+I. Is the object of the Gospel to promote.+--"Whereunto He hath
called you by our gospel."
+II. Is a conscious personal possession.+--"To the obtaining of the
glory."
+III. Is a sharing of the glory of Christ.+--"Of the glory of our
Lord Jesus Christ."
_What Saints should be._--In the cathedral of St. Mark, Venice, a
marvellous building lustrous with an Oriental splendour beyond
description, there are pillars said to have been brought from
Solomon's temple; these are of alabaster, a substance firm and
endurable as granite, and yet transparent, so that the light glows
through them. Behold an emblem of what all true pillars of the Church
should be--firm in their faith and transparent in their character;
men of simple mould, ignorant of tortuous and deceptive ways, and yet
men of strong will, not readily to be led aside or bent from their
uprightness.--_Spurgeon._
_MAIN HOMILETICS OF VERSE_ 15.
_Christian Steadfastness._
In all ages the people of God have been assailed with the weapons of
a subtle and plausible philosophy which has sought to supplant the
simple truth of the Gospel with human opinions. The evil heart of man
chafes under the righteous restrictions of the truth, and in its
angry and delirious opposition has sought to rid itself of God and of
all the laws that bind it to a life of obedience and holiness. And
when it fancies it has succeeded in demolishing the truths it hated
and against which it rebelled, it is aghast at the desolation it has
wrought and recoils in alarm from the dark, horrible gulf to the
brink of which it has forced itself. Stricken with bewilderment and
despair, man strives to construct a religion for himself, and he
seeks to substitute his own wild ravings for the truths of Divine
revelation. It is the attempt of a bold, impious infidelity to put
error in the place of truth, philosophy in the place of religion,
human opinion in the place of God. The exhortation of this verse is
always timely.
+I. Christian steadfastness is an important and ever-present
duty.+--1. _It is_ _necessary to growth and maturity in personal
piety._ Trees must grow or die. So it is with piety; it must grow or
perish. No plant or tree can thrive that is being perpetually plucked
up and transplanted; nor can the soul prosper unless it is
steadfastly rooted in the soil of truth. Darwin describes a marine
plant--the _Macrocystis pyrifera_--that rises two hundred feet from
the depths of the Western Ocean and floats for many fathoms on the
surface, uninjured among the waves and breakers, which no masses of
rock, however hard, can long withstand. It maintains its strength by
clinging tenaciously to the rocks far down below the surface of the
sea. So personal piety grows and flourishes by maintaining a firm
hold of the Rock of Ages.
2. _It is necessary in bearing witness for Christ._--The value of a
lighthouse or a landmark to the mariner is, that he can rely on
always finding it in the same place. And the value of a Christian
testimony is that it is not erratic and changeful, but stable and
reliable: it hesitates not to witness for Christ in any place. Fifty
years ago at a dinner-party in the west end of London, the
conversation was dishonouring to Christ. One guest was silent, and
presently asked that the bell might be rung. On the appearance of the
servant he ordered his carriage, and with polished courtesy
apologised to his host for his enforced departure, saying, _for I am
still a Christian._ This gentleman was the late Sir Robert Peel.
3. _It is a stimulating example to the weak and faltering._--There
are timid, feeble followers of Christ who, until they become well
grounded, lean on others; and if their exemplars vacillate and
change, so do they. Few have the courage to break away from a
pernicious example. When travelling on the Continent, Dr. Duff made
the acquaintance of Cardinal Wiseman, and for some time travelled
with him; but when at Antwerp he saw the cardinal prostrate himself
before the Virgin, he courteously but firmly bade him "good-bye."
+II. Christian steadfastness is shown in an unflinching maintenance
of apostolic doctrine.+--"Hold the traditions which ye have been
taught, whether by word, or our epistle." These traditions were the
doctrines preached by the apostles. For some years after the
ascension of Christ, there was no written Gospel or epistle. The
truth was taught orally by those who were living witnesses of the
facts on which the doctrines--or traditions--were based.
1. _Apostolic doctrine must be clearly apprehended._--It must
therefore be diligently studied, and the truth sifted from the mass
of errors with which false teachers surround it. What is not
intelligently comprehended cannot be firmly held.
2. _Apostolic doctrine must be earnestly embraced._--Not simply
discussed, not simply admired and praised, but prayerfully and
cordially accepted--taken in as spiritual food, and systematically
fed upon to give strength and stamina to the soul.
3. _Apostolic doctrine must be firmly held and stoutly defended
against all errors._--"Hold the traditions." Believe them when
tempted to disbelieve; defend them when assailed by the enemy. A
brave Athenian, who wrought deeds of valour in the battle of
Marathon, seized with his right hand a stranded galley filled with
Persians. When his right hand was cut off, he seized the boat with
his left, and when that was smitten, he held on with his teeth till
he died. The grasp of truth by a Christian believer should not be
less tenacious than the dogged heroism of a heathen warrior.
+III. Christian steadfastness is emphatically enforced.+--"Therefore,
brethren, stand fast." Though misunderstood and misrepresented,
though savagely opposed by the enemies of the truth, stand fast. As
the wings of the bird are strengthened by the resistance of the
atmosphere in which it floats, so your graces will be strengthened by
the opposition with which you resolutely contend. In order that your
own personal piety may be matured, that your witnessing for Christ
may be unmistakable, and that your example may be a stimulating
encouragement to others, "stand fast, and hold the traditions which
ye have been taught."
+Lessons.+--1. _The unstable are the prey of every passing
temptation._ 2. _The Word of God is the unfailing source of moral
strength._
_MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.--Verses_ 16, 17.
_Prayer an Expression of Ministerial Anxiety._
The apostle had warned the Thessalonians of the errors that were
becoming rife among them. Indeed, the existence of these errors, and
the grave injury they threatened to the faith of the new converts,
prompted him to write these epistles--the first in a series of
magnificent apostolic polemics. The apostle knew that if the
simplicity of the Gospel was vitiated at the beginning of its
world-wide mission, unspeakable disaster would ensue, as the
checkered history of the Church in the early centuries unhappily
proved. Hence his anxiety, not only to clearly state, but with all
his resources of logic and persuasion, resolutely to defend the
cardinal principles of the Gospel. He not only argues but prays.
These verses teach that _prayer is the expression of ministerial
anxiety._
+I. It recognises the need of spiritual consolation.+--"Now our
Lord . . . comfort your hearts" (vers. 16, 17). You have sorrowed
over the loss of friends and harassed yourselves as to their
condition in another world. I have pointed out to you that your fears
were groundless (1 Thess. iv. 13-18). Now, I commend you God as the
Source and Giver of all consolation and pray that He may specially
comfort you. "It is God's presence," says Burroughs, "that
constitutes the saint's morning. As the stars may impart some light,
and yet the brightness of all combined cannot form the light of day,
but when the sun appears there is day forthwith, so God may make some
comfort arise to a soul from secondary and inferior means; but it is
He Himself alone who, by the shining of His face and the smiles of
His countenance, causes morning." A comfort that is made up of our
fancies is like a spider's web that is weaved out of its bowels and
is gone and swept away with the turn of a besom.
+II. It recognises the perils that beset the path of
obedience.+--"And establish you in every good word and work" (ver.
17)--or, according to the Revised Version, "every good _work and
word._" Work is better than speech, deeds more eloquent than words,
though both are necessary. The best safeguard against temptation is
to be employed. "The busy man is tempted by one devil, the idle man
by a thousand." The force of gunpowder is not known till some spark
falls on it; so the most placid natures do not reveal the evil that
is in them till they are assailed by some fierce and sudden
temptation. Excellence in anything can only be reached by hard work;
so stability in grace is attained only by being diligently engaged in
God's service. Steadfastness is not dull quiescence: it is
self-absorbing activity. If you would be strong, you must work.
+III. It recognises the Divine source of all spiritual
help.+--1. _That this help is the outcome of Divine love._ "Our Lord
Jesus Christ Himself and God even our Father, which hath loved us"
(ver. 16). God helps because He loves. His love evokes the best and
noblest in us, as the master-musician brings out melodies from an
instrument that inferior players have failed to produce.
"Love is a passion
Which kindles honour into noblest acts."
"O let Thy love constrain us
To give our hearts to Thee;
Let nothing henceforth pain us
But that which paineth Thee.
"Our joy, our one endeavour,
Through suffering, conflict, shame,
To serve Thee, gracious Saviour,
And magnify Thy name."
2. _That this help meets every possible exigency of the Christian
life._--"And hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope
through grace" (ver. 16). The consolation refers to everything in the
present, the good hope to everything in the future. The consolation
is constant, _everlasting,_ as flowing from inexhaustible sources,
and is ever available in all the changes and needs of life; and the
hope turns our fears into confidence and our sorrows into joy. When
the frail barques of the Portuguese went sailing south, they found
the sea so stormy at the southern point of Africa that they named it
the Cape of Storms; but after it had been well rounded by bolder
navigators, they named it the Cape of Good Hope. So, by the Divine
help afforded us, many a rough cape of storms has been transformed
into a cape of good hope. All spiritual help is given "through
grace"--the free, unmerited favour of God--and is therefore a fitting
subject of prayer.
+Lessons.+--1. _Every minister should be emphatically a man of
prayer._ 2. _Prayer for others has a reflex benefit on the
suppliant._ 3. _An anxious spirit finds relief and comfort in prayer._
_GERM NOTES ON THE VERSES._