DISCOURSE XIII.
MATT. vii. 21‒27.
_Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into
the kingdom of heaven: but he that doeth the will of my Father
which is in heaven.
Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not
prophesied in thy name? And in thy name have cast out devils?
And in thy name done many wonderful works?
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from
me, ye that work iniquity.
Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them,
I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a
rock.
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew,
and beat upon that house: and it fell not, for it was founded
upon a rock.
And every one that heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them
not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house
upon the sand:
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew,
and beat upon that house: and it fell, and great was the fall
of it._
1. OUR divine teacher having declared the whole counsel of God, with
regard to the way of salvation, and observed the chief hindrances
of those who desire to walk therein: now closes the whole with these
weighty words; thereby as it were setting his seal to his prophecy, and
impressing his whole authority on what he had delivered, that it might
stand firm to all generations.
2. For thus saith the Lord, that none may ever conceive, there is any
other way than this, _Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord,
shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. Many will say to me in that day,
Lord, Lord; have we not prophesied in thy name? And in thy name have
cast out devils? And in thy name done many wonderful works? And then
will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me ye that work
iniquity. Therefore every one that heareth these sayings of mine and
doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man which built his
house upon the sand. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and
the winds blew, and beat upon that house: and it fell, and great was
the fall of it._
3. I design in the following discourse, first, to consider the case
of him, who thus builds his house upon the sand: secondly, To shew the
wisdom of him who builds upon a rock, and thirdly, To conclude with a
practical application.
I. 1. And, first, I am to consider the case of him who builds his house
upon the sand. It is concerning him our Lord saith, _Not every one that
saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven_.
And this is a decree which cannot pass: which standeth fast for ever
and ever. It therefore imports us in the highest degree, throughly to
understand the force of these words. Now what are we to understand by
that expression, _That saith unto me, Lord, Lord_? It undoubtedly means,
“that thinks of going to heaven by any other way than that which I have
now described.” It therefore implies, (to begin at the lowest point)
all good words, all verbal religion. It includes whatever creeds we
may rehearse, whatever professions of faith we make: whatever number
of prayers we may repeat, whatever thanksgivings we read or say to
God. We may speak good of his name; and declare his loving-kindness
to the children of men. We may be talking of all his mighty acts, and
telling of his salvation from day to day. By comparing spiritual things
with spiritual, we may shew the meaning of the oracles of God. We
may explain the mysteries of his kingdom, which have been hid from
the beginning of the world. We may speak with the tongue of angels
rather than men, concerning the deep things of God. We may proclaim to
sinners, _Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world_.
Yea, we may do this with such a measure of the power of God, and such
demonstration of his Spirit, as to save many souls from death, and hide
a multitude of sins. And yet ’tis very possible, all this may be no
more than _saying, Lord, Lord!_ After I have thus successfully preached
to others, still I myself may be a cast away. I may in the hand of God,
snatch many souls from hell, and yet drop into it, when I have done.
I may bring many others to the kingdom of heaven, and yet myself never
enter there. Reader, if God hath ever blest my word to _thy_ soul, pray
that he may be merciful to _me_ a sinner!
2. The _saying, Lord, Lord!_ may, secondly, imply, the doing no harm.
We may abstain from every presumptuous sin, from every kind of outward
wickedness. We may refrain from all those ways of acting or speaking,
which are forbidden in holy writ. We may be able to say to all those
among whom we live, Which of you convinceth me of sin? We may have a
conscience void of any external offence, towards God and towards man.
We may be clear of all uncleanness, ungodliness and unrighteousness, as
to the outward act: or (as the apostle testifies concerning himself,)
_touching the righteousness of the law_, i. e. outward righteousness,
_blameless_. But yet we are not hereby justified. Still this is no more
than _saying, Lord, Lord!_ And if we go no farther than this, we shall
never _enter into the kingdom of heaven_.
3. The _saying, Lord, Lord!_ may imply, thirdly, many of what are
usually stiled good works. A man may attend the supper of the Lord,
may hear abundance of excellent sermons, and omit no opportunity
of partaking all the other ordinances of God. I may do good to my
neighbour, deal my bread to the hungry, and cover the naked with a
garment. I may be so zealous of good works, as even to _give all my
goods to feed the poor_. Yea, and I may do all this, with a desire to
please God, and a real belief that I do please him thereby: (which is
undeniably the case of those our Lord introduces, _saying unto_ him,
_Lord, Lord!_) and still I may have no part, in the glory which shall
be revealed.
4. If any man marvels at this, let him acknowledge he is a stranger to
the whole religion of Jesus Christ: and in particular, to that perfect
portraiture thereof, which he has set before us in this discourse. For
how far short is all this, of that righteousness and true holiness,
which he has described therein! how widely distant from that inward
kingdom of heaven, which is now opened in the believing soul? Which
is first sown in the heart as a grain of mustard-seed, but afterwards
putteth forth great branches, on which grow all the fruits of
righteousness, every good temper and word and work.
5. Yet as clearly as he had declared this, as frequently as he had
repeated, That none who have not this kingdom of God within them, shall
enter into the kingdom of heaven: our Lord well knew, that many would
not receive this saying, and therefore confirms it yet again: _Many_,
(saith he; not one; not a few only; it is not a rare or an uncommon
case) _shall say unto me in that day_: not only, we have said many
prayers; we have spoken thy praise; we have refrained from evil; we
have exercised ourselves in doing good: but what is abundantly more
than this, _We have prophesied in thy name. In thy name have we cast
out devils; in thy name done many wonderful works. We have prophesied_:
we have declared thy will to mankind; we have shewed sinners the way to
peace and glory. And we have done this, _in thy name_, according to the
truth of thy gospel. Yea, and by thy authority, who didst confirm the
word, with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven. For _in_ or _by thy
name_, by the power of thy word and of thy Spirit, _have we cast out
devils_; out of the souls which they had long claimed as their own, and
whereof they had full and quiet possession. _And in thy name_, by thy
power, not our own, _have we done many wonderful works_: insomuch that
even _the dead heard the voice of the Son of God_ speaking by us, and
lived. _And then will I profess_ even _unto them, I never knew you_:
no, not then, when you were _casting out devils in my name_. Even then
I did not know you as my own: for your heart was not right toward God.
Ye were not yourselves meek and lowly, ye were not lovers of God and of
all mankind: ye were not renewed in the image of God. Ye were not holy
as I am holy. _Depart from me, ye_ who notwithstanding all this, are
_workers of iniquity_; ἀνομία. Ye are transgressors of my law, my law
of holy and perfect love.
6. It is to put this beyond all possibility of contradiction, that our
Lord confirms it by that apposite comparison. _Every one_, saith he,
_who heareth these sayings of mine and doth them not, shall be likened
unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand. And the rain
descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that
house_: as they will surely do, sooner or later, upon every soul of man;
even the floods of outward affliction, or inward temptation; the storms
of pride, anger, fear or desire. _And it fell and great was the fall
of it_: so that it perished for ever and ever. Such must be the portion
of all, who rest in any thing short of that religion which is above
described. And the _greater_ will their _fall_ be, because they _heard
those sayings, and_ yet _did them not_.
II. 1. I am, secondly, to shew the wisdom of him that doth them,
that _buildeth his house upon a rock_. He indeed is wise, _who doth
the will of my Father which is in heaven_. He is truly wise, whose
_righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees_.
He is poor in spirit; knowing himself even as also he is known. He sees
and feels all his sin, and all his guilt, till it is washed away by the
atoning blood. He is conscious of his lost estate, of the wrath of God
abiding on him, and of his utter inability to help himself, till he
is filled with peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. He is meek and gentle,
patient toward all men, _never returning evil for evil, or railing for
railing, but contrariwise blessing_, till he overcomes evil with good.
His soul is athirst for nothing on earth, but only for God, the living
God. He has bowels of love for all mankind, and is ready to lay down
his life for his enemies. He loves the Lord his God with all his heart,
and with all his mind and soul and strength. He alone shall enter into
the kingdom of heaven, who in this spirit doth good unto all men; and
who being for this cause despised and rejected of men; being hated,
reproached and persecuted, _rejoices and is exceeding glad_, knowing
in whom he hath believed; and being assured, these light, momentary
afflictions will _work out for him an eternal weight and glory_.
2. *How truly wise is this man! He knows himself: an everlasting spirit,
which came forth from God, and was sent down into an house of clay,
not to do his own will, but the will of him that sent him. He knows the
world; the place in which he is to pass a few days or years, not as an
inhabitant, but a stranger and sojourner, in his way to the everlasting
habitations: and accordingly he uses the world, as not abusing it, and
as knowing the fashion of it passes away. He knows God, his Father and
his Friend, the parent of all good, the center of the spirits of all
flesh, the sole happiness of all intelligent beings. He sees, clearer
than the light of the noon-day sun, that this is the end of man, To
glorify him who made him for himself, and to love and enjoy him for
ever. And with equal clearness he sees the means to that end, to the
enjoyment of God in glory, even now to know, to love, to imitate God,
and to believe in Jesus Christ whom he hath sent.
3. He is a wise man, even in God’s account; for _he buildeth his house
upon a rock_: upon the rock of ages, the everlasting rock, the Lord
Jesus Christ. Fitly is he so called; for he changeth not. He is _the
same yesterday, to-day, and for ever_. To him both the man of God of
old, and the apostle citing his words bear witness, _Thou, Lord, in
the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens
are the works of thine hands. They shall perish, but thou remainest;
they all shall wax old as doth a garment. And as a vesture shall thou
fold them up and they shall be changed: but thou art the same and thy
years shall not fail._ Heb. i. 10, 11, 12. Wise therefore is the man
who buildeth on him; who layeth him for his only foundation; who builds
only upon his blood and righteousness, upon what he hath done and
suffered for us. On this corner-stone he fixes his faith, and rests the
whole weight of his soul upon it. He is taught of God to say, Lord, I
have sinned: I deserve the nethermost hell. But I am _justified freely
by thy grace, thro’ the redemption that is in Jesus Christ. And the
life I now live, I live by faith in him, who loved me and gave himself
for me. The life I now live_: namely, a divine, heavenly life; a life,
which is _hid with Christ in God_. I now live even in the flesh, a
life of love, of pure love both to God and man: a life of holiness and
happiness, praising God and doing all things to his glory.
4. Yet let not such an one think, That he shall not see war any more,
that he is now out of the reach of temptation. It still remains, for
God to prove the grace he hath given: he shall be tried as gold in the
fire. He shall be tempted not less, than they who know not God: perhaps
abundantly more. For Satan will not fail to try to the uttermost,
those whom he is not able to destroy. Accordingly, _the rain_ will
impetuously _descend_: only at such times and in such a manner, as
seems good, not to the prince of the power of the air, but to him
_whose kingdom ruleth over all. The floods_, or torrents, _will come_;
they will lift up their waves and rage horribly. But to them also, the
Lord that sitteth above the water-floods, that remaineth a King for
ever, will say, _Hitherto shall ye come and no farther: here shall your
proud waves be stayed. The winds will blow and beat upon that house_,
as tho’ they would tear it up from the foundation. But they cannot
prevail: it falleth not: for it is founded upon a rock. He buildeth
on Christ by faith and love: therefore he shall not be cast down. He
_shall not fear, tho’ the earth be moved, and tho’ the hills be carried
into the midst of the sea. Tho’ the waters thereof rage and swell, and
the mountains shake at the tempest of the same_: still he _dwelleth
under the defence of the Most High, and is safe under the shadow of the
Almighty_.
III. 1. *How nearly then does it concern every child of man,
practically to apply these things to himself? Diligently to examine,
on what foundation he builds, whether on a rock or on the sand? How
deeply are _you_ concerned to inquire, what is the foundation of _my_
hope? Whereon do I build my expectation of entring into the kingdom
of heaven? Is it not built on the sand? Upon my _orthodoxy_ or right
opinions, (which by a gross abuse of words I have called _faith_!)
Upon my having a set of notions (suppose more rational or scriptural
than others have.) Alas! what madness is this? Surely this is building
on the sand: or rather on the froth of the sea! Say, I am convinced
of this. Am I not again building my hope on what is equally unable to
support it? Perhaps on my belonging to “so excellent a church: reformed
after the true scripture-model: blest with the purest doctrine, the
most primitive liturgy, the most apostolical form of government.” These
are doubtless so many reasons for praising God, as they may be so many
helps to holiness. But they are not holiness itself. And if they are
separate from it, they will profit me nothing. Nay, they will leave
me the more without excuse, and exposed to the greater damnation.
Therefore if I build my hope upon this foundation, I am still building
upon the sand.
2. You cannot, you dare not rest here. Upon what next will you build
your hope of salvation? Upon your innocence? Upon your doing no harm?
Your not wronging or hurting any one? Well; allow this plea to be true.
You are just in all your dealings: you are a downright honest man.
You pay every man his own: you neither cheat, nor extort: you act
fairly with all mankind. And you have a conscience towards God: you
do not live in any known sin. Thus far is well. But still it is not
the thing. You may go thus far, and yet never come to heaven. When all
this harmlessness flows from a right principle, it is the _least part_
of the religion of Christ. But in you it does not flow from a right
principle, and therefore is no part at all of religion. So that in
grounding your hope of salvation on this, you are still building upon
the sand.
3. Do you go farther yet? Do you add to the doing no harm, the
attending all the ordinances of God? Do you at all opportunities
partake of the Lord’s supper? Use public and private prayer? Fast
often? Hear and search the scriptures, and meditate thereon? These
things likewise ought you to have done, from the time you first set
your face towards heaven. Yet these things also are nothing, being
alone. They are nothing without the weightier matters of the law. And
those you have forgotten. At least you experience them not; faith,
mercy, and the love of God: holiness of heart: heaven opened in the
soul. Still therefore you build upon the sand.
4. *Over and above all this, are you zealous of good works? Do you, as
you have time, do good to all men? Do you feed the hungry and cloath
the naked, and visit the fatherless and widow in their affliction?
Do you visit those that are sick? Relieve them that are in prison?
Is any a stranger and you take him in? Friend, come up higher. Do you
_prophesy in the name_ of Christ? Do you preach the truth as it is in
Jesus? And does the influence of his Spirit attend your word, and make
it the power of God unto salvation? Does he enable you to bring sinners
from darkness to light, from the power of Satan unto God? Then go and
learn what thou hast so often taught, _By grace ye are saved thro’
faith. Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but of his
own mercy he saveth us._ Learn to hang naked upon the cross of Christ,
counting all thou hast done but dung and dross. Apply to him just in
the spirit of the dying thief, of the harlot with her seven devils.
Else thou art still on the sand, and after saving others, thou wilt
lose thy own soul.
5. *Lord! increase my faith, if I now believe! else, give me faith,
tho’ but as a grain of mustard-seed!――But _what doth it profit, if
a man says he hath faith, and have not works? Can_ that _faith save
him_? O no! That faith which hath not works, which doth not produce
both inward and outward holiness, which does not stamp the whole image
of God on the heart, and purify us as he is pure: that faith which
does not produce the whole of the religion described in the foregoing
chapters, is not the faith of the gospel, not the Christian faith,
not the faith which leads to glory. O beware of this, above all other
snares of the devil, of resting on unholy, unsaving faith! if thou
layest stress on this, thou art lost for ever: thou still buildest thy
house upon the sand. When _the rain descends and the floods come, it_
will surely _fall, and great_ will be _the fall of it_.
6. *Now therefore, build thou upon a rock. By the grace of God, know
thyself. Know and feel, that thou wast shapen in wickedness, and in sin
did thy mother conceive thee: and yet that thyself hast been heaping
sin upon sin, ever since thou couldst discern good from evil. Own
thyself guilty of eternal death: and renounce all hope of ever being
able to save thyself. Be it all thy hope, to be washed in his blood,
and purified by his Spirit, _who himself bore all thy sins, in his own
body upon the tree_. And if thou knowest he hath taken away thy sins,
so much the more abase thyself before him, in a continued sense of thy
total dependance on him for every good thought and word and work, and
of thy utter inability to all good, unless he _water thee every moment_.
7. Now weep for your sins, and mourn after God till he turns your
heaviness into joy. And even then weep with them that weep: and for
them that weep not for themselves. Mourn for the sins and miseries
of mankind: and see, but just before your eyes, the immense ocean of
eternity, without a bottom or a shore; which has already swallowed
up millions of millions of men, and is gaping to devour them that yet
remain. See here the house of God, eternal in the heavens; there, hell
and destruction without a covering. And thence learn the importance of
every moment, which just appears, and is gone for ever!
8. Now add to your seriousness, meekness of wisdom. Hold an even scale
as to all your passions, but in particular, as to anger, sorrow and
fear. Calmly acquiesce in whatsoever is the will of God. Learn in
every state wherein you are, therewith to be content. Be mild to the
good: be gentle toward all men; but especially toward the evil and the
unthankful. Beware not only of outward expressions of anger, such as
calling thy brother _Raca_, or thou fool! but of every inward emotion
contrary to love, tho’ it go no farther than the heart. Be angry at sin,
as an affront offered to the Majesty of heaven; but love the sinner
still: like our Lord, who _looked round about upon_ the Pharisees _with
anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts_. He was grieved
at the sinners, angry at the sin. Thus _be_ thou _angry and sin not_.
9. *Now do thou hunger and thirst, not for _the meat that perisheth,
but for that which endureth unto everlasting life_. Trample under
foot the world and the things of the world: all these riches, honours,
pleasures. What is the world to thee? Let the dead bury their dead:
but follow thou after the image of God. And beware of quenching that
blessed thirst, if it is already excited in thy soul, by what is
vulgarly called religion, a poor, dull farce, a religion of form, of
outside show, which leaves the heart still cleaving to the dust, as
earthly and sensual as ever. Let nothing satisfy thee but the power of
godliness, but a religion that is spirit and life; the dwelling in God
and God in thee; the being an inhabitant of eternity; the entering in
by the blood of sprinkling _within the veil_, and _sitting in heavenly
places with Christ Jesus_.
10. Now, seeing thou canst do all things thro’ Christ strengthening
thee, be merciful as thy Father in heaven is merciful. Love thy
neighbour as thyself. Love friends and enemies as thy own soul. And let
thy love be _long-suffering_, and patient towards all men. Let it be
_kind_, soft, benign: inspiring thee with the most amiable sweetness,
and the most fervent and tender affection. Let it _rejoice in the
truth_, wheresoever it is found, the truth that is after godliness.
Enjoy whatsoever brings glory to God, and promotes peace and good-will
among men. In love _cover all things_; of the dead and the absent
speaking nothing but good: _believe all things_, which may any way tend
to clear your neighbour’s character: _hope all things_, in his favour,
and _endure all things_, triumphing over all opposition. For true _love
never faileth_, in time or in eternity.
11. Now be thou _pure in heart_; purified thro’ faith from every unholy
affection, _cleansing thyself from all filthiness of flesh and spirit,
and perfecting holiness in the fear of God_. Being thro’ the power of
his grace, purified from pride by deep poverty of spirit, from anger,
from every unkind or turbulent passion, by meekness and mercifulness,
from every desire but to please and enjoy God, by hunger and thirst
after righteousness; now love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and
with all thy strength.
12. In a word. Let thy religion be the religion of the heart. Let it
lie deep in thy inmost soul. Be thou little and base, and mean and vile,
(beyond what words can express) in thy own eyes; amazed and humbled
to the dust, by the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. Be serious.
Let the whole stream of thy thoughts, words and actions flow from the
deepest conviction, that thou standest on the edge of the great gulph,
thou and all the children of men, just ready to drop in, either into
everlasting glory or everlasting burnings. Let thy soul be filled with
mildness, gentleness, patience, long-suffering towards all men: at
the same time that all which is in thee is athirst for God, the living
God; longing to awake up after his likeness, and to be satisfied with
it. Be thou a lover of God and of all mankind. In this Spirit do and
suffer all things. Thus shew thy faith by thy works: thus _do the will
of thy Father which is in heaven_. And as sure as thou now walkest with
God on earth, thou shalt also reign with him in glory.