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How to Live a Holy Life
C. E. Orr
DEVOTIONAL READING.
A person may almost be known by the books he reads. If he habitually reads
bad books, we can pretty safely conclude that he is a bad man; on the
other hand, if he habitually reads religious books, we can reasonably
presume that he is a religious man. Why is this? It is because the nature
of a person's books is usually the nature of his thoughts; and as a man
thinks, so he is.
Consequently, our reading devotional literature is a great aid to our
being devotional. Too few, I fear, realize how important to our spiritual
advancement is the cultivation of a taste for devotional reading. As a
rule, those who have a taste for spiritual books and gratify that taste
prosper in the Lord, while those who have no relish for such books labor
at a great disadvantage. Some one has said that "he who begins a devout
life without a taste for spiritual reading may consider the ordinary
difficulties multiplied in his case by ten." The most spiritual men of all
ages have had a strong love for reading spiritual books. If, however, my
reader happens not to have such a taste or such a love, he should not be
discouraged, for it can be created and increased through perseverance in
reading devotional literature. Just as a person who does not relish a
certain food may learn to like it if he will persist in eating it, so a
person who does not have a taste for devotional books may come to enjoy
them if he will diligently and prayerfully peruse them.
Spiritual reading invigorates the intellect, warms the affections, and
begets in us a desire for more of God's fulness and for a more heavenly
life. It is especially helpful to prayer. When the mind is dull and the
spirits low and we have no inspiration for prayer, the reading of a
spiritual poem will often so stimulate the mind, raise the spirits, and
animate the soul, as to make it easy for us to pray.
As to what books to read, the Bible, of course, is the best of all. But we
need others. Although no other book can take the place of the Bible and
none of us should neglect reading it, there are many books that can
profitably be read in connection with it.
But whatever devotional book you are reading, do not read too fast. Think
and digest as you go. Let there be a frequent lifting of the heart to God
in prayer. It is not the bee that flies so swiftly from flower to flower
that gathers the honey, but the bee that goes down into the flower. A few
sentences taken into the mind and heart, and dwelt upon until they have
become a part of us, are better than many pages read superficially.
PREFACE.
If the reading of this little book encourages any on their pilgrim way; if
it arouses them to greater diligence; if it creates in them a stronger
desire to live more like Christ; if it gives them a better understanding
of how to live,--this poor servant of the Lord will be fully rewarded for
all his labor.
Even among the children of God in this beautiful gospel light of the
evening there is an inclination, on the part of a few at least, and maybe
more than a few, to slow down and not be their very best and most active
for God. We hope that this little book will arouse such ones to greater
zeal and earnestness. Diligence, yea, constant application, is the secret
of success in all manner of life and especially in the Christian life.
This volume is written for all those who desire to please God with a well
-spent life. It is sent forth in Jesus' name, with a prayer--that God bless
and help both the reader and the writer to live life at its very best and
fulfil the purpose of God concerning them.
Your humble servant in Christian love,
The Author.
INTRODUCTION.
We have only one life to live, only one. Think of this for a moment. Here
we are in this world of time making the journey of life. Each day we are
farther from the cradle and nearer the grave. Solemn thought. See the
mighty concourse of human lives; hear their heavy tread in their onward
march. Some are just beginning life's journey; some are midway up the
hill, some have reached the top, and some are midway down the western
slope. But where are we all going? Listen, and you will hear but one
answer--"Eternity." Beyond the fading, dying gleams of the sunset of life
lies a boundless, endless ocean called Eternity. Thitherward you and I are
daily traveling.
Time is like a great wheel going its round. On and on it goes. Some are
stepping on and some are stepping off. But where are these latter
stepping? Into eternity. See that old man with bent form, snow-white
locks, and tottering steps. His has been a long round, but he has made it
at last. See the middle-aged. His round has not been so long, but he must
step off. See the youth. He has been on only a little while, but he is
brought to the stepping-off place. He thought his round would be much
longer. He supposed he was fairly getting started when that icy hand was
laid upon him and the usher said, "Come, you have made your round, and you
must go." The infant that gave its first faint cry this morning may utter
its last feeble wail tonight. And thus they go. But where? Eternity.
If you were to start today and ask each person you met the question,
"Where are you going?" and, if possible, you were to travel the world over
and ask each one of earth's inhabitants, there could be but one answer--
"Eternity."
"Oh, eternity,
Long eternity!
Hear the solemn footsteps
Of eternity."
Only one life to live! Only one life, and then we must face vast, endless
eternity. We shall pass along the pathway of life but once. Every step we
take is a step that can never be taken again. With this fact in mind, who
does not feel like calling upon the All-wise to direct his every step. If
when we make a misstep we could go back and step it over, then there would
not be such great necessity to step carefully. But we can never go back.
We are leaving footprints. Just as our steps are, so will the footprints
be which will tell the story of our life. If we had a score of lives to
live, how to live this one would not be of such great moment. We should
then have nineteen lives in which to correct the errors and sins of this
one; but alas! we have but one. What, then, should we seek more earnestly
than to know <i>how to live?</i>
We doubt not but there is in the heart of the reader a strong desire to
live life as it should be lived. Thank God, you can. You desire your life
to be like the fertile oasis, where the weary traveler refreshes himself.
You have seen the rays of light lingering upon the hillside and treetop
and gilding the fleecy cloud after the sun had gone down. You desire the
beautiful rays of light from your life to linger long after your sun has
gone down. You can have it that way. The deeds you do will live after you
are gone. They are the footprints. Some one has said that we each day are
here building the house we are going to occupy in eternity. If this be
true, nothing should concern us so much as how to live. Some men are
devoting their time and the power of their intellects to invention; some
are studying statesmanship; some are studying the arts, others the
sciences; but we have come to learn a little more about how to live. Many
are thinking much about how they wish to die, but let us learn how to
live. If we live well, we shall die well.
Since we have but one life to live and with it we must face eternity, I am
sure there are many who want to make the most of life. There are many who
want to be their best in life. This is not a play-ground, or a place to
trifle with time. It is a place of work and effort, a place of purpose and
earnestness, a place to do something. Life is not given us to squander nor
fritter away, but was given us to accomplish a purpose in the mind of the
Creator. If we will set ourselves to live as we should, God will help us
and no man can hinder us. We are purchasing treasures for eternity by
making a proper use of time. To trifle away time is indeed to be the
greatest of spendthrifts. If you squander a dollar, you may regain it; but
a moment wasted can never be regained.
There is great responsibility in life. It means much to live. The time was
when you and I were not, now we are. We are, and there can never come a
time when we shall not be. You and I shall always exist somehow,
somewhere. One sweet thought to me is that I have time enough to do all
that God intends for me to do, and do it well. Then comes another
thought--a thought that awes: the good that I do, the sum of my
usefulness, will be less than it should be if I spend a moment of time
uselessly. God will give us all the time we need to accomplish all he
purposes us to accomplish, but he does not give us one moment to trifle
away.
The mission of this little volume is to strengthen and energize and help
you to spend life as you should. May it please the Great Teacher, who has
promised to "show us the path of life," to bless this little work and by
it help some one to a pure and noble life and to the accomplishment of all
God's design in giving them life.
The Author.
CONTENTS.
Devotional Reading............................................. 4
Preface........................................................ 5
Introduction................................................... 7
The Way the Sail is Set (Poem)................................ 15
The Model Life................................................ 17
How to Live the Christ-Life................................... 22
The Bible Way................................................. 25
The Heavenly Way.............................................. 29
Keeping the Commandments...................................... 31
"Be Doers of the Word"........................................ 37
Who are the Wise?............................................. 39
Keeping the Commandments a Test of Love....................... 41
The Blessedness of Obeying God's Word......................... 43
The Relationship We Have with Christ through Obedience........ 45
Our Life is to Adorn the Gospel............................... 46
The Christian an Epistle of Christ............................ 48
How We may Live as the Bible Reads............................ 50
How to Keep the Word of God in the Heart...................... 52
Man the Vehicle for Exhibiting God's Perfections.............. 54
Some Use to Jesus (Poem)...................................... 63
Godly Living.................................................. 65
Something to Do............................................... 69
Spiritual Dryness............................................. 76
Prayer........................................................ 81
Keep the Roots Watered........................................ 85
Under the Fig-Tree............................................ 87
Shut the Door................................................. 91
Alone with God................................................ 93
Prayerful Remembrance (Poem).................................. 95
He Careth for Thee............................................ 96
"Consider the Lilies"........................................ 102
Sorrowful Yet always Rejoicing............................... 105
Gentleness................................................... 113
Tenderness................................................... 117
The Christian Walk........................................... 124
The Christian is to Walk Circumspectly....................... 125
The Latest Improved.......................................... 129
The Christian's Walk a Walk with God......................... 130
A Holy Life.................................................. 148
Lukewarmness................................................. 151
Steadfastness................................................ 156
How to Understand God's Will................................. 160
A View of Jesus.............................................. 164
Devotion to God.............................................. 166
The Golden Rule of Life...................................... 174
Timeliness in Doing Good..................................... 177
The Warfare of a Christian Life.............................. 181
Life by Faith................................................ 183
A Valuable Legacy............................................ 185
Some Scriptures for Daily Practise........................... 188
THE WAY THE SAIL IS SET.
I stood beside the open sea;
The ships went sailing by;
The wind blew softly o'er the lea;
The sun had cloudless sky.
Some ships sailed eastward, some sailed west,
Some north, some southward trend.
How can ships sail this way and that?
But one way blows the wind.
An old sea-captain made reply
(His locks with salt-spray wet):
"'Tis not the wind decides the course;
'Tis way the sails are set."
* * * * *
I stand beside the sea of life;
The ships go sailing by;
The winds blow fair from heaven's land;
No clouds bedim the sky.
But one sails eastward, one sails west,
One north, one southward goes:
How can ships sail this way and that
With selfsame wind that blows?
A voice made answer to my soul:
"'Tis not how blows the gale;
Each voyager decides the goal
By way he sets the sail."--Selected.
How to Live a Holy Life
THE MODEL LIFE.
In doing anything, it is always well to have a model by which to fashion
our work. In fact, nothing is done without a pattern, either real or
imaginary. The little boy making a toy has in in his mind a model by which
he is framing his work. Likewise, the sculptor has in his mind a model,
and as the "marble wastes, the image grows" into the likeness of the
vision in his soul.
To live this one life of ours as it should be lived, we must have a
perfect model after which to pattern. Thank God, this perfect model of
life can be found. Of all the vast number of lives that have been lived
since Adam down to this present day, there has been only one that we can
take as a model. This one is the life of Jesus. He says, "I am the life."
To live this life of ours well, to live it to the highest degree of
perfection, we must fashion it according to the glorious life of Christ.
The life of Jesus is the model life for every other human life. He invites
us, yea, commands us, to follow him, to step in his steps, to walk as he
walked.
There have been many good men in the world, but none of them afford us a
true pattern of life. There was a man who said, "Be ye followers of me,"
but he immediately added, "even as I also am of Christ." Man may so live
as to reveal to us the life of Christ. We can then follow, not them, but
the Christ-life they manifested through them.
Let me here say a word on a subject on which we may have more to say
hereafter. The grandest, noblest work man has ever done is by his life to
reveal the life of Christ to another, thereby helping that person to be
fashioned more after the image of Jesus. A little flower grew in a place
so shaded that no ray from the sun could fall directly upon it. A window
was so situated that at a certain time in the afternoon it refracted the
sun's rays and threw them upon the flower, thus giving it color and
beauty, and aiding it to bloom. Some people are living in the dense shade.
No light from Christ has ever shined upon them. If you so live as to
refract the life of Christ and turn it upon them and thus stamp upon them
a holier life, you have not lived in vain. To set the life of Christ in
its purity and beauty before some one and influence him, though only a
little, to live better and love Jesus more, is a work the worth of which
can never be computed. He who helps another to a better way of living does
more than he who gains great worldly honor and riches. Blessed indeed is
that life which causes some other life to be more like Christ. Oh, may
this thought seize upon our hearts and fill us with a greater passion to
live the life of God.
We are told by the voice of Scripture to be "followers of God as dear
children." When children are dear to the heart of the parent, he loves to
have them obey him. God's children are dear to him, and he would have them
follow him. To follow God is to imitate him, or be like him. This is the
true way of life.
A text of Scripture as rendered by the Revised Version is very appropriate
here: "Like as he which has called you is holy, be ye yourselves also holy
in all manner of living." 1 Pet. 1:15. Only those who live godly in their
entire manner of life are spending the days of their pilgrimage as they
should. Jesus has walked the true way of life; we are told to walk in his
steps. If we will step each day just where Jesus stepped, then on looking
back, we can not see a footprint of our own; but if we take a single
misstep, our footprint will show our departure from the true way of life.
How deep and awful are the words of Scripture wherein we are commanded to
walk even as "Jesus walked"! Jesus says, "I am the way." There is no other
right and perfect way. If we will walk as Jesus walked, then we shall walk
in the true path of life. This only is the pathway that leads up to the
golden gates of glory and the sweet fields of heaven. That bright world of
bliss encourages us on. If we will follow Jesus and live as he lived,
God's approval will be upon us, and his outstretched hand will help us
along life's way and finally over the turbulent river of death to the
sunlit shore of eternal rest.
Many times we may become wearied and think the toils of the way almost too
heavy; but when we remember that it is the way that Jesus trod, then the
heavens open to our view, we look forward to the mansion prepared for us,
and the toils of the way grow lighter.
See that aged pilgrim journeying down the western slope of life. The sun
is nearing the setting. Long and toilsome has been his pilgrimage, but he
has walked in the path his Savior trod. For many years his life has been
hid with Christ in God. In Him he has lived and moved and had his being.
Now he is making his last step on the shore of time; he passes out of our
sight through the gates into that land where toils are ended and the sun
never sets. But his life was the life of Jesus. He was holy as God is
holy; he walked as Jesus walked. This is how to live. This is the true way
of life and the only way to life eternal. He who does not live with Christ
on earth can not live with him in heaven, and he who does not live as
Jesus lived does not live as he should. The life of Christ was the perfect
life. Ours is perfect to the degree that we imitate him.
Take my life, O Christ divine,
Make it holy, just like thine;
Every act and thought and word
Be an outflow from my God.
Guide my feet and keep my heart;
Let me not from thee depart;
Let me breathe thy warming love,
That my soul be drawn above.
Draw me, Jesus, closer draw;
Thy strong arm around me throw;
Draw me to thy pierced side;
In thy bosom let me hide.
Teach me all thy will and word,
That my life be filled with God;
Teach me, Lamb of Calvary,
How to live this life for thee.
HOW TO LIVE THE CHRIST-LIFE.
Man can not naturally live the Christ-life. But Christ has promised to
come into our hearts and live in us. In order that we may have Christ
dwell in our hearts and that we may live his life, there must be a giving
up of our self-life. There must be annihilation of self that Christ may
live. It is truly wonderful and as glorious as it is wonderful that man
can live the life of Christ in this world. But here is the secret: it is
man ceasing to live the self-life and Christ living in him.
Imagine a hollow brass figure in the exact image of a man. Suppose you
fill this hollow figure with a kind of life which we shall call self-life.
This life goes to using the hands and feet, and eyes, ears, tongue, in
short, all the members of this brass figure, but using them in the
interest of itself. Now you desire to make a change; you want that image
to speak, act, and think only for you. You must first put to death the
life that is using the figure, cleanse it entirely out, and then get into
it yourself. Once in, you can use all the members of that image for
yourself. Your body is that image. There was a life in you that used all
the members of your body in the interest of self. But there has been a
change. You were made a new creature. The life you once had was put to
death--was crucified; then Christ stepped into your heart, and now he
uses all the members of your body for himself. You still live, yet not
you, but Christ lives in you. Once you did things for yourself; now you do
them for Christ. Just as you once lived purposely and intentionally for
yourself, now you do things purposely and intentionally for Jesus, because
it is he that lives, and not you yourself. You remember how once you would
plan for yourself. In the evening as you lay upon your bed and again in
the morning and throughout the day you would think about what you were
going to eat or drink, what you were going to have for clothing, where you
were going to live, where you were going to go, and what you were going to
do. But now you are changed; you are a new creature. Now it is not you
that lives, but Christ lives in you. Now you eat not for yourself but for
Jesus. You now go, not where self would lead you, but where that life in
you loves to go and would have you go. You do things, not for yourself,
but for Jesus.
O Christ, I die, that thou mayst live,
That thou mayst live in me;
That all I think or speak or do,
May be, O Lord, for thee.
May not the least of self remain,
But all be put to death.
Oh, may I nothing do for self,
Nor draw one selfish breath!
To have my Savior live in me,
To occupy the whole,
To make my heart his royal throne
And take complete control--
'Tis all I ask; 'tis all I wish;
'Tis all my heart's desire,
Content if but a wayside bush
To hold God's holy fire.
Low at thy feet, O Christ, I fall
A yielded lump of clay,
For thee to mold me as thou wilt,
To have thy own sweet way.
THE BIBLE WAY.
If the Bible had not been given us, we should not always know the way that
Jesus walked. But he has given us his Word. The way of the Bible is the
way of Christ, and is therefore the true path of life. O pilgrim to the
heavenly kingdom, the Word of God will be a lamp unto thy feet and a light
unto thy way. It will lighten you home. There will never be a day so dark
but the beams of light from the blessed Bible will pierce through the
darkness and fall with a bright radiance upon your pathway. If sometimes
you can not see just where Jesus stepped, take the precious Book of God,
and it will be a lamp to show you the way he trod. One wintry morning a
father went a long distance through the deep snow to feed his sheep. A few
hours later a little boy was sent to call his father home. The child was
carefully stepping in the footprints before him, but soon a dark cloud
arose and the blinding snow-storm so dimmed his eye that he frequently
stepped aside. In the beautiful, clear light of the Bible we can see all
the way that Jesus trod. If we will walk according to the Bible, we shall
walk as Jesus walked and not show a double track. Make the blessed Word of
God your guide if you would walk aright the path of life and be happy.
"And often for your comfort you will read the Guide
and Chart:
It has wisdom for the mind and sweet solace for the
heart;
It will serve you as a mentor; it will guide you sure
and straight
All the time that you will journey, be the ending soon
or late."
'The Scriptures are given by inspiration of God and are profitable for
doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
that the man of God may be perfect' 2 Tim. 3:16. If by faith we receive
into our hearts the instruction in righteousness as given by the
Scriptures, it will make us perfect in this life. O reader, if you would
know how to live, study the Bible. It points out the way clearly and
plainly. Let its truths in all their power reach to the depth of thy
heart. Let thy soul seize upon the Bible and drink its strength and
sweetness as the bee sips the sweetness from the flower. As the animal
eats the plant and by assimilation converts it into animal life, so eat
the Book of God and convert it into human life. It is the food of angels.
But rather than its being the Bible converted into human life, it is human
life transformed into the purity of the Bible. There are great depths to
the Bible. The simplest text contains depths to which we can ever be
descending.
They who would live a perfect life must set the life of Christ before them
as portrayed by the Holy Scriptures. You can not see much of this perfect
life by a passing glance. It is he who looks into the perfect law of
liberty and continues to look that will see the perfect life which it
pictures. The artist must look long at the landscape and get it imaged
upon his soul before he can produce it upon the canvas. The Bible
description of the life of Christ must fill your soul with admiration and
with a strong desire to possess it. Your heart must lay hold upon it until
that life is focused and printed upon your own soul. It is like the art of
photographing. The object must be set before the heart.
The Bible is the light that shines the image of Christ upon the soul. For
the pure in heart to develop into higher spiritual life, they must gain
such an admiration for the beauty of Christ that they will long to possess
him in greater fulness. The pleading of the heart will be, "Lord, let thy
beauty be upon us." Their souls will follow hard after his perfections. In
no other way will the soul unfold and develop into the higher Christian
life. He who has not learned how to grow in grace has not yet learned how
to live. To live life in the best possible manner is to be making constant
progress. Oh, let us give this world our best life! When we are nearing
the end of the way and life's sun is sinking low, if on looking back we
can see nothing but a life spent in the service of God, walking in the
light of his Word, this will afford us untold satisfaction.
O blessed Word of eternal life,
The lamp to guide the way
Through this weary world of sin and strife
To heaven's perfect day!
THE HEAVENLY WAY.
There is a heaven. There is a place of rest and happiness. I have not gone
to heaven, but heaven has come to me; therefore I know there is a heaven.
Many who have eaten oranges have never been in a land where oranges grow,
but these persons know there must be such a land, because they have tasted
its fruit. Likewise, I know there is a heaven because I daily taste its
joy.
Not only is there a heaven, but there is a way to heaven. All can go who
will. Heaven is a holy place, and the way to heaven is a holy way. A
prophet of God said, "An highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall
be called the way of holiness." The Christian dwells in a heavenly place.
The writer to the saints at Ephesus says, "He hath raised us up together,
and made us sit together in heavenly places." To live in a heavenly place,
we must live a heavenly life. Those who do not live a heavenly life on
earth will never live in heaven. The heavenly life is the only life worth
living. It is the only life that ends in heaven. The way of holiness is
the way of happiness. Holy and happy is the true and right life of man.
This one brief life of ours should be constant holiness and happiness.
Without these, life is not as it should be. It is our privilege in Christ
to walk the path of life in perfect peace and joy and in perfect holiness.
Such a life will flow out into an eternity of joys unspeakable.
Wait thou on God, O soul of mine!
Listen to know his will;
Light will come from the golden throne
If thou, O soul, be still.
If thou wouldst sail on tranquil sea,
Wait thou on God, my soul.
Speak, act, and think alone in him;
Sweet rest shall be thy goal.
If thou wouldst have life's way to be
Verdant as the growing sod,
Take each step 'neath the guiding eye,
Keep in close touch with God.
Sweet heavenly life! sweet happy life!
Thy joys increase each day.
O soul of mine, press up and on
This high and holy way.
KEEPING THE COMMANDMENTS.
God's Word is pure. Heaven itself and the great white throne is no more
pure than the Word of God. That life may be pure, it must be in sweet
harmony with the blessed Bible. A life that is lived in obedience to the
Bible is as pure as the Bible. Such a life is pure enough for heaven. The
writer of Revelation, being in the Spirit, saw "a pure river of water of
life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the
Lamb." This pure stream was the wonderful word of life. It was as pure as
its source, which was the throne of God. The life through which this pure
stream flows will be as pure as the throne.
One of the Psalm-writers said, "The words of the Lord are pure words: as
silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times." "Thy word is
pure; therefore thy servant loveth it." The writer of Proverbs says,
"Every word of God is pure." When the veil is drawn aside and our souls
are brought face to face with the purity of the Bible, then we understand
that a Bible life is the best, purest, noblest, and holiest life that can
be lived upon the earth.
O soul of mine, unveil thine eye,
Look upward to thy God,
A wreath of purity to see
Crowning his every word.
In the following words we have the sum of all true and right living: "Let
us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep his
commandments; for this is the whole duty of man." Eccl. 12:13. This text
as rendered in the Septuagint version brings out clearer the true
signification: "Hear the end of the matter, the sum. Fear God and keep his
commandments: for this is the whole man." Man is not entire, he is not
complete as originally intended, when not keeping all the commands of God.
Something is lacking in the life that is not in full obedience to every
word of God.
The Bible speaks of a beautiful city in that bright, celestial world. It
is a city of pure gold, clear as glass. Its walls are of jasper; its
twelve foundations are garnished with all manner of precious stones; its
twelve gates are gates of pearl; its streets are pure gold. In that fair
city there is no sin, no pain, no sickness; sorrow and trouble never come
there; a tear shall never fall from any eye, for no tears are there. There
is no death in that wonderful city so fair. In the midst of the street
stands the tree of life. Oh, who does not desire to dwell forever and
forever in that city of love and light when the pains and sorrows, the
trials and tears, of this weary life are over?
Listen while I read to you in accents clear, distinct, and unmistakable--
"Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to
the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city." Rev.
22:14. O traveler to eternity, your entrance into the beautiful, glorious
city of God depends upon your conduct respecting the commandments of God
while you are making the journey across the turbulent sea of life. Keeping
the commandments of God is man's whole duty. If he does his whole duty
through life, he will come up out of the dark valley and shadow of death,
and find the gates of pearl unfolding. Who will not cleave to the
commandments of God? Who will not obey his voice and walk daily in his
holy ways? The obedient will be rewarded by an unfading inheritance in
that eternal city of gold. There is a beautiful mansion in the great house
of God for every obedient soul. Oh, how blessed!
I am thinking of heaven tonight,
Of the mansion prepared there for me,
Where Jesus my Savior now dwells,
And where I am longing to be.
Will not heaven be well worth a life of obedience to the Word of God,
though obedience calls us through storms of persecutions, furnaces of
trials, oceans of tribulations, and years of toil and suffering? To Moses
the reproaches of Christ were greater treasures than the riches of Egypt,
"for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward." Sit quiet for a
moment and by a strong eye of faith look away into heaven and see that
bright mansion prepared for you. See those jasper walls, those pearly
gates, and those golden walks. See the crown of life, the harp of God, and
the light of the Lamb. Shall we not bear the trials of life a little
longer in patience? Shall we not be watchful to walk in God's ways and
obey him, that this rich inheritance may be ours forever? Methinks I can
hear a reply coming from the depths of many a sincere, trusting heart--
"Yes, I will live in humble obedience to God on earth, that I may be with
him forever in that celestial city of light." God bless you!
Beyond the shores of time and the kingdoms of this world is a kingdom
called the kingdom of heaven. It is the place where God has his great
white throne, around which the angels play upon their golden harps and
shout, "Blessing and honor and glory and praise and might be unto God
forever and ever." It is around this throne that those who have passed
through the tribulations and the trying scenes of this lower world and
burst through the gates of death are singing redemption's sweet song. Who
does not desire to join that happy, heavenly throng and wave those palms
and wear those white robes and sing those sweet songs over beyond the
shadowy vale of death? I seem to hear many voices saying, "I hope to be
among that blood-washed throng." Let me tell you in all tenderness and
love, but very plainly, that the realization of your hope depends entirely
upon how you live while here in this world. Oh, how much in that great and
awful future is depending upon our manner of life in this time-world! Let
us learn to live well, to be our best every day.
We may dream of a home in heaven; we may entertain hopes of seeing Jesus
and of inheriting a mansion on the shores of eternal bliss; we may imagine
ourselves walking through the blooming fields of paradise and sitting
beneath the tree of life; but our dreams, our hopes, and our imaginations
will never be realized unless we carefully keep the commandments of God.
More than a profession is necessary; obedience is the only door into the
kingdom of God. Jesus said, "Not every one that sayeth unto me, Lord,
Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my
Father which is in heaven." Until our faith pierces through and beholds
the beauties and the realities of God so we can say from the very depths
of the soul, "I delight to do thy will, O God." and, "My meat and my drink
is to do the will of Him that sent me," we have not fully entered the true
and right pathway of life. Keeping the commands of God is the whole man
and the whole of a perfect life.
"BE DOERS OF THE WORD."
I want to remind you again that the mission of this little volume is to
teach you how to live. The life beyond depends on the life here. Let me
emphasize what I have repeatedly said before: to live as we should, we
must live by every word of God. To live by every word of God is not only
to hear it but also to do it. We have learned that, in order to enter the
city of God and eat of the tree of life, we must <i>do</i> his
commandments, and also that it is not "every one that sayeth, Lord, Lord,
that shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of my
Father which is in heaven."
Now I will read you a text from the Epistle of James, "But be ye doers of
the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves." We are living
in a careless age. The Word of God is being treated with neglect. Many are
hearing it, but alas! how few are doing it! In this way people deceive
themselves. They think they are on their way to heaven, when they are not.
The only way to heaven is by doing the commandments. To illustrate this, I
will refer you to a few texts. "If thine enemy hunger, feed him." Rom.
12:20. "Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the
other also." Matt. 5:39. "And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye
also to them likewise." Luke 6:31. If it comes most natural for us to live
according to these texts, we can begin to conclude that our hearts are
right with God. However, we must have a heart that does not rebel against
any text in the Bible.
We are exhorted earnestly by the apostle Peter to make our "calling and
election sure." The only way to do so is to live to every word of God. Oh,
my dear reader, those sweet hopes you have had of reaching heaven and of
seeing Jesus and those dear loved ones who have gone before you to that
other side will never be realized by you unless you be a diligent doer of
the Word of God. I feel like warning you against all carelessness and
neglect, and to keep yourself in the love of God. See that your heart and
life reads each day as the Bible reads, and you will then have an unshaken
foundation for your faith and hope. If you would know how to live and make
the best of life, read the Bible much and conform your life to its
teaching.
WHO ARE THE WISE?
Who is a foolish man? It is a man who hears the sayings of Jesus and fails
to do them. He is likened to a man who was foolish enough to build his
house upon the sand. This man would better not have built at all, for the
cost of building was lost. He could have had the money for his use and
enjoyment if he had not wasted it in building a house on the sand. A
foolish man, indeed! Who is a wise man? It is the man who hears the
sayings of Jesus and does them. He is likened to a man who built his house
upon a rock. From a temporal standpoint nothing else is so conducive to
man's happiness as a good home. No better use can be made of money than to
spend it in the building of a home, provided the house be built upon a
sure foundation. A man who hears God's Word and does it is likened to such
a man. To build up a Christian character in obedience to the Bible is the
greatest wisdom. That is building a mansion in heaven.
A real, true Christian experience and life cost something, but they pay,
because they will stand. A mere profession of Christianity may cost
something also, but it does not pay, since it will not stand. A man who
erects his house upon the sand can build at less cost than he who digs
deep and lays his foundation upon the rock, but at the very time when the
former man most needs his house--when the winds blow and the rain falls--
that is when it is destroyed. On the other hand, the man who builds upon a
rock has a house to shelter him through the storms. Likewise, he who
builds up a Christian experience in obedience to the Word of God will have
something to serve him in a time of need.
We thus learn from Jesus' parable of the wise and the foolish house
-builders that obeying the Bible is the true way of life.
KEEPING THE COMMANDMENTS A TEST OF LOVE.
We are commanded to love God. It is the first and greatest commandment.
Love is more than an emotion; it is an act of the will. A mother loves her
child constantly, though she may not always experience the emotions of
love. Her care for her child is a proof of her love. We may not always
experience a feeling of love toward God, but we can always love him. Our
love is measured, not by our emotions, but by our obedience--our service.
We labor for those we love, and the love makes the labor light. It is not
an irksome thing to obey God when we love him.
It is possible to make a profession of love to God and not really love
him. It may be that many are deceived at this point. One scripture says,
"If any man love God, the same is known of him." Jesus says, "Why call ye
me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" Love is something more
than mere words. It is useless to make a profession of love to Jesus and
not do what he says. A husband can not convince his wife of his love by a
mere profession of love, but he can convince her by his acts. We are to
love, not in word and tongue only, but also in deed and in truth. Again,
Jesus says, "If a man love me, he will keep my words." Here is an
unfailing test of love. If you will not obey God, he knows you do not love
him, no matter how much you may profess to love him.
So again we are reminded by the Holy Bible that, in order to spend this
brief life of ours as we should, we must keep the commandments of God. No
other life will find acceptance with God. No other life will please him.
He desires your love most certainly, but he wants such love as will prompt
you to obey him. Do not measure your Christian experience by your
feelings, but measure it by your obedience as proceeding from an internal
principle. When you find something in your heart that causes you to obey
God no matter how you feel, you have good reason to hope that you are a
Christian.
In subsequent chapters I will tell you something of what God's Word
teaches, but, first of all, I desire to fully convince you, and to help
you to feel, that the right and true way of life is in obedience to its
teaching.
THE BLESSEDNESS OF OBEYING GOD'S WORD.
Everything is said in the Scriptures that can be said to show us the need
of living in harmony with the Bible. If our lives are out of harmony with
one text in that blessed book, we are not yet fitted for heaven. We can
never be admitted into the everlasting kingdom of God if we knowingly
refuse or neglect to live to every word of God. We are therefore exhorted,
beseeched, entreated, encouraged, warned, and commanded to obey every text
in the Bible. We are encouraged to obedience by being told of the
blessedness of keeping the commandments.
It is natural for mothers to love to have their children well spoken of.
We do not fault them for this. When a young man, by his good deportment,
is gaining a fair name, mothers, when together, will remark, "It is
blessed to be the mother of a young man like that." There was a woman who
heard of the fame of a young man. He was casting out devils, healing the
sick, opening blinded eyes, and unstopping deaf ears, and consequently he
was gaining a wide and favorable reputation. This woman came to the young
man and with that mother in her heart said to him, "Blessed is the womb
that bear thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked." It was, indeed,
blessed to be the mother of this young man. An angel from heaven
acknowledged this. In speaking to Mary of the birth of Jesus (for he was
the young man), the angel said, "Hail, thou that are highly favored, the
Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women." She was more highly
favored than any other woman on earth, because she was to become the
mother of the Son of God. Can it be that any one can be more blessed than
this happy mother of Jesus? Let us hear his reply to the woman--"But he
said, Yea, rather blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it."
Jesus did not deny that it was blessed to be his mother, but said that
those who hear God's word and keep it are rather, or more, blessed. God
favors those who obey him. "The willing and obedient shall eat the good of
the land." "Hadst thou hearkened unto my commandments, then wouldst thy
peace be like a river." Happiness is the result of obedience, and heaven
is the final reward.
THE RELATIONSHIP WE HAVE WITH CHRIST THROUGH OBEDIENCE.
The reason why it is more blessed to obey the Word of God than to be the
mother of Jesus is obvious. Spiritual things are higher than physical
things. Spiritual relation is closer than natural relation. Brotherhood in
Christ is closer than brotherhood in the flesh. A brother in the Spirit is
dearer to us than a son of our own mother. Obedience to God makes us one
with God. Mary was the mother of Jesus after the flesh, but God's children
enjoy such a relation after the spirit. At one time somebody brought word
to Jesus that his mother and his brethren stood outside desiring to see
him. "But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother?
and who are my brethren? And he stretched forth his hand toward his
disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! for whoever shall
do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and
sister, and mother." Matt. 12:48-50. Every one who desires to spend life
in the highest possible degree of perfection should make a constant study
of the Bible and should carefully and diligently obey all its precepts.
Doing this will bring him into the closest possible relationship with God
and will make life the best man can live.
OUR LIFE IS TO ADORN THE GOSPEL.
To adorn is to make attractive, to beautify. We are exhorted by the
apostle Paul to adorn the doctrine of the New Testament by our every-day
life. This thought should be a powerful incentive to close living with God
and assiduously keeping all of his commandments. Who would not take
pleasure in adorning the teachings of Jesus by a pure life? This is the
joy of the Christian's heart. He cares nothing for the adornings of the
world, but oh, that he may so live as to make beautiful the blessed
Bible!--this is happiness enough to him.
In another of the Pauline Epistles we are commanded to "let our manner of
life be as it becometh the gospel of Christ." To become is also to make
attractive or to give a better appearance to. An article of dress is
becoming to us when it gives us a better appearance. We speak of any one's
bad conduct as not being becoming to him. We are to become the gospel of
Christ by holy living. When a life is lived as God designed that life
should be, that life will be an adornment to the Scriptures.
God will beautify his children with the glories of his redeeming grace; he
will adorn them with a meek and quiet spirit, which in his sight is very
precious, that they, in turn, may adorn his commandments. As a bride decks
herself with jewels, so the heavenly Father beautifies his children with
the robe of righteousness.
The life of a Christian is God's special treasure. "They shall be mine,"
says the Lord, "in that day when I make up my jewels," or "special
treasure" as rendered by the margin (see Mal. 3:17). By reading the
context we learn that it is those who fear the Lord that are his jewels.
To fear God and keep his commandments is man's whole duty. It is a perfect
life. Such a life is the Lord's jewel. Such a life is recorded in heaven.
Oh, how animating is such knowledge! How it strengthens our hearts to live
a righteous life. To live a life that is worthy to be recorded in heaven
and is a special treasure to God is truly wonderful. Our souls are awed by
such a thought. Oh, how it ought to move our hearts to carefulness in
life! How diligent we should be to walk as worthy citizens of our heavenly
state! Some day the Lord will come and gather up these holy lives and
place them in his heavenly courts above, where they shall shine as the
stars forever.
Oh, take this life, this life of mine
(To thee, O God, 'tis freely given),
And polish it, that it may shine,
And ornament thy Word divine.
THE CHRISTIAN AN EPISTLE OF CHRIST.
The life we live is being read. We are not going through the world
unnoticed. Some one is looking on, and some one is to some extent
fashioning his life after ours. Our life each day is being written down in
some one's memory. My own dear children group around me at times and talk
of their mother, who has gone to heaven. Her pure and holy life written in
their memory is read over and over to each other and to me. She still
lives as an epistle in their hearts. They read her daily life while she
was with them, and they continue to read it since she is gone. Christians
are said to be the epistle of Christ (2 Cor. 3:3). To read their life is
to read the life of Jesus. All the Bible that many will ever read is what
they read in the lives of Christians.
Life will be read just as it is, not as it may pretend to be. It is not
what we pretend to be, but what we really are, that will go down in the
memory of others. Those who read our lives have a way of reading between
the lines. We should strive not so much to make life holy as to be holy.
If you are holy, then live just what you are. We should never strive to be
what we are not. The only way whereby the Bible may be read in the life is
to get it in the heart. People will never read the Word of God in your
life simply because you have a neat little Testament in your pocket or a
large family Bible on your center table. The Bible can get into the life
only by beginning at the heart. There is power in the Word of God, but it
works from within. "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly." It will
transform the life so that the life will read just like the Holy
Scriptures.
The Word of God is a lamp to light us into a holy life. If we follow its
instructions in righteousness, it will make us perfect. It reveals our
imperfections and thus gives us an opportunity to make improvements. To
discover an imperfection in the life is not a bad thing, and we need not
think we are any the worse for the discovery. It is only when we let the
imperfection remain after it is revealed to us, that we become worse.