue by which he is equally determined to love all his perfections sovereignly, and sovereignly to hate all that is contrary to them. furnish a complete idea of holiness, manifests itself in our vocation. holy."

These two aspects, thus united, such as it is in God, and which "As He which hath called you is

The reference here is to a vocation common to all Christians: this cannot be denied. It is addressed to us by the preaching of the Gospel, which announces Christ to us, urges us to come forth from our natural condition of corruption, and sets before us an eternal salvation, in connexion with the way of attaining it, which is sanctification. However little we insist on these articles, we shall see the holiness of God shining in each of them.

God calls us to himself by the ministry of the word. But this word, this Gospel which it declares to us, what is it but a magnificent representation of those perfections which shine there with unparalleled lustre? Open those sacred books which you have always in your hands: you will find nothing but what tends to heighten the glory of God which is there revealed to us. What natural knowledge we may possess of the Deity and of his principal attributes, is there made perfect. There all that had been taught concerning him by the works of creation, the symbols of the law, and the writings of

the Prophets, is collected and illustrated. There are developed the profound mysteries of his wisdom, power, and love. To avail ourselves of scriptural phraseology, he is there shown to us as filling the whole earth with his glory, and sanctifying himself before all people. We there see God, the Preserver and Lord of the world: God propitious and beneficent, God angry and avenging. He there appears destroying every opposing counsel, all high and strong places which resist the spread of his kingdom, and, as the Psalmist speaks, "setting his glory above the heavens." Since the holiness of the sovereign Being consists in the glory of his virtues, and since that glory never shines with clearer, brighter light than in the publication of the Gospel; the vocation which is thus addressed to us most certainly presents to our spirits the most sublime notions that can be conceived of the divine sanctity. Further: This vocation calls us to fellowship with Christ considered as the Redeemer of mankind. Here have we the clearest, widest view of that aspect of the holiness of God which engages him to have an irreconcilable hate for all which is offensive to his virtues. They are all outraged by sin, which must be punished according to its atrocity, and the sinner suffer eternally, unless an infinite Person bears for him the penalty due to his transgressions. Christ has undertaken to expiate our crimes. Attend to the payment which God has exacted from our Surety, and be astonished. God's own Son must clothe himself with our mortal flesh, must endure in soul and body inexpressible grief and pain. Divine justice, as it were, pursues and seizes him, brings him the fearful cup of judgment, and requires him to drink it to the dregs. It leads him to a shameful punishment; he is numbered with the transgressors, and his torments only finish with his life. When the Scripture teaches us that the eyes of God are too pure to behold iniquity, when it declares to us that the wicked cannot stand before God, we discover the love which he bears to his holiness. But this truth becomes far more obvious and impressive, when we see that God spares not his wellbeloved Son; that he delivers him to a cruel death; and thus, in the face of heaven and earth, condemns sin in the flesh. Seeing this, we can no longer ask whether God is engaged to sustain the interests of his offended majesty.

Finally, We are called to come out of our natural state of corruption, and to walk in the only way by which we can attain to everlasting salvation, even the way of holiness. On these subjects the Scripture speaks most expressly. "Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." "Without holiness no man shall see the Lord." Can we avoid seeing in all this even new features of the holiness of God? The state in which he finds us excites his anger; to be agreeable to him, all our inclinations and manners must be changed. He opens heaven to us; but its entry is interdicted if we do not consecrate ourselves entirely to his service. Everything, therefore,-yes, everything, my brethren, in this our evangelical vocation, serves to convince us that God is essentially holy. He is holy in reference to the majesty which en

circles him, holy in reference to his essential and changeless love of purity. This is what we proposed to establish. Let us now pass on to the second part, and, in reference to ourselves, examine the important duty to which St. Peter exhorts us.

II. "Be ye also holy in all manner of conversation." The holiness of man consists in that disposition of our will which leads us to think and do nothing which is not agreeable to the dignity of our nature, as it is adorned with the image of God. Thus, to be holy, is to withdraw from evil, to attach ourselves to good; it is to avoid all sorts of sin, and to possess the habitudes of all Christian virtues; in a word, it is to regulate our movements, our sentiments, our actions, by the law of God, and so to observe his commandments. Such is in general the definition of the holiness which St. Peter prescribes to us. But it will not be enough to take a merely superficial view of the divers parts which constitute its essence; we must consider more particularly its proper and distinctive qualities; and for this we may be guided by the Apostle's language now before us. He will be found to propose in it these four characters of true holiness, as opposed to four defects which disfigure it, or which destroy it absolutely. The first character is, that it must be inward and spiritual: "Be ye holy." The second, that it must manifest itself without by good works: "Be ye holy in conversation." The third, that it must be universal, embracing all the virtues, excluding all the vices: "Be ye holy in all manner of conversation." The fourth, that it must be constant and persevering for to be holy in all manner of conversation implies that we be so during the whole course of our life. The first of these characters is opposed to hypocrisy; the second, to the vain pretexts of indevotion; the third, to the false opinion that we are holy, when we are so only in part; and the fourth, to the inconstancy of our resolutions. These multiplied divisions may at first appear somewhat to embarrass the mind; but they will be cleared up by fuller consideration.

1. Holiness is inward and spiritual, and is thus opposed to hypocrisy. In effect, so long as vice subsists in the soul, so long as the thoughts of the mind and the affections of the heart are not directed according to the will of God, it is in vain that we affect a sincere piety so far from deserving the quality of holiness, we add to our other sins the enormous crime of abusing religion, and of unworthily trifling with it. See an example of this in the Pharisees. Only to judge of them by external appearances, what a high opinion should we entertain of their virtue ! Their words, their movements, their modes of living, their very air, all seemed to breathe out piety. They fasted frequently; they gave alms liberally; they engaged often and regularly in prayer. In their looks sad and cast down, you would have said that they were continually warring against themselves and their passions. How admirable their exactitude in the observation of the Sabbath, and in pressing the duties of the Mosaic law, descending to the smallest details, for fear lest something should be omitted, and paying tithe even of mint and cummin! Nevertheless a secret

principle of pride, an immoderate desire to be applauded by men, was the sole motive which animated their conduct. "Pharisees, hypocrites!" said our Lord to them; "for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity." Happy were the Christian church, if it never included in its pale persons possessed of this same spirit of Pharisaism! But when has false devotion ceased to borrow the colours of that which is sincere? From the time of the Apostles have men been found who have had "the form of godliness, yet denying its power." And in our own days, when we see those who aim at making themselves singular by their speech and manners; sharply blaming the most trifling faults; spreading around them complaints of the corruption of the age; esteeming themselves the soundest portion of Christendom; but who, nevertheless, as much as others, and even more, are envious, jealous of their honour, greedy after gain, contentious, intractable: what terms shall we employ to describe their character? No, my brethren, it is not in this specious affectation of strictness, or in the mere observance of the outward practices of religion, that we must seek for a true sanctity. "God seeth not as man seeth. Man looketh on the outward appearance;" and these appearances often impose on him; "but God looketh on the heart." If the heart is not devoted to him, if the love of ourselves holds the place of the love which is due to him, we vainly honour him, and our external homage is an abomination to him. It is thus most solemnly declared in his word. If our hearts are unholy, we ourselves are not holy.

2. But, as genuine sanctity is far from these haughty affectations of piety, so is it likewise incompatible with practical irregularity. This we have marked as its second character, that, dwelling within, it reproduces itself without by truly good works; and thus we oppose it to the vain pretexts of indevotion,-pretexts which are only too common. "I make no profession of piety," says the military man ; and as if this excuse were available before God, he forms according to his fancy some sort of a method of religion, observing the rules even of this only imperfectly and occasionally. "It is true," says another, "my life is dissipated; a part of my time is spent in pursuits which have anything but religion for their end; I know it, and am not satisfied with it; but such is the unhappy condition in which I am placed, that I should render myself ridiculous if I did not follow the example of others: and, after all, I have a good heart; nothing should induce me to do anything which my conscience would condemn; and that is the main thing." They thus always persuade themselves that they are good enough, and will not believe at all that they are bad Christians, although the whole of their life rolls on without any of those fruits and evidences of sanctification by which the men of true holiness continually, and with care, seek to edify their neighbour. We appeal to yourselves. Do not many who call themselves Chris

[ocr errors]

tians act thus ? But, in all honesty, is this the idea of holiness which St. Peter gives us, when he exhorts us to be "holy in our conversation?" Does this precept at all accord with these frivolous defects, which yet are made principles of conduct," I am no devotee I have a good heart; I offend no one?" Recall to yourselves, I pray you, the definition we have already given you of sanctity. It consists, we again say, in always acting agreeably to the dignity of our nature, as it is adorned with the image of God. It consists in observing the commandments of the divine law. It hence follows, that he who neglects the performance of the works which God hath ordained. that we should walk in them, must be excluded from the number of those who are truly called saints. But do you see the force of this consequence? It obliges you to condemn your slothfulness, your dissipations, your luxury, your pleasures of the world, which you choose to call innocent pleasures. It teaches you that, to be holy, we must not only not curse our brethren, not be hard to the poor, not be haughty to those below us; but that we must observe a directly opposite conduct. God commands this; and, we repeat it, you are only holy in observing his law.

Perhaps we must, for your satisfaction, enter into a more precise detail of the life of each. Examine, then, how far it is permitted to these to engage in the commerce of the world; or how far those are required to be exact in the avoidance of what is sumptuous and expensive. You wish to know if exterior regularity, if carefulness of speech, is to be prescribed as strongly to one who lives in the world, as to him who is devoted to the work of the ministry. Each one would demand from us explanations respecting his own condition; and then should we have abundant discussions on which to enter, numerous points on which distinction would be necessary. Why, the single subject of the mutual duties of masters and domestics would of itself require a large discourse. But to take the subject thus, we should never have finished. To reply, then, in one word, to all the questions that may be proposed, here is a maxim which may solve all our doubts: Holiness requires that the heart be pure, and that the commandments of God be obeyed. Consult, then, your own heart, and the law of God, that you may be instructed in what you ought. to do in the particular circumstances in which you find yourselves. If in doing such and such things you strengthen in your hearts the love of God, to omit them would be sin: if, on the contrary, acting in some other way, you weaken this holy feeling, you must abstain from it. This examination is not difficult; for it only demands a moment's serious attention to our actual experience. We cannot be ignorant of that which excites us to piety, and we well enough know what turns us from it. Let us follow this rule, and we shall satisfy the exhortation of the Apostle, "Be ye holy in conversation."

3. A third character of true sanctity is this, that it must be general, embracing all virtues, excluding all vices, in opposition to that false confidence which some possess, that they are holy, when evidently they are so only in part. In truth, if sanctity be founded on the per

« SebelumnyaLanjutkan »