11. In order to a better understanding of the text, we shall adopt
Paul's customary classification of life as spiritual and carnal. Life
on earth is characterized as of the spirit, or spiritual; and of the
flesh, or carnal. But the spiritual life may be worldly. The worldly
spiritual life is represented by the vices of false and self-devised
doctrine wherein the soul lives without the Word of God, in unbelief
and in contempt of God; or, still worse, abuses the Word of God and
the name of Christ in false doctrine, making them a cover and ornament
for wicked fraud, using them falsely under a show of truth, under
pretense of Christian love.
This is worldly conduct of the spiritual kind. It is always the worst,
ever the most injurious, since it is not only personal sin, but
deceives others into like transgression. Paul refers, in the epistle
lesson for Easter, to this evil as the "old leaven" and the "leaven of
wickedness." And in Second Corinthians 7, 1, he makes the same
classification of spiritual and carnal sin, saying, "Let us cleanse
ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit." By defilement of
the spirit he means those secret, subtle vices wherewith man pollutes
and corrupts his inner life in the sight of God; his sins not being
manifest to the world, but deceiving human reason and wisdom.
12. If we would be Christians we must, first of all, be dead to
conduct of this sort. We must not receive nor tolerate the worldly
doctrine and corrupt inventions originating with ourselves, whether in
the nature of reason, philosophy or law, theories ignoring the Word of
God or else falsely passing under its name. For such are wholly of the
world; under their influence man has no regard to God's will and seeks
not his kingdom and eternal life. They are meant merely to further the
individual's own honor, pride, renown, wisdom, holiness or something
else. Though boast is made of the Gospel and of faith in Christ, yet
it is not serious, and the individual continues without power and
without fruit.
13. If we are risen with Christ through faith, we must set our
affections upon things not earthly, corruptible, perishable, but upon
things above--the heavenly, divine, eternal; in other words, upon
doctrine right, pure and true, and whatever is pleasing to God, that
his honor and Christ's kingdom may be preserved. Thus shall we guard
ourselves against abuse of God's name, against false worship and false
trust and that presumption of self-holiness which pollutes and
defrauds the spirit.
14. Under carnal worldliness Paul includes the gross vices,
enumerating in particular here, fornication, uncleanness,
covetousness, and so on, things which reason knows to be wicked and
condemns as such. The spiritual sins take reason captive and deceive
it, leaving it powerless to guard against them. They are termed
spiritual sins not simply because of their spirit-polluting character,
for all vices pollute the spirit, the carnal vices among them; but
because they are too subtle for flesh and blood to discern. The sins
of the flesh, however, are called carnal, or body-polluting, because
committed by the body, in its members.
Now, as we are to be dead unto spiritual sins, so are we to be dead
unto carnal sins, or at least to make continual progress toward that
end, striving ever to turn away from all such earthly things and to
look toward the heavenly and divine. He who continues to seek carnal
things and to be occupied with them, has not as yet with Christ died
unto the world. Not having died, he is not risen; the resurrection of
Christ effects nothing in him. Christ is dead unto him and he unto
Christ.
15. Paul's admonition is particularly necessary at the present time.
We see a large and constantly-increasing number who, despite their
boast of the Gospel and their certain knowledge of the polluting and
condemning power of spiritual and carnal sins, continue in their evil
course, forgetful of God's wrath, or endeavoring to trust in false
security. Indeed, it is a very common thing for men to do just as they
please and yet pretend innocence and seek to avoid censure. Some would
represent themselves guileless as lambs and blameless; no act of
theirs may be regarded evil or even wrong. They pretend great virtue
and Christian love. Yet they carry on their insidious, malicious
frauds, imposing falsehoods upon men. They ingeniously contrive to
make their conduct appear good, imagining that to pass as faultless
before men and to escape public censure means to deceive God also. But
they will learn how God looks upon the matter. Paul tells us (Gal 6,
7) God will not, like men, be mocked. To conceal and palliate will not
avail. Nothing will answer but dying to vice and then striving after
what is virtuous, divine and becoming the Christian character.
16. Paul enumerates some gross and unpardonable vices--fornication, or
unchastity, and covetousness. He speaks also of these in Ephesians 5,
3-5 and in First Thessalonians 4, 3-7, as we have heard in the epistle
lessons for the second and third Sundays in Lent. He enjoins
Christians to guard against these sins, to be utterly dead to them.
For they are sensual, acknowledged such even among the gentiles; while
we strive after the perfect purity becoming souls who belong to Christ
and in heaven. It is incumbent upon the Christian to preserve his body
modest, and holy or chaste; to refrain from polluting himself by
fornication and other unchastity, after the manner of the world.
17. Similarly does the apostle forbid covetousness, to which he gives
the infamous name of idolatry in the effort to make it more hideous in
the Christian's eyes, to induce him to shun it as an abominable vice
intensely hated of God. It is a vice calculated to turn a man wholly
from faith and from divine worship, until he regards not, nor seeks
after, God and his Word and heavenly treasures, but follows only after
the treasures of earth and seeks a god that will give him enough of
earthly good.
18. Much might be said on this topic were we to consider it relative
to all orders and trades in succession. For plainly the world,
particularly in our day, is completely submerged in the vice of
covetousness. It is impossible to enumerate the subtle arts it can
invent, and the good and beautiful things it knows how to pass off
whereunder it masks itself as a thing not to be considered sinful, but
rather extremely virtuous and indicative of uprightness. And so
idolatry ever does. While before God it is the worst abomination,
before the world its appearance and reputation are superior. So far
from being recognized as sin, it is considered supreme holiness and
divine worship.
The very worship of Mammon wears an imposing mask. It must not be
called covetousness or dishonest striving after property, but must be
known as upright, legitimate endeavor to obtain a livelihood, a
seeking to acquire property honestly. It ingeniously clothes itself
with the Word of God, saying God commands man to seek his bread by
labor, by his own exertions, and that every man is bound to provide
for his own household. No civil government, no, nor a preacher even,
can censure covetousness under that guise unless it be betrayed in
gross robbing and stealing.
19. Let every man know that his covetousness will be laid to the
charge of his own conscience, that he will have to answer for it, for
God will not be deceived. It is evident the vice is gaining ground.
With its false appearance and ostentation, and its world-wide
prevalence, it is commonly accepted as legal. Without censure or
restraint, men are engrossed in coveting and accumulating to the
utmost. Those having position and power think they have the right to
acquire by violence as much as they can, daily making assessments and
imposts, and new oppressions and impositions upon the poor. And the
common rabble seek gain by raising prices, by extortion, fraud, and so
on. Yet all desire not to be charged with wrong-doing; they would not
they should be called unchristian on account of their conduct. Indeed,
such excess of covetousness obtains that the public robbing and
stealing, and the faithlessness and fraud, of the meanest hirelings,
servants and maids everywhere can no longer be restrained.
20. But who would care to recount the full extent of this vice in all
dealings and interests of the world between man and man? Enough has
been said to induce every one who aims to be a Christian to examine
his own heart and, if he find himself guilty of such vice, to refrain;
if not, to know how to guard against it. Every individual can readily
perceive for himself what is consistent with Christian character in
this respect, what can be allowed with a good conscience; for he has
Christ's rule of dealing as we would be dealt with, which insures
equality and justice. Where unfairness exists, covetousness must
obtain to some extent.
21. If you will not desist from the vice of covetousness, then know
you are not a Christian, not a believer, but, as Paul calls you, a
base, detestable idolater, having no part in God's kingdom; for you
are living wholly to the world and without intent to rise with Christ.
You will receive no blessing from the joy-inspiring and gracious
revelation that Christ died and rose for sinners. You cannot say,
"Therefore he died for me, I trust." Truly, Christ died for you, but
if you continue in your wickedness, using this revelation as a cloak
for your mean covetousness, do not--such is the declaration of the
text--by any means apply that comforting promise to yourself. Although
Christ indeed died and rose for all, yet unto you he is not risen; you
have not apprehended his resurrection by faith. You have seen the
smoke but have not felt the fire; you have heard the words but have
received nothing of their power.