"Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that
they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took
knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus. And they called
them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of
Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be
right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God,
judge ye."--ACTS iv. 13, 18, 19.
I think that the quality, the grace of God, which St. Peter's character
and story specially forces on our notice is courage--the true courage
which comes by faith. The courage which comes by faith, I say. There is
a courage which does not come by faith. There is a brute courage which
comes from hardness of heart; from obstinacy, or anger, or stupidity,
which does not see danger, or does not feel pain. That is the courage of
the brute. One does not blame it or call it wrong. It is good in its
place, as all natural things are which God has made. It is good enough
for the brute; but it is not good enough for man. You cannot trust it in
man. And the more a man is what a man should be, the less he can trust
it. The more mind and understanding a man has, so as to be able to
foresee danger and measure it, the more chance there is of his brute
courage giving way. The more feeling a man has, the more keen he is to
feel pain of body, or pain of mind, such as shame, loneliness, the
dislike of ridicule, and the contempt of his fellow-men; in a word, the
more of a man he is, the more chance there is of his brute courage
breaking down, just when he wants it more to keep him up, and leaving him
to play the coward and come to shame.
Yes; to go through with a difficult or dangerous undertaking a man wants
more than brute courage. He wants spiritual courage, the courage which
comes by faith. He needs to have faith in what he is doing to be certain
that he is doing his duty--to be certain that he is in the right. To
give one example. Look at the class of men who in all England in times
of peace undergo the most fearful dangers; who know not at what hour of
any night they may not be called up to the most serious and hard labour
and responsibility, with the chance of a horrible and torturing death. I
mean the firemen of our great cities, than whom there are no steadier,
braver, nobler-hearted men. Not a week passes without one or more of
those firemen, in trying to save life and property, doing things which
are altogether heroic. What do you fancy keeps them up to their work?
High pay? The amusement and excitement of the fires? The vanity of
being praised for their courage? My friends, those would be but weak and
paltry motives, which would not keep a man's heart calm and his head
clear under such responsibility and danger as theirs.
No; it is the sense of duty. The knowledge that they are doing a good
and a noble work in saving the lives of human beings and the wealth of
the nation--the knowledge that they are in God's hands, and that no evil
can happen to him who is doing right--that to him even death at his post
is not a loss, but a gain. In short, faith in God, more or less clear,
is what gives those men their strong and quiet courage. God grant that
you and I, if ever we have dangerous work to do, may get true courage
from the same fountain of ghostly strength.
Yes; it is the courage which comes by faith which makes truly brave men,
men like St. Peter and St. John, who can say, "If I am right, God is on
my side, I will not fear what men can do unto me." "I will not fear,"
said David, "though the earth be moved, and the mountains carried into
the midst of the sea." The just man who holds firm to his duty will not,
says a wise old writer, "be shaken from his solid mind by the rage of the
mob bidding him do base things, or the frown of the tyrant who persecutes
him. Though the world were to crumble to pieces round him, its ruins
would strike him without making him tremble."
Such courage has made men, shut up in prison for long weary years for
doing what was right, endure manfully for the sake of some great cause,
and say--
"Stone walls do not a prison make,
Nor iron bars a cage,
Minds innocent and quiet take
That for an hermitage.
If I have freedom in my thought,
And in my soul am free,
Angels alone that soar above
Enjoy such liberty."
Yes; settle it in your hearts, all of you. There is but one thing you
have to fear in heaven or earth--being untrue to your better selves, and
therefore untrue to God. If you will not do the thing you know to be
right, and say the thing you know to be true, then indeed you are weak.
You are a coward, and sin against God. And you will suffer the penalty
of your cowardice. You desert God, and therefore you cannot expect Him
to stand by you. But who will harm you if you be followers of that which
is right?
What does David say:--"Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall
dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh
righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth
not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a
reproach against his neighbour. In whose eyes a vile person is
contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to
his own hurt, and changeth not. He that putteth not out his money to
usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these
things shall never be moved."--Psalm xv. 1-5. Yes, my friends, there is
a tabernacle of God in which, even in this life, He will hide us from
strife. There is a hill of God in which, even in the midst of danger,
and labour, and anxiety, we may rest both day and night--even Jesus
Christ, the Rock of Ages--He who is the righteousness itself, the truth
itself. And whosoever does righteousness and speaks truth, dwells in
Christ in this life, as well as in the life to come. And Christ will
give him courage to strengthen him by His Holy Spirit, to stand in the
evil day, the day of danger, if it shall come--and having done all to
stand.
Pray you then for the Spirit of Faith to believe really in God, and for
the spirit of ghostly strength to obey God honestly. No man ever asked
honestly for that Spirit but what he gained it at last. And no man ever
gained it but what he found the truth of St. Peter's own words--"Who will
harm you, if you be followers of what is good?"