so are all the appointments and gifts of Providence perverted in like
manner. What can be more excellent than the vigorous and patient
employment of the intellect; yet in the hands of Satan it gives birth
to a proud philosophy. When St. Paul preached, the wise men of the
world, in God's eyes, were but fools, for they had used their powers of
mind in the cause of error, their reasonings even led them to be
irreligious and immoral; and they despised the doctrine of a
resurrection which they neither loved nor believed. And again, all the
more refined arts of life have been disgraced by the vicious tastes of
those who excelled in them; often they have been consecrated to the
service of idolatry; often they have been made the instruments of
sensuality and riot. But it would be endless to recount the manifold
and complex corruption which man has introduced into the world which
God made good, evil has preoccupied the whole of it, and holds fast its
conquest. We know, indeed, that the gracious God revealed Himself to
His sinful creatures very soon after Adam's fall. He showed His will
to mankind again and again, and pleaded with them through many ages;
till at length His Son was born into this sinful world in the form of
man, and taught us how to please Him. Still, hitherto the good work
has proceeded slowly: such is His pleasure. Evil had the start of good
by many days; it filled the world, it holds it: it has the strength of
possession, and if has its strength in the human heart; for though we
cannot keep from approving what is right in our conscience, yet we love
and encourage what is wrong; so that when evil was once set up in the
world, it was secured in its seat by the unwillingness with which our
hearts relinquish it.
And now I have described what is meant by the sinful world; that is,
the world as corrupted by man, the course of human affairs viewed in
its connexion with the principles, opinions, and practices which
actually direct it. There is no mistaking these; they are evil; and of
these it is that St. John says, "If any man love the world, the love of
the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of
the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of
the Father, but is of the world[2]."
The world then is the enemy of our souls; first, because, however
innocent its pleasures, and praiseworthy its pursuits may be, they are
likely to engross us, unless we are on our guard: and secondly, because
in all its best pleasures, and noblest pursuits, the seeds of sin have
been sown; an enemy hath done this; so that it is most difficult to
enjoy the good without partaking of the evil also. As an orderly
system of various ranks, with various pursuits and their several
rewards, it is to be considered not sinful indeed, but dangerous to us.
On the other hand, considered in reference to its principles and actual
practices, it is really a sinful world. Accordingly, when we are bid
in Scripture to shun the world, it is meant that we must be cautious,
lest we love what is good in it too well, and lest we love the bad at
all.--However, there is a mistaken notion sometimes entertained, that
the world is some particular set of persons, and that to shun the world
is to shun them; as if we could point out, as it were, with the finger,
what is the world, and thus could easily rid ourselves of one of our
three great enemies. Men, who are beset with this notion, are often
great lovers of the world notwithstanding, while they think themselves
at a distance from it altogether. They love its pleasures, and they
yield to its principles, yet they speak strongly against men of the
world, and avoid them. They act the part of superstitious people, who
are afraid of seeing evil spirits in what are considered haunted
places, while these spirits are busy at their hearts instead, and they
do not suspect it.
3. Here then is a question, which it will be well to consider, viz. how
far the world is a separate body from the Church of God. The two are
certainly contrasted in the text, as elsewhere in Scripture. "We know
that we are of God, and _the whole world_ lieth in wickedness." Now
the true account of this is, that the Church so far from being
literally, and in fact, separate from the wicked world, is within it.
The Church is a body, gathered together in the world, and in a process
of separation from it. The world's power, alas! is over the Church,
because the Church has gone forth into the world to save the world.
All Christians are in the world, and of the world, so far as sin still
has dominion over them; and not even the best of us is clean every whit
from sin. Though then, in our idea of the two, and in their
principles, and in their future prospects, the Church is one thing, and
the world is another, yet in present matter of fact, the Church is of
the world, not separate from it; for the grace of God has but partial
possession even of religious men, and the best that can be said of us
is, that we have two sides, a light side and a dark, and that the dark
happens to be the outermost. Thus we form part of the world to each
other, though we be not of the world. Even supposing there were a
society of men influenced individually by Christian motives, still this
society, viewed as a whole, would be a worldly one, I mean a society
holding and maintaining many errors, and countenancing many bad
practices. Evil ever floats at the top. And if we inquire why it is
that the good in Christians is seen less than the bad? I answer,
first, because there is less of it; and secondly, because evil forces
itself upon general notice, and good does not. So that in a large body
of men, each contributing his portion, evil displays itself on the
whole conspicuously, and in all its diversified shapes. And thirdly,
from the nature of things, the soul cannot be understood by any but
God, and a religious spirit is in St. Peter's words, "the hidden man of
the heart." It is only the actions of others which we see for the most
part, and since there are numberless ways of doing wrong, and but one
of doing right, and numberless ways too of regarding and judging the
conduct of others, no wonder that even the better sort of men, much
more the generality, are, and seem to be, so sinful. God only sees the
circumstances under which a man acts, and why he acts in this way and
not in that. God only sees perfectly the train of thought which
preceded his action, the motive, and the reasons. And God alone (if
aught is ill done, or sinfully) sees the deep contrition
afterwards,--the habitual lowliness, then bursting forth into special
self-reproach,--and the meek faith casting itself wholly upon God's
mercy. Think for a moment, how many hours in the day every man is left
wholly to himself and his God, or rather how few minutes he is in
intercourse with others--consider this, and you will perceive how it is
that the life of the Church is hid with God, and how it is that the
outward conduct of the Church must necessarily look like the world,
even far more than it really is like it, and how vain, in consequence,
the attempt is (which, some make) of separating the world distinctly
from the Church. Consider, moreover, how much there is, while we are
in the body, to stand in the way of one mind communicating with
another. We are imprisoned in the body, and our intercourse is by
means of words, which feebly represent our real feelings. Hence the
best motives and truest opinions are misunderstood, and the most sound
rules of conduct misapplied by others. And Christians are necessarily
more or less strange to each other; nay, and as far as the appearance
of things is concerned, almost mislead each other, and are, as I have
said, the world one to another. It is long, indeed, before we become
at all acquainted with each other, and we appear the one to the other
cold, or harsh, or capricious, or self-willed, when we are not so. So
that it unhappily comes to pass, that even good men retire from each
other into themselves, and to their God, as if retreating from the rude
world.
And if all this takes place in the case of the better sort of men, how
much more will it happen in the case of those multitudes who are still
unstable in faith and obedience, half Christians, not having yet
wrought themselves into any consistent shape of opinion and practice!
These, so far from showing the better part of themselves, often affect
to be worse even than they are. Though they have secret fears and
misgivings, and God's grace pleads with their conscience, and seasons
of seriousness follow, yet they are ashamed to confess to each other
their own seriousness, and they ridicule religious men lest they should
be themselves ridiculed.
And thus, on the whole, the state of the case is as follows: that if we
look through mankind in order to find out who make up the world, and
who do not, we shall find none who are not of the world; inasmuch as
there are none who are not exposed to infirmity. So that if to shun
the world is to shun some body of men so called, we must shun all men,
nay, ourselves too--which is a conclusion which means nothing at all.
But let us, avoiding all refinements which lead to a display of words
only, not to the improvement of our hearts and conduct, let us set to
work practically; and instead of attempting to judge of mankind on a
large scale, and to settle deep questions, let us take what is close at
hand and concerns ourselves, and make use of such knowledge as we can
obtain. Are we tempted to neglect the worship of God for some temporal
object? this is of the world, and not to be admitted. Are we ridiculed
for our conscientious conduct? this again is a trial of the world, and
to be withstood. Are we tempted to give too much time to our
recreations; to be idling when we should be working; reading or talking
when we should be busy in our temporal calling; hoping for
impossibilities, or fancying ourselves in some different state of life
from our own; over anxious of the good opinion of others; bent upon
getting the credit of industry, honesty, and prudence? all these are
temptations of this world. Are we discontented with our lot, or are we
over attached to it, and fretful and desponding when God recalls the
good He has given? this is to be worldly-minded.
Look not about for the world as some vast and gigantic evil far
off--its temptations are close to you, apt and ready, suddenly offered
and subtle in their address. Try to bring down the words of Scripture
to common life, and to recognize the evil in which this world lies, in
your own hearts.
When our Saviour comes, He will destroy this world, even His own work,
and much more the lusts of the world, which are of the evil one; then
at length we must lose the world, even if we cannot bring ourselves to
part with it now. And we shall perish with the world, if on that day
its lusts are found within us. "The world passeth away, and the lust
thereof, but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever."
[1] 1 John ii. 15.
[2] John ii. 15, 16.
SERMON IV.
The Praise of Men.
"_They loved the praise of men more than the praise of God._"--John
xii. 43.
This is spoken of the chief rulers of the Jews, who, though they
believed in Christ's Divine mission, were afraid to confess Him, lest
they should incur temporal loss and shame from the Pharisees. The
censure passed by St. John on these persons is too often applicable to
Christians at the present day; perhaps, indeed, there is no one among
us who has not at some time or other fallen under it. We love the good
opinion of the world more than the approbation of Him who created us,
redeemed us, has regenerated us, and who still preserves to us the
opportunity of preparing ourselves for His future presence. Such is
too often the case with us. It is well we should be aware that it is
so; it is well we should dwell upon it, and that we should understand
and feel that it is wrong, which many men do not.
Now it is an obvious question, Why is it wrong to love the praise of
men? For it may be objected, that we are accustomed to educate the
young by means of praise and blame; that we encourage them by kind
words _from us_, that is, from man; and punish them for disobedience.
If, then, it may be argued, it is right to regard the opinions of
others concerning us in our youth, it cannot be in itself wrong to pay
attention to it at any other period of life. This is true; but I do
not say that the mere love of praise and fear of shame are evil: regard
to the corrupt world's praise or blame, this is what is sinful and
dangerous. St. John, in the text, implies that the praise of men was,
at the time spoken of, in opposition to the praise of God. It must be
wrong to prefer any thing to the will of God. To seek praise is in
itself as little wrong, as it is wrong to hope, and to fear, and to
love, and to trust; all depends upon the object hoped, or feared, or
loved, or trusted; to seek the praise of good men is not wrong, any
more than to love or to reverence good men; only wrong when it is in
excess, when it interferes with the exercise of love and reverence
towards God. Not wrong while we look on good men singly as instruments
and servants of God; or, in the words of Scripture, while "we glorify
God in them[1]." But to seek the praise of bad men, is in itself as
wrong as to love the company of bad men, or to admire them. It is not,
I say, merely the love of praise that is a sin, but love of the corrupt
world's praise. This is the case with all our natural feelings and
affections; they are all in themselves good, and implanted by God; they
are sinful, because we have in us by nature a something more than them,
viz. an evil principle which perverts them to a bad end. Adam, before
his fall, felt, we may suppose, love, fear, hope, joy, dislike, as we
do now; but then he felt them only when he ought, and as he ought; all
was harmoniously attempered and rightly adjusted in his soul, which was
at unity with itself. But, at the fall, this beautiful order and peace
was broken up; the same passions remained, but their use and action
were changed; they rushed into extremes, sometimes excessive, sometimes
the reverse. Indignation was corrupted into wrath, self-love became
selfishness, self-respect became pride, and emulation envy and
jealousy. They were at variance with each other; pride struggled with
self-interest, fear with desire. Thus his soul became a chaos, and
needed a new creation. Moreover, as I have said, his affections were
set upon unsuitable objects. The natural man looks to this world, the
world is his god; faith, love, hope, joy, are not excited in his mind
by things spiritual and divine, but by things seen and temporal.
Considering, then, that love of praise is not a bad principle in
itself, it is plain that a parent may very properly teach his child to
love his praise, and fear his blame, when that praise and blame are
given in accordance with God's praise and blame, and made subservient
to them. And, in like manner, if the world at large took a correct and
religious view of things, then its praise and blame would in its place
be valuable too. Did the world admire what God admires; did it account
humility, for instance, a great virtue, and pride a great sin; did it
condemn that spirit of self-importance and sensitiveness of disgrace,
which calls itself a love of honour; did it think little of temporal
prosperity, wealth, rank, grandeur, and power, did it condemn arrogant
and irreverent disputing, the noisy, turbulent spirit of ambition, the
love of war and conquest, and the perverse temper which leads to
jealousy and hatred; did it prefer goodness and truth to gifts of the
intellect; did it think little of quickness, wit, shrewdness, power of
speech and general acquirements, and much of patience, meekness,
gentleness, firmness, faith, conscientiousness, purity, forgiveness of
injuries,--then there would be no sin in our seeking the world's
praise; and though we still ought to love God's praise above all, yet
we might love the praise of the world in its degree, for it would be
nothing more nor less than the praise of good men. But since, alas!
the contrary is the case, since the world (as Scripture tells us)
"lieth in wickedness," and the principles and practices which prevail
on all sides of us are not those which the All-holy God sanctions, we
cannot lawfully seek the world's praise. We cannot serve two masters
who are enemies the one to the other. We are forbidden to love the
world or any thing that is of the world, for it is not of the Father,
but passeth away.
This is the reason why it is wrong to pursue the world's praise; viz.
because we cannot have it and God's praise too. And yet, as the
pursuit of it is wrong, so is it common,--for this reason: because God
is unseen, and the world is seen; because God's praise and blame are
future, the world's are present; because God's praise and blame are
inward, and come quietly and without keenness, whereas the world's are
very plain and intelligible, and make themselves felt.
Take, for instance, the case of the young, on (what is called) entering
into life. Very many, indeed, there are, whether in a higher or lower
station, who enter into the mixed society of others early; so early,
that it might be thought they had hardly had time to acquire any
previous knowledge of right and wrong, any standard of right and wrong,
other than the world gives, any principles by which to fight against
the world. And yet it cannot quite be so. Whatever is the first time
persons hear evil, it is quite certain that good has been beforehand
with them, and they have a something within them which tells them it is
evil. And much more, if they have been blessed, as most men are, with
the protection of parents, or the kind offices of teachers or of God's
ministers, they generally have principles of duty more or less strongly
imprinted on their minds; and on their first intercourse with strangers
they are shocked or frighted at seeing the improprieties and sins,
which are openly countenanced. Alas! there are persons, doubtless
(though God forbid it should be the case with any here present!), whose
consciences have been so early trained into forgetfulness of religious
duties, that they can hardly, or cannot at all, recollect the time I
speak of; the time when they acted with the secret feeling that God saw
them, saw all they did and thought. I will not fancy this to be the
case with any who hear me. Rather, there are many of you, in different
ranks and circumstances, who have, and ever have had, general
impressions on your minds of the claims which religion has on you, but,
at the same time, have been afraid of acting upon them, afraid of the
opinion of the world, of what others would say if you set about obeying
your conscience. Ridicule is a most powerful instrument in the hands
of Satan, and it is most vividly felt by the young. If any one wishes
to do his duty, it is most easy for the cold, the heartless, and the
thoughtless, to find out harsh, or provoking, or ridiculous names to
fix upon him. My brethren, so many of you as are sensitive of the
laughter or contempt of the world, this is your cross; you must wear
it, you must endure it patiently; it is the mark of your conformity to
Christ; He despised the shame: you must learn to endure it, from the
example and by the aid of your Saviour. You must love the praise of
God more than the praise of men. It is the very trial suited to you,
appointed for you, to establish you in the faith. You are not tempted
with gain or ambition, but with ridicule. And be sure, that unless you
withstand it, you cannot endure hardships as good soldiers of Jesus
Christ, you will not endure other temptations which are to follow. How
can you advance a step in your after and more extended course till the
first difficulty is overcome? You need faith, and "a double-minded
man," says St. James, "is unstable in all his ways." Moreover, be not
too sure that all who show an inclination to ridicule you, feel exactly
as they say. They speak with the loudest speaker; speak you boldly,
and they will speak with you. They have very little of definite
opinion themselves, or probably they even feel with you, though they
speak against you. Very likely they have uneasy, unsatisfied
consciences, though they seem to sin so boldly; and are as afraid of
the world as you can be, nay, more so; they join in ridiculing you,
lest others should ridicule them; or they do so in a sort of
self-defence against the reproaches of their own consciences. Numbers
in this bad world talk loudly against religion in order to encourage
each other in sin, because they need encouragement. They are cowards,
and rely on each other for support against their fears. They know they
ought to be other than they are, but are glad to avail themselves of
any thing that looks like argument, to overcome their consciences
withal. And ridicule is a kind of argument--such as it is; and numbers
ridiculing together are a still stronger one--of the same kind. Any
how, there are few indeed who will not feel afterwards, in times of
depression or alarm, that you are right, and they themselves are wrong.
Those who serve God faithfully have a friend of their own, in each
man's bosom, witnessing for them; even in those who treat them ill.
And I suppose no young person has been able, through God's mercy, to
withstand the world's displeasure, but has felt at this time or that,
that this is so, and in a little time will, with all humility, have the
comfort of feeling it while he is withstanding the world.
But now supposing he has not had strength of mind to withstand the
world; but has gone the way of the world. Suppose he has joined the
multitude in saying and doing what he should not. We know the
careless, thoughtless, profane habits which most men live in, making
light of serious subjects, and being ashamed of godliness and virtue;
ashamed of going to church regularly, ashamed of faith, ashamed of
chastity, ashamed of innocence, ashamed of obedience to persons in
authority. Supposing a person has been one of these, and then through
God's grace repents. It often pleases God, in the course of His
Providence, to rouse men to reflection by the occurrences of life. In
such circumstances they certainly will have a severe trial to stand
against the world. Nothing is more painful in the case of such
persons, than the necessity often imposed upon them of acting contrary
to the opinion and wishes of those with whom they have till now been
intimate,--whom they have admired and followed. Intimacies have
already been formed, and ties drawn tight, which it is difficult to
sever. What is the person in question to do? rudely to break them at
once? no. But is he to share in sins in which he formerly took part?
no; whatever censure, contempt, or ridicule attaches to him in
consequence. But what, then, is he to do? His task, I say, is painful
and difficult, but he must not complain, for it is his own making; it
is the natural consequence of his past neglect of God. So much is
plain,--he must abstain from all sinful actions; not converse lightly
or irreverently where formerly he was not unwilling so to do; not spend
his time, as heretofore, in idleness or riot; avoid places whither he
is not called by actual duty, which offer temptation to sin; observe
diligently attendance on church; not idle away the Lord's Day in
vanity, or worse; not add to the number of his acquaintance any
thoughtless persons. All this is quite plain, and in doing this I know
he will incur the ridicule of his companions. He will have much to
bear. He must bear to be called names, to be thought a hypocrite, to
be thought to be affecting something out of the way, to be thought
desirous of recommending himself to this or that person. He must be
prepared for malicious and untrue reports about himself; many other
trials must he look for. They are his portion. He must pray God to
enable him to bear them meekly. He must pray for himself, he must pray
for those who ridicule him. He has deserved ridicule. He has nothing
to boast of, if he bears it well. He has nothing to boast of that he
incurs it. He has nothing to boast of, as if he were so much better
than those who ridicule him; he was once as they are now. He is now
just a little better than they are. He has just begun a new life. He
has got a very little way in it, or rather no way, nothing beyond
professing it; and he has the reproach of the world in consequence of
his profession. Well, let him see to it that this reproach is not in
vain, that he has a right to the reproach. Let him see to it that he
acts as well as professes. It will be miserable indeed if he incurs
the reproach, and yet does not gain the reward. Let him pray God to
perfect in him what He has begun in him, and to begin and perfect it
also in all those that reproach him. Let him pray for Christ's grace
to bear hardships in Christ's spirit; to be able to look calmly in the
world's face, and bear its frown; to trust in the Lord, and be doing
good; to obey God, and so to be reproached, not for professing only,
but for performing, not for doing nothing, but for doing something, and
in God's cause. If we are under reproach, let us have something to
show for it. At present, such a one is but a child in the Gospel; but
in time, St. Peter's words will belong to him, and he may appropriate
them. "This is thankworthy, if a man for conscience towards God endure
grief, suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it, if when ye be
buffeted for your faults ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do
well and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with
God."