to consider them merely as historical facts, in which we are in no wise
particularly interested. What have we to do with evil spirits, or
possessions, at this day? Such things might have been permitted, whilst
our SAVIOUR was upon earth, to give him an opportunity of displaying the
Divine Powers with which he was invested.
Alas! my brethren, human nature is just the same now, that it was then:
"the prince of the power of the air," and his infernal associates, are
as maliciously bent upon our destruction as ever they were; and the same
miraculous interposition of the same powerful and compassionate JESUS,
is still equally necessary for our security and relief. These spirits of
darkness are continually "walking about, seeking whom they may devour:"
they enter into all our worldly schemes and views; nay, they are
themselves frequently the first projectors of them: they enter into our
very blood and spirits, strive to gain possession of the very essence of
our souls, and to bring the whole man in subjection to their infernal
sway. They have deceived the wise men of this world, whom they have
taught to call them by some honourable appellation. Philosophy itself
seems, in some instances, to aid them in carrying on their dangerous
delusions. Pride, envy, covetousness, lust, malice, which are real
spirits of darkness, operating by real, though invisible, influences in
the human frame, have made their appearance in a fashionable dress, and
have been suffered to keep what is called the best company, when
introduced by the names of honour, decency, taste, dignity of sentiment,
virtuous resentment, free-thinking, and free-acting: they are, however,
devils in disguise, and are secretly undermining the real felicity of
man.
Had we such a view of their cruel treatment of us, as the father just
mentioned had of their treatment of his child, you may think, perhaps,
that we should take the same steps which he did, towards obtaining
relief. And what is it that hinders us from having such a view of our
real misery? What, but that fascinating charm, which these very spirits
throw before our eyes to deceive us? They surround every worldly object
with a false lustre, and thus dazzle, in order to ensnare. Yea, though
we frequently detect the imposture, a succeeding one blinds us again. A
future world lessens to our view, in proportion as we become attached to
the present. Nor is the charm totally dissolved, till, by frequent
disappointment and vexation, we have learned to read and understand the
true name and character of worldly bliss, even "Vanity of vanities!" As
long as we have Faith in this world, we can have no Faith in another; as
long as ever we "think ourselves whole," we shall not apply to a
physician, or have the least confidence in his skill.
But, blessed be GOD, there is a time, when the evil spirit tears and
wounds the child, and casts him into the fire, and into the water,
insomuch, that the affrighted parent is constrained to fly to JESUS for
aid. In pain, in sorrow, in distress, in temptation, or upon a sick and
dying bed, the sad effects of every diabolical delusion frequently
appear in their true colours. Though the infernal spirits themselves
then work within us with aggravated rage; though they seem to avail
themselves of our bodily indisposition, to storm the citadel of our
hearts; yet they are, in these instances, often egregiously deceived
themselves. The trembling sinner, destitute of every outward comfort,
which sun, and air, and animal spirits could give him, beholds every
sublunary object in its genuine colours, stripped of its false glare,
and emptied of its delusive treasure. He cries aloud for help?--"What
shall I do to be saved?" The Child of GOD, the offspring of Heaven
within me, will be torn to pieces and destroyed by the spirits of
darkness. LORD, if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on me and
help me! "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that
believeth," is the soft answer whispered to his soul. A beam of Heavenly
Light and Love accompanies it; sweet silence and stillness succeed; till
at length the soul, overpowered by an inexpressible sensibility of
meekness and humility, breaks forth in the language of my text, "Lord, I
believe, help thou mine unbelief!" The storm ceaseth; the evil spirits
are cast out, and the Child of GOD is delivered from their oppressive
bondage.
"Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief," should be the constant
language of every Christian's heart. No words can more emphatically
express the weakness of man, and his absolute resignation to the will of
GOD, than these: they take every thing from the creature, and give all
to the Creator. Whenever the human will is thus effectually turned to
GOD, it soon manifests its origin, as coming forth from the essentially
and eternally Free Will of GOD. It brings down Heaven into the soul; it
triumphs over all opposition; and, through the greatest weakness of
human nature, it evidences the all-conquering power of DIVINE LOVE.
Why then, O man! O Christian! Why shouldst thou despond in the hour of
trial? "Faith is, indeed, the gift of GOD;" but it is a gift, which he
bestoweth liberally upon all that ask it. Light and darkness, life and
death, heaven and hell, are set before us: freely to chuse, and freely
to reject, belongs to that free particle of the Divine Essence, which
"stirs within us." It was, originally, before the fall of man, the gift
of GOD IN CHRIST JESUS. It was the constitution of our nature in its
unfallen state: it was, if I may so speak, the Great Charter of Heaven,
freely delivered by the King of Heaven, to all his sons and subjects;
and though blotted, obliterated, lost by an original apostasy, it is now
restored, regained, and purchased by a REDEEMER'S blood.
Shall we then tamely suffer these Rights of Heaven to be invaded by the
powers of darkness? Shall we suffer the Child of GOD, the Redeemed of
the HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL, to be taken captive by the armies of aliens?
Shall the splendor of accumulated wealth, the gay circle of worldly
pleasure, the tinsel trappings of honour, or the fading breath of
popular applause, make us forget our native home, forget that we are but
"strangers and pilgrims upon earth," and that we are "fellow-citizens
with the saints, and of the houshold of GOD?" Shall we continue the
willing slaves of the spirits of darkness, of pride, envy, covetousness
and wrath, whilst Heaven is declared to be our inheritance, and our
REDEEMER hath assured us, that we have "mansions prepared for our
reception in his Father's House."
Regardless, however, as many of you, my brethren, may be of these
illustrious privileges now, the time may come, when a proper sensibility
of your present bondage, will make you cry aloud for deliverance; when
the service of earth and hell will appear base, dishonourable, and
unworthy the free-born sons of Light.
When the good Providence of GOD, in kind commiseration of your secure
and thoughtless state, shall send sorrow and affliction to your houses
and to your hearts; when the shaft of anguish shall wound you, either in
your own persons, or in the persons of those whom you love; when duty,
when affection shall call you to some solemn death-bed scene, where you
shall behold expiring life just quivering upon the lips of a dear
departing friend or relative; or when your own frail tabernacles shall
be shaken by disease, and you shall feel death approaching to take
possession of the throne of life; when the counsels of the wise, and the
sorrows of the tender-hearted, can stand you in no stead; when the
immortal tenant of your earthly mansion is just ready to take his
flight, and stands trembling on the confines of a world unknown; at
these, or such like awful seasons, those amongst you, who have not
heretofore experienced the power of Divine Faith, will then, if ever, be
made sensible of your want of it. The visionary scene of earthly bliss
will vanish like a morning cloud, and deep heart-felt anguish will wring
the soul, and make it feel the full horrors of its bondage. But to
those, who have already tasted the comforts of religion, and who have
long been groaning for deliverance from the captivity of an evil nature,
and an evil world, Faith will open the doors of their prison, let in the
Light of Heaven as they are able to bear it, and sweetly sing this song
of consolation to their departing spirits: "I will ransom them from
death; I will redeem them from the power of the grave. O death! I will
be thy plague; O grave! I will be thy destruction."
DISCOURSE IX.
The Flourishing State of the Regenerate.
PSALM i. VER. 3.
"HE SHALL BE LIKE A TREE PLANTED BY THE RIVERS OF WATER, THAT
BRINGETH FORTH HIS FRUIT IN HIS SEASON: HIS LEAF ALSO SHALL NOT
WITHER, AND WHATSOEVER HE DOTH SHALL PROSPER."
Whatever seeming inequality there may be in the dispensations of the
Almighty, or however partial he may appear to the eye of human reason,
in his distribution of spiritual or temporal blessings among the sons of
men; it will, nevertheless, be found, at the consummation of the great
scheme of Providence; that he has done every thing "in number, weight,
and measure;" and that every part and period of the Divine
Administration hath been planned by unerring Wisdom, and conducted by
universal and impartial Love.
Minute philosophers, and men who value themselves upon what they call a
liberal and enlarged way of thinking, may imagine, that this is no more
than a religious dream; and argue, from present appearances, that "all
things happen alike unto all men, and that there is but one event to the
righteous and to the wicked, to him that serveth GOD, and to him that
serveth him not." But the Heaven-taught philosopher, whose inward eye is
illuminated from above, can see into the secret springs, by which the
vast machine is perpetually kept in motion, and by which all the
infinite variety of workings in intelligent and inanimate nature, are
rendered subservient to the Glory of GOD, and the final consummation of
his eternal plan in the supreme felicity of his creatures. By virtue of
that heavenly euphrasy with which his visual ray is purged and cleansed,
he sees, and is intimately convinced, that notwithstanding the frequent
vicissitudes with which the life of a good man is sadly checquered, he
is nevertheless "like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that
bringeth forth his fruit in his season; that his leaf also doth not
wither, and whatsoever he doth shall prosper."
There is a peculiar beauty and propriety in this similitude, and every
part of it bears a wonderful analogy to that spiritual life, into which
fallen man hath been reinstated by the MEDIATION OF THE SON OF GOD.
Man, by turning his will from his Maker, lost that paradisiacal glory,
in which he was originally created; and found nothing left, in its
stead, but a wrathful spirit within, and a dark disordered world
without. By this act of his own will, he transplanted his nature, if I
may so speak, from the delightful garden of Eden, in which the ALMIGHTY
had placed him, into the midst of a thorny barren desart. He deprived it
of all that nourishment it received from those waters of life, which
surrounded the blissful spot; and, in consequence, it must have been
parched up and have withered away, had not DIVINE LOVE affectionately
interposed, and put him once more into a capacity of recovering his lost
inheritance, and regaining the vital streams, by which alone his
heavenly nature could be preserved and cherished.
It is true, man still continues in the desart of fallen nature: the
first Adam is still condemned to till the ground from whence he was
taken. But the second Adam, the LORD from Heaven, hath caused those
rivers of water, which are solely at his disposal, to flow through the
dry and comfortless waste, that "the wilderness and solitary place might
thereby be made glad, and the desart rejoice and blossom like the rose."
When man, therefore, convinced of his dark and barren state by nature,
and the sovereign efficacy of these waters of life to chear and restore
him, freely opens his heart for their reception, he is then, indeed,
like "a tree planted by the rivers of water:" his roots shoot deep, and
his branches spread fair and luxuriant in the heavenly element: the
kindly moisture insinuates itself into every part, and leaves, and
flowers, and fruits, manifest the internal operation of the life-giving
stream.
"I am the vine, ye are the branches"--says the LORD OF LIFE.--"As the
branch cannot bear fruit, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye,
except ye abide in me." There must be an intimate union betwixt CHRIST
and his redeemed offspring; an union not suddenly formed, and as
suddenly broken, but piously and constantly maintained; an abiding
union, without which there can be no communication of his Heavenly
Virtues, and, consequently, no fruits of holiness. But wheresoever this
blessed union effectually takes place, the regenerated nature soon
springs forth; the bud, the blossom, the leaves, the fruits, all appear
in their proper season: the man of GOD stands forth content, and, like a
tree nourished by a living stream, imparts his refreshing shade, and
pleasant wholesome fruits, to all around.
Would you know what these fruits are? They are fully enumerated by the
Apostle, who tells us, that "the fruits of the SPIRIT are love, joy,
peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness,
temperance." These fruits, says my text, are "brought forth in their
season." The sun must shine upon the tree, the air must breathe, the
dews and rains must descend, and the rivers of water must rise through
the roots into the trunk and branches. All this process must be
performed, before the fruit will appear.
It is just so with that "plant of celestial seed," which is sown in the
human heart. Meekness, humility, resignation, love, &c. are not the
growth of an hour: days, and months, and years, must pass, before they
will begin to appear. I well know, that the first faint manifestation of
these graces in an awakened soul, hath frequently been mistaken for the
whole of a sinner's conversion. It has been called the "Witness of the
SPIRIT," testifying to the sinner, that the act of his justification is
past, and that his pardon is sealed in the courts of Heaven. The Witness
of the SPIRIT it undoubtedly is, because it results from an union of the
human spirit with the Divine. And as the DIVINE SPIRIT is meekness and
love supreme, so it is no wonder that such an union should produce such
a spiritual sensation. But we are not to conclude from hence, that a
sudden, and seemingly instantaneous sensibility of Heavenly Peace and
Love, can be the whole of our conversion. It is, doubtless, a sweet
token of Divine Grace; an happy earnest of the residence of the DIVINE
SPIRIT, who, perhaps, for years before, had been seeking to manifest
himself in our hearts, and now gives this present consolation, as the
result of previous and frequent operations. Our salvation is so far from
depending upon these momentary sensations, that our LORD expressly
assures us, that though we are united to him by as intimate an union as
"the branches are to the vine;" yet, except "we abide in him, we shall
be cast as withered branches into the fire."
"Let him, then, that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall." Let
us not value ourselves upon past experiences, or think that we are GOD'S
children, and that our names are indelibly written in his book of life,
merely because we were once under spiritual distress, and were once
rescued from it by the consolations of his SPIRIT. Nothing can preserve
us in a state of union with our Divine REDEEMER, but an inward, constant
thirsting after those "waters of life," which he alone can give us.
Whilst we stand before him in such a frame of soul, meekly and humbly
waiting for such portions of his Grace, as he sees necessary and
expedient to impart, we may then be assured, that "our leaf shall not
wither, and that whatsoever we do shall prosper." For when the will of
man coincides with the Divine Will, and is implicitly resigned thereto
in every situation, circumstance, and event of life, he must necessarily
prosper, because GOD wills nothing but Good, and Good Supreme is the aim
and end of all his dispensations.
Well, but say some, How can this be? Do we not daily see the best of
men, groaning under the most grievous calamities, pining away with
sickness, worn out with pain, or afflicted with some sad reverses of
fortune? On the other hand, do we not daily behold men, who shew not the
least regard to religion, who have no fear of GOD before their eyes, who
neither in private nor in public testify the least sense of their
dependance upon him, or their connexion with another world, who violate
his sabbaths, deride his Revelation, and scoff at every thing that bears
the appearance of seriousness or sobriety; do we not daily behold such
men advanced to the pinnacle of preferment, abounding in wealth,
favoured with health and strength, and surrounded with every good thing
this world can afford? Yes--we certainly do; and so did David many ages
since. But attend to David's reflections upon this subject, and you will
find them rational and satisfactory.
"I was grieved at the wicked: I do also see the ungodly in such
prosperity. For they are in no peril of health, but are lusty and
strong. They come in no misfortune like other folk, neither are they
plagued like other men. Lo, these are the ungodly; these prosper in the
world, and these have riches in possession: and I said, then have I
cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency. Yea, I had
almost said even as they; but lo, then I should have condemned the
generation of thy children. Then thought I to understand this, but it
was too hard for me, until I went into the sanctuary of GOD; then
understood I the end of these men, namely, that thou dost set them in
slippery places, and castest them down and destroyest them. O, how
suddenly do they consume, perish, and come to a fearful end!"
These are David's reflections on the condition of wicked men in his day;
and the experience of preceding, as well as of after-ages, does
abundantly confirm them. Vice will, sooner or later, meet with its
recompence, even in this world. But supposing this should not be the
case, and that good and righteous men should have a much larger share of
temporal misery than the wicked; yet it may with truth be said, that by
this very misery they prosper; yea, that their inward prosperity keeps
pace with their outward sufferings.
Every thing that has a tendency to disengage the heart and affections
from this transient scene of things, ought to be deemed a real blessing.
Now, who can deny, that sickness, pain, sorrow and affliction, have in
their very nature this tendency? and, when seen by the happy sufferer in
a true point of light, they never fail of producing this effect. Hence
it is, that many a pious soul is enabled to rejoice in such visitations,
and to thank GOD for them as the richer blessings: for, "though no
chastisement for the present is joyous, but rather grievous; yet it
afterwards yields the peaceable fruits of righteousness to those that
are exercised thereby." True it is, that the outward man suffers, and is
sadly weakened and distressed; but the Inward Man, the Child of GOD,
thrives and prospers. The riches of eternity appear more and more real,
in proportion as he discovers the vanity of time; and his disappointment
in any worldly concern, is sure to render him more prosperous and
successful in matters of eternal moment.
Alas! methinks I hear some say, it would be well if it were always so.
But are not many good men afflicted inwardly, as well as outwardly? Are
they not often destitute of spiritual as well as of worldly comforts?
Are not their souls as much bowed down by the weight of their sinful
nature, as their bodies by temporal evils and infirmities? And can these
men be said to "prosper in whatsoever they do?" Surely, they are alike
unfortunate with respect to the present and the future world.
Suspend thy judgment, poor partial observer! reason not from
appearances. Inward darkness, and distress, and anguish, are the proper
inlets through which the CHRIST OF GOD is received into the heavy-laden
soul. A sensibility of its burden makes it groan for relief: and the
very moment that "patience hath done its perfect work," and the human
will is thereby brought to yield itself with implicit resignation to its
GOD, the burden drops, and sweet peace and tranquillity of soul succeed.
GOD never willingly afflicts his children; he deals with them as a most
indulgent parent. Sin must be known and felt, before it can be shunned
and conquered. And it is by repeated strokes, that the wayward child is
taught to avoid what may prove injurious and destructive to its
happiness.
To conclude with the apt similitude of my text: the real Christian is
"like a tree planted by the rivers of water;" they afford it all the
nourishment that is necessary. The stormy wind and the beating rain,
while they try its strength, increase it; they make it cling closer to
the kindly soil, take deeper root, and bear fruit in greater abundance.
Thus, "all things work together for good, to them that love GOD;" and
"whatsoever they do," notwithstanding the many apparent disappointments
and disquietudes they meet with, "shall finally prosper," and terminate
in never-fading bliss.
DISCOURSE X.
The Cause and Cure of the Disorders of Human Nature.
St. MARK, CHAP. vii. VER. 34.
"AND LOOKING UP TO HEAVEN, HE SIGHED; AND SAITH UNTO HIM, EPHPHATHA!
THAT IS, BE OPENED."
A serious and philosophical mind, contemplating the innumerable evils,
physical and moral, to which men are exposed during their short
continuance in this world, would very naturally conclude, that the
present state could not be that for which the ALMIGHTY originally
intended them. Storms and tempests, sickness and pain, darkness and
disorder, in the natural world; and the various and destructive effects
of pride, envy, covetousness, and wrath, in the moral world; are so
contrary to the Divine Nature, which is Life, Light, and Love, eternal
and unchangeable, that it would be almost blasphemy to say, that such a
system was the original finished workmanship of his adorable hand.
To such contemplations as these, philosophy might lead her sober
votary--But Divine Revelation alone can carry him back to the origin of
things, and give him the true information with respect to their present
appearances. By this we learn, that the beautiful order and harmony of
creation were marred by the creature's transgression; who turning his
will from the source of infinite GOODNESS, lost that first gate in which
his Maker had placed him, and wherein all was light and joy; and found
himself in subjection to an evil nature within, and a world of darkness
and distress without. By this Revelation also we are informed, that
nothing less than a return to his Original Source, could reinstate him
in his original bliss; that this return could be rendered possible in no
other way, than by a ray, a spark, a seed, an earnest, a taste or touch
of his first life, imparted or inspoken into his fallen nature by the
GOD OF LOVE, to be gradually opened and unfolded by such a Redeeming
Process, as, with the co-operation of his own will, would effectually
restore him to his primeval felicity; and that this was undertaken, and
only could be undertaken and accomplished, by that ETERNAL SON OF THE
FATHER, in and by whom man was originally created, and in and by whom
alone he could be redeemed.