PIETY, AS THE SPRING OF ACTION, AND REGULATOR OF THE SOUL.
A watch, to one who had never seen such a piece of mechanism before,
would be a great wonder. It is an object of much curiosity to the
natives of savage and barbarous tribes, visited by the missionaries.
It seems to speak and move, as though instinct with life. I have read,
somewhere, of a poor savage, who, seeing a white man’s watch lying
on the ground, and hearing it tick, supposed it to be some venomous
reptile, and, with a stone, dashed it in pieces. A watch is an object
of no less wonder to a child. Children are full of curiosity, as my
readers well know. They wish to examine every thing they see--to take
it in pieces, and see how it is made. I dare say my readers remember
the time when they sat on their father’s knee, and modestly requested
him to show them the little wheels of his watch.
If I could sit down with my young friends, and take my watch in pieces,
I would teach them a useful lesson. I would show them how a watch
resembles a human being. There is the _case_, which may be taken off,
and put by itself, and still the watch will go as well as ever. In this
respect, it is like the human body. Death separates it from the soul,
and yet the soul remains, with all its active powers. It still lives.
The inside of the watch, too, resembles the soul. It has a great many
different parts, all working together in harmony--a great many wheels,
all moving in concert. So the soul has a great many different powers
or faculties, all designed to operate in concert with each other, as
the _understanding_, the _judgment_, the _conscience_, the _will_,
the _affections_, the _memory_, the _passions_, _desires_, &c.; and
each one of these has a part to act, as important for the man as the
several wheels and springs of the watch. If every part of the watch is
in order, and in its proper place, it will keep exact time; but, if
one wheel gets disordered, it will derange the whole. The secret power
that moves the watch is unperceived. If you examine, you will see a
large wheel, with a smooth surface, round which is wound a long chain,
attached to another wheel, with ridges for the chain to run upon.
Inside of the first-named wheel is the _main-spring_, which, by means
of the chain, moves the whole machinery. The WILL is the main-spring
of the soul. By a mysterious, invisible chain, it holds all the powers
of the soul and body at its command. Not only the operations of the
mind, but the motions of the body are controlled by the will.
But, if there were no check upon the main-spring of the watch, it would
not give the time of day. It would set all the wheels in rapid motion,
and in a few moments the watch would run down. To prevent this, there
is a _balance-wheel_, which turns backwards and forwards, by means of a
fine spring, called the _hair-spring_, and so keeps the whole machinery
in a regular motion. To this is attached a little lever, called the
_regulator_, which, by a gentle touch, works on this delicate spring,
so as to move the balance-wheel faster or slower, as the case may be,
to make the movement exact and regular.
Now, if there were no checks on the will, it would run on impetuously
in its course, without regard to consequences. And this we often see
in persons called _wilful_, _self-willed_, _headstrong_. Children are
often so; if let alone, their stubborn will would lead them to rush on
headlong to their own destruction. Without meaning to be very accurate
in these illustrations, I shall call _judgment_ the _balance-wheel_.
This is the faculty which perceives, compares, and decides, keeps the
mind balanced, and prevents its running to extremes either way.
The _hair-spring_ and _regulator_ of the watch I shall compare
with _conscience_. A very slight touch of the regulator moves
the hair-spring, and gives a quicker or a slower motion to the
balance-wheel. But, if the watch is out of order, oftentimes the
movement of the regulator has no effect upon it. So, when the soul is
_in order_, a very slight touch of conscience will affect the judgment
and regulate the will. But often, the soul is so much _out of order_,
that conscience will have no effect upon it.
But who touches the regulator of the watch? There is nothing in the
watch itself to do this. The power that moves the regulator _is applied
to it_. So, the conscience is moved. The _Word of God_ enlightens the
conscience, and the _Spirit of God_ applies the word. And this brings
me to the point which I had in my mind when I began this chapter. What
a poor thing a watch is, when it is out of order. It is of no use. A
watch is made to keep the time of day; but, when it is out of order,
it will keep no time. Or, if it is in order, and yet not regulated, it
will not keep the right time.
Now until the heart is changed by the grace of God, the _soul is out
of order_. It does not answer the purpose for which it was made. The
_will_ is wrong; the _judgment_ is wrong; the _conscience_ is wrong.
And, whatever cultivation may be bestowed upon the mind, it will not
act aright. In the very beginning, then, you want _piety_, as the
_main-spring_ of action, and the _regulator_ of the soul. Without this,
you are not prepared to begin any thing aright. Indeed, without it,
you have no sufficient motive to action. You seem to be toiling and
laboring and wearying yourself for nothing. But _piety towards God_
gives a new impulse to the mind. When you set out to improve your mind,
if you have no piety, the object to be gained by it is very small. It
can secure to you no more than, perhaps, a little additional enjoyment,
for the brief space you are to continue in this world. But piety opens
to you a wide field of usefulness in this life, and the prospect of
going forward in the improvement of your mind as long as eternity
endures. It must, therefore, give a new spring and vigor to all the
faculties of the soul. It does more. It _regulates_ the powers of the
mind, and the affections of the heart, and gives a right direction to
them all.
I would persuade you, then, as the first and great thing, to _seek
God_. Remember what Christ has said,--“Seek ye first the kingdom of
God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto
you.” Here is the promise that you shall have all else that is needful,
if you seek God first. Yield your heart to him, and have his kingdom
set up there. Let him rule in your heart, and devote yourself to his
service, and he will supply all your need. This, also, will give a
right direction to all your faculties, and lay a good foundation
of character. But, without it, you will be like a watch without a
balance-wheel or a regulator; you will be fit neither for this life
nor that which is to come. And, it is of the utmost importance that
you should become pious now, while you are young. If you would form a
good character, you must have a good foundation laid at the beginning.
Nothing but this can make a good foundation. All your habits ought to
be formed and settled upon religious principles. Religious motives
should enter into all your efforts to improve your mind and cultivate
your affections. And, should you neglect religion now, and afterwards,
by the grace of God, be led to devote yourself to him, you will find
it hard and difficult to overcome the wrong habits of mind and conduct
which you will have formed.
_Piety_, then, is the first thing to be considered, in the _formation
of character_. And remember, also, that you are forming character _for
eternity_; and that your whole being, through a never ending existence,
is to be affected by the character which you form now in your childhood
and youth. If you lay the foundation of your character now in the love
and fear of God, it will rise higher and higher, in excellence, beauty,
and loveliness, for ever and ever. But if you lay the foundation in
selfishness and sin, and build accordingly, it will forever be sinking
lower in degradation and deeper in wretchedness.